Portable one-step effervescence tablet-based microextraction combined with smartphone digital image colorimetry: Toward field and rapid detection of trace nickel ion.

In this study, the one-step switchable hydrophilic solvent (SHS)-based effervescence tablet microextraction (ETME) was coupled with smartphone digital image colorimetry (SDIC) for the field detection of nickel ion (Ni2+) for the first time. Both extractant and CO2 were generated in situ when the novel SHS-based effervescence tablet was placed in the sample solution. The complexant 1-(2-pyridinylazo)-2-naphthaleno (PAN) dissolved from the effervescence tablet to form a stable complex with Ni2+, and the extractant was uniformly dispersed in the sample solution under the action of CO2 and fully in contact with Ni-PAN, which enabled efficient extraction of Ni2+. The color changes of the extraction phase were captured by smartphone, then a quantitative relationship between the concentrations of Ni2+ and color intensity of images captured using a smartphone was established by customized applet WASDIC, which realized quantitative analysis of Ni2+ in different samples. Under optimal conditions, the enhancement factor (EF) of the proposed method was 65.1, the limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were 1.69 and 5.64 µg L-1, respectively. The developed method was successfully applied to the detection of trace Ni2+ in the environmental samples and natural medicines. And the applicability of the method for use in field analysis was validated.

Investigation of natural deep eutectic solvent for the extraction of crude polysaccharide from Polygonatum kingianum and influence of metal elements on its immunomodulatory effects.

In this study, natural deep eutectic solvent (NADES) was used to extract Polygonatum kingianum crude polysaccharide (PKCP) and response surface methodology (RSM) was designed to optimize the extraction procedure. The immunomodulatory effect of PKCP and the influence of metal elements on its immunomodulatory effect were further discussed. The optimum conditions for PKCP extraction were obtained by RSM optimization: NADES were synthesized with a 1:2 choline chloride-glycerol molar ratio, then extracted at a liquid-solid ratio of 16.6 mL g-1 and water content of 31.2 % for 60 min at 60 °C. This method was used for the extraction of PKCP, and the extraction efficiency was 29.69 %, which was 2.5 times greater than the conventional method of water extraction. In the concentration range of 200-800 µg mL-1, PKCP could activate macrophages, promoting NO secretion and mRNA expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in a dose-dependent way. NO secretion and cytokine expression were not affected when the metal elements were spiked to the equivalent of the metal elements contained in Polygonatum kingianum. When the content of metal elements was higher, the secretion of NO and the gene expression of iNOS were both decreased, which may affect the immunomodulatory effect of Polygonatum kingianum.

Risk assessment and source identification of soil heavy metals: a case study of farmland soil along a river in the southeast of a mining area in Southwest China.

To investigate the heavy metals (HMs) contamination of surface farmland soil along the river in the southeast of a mining area in southwest China and identify the contamination sources, 54 topsoil samples were collected and the concentrations of seven elements (Zn, Ni, Pb, Cu, Hg, Cr, and Co) were determined by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and atomic fluorescence spectrometry (AFS). The geo-accumulation index ([Formula: see text]) and comprehensive potential ecological risk index ([Formula: see text]) were used for analysis to determine the pollution degree of HMs and the risk level of the study area. Meanwhile, the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model was combined with a variety of statistical methods to determine the sources of HMs. To explore the influence of the river flowing through the mining area on the concentrations of HMs in the farmland soil, 15 water samples were collected and the concentrations of the above seven elements were determined. The results showed that the concentrations of Pb, Cu, and Zn in soil all exceeded the risk screening value, and Pb in soil of some sampling sites exceeded control value of "Agricultural Land Soil Pollution Risk Control Standard".[Formula: see text] showed that Pb was heavily contaminated, while Cu and Zn were moderately contaminated. RI showed that the study area was at moderate risk. PMF and various statistical methods showed that the main source of HMs was the industrial source. In the short term, the river flowing through the mine has no significant influence on the concentration of HMs in the soil. The results provide a reference for the local government to control contamination and identify the sources of HMs.

Heavy metals distribution characteristics, source analysis, and risk evaluation of soils around mines, quarries, and other special areas in a region of northwestern Yunnan, China.

In this study, based on the assessment of soil heavy metals (HMs) pollution using relevant indices, a comprehensive approach combined network environ analysis (NEA), human health risk assessment (HHRA) method and positive definite matrix factor (PMF) model to quantify the risks among ecological communities in a special environment around mining area in northwest Yunnan, calculated the risk to human health caused by HMs in soil, and analyzed the pollution sources of HMs. The integrated risks for soil microorganisms, vegetations, herbivores, and carnivores were 2.336, 0.876, 0.114, and 0.082, respectively, indicating that soil microorganisms were the largest risk receptors. The total hazard indexes (HIT) for males, females, and children were 0.542, 0.591, and 1.970, respectively, revealing a relatively high and non-negligible non-carcinogenic risks (NCR) for children. The total cancer risks (TCR) for both females and children exceeded 1.00E-04, indicating that soil HMs posed carcinogenic risks (CR) to them. Comparatively, Pb was the high-risk metal, accounting for 53.76%, 57.90%, and 68.09% of HIT in males, females, and children, respectively. PMF analysis yielded five sources of pollution, F1 (industry), F2 (agriculture), F3 (domesticity), F4 (nature), and F5 (traffic).

