Diabetes is often accompanied by dyslipidemia. Lipid control is very important in the management of diabetes. There are limited real world data on the lipid control in diabetic inpatients in ...southwest China.
An observational study was conducted to assess the characteristics of lipid profiles and lipid control. Diabetic patients from February 2009 to December 2013 at West China Hospital of Sichuan University were identified.
A total of 56,784 inpatients were included and 85.9% of them had at least one lipid panel. The proportions of inpatients with optimal low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) level (< 2.59 mmol/L), optimal triglyceride (TG) level (< 1.70 mmol/L), optimal high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level (men ≥1.04 mmol/L; women ≥1.30 mmol/L) and optimal non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) level (< 3.37 mmol/L) were 61.1, 64.6, 49.9 and 64.5%, respectively. Only 23.1% of inpatients obtained optimal levels for all the above four lipid parameters. Of diabetic inpatients with ischemic heart disease, the proportions of inpatients with optimal LDL-C level (< 1.81 mmol/L), optimal TG level (< 1.70 mmol/L), optimal HDL-C level (men ≥1.04 mmol/L; women ≥1.30 mmol/L) and optimal non-HDL-C level (< 2.59 mmol/L) were 38.0, 66.3, 48.1 and 48.7%, respectively. Of diabetic inpatients with cerebrovascular disease, the proportions were 28.3, 64.8, 49.9 and 38.1%, respectively. Older people and men were more likely to obtain optimal lipid levels. However, inpatients between 46 and 64 years were least likely to obtain optimal LDL-C levels.
The lipid control of diabetic inpatients in southwest China is worrisome. Individualized strategies of lipid management should be taken to bridge the gap between the recommendations of clinical guidelines and the real situation of clinical practice.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Transdermal drug delivery （TDD） can effectively bypass the first-pass effect. In this paper, ultrasound-facilitated TDD on fresh porcine skin was studied under various acoustic parameters, including ...frequency, amplitude, and exposure time. The delivery of yellow-green fluorescent nanoparticles and high molecular weight hyaluronic acid （HA） in the skin samples was observed by laser confocal microscopy and ultraviolet spectrometry, respectively. The results showed that, with the application of ultrasound exposures, the permeability of the skin to these markers （e.g., their penetration depth and concentration） could be raised above its passive diffusion permeability. Moreover, ultrasound-facilitated TDD was also tested with/without the presence of ultrasound contrast agents （UCAs）. When the ultrasound was applied without UCAs, low ultrasound frequency will give a better drug delivery effect than high frequency, but the penetration depth was less likely to exceed 200 p.m. However, with the help of the ultrasound-induced microbubble cavitation effect, both the penetration depth and concentration in the skin were significantly enhanced even more. The best ultrasound-facilitated TDD could be achieved with a drug penetration depth of over 600 p.m, and the penetration concentrations of fluorescent nanoparticles and HA increased up to about 4-5 folds. In order to get better understanding of ultrasound-facilitated TDD, scanning electron microscopy was used to examine the surface morphology of skin samples, which showed that the skin structure changed greatly under the treatment of ultrasound and UCA. The present work suggests that, for TDD applications （e.g., nanoparticle drug carriers, transdermal patches and cosmetics）, protocols and methods presented in this paper are potentially useful.
Abstract
A series of new multinary phosphide Zintl compounds, Ba
5
Ga
2
GeSnP
8
, Ba
5
Al
2
GeSnP
8
, Ba
5
Ga
6
GeP
12
, and Ba
5
Ga
6
SnP
12
, have been synthesized through high‐temperature Pb or Sn ...flux reactions. The structures of the compounds, which have been determined by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction, feature two different new structural types bearing various polyanion chain fragments. Ba
5
Tr
2
GeSnP
8
(
Tr
= Al, Ga) crystallize in the monoclinic
C
2/
m
(No. 12) space group with cell parameters:
a
= 16.8211(10)/16.7586(21) Å,
b
= 6.0115(4)/6.0867(8) Å,
c
= 9.5873(6)/9.5983(12) Å,
β
= 111.9270(10)/112.1880(10)° for the Al‐ and Ga‐containing compounds, respectively. For Ba
5
Ga
6
Tt
P
12
(
Tt
= Ge, Sn), the compounds belong to a different orthorhombic system space group:
Cmcm
(No. 63) with the cell dimensions:
a
= 10.5222(6)/10.5802(9) Å,
b
= 16.2717(10)/16.3529(14) Å,
c
= 13.9093(8)/13.9643(12) Å for Ba
5
Ga
6
GeP
12
and Ba
5
Ga
6
SnP
12
. Despite the clear differences in the crystallographic parameters, these two types of structures are closely related through the
Tr
2
P
4
and
Tr
5
P
12
polyanion chains (
Tr
= triels) as well as the significant mixing between the triel and tetrel atoms. The close relationships between these phases and some previously reported analogues are also discussed in detail. Theoretical calculations based on DFT methods confirm the precise electron nature of these compounds, which are also consistent with results from crystallographic data and the optical absorption measurements.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
In recent years, membrane ultrafiltration （UF） of surface water for drinking water treatment has become a more attractive technology worldwide as a possible alternative treatment to conventional ...clarification. To evaluate the performance of ultrafiltration membranes for treatment of surface water in North China, a 48-m^2 low pressure hollow fiber membrane ultrafiltration pilot plant was constructed. Ultrafiltration was operated in cross-flow and with powdered activated carbon （PAC） adsorption. Turbidity was almost completely removed to less than 0.2 NTU （below Chinese standard 1 NTU）. It was found that PAC addition enhanced organic matter removal. The combined process of PAC/UF allowed to 41% removal of CODMn, 46% removal of DOC and 57% decrease in UV254 absorbance. The elimination of particles, from average 12000/ml in the raw water to approximately 15/ml in the permeated, was observed. When PAC concentration was below 30 mg/L, backwashing could recovery the membrane flux with backwash interval/backwashing duration of 1/30.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Objectives
To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Guipi Decoction (归脾汤, GPD) as an adjunctive in the treatment of depression.
