Zang YF papers

World J Gastrointest Surg. 2025 Nov 27;17(11):112341. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v17.i11.112341.

ABSTRACT

This letter presents a critical analysis of the study by Zhao et al, which proposed a therapeutic strategy for difficult common bile duct stones focusing on the "ice-breaking sign" as a pivotal radiological feature. Based on magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography with three-dimensional reconstruction, the diagnostic criteria for this sign were established by identifying an abrupt narrowing at the distal bile duct caused by impacted stones, analogous to the morphology of an ice-breaking vessel. Specifically, the proximal bile duct (hepatic hilar side) exhibited significant dilatation upstream of the stenosis, while the distal segment (duodenal papillary side) presented with stricture or occlusion. This study was the first to introduce the radiological marker termed the "ice-breaking sign", providing a novel dimension for the evaluation of refractory common bile duct stones. However, notable limitations were also present in this study. The interpretation of the ice-breaking sign depended largely on subjective assessments by physicians, even though a multidisciplinary consensus approach was employed. Objective quantification criteria, such as specific thresholds for the degree of stenosis, were not established. Furthermore, being a single-center study, it might have influenced the reproducibility of findings across different centers. Future studies should explore the pathophysiological mechanisms of the "ice-breaking sign" in greater depth, increase the sample size, and conduct multicenter research to validate its clinical universality and guiding significance for treatment strategies.

PMID:41357635 | PMC:PMC12679030 | DOI:10.4240/wjgs.v17.i11.112341

Transl Psychiatry. 2025 Nov 10. doi: 10.1038/s41398-025-03715-7. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Hemispheric lateralization, recognized as a pivotal feature in both the structural and functional organization of the human brain, may undergo alterations in specific psychiatric disorders. However, the time-varying patterns of hemispheric lateralization in individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) and the relationship between these patterns and gene expression profiles remain largely unexplored thus far. Using a large multi-site resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data encompassing 2611 participants (1660 MDD patients and 1341 healthy controls), we examined MDD-related abnormalities in dynamic laterality and its association with clinical symptoms, meta-analytic cognitive functions, and neurotransmitter receptor profiles, respectively. And the biological basis behind these changes was investigated through gene enrichment analysis and cell-specific analysis. Here we found revealed pronounced fluctuations in lateralization primarily in the regions in default mode network, attention network and control network in MDD patients when compared to healthy controls. In addition, these fluctuations exhibited significant correlations with higher-order cognition terms and the distributions of disease related neurotransmitters. Further, through gene enrichment and cell-specific analysis, we identified a molecular genetic basis for these changes, highlighting synaptic function-related genes and neuronal cells. Collectively, these results demonstrated robust altered brain lateralization patterns in MDD and its molecular genetic basis, providing new clues to understand the pathophysiology of MDD.

PMID:41257981 | DOI:10.1038/s41398-025-03715-7

Phys Life Rev. 2025 Aug 25;55:58-60. doi: 10.1016/j.plrev.2025.08.011. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:40884981 | DOI:10.1016/j.plrev.2025.08.011