近日，西安电子科技大学生命科学技术学院神经影像研究组秦伟副教授等人与成都中医药大学等单位合作的一篇有关功能性消化不良中枢机制的研究论文，被Gastroenterology杂志正式接收，该杂志2010年影响因子12.8，系胃肠疾病行业内世界顶级期刊。
据了解，功能性消化不良是一种伴有上腹部疼痛、早饱、恶心呕吐等症状的胃肠道周期性消化系统疾病，在我国的发病率高达20%。这种疾病虽然不会威胁人们的生命，但却严重影响日常生活质量，对它的诊断和治疗受到了欧美国家的广泛关注。由于其发病机理不明，至今西方医学界没有找到有效的治疗手段。
生命科学技术学院秦伟等人的论文《Abnormal Resting Brain Activity in Patients with Functional Dyspepsia is Related to Symptom Severity》，通过脑肠互动理论揭示了功能性消化不良的中枢机制，为临床治疗提供了客观依据，指出这种疾病可能是某些抑郁症的起因，建议及时治疗，而当前最有效的治疗手段就是采用中医针灸疗法。该论文是近几年来中医界发表的最高档次文章。
据介绍，我校生命科学技术学院神经影像研究组自成立以来，采用信息技术等交叉学科研究手段，分析探讨针刺机理的相关问题，近3年来在国际7种知名刊物共发表SCI论文23篇，总影响因子超过60，2011年荣获陕西省高校科学技术一等奖。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推荐原文出处：
Gastroenterology DOI：10.1053/j.gastro.2011.05.003
Fang Zeng, Wei Qin, Fanrong Liang， Jixin Liu, Yong Tang, Xuguang Liu, Kai Yuan, Shuguang Yu, Wenzhong Song, Mailan Liu, Lei Lan, Xin Gao, Yijun Liu and Jie Tian
Background & Aims
Abnormal processing of visceral sensation at the level of the central nervous system is believed to be involved in functional dyspepsia. However, compared with studies of stimulation-related changes in brain activity, few studies have focused on resting brain activity, which is also important in pathogenesis. We mapped changes in resting brain glucometabolism of patients with functional dyspepsia, compared with healthy subjects, attempted to correlate abnormal brain activity with symptom severity.
Methods
We performed fluorodeoxyglucose (18F) positron emission tomography computed tomography (PET-CT) on 40 patients with functional dyspepsia and 20 healthy subjects who were in resting states. The symptom index of dyspepsia (SID) and Nepean dyspepsia index (NDI) were used to determine symptom severity. The PET-CT data were analyzed using statistical parametric mapping software.
Results
Compared to healthy subjects, patients with functional dyspepsia had higher levels of glycometabolism in the bilateral insula, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), middle cingulate cortex (MCC), cerebellum, thalamus, prefrontal cortex, precentral gyrus, postcentral gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, superior temporal gyrus, putamen, right parahippocampal gyrus, claustrum, and left precuneus (P<.001). The signal increase in the ACC, insula, thalamus, MCC, and cerebellum was correlated with SID scores and NDI scores (P<.01). The glycometabolism in ACC, insula, thalamus, MCC, and cerebellum of patients with more severe functional dyspepsia were significantly higher than those of patients with less severe functional dyspepsia (P<.005).
Conclusions
In patients with functional dyspepsia, resting cerebral glycometabolism differs significantly from that of healthy subjects. The ACC, insula, thalamus, MCC, and cerebellum might be the key regions that determine the severity of symptoms.
Keywords: brain; neuroimaging; pain; stomach