Determination of lead in Gentiana rigescens and evaluation of the effect of lead exposure on the liver protection of the natural medicine.

In this work, ultrasound-assisted rapidly synergistic cloud point extraction (UARS-CPE) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) were combined to determine trace Pb in Gentiana rigescens Franch. ex Hemsl. (G. rigescens) samples. Under the optimal conditions, the enhancement factor (EF), limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ) and precision were 33, 0.11 µg L-1, 0.37 µg L-1 and 1.3%, respectively. This method was applied to the analysis of G. rigescens samples, and the outcomes were in good agreement with the results determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). A mice model of immune liver injury induced by concanavalin A (ConA) was established, and the liver protection of G. rigescens and gentiopicroside (GPS) on it and the effects of various dosages of Pb exposure on its liver protection were studied. Pb at a dosage of 5 mg kg-1 had little effect on the liver protection of G. rigescens and GPS, while 25, 125 mg kg-1 dosages of Pb could significantly attenuate the liver protection of both. In addition, it aggravated the necrosis of hepatocytes and inflammatory cell infiltration, and these effects were dose-dependent.

Simultaneous determination of Co and Pb in P. polyphylla var. yunnanensis by ICP-OES after GO-TiO2-DES-based dispersive micro solid phase extraction.

In this work, deep eutectic solvent (DES) was used to modify GO-TiO2 to synthesize new adsorption material GO-TiO2-DES nanocomposites. It was first used for dispersive micro solid phase extraction (DMSPE) and combined with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) for simultaneous determination of trace cobalt (Co) and lead (Pb) in natural medicine P. polyphylla var. yunnanensis. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area were used to characterize. The results showed that GO-TiO2-DES nanocomposites were successfully prepared and had better adsorption effect on metal ions. The factors affecting the extraction and elution of Co and Pb were optimized, including the type of DES, pH, adsorption time, amount of adsorbent, adsorption temperature, and elution time. Under the optimum conditions, the enhancement factors (EFs) of Co and Pb were 31 and 28, the limits of detection (LODs) were 0.11 and 0.24 µg L-1, and the limits of quantification (LOQs) were 0.36 and 0.82 µg L-1, respectively. The results of Co and Pb determined by the established method were in good agreement with those of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), which verified the accuracy and reliability of the method.

Expression of Serum sLOX-1 in Patients with Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer and Its Correlation with Lipid Metabolism.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the expression level of soluble LOX-1 (sLOX-1) in the serum of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients and its correlation with lipid metabolism. Methods: 99 inpatients with NSCLC and 81 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. The levels of serum sLOX-1 were compared between the two groups, and the correlation of sLOX-1 with clinicopathological characteristics, blood lipid indices, and carcinoembryonic antigen was analyzed. Results: Compared with the healthy controls, sLOX-1, low-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, and carcinoembryonic antigen in the patients with NSCLC were significantly higher (p < 0.05), while the expression level of high-density lipoprotein was lower (p < 0.05). The expression level of sLOX-1 in the serum of patients with healthy controls was positively correlated with low-density lipoprotein (r = 0.72, p < 0.05). The levels of sLOX-1 and low-density lipoprotein in the serum of patients with NSCLC were closely related to the lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and TNM stage (p < 0.05). Compared with a single index, when the sLOX-1 was combined with the CEA, its specificity increased significantly to 97.5% (AUC = 0.995, p < 0.01, 95% CI: 0.989-1.000). Conclusion: sLOX-1 and low-density lipoprotein were overexpressed in the serum of patients with NSCLC, positively correlated, and closely related to the TNM stage and metastasis. This result suggested that lipid metabolic disorders may promote the progression of NSCLC through sLOX-1, which could be a potential serological marker with diagnostic value for NSCLC.

[Readmission to surgical intensive care unit after hepatobiliary-pancreatic surgery: risk factors and prediction].

