Spatial and object working memory deficits in Parkinson's disease are due to impairment in different underlying processes.

Working memory maintenance processes for visual-spatial and visual-object information were evaluated in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). PD patients and controls performed a working memory task with two conditions that differed only in the aspect of the stimuli that the participant was instructed to remember: their locations or shapes. Maintenance processes were investigated by measuring accuracy over 1-s, 5-s, and 10-s delays. Results indicated that patients were impaired in maintaining object information over the delay. In contrast, the patients showed impairment on the spatial condition only when the to-be-remembered stimulus was highly similar in location to the probe, but this impairment was equivalent across the delays, suggesting that this deficit was not due to maintenance impairment. These results suggest that deficits in working memory for spatial and object information are mediated by distinct cognitive processes in nondemented patients with PD and may differ in their pathophysiological basis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Si3N4粉末表面的非均质成核法包覆及其浆料流变性的研究

在研究Ｓｉ３Ｎ４粉末表面包覆工艺及各因素影响规律的基础上,确定了非均质成核法对Ｓｉ３Ｎ４粉末表面包覆改性的最佳工艺范围。利用透射电镜,Ｘ射线粒度分布仪,粘度测定仪、ｚｅｔａ电位测定仪对包覆前后Ｓｉ３Ｎ４浆料进行了分析。结果表明：在最佳包覆工艺范围内,Ｓｉ３Ｎ４粉末表面均匀包覆一层Ａｌ（ＯＨ）３,并包覆后Ｓｉ３Ｎ４浆料的ｚｅｔａ电位发生明显变化,粒度分布更加均匀,流变性能得到明显改善。     

660 MW超临界机组凝汽器空化故障分析

660 MW超临界机组凝汽器(型号N-36600)在循环水系统调试过程中,出现噪声、水侧液位波动等异常现象,液位最大波动幅度达400 mm,现场通过逐步关小凝汽器回水阀门,提高凝汽器冷却管内压力,当进口水室压力达到0.106 MPa时,凝汽器水侧的噪声、液位波动等现象消失。结合空化初生理论分析,认为凝汽器内部发生了空化。标准与工程经验中确定虹吸利用高度时,基于水的饱和蒸汽压力,通常要求凝汽器最高点冷却管压力不低于20 kPa(绝压),而有关试验研究表明:清水的饱和蒸汽压力比空化初生压力低得多,即清水的绝对压力高于相应温度下的饱和蒸汽压力时,仍然可能发生空化,空化初生与水中的气态微核有直接关系。因此,在循环水系统水力计算中,虹吸利用高度的确定应充分考虑空化初生压力的影响,留出余量。并给出了处理建议,通过加高脱硫曝气池溢流堰的堰顶标高,提高凝汽器冷却管末端压力,是消除凝汽器空化现象最为经济合理的解决方案,有助于分析类似问题。     

晶核在高性能混凝土中作用机理的试验研究

本文在高性能混凝土中加入晶胚进行试验。通过调整晶胚的细胞和掺量。研究了晶胚对高性能混凝土的强度和耐久性影响的作用机理。结果表明,加入比表面积大干3000cm^2／g的晶胚。最佳掺量为10％时。影响了晶体的大小及分布形态,因而影响了混凝土的强度和耐久性,有力地促进了混凝土后期强度的增长。提高混凝土的抗折,抗压强度。     

Sex Differences in the Hypothalamic Oxytocin Pathway to Locus Coeruleus and Augmented Attention with Chemogenetic Activation of Hypothalamic Oxytocin Neurons

The tightly localized noradrenergic neurons (NA) in the locus coeruleus (LC) are well recognized as essential for focused arousal and novelty-oriented responses, while many children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit diminished attention, engagement and orienting to exogenous stimuli. This has led to the hypothesis that atypical LC activity may be involved in ASD. Oxytocin (OXT) neurons and receptors are known to play an important role in social behavior, pair bonding and cognitive processes and are under investigation as a potential treatment for ASD. However, little is known about the neurotransmission from hypothalamic paraventricular (PVN) OXT neurons to LC NA neurons. In this study, we test, in male and female rats, whether PVN OXT neurons excite LC neurons, whether oxytocin is released and involved in this neurotransmission, and whether activation of PVN OXT neurons alters novel object recognition. Using “oxytocin sniffer cells” (CHO cells that express the human oxytocin receptor and a Ca indicator) we show that there is release of OXT from hypothalamic PVN OXT fibers in the LC. Optogenetic excitation of PVN OXT fibers excites LC NA neurons by co-release of OXT and glutamate, and this neurotransmission is greater in males than females. In male, but not in female animals, chemogenetic activation of PVN OXT neurons increases attention to novel objects.     

