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Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the interobserver and intraobserver reliability of quantitative corneal subbasal nerve plexus (CSNP) analyses using semi-automated software. Patients and Methods: Forty volunteers who applied to the Ophthalmology Department of the Necmettin Erbakan University Meram Faculty of Medicine between 20 December 2021 and 20 January 2022 were enrolled in the study. Images showing CSNP were obtained from the right eyes of the participants by using Heidelberg Retina Tomograph III with Rostock Cornea Module. Three best quality images were selected from each case. NeuronJ plugin for ImageJ software was used to trace nerve fibers and calculate nerve fiber length (NFL), nerve fiber density (NFD), and nerve branch density (NBD). All these measurements were performed by two different observers, and repeated for the second time by one of the observers with an interval of one week, and interobserver and intraobserver reliability were determined using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: The mean age of 40 participants (12 female and 28 male) was 34.70±5.86 years. The ICCs for interobserver reproducibility were 0.967 (95% CI 0.939-0.982) for NFL, 0.826 (95% CI 0.696-0.904) for NFD, and 0.949 (95% CI 0.906-0.973) for NBD indicating good to excellent reliability. The ICCs for intraobserver repeatibility were 0.964 (95% CI 0.932-0.981) for NFL, 0.803 (95% CI 0.657-0.891) for NFD, and 0.890 (95% CI 0.802-0.941) for NBD indicating good to excel lent reliability. Conclusion: Quantitative CSNP analyzes using semi-automated software have high interobserver and intraobserver reliability and can therefore be used in both clinical practice and clinical studies for detection and follow-up of corneal nerves' well-being, damage, and evaluation of response to treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PurposeInvestigate the correlation and agreement between the results of semiautomated and fully automated quantitative analysis of the corneal sub-basal nerve plexus (SNP) in patients with dry eye disease (DED) with ocular pain using in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM).MethodA total of 50 voluntary participants were enrolled in this study, i.e., 25 DED patients with ocular pain and 25 healthy controls. Each patient underwent an evaluation of ocular symptoms that utilized: the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI), the Ocular Pain Assessment Survey (OPAS), the tear film breakup time (TBUT) test, the Schirmer test, corneal staining, and IVCM. Five SNP images of the cornea of each eye were selected and analyzed using a semiautomated analysis software (NeuronJ) and a fully automated method (ACCMetrics) to quantify corneal nerve fiber density (CNFD), corneal nerve branch density (CNBD), and corneal nerve fiber length (CNFL).ResultsThe intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of the CNFD (0.460 [0.382–0.532], p < 0.001), CNBD (0.608 [0.545–0.665], p < 0.001), and CNFL (0.851 [0.822–0.875], p < 0.001) represents the repeatability and consistency of measurements by the NeuronJ and ACCMetrics software. The CNFL values (r = 0.881, p < 0.001) obtained using the two methods have extremely high correlation, and similarly, the CNFD values (r = 0.669, p < 0.001) and CNBD values (r = 0.703, p < 0.001) are highly correlated. The CNFL had the biggest area under the curve (AUC; 0.747 [0.700–0.793], p < 0.001) when using ACCMetrics. In DED patients with ocular pain, the mean CNFD values for semiautomated and fully automated quantization were 23.5 ± 8.1 and 23.8 ± 8.6 n/mm2; the mean CNBD values were 46.0 ± 21.3, 35.7 ± 23.3 n/mm2; and the mean CNFL values were 19.3 ± 4.3 and 15.2 ± 3.8 mm/mm2, which were significantly lower than healthy subjects (p < 0.001).ConclusionThere is a significant correlation between the measurements obtained via ACCMetrics and NeuronJ, especially for CNFL, which can be considered as the primary indicator in the diagnosis of DED with ocular pain. The SNP of the disease was significantly lower than that of healthy subjects.

• The therapeutic effect of NGF on PTSD and underlying cytological mechanism was not fully elucidated so far. • Feng et al reported that NGF treatment ameliorated the modified single prolonged stress induced PTSD-like symptoms. • NGF prevented the impaired hippocampal cytoarchitectures via the TrkA-ERK-CREB pathway. Although exogenous nerve growth factor (NGF) demonstrated great potential for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment, its therapeutic effect and underlying cytological mechanism were not fully elucidated so far. We employed a controlled, prospectively designed modified single prolonged stress mice model to investigate the role of exogenous NGF on the modified single prolonged stress induced PTSD-like symptoms and hippocampal cytoarchitecture impairment, as well as the potential neuronal signaling modulation. We discovered that the modified single prolonged stress-exposure induced significant PTSD-like symptoms as well as mildly impaired hippocampal Cornu Ammonis 1 (CA1) subregion cytoarchitecture, but not dentate gyrus neurogenesis, together with a gradual inhibition of TrkA-CREB-ERK signalings in hippocampal CA1 subregion. NGF treatment dose-dependently ameliorated the modified single prolonged stress induced PTSD-like symptoms. NGF increased the cytoplasm/nucleus ratio and improved the neuronal plasticity, mainly via the TrkA-ERK-CREB pathway. Our study offered the translational evidence for the potential application of exogenous NGF for treating or early preventing PTSD after stress exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proper organization and function of the mammalian nervous system relies on neuronal processes or "neurites," extended morphological projections that include axons and dendrites. Tau is a structural microtubule-associated protein that is widely expressed in the nervous system that mediates the establishment of cell polarity, neurite outgrowth, and axonal transport. A useful model for studying the establishment and maintenance of these neuronal structures are rat neuronal PC12 cells, which can be induced to express tau and project neurites by treating the cells with nerve growth factor. Here, we present a simple method for continuously measuring the rate of neurite outgrowth and retraction over time by neurite length and neurite area analyses. This method uses freely available ImageJ software and widely available phase-contrast imaging., (© 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)