Methods
A review of all relevant studies retrieved from a search of ...the following databases were conducted without any language restriction: Excerpt Medica Database (EMBASE), PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), VIP Information, Wanfang Data, and the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database. Papers published until February 2013 were taken into consideration. The analysis was performed using the Cochrane software Revman 5.1.
Results
Nine randomized controlled trials involving 620 patients with depression were included in this review. The meta-analysis revealed that compared with antidepressant therapy alone, treatment with a combination of GPD and an antidepressant drug signifificantly improved the symptoms of depression weighted mean difference (WMD):–3.09; 95% confifidence interval (CI):–4.11 to–2.07 and increased the rates of effectiveness (OR: 4.75; 95% CI: 2.66–8.51) as well as recovery (OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.17–2.56). The adverse effects of GPD were not found to be signifificant in these studies.
Conclusions
The fifindings of this meta-analysis were in keeping with the notion that GPD formulations were effective in the treatment of depression without causing any serious adverse effects. However, currently available evidence was of low quality and therefore inadequate to justify a strong recommendation of using GPD formulations in the management of depression.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
It is becoming increasingly recognized that weight and nutritional status can impact cancer survival. We have previously shown that obese mice with syngeneic acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have ...poorer response to chemotherapy treatment than control mice. We therefore investigated whether dietary intervention could improve outcome from the most common pediatric cancer, ALL.
Diet-induced obese (DIO) mice raised on a 60% calories from fat diet and control mice were implanted with syngeneic ALL cells. Some DIO mice were switched to the low-fat control diet. Survival from ALL was assessed without or with chemotherapy treatment starting at the time of the diet switch. Cells from DIO mice before and after diet switch were assessed by FACS for BrdU incorporation and phosphorylation status of AKT, S6K, and EIF2a. Similar experiments were done with human ALL xenografts. Mouse and human ALL cells were cultured in media with 10% or 5% fetal bovine serum, and sensitivity to chemotherapies assessed.
DIO mice had poorer survival (17%) after vincristine monotherapy than control mice on a 10% low fat diet (42%;
= 12/group;
= 0.09, log rank). However, switching obese mice to the low-fat diet prior to initiation of vincristine led to dramatically improved survival (92%,
< 0.01 vs both other groups). In vitro, FBS restriction made murine and human ALL cells more sensitive to vincristine. Interestingly, while serum restriction enhanced ALL sensitivity to dexamethasone and l-asparaginase, dietary switch did not improve survival of DIO mice treated with either drug in monotherapy. Thus, it appears that dietary intervention has a unique effect to improve ALL cell sensitivity to vincristine in vivo.
We report herein that a dietary intervention can improve ALL outcome in a preclinical model. Further work is needed to identify the mechanisms of this effect and investigate potential impact on human leukemia in patients.
A Gram-positive-staining, non-motile, rod- or coccoid-shaped actinobacterium, designated strain H17T, was isolated from a soil sample from Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, PR China. The organism grew ...optimally at 30 °C, pH 7.0 and with 3 % NaCl (w/v). Strain H17T contained L-Lys–D-Asp as the cell-wall peptidoglycan type and galactose, xylose and mannose as the whole-cell sugars. The major fatty acids were anteiso-C15 : 0 and iso-C15 : 0. The total polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, phospholipids, phosphatidylinositol, phosphoglycolipid, one unidentified glycolipid and one unidentified lipid. The menaquinone was MK9(H4). Mycolic acids were not detected. The DNA G+C content was 72.4 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis of this strain based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed 97.8–99.6 % similarity to recognized species of the genus Isoptericola. The low level of DNA–DNA relatedness to other species of the genus Isoptericola and the many phenotypic properties that distinguished strain H17T from recognized species of this genus demonstrated that isolate H17T should be classified as representing a novel species of the genus Isoptericola. The name Isoptericola nanjingensis sp. nov. is proposed for this novel species. The type strain is H17T ( = DSM 24300T = CCTCC AB 2011005T).
