BACKGROUND: Bacillus amyloliquefaciens has excellent protease production ability and holds great prospects for application in the solid-state fermentation of soybean meal (SBM).
RESULTS: Among eight strains of bacteria, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens subsp. plantarum CICC 10265, which exhibited higher protease production, was selected as the fermentation strain. The protease activity secreted by this strain reached 106.41 U mL-1 . The microbial community structure differed significantly between natural fermentation and inoculation-enhanced fermented soybean meal (FSBM), with the latter showing greater stability and inhibition of miscellaneous bacterial growth. During fermentation, the temperature inside the soybean meal increased, and the optimal environmental temperature for FSBM was found to be between 35 and 40 °C. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis and nitrogen solubility index (NSI) results demonstrated that solid-state fermentation had a degrading effect on highly denatured proteins in SBM, resulting in an NSI of 67.1%.
CONCLUSIONS: Bacillus amyloliquefaciens subsp. plantarum CICC 10265 can enhance the NSI of SBM in solid-state fermentation and inhibit the growth of miscellaneous bacteria. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

UNASSIGNED: Voxel-Based Morphometry (VBM) and Source-Based Morphometry (SBM) are widely used techniques for analyzing structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) data. VBM compares differences in gray and white matter volume, density, or concentration voxel-wise, while SBM identifies patterns of structural variation using independent component analysis. This study aims to compare the performance of VBM and SBM in detecting differences in brain structure across Parkinson\'s patients and healthy controls, grouped based on their chronotype.
UNASSIGNED: Thirty-three subjects were divided into three groups: a Parkinson\'s Group (PG), an Early Chronotype Group (EG), and a Late Chronotype Group (LG). Circadian preference, daytime sleepiness, and sleep quality were assessed, and MRI data were acquired using a 3 T scanner. SBM and VBM were used to test differences and similarities in MRI scans and chronotypes.
UNASSIGNED: Results from SBM revealed significant clusters surviving the analysis, with the 1st component for the PG-EG and the 4th component for the PG-LG analysis showing the lowest p-value (< 0.05). Denser gray matter volume (GMV) or white matter volume (WMV) was observed in the Middle Frontal Gyrus and the Lentiform Nucleus through Talairach Coordinates analysis.
UNASSIGNED: This study emphasizes the importance of selecting appropriate methods for analyzing structural MRI data. VBM is effective in identifying local differences in brain structure, while SBM provides a more comprehensive view of structural variation, detecting patterns not captured by VBM. Future studies should consider utilizing both VBM and SBM to fully characterize brain structural differences in diverse clinical and cognitive populations. Further studies, with larger sample sizes and more balanced genders, genomic analysis, disease severity and duration, as well as medications\' effect, are warranted.

The examination of multivariate brain morphometry patterns has gained attention in recent years, especially for their powerful exploratory capabilities in the study of differences between patients and controls. Among the many existing methods and tools for the analysis of brain anatomy based on structural magnetic resonance imaging data, data-driven source-based morphometry (SBM) focuses on the exploratory detection of such patterns. Here, we implement a semi-blind extension of SBM, called constrained source-based morphometry (constrained SBM), which enables the extraction of maximally independent reference-alike sources using the constrained independent component analysis (ICA) approach. To do this, we combine SBM with a set of reference components covering the full brain, derived from a large independent data set (UKBiobank), to provide a fully automated SBM framework. This also allows us to implement a federated version of constrained SBM (cSBM) to allow analysis of data that is not locally accessible. In our proposed decentralized constrained source-based morphometry (dcSBM), the original data never leaves the local site. Each site operates constrained ICA on its private local data using a common distributed computation platform. Next, an aggregator/master node aggregates the results estimated from each local site and applies statistical analysis to estimate the significance of the sources. Finally, we utilize two additional multisite patient data sets to validate our model by comparing the resulting group difference estimates from both cSBM and dcSBM.

