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Context: Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) has been demonstrated to have an effect on the autonomic nervous system, which may have antiarrhythmic effects. The effects of OMT in patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) have not previously been reported. This study investigated the impact of OMT on quality of life (QOL) in this patient population., Objectives: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of OMT on QOL in CIED patients., Methods: Subjects with CIEDs were recruited into a double-blind randomized controlled institutional review board (IRB)-approved clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT04004741) and randomized to OMT or light touch (control) groups. Subjects received a one-time intervention, performed by board-certified neuromusculoskeletal medicine (NMM) and osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) physicians. The OMT protocol utilized techniques including myofascial release, rib raising, facilitated positional release (FPR), and osteopathic cranial manipulative medicine. Subjects' QOL was assessed immediately preceding intervention and one-month postintervention utilizing the Research ANd Development (RAND) 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36, eight parameters). Groups were compared utilizing unpaired t tests; α=0.05., Results: Forty-two subjects were enrolled, with four lost to follow-up, which resulted in 19 OMT and 19 control subjects for analysis. Of the eight QOL parameters, two showed significant improvement with OMT: role limitations due to physical health (p=0.001) and pain (p=0.003)., Conclusions: This study demonstrates the potential for QOL improvement in CIED patients. Specifically, subjects in the OMT group reported an improvement in activities of daily living as well as a decrease in overall pain, including pain interfering with work. Additional research is necessary to further understand the physiologic effects of OMT, including its effects on arrhythmias, in CIED patients., (© 2024 the author(s), published by De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston.)

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) affects various human organ systems, including the lymphatic, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, and neurologic systems. The utilization of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) techniques has been clinically effective in the alleviation of various upper respiratory infection symptoms. Consequently, the use of osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) in SARS-CoV-2 patients as adjunct treatment can be beneficial in promoting overall recovery. This paper attempts to address the pathophysiology of SARS-CoV-2 infection at the cellular level and its downstream effects. Subsequently, osteopathic principles were investigated to evaluate potential therapeutic effects, providing a holistic approach in the SARS-CoV-2 treatment. Although the association between the benefits of OMT on clinical improvement during the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic can be seen, further investigation is required to establish a direct correlation between OMT and symptom management in SARS-CoV-2., (© 2023 the author(s), published by De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston.)

Endophytic fungi from medicinal plants with specific pharmacological functions attract much attention to provide the possibility of discovering valuable natural drugs with novel structures and biological activities. Nervilia fordii is a rare and endangered karst endemic plant that is used as medicine and food homology in Guangxi, China. These plants have been reported to have antimicrobial, antitumor, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory activities. However, few studies have focused on the diversity and antibacterial activity of endophytic fungi from N. fordii . In the present study, 184 endophytic fungi were isolated from the healthy tissues of N. fordii , and their molecular diversity and antimicrobial activities were analyzed for the first time. These fungi were categorized into 85 different morphotypes based on the morphological characteristics and the similarity between the target sequence and the reference sequence in the GenBank database. With the exception of 18 unidentified fungi, the fungal isolates belonged to at least 2 phyla, 4 classes, 15 orders, 45 known genera, and 45 different species, which showed high abundance, rich diversity, and obvious tissue specificity. All isolates were employed to screen for their antimicrobial activities via the agar diffusion method against Escherichia coli , Staphylococcus aureus , and Candida tropicalis . Among these endophytes, eight strains (9.41%) displayed inhibitory activity against E. coli , 11 strains (12.94%) against S. aureus , and two strains (2.35%) against C. tropicalis , to some extent. In particular, our study showed for the first time that the fungal agar plugs of Penicillium macrosclerotiorum 1151# exhibited promising antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus . Moreover, the ethyl acetate (EA) extract of P. macrosclerotiorum 1151# had antibacterial effects against E. coli and S. aureus with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.5 mg ml -1 . Further research also confirmed that one of the antimicrobial compounds of P. macrosclerotiorum 1151# was methyl chloroacetate and exhibited excellent antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus up to 1.71-fold and 1.13-fold compared with tetracycline (TET) (5 mg ml -1 ), respectively. Taken together, the present data suggest that various endophytic fungi of N. fordii could be exploited as sources of novel natural antimicrobial agents., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Zhou, Yao, Wang, Xie, Tan, Huang, Yang, Tan, Yu and Fu.)

Objective: Obesity enhances the frequency and severity of acute kidney injury (AKI) induced by renal ischemia-reperfusion (IR). Tanshinone IIA (TIIA) pre-treatment was used to alleviate renal injury induced by renal IR, and whether TIIA can attenuate renal cell apoptosis via modulating mitochondrial function through PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway in obese rats was examined., Methods: Male rates were fed a high-fat diet for 8 weeks to generate obesity, followed by 30 min of kidney ischemia and 24 h reperfusion induced AKI. The male obese rates were given TIIA (5 mg/kg.d, 10 mg/kg.d, and 20 mg/kg.d) for 2 weeks before renal IR., Results: TIIA alleviated the pathohistological injury and apoptosis induced by IR. In addition, TIIA improved renal function, inflammatory factor, and balance of oxidation and antioxidation in obese rats after renal IR. At the same time, TIIA can inhibit cell apoptosis by improving mitochondrial function through the PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway. Mitochondrial dysfunction was supported by decreasing intracellular ATP, respiration controlling rate (RCR), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and mitochondrial respiratory chain complex enzymes, and by increasing ROS, the opening of mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP), and the mtDNA damage. The injury to mitochondrial dynamic function was assessed by decreasing Drp1, and increasing Mfn1/2; and the injury of mitochondrial biogenesis was assessed by decreasing PGC-1, Nrf1, and TFam., Conclusions: Renal mitochondrial dysfunction occurs along with renal IR and can induce renal cell apoptosis. Obesity can aggravate apoptosis. TIIA can attenuate renal cell apoptosis via modulating mitochondrial function through PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway in obese rats.

