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Abstract Considering the effect of SIRT1 on improving myocardial fibrosis and GAS5 inhibiting occurrence and development of myocardial fibrosis at the cellular level, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether LncRNA GAS5 could attenuate cardiac fibrosis through regulating mir-217/SIRT1, and whether the NLRP3 inflammasome activation was involved in this process. Isoprenaline (ISO) was given subcutaneously to the male C57BL/6 mice to induce myocardial fibrosis and the AAV9 vectors were randomly injected into the left ventricle of each mouse to overexpress GAS5. Primary myocardial fibroblasts (MCFs) derived from neonatal C57BL/6 mice and TGF-β1 were used to induce fibrosis. And the GAS5 overexpressed MCFs were treated with mir-217 mimics and mir-217 inhibitor respectively. Then the assays of expression levels of NLRP3, Caspase-1, IL-1β and SIRT1 were conducted. The findings indicated that the overexpression of GAS5 reduced the expression levels of collagen, NLRP3, Capase-1, IL-1β and SIRT1 in ISO treated mice and TGF-β1 treated MCFs. However, this effect was significantly weakened after mir-217 overexpression, but was further enhanced after knockdown of mir-217. mir-217 down-regulates the expression of SIRT1, leading to increased activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and subsequent pyroptosis. LncRNA GAS5 alleviates cardiac fibrosis induced via regulating mir-217/SIRT1 pathway.

BackgroundWith increasing gaps between the rich and poor, potential risk factors for class conflict have attracted increasing attention from researchers. Although cognitive factors are known to be significant predictors of class-conflict behavior, limited attention has been paid to competence stereotypes of the upper class. When considering economic inequality, people pay more attention to competence stereotypes of the upper class, which may have adverse effects. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between competence stereotypes held by the lower class about the upper class and class conflict, and to test the mediating role of intergroup envy in this relationship and the moderating role of upward social mobility belief.MethodsData were collected from a convenience sample from a comprehensive university in China. Based on scores on subjective and objective class scales, 284 lower-class college students (103 males and 181 females) aged 18–24 were selected to participate (both their subjective and objective scores were lower than 3 points). Their endorsement of upper-class competence stereotypes, intergroup envy, upward social mobility beliefs, and class conflict were measured using a well-validated self-report questionnaire.ResultsThe main data were analyzed using correlation analysis, the SPSS macro PROCESS (Model 7), and simple slope analysis. The results show a significant positive correlation between competence stereotypes held by lower-class college students toward the higher class and class conflict, and this connection was mediated by intergroup envy. Moreover, the indirect effect of intergroup envy on this link was moderated by upward social mobility beliefs; this effect was stronger for college students with lower upward social mobility beliefs.ConclusionThis study broadens our understanding of how and when competence stereotypes among the lower class concerning the upper class are related to class conflict. Researchers and policymakers should pay special attention to competence stereotypes of the upper class, especially intergroup envy and class conflict among lower-class individuals with lower levels of upward social mobility beliefs.

The stigma of social networks may be more noticeable in collectivist societies like China, but research in this area has largely been overlooked due to a lack of reliable measurement. To address this gap, this study tested the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Perceptions of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Help (PSOSH) scale in the Chinese general population, and tested its invariance across gender and prior therapy experience. In a national online survey, 640 adults completed the PSOSH and conceptually related scales: Self-stigma of Seeking Help (SSOSH), Stigma of Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale (SSPPH, i.e., public stigma) and Attitudes toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale-Short Form (ATSPPH-SF). Confirmatory factor analysis supported the unidimensional structure of the original PSOSH. The Cronbach’s α coefficient was 0.84 and the 3-week test–retest reliability of was 0.77. The PSOSH showed moderate correlations with the three conceptually related scales, supporting its concurrent validity. Importantly, the PSOSH significantly predicted self-stigma scores, even when considering demographic variables and public stigma, supporting its incremental validity. The scale also demonstrated scalar invariance across gender and across subgroups who had vs. did not have previous therapy experience, supporting comparisons of latent means across these groups. The PSOSH is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing social network stigmatization of professional help-seeking in Chinese community samples.

