Brain and Behavior最新文献

Objectives

The current study aimed to examine the relationship between traumatic events and eating disorders (EDs), as well as the moderating effect of selected sociodemographic factors (educational level, gender, region, and age) within the Palestinian context.

Methods

Participants of the current study were 580 adults, including 320 males and 260 females, who were recruited online using convenience sampling techniques.

Findings

Results of the correlational analysis revealed that traumatic events positively correlated with restraint eating (r = 0.41, p < 0.01), eating concern (r = 0.42, p < 0.01), weight concern (r = 0.43, p < 0.01), shape concern (r = 0.46, p < 0.01), and EDs total (r = 0.40, p < 0.01). Results of hierarchical regression revealed that EDs were predicted by both sociodemographic variables and traumatic events (β = 0.44; p < 0.01).

Conclusion

The findings open the door for further research to better understand how the variables in this study correlate with one another. This would allow for the development and implementation of effective clinical interventions aimed at reducing EDs by promoting positive coping strategies for dealing with traumatic events, with support from mental health professionals.

Background

Cognitive impairment is a growing concern worldwide, driven by an aging population. Emerging evidence suggests that micronutrients may play critical roles in maintaining cognitive health and preventing neurodegeneration. However, the causal relationships between specific micronutrients and cognitive function remain unclear.

Methods

This study employed a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach to investigate the causal effects of 16 circulating micronutrients on cognitive function. Genetic variants associated with micronutrient levels were used as instrumental variables (IVs), and cognitive outcomes, including reaction time, cognitive performance, prospective memory, and fluid intelligence, were assessed using publicly available genome-wide association study (GWAS) datasets. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate heterogeneity, pleiotropy, and robustness of the findings.

Results

MR analysis revealed potential positive effects of β-carotene and phosphorus on reaction time, reflecting faster cognitive responses. Vitamin E was positively associated with cognitive performance, while vitamin B6 had a negative effect. Selenium was positively correlated with fluid intelligence, whereas elevated vitamin A1 levels were associated with reduced fluid intelligence. No significant associations were observed for other micronutrients across the cognitive domains assessed.

Conclusion

This study highlights the roles of specific micronutrients, like β-carotene, phosphorus, selenium, and vitamin E, in cognitive health, while excessive vitamin A1 and B6 may be harmful, warranting further investigation.

Objective

This study aimed to explore the potential association between neuroticism and lung cancer.

Methods

We conducted analyses on publicly accessible aggregated data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) that included individuals of European descent. The objective was to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) significantly associated with neuroticism and utilize them as instrumental variables in a two-sample Mendelian randomization framework to evaluate the gender-specific causal link between neuroticism and lung cancer risk.

We applied four statistical methods: Inverse variance weighting (IVW), weighted median, MR-Egger regression, and weighted mode. Our analysis also considered the mediating effect of educational attainment on this relationship.

Results

We selected 67 SNPs associated with neuroticism at genome-wide significance levels from GWAS datasets. Our primary findings using IVW suggest a notable increase in lung cancer risk associated with neuroticism across the general population (odds ratio [OR] = 1.175; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.020–1.354, p = 0.026). Gender-specific analysis revealed that neuroticism posed a slight but significant risk increase in men (OR = 1.006; 95% CI 1.000–1.012, p = 0.045) and women (OR = 1.005; 95% CI 1.002–1.009, p = 0.002), with findings corroborated by the additional statistical methods. Further, evidence from both observational and Mendelian randomization analyses suggests that genetically predicted neuroticism is causally associated with a modestly increased risk of incident lung cancer, with ∼17% of this effect mediated by educational attainment.

Conclusions

The results from this Mendelian randomization study provide robust evidence supporting a potential association between neuroticism and an increased risk of lung cancer. This association appears more pronounced in men than women. Additionally, educational level serves as a mediator in the nexus between these conditions, suggesting that interventions aimed at increasing educational attainment might mitigate some of the risk neuroticism poses for developing lung cancer.

Purpose:

To analysis the basic characteristics, comorbidities and prognosis of elderly patients with Late-Onset Epilepsy (LOE) in the Eastern Region of Hefei, Anhui.

Methods:

This study finally selected 304 participants who were enrolled at the Second People's Hospital of Hefei between January 2018 and December 2023. The analysis included baseline characteristics, etiology, seizure types, findings from electroencephalography (EEG) and cranial magnetic resonance imaging, comorbidities, anti-seizure medication (ASM) regimens, and follow-up of seizure control outcomes within one year. Continuous variables were presented as mean ± standard deviation (SD) or median (IQR) based on normality. Categorical variables were compared using the chi-square test with Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons.