Obesity, which has unknown pathogenesis, can increase the frequency and seriousness of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). This study evaluated effect of Huayu Qutan Recipe (HQR) pretreatment on myocardial apoptosis induced by AMI by regulating mitochondrial function via PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway in rats with obesity. For in vivo experiments, 60 male rats were randomly divided into 6 groups: sham group, AMI group, AMI (obese) group, 4.5, 9.0 and 18.0 g/kg/d HQR groups. The models fed on HQR with different concentrations for 2 weeks before AMI. For in vitro experiments, the cardiomyocytes line (H9c2) was used. Cells were pretreated with palmitic acid (PA) for 24 h, then to build hypoxia model followed by HQR-containing serum for 24 h. Related indicators were also detected. In vivo, HQR can lessen pathohistological damage and apoptosis after AMI. In addition, HQR improves blood fat levels, cardiac function, inflammatory factor, the balance of oxidation and antioxidation, as well as lessen infarction in rats with obesity after AMI. Meanwhile, HQR can diminish myocardial cell death by improving mitochondrial function via PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway activation. In vitro, HQR inhibited H9c2 cells apoptosis, improved mitochondrial function and activated the PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway, but effects can be peripeteiad by LY294002. Myocardial mitochondrial dysfunction occurs following AMI and can lead to myocardial apoptosis, which can be aggravated by obesity. HQR can relieve myocardial apoptosis by improving mitochondrial function via the PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway in rats with obesity., (© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine published by Foundation for Cellular and Molecular Medicine and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Bcakground: The dry root and rhizome of Salvia miltiorrhiza are used to treat cardiovascular diseases, chronic pain, and thoracic obstruction over 2000 years in Asian countries. For high quality, Sichuan Zhongjiang is regarded as the genuine producing area of S. miltiorrhiza. Given its abnormal pollen development, S. miltiorrhiza from Sichuan (S.m.-SC) relies on root reproduction and zymad accumulation; part of diseased plants present typical viral disease symptoms and seed quality degeneration. This study aim to detected unknown viruses from mosaic-diseased plants and establish a highly efficient virus-free regeneration system to recover germplasm properties., Results: Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) were detected from mosaic-diseased plants. Primary apical meristem with two phyllo podium in 0.15-0.5 mm peeled from diseased plants were achieved 73.33% virus-free rate. The results showed that the medium containing MS, 0.5 mg/L 6-BA, 0.1 mg/L NAA, 0.1 mg/L GA 3 , 30 g/L sucrose and 7.5 g/L agar can achieve embryonic-tissue (apical meristem, petiole and leaf callus) high efficient organogenesis. For callus induction, the optimal condition was detected on the medium containing MS, 2 mg/L TDZ, 0.1 mg/L NAA by using secondary petiole of virus-free plants under 24 h dark/d condition for 21 d. The optimal system for root induction was the nutrient solution with 1/2 MS supplemented with 1 mg/L NAA. After transplant, the detection of agronomic metric and salvianolic acid B content confirmed the great germplasm properties of S.m.-SC virus-free plants., Conclusions: A highly efficient virus-free regeneration system of S.m.-SC was established based on the detected viruses to recover superior seed quality. The proposed system laid support to control disease spread, recover good germplasm properties in S.m.-SC., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are of concern globally because of their carcinogenic, teratogenic, mutagenic, and bio-accumulative effects. Northern China is one of the regions in China with a high density of lakes; however, the lake aquatic environment is becoming seriously deteriorated, especially from PAH pollution due to the intensification of human activities during the past 100 years. Therefore, the spatial distribution and historical changes in PAHs in lake sediments from northern China were analyzed to indicate their response to anthropogenic emissions and pollution reduction actions. The ω (PAHs) in lake sediments ranged from 18.2 to 1205.0 ng·g -1 , and low molecular weight PAHs were the dominant compounds. PAH concentrations increased from the 1950s to a peak level in the 2000s, which was induced mainly by increased energy consumption and rapid economy development, with PAH levels decreasing subsequently in the last 10 years due to craft improvement of wastewater treatment plants and the promotion of new energy policies. Spatially, PAHs pollution in Northeast and North China was more serious than that in Northwest China due to the higher level of economic development and energy consumption. Source apportionment results revealed that historical PAH emissions transferred from biomass combustion to a mixture of coal and petroleum combustion. In addition, the results of ecological risk assessment showed that the synthetic sediment quality index (SeQI) of northern China ranged from 36 to 75, and North and Northeast China posed higher ecological risk than that in Northwest China, with phenanthrene (Phe), acenaphthylene (Ace), acenaphthylene (Acy), and dibenzo(a,h)anthracene (DahA) as the main risk contributors.

Context: Muscle damage and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) can occur following intense exercise. Various modalities have been studied to improve blood lactate accumulation, which is a primary reason for DOMS. It has been well established that active recovery facilitates blood lactate removal more rapidly that passive recovery due to the pumping action of the muscle. The pedal pump is a manual lymphatic technique used in osteopathic manipulative medicine to increase lymphatic drainage throughout the body. Pedal pump has been shown to increase lymphatic flow and improve immunity. This may improve circulation and improve clearance of metabolites post-exercise., Objective: This study compared the use of pedal pump lymphatic technique to passive supine recovery following maximal exercise., Methods: 17 subjects (male n = 10, age 23 ± 3.01; female n = 7, age 24 ± 1.8), performed a maximal volume O 2 test (VO 2 max) using a Bruce protocol, followed by a recovery protocol using either pedal pump technique or supine passive rest for 10 min, followed by sitting for 10 min. Outcome measures included blood lactate concentration (BL), heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP) and VO 2 . Subjects returned on another day to repeat the VO 2 max test to perform the other recovery protocol. All outcomes were measured at rest, within 1- minute post-peak exercise, and at minutes 4, 7, 10 and 20 of the recovery protocols. A 2 × 6 repeated measures ANOVA was used to compare outcome measures (p ≤ 0.05)., Results: No significant differences were found in VO 2 , HR, or SBP between any of the recovery protocols. There was no significant difference in BL concentrations for recovery at minutes 4, 7, or 10 (p > 0.05). However, the pedal pump recovery displayed significantly lower BL concentrations at minute 20 of recovery (p = 0.04)., Conclusion: The pedal pump significantly decreased blood lactate concentrations following intense exercise at recovery minute 20. The use of manual lymphatic techniques in exercise recovery should be investigated further., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Shengjin Lake, which serves as an important National Nature Reserve, is suffering from chemical pollution due to rapid industrial and agricultural development in the circumjacent basin. Therefore, 168 anthropogenic toxic chemicals were determined to examine their spatial distribution and identify priority pollutants using a ranking system based on occurrence(O), persistence(P), bioaccumulation(B), ecological risk(E), and human health risk(H). Ecosystem and human health risks were also assessed. The spatial distribution of pollutants indicated that higher concentrations occur in the upper lake area compared to the middle and lower lake areas because of Jiang Dam. According to the derived priority pollutant list, phthalate esters(PAEs), organochlorine pesticides(OCPs), and heavy metals(HMs) are high-priority pollutants; polychlorinated biphenyls(PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs), and volatile organic compounds(VOCs) are medium-priority pollutants; and antibiotics(ANTs) are low-priority pollutants. The ecology risk quotient(RQ) of the high-priority pollutants ranged from 4.3 to 15.9, indicating severe ecology risk to the aquatic organism, and higher risks were found in the upper lake areas. Additionally, the human health risk assessment revealed negligible carcinogenic risks associated with high-priority pollutants. The comprehensive ranking system established in this study can be applied to other lake basins by altering the measured concentrations to screen for priority pollutants, offering a scientific foundation for identifying priority control pollutants for watershed management.

Context: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease that leads to impaired motor and non-motor function in patients. PD is non-curative and gradually reduces quality of life, leading patients to seek treatment for symptom management. Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) applies the biomechanical, neurologic, circulatory, metabolic, and psychosocial models in approaching and treating the major symptomatology of PD patients., Objectives: This article evaluates the literature published in the past 10 years analyzing evidence on OMT and its functional application on gait, balance, motor function, bradykinesia, and autonomic dysfunctions, and to identify promising avenues for further investigation., Methods: The authors obtained studies from the research databases MEDLINE/PubMed, ScienceDaily, and EBSCO, as well as the Journal of American Osteopathic Association's published archives. Searches were conducted in December 2020 utilizing the search phrases "OMM" (osteopathic manipulative medicine), "OMT," "osteopathic," "Parkinson Disease," "manual therapy," "physical therapy," "training," "autonomics," "gait," and "balance." Articles published between 2010 and 2021 including subjects with Parkinson's disease and the use of OMT or any other form of manual therapy were included. Five authors independently performed literature searches and methodically resolved any disagreements over article selection together., Results: There were a total of 10,064 hits, from which 53 articles were considered, and five articles were selected based on the criteria., Conclusions: The progressive nature of PD places symptom management on the forefront of maintaining patients' quality of life. OMT has demonstrated the greatest efficacy on managing motor-related and neurologic symptoms and assists in treating the greater prevalence of somatic dysfunctions that arise from the disease. Research in this field remains limited and should be the target of future research., (© 2021 Raymond Li et al., published by De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston.)

