Stress and Health
November 22, 2013
Xinghua Liu, Wei Xu, Yuzheng Wang et al.
72 citations
A randomized controlled trial tested whether mindfulness training enhances inner peace in people without mental disorders. Fifty-seven participants were assigned to either mindfulness training or a wait-list control. Inner peace was measured using the experience sampling method, along with attentional focus via the Meditation Breath Attention Score and self-reported mindfulness via the Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. Mindfulness training increased scores for inner peace, attentional focus, and self-reported mindfulness compared to the control group. However, changes in inner peace were not explained by changes in self-rated mindfulness or attentional focus. The findings suggest mindfulness training can improve inner peace, though only immediate effects were examined.
Analytical Chemistry
February 11, 2025
Yun Wu, Mei Li, Ruidong Liu et al.
6 citations
A new portable mass spectrometry device, PDRA-LTP-ITMS, can detect illicit drugs in saliva or urine within 5 seconds using only 10 microliters of sample. The method improves sensitivity up to 10-fold compared to some other techniques and achieves detection limits for MDMA, MDA, methamphetamine, amphetamine, ketamine, and cocaine ranging from 4.5 to 20 picograms per microliter in saliva, meeting Chinese national standards. The device's performance approaches that of a high-end laboratory mass spectrometer, offering a rapid on-site tool for identifying drug-impaired drivers.
Consciousness and Cognition
June 1, 2026
Liang He, Zhige Zhang, Yuetan Wang et al.
The neural basis of conscious visual experience was investigated by combining magnetoencephalography with report and no-report masking paradigms. Early and sustained neural responses in occipital and temporal cortices began at about 60-70 milliseconds after a stimulus appeared, encoding stimulus presence and category regardless of whether participants reported what they saw. These posterior regions also showed enhanced alpha-band recurrent coupling for visible stimuli. Prefrontal cortex activity emerged only when explicit report was required, starting at about 100 milliseconds, and did not represent categorical content when reporting was absent. Long-range fronto-posterior connectivity increased selectively during report. The findings indicate that posterior cortical dynamics are sufficient to support perceptual awareness, while prefrontal cortex contributes to report-related access and global integration, supporting posterior-centered accounts of phenomenal consciousness.
Addictive behaviors
January 1, 2026
Ran Ma, Xingzhe Wu, Wei Xu
Brief mindfulness meditation can increase the enjoyment of alcohol in healthy young adults who are not addicted, without increasing how much they actually drink. Across two randomized trials with 67 and 89 participants respectively, a 16-minute mindfulness induction led to significantly higher subjective alcohol enjoyment and greater positive affect, along with reduced negative emotion, compared to a neutral control task. However, mindfulness did not change the amount of alcohol consumed, nor did it alter implicit attitudes toward alcohol versus tea. The findings suggest that mindfulness may intensify sensory and emotional responses to alcohol without boosting consumption, possibly because reward sensitivity and behavioral impulse are dissociated. This highlights the need to align mindfulness practices with specific motivational and regulatory goals to avoid unintended reinforcement of substance-related pleasure in non-addicted populations.
Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters
October 1, 2010
David Y W Lee, Lu Yang, Wei Xu et al.
Salvinorin A, the main active ingredient of Salvia divinorum, is a potent and selective κ opioid receptor (KOPR) agonist. Researchers synthesized a series of C-2 halogenated analogs of salvinorin A as molecular probes to investigate the binding pocket at the C-2 position, particularly the effects of α versus β configuration. Binding and functional studies showed that β isomers generally bind better than α isomers, except for iodinated analogs. None of the C-2 halogenated analogs improved KOPR binding affinity compared to the parent compound. Functional assays characterized one analog, 6b, as a partial agonist with a maximum effect of 46% of the full agonist U50,488H at 250 nM. Affinity to the kappa receptor increased with atomic radius (I>Br>Cl>F), consistent with halogen bonding interactions.
Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters
March 1, 2009
Lu Yang, Wei Xu, Feng Chen et al.
Salvinorin A, the main active ingredient of Salvia divinorum, is a potent and selective kappa-opioid receptor agonist. A series of C-12 triazole analogs and an oxadiazole analog were synthesized and tested for binding affinity at kappa, mu, and delta opioid receptors. Surprisingly, all triazole analogs showed negligible binding affinity at opioid receptors, and the oxadiazole analog, previously reported as a mu and kappa opioid receptor antagonist, exhibited very low affinities and no antagonism in the binding assays. These results suggest that electronic factors affecting either the electron density of a hydrogen bond acceptor at C-12 or hydrophobic interactions between the C-12 moiety and the kappa-opioid receptor are critical for C-12 analog affinity.