Abstract Background Depressed patients commonly experience psychological pain. Research pointed to positive psychological interventions as an effective means of ameliorating psychological pain, although the exact effect is unclear. Based on the hope theory and solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT), this study combines hope theory with solution-focused brief therapy to develop a nurse-led psychological pain solution-focused (PPSF) intervention in depressed patients. Methods This is an assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial following the SPIRIT guidance. A total of 84 depressed patients will be recruited from the inpatient wards of a psychiatric hospital and randomly assigned to the control and experimental groups. Patients in the control group will be treated as usual. In contrast, patients in the experimental group will receive 6 sessions of the PPSF intervention for two weeks on top of the routine care. Primary outcomes are psychological pain, hope, cognitive distortions. Secondary outcomes are depression and suicidal ideation. Data will be collected at 5-time points: baseline, 1 and 2 weeks (post-intervention), 1 month (follow up), and 6 months after baseline. Generalized equation evaluation will be used to assess the effectiveness of the PPSF intervention. Discussion From a positive psychology perspective, there remains much room for developing psychological pain interventions in depressed patients. SFBT and hope theory are both based on positive psychology. With hope theory as the general framework and SFBT questions as the practical guide, the PPSF intervention program is designed that nursing staff can implement. If the intervention is effective, it will advance the development of psychological pain interventions for patients with depression. Trial registration ChiCTR2100048223

Abstract Background Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) is positively associated with all-cause readmission in patients with heart failure (HF) in western countries. However, there is a scarcity of strong scientific evidence supporting the correlation in China. This study aimed at testing this hypothesis in Chinese. Methods We conducted a secondary analysis of 1,946 patients with HF in Zigong Fourth People’s Hospital in China between December 2016 to June 2019. Logistic regression models were used to study the hypotheses, with adjustments for the four regression models. We also explore the linear trend and possible nonlinear relationship between CCI and readmission within six months. We further conducted subgroup analysis and tests for interaction to examine the possible interaction between CCI and the endpoint. Additionally, CCI alone and several combinations of variables based on CCI were used to predict the endpoint. Under the curve (AUC), sensitivity and specificity were reported to evaluate the performance of the predicted model. Results In the adjusted II model, CCI was an independent prognostic factor for readmission within six months in patients with HF (OR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.03–1.26, P = 0.011). Trend tests revealed that there was a significant linear trend for the association. A nonlinear association was identified between them and the inflection point of CCI was 1. Subgroup analyses and tests for interaction indicated that cystatin played an interactive role in the association. ROC analysis indicated neither CCI alone nor combinations of variables based on CCI were adequate for prediction. Conclusion CCI was independently positively correlated with readmission within six months in patients with HF in Chinese population. However, CCI has limited value on predicting readmission within six months in patients with HF.

Abstract Background The particular occupational stress of psychiatric nurses has a negative impact on their mental health. There is evidence that psychological resilience can promote mental health; however, the relationship between resilience in occupational stress and mental health of psychiatric nurses is unclear, and mental health was assessed from a psychopathological perspective, neglecting the role of positive psychology. Therefore, this study was based on a dual-factor model of mental health, describing mental health in terms of both positive well-being and psychiatric symptoms. We aimed to investigate the level of psychiatric nurses' mental health and whether resilience plays a mediating or moderating role between occupational stress and mental health in psychiatry nurses. Methods A cross sectional survey of 450 psychiatric nurses in five hospitals in Jiangsu Province was conducted using a convenience sampling method, of which 413 were valid questionnaires with an effective rate of 91.8%. The evaluation included the Chinese Nurses’ Stress Scale, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, and the General Health Questionnaire. Descriptive and Spearman correlation analyses were performed using SPSS25.0 while mediating and moderating effects were performed using SmartPLS3.0. Results Based on a dual-factor model of mental health, this study found that psychiatric nurses had a low general state of mental health, with 54.5% positive mental health, 7% vulnerable, 21.8% symptomatic but content, and 16.7% completely troubled. In addition, we found that resilience plays a mediating role in stress and mental health [β = -0.230, 95% CI of (-0.310, -0.150)] and does not play a moderating role [β = -0.018, 95%CI (-0.091, 0.055)]. Conclusions Psychiatric nurses are in a poor state of mental health, and psychological resilience partly mediates occupational stress and mental health. This study suggests that attention should be paid to both positive and negative aspects of psychiatric nurses' mental health, and strategies should be developed to reduce occupational stress and develop psychological resilience.