Background: Acute myocardial injury (AMI), which is induced by renal ischemia-reperfusion (IR), is a significant cause of acute kidney injury (AKI)-related associated death. Obesity increases the severity and frequency of AMI and AKI. Tanshinone IIA (TIIA) combined with cyclosporine A (CsA) pretreatment was used to alleviate myocardial cell apoptosis induced by renal IR, and to determine whether TIIA combined with CsA would attenuate myocardial cell apoptosis by modulating mitochondrial function through the PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway in obese rats., Methods: Male rates were fed a high fat diet for 8 weeks to generate obesity. AKI was induced by 30 min of kidney ischemia followed 24 h of reperfusion. Obese rats were given TIIA (10 mg/kg·d) for 2 weeks and CsA (5 mg/kg) 30 min before renal IR. After 24 h of reperfusion, the rats were anaesthetized, the blood were fetched from the abdominal aorta and kidney were fetched from abdominal cavity, then related indicators were examined., Results: TIIA combined with CsA can alleviate the pathohistological injury and apoptosis induced by renal IR in myocardial cells. TIIA combined with CsA improved cardiac function after renal ischemia (30 min)-reperfusion (24 h) in obese rats. At the same time, TIIA combined with CsA improved mitochondrial function. Abnormal function of mitochondria was supported by decreases in respiration controlling rate (RCR), intracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP), oxygen consumption rate, and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and increases in mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS), opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP), mitochondrial DNA damage, and mitochondrial respiratory chain complex enzymes. The injury of mitochondrial dynamic function was assessed by decrease in dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1), and increases in mitofusin1/2 (Mfn1/2), and mitochondrial biogenesis injury was assessed by decreases in PPARγ coactivator-1-α (PGC-1), nucleo respiratory factor1 (Nrf1), and transcription factor A of mitochondrial (TFam)., Conclusion: We used isolated mitochondria from rat myocardial tissues to demonstrate that myocardial mitochondrial dysfunction occurred along with renal IR to induce myocardial cell apoptosis; obesity aggravated apoptosis. TIIA combined with CsA attenuated myocardial cell apoptosis by modulating mitochondrial function through the PI3K/Akt/Bad pathway in obese rats.

To assess the variations in pulmonary function and vascular endothelial function in their early stages (without related complications). A total of 162 type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients without diabetes complications and 55 healthy people were selected, comprising the T2DM group and the control group, respectively, to evaluate changes in vascular endothelial function and lung function and determine the correlation between them. In this study, the T2DM group exhibited significantly lower pulmonary function than that of the control group ( P < 0.05). The T2DM group also showed significantly lower flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and nitric oxide (NO) ( P < 0.05) than those of the control group. Pulmonary functional indexes correlated positively with FMD and NO ( P < 0.05) and correlated negatively with endothelin-1 (ET-1) ( P < 0.05). FMD and NO correlated negatively with diabetes duration/HbA1c ( P < 0.05), whereas ET-1 correlated positively with glycosylated hemoglobinA1c (HbA1c)/diabetes duration ( P < 0.05). Pulmonary functional indexes negatively correlated with HbA1c/diabetes duration ( P < 0.05). Multiple linear regression was used to analyze the relationship between vascular endothelial function indexes (FMD, ET-1, and NO) and pulmonary functional indexes. The results indicated that each vascular endothelial function index (FMD, ET-1, and NO) was significantly correlated with the pulmonary functional index ( P < 0.05). The patients with T2DM presented changes in the subclinical vascular endothelial and pulmonary function. They also had impaired vascular endothelial functions, which were characterized by reduced vascular endothelial function relative to those of healthy people. Regulating glycemia may improve vascular endothelial and pulmonary functions. Moreover, microvascular lesions in preclinical stages, vascular endothelial function indexes (FMD, ET-1, and NO) were valid predictors of alterations in pulmonary function in T2DM patients without related complications., Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier NCT03575988., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Tai, Jiang, Yao, Liu, Wei, Li, Jiao, Wang, Kuang and Jia.)

Context: Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is used to treat chronic pain conditions. However, few guidelines focusing on chronic pain management include recommendations for OMT., Objectives: To evaluate previous literature on the use of OMT for improving chronic pain., Methods: A literature search was conducted on MEDLINE/PubMed and ScienceDirect on August 26-27, 2019, using the terms "osteopathic," "chronic," and "pain," yielding a total of 312 MEDLINE/PubMed articles and 515 ScienceDirect articles. Eligibility criteria required that studies investigate pain, functional status, or medication usage through an experimental design, focusing on human subjects with chronic pain who had various forms of OMT administered by osteopathically trained individuals in which the comparator group received no intervention, a sham or placebo, or conventional care. Three authors independently performed literature searches and methodically settled disagreements over article selection., Results: In the 22 articles included in our study that examined OMT use in chronic pain conditions, we evaluated primary outcomes of pain (22; 100%) and functional status (20; 90.9%), and the secondary outcome of medication usage (3; 13.6%). The majority of articles showed that OMT resulted in a significant decrease in pain levels as compared to baseline pain levels or the control group (20; 90.9%) and that OMT resulted in an improvement in functional status (17; 77.3%). In articles that did not find a significant difference in pain (2; 9.1%) or functional status (3; 13.6%), there were overall outcomes improvements noted. All articles that investigated medication usage (3; 13.6%) showed that OMT was effective in decreasing patients' medication usage. Our study was limited by its small sample size and multimodal comparator group exclusion., Conclusions: OMT provides an evidence-based management option to reduce pain levels, improve functional status, and decrease medication usage in chronic pain conditions, especially low back pain (LBP). Pain management guidelines should include OMT as a resource to alleviate chronic pain.

In this study, two isomeric impurities were identified in cefotiam hydrochloride injection preparation and were characterized. Column-switching HPLC-MS and NMR techniques were used to identify the impurity 1 as the Δ3(4) isomers of cefotiam. Using software-based calculations, it was predicted that neither of the isomeric impurities was embryotoxic. This study provides a reference for the production, storage, and quality control of cefotiam and related cephalosporin antibiotics., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Tian, Chong, Liu, Han, Hu, Yao and Xu.)

The use of antagonistic microorganisms and their volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to control plant fungal pathogens is an eco-friendly and promising substitute for chemical fungicides. In this work, endophytic bacterium ETR-B22, isolated from the root of Sophora tonkinensis Gagnep., was found to exhibit strong antagonistic activity against 12 fungal pathogens found in agriculture. Strain ETR-B22 was identified as Burkholderia cenocepacia based on 16S rRNA and recA sequences. We evaluated the antifungal activity of VOCs emitted by ETR-B22. The VOCs from strain ETR-B22 also showed broad-spectrum antifungal activity against 12 fungal pathogens. The composition of the volatile profiles was analyzed based on headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Different extraction strategies for the SPME process significantly affected the extraction efficiency of the VOCs. Thirty-two different VOCs were identified. Among the VOC of ETR-B22, dimethyl trisulfide, indole, methyl anthranilate, methyl salicylate, methyl benzoate, benzyl propionate, benzyl acetate, 3,5-di-tert-butylphenol, allyl benzyl ether and nonanoic acid showed broad-spectrum antifungal activity, and are key inhibitory compounds produced by strain ETR-B22 against various fungal pathogens. Our results suggest that the endophytic strain ETR-B22 and its VOCs have high potential for use as biological controls of plant fungal pathogens.

Context: Impaired sleep quality is among many symptoms observed in patients with a concussion and may predispose a patient to a prolonged recovery course and a later return to their daily activities. Studies have suggested that osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) may play a role in improving sleep quality., Objective: To investigate how OMT may play a role in the management and overall healing process in patients with a concussion by improving sleep quality., Methods: Data were collected from a randomized, controlled study on OMT and concussion (of which this study represents 1 arm) to investigate the effects of OMT vs concussion education counseling on sleep quality in student athletes with a concussion. Student athletes with no medical history of neurodegenerative disease who presented to the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine Academic Healthcare Center with a concussion following a sport-related injury were enrolled in the study. Participants received OMT intervention or standard counseling on how to care for a concussion during their first and second visits. Participants rated their symptoms, including sleep quality, on the validated scale Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 5th Edition at 3 consecutive visits during 1 week. The mean sleep quality score within and between the OMT and education groups before each of 2 interventions and at the third visit were compared and analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test., Results: Thirty participants were enrolled in the study. Total symptom data showed a stronger, significant correlation with sleep scores than with other symptoms. Participants receiving OMT (n=16) reported overall 80% and 76% improvement in sleep quality from pre-OMT values to their second and third visits, respectively. Participants who had an educational intervention (n=14) reported a 36% and 46% improvement from pre-OMT values to their second and third visits, respectively., Conclusion: The beneficial relationship trend between OMT and sleep quality in patients with a concussion was not statistically significant. Owing to the limitations of this study, further research with a larger population and sham control participants is warranted. (clinicaltrials.gov No. NCT02750566).

