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Panax notoginseng is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine, and dried flower buds of P. notoginseng (FBP) have also been used as a medicine or tea for a long time. The pharmacological effects of FBP include antihypertensive, anticancer, hepatoprotective, and cardiovascular protective effects. The compounds in FBP include saponins, flavonoids, volatile oils, and polysaccharides. The total saponins are the principal bioactive components. In modern applications, FBP is used to treat hypertension and tinnitus. There have been many studies on FBP and its effects in recent years, and it has attracted much attention in the medical field. This review summarizes the chemical components, pharmacological action, and clinical uses of FBP comprehensively to provide the references of deeper studies.

Objective: To study the effects of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and traditional thoracotomy on the systemic inflammatory response and stress response of traumatic hemopneumothorax. Methods: Patients who underwent emergency surgery due to traumatic hemopneumothorax in Chongzuo People's Hospital between May 2013 and April 2017 were selected as the research subjects, the history data were retrospectively analyzed, and the surgical methods were referred to divide the patients into the thoracoscope group and the thoracotomy group who received video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and traditional thoracotomy respectively. The serum samples were collected the same day after surgery and 3 d after surgery to determine the contents of acute phase proteins CRP, ChE and SAA, inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-1β, IFN-γ, MCP-1 and ICAM-1 as well as stress hormones Cor, NE, Ins and AT-II. Results: The same day after surgery and 3 days after surgery, serum CRP, ChE, SAA, TNF-α, IL-1β, IFN-γ, MCP-1, ICAM-1, Cor, NE, Ins and AT-II levels of thoracoscope group were all significantly lower than those of thoracotomy group. Conclusions: Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery for traumatic hemopneumothorax is more effective than traditional thoracotomy to relieve the postoperative systemic inflammatory response and stress response, and helps the postoperative recovery.

Vacuum preloading is a soft ground improvement method that has been successfully used by geotechnical engineers and specialists to accelerate the rate of consolidation. However, consolidation effic...

Background Panax notoginseng flower saponins (PNFS) are great contributions towards the biological activity of Panax notoginseng flower (PNF). However, some ginsenoside monomers can be hydrolyzed by the acidic environment in the stomach, resulting in a decrease in their oral bioavailability. Therefore, we created PNFS enteric-coated sustained-release pellets (E-PNFS) to improve their oral bioavailability. Methods The PNFS uncoated pellets (N-PNFS) and E-PNFS were prepared by fluidized bed coating technology using Eudragit NE30D as the sustained-release agent and Opadry as the enteric-coated agent. The single-factor investigation was used to determine the optimal prescription. The E-PNFS were visualized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and evaluated for roundness, bulk density, resting angle, hygroscopicity and stability. The plasma drug concentration in SD rats was determined by the UPLC-MS/MS method, and pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated by Phoenix WinNonlin5.2 software. The in vivo absorption fraction was calculated by Wagner-Nelson method The in vivo absorption and in vitro release percentages were linearly regressed by the least square method. Results According to the prescription screened out by the single factor investigation, E-PNFS was successfully prepared, and had good release properties in vitro along with a good measure for roundness, flowability and stability. Compared with N-PNFS, E-PNFS showed decreased Cmax, increased AUC, and an extended MRT and Tmax. Rb1, Rb2, Rb3 and Rc in E-PNFS showed a good correlation between in vitro release and in vivo absorption. Conclusions The successfully prepared E-PNFS were able to improve the oral bioavailability of PNFS in SD rats in general. The in vitro release behaviors of Rb1, Rb2, Rb3 and Rc in E-PNFS correlated well with the in vivo absorption properties.

Drought characteristics vary substantially among different climatic regions. Here in this study, wavelet analyses are used to characterize drought from monthly precipitation. The precipitation data are obtained from 6 fairly distributed stations across Western Jilin province (in China) for the period from 1957 to 2010. The calculated monthly Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) is used as a drought index. Morlet wavelet analysis shows multiple time-scales and significant cycles of drought exist in the study area. The cross wavelet approach was applied to see if there was a connection between monthly SPI time series and large scale climate indices, such as NINO3. The result shows that drought occurrence in the region is mainly influenced by medium and long-time climatic factors. However, different factors have degrees of influence at different stations.

A reservoir model is developed to characterize the functioning of the karst aquifer of the Jinci Spring. It is based on the relationship of the groundwater storage deficit and the groundwater level. The relationship is derived from the monitoring data of the aquifer. The model is verified with the monitoring data (1981-2006) and is used to predict the recovery of the Jinci Spring flow and the groundwater level in the aquifer under three exploitation schemes with the future rainfall data provided by the National Climate Center (NCC). The results show that the Jinci Spring will flow out again before 2050 under Scheme I and II. The Xuan Spring will flow out earlier than the Jinci Spring. However, both of the two springs cannot spout under Scheme III. The model takes account of the artificial recharge, pumping and coal mine drainage, and can simulate the spring discharge, karst groundwater level and the storage deficit accurately at an annual time scale. The model is suitable for macroscopic groundwater management.

Drought is a recurrent feature of the climate. It occurs in virtually all climatic zones, and its characteristics vary significantly among regions. The precipitation data are obtained from 6 fairly distributed stations across western Jilin province (in China) for the period from 1957 to 2010. The calculated monthly standardized precipitation index (SPI) is used as a drought index. SPI not only nicely reflects drought intensity and duration, but also has a multi-temporal scale application dimension. For the purpose of analyzing multiple meteorological drought time-scales, Morlet wavelet transforms of the station monthly SPI time-series are interpreted. The results show that some stations, such as Chang-Ling and Tong-Yu, have remarkably significant cycles in their respective wavelet power spectrum and variance. However, these significant cycles are not clearly noticeable in the other stations. Irrespective of the trend, time-scale and cycles generally influence drought characteristics in the study area.

To enhance our understanding of the dynamic characteristics of groundwater level in the western Jilin Province of China, two models of decomposition method in time series analysis, additive model and multiplicative model, are employed in this study. The data used in the models are the monthly groundwater levels of three wells observed from 1986 to 2011. Moreover, the analysis of three wells, located in the upper, middle and downstream of the groundwater flow path, helps to obtain the variation in each well and the mutual comparison among them. The final results indicate that the groundwater levels show a decreasing trend and the period of variation last for about 7 years. In addition, hydrographs of the three wells manifest the impacts of human behavior on groundwater level increases since 1995. Furthermore, compared with the autoregressive integrated moving average model, the decomposition method is recommended in the analysis and prediction of groundwater levels.