BackgroundAt present, the phenomenon of patients with mental disorders not seeking mental help is very serious, and the mental help-seeking attitude is the central structure of the help process. However, there is no consensus on which patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) should be used to assess mental help-seeking attitudes.ObjectiveThe systematic review aims to critically appraise, compare, and summarize the measurement quality of the all-available PROMs about mental help-seeking attitudes to provide evidence-based guidance and reference for clinical researchers.MethodsA systematic search was conducted in 9 databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Medline, APA, CINAHL, Sinomed, CNKI, and WanFang) since the establishment of the database until November 30, 2022 to identify articles on the PROMs of mental help-seeking attitudes. We used the COSMIN guidelines to evaluate the methodological quality and measurement properties of all-available PROMs, and a modified Grading, Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system to evaluate the level of evidence supporting each rating. Finally, the recommendation level is given according to the overall quality of each PROM.ResultsWe identified 29 studies representing 13 PROMs out of 2,828 screening studies. The overall quality of the included PROMs varied, with 6 rated as class B, 6 as class C, and only the Mental Help Seeking Attitudes Scale (MHSAS) as class A.ConclusionThe measurement characteristics of MHSAS have been the most comprehensive evaluation, and it has good reliability and validity, and high feasibility for clinical application, so it can be temporarily recommended for use, but the above conclusions still need to be supported by more high-quality evidence.

Abstract Background Albumin (ALB) levels are negatively associated with mortality in patients with sepsis. However, among sepsis patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) undergoing continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), there has been no similar study on the correlation between ALB levels and mortality alone. This study tested the hypothesis that ALB levels are negatively associated with mortality among such patients. Methods We conducted a secondary analysis of 794 septic patients who were diagnosed with AKI and underwent CRRT in South Korea. For the Kaplan–Meier survival analysis, Cox proportional hazards models were used to study the hypotheses, with adjustments for the pertinent covariables. We also explore the possible nonlinear relationship and conducted sensitivity analyses including subgroup analyses and tests for interactions to investigate the association further. Additionally, ALB was used to construct model and we then compared the performance of ALB with that of APACHE II and SOFA in predicting mortality. Results The ALB level was an independent prognostic factor for death at 28 and 90 days after CRRT initiation (HR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.62–0.90, P = 0.0024 for death at 28 days and HR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.63–0.86, P

Abstract Phenolic acids are important taste components in green tea. The aim of this study was to analyze the taste characteristics of phenolic acids and their influence on the bitterness and astringency of green tea by sensory evaluation and chemical determination. The major tea phenolic acids and quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (Que-rut) were significantly positively correlated with the bitterness (r = 0.757, p