Context: Concussion, a type of mild traumatic brain injury, is a disruption in normal brain function due to head injury. New-onset symptoms from concussion vary, likely depending on the areas of the head and neck affected; they can be severe and debilitating. Current treatment options are limited and difficult to individualize. Osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) can aid musculoskeletal restrictions that can potentially improve concussion symptoms., Objective: To assess concussion symptom number and severity in participants with concussion who received either OMM or an educational intervention., Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted at the New York Institute of Technology Academic Health Care Center. Patients presenting to the center with concussion-like symptoms due to recent head injury within the previous 7 days provided consent and were randomized into 2 intervention groups, receiving either 1 OMM treatment (n=16) or 1 concussion education intervention (n=15). Participants were assessed before and after the intervention with the validated Symptom Concussion Assessment Tool fifth edition (SCAT-5) for quantification of number of symptoms and their severity. Collected data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test and the repeated-measures analysis of variance., Results: Thirty-one participants were enrolled in the study; after 1 control participant was excluded due to incomplete data, 30 patient records were analyzed. The OMM intervention group had a significant decrease in symptom number (P=.002) and symptom severity (P=.001) compared with the concussion education group., Conclusion: When used in the acute setting, OMM significantly decreased concussion symptom number and severity compared with concussion education. This study demonstrates that integration of OMM using a physical examination-guided, individualized approach is safe and effective in the management of new-onset symptoms of uncomplicated concussions. (Clinicaltrials.gov No. NCT02750566).

Context: Concussions can cause cognitive impairment, somatic symptoms, and behavioral changes. Symptoms may vary in severity, depending on the degree of traumatic force. Due to the biomechanical nature of this trauma, cranial somatic dysfunctions may commonly be seen in patients with concussion., Objective: To determine whether patients were more likely to have nonphysiologic cranial somatic dysfunctions than physiologic cranial somatic dysfunctions after sustaining a concussion., Methods: College athletes who had a concussion based on the Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive test were evaluated by a physician within 1 week of the injury. Patients were evaluated for somatic dysfunctions of the cranium. Cranial somatic dysfunctions were documented; test scores and force vectors were compared with the type of strain pattern using SPSS, with P<.05 demonstrating statistical significance., Results: Sixteen patients were included in the study: 10 with nonphysiologic cranial strain somatic dysfunctions and 6 with physiologic dysfunctions. Compared with lateral forces, forces of impact with anterioposterior vectors were associated 1.5 times more often with nonphysiologic rather than physiologic cranial somatic dysfunctions (P=.697). An analysis of specific cranial strain patterns and impact force vectors showed no statistical significance (P=.096)., Conclusion: There was no statistically significant association showing that concussion patients were more likely to have nonphysiologic cranial somatic dysfunctions compared with physiological cranial somatic dysfunctions. However, nonphysiologic cranial somatic dysfunctions did show a trend toward association with concussion. Further studies are needed to better understand the potential association between concussion and cranial somatic dysfunctions.

Herein, we aimed to develop a strategy to assess quality consistency of a drug product, with a focus on two typical cases of injection. Multi-variable analysis using a sequencing combination of factor analysis, one-way analysis of variance and cluster analysis identified all potential Critical Quality Attributes (CQAs) for each manufacturing process, which were identified from the attributes of quality standard (QAs) using supervised (cefazolin sodium pentahydrate, α-CEZ-Na) or unsupervised (cephathiamidine, CETD) analysis. All CQAs from QAs were applied to set up an integrated index, quality consistency attribute (QCA), to evaluate product quality consistency in a specific aspect. Meanwhile, real-time analysis by chemometrics-assisted near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) was used to obtain useful information corresponding to the CQAs from the process attributes (PAs) of some of the critical processes. The quantitative results of characteristic signals of NIR by multiple linear regression was defined as the process consistency attribute (PrCA), and was used to assess the product quality consistency in another aspect. Therefore, either values of QCA or PrCA displayed sensitivity to changes in product quality, allowing us to establish a strategy with strong practicality, comprehensiveness and visualization to demonstrate the quality consistency of a specific product. Such strategy is not only conducive to the improvement of quality standards, but to the retrospective investigation of manufacturing processes which ultimately allowed maintenance of product consistency.

Objective: Establish an effective experimental strategy to determine the compatibility of rubber closures for drugs., Significance: Various types of rubber closures with different compositions are available for drug packaging. Many additives of rubber closures can be released from rubber closures and may affect the quality of drugs and pose a risk to human health. In this study, we aimed to determine the relationship between cephalosporin structure, solution clarity, and rubber closure compatibility using volatile components profile of butyl rubber closures., Methods: Two opposite polarity gas chromatography (GC) systems and GC-mass spectrometry (MS) were used to achieve rapid qualitative determination of the main volatile components in rubber closures. Simulated adsorption experiment was performed to investigate the adsorption of main volatile components in rubber closures by cephalosporins with different side chain structures, and to determine the effects of adsorption on solution clarity., Results: A volatile components screening library of rubber closures was established and the structures of some volatile component were confirmed. The specific adsorption of the structure of cephalosporins on volatile components from rubber closures was studied., Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, rubber closures with good compatibility for cephalosporins with different side chain structures can be selected rapidly. This experimental strategy not only facilitates the screening of suitable rubber closures more effectively, but also enables the quick determination of volatile components adsorbed by drugs.

Context: Ultrasonography is becoming more common in clinical use, and it has been shown to have promising results when introduced into medical school curricula., Objective: To determine whether the use of ultrasonography as an educational supplement can improve osteopathic medical students' confidence and ability to locate 4 specific shoulder anatomical landmarks: the coracoid process, the transverse process of T1, the long head of the biceps within the bicipital groove, and the supraspinatus tendon., Methods: In this randomized controlled study, first-year osteopathic medical students aged 18 years or older were recruited and randomly assigned to a group with exposure (ultrasonography group) or without exposure (control group) to an ultrasonography machine. First, a survey was administered to measure students' baseline knowledge of shoulder anatomy, confidence in palpation skills, and opinion on anatomical landmark identification teaching methods. Next, students were shown presentations on shoulder anatomy and allowed to practice locating and palpating the specified landmarks. Students in the ultrasonography group were also given instruction on the use of ultrasonography. All students were asked to locate each of the 4 specified anatomical landmarks and then given a follow-up survey. A Mann Whitney U test was used to compare the confidence of the students before and after the intervention. A secondary analysis was performed to compare the degree of deviance from the correct position of the specified anatomical landmark between the ultrasonography and control groups. P values less than .05 were considered statistically significant., Results: Sixty-four students participated. Compared with the control group, students in the ultrasonography group had a greater increase in confidence after the session in their ability to locate the coracoid process, bicipital tendon, and supraspinatus tendon (P=.022, P=.029, P=.44, respectively). Students in the ultrasonography group were also able to more accurately palpate the landmarks than those in the control group, with a significant difference in accurate palpation of the bicipital tendon (P=.024). The ultrasonography group showed less deviation with palpation of the other 3 landmarks compared with the control group, but these results were not significant (P=.50, P=.82, P=.29, respectively)., Conclusion: Ultrasonography in the preclinical curriculum may improve medical students' confidence in and accuracy of palpation.

It has been reported that nitric oxide (NO) is a negative regulator of aluminum (Al)-induced programmed cell death (PCD) in peanut root tips. However, the inhibiting mechanism of NO on Al-induced PCD is unclear. In order to investigate the mechanism by which NO inhibits Al-induced PCD, the effects of co-treatment Al with the exogenous NO donor or the NO-specific scavenger on peanut root tips, the physiological properties of antioxidants systems and cell wall (CW) in root tip cells of NO inhibiting Al-induced PCD were studied with two peanut cultivars. The results showed that Al exposure induced endogenous NO accumulation, and endogenous NO burst increased antioxidant enzyme activity in response to Al stress. The addition of NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP) relieved Al-induced root elongation inhibition, cell death and Al adsorption in CW, as well as oxidative damage and ROS accumulation. Furthermore, co-treatment with the exogenous NO donor decreased MDA content, LOX activity and pectin methylesterase (PME) activity, increased xyloglucan endotransglucosylase (XET) activity and relative expression of the xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolase ( XTH-32 ) gene. Taken together, exogenous NO alleviated Al-induced PCD by inhibiting Al adsorption in CW, enhancing antioxidant defense and reducing peroxidation of membrane lipids, alleviating the inhibition of Al on root elongation by maintaining the extensibility of CW, decreasing PME activity, and increasing XET activity and relative XTH-32 expression of CW.