BACKGROUND: As a supplement for promoting hair health, Shi-Bi-Man (SBM) is a prescription comprising various traditional Chinese medicines. Though SBM has been reported to promote hair regeneration, its molecular mechanism remains unclear. Cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) are non-human primates with a gene expression profile similar to that of humans. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the effect of SBM on promoting hair regeneration in cynomolgus monkeys and to reveal the underlying mechanism.
METHODS: The effect of SBM on hair regeneration was observed by skin administration on 6 cynomolgus monkeys with artificial back shaving. The molecular mechanism of SBM was studied using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) in combination with quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) detection for gene transcription level, and immunofluorescence staining verification for protein level.
RESULTS: SBM significantly induced hair regeneration in cynomolgus monkeys, increased hair follicle number and facilitated hair follicle development. ScRNA-seq revealed an increase in the number of hair follicle stem cells (HFSCs) with a higher activation state, as evidenced by the higher expression of activation marker LDHA related to metabolism and the proliferation marker MKI67. Immunofluorescence analysis at the protein level and qPCR at the mRNA level confirmed the sequencing data. Cellchat analysis revealed an enrichment of ligand-receptor pairs involved in intercellular communication in Laminin-related pathways.
CONCLUSIONS: SBM significantly promotes hair regeneration in cynomolgus monkeys. Mechanically, SBM can up-regulate LDHA-mediated lactic acid metabolism and drive HFSC activation, which in turn promotes the proliferation and differentiation of HFSCs.

Under the background of green development, the spatial structure of urban agglomerations (UA) has an important impact on urban land use efficiency (ULUE), but few studies have explored the impact mechanism between the two. This research explores the impacts of polycentric development on ULUE of UA, using data for 140 cities in China\'s top ten key UA covering the period from 2004-2019. The linkage between polycentric development and ULUE is explored by estimating models of determinants of ULUE. This research also examines the mechanism of the polycentric spatial structure of UA on ULUE by using a moderated mediation model. The main findings of the research can be concluded as below. The eastern UAs show a mostly polycentric spatial structure, whereas the central and western UAs show a weak polycentric spatial structure. The polycentric spatial structure of UA has a positive impact on ULUE. An inverted U-shape curve depicts the relationship between the polycentric spatial structure of UA and ULUE. However, the mediating variables, integration of industrial structure and factor mobility have a positive and partially mediating effect between the polycentric spatial structure of UA and ULUE. The infrastructure level has a positive U-shaped regulation effect, in which the impact coefficient of transport infrastructure is more significant. These findings provide empirical evidence for the coordinated development of China\'s regional space planning and ULUE.

Longitudinal MRI studies are of increasing importance to document the time course of neurodegenerative diseases as well as neuroprotective effects of a drug candidate in clinical trials. However, manual longitudinal image assessments are time consuming and conventional assessment routines often deliver unsatisfying study outcomes. Here, we propose a profound analysis pipeline that consists of the following coordinated steps: (1) an automated and highly precise image processing stream including voxel and surface based morphometry using latest highly detailed brain atlases such as the HCP MMP 1.0 atlas with 360 cortical ROIs; (2) a profound statistical assessment using a multiplicative model of annual percent change (APC); and (3) a multiple testing correction adopted from genome-wide association studies that is optimally suited for longitudinal neuroimaging studies. We tested this analysis pipeline with 25 Alzheimer\'s disease patients against 25 age-matched cognitively normal subjects with a baseline and a 1-year follow-up conventional MRI scan from the ADNI-3 study. Even in this small cohort, we were able to report 22 significant measurements after multiple testing correction from SBM (including cortical volume, area and thickness) complementing only three statistically significant volume changes (left/right hippocampus and left amygdala) found by VBM. A 1-year decrease in brain morphometry coincided with an increasing clinical disability and cognitive decline in patients measured by MMSE, CDR GLOBAL, FAQ TOTAL and NPI TOTAL scores. This work shows that highly precise image assessments, APC computation and an adequate multiple testing correction can produce a significant study outcome even for small study sizes. With this, automated MRI processing is now available and reliable for routine use and clinical trials.

With the rising global concern over environment and energy issues, there are many scholars incorporating them into total factor productivity (TFP) analytical framework. This paper aims to outline the dynamic change trend and convergence characteristics of green total factor productivity (GTFP) of 14 sub-sectors in China\'s service industry. This is of great significance to the coordinated development and green transformation of sub-sectors of China\'s service industry. This paper commences to gauge and decompose GTFP of China\'s service industry by cutting-edge epsilon-based measure (EBM) generalizing slacks-based measure (SBM) and radial measure as well as Global Malmquist-Luenberger (GML) productivity index, and to examine the existence of convergence hypothesis in China\'s service industry. The core conclusions are as follows: (1) the average annual growth rate of GTFP in China\'s service industry is 1.00%, and there exists heterogeneity for GTFP in different sub-sectors; (2) there are phenomena of σ-convergence, absolute β-convergence, and conditional β-convergence in GTFP of China\'s overall service industry, producer service industry, and consumer-oriented service industry. The main policy suggestions include: increasing investment in green technology innovation of the service industry, formulating more effective industrial development planning and energy policies, and optimizing energy structure and industry structure of the service industry.