A Gram-stain-positive, rod-shaped, endospore-forming, aerobic bacterial strain, designated M327 ᵀ, was isolated from the weathered surfaces of rock (mica schist) from Susong, Anhui Province, PR ...China. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain M327 ᵀ belonged to the genus Paenibacillus and was related most closely to Paenibacillus terrigena A35 ᵀ (98.6 % similarity) and Paenibacillus selenitireducens ES3-24 ᵀ (98.3 %). Strain M327 ᵀ contained meso -diaminopimelic acid in the cell wall and MK-7 as the major menaquinone. The main fatty acids of strain M327 ᵀ were anteiso-C ₁₅ : ₀ and iso-C ₁₆ : ₀. The polar lipid profile contained diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, three unknown aminophospholipids and an unknown lipid. The total DNA G+C content of strain M327 ᵀ was 48.6 mol%. Based on the low level of DNA–DNA relatedness (ranging from 26.6 to 33.1 %) to these type strains of species of the genus Paenibacillus and unique phenotypic characteristics, it is suggested that strain M327 ᵀ represents a novel species of the genus Paenibacillus , for which the name Paenibacillus susongensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is M327 ᵀ (= CCTCC AB 2014058 ᵀ = LMG 28236 ᵀ = JCM 19951 ᵀ).
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to spread worldwide. However, it remains unknown whether individuals with prior SARS-CoV-1 infection are protected from ...SARS-CoV-2 infection. This study assessed protective antibody levels in SARS survivors with and without the COVID-19 vaccine.
We recruited 17 SARS survivors infected with SARS-CoV-1 in 2003, including 8 not vaccinated with the COVID-19 vaccine and 9 vaccinated with two doses of inactivated whole-virion COVID-19 vaccine (Sinopharm). In addition, 105 healthy adult volunteers without SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 infections were used as controls. The relative concentrations of three protective antibodies including anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike IgG (nCoV S-IgG), anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor-binding domain IgG (nCoV RBD-IgG), and anti-SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies (nCoV NAbs) were measured to evaluate humoral immunity.
We found that the positive rates of these antibodies in unvaccinated SARS survivors were 37.5%, 37.5%, and 62.5%, respectively. In contrast, the corresponding positive rates were all 0% in controls before vaccination. In controls, the levels of protective antibodies reached a peak ca. 28 days after the second dose of vaccine and then started to decline. Surprisingly, the levels of these antibodies were maintained at very high levels even 166 days after the second dose of vaccine in SARS survivors.
Our study suggests that there are protective antibodies cross-reacting with SARS-CoV-2 in recovered SARS patients and that SARS survivors can generate a much stronger antibody response induced by the COVID-19 vaccine than can controls. These initial findings show the feasibility of developing novel pan-sarbecovirus vaccines.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
The NRG1/ErbB4 signaling mechanism has been widely studied in the central nervous system for many years. However, the role of this pathway in modulating the intrinsic cardiac nervous system is ...largely unknown.
The present study investigated whether the NRG1/ErbB4 signaling system affects the activity of major atrial ganglionated plexi (GP) in a paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) model by 6-h rapid atrial pacing (RAP).
Twenty-four dogs were randomly divided into (1) a control group (saline microinjections into GP), (2) RAP group (saline microinjections into GP plus 6 h-RAP), (3) NRG1 group (microinjections of neuregulin-1 into GP plus 6 h-RAP) and (4) NRG1 + ERA group (microinjections of neuregulin-1 and ErbB4 receptor antagonist-ERA into GP plus 6 h-RAP). The effective refractory period (ERP), window of vulnerability (WOV), anterior right GP (ARGP) function and neural activity were measured. ARGP tissues were excised for histological study and western blotting.
When compared to the control group, 6 h-RAP produced a significant (1) decrease in ERP, an increase in ΣWOV, (2) an increase in ARGP neural activity and neural function, and (3) an increase in c-fos and nerve growth factor protein expression in the ARGP. However, microinjection of NRG1 into the ARGP prior to RAP prevented ERP shortening and AGRP activity enhancement and inhibited the expression of c-Fos and NGF proteins. Furthermore, these changes were significantly attenuated by pretreatment with an ErbB4 receptor antagonist.
The NRG1/ErbB4 signaling pathway may exist in the GP, and activation of this pathway suppressed RAP-induced GP activation, atrial electrical remodeling and AF.
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