Objective: To dissect the functioning mode of miR-582-5p on gastric cancer cell growth and provide therapeutic targets for gastric cancer., Patients and Methods: Relative expression levels of miR-582-5p in human gastric cancer tissue samples and gastric cancer-derived cell lines were measured by using quantitative Real-time PCR. Cell proliferation and viability capacities were assessed by cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) assay and colony formation assay. Cell apoptosis and cell cycle distribution were identified by flow cytometry. Downstream target gene was confirmed by using luciferase and Western blotting assays., Results: MiR-582-5p was downregulated in gastric cancer tissues when compared with para-carcinoma tissues (n=42). Overexpressed miR-582-5p could attenuate cell proliferation and viability capacities, as well as promoted cell apoptosis and cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase. AKT3 was chosen as the target gene of miR-582-5p by bioinformatics analysis and luciferase reporter assay. Moreover, restoration of AKT3 could impair tumor suppression role of miR-582-5p on gastric cancer growth., Conclusions: MiR-582-5p exerted tumor-suppressive effects on gastric cancer growth via targeting AKT3 in vitro, which provided an innovative and candidate target for diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer.

Objective: To observe the effect of admission blood urea and creatinine levels on mortality in elderly patients with hip fracture., Methods: Form January 2013 to December 2014, 767 elder patients with hip fracture were treated in our hospital including 253 males and 514 females, aged from 65 to 96 years old with an average of(75.67±6.81) years old. According blood urea and creatinine levels, the 767 hip fracture patients were divided into four groups as follow: group A(blood urea>=5 mmol/L, creatinine>=70 μmol/L); group B (blood urea>=5 mmol/L, creatinine<70 μmol/L); group C (blood urea<5 mmol/L, creatinine>=70 μmol/L); group D(blood urea<5 mmol/L, creatinine<70 μmol/L). In group A, there were 211 patients including 70 males and 141 females, aged from 65 to 95 years old with an average of(80.24±6.51) years old; in group B, there were 355 patients including 125 males and 230 females, aged from 65 to 93 years old with an average of(78.46±7.09) years old; in group C, there were 36 patients including 11 males and 25 females, aged from 65 to 95 years old with an average of (77.83±6.78) years old; in group D, there were 165 patients including 47 males and 118 females, aged from 65 to 96 years old with an average of (76.71±8.35) years old. The survivals and dead patients in four groups were collected and in-hospital mortality rate, 3-month, 12-month and 18-month mortality rate of patients were calculated. COX regression analysis was performed on these data, and clinical significance of serum urea and creatinine at admission in the elderly patients was researched., Results: All 767 hip fracture patients were followed up from 18 to 24 months with an average of (21.33±1.25) months, 159 patients were died in follow up period. The in-hospital mortality rate in 3-month, 12-month and 18-month mortality rate of the patients with high blood urea and high blood creatinine (urea>=5 mmol/L, creatinine>=70 μmol/L) were 2.37%, 9.95%, 16.11% and 26.07%, and were higher than other three groups respectively. COX regression analysis revealed that the independent predictors effecting the mortality rate included age [ P =0.000, OR=1.375, 95%CI(1.155, 1.637)], blood urea at admission [ P =0.000, OR=1.375, 95%CI(1.155, 1.637)], and blood creatinine at admission[ P =0.037, OR=1.213, 95%CI(1.121, 1.484)]., Conclusions: Elderly hip fracture patients with high serum urea and high serum creatinine at admission indicate higher fatality rate. Age, serum urea and serum creatinine at admission were independent predictors of fatality rate of elderly hip fracture patients., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose.

Context: Training in osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) is a unique component of the osteopathic medical school curriculum. Indicators of successful OMM programming include student comfort in explaining and performing OMM as well as confidence in using OMM on future patients. Research on the amount of clinical exposure sufficient to achieve this goal is limited., Objectives: To gauge the impact of clinical OMM exposure on medical students' self-assessed understanding of OMM, their ability to discuss, explain, and perform OMM, and their plan to use OMM in their future practice., Methods: Fourth-year osteopathic medical students were e-mailed surveys before (baseline), during, and after 4 weeks (postrotation) of an elective OMM rotation. Answers were scaled from 0 to 10, with 0 being not at all comfortable/confident and 10 being the most comfortable/confident., Results: Thirty-five students participated in the survey. A significant mean (SD) increase was found between the baseline and postrotation scores for students' understanding of OMM principles (1.43 [0.51]; P<.001), comfort discussing OMM principles with patients (1.27 [0.88]; P<.001), comfort with explaining OMM to someone unfamiliar with it (1.32 [0.82]; P<.001), comfort with performing an osteopathic structural examination (2.23 [1.44]; P<.001), and confidence incorporating OMM into future practice (1.86 [0.47]; P<.001)., Conclusion: Increased clinical exposure to OMM increased the confidence of osteopathic medical students in all dimensions surveyed. This observation can help guide the development of undergraduate osteopathic clinical programming as well as standards for entry of allopathic residents into ACGME programs with osteopathic designation.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by degradation of chondrocyte extracellular matrix (ECM). Accumulating evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRNAs) are associated with OA, but little is known of their function in chondrocyte ECM degradation. The objective of this study was to investigate the expression and function of miRNAs in OA. miRNA expression profile was determined in OA cartilage tissues and controls, employing Solexa sequencing and reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). According to a modified Mankin scale, cartilage degradation was evaluated. Functional analysis of the miRNAs on chondrocyte ECM degradation was performed after miRNA transfection and IL-1β treatment. Luciferase reporter assays and western blotting were employed to determine miRNA targets. Expression of miR-221-3p was downregulated in OA cartilage tissues, which was significantly correlated with a modified Mankin scale. Through gain-of-function and loss-of-function studies, miR-221-3p was shown to significantly affect matrix synthesis gene expression and chondrocyte proliferation and apoptosis. Using SW1353 and C28I2 cells, SDF1 was identified as a target of miR-221-3p. SDF1 overexpression resulted in increased expression of catabolic genes such as MMP-13 and ADAMTS-5 in response to IL-1β, but these effects were moderated by miR-221-3p. SDF1 treatment antagonized this effect, while knockdown of SDF1 by shSDF1 induced inhibitory effects on the expression of CXCR4 and its main target genes, similar to miR-221-3p. The results indicate that upregulation of miR-221-3p could prevent IL-1β-induced ECM degradation in chondrocytes. Targeting the SDF1/CXCR4 signaling pathway may be used as a therapeutic approach for OA. miR-221-3p is downregulated in human cartilage tissues. miR-221-3p levels are associated with cartilage degeneration grade. miR-221-3p upregulation prevents IL-1β-induced ECM degradation in chondrocytes. Protection of ECM degradation by miR-223-3p occurs via SDF1/CXCR4 signaling. miR-221-3p is identified as a novel potential therapeutic target for osteoarthritis. KEY MESSAGES: miR-221-3p is downregulated in human cartilage tissues. miR-221-3p levels are associated with cartilage degeneration grade. miR-221-3p upregulation prevents IL-1β-induced ECM degradation in chondrocytes. Protection of ECM degradation by miR-223-3p occurs via SDF1/CXCR4 signaling. miR-221-3p is identified as a novel potential therapeutic target for osteoarthritis.