Objective: Extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) was used to predict the 7th day efficacy of the acupoint application (AP) of Chinese herbs (Xiao Zhong Zhi Tong Tie) in patients with diarrhea. Materials and Methods: We consecutively collected medical records of patients with diarrhea nationwide on the Chun Bo Wan Xiang cloud platform from August 22 to November 5, 2020. Demographic and clinical data and the fecal properties were included in this study. We established the XGBoost model to predict the 7th day efficacy of AP in patients with diarrhea. The XGBoost model was evaluated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC). We next compared the performance of XGBoost with that of artificial neural network (ANN), ANN + boosting, ANN + bagging, and support vector machine (SVM). Results: The XGBoost model provided a prediction accuracy of 84.86% (95% confidence interval = 82.74% to 86.81%) and the ROC curve analysis showed an AUC of 0.81. The top-three variables with the highest importance are age, duration of diarrhea, and region (North). Our study revealed that XGBoost was not superior to ANN, ANN + boosting, ANN + bagging, and SVM. Conclusions: The established XGBoost model for predicting the 7th day efficacy of AP in patients with diarrhea exhibited good accuracy and precision, which can be used for efficacy prediction.

IntroductionAs digital natives, young people enjoy the convenience and benefits of the internet but also suffer from unique developmental problems of this age, such as cyberbullying and internet gaming disorder (IGD). Research suggests that these online problem behaviors enjoy high prevalence and various negative impacts. To prevent or intervene, this study attempts to explore the association between cyberbullying and IGD and the potential protectors from the positive youth development (PYD) perspective.MethodsThrough the convenience sampling method, a sample of 463 Chinese adolescents was recruited and participated in the survey. They completed a questionnaire regarding PYD attributes, cyberbullying, IGD, and demographic information.ResultsAfter controlling adolescents' sex and age, results of regression analyses indicated that cyberbullying was positively associated with IGD; PYD attributes had negative cumulative effects on cyberbullying and IGD; and cyberbullying and IGD were negatively related to PYD attributes. Moreover, the mediating effect of PYD attributes was significant in the relationship between cyberbullying and IGD.DiscussionSpecifically, it is very possible for adolescents who have experienced one online problem behavior to suffer from another one. Fortunately, positive personal attributes could effectively buffer this cascading effect. These findings may provide theoretical and practical guidance for practitioners that improving PYD attributes may be a promising approach to prevent or reduce adolescent cyberbullying and IGD.

Rotaviruses (RVs) are the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis in children, while histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs) are believed to be host attachment and susceptibility factors of RVs. A large case–control study nested in a population-based diarrhea surveillance targeting children

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an inflammation-associated cancer. However, the lipid pro-inflammatory mediators have only been seldom investigated in HCC pathogenesis. Cylindromatosis (CYLD) attenuation is involved in hepatocarcinogenesis. Here, we aimed to evaluate the significance of hepatic lipid pro-inflammatory metabolites of arachidonate-affected CYLD expression via the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) pathway. Resection liver tissues from HCC patients or donors were evaluated for the correlation of 5-LO/cysteinyl leukotrienes (CysLTs) signaling to the expression of CYLD. The impact of functional components in 5-LO/CysLTs cascade on survival of HCC patients was subsequently assessed. Both livers from canines, a preponderant animal for cancer research, and genetic-modified human HCC cells treated with hepatocarcinogen aristolochic acid I (AAI) were further used to reveal the possible relevance between 5-LO pathway activation and CYLD suppression. Five-LO-activating protein (FLAP), an essential partner of 5-LO, was significantly overexpressed and was parallel to CYLD depression, CD34 neovascular localization, and high Ki-67 expression in the resection tissues from HCC patients. Importantly, high hepatic FLAP transcription markedly shortened the median survival time of HCC patients after surgical resection. In the livers of AAI-treated canines, FLAP overexpression was parallel to enhanced CysLTs contents and the simultaneous attenuation of CYLD. Moreover, knock-in FLAP significantly diminished the expression of CYLD in AAI-treated human HCC cells. In summary, the hepatic FLAP/CysLTs axis is a crucial suppressor of CYLD in HCC pathogenesis, which highlights a novel mechanism in hepatocarcinogenesis and progression. FLAP therefore can be explored for the early HCC detection and a target of anti-HCC therapy.