Hippocampal and Reticulo-Thalamic Parvalbumin Interneurons and Synaptic Re-Organization during Sleep Disorders in the Rat Models of Parkinson’s Disease Neuropathology

We investigated the alterations of hippocampal and reticulo-thalamic (RT) GABAergic parvalbumin (PV) interneurons and their synaptic re-organizations underlying the prodromal local sleep disorders in the distinct rat models of Parkinson’s disease (PD). We demonstrated for the first time that REM sleep is a predisposing state for the high-voltage sleep spindles (HVS) induction in all experimental models of PD, particularly during hippocampal REM sleep in the hemiparkinsonian models. There were the opposite underlying alterations of the hippocampal and RT GABAergic PV+ interneurons along with the distinct MAP2 and PSD-95 expressions. Whereas the PD cholinopathy enhanced the number of PV+ interneurons and suppressed the MAP2/PSD-95 expression, the hemiparkinsonism with PD cholinopathy reduced the number of PV+ interneurons and enhanced the MAP2/PSD-95 expression in the hippocampus. Whereas the PD cholinopathy did not alter PV+ interneurons but partially enhanced MAP2 and suppressed PSD-95 expression remotely in the RT, the hemiparkinsonism with PD cholinopathy reduced the PV+ interneurons, enhanced MAP2, and did not change PSD-95 expression remotely in the RT. Our study demonstrates for the first time an important regulatory role of the hippocampal and RT GABAergic PV+ interneurons and the synaptic protein dynamic alterations in the distinct rat models of PD neuropathology.     

纯金属等温结晶中晶核漂移的遗传算法

建立纯物质等温结晶中晶核形核和长大规则,采用遗传算法模拟晶核形核长大及其漂移效应。模拟结果表明:晶核界面迁移轨迹符合结晶理论,晶核漂移随机无规;在0～335模拟步(GAS)区间,所有晶核的模拟平均漂移距离和模拟平均漂移系数与模拟步数的乘积有平方根关系,拟合模拟平均漂移系数为3.96×10-13m2/GAS;在晶粒度评定计量单元下推导出转变相同体积分数时实际晶核长大所需时间与模拟时晶核长大所需模拟步数之间的关系,在等温结晶且晶核长大平均速率为10-4m/s时,晶核模拟平均漂移系数约在3.09×10-10～3.50×10-8m2/s数量级。     

Efficient delivery of antitumor drug to the nuclei of tumor cells by amphiphilic biodegradable poly(L-aspartic acid-co-lactic acid)/DPPE co-polymer nanoparticles

The use of biodegradable polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) for controlled drug delivery has shown significant therapeutic potential. Polyaspartic acid and polylactic acid are the most intensively studied biodegradable polymers. In the present study, novel amphiphilic biodegradable co-polymer NPs, poly(L-aspartic acid-co-lactic acid) with 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DPPE) (poly(AA-co-LA)/DPPE) is synthesized and subsequently used to encapsulate an antitumor drug doxorubicin (DOX). The formulation parameters of the NPs are optimized to improve encapsulation efficiency. The resulting drug-loaded NPs possess better size homogeneity (polydispersity) and exhibit pH-responsive drug release profiles. Cellular viability assays indicate that the poly(AA-co-LA)/DPPE NPs did not induce cell death, whereas doxorubicin encapsulated NPs were cytotoxic to various types of tumor cells. In addition, the free NPs could not enter the cell nuclei after internalized in tumor cells. The DOX-loaded NPs exhibit efficient intracellular delivery in tumor cells with co-localization in lysosome and delay entering into the nucleus, which suggests a time- and pH-dependent drug release profile within cells. When applied to deliver chemotherapeutics to a mouse xenograft model of human lung adenocarcinoma, DOX-loaded NPs have a comparable antitumor activity with free DOX, and greatly reduce systemic toxicity and mortality. The delivery of cytotoxic drugs directly to the nucleus specifically within tumor cells is of great interest. These results demonstrate the feasibility of the application of the amphiphilic polyaspartic acid derivative, poly(AA-co-LA)/DPPE, as a nanocarrier for cell nuclear delivery of potent antitumor drugs.     

The role of the nucleus accumbens core in impulsive choice, timing, and reward processing.

The present series of experiments aimed to pinpoint the source of nucleus accumbens core (AcbC) effects on delay discounting. Rats were trained with an impulsive choice procedure between an adjusting smaller sooner reward and a fixed larger later reward. The AcbC-lesioned rats produced appropriate choice behavior when the reward magnitude was equal. An increase in reward magnitude resulted in a failure to increase preference for the larger later reward in the AcbC-lesioned rats, whereas a decrease in the larger later reward duration resulted in normal alterations in choice behavior in AcbC-lesioned rats. Subsequent experiments with a peak timing (Experiments 2 and 3) and a behavioral contrast (Experiment 4) indicated that the AcbC-lesioned rats suffered from decreased incentive motivation during changes in reward magnitude (Experiments 2 and 4) and when expected rewards were omitted (Experiments 2 and 3), but displayed intact anticipatory timing of reward delays (Experiments 2 and 3). The results indicate that the nucleus accumbens core is critical for determining the incentive value of rewards, but does not participate in the timing of reward delays. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)