The cycle-closed dimer of amoxicillin influences its critical quality and is an important impurity in amoxicillin and clavulanate potassium tablets. The quality of the tablets could be rapidly evaluated using the impurity as an indicator. Here, we report a quantitative model to determine the cycle-closed dimer in samples from different manufacturers using diffuse reflectance near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy by partial least squares regression for one y variable (PLS1) and hierarchical cluster analysis. Because the contents of the (active pharmaceutical ingredients) APIs (amoxicillin and clavulanate potassium) and water are also the important indexes of the tablet quality, three other quantitative models were used to confirm the API data and water content. All of the four models facilitate rapid and complete control of the tablet quality. In addition, quantitative models were validated in terms of specificity, linearity, accuracy, repeatability, and intermediate precision according to the International Conference on Harmonisation guidelines by evaluating the characteristics of the NIR spectra. These results confirmed that the models were satisfactory.

Objective Several genetic variants have been found to increase the risk of restless legs syndrome (RLS). The aim of the present study was to determine if these genetic variants were also associated with the comorbidity of RLS and migraine in patients. Methods Thirteen single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at six RLS risk loci ( MEIS1, BTBD9, MAP2K5, PTPRD, TOX3, and an intergenic region on chromosome 2p14) were genotyped in 211 migraine patients with RLS and 781 migraine patients without RLS. Association analyses were performed for the overall cohort, as well as for the subgroups of patients who experienced migraines with and without aura and episodic migraines (EMs) vs. chronic migraines (CMs). In order to verify which genetic markers were potentially related to the incidence of RLS in migraine patients, multivariate regression analyses were also performed. Results Among the six tested loci, only MEIS1 was significantly associated with RLS. The most significant SNP of MEIS1, rs2300478, increased the risk of RLS by 1.42-fold in the overall cohort ( p = 0.0047). In the subgroup analyses, MEIS1 augmented the risk of RLS only in the patients who experienced EMs (odds ratio (OR) = 1.99, p = 0.0004) and not those experiencing CMs. Multivariate regression analyses further showed that rs2300478 in MEIS1 (OR = 1.39, p = 0.018), a CM diagnosis (OR = 1.52, p = 0.022), and depression (OR = 1.86, p = 0.005) were independent predictors of RLS in migraine. Conclusions MEIS1 variants were associated with an increased risk of RLS in migraine patients. It is possible that an imbalance in iron homeostasis and the dopaminergic system may represent a link between RLS incidence and migraines.

The design of drug delivery systems capable of minimal endolysosomal trapping, controlled drug release, and real-time monitoring of drug effect is highly desirable for personalized medicine. Herein, by using mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) coated with cell-penetrating poly(disulfide)s and a fluorogenic apoptosis-detecting peptide (DEVD-AAN), we have developed a platform that could be uptaken rapidly by mammalian cells via endocytosis-independent pathways. Subsequent loading of these MSNs with small molecule inhibitors and antisense oligonucleotides resulted in intracellular release of these drugs, leading to combination inhibition of endogenous miR-21 activities which was immediately detectable by the MSN surface-coated peptide using two-photon fluorescence microscopy., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

A set of coal samples were used for laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) experiment to measure the coal calorific value. Traditional channel normalization method didn’t consider the physical / chemical mechanism of coal, which would limit the model in precision, accuracy and repeatability. Thus a new calibrated model based on the kinds of the effects of spectral deviation was proposed in this paper. The model selected 19 groups of coal samples, where the random 15 groups were used to establish quantitative analysis model of calorific value while the remaining four for inspection and evaluation. The model based on spectral deviation factors, and the transmission theory combined with the stark broadening formula was used to deduce the absorption effect mechanism and the deviation correction method under the condition of LIBS. The mutual interference between elements and the mechanism of matrix effect were being analyzed while K coefficient method was used to correct mutual interference between the elements in the LIBS. The establishment of numerical model with the electron density, the plasma temperature and the element concentration was used to deeply corrected spectrum deviation caused by matrix effect. Thus taking into consideration of the effect of self-absorption, interfere of inter-elements and matrix effect, the calibration model was established, while R2=0.967, RMSEP=0.49 MJ·kg-1, RMSE=0.45 MJ·kg-1, MRE=2.42%, ARE=1.64%, RSD=5.79% and RSDP=8.10%. Compared with the 0.405, 8.28 MJ·kg-1, 4.14 MJ·kg-1, 22.85%, 52.48%, 18.28% and 32.85% of traditional channel normalized-multiple linear regression method, it demonstrated that the precision and accuracy have been improved significantly and model has good application value.

The critical attribute was analyzed in clavulanate potassium tablet of amoxicillin according to the principle QbD. By investigation of the drug impurity profile, the cycle-closed dimer and penicilloic acid of amoxicillin were considered to be the critical impurities, and the sources and the degradation pathways of these two impurities were discussed. The research confirmed that crystal form was the critical attribute of drug substance. The drying process in the tablet granulation was regarded as the critical process parameter. The tablet formulation was also another factor in the impurity generation. This study provides a new idea for the evaluation of drug quality.

Objective: To validate the three time-difference neuropsychological protocols developed by the National Institute of Health/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and the Canadian Stroke Network for assessment of vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) in Mandarin-speaking subjects and to investigate the clinical application of the shortest form., Methods: Patients aged 50 years or older who had a stroke were invited to participate in the study. Clinical diagnosis of VCI was made. The NINDS-VCI Neuropsychology Protocols, 60-, 30-, and two 5-minute protocols, were administered. The criteria validities of the cognitive protocols against the diagnoses of stroke and VCI were determined via Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis. The optimal cut-off point for the 5-minute protocols total score was estimated for clinical use in screening., Results: Eighty-three patients and 53 controls were recruited during the study period. Patients with stroke performed more poorly than the control group in the three neuropsychological protocols. Forty-two patients with stroke were diagnosed with VCI. VCI was used as the standard to estimate the criteria validities. The area under the ROC curve was 0.78, 0.80, 0.75, and 0.73 for the 60-, 30-, 5-mintue protocol-A and 5-minute protocol-B, respectively., Conclusion: These modified neuropsychological protocols can be used as valid instruments when performing comprehensive cognitive assessment or for screening of VCI in Taiwan.

With the rapid development of economy and industrialization, global warming is becoming the most serious sensitive global climate issues, which causes the rising of sea level and many other negative effects. The cause of global warming is the emission of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide is the main component of greenhouse gases. The control of CO2 emssion is beneficial to addressing gobal climate change and environmental degradation. Therefore, it’s important to develop a rapid detection of CO2 for accurate control. There are amounts of methods to detect CO2 at present, including titration, electrochemical method, gas chromatography, infrared absorption spectroscopy and so on, however, t they still have the deficiency for online monitoring in industrial field. laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), which is developing rapidly in recent few decades, is a detecting technology with characteristics of time-saving and synchronous measuring of multicomponent. What’s more, there is no need for sample pretreating. To develop the online monitoring technique of CO2 emission in the industrial field, LIBS was employed to measure CO2 in this study. The mass flow controller was used to adjust the flow of high purity CO2 and N2 to obtain mixed gas with different CO2 concentrations. The mixed gas was firstly mixed in an air mixing chamber for thorough mixing and then sent to the sample cell for LIBS measurement. The evolution of C atomic spectral line and CN molecular band with different delay times were being studied, which demonstrated parts of CO2 react with air ambient to form CN molecular during the plasma generation, the CN molecular band should be taken into consideration for quantitative analysis, and the parameters were optimized for synchronous measurement of C line and CN band: 800 ns was the optimal delay time. During the plasma generation, many factors in the plasma may interact with others, the analysis index had close relationship wih serval measuring parameters. With the consideration of the effect of C, CN and the self-absorption in high concentration, multivariate calibration method was employed to establish calibration models of CO2. The results showed that the correlation coefficients R2 and the slope were 0.978 and 0.981, respectively. Compared with calibrated with single factor, the multivariate method improved the reliability of the model. What’s more, the feasibility of the application of LIBS to measure CO2 rapidly was proved.