Results:

According to our study, ischemic cerebral infarction (41.12%) was the main factor for LOE in elderly patients among structural factors. Focal seizure (92.76%) was the main seizure type. The most common comorbidity was ischemic cerebral infarction (88.16%), followed by cerebral hemorrhage (22.37%). During the one year follow-up, the overall effectiveness of seizure control was 73.03%, and 49.34% patients were seizure-free. The one-year treatment efficacy of patients with comorbid psychiatric disorders, cognitive impairment or dementia were significantly lower than that of patients without these comorbidities. In terms of medications, sodium valproate accounted for the most at 86.84%.

Conclusion:

Structural factors are the main etiology for LOE in elderly patients, with ischemic cerebral infarction accounting for the highest proportion. Focal seizure was the main seizure type. Patients with comorbid psychiatric disorders, cognitive impairment or dementia may have poor one-year treatment efficacy.

Background

The treatment surgery for hemorrhagic stroke typically involves a puncture drainage procedure to remove the hematoma. However, the puncture targets for puncture and the puncture trajectory significantly influence the therapeutic outcome. This study proposes a computational framework integrating artificial intelligence (AI)-driven segmentation, principal component analysis (PCA), and empirical optimization to automate puncture path generation.

Methods

A software platform named Puncture Trajectory ToolKits (PTK) was developed using C++/Python with ITK/VTK libraries. Key innovations include hybrid segmentation that combines ResNet-50 deep learning and adaptive thresholding for robust hematoma detection. PCA-based longest axis extraction was enhanced by Laplacian mesh smoothing. Skull quadrant theory and safety corridor modeling were used to avoid critical structures. Five complex clinical cases were used to validate the framework's performance.

Results

The framework demonstrated high accuracy in puncture trajectory planning, with the optimized L2 path achieving a mean surgeon satisfaction score of 4.4/5 (Likert scale) compared to manual methods. The average angle difference between automatically generated and manually designed paths was 16.36°. These results highlight PTK's potential to enhance the efficiency and safety of robotic-assisted neurosurgery.

Conclusion

PTK establishes a systematic pipeline for trajectory planning assistance, demonstrating technical superiority over conventional methods. The high acceptance rate among surgeons and improved planning efficiency underscore its clinical applicability. Future integration with robotic systems and validation through clinical trials are warranted.

Background

Poststroke depression (PSD) is a common complication following a stroke, but the risk factors for its onset remain controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of PSD and its relationship with stroke sites to provide more evidence for the early identification of high-risk patients with PSD.

Methods

This retrospective clinical study recruited acute ischemic stroke patients and assessed them for 2 weeks after the onset. Blood samples were collected from the patients upon admission for routine blood tests and blood biochemical analysis. Stroke patients with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th edition (DSM-V) depressive diagnosis were rated for severity using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD), as measured by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). Stroke prognosis was measured by the Modified Rankin Scale (mRS).

Results

A total of 192 stroke patients were evaluated. Two weeks after the stroke, 73 patients developed depression, and the incidence of PSD was 38.02%. The proportion of depression composition after 2 weeks was as follows: 63 cases were mild depression, accounting for 91.8%; 6 cases were moderate depression, accounting for 8.2%. In univariate analysis, red blood cell (RBC) count, thalamic infarction, mRS score, and mini-mental state examination (MMSE) score were identified as risk factors associated with the occurrence of PSD. Multivariate logistic regression analysis further confirmed that RBC count, mRS score, and MMSE score were significantly correlated with PSD development.

Conclusion

This study suggests that patients with thalamic infarction and TOAST type I stroke should receive increased clinical attention. RBC count, high mRS scores, and high MMSE scores are three independent risk factors for PSD occurrence.

Objective

Approximately 45.0% of patients who have type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) exhibit mild cognitive impairment (MCI). However, the specific alternations in T2DM with MCI (T2DM-MCI)-related brain functional networks (BFN) remain unclear. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the alterations in the topological properties of BFN in T2DM patients with and without MCI, utilizing a cortical surface-based graph theory analysis of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data.

Methods

Neuropsychological performance and topological properties of BFNs were determined in 64 T2DM-MCI patients, 58 T2DM patients without MCI (T2DM-noMCI), and 78 healthy controls (HC). Moreover, we conducted the correlation and stepwise multiple linear regression analysis.

Results

The T2DM-MCI group showed increased global efficiency and decreased shortest path length compared to T2DM-noMCI. In the left posterior cingulate, the T2DM-MCI group exhibited higher nodal efficiency compared to the T2DM-noMCI group. Additionally, both degree centrality and nodal efficiency in the T2DM-noMCI group were significantly lower than in the HC. Degree centrality and nodal efficiency in the left basal ganglia were elevated in both T2DM groups. Alterations in these regions were related to cognitive function scores.

Conclusion

The alterations in nodal properties of the left basal ganglia suggest that nodal attributes in this region may be involved in the neurophysiopathological mechanisms of brain injury in T2DM. Conversely, the alterations of nodal efficiency in the left posterior cingulate gyrus indicate its potential as a neuroimaging biomarker of cognitive impairment in T2DM patients.