An important and efficient way to improve the memory performance potential of shape memory alloys (SMAs) is by tailoring the microstructure such as grain refining in thermal deformation working. To explore the microstructure evolution and its mechanism under different thermal-mechanical conditions, the hot deformation behavior and constitutive relation of Ni47Ti44Nb9 (at.%) shape memory alloy are investigated by conducting hot compression tests under the temperature range of 700–1000 °C, the strain rate range of 0.001–1 s−1 and different strains of 0.22, 0.5 and 0.9, respectively. The microstructural evolution is characterized by grain orientation spread (GOS) map and misorientation angle (MA) which can reflect the microstructure information such as grain size, grain boundary, sub-grain boundary and quantified orientation statistics. The major findings include: (1) The self-heating effect of Ni47Ti44Nb9 alloy occurs due to the excessive strain rate. The highest temperature rise (ΔT) is 39.7 °C under the compression temperature of 700 °C which can promote dynamic softening. The ΔT decreases with the increase of deformation temperature and its effect on the dynamic softening decreases; (2) The established strain-dependent Arrhenius-type conservative model well predict the hot deformation behavior of Ni47Ti44Nb9 alloy, and the maximum relative error between the experimental value and the calculated value is about 5.4%. Due to dynamic softening, the thermal activation energy (Q) decreases with the increase of strain; (3) The discontinuous dynamic recrystallization (DDRX) mainly occurs in the initial stage of strain. With the increase of deformation, the deformation of eutectic structure weakens the strain energy between adjacent grains and inhibits the further occurrence of DDRX. The continuous dynamic recrystallization (CDRX) becomes the main nucleation mechanism and grain refinement mechanism, the grain size of Ni47Ti44Nb9 alloy reduced from initial 100 μm to 10–40 μm after strain 0.9 under 900 °C and 0.01 s−1 hot deformation.

Objective: To assess the immune effect of different types of hepatitis B vaccine (HepB) booster doses 2–32 years after primary immunization, explore the influencing factors, and offer guidance regarding the necessity and timing of boosters. Methods: In total, 1163 participants who were born from 1986 to 2015, received the HepB full-course primary vaccination, were hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) negative, and had hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs)

Background: To assess the long-term protection conferred by plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccine at 20–31y after primary immunization during infancy in Chinese rural community. Method: Participants born between 1986 and 1996, who received a full course of primary vaccination with plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccine and had no experience with booster vaccination were enrolled. An epidemiological investigation was performed, and blood samples were collected to detect hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs), and hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc). The positive rate of HBsAg, anti-HBs, and anti-HBc were calculated to evaluate the long-term protection of the plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccine. Results: A total of 949 participants were enrolled in the final analysis. Six subjects were detected to be HBsAg-positive, resulting in a HBsAg carrier rate of 0.63% (6/949). A total of 468 (52.41%) participants maintained a level of anti-HBs antibody ≥10 mIU/mL, with a GMC of 112.20 mIU/mL (95%CI: 97.72 ~ 128.82 mIU/mL). A significant downtrend was observed in the anti-HBs positive rate (P < .001). The average anti-HBc positive rate was 5.90% (56/949), increased with prolongation of immunization (P < .001). Conclusions: The plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccine maintained satisfactory protection at 20–31 y after primary immunization. These results indicate that a booster dose is not necessary. Further studies on the immune memory induced by the plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccine are needed.

From the perspective of positive youth development, developmental assets and self-control play critical roles in promoting adolescent development. However, their effects have not been evaluated in the current issue, internet gaming disorder (IGD). IGD is gradually becoming an important social problem among worldwide youth and has been included in the eleventh International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). Therefore, the present study was determined to investigate the relationship between developmental assets, self-control, and IGD. A two-wave longitudinal study, with each wave spanning half a year apart, was conducted in a sample of 1023 adolescents (aging from 11 to 15, 49.36% boys) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results of the moderated mediation model revealed that T1 developmental assets could predict less IGD at T2 directly or through T1 self-control indirectly. Furthermore, the moderating effect of gender was not significant in the mediation model. Overall, adolescents who experience more developmental assets are less likely to suffer IGD. Moreover, developmental assets are conducive to developing a higher level of self-control, which in turn contributes to preventing or intervening in IGD as well. Therefore, measures should be taken to construct developmental assets to prevent or reduce IGD during adolescence.