Covering: 2010 to 2014.Advances in isolation, synthesis and screening strategies have made many bioactive substances available. However, in most cases their putative biological targets remain unknown. Herein, we highlight recent advances in target identification of natural products and bioactive compounds by using affinity-based probes. Aided by photoaffinity labelling, this strategy can capture potential cellular targets (on and off) of a natural product or bioactive compound in live cells directly, even when the compound-target interaction is reversible with moderate affinity. The knowledge of these targets may help uncover molecular pathways and new therapeutics for currently untreatable diseases. In this highlight, we will introduce the development of various photoactivatable groups, their synthesis and applications in target identification of natural products and bioactive compounds, with a focus on work done in recent years and from our laboratory. We will further discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each group and the outlooks for this novel proteome-wide profiling strategy.

The data of valuation of forest ecosystem service function (FESF) in 101 primary case studies of China were collected and obtained based on Specifications for Assessment of Forest Ecosystem Services in China (LY/T 1721-2008). FESF was then analyzed synthetically in terms of value coefficient. The results showed that the average value per unit area (VPUA) of FESF in China was 6.11×10 4 yuan·hm -2 , and the order of VPUA of each service function was: water conservation (2.44×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> soil conservation (1.15×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> biodiversity conservation (1.00×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> carbon fixation and oxygen release (0.98×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> atmosphere environmental purification (0.28×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> forest recreation (0.23×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> action of forest against natural calamities (0.19×10 4 yuan·hm -2 )> nutrient accumulation(0.16×10 4 yuan·hm -2 ). Water conservation, soil conservation, biodiversity conservation, carbon fixation and oxygen release were the four dominant service functions of forest ecosystem in China. The VPUA of FESF of the reserve level was higher than that of county level. The establishment of reserves played positive roles in biodiversity conservation and enhancement of service function, but the service function of forest recreation still existed with some insufficiency, and it needed to be further improved. Dominant service functions of forest ecosystem varied in different physicographic regions, and each type of service function presented different differentiation characteristics in space. The VPUA of FESF in South China was the highest up to 11.36×10 4 yuan·hm -2 . The power regression correlation coefficients (R 2 ) of the total value of FESF with forest area and forest stock volume were 0.905 (P<0.01) and 0.860 (P<0.01), respectively, indicating that forest area and forest stock volume were the two key factors affecting FESF and its total value. Moreover, latitude and mean annual precipitation also had significant effect on the VPUA of FESF.

Context: Improving the acquisition of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) skills may increase student confidence and later use of OMT. A first step in this process is determining the optimal table trainer-to-student ratio (TTR)., Objective: To determine the effect of TTR on knowledge and skill acquisition of cervical muscle energy OMT techniques in first-year osteopathic medical students., Methods: First-year students at 3 colleges of osteopathic medicine received instruction on cervical diagnosis and muscle energy techniques at 1 of 3 workshops, each having a different TTR (1:4, 1:8, or 1:16). Written assessments were conducted immediately before and after the workshop and again 2 weeks later to test retention of the knowledge acquired. Practical assessments were conducted immediately after the workshop and 2 weeks later to test retention of the skills acquired and were graded for technical and proficiency elements., Results: Ninety-two students completed pre- and postworkshop assessments, and 86 completed the retention assessment. No difference was found between TTRs on the preworkshop, postworkshop, and retention written scores (P≥.15). Postworkshop written assessment scores were highest, followed by retention scores; preworkshop scores were lowest (P&lt;.001). Although the mean (SD) postworkshop practical scores for the 1:4 and 1:8 TTR workshop groups (266.3 [43.1] and 250.6 [47.5], respectively) were higher than those for the 1:16 TTR groups (230.3 [62.2]), the difference was not significant (P=.06). For the retention practical assessment scores, no significant difference was found between TTRs (P=.19). A significant interaction was noted between TTR and the timing of practical assessments; scores declined from postworkshop to retention assessments for the 1:4 (P=.04) and 1:8 (P=.02) TTR workshop groups but not the 1:16 TTR workshop groups (P=.21). Student order in paired student demonstrations also had a significant effect on technical scores (P≤.03); students who demonstrated techniques second had higher scores than those who demonstrated techniques first., Conclusion: The TRR had no significant effect on written or practical assessment scores. Practical assessment scores for the 1:4 and 1:8 TTRs declined significantly between postworkshop and retention assessments. Future studies with more statistical power will be necessary to determine the effect of TTRs on student learning. The current study also found that student order in paired demonstrations may affect practical assessment scores, because the second-demonstrating student scored higher than the first; colleges of osteopathic medicine should therefore consider randomizing student order during practical assessments.

In coal-fired plants, Unburned carbon (UC) in fly ash is the major determinant of combustion efficiency in coal-fired boiler. The balance between unburned carbon and NO(x) emissions stresses the need for rapid and accurate methods for the measurement of unburned carbon. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is employed to measure the unburned carbon content in fly ash. In this case, it is found that the C line interference with Fe line at about 248 nm. The interference leads to C could not be quantified independently from Fe. A correction approach for extracting C integrated intensity from the overlapping peak is proposed. The Fe 248.33 nm, Fe 254.60 nm and Fe 272.36 nm lines are used to correct the Fe 247.98 nm line which interference with C 247.86 nm, respectively. Then, the corrected C integrated intensity is compared with the uncorrected C integrated intensity for constructing calibration curves of unburned carbon, and also for the precision and accuracy of repeat measurements. The analysis results show that the regression coefficients of the calibration curves and the precision and accuracy of repeat measurements are improved by correcting C-Fe interference, especially for the fly ash samples with low level unburned carbon content. However, the choice of the Fe line need to avoid a over-correction for C line. Obviously, Fe 254.60 nm is the best

Context: Little research has been done regarding osteopathic medical students' clinical exposure to osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT). Most existing research focuses on third- and fourth-year students., Objective: To determine the effects of clinical exposure to OMT on first- and second-year osteopathic medical students by assessing the same population's perceptions of OMT., Methods: In the present survey-based study, conducted at the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine, first- and second-year osteopathic medical students were administered an electronic survey containing 18 multiple-choice questions. The first 2 questions were demographic. The next 6 questions had participants identify what, if any, clinical exposure to OMT they had, including clinical shadowing, the MedPrep program, and the Summer Student American Academy of Osteopathy Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine Preceptorship program. The 10 questions that followed assessed the participant's perception of OMT: (1) understanding, (2) attitude toward OMT, (3) scope of practice of OMT, and (4) intention to use OMT in future clinical practice. The survey used the statistically validated Likert scale for all of the scaled questions. Analysis was performed using the Pearson χ(2) test and the Fisher exact test., Results: Of the 600 students who were sent surveys, 364 replied, for a response rate of 60.7%. There was an association with students' anticipated use of OMT in their future clinical practice and the following types of clinical exposures to OMT: MedPrep (P=.04), Summer Student American Academy of Osteopathy Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine Preceptorship (P=.04), extracurricular OMT didactics (P=.048), and shadowing a physician performing OMT before attending osteopathic medical school (P=.007). Being treated with OMT had no association with anticipated future use of OMT. More OMT clinical exposures were associated with more positive responses to the perception questions ([Formula: see text], P<.001)., Conclusion: Participants with clinical exposure to OMT before entering clinical training were more likely to plan to use OMT in future practice. Early clinical exposure to OMT before or during the first 2 years of osteopathic medical school was associated with a positive perception of OMT., (© 2014 The American Osteopathic Association.)

The fly ash particle flow was produced by a screw feeder and then ablated by a pulse laser to create plasma. The emission spectra of fly ash were detected by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy. The present paper focused on the influence of laser energy on the measurement of unburned carbon. Seven groups of pulse laser in the range of 40 to 130 mJ were used to ablate the fly ash particle flow. The results show that the carbon line intensity is increased linearly with the increases in laser energy, but the SNR of carbon line increases in the range of 40 to 90 mJ and then trends to saturation, while the elimination rate of false data decreases. In this experiment, laser energy ranging from 90 to 100 mJ can enhance the plasma emission signal and improve the true spectral data of fly ash particle flow. So laser energy has close correlations with the ablation of the particle flow and the carbon line intensity. Reasonable laser energy is good for the effective ablation of the fly ash particle flow to get plasma spectra signals with good SNR.

