Objective: Epidemiological studies have reported inconsistent findings for the association between sleep duration and metabolic syndrome. We aimed to clarify the effects of short and long sleep durations on metabolic syndrome in adults by performing a meta-analysis.Methods: Adopting random-effects models, this study analyzed the effects of short and long sleep durations based on data from prospective cohort studies and cross-sectional studies retrieved from four electronic databases from inception to May 2020.Results: We collected data from 235,895 participants included in nine prospective cohort studies and 340,492 participants included in 27 cross-sectional studies. In cohort studies, short sleep duration was associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome (RR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.05–1.25, I² = 63.1%, P < 0.001) compared with normal sleep duration. While long sleep duration was not associated with new-onset metabolic syndrome (RR, 1.02, 0.85–1.18, I² = 38.0%, P = 0.491). In cross-sectional studies, both short (OR, 1.06, 95% CI, 1.01–1.11, I² = 66.5%, P < 0.001) and long (OR, 1.11, 95% CI, 1.04–1.17, I² = 73.8%, P < 0.001) sleep durations were associated with a high prevalence of metabolic syndrome.Conclusions: Only a short sleep duration was associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome. Future studies should address whether the association is casual and modifiable.

Aim: To investigate the role of Sam50, a barrel protein on the surface of the mitochondrial outer membrane, in cerebral ischemia–reperfusion (I/R) injury and its underlying mechanisms.Methods: A middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO/R) model in adult male Sprague–Dawley rats was established in vivo, and cultured neurons were exposed to oxygen–glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) to simulate I/R injury in vitro. Lentiviral vector encoding Sam50 or Sam50 shRNA was constructed and administered to rats by intracerebroventricular injection to overexpress and knockdown Sam50, respectively.Results: First, after MCAO/R induction, the mitochondrial structure was damaged, and Sam50 protein levels were increased responsively both in vivo and in vitro. Then, it was found that Sam50 overexpression could reduce infarction size, inhibit neuronal cell death, improve neurobehavioral disability, protect mitochondrial structure integrity, and ameliorate mitochondrial dysfunction, which was induced by I/R injury both in vivo and in vitro. However, Sam50 downregulation showed the opposite results and aggravated I/R injury by inducing neuronal cell death, neurobehavioral disability, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Moreover, we found that the interaction between Sam50 and Mic19 was broken off after OGD/R, showing that the Sam50–Mic19–Mic60 axis was breakage in neurons, which would be a reason for mitochondrial structure and function abnormalities induced by I/R injury.Conclusion: Sam50 played a vital role in the protection of neurons and mitochondria in cerebral I/R injury, which could be a novel target for mitochondrial protection and ameliorating I/R injury.

Intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis (ICAS) is a significant cause of ischemic stroke. Traditional imaging methods have their own advantages and disadvantages in the diagnosis of ICAS. Hemodynamic analysis technology, as a new technique and method based on conventional imaging examinations, when combined with traditional imaging, can more comprehensively assess the hemodynamic status of ICAS patients, providing a new direction for the diagnosis and research of ICAS. This review provides an overview of the traditional imaging techniques currently used to diagnose ICAS, including transcranial Doppler ultrasound (TCD), computed tomography angiography (CTA), magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging, and digital subtraction angiography (DSA). The unique characteristics of each method are elaborated. In addition, examples of hemodynamic analysis applications based on these traditional imaging techniques are discussed. This article summarizes and reviews the prospects and limitations of ICAS hemodynamic analysis and proposes potential directions for future research. As a recently developed clinical evaluation method for ICAS, hemodynamic analysis techniques have demonstrated significant potential in various aspects of ICAS, including clinical diagnosis, etiological exploration, treatment selection, and recurrence prediction. It is hoped that the method of hemodynamic analysis will ultimately be incorporated into the treatment guidelines for ICAS patients, paving new ways for the diagnosis and treatment of ICAS.

Background: Intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis (ICAS) is a primary cause of ischemic stroke. Accurate assessment of anatomical and hemodynamic characteristics is crucial for treatment planning, yet current clinical evaluation primarily relies on luminal stenosis.Objective: This study aims to compare computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models based on digital subtraction angiography (DSA), computed tomography angiography (CTA) and CTA model incorporating DSA hemodynamic information (CMD) integrating DSA flow data with CTA morphological structure, evaluating their differences and consistency in ICAS assessment.Methods: 40 ICAS patients who underwent CTA and DSA were retrospectively included. Patient-specific CFD simulations were performed using standardized boundary conditions to assess morphological data and hemodynamic parameters, including pressure ratio, wall shear stress ratio, and high shear stress areas. Statistical analyses included paired comparisons, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), and Bland–Altman analysis.Results: CTA-based models demonstrated excellent consistency with DSA in anatomical measurements (ICC > 0.90). The CMD approach enhanced consistency in functional metrics, with CMD-derived PR and WSSR highly concordant with DSA results. When using CTA alone, WSSR was slightly underestimated, particularly in middle artery lesions. Subgroup analysis indicated that lesion location significantly influences flow and shear stress patterns.Conclusion: CTA-based CFD modeling serves as a reliable non-invasive alternative to DSA for morphological ICAS assessment. The CMD method further improves the accuracy of functional evaluation by integrating flow data. These findings support the integration of anatomical imaging with hemodynamic modeling to enhance the clinical potential for stroke risk stratification.