Background: With the increasing incidence of mobile phone addiction, the potential risk factors of mobile phone addiction have attracted more and more researchers’ attention. Although various personality trait factors have been proven to be significant predictors of mobile phone addiction, limited attention has been paid to preference for solitude. Considering the adverse impacts of preference for solitude in the context of collectivistic societies and its possible negative effect on mobile phone addiction, this study was designed to examine the relationship between preference for solitude and mobile phone addiction, and to test the mediating role of psychological distress and the moderating role of mindfulness in this relationship.Methods: Data were collected through convenience sampling from a comprehensive university in China. A total of 927 Chinese college students (371 males and 556 females), aged from 16 to 24 (Mage = 19.89 years, SD = 1.22), participated in this study. Their preference for solitude, psychological distress, mindfulness, and mobile phone addiction were measured using well-validated self-report questionnaires.Results: Correlational analyses, sobel test, SPSS macro PROCESS (Model 8) and simple slopes analyses were used for major data analysis. Results showed that preference for solitude was significantly and positively associated with mobile phone addiction, and this link could be mediated by psychological distress. Moreover, the indirect effect of psychological distress in this link was moderated by mindfulness, with this effect being stronger for college students with lower levels of mindfulness. However, mindfulness can not moderate the direct relation between preference for solitude and mobile phone addiction.Conclusion: The present study broadened our knowledge of how and when (or for whom) preference for solitude is related to mobile phone addiction. Education professionals and parents should pay special attention to the psychological distress and mobile phone addiction of college students with high levels of preference for solitude, particularly for those with lower levels of mindfulness.

Background: Psychache is a negative introspective experience, which is positively associated with the risk of suicide, independently of depression. It is undeniable that psychache is an important influencing factor to trigger suicide, which can also mediate the effect between depression and suicide variables. Nevertheless, the research tendency and current hotspots on psychache of suicide population have not been systematically investigated based on bibliometric analysis.Aim: The aim of the study was to analyze the research status, hotspots, and frontiers of psychological pain in the field of suicidology, so as to provide reference for domestic clinical research.Methods: The literature related to psychache in suicide individuals published from 1994 to 2020 was included and selected from the Web of Science Core Collection database on May 28, 2021. CiteSpace (version 5.7.R2) software was used to visualize and analyze highly cited journals, authors, and articles as well as co-occurrence analysis for countries, institution, authors, and keywords.Results: A total of 230 articles from the WoS database were included. The number of papers over the years showed an overall upward trend. The United States has made the largest contribution, with the majority of publications (89, 38.70%), followed by Canada (48, 20.87%), Israel (31, 13.48%), China (20, 8.80%), and Portugal (17, 7.39%). The most productive institution was Queen's University. Edwin S. Shneidman has the largest achievement and profound influence, and the most prolific author is Ronald R. Holden. However, the cooperation between institutions and authors was comparatively weak. The current hotspots in this field focus on the studies on the relationships between depression, despair, psychache, and suicide, the risk assessments of psychological pain, and the development of psychological pain scales. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior was the most frequently cited journal in this field.Conclusions: This analysis not only reveals the current research trend and hotspots but also provides some instructive suggestions on the development of psychache in the suicidology. Future work should pay more attention to develop effective psychological pain intervention programs for diverse suicide population. Additionally, longitudinal study can also be conducted to grasp the trajectory changes of psychological pain among suicide individuals.