Tibetan Plateau is the world's highest plateau, which provides a unique location for the investigation of global fractionation of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). In this study, deposition and regional distribution of HCHs and p,p'-DDX in the western and southern Tibetan Plateau were investigated by the records from a sediment core of Lake Zige Tangco and 24 surface soils. Concentration of ΣHCHs in the surface soils of the western Tibetan Plateau was much higher than that of the southern part. Maximum fluxes of α-, β-, and δ-HCH in the sediment core were 9.0, 222, and 21 pg cm(-2) year(-1), respectively, which appeared in the mid-1960s. Significant correlations were observed between concentrations of α- and β-HCH in both the surface soils and the sediment core. Concentrations of both α- and β-HCH increased with the inverse of the average annual temperature of these sites. γ-HCH became the dominant isomer of HCHs after the late 1970s, and reached the maximum flux of 160 pg cm(-2) year(-1) in the early 1990s. There were no significant correlations between concentrations of γ-HCH and the other isomers in both the surface soils and the sediment core. The results suggested that there was input of Lindane at scattered sites in this area. In contrast to ΣHCHs, concentration of Σp,p'-DDX in the surface soils of the southern part was much higher than that of the western part. Maximum flux of Σp,p'-DDX was 44 pg cm(-2) year(-1), which appeared in the mid-1960s. Local emission of p,p'-DDT was found at scattered sites. This study provides novel data and knowledge for the OCPs in the western and southern Tibetan Plateau, which will help understand the global fractionation of OCPs in remote alpine regions.

The logical range of laser power density and optimum laser power density were explored for multi-element analysis of pulverized coal flow with laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy in the present paper. The range of laser energy was chosen from 20 to 160 mJ in the experiment. Pulverized coal less than 200 microm in diameter of particles fell freely through feeder outlet and the rate of flow was controlled by screw feeder. Emissions were collected with pulse laser at 1 064 nm focusing on pulverized coal flow and plasma was generated. The intensity and cause of fluctuation of emission spectra at various laser energy levels were studied. A suitable range of laser power density is from 14.4 to 34.4 GW x cm(-2), and the optimum laser power density is 19.5 GW x cm(-2) for the determination of pulverized coal flow with LIBS.

The production process, such as fermentation and purification etc., can significantly affect the relative ratio of matrix components in a multi-component antibiotic. The ratio of components can be varied in different products. This status causes a difficulty to assure the homogeneity and consistency between reference standards and test samples in potency determination, which hinders the results judgment and accuracy of a routine microbiological assay. In the current study, a multi-component antibiotic, teicoplanin, was selected as a model to explore the relationship between the ratio of matrix component and antibiotics potency. Single-component samples, TA3-1, TA2-1, and mixed-component samples, TA2-2.3, TA2-4.5, of teicoplanin were prepared and purified. Dose-response relationship of each sample has been determined by HPLC and microbiological assay, respectively. The accuracy of the potency result was guaranteed by choosing a test organism with the same sensitivity to each component of teicoplanin when there were differences existing in the ratio of components between the reference standard and the test sample. The experimental methods in current specifications can be replaced with the new potency determination method, which can provide a more realistic reflection of the biological activity of the product.

The quality of some earlier developed antibiotics is usually ensured by the combination of HPLC purity and microbiological potency measurement in the pharmacopoeias of various countries because the relationship between their purity and potency is not clearly quantified. Due to potency is assessed using certain units of measurement, it can not be directly traced to the international system of units (SI unit). This has become a hotspot in the study of the quantitative relationship between purity and potency of antibiotics. It would be quite an achievement to simultaneously determine both purity and potency using HPLC methods during quality control. This study evaluated a multicomponent antibiotic product, gentamycin, as a test sample. First, pure samples of the C components of gentamycin: C1a, C2, C2a and C1 were prepared, separately. Second, quantitative relationship (theoretical potency) between the purity and potency of each C component of gentamycin were determined using 1H NMR, HPLC-ELSD and microbiological assay method. One milligram of gentamycin C1a, C2, C2a and C1 was equal to 1 286.98, 1 095.74, 1 079.52 and 739.61 gentamycin units, respectively. Finally, a method for the determination of gentamycin potency was established based on the proportion and content of C components of gentamycin. The unification of purity and potency for gentamycin was achieved using only HPLC-ELSD. It is also demonstrated that C components of gentamycin and micronomicin produce the same responses under ELSD, which means that it is not necessary to prepare separate reference standards for each C component of gentamycin and that quantitative testing can be performed accurately using only one micronomicin reference standard. This study simplified the previous method for the determination of the content of C components of gentamycin using HPLC-ELSD. The developed method is suitable for regular use as a part of quality control and can simplify the rigmarole quality control procedures provided in current pharmacopeias.

Based on the investigations of fish resources in Jingpo Lake and Wudalianchi Lakes in 2008-2011 and the historical data, this paper analyzed the characteristics of ichthyofauna and its community diversity in volcanic barrier lakes of Northeast China. The ichthyofauna in the volcanic barrier lakes of Northeast China was consisted of 64 native species, belonging to 47 genera, 16 families, and 9 orders, among which, one species was the second class National protected wild animal, four species were Chinese endemic species, and five species were Chinese vulnerable species. In the 64 recorded species, there were 44 species of Cypriniformes order and 37 species of Cyprinidae family dominated, respectively. The ichthyofauna in the volcanic barrier lakes of Northeast China was formed by 7 fauna complexes, among which, the eastern plain fauna complex was dominant, the common species from the South and the North occupied 53.1%, and the northern endemic species took up 46.9%. The Shannon, Fisher-alpha, Pielou, Margalef, and Simpson indices of the ichthyofauna were 2.078, 4.536, 0.575, 3.723, and 0.269, respectively, and the abundance distribution pattern of native species accorded with lognormal model. The Bray-Curtis, Morisita-Horn, Ochiai, Sørensen, and Whittaker indices between the communities of ichthyofauna in the volcanic barrier lakes of Northeast China and the Jingpo Lake were 0.820, 0.992, 0.870, 0.862 and 0.138, respectively, and those between the communities of ichthyofauna in the volcanic barrier lakes and the Wudalianchi Lakes were 0.210, 0.516, 0.838, 0.825, and 0.175, respectively. The ichthyofauna in volcanic barrier lakes of Northeast China was characterized by the mutual infiltration between the South and the North, and the overlap and transition between the Palaeoarctic realm and the Oricetal realm. It was suggested that the ichthyofauna community species diversity in the volcanic barrier lakes of Northeast China was higher, the species structure was more stable, but the species richness trended to decrease.

In order to study the mechanism of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for detecting the chemical components content of compound fertilizer in detail, two physical forms of compound fertilizer samples (powder and granular) were used for this study. The authors analyzed the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy properties of samples with different physical forms made under different preparation pressure. And the spectral characteristics and plasma characteristics of N,P and K in the powder and granules made under the preparation pressure of 0, 0. 5, 2, 4, and 6 MPa, respectively were compared experimentally. The experiments results showed that the spectral characteristics of the two forms have obvious difference when the pressure is small and the grain samples have significant higher line intensity than those of the powder samples. With the increase in the pressure, the difference in the plasma characteristics between these two physical forms was reduced, and all the characteristic spectral lines intensity of the same physical form samples increases firstly and reduces afterward.

A method based on the wavelet transform (WT) was developed for the compression of laser-induced breakdown coal spectral data. By studing the impacts of main parameters such as the order of db wavelet, decompose level and threshold method on compression performance, it can summarize the compression parameter selection rule and select the proper compression scheme. The scheme was evaluated by compression scores and relative deviation of each spectral line between original and reconstructed. By choosing proper parameters for channel 1, channel 2 and channel 5 of LIBS spectrum of coal sample (No. 1-No. 8), the restore score RS and compress score CS are respectively 81%-92.11% and 79.02%-92.07%, with the spectral line relative deviation under 5%. It indicates that the storage space is reduced while the main characteristic of original spectrum is maintained. The result shows that this method is very effective.