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The morbidity of free fibula flap (FFF) in pediatric patients has gained attention. Thus, we aimed to evaluate donor-site morbidity after FFF harvesting in pediatric patients and its relationship with age. A systematic literature search of databases for cross-sectional studies related to pediatric donor-site morbidity after FFF harvesting was performed. Two independent reviewers evaluated relevant article titles and abstracts to extract data regarding donor-site morbidity from each article. Fifteen studies were included in the meta-analysis that evaluated the rate of complications. Individual cases of ankle instability were divided into the 0–13- and 13–17-year-old groups. The Chi-square test was used to compare ankle instability between both groups. A logistic regression model was created to analyze the relationships between age and ankle instability/claw toe. Sixteen English articles published between 2007 and 2021 were included in the systematic review. Information on morbidities of 294 cases in which FFF was used was collected. The mean incidence rate of complications, instability, claw toe, and nerve injury were 19.3%, 12.9%, 5.9%, and 5.1%, respectively. Bivariate analysis showed that age was significantly correlated with the incidence of ankle instability but not with the incidence of claw toe. The Chi-square test showed that the incidence rate of ankle instability between the age groups was significantly different. Therefore, we recommend 14 years of age as a new predictive factor for ankle instability. Nevertheless, there is limited evidence in this field, and more pediatric research is needed to clarify these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poly(l-lactic acid) (PLLA), recognized as a promising substitute for petroleum-based polymers, has garnered significant attention for its various advantages. However, the practical application of PLLA is limited by its poor toughness. This study introduces a novel approach, using a graft copolymer, poly(vinyl alcohol)-graft-poly(l-lactic acid) (PVA-g-PLLA), synthesized through a "grafting to" method to enhance the compatibility of PLLA/PVA blends. It is demonstrated that even though the graft copolymer promotes crystallization, the resultant ternary blends, especially with a mass ratio of 7:3:1, exhibited an 88.7 % elongation at break, representing a 1642 % improvement over pure PLLA and a 576 % increase over binary PLLA/PVA blends. In addition, incorporating PVA-g-PLLA significantly enhanced the toughness of the PLLA/PVA blends without sacrificing strength, thermal stability, or transparency. Remarkably, the Vicat softening temperature of the blends with a 7/3/1.5 ratio increased to about 94.4 °C, substantially higher than the 59.9 °C observed in PLLA/PVA blends. These findings suggest that the newly developed copolymer and the ternary blends hold substantial promise for creating biodegradable materials that do not compromise performance. It suggests a promising future for these materials in various applications where enhanced durability, thermal stability, and environmental sustainability are crucial. The Ternary Blends Exhibit Superior Toughness Without Compromising Mechanical Strength. [Display omitted] • Proposed a facile method to synthesize poly(vinyl alcohol)-graft- poly(L-lactic acid) copolymer. • Graft copolymer PVA-g-PLLA promotes the crystallization of PLLA. • Optimal concentrations of the PVA-g-PLLA enhance the miscibility of PLLA/PVA. • Developed highly-toughened PLLA/PVA/PVA-g-PLLA blends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the development of Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) technology has attracted significant attention, particularly in the acquisition and application of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. Most pertinent studies have utilized EEG to monitor neural activity states. Given that EEG does not provide direct insights into the physical states of body structures, many researchers have refrained from employing EEG to assess structural body states such as Body Mass Index (BMI). This study, for the first time, employs portable EEG detection devices combined with machine learning algorithms such as Logistic Regression (LR), Naive Bayes (NB), and Support Vector Machine (SVM) to process EEG features, enabling the application of EEG in identifying BMI. We collected EEG data from three different states: resting state, free imagination, and viewing pictures. The results demonstrate that these EEG signals can effectively differentiate subjects with higher BMI. Particularly under visual stimulation, EEG features exhibited optimal performance when subjects viewed images of high-calorie foods, with the model achieving an average accuracy of 80% and an F1 score of 75%. From the perspective of frequency bands, within a single frequency band, the β band performed notably well in classification. However, the model constructed by integrating features from various frequency bands yielded the best classification performance. These comprehensive paradigms are expected to fill the current research gap in the application of EEG and provide new methodological perspectives for further studies. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regulation of the redox system by branched-chain amino acid transferase 1 (BCAT1) is of great significance in the occurrence and development of diseases, but the relationship between BCAT1 and subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is still unknown. Ferroptosis, featured by iron-dependent lipid peroxidation accompanied by the depletion of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), has been implicated in the pathological process of early brain injury after subarachnoid hemorrhage. This study established SAH model by endovascular perforation and adding oxyhemoglobin (Hb) to HT22 cells and delved into the mechanism of BCAT1 in SAH-induced ferroptotic neuronal cell death. It was found that SAH-induced neuronal ferroptosis could be inhibited by BCAT1 overexpression (OE) in rats and HT22 cells, and BCAT1 OE alleviated neurological deficits and cognitive dysfunction in rats after SAH. In addition, the effect of BCAT1 could be reversed by the Ly294002, a specific inhibitor of the PI3K pathway. In summary, our present study indicated that BCAT1 OE alleviated early brain injury EBI after SAH by inhibiting neuron ferroptosis via activation of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway and the elevation of GPX4. These results suggested that BCAT1 was a promising therapeutic target for subarachnoid hemorrhage. [Display omitted] • This study established SAH model by endovascular perforation and adding oxyhemoglobin (Hb) to HT22 cells and delved into the mechanism of BCAT1 in SAH-induced ferroptotic neuronal cell death. It was found that SAH-induced neuronal ferroptosis could be inhibited by BCAT1 overexpression (OE) in rats and HT22 cells, and BCAT1 OE alleviated neurological deficits and cognitive dysfunction in rats after SAH. In addition, the effect of BCAT1 could be reversed by the Ly294002, a specific inhibitor of the PI3K pathway. In summary, our study provides the first evidence demonstrating that BCAT1 alleviates EBI after SAH through inhibiting neuronal ferroptosis and protects short-term and long-term cognitive function post-SAH. In addition, the effects BCAT1 exerts may be related to ferroptosis inhibition and PI3K/AKT/mTOR/GPX4 signaling pathway activation. These findings provide valuable insights into the pathogenesis and therapeutic target of SAH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]