Abstract Background The aim of the study was to develop a scoring system for the prediction of postoperative complications of open hepatectomy. Method All consecutive patients receiving open hepatectomy from 2015 to 2017 were included in the study. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to confirm the risk factors for postoperative complications. Afterwards, a novel scoring system was developed to predict the postoperative complications. Results The study included a total of 207 patients. For the test dataset, multivariate analysis indicated that diabetes, scale of surgery, serum potassium, and blood loss versus body weight were independent risk factors of the postoperative complications. The area under the curve (AUC) of the novel scoring system we proposed for prediction of postoperative complications of hepatectomy was 0.803, which is comparable with the AUCs of previous scoring systems. Furthermore, in the validation dataset, the corresponding AUC of the new scoring system was 0.717. Conclusion This novel and simplified scoring system can effectively predict the postoperative complications of open hepatectomy and could help identify patients who are at high risk of postoperative complications.

Abstract The previous literature reports that using a hydrocyclone as an extractor intensifies the mass transfer and largely reduces the consumption of extractant from 1800–2000 kg h−1 to 30–90 kg h−1. However, the intensification mechanism has not been clear. This paper presents experimental and numerical methods to study the multi-scale motion of particles in hydrocyclones. In addition to the usually considered translational behavior, the high-speed rotation of dispersed micro-spheres caused by the anisotropic swirling shear flow is determined. The rotation speeds of the tested micro-spheres are above 1000 rad s−1, which are much larger than the instantaneous rotation speed in isotropic turbulence. Due to the conical structure of a hydrocyclone, the rotation speed maintains stability along the axial direction. Numerical results show that the particle Reynolds number of micro-droplets in a hydrocyclone is equal to that in conventional extractors, but the particles have high rotation speeds of up to 10,000 rad s−1 and long mixing lengths of more than 1000 mm. Both the rotation of micro-droplets along the spiral trajectories and the intense eddy diffusion in a hydrocyclone contribute to the extraction intensification.

Abstract Background There are no generally accepted standards for evaluation of treatment outcomes in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Pattern differentiation and individual treatments are recognized as the most distinguishing features of TCM. Therefore, how practitioners determine curative effects is an issue worthy of research, though little has been done in this area up to this point. This study examines perceptions of the effectiveness of TCM treatments and the means of evaluating clinical outcomes from the practitioners’ perspective. Methods Qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews. Results A total of nine TCM practitioners from three university-affiliated hospitals and two scientific institutions participated in the interviews in August 2013. Participants reported evaluation of periodical treatment as an important part of the process of individual treatment based on pattern differentiation. Themes included (1) ways of evaluating treatment outcomes; (2) relationships between treatment outcomes and pathological transformation; and (3) distinguishing manifestations of the healing process from true adverse reactions. These considerations helped determine the optional treatment principles for further follow-up. An additional theme emerged related to the characteristics of diagnosis and treatment in TCM. Conclusions Health professionals considered all of the following as important ways of evaluating TCM treatment outcomes: patients’ input and subjective experience, physicians’ intake and examination, laboratory tests and medical device measurements. Pathological conditions were determined based on all the above factors, and no single factor determined the effectiveness from the practitioners’ perspectives. If the patients felt no significant beneficial effects, then it was necessary to judge the effectiveness from adverse effect. The follow-up measures were usually based on the previous treatment, and physicians’ satisfaction with each phase of TCM treatment was a significant factor in the process of making further decisions.

The physicochemical changes of the instant green tea powders added with β-cyclodextrin and sodium ascorbate stored at 4°C and 25°C were investigated by determining moisture, polyphenols, caffeine, amino acids, catechins, color, sensory quality, and the total microbial count. The results showed that addition of both β-cyclodextrin (6%, w/w) and sodium ascorbate (2%, w/w) reduced the changes of moisture, polyphenols, and catechins contents, helped to maintain the sensory quality, and limited the microbial count. The low temperature (4°C) was also found to maintain the sensory quality and limit of the microbial count of instant green tea powder. The combination of low temperature and addition of β-cyclodextrin with sodium ascorbate were the best treatment for the storage of instant green tea powder. These results could provide useful information for the quality improvement of instant green tea powder during storage.