OBJECTIVE: To measure the changes in cerebral cortical thickness in patients with herpes zoster (HZ) and postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) by surface-based morphometry (SBM) and further estimate its correlation with clinical scores.
METHODS: Twenty-nine HZ patients, 30 PHN patients and 30 well-matched healthy controls (HCs) were included. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from all subjects were collected and then analyzed by SBM. The changes in cortical thickness among the HZ, PHN and HC groups were analyzed by ANOVA and correlated with clinical scores.
RESULTS: The thickness of the bilateral primary visual cortex (V1, V2) and right primary visual cortex (V3), left somatosensory cortex (L3A), right anterior cingulate gyrus and medial prefrontal cortex (RS32) increased in PHN group, and the thickness the left insular and frontal opercular cortex (LFOP4), left motor cortex (L3B), and right superior temporal visual cortex (RSTV) were decreased in the HZ and PHN groups compared to the HC group. The thickness measurements of RS32, LFOP4, and (L3B) in HZ and PHN patients were correlated with the duration of disease. In HZ and PHN patients, the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) and Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) scores were significantly positively correlated.
CONCLUSIONS: Changes in cortical thickness in the areas related to sensory, motor, and cognitive/emotional changes in patients with PHN affect the neuroplasticity process of the brain, which may be the reason for the transformation of HZ into PHN and provide a possible explanation for the neuropathological mechanism of pain persistence in PHN patients.

We aimed to delineate common principles of reorganization after infarcts of the subcortical vestibular circuitry related to the clinical symptomatology. Our hypothesis was that the recovery of specific symptoms is associated with changes in distinct regions within the core vestibular, somatosensory, and visual cortical and subcortical networks.
We used voxel- and surface-based morphometry to investigate structural reorganization of subcortical and cortical brain areas in 42 patients with a unilateral, subcortical infarct with vestibular and ocular motor deficits in the acute phase. The patients received structural neuroimaging and clinical monitoring twice (acute phase and after 6 months) to detect within-subject changes over time.
In patients with vestibular signs such as tilts of the subjective visual vertical (SVV) and ocular torsion in the acute phase, significant volumetric increases in the superficial white matter around the parieto-opercular (retro-)insular vestibular cortex (PIVC) were found at follow-up. In patients with SVV tilts, spontaneous nystagmus, and rotatory vertigo in the acute phase, gray matter volume decreases were located in the cerebellum and the visual cortex bilaterally at follow-up. Patients with saccade pathology demonstrated volumetric decreases in cerebellar, thalamic, and cortical centers for ocular motor control.
The findings support the role of the PIVC as the key hub for vestibular processing and reorganization. The volumetric decreases represent the reciprocal interaction of the vestibular, visual, and ocular motor systems during self-location and egomotion detection. A modulation in vestibular and ocular motor as well as visual networks was induced independently of the vestibular lesion site.

METHODS: Retrospective analysis of a registered cohort of patients treated and irradiated for metastases in the spinal column in a single institute.
OBJECTIVE: This is the first study to develop and internally validate radiomics features for predicting six-month survival probability for patients with spinal bone metastases (SBM).
BACKGROUND: Extracted radiomics features from routine clinical CT images can be used to identify textural and intensity-based features unperceivable to human observers and associate them with a patient survival probability or disease progression.
METHODS: A study was conducted on 250 patients treated for metastases in the spinal column irradiated for the first time between 2014 and 2016, at the MAASTRO clinic in Maastricht, the Netherlands. The first 150 available patients were used to develop the model and the subsequent 100 patient were considered as a test set for the model. A bootstrap (B = 400) stepwise model selection, which combines both the forward and backward variable elimination procedure, was used to select the most useful predictive features from the training data based on the Akaike information criterion (AIC). The stepwise selection procedure was applied to the 400 bootstrap samples, and the results were plotted as a histogram to visualize how often each variable was selected. Only variables selected more than 90 % of the time over the bootstrap runs were used to build the final model.A prognostic index (PI) called radiomics score (radscore) and clinical score (clinscore) was calculated for each patient. The prognostic index was not scaled, the original values were used which can be extracted from the model directly or calculated as a linear combination of the variables in the model multiplied by the respective beta value for each patient.
RESULTS: The clinical model had a good discrimination power. The radiomics model, on the other hand, had an inferior performance with no added predictive power to the clinical model. The internal imaging characteristics do not seem to have a value in the prediction of survival. However, the Shape features were excluded from further analyses in our study since all biopsies had a standard shape hence no variability.