OBJECTIVE: To find the pathogenies and risk factors related to surgical intensive care unit (SICU) readmission for patients who underwent hepatobiliary-pancreatic surgery, and to develop a predictive model for determining patients who are likely to be readmitted to SICU. METHODS: The patients who admitted to SICU of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University from January 2013 to August 2018; who first stayed in SICU after hepatobiliary-pancreatic surgery; who were assessed and discharged from SICU by surgeons and SICU physicians after treatment, and then transferred to SICU again because of the change of their condition were enrolled. The unintended return to SICU within 3 days and 7 days were recorded. Patients who returned to SICU within 7 days were studied for the pathogenies, risk factors and predictive model of returning to SICU, and non-returning patients were enrolled according to 1:1 as the controls. A total of 43 indicators were divided into five categories, including general clinical data, medical history, surgical indicators before first admission of SICU, length of first SICU stay, and other indicators on the day of first discharge from the SICU. Logistic regression was used to screen the risk factors associated with SICU readmission, then the Nomogram diagram was drawn by using the R 3.4.1 software for predicting SICU readmission, and the classification performance of Nomogram was evaluated by self-help sampling test. RESULTS: Of the 763 patients discharged from the SICU, 2.10% (16/763) of them were readmitted within 3 days and 3.28% (25/763) were readmitted within 7 days to the SICU unexpectedly. The pathogenies of SICU readmission within 7 days included infection [56.00% (14/25)], heart failure [16.00% (4/25)], infarction [12.00% (3/25)], bleeding [12.00% (3/25)], and sutures splitting [4.00% (1/25)]. The pathogenies of SICU readmission within 3 days included infection [56.25% (9/16)], heart failure [18.75% (3/16)], infarction [12.50% (2/16)], and bleeding [12.50% (2/16)]. Nomogram analysis showed that the risk factors associated with unplanned SICU readmission were length of first SICU stay, history of hypertension, and activity of daily living (ADL) score, white blood cell count (WBC), arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2), prothrombin time (PT), fibrinogen (FIB) on the day of first SICU discharge. Self-help sampling test was carried out on the Nomogram map, and the results showed that the coherence index (C-index) was 0.962 [95% confidence interval (95%CI) = 0.869-1.057]. The classification performance of the model was good. CONCLUSIONS: The common pathogenies of SICU readmission for patients who underwent hepatobiliary-pancreatic surgery were infection, heart failure, infarction and bleeding. Risk factors of readmission after SICU discharge included the length of first SICU stay, history of hypertension, and ADL score, WBC, PaO2, PT, FIB on the day of first SICU discharge. The model consisted of above risk factors showed a good performance in predicting the probability of readmission after SICU discharge for patients who underwent hepatobiliary-pancreatic surgery.

Efficacy and safety of antiepileptic drugs for refractory partial-onset epilepsy: a network meta-analysis.

The optimal combination of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) for the treatment of refractory partial-onset epilepsy is a perpetual point of debate. While several network meta-analyses (NMAs) have been published, conclusions remain controversial, especially since newer AEDs have been introduced. In our review, we included the newer AEDs to evaluate the comparative efficacy and safety of AEDs for the treatment of refractory partial-onset epilepsy. We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (Cochrane Library 2017, Issue 1) from their inception to February 18, 2017. The risk of bias in the included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was evaluated according to the Cochrane Collaboration's risk of bias tool. An NMA was performed with a Bayesian random-effects model, and we used the surface under the cumulative ranking curve to detect the optimal AEDs. Seventy-six RCTs with 17 AEDs and 20,711 patients were included in the NMAs, which showed that Brivaracetam (BRV), Levetiracetam (LEV), Oxcarbazepine (OXC), Topiramate, Vigabatrin (VGB), and Valproate (VPA) had a greater likelihood of allowing patients to achieve seizure freedom. We also found that LEV was associated with a lower withdrawal rate due to adverse effects than Lacosamide, Eslicarbazepine acetate, OXC, Pregabalin, and Retigabine. LEV, VGB, VPA, and BRV emerged as the agents with the best combination of properties when considering the efficacy and safety outcomes based on the full double-blind treatment period. However, it is critical to perform RCTs and to obtain prospective data from representative cohort studies.

A nonlinear competitive model of the prostate tumor growth under intermittent androgen suppression.

Hormone suppression has been the primary modality of treatment for prostate cancer. However long-term androgen deprivation may induce androgen-independent (AI) recurrence. Intermittent androgen suppression (IAS) is a potential way to delay or avoid the AI relapse. Mathematical models of tumor growth and treatment are simple while they are capable of capturing the essence of complicated interactions. Game theory models have analyzed that tumor cells can enhance their fitness by adopting genetically determined survival strategies. In this paper, we consider the survival strategies as the competitive advantage of tumor cells and propose a new model to mimic the prostate tumor growth in IAS therapy. Then we investigate the competition effect in tumor development by numerical simulations. The results indicate that successfully IAS-controlled states can be achieved even though the net growth rate of AI cells is positive for any androgen level. There is crucial difference between the previous models and the new one in the phase diagram of successful and unsuccessful tumor control by IAS administration, which means that the suggestions from the models for medication can be different. Furthermore we introduce quadratic logistic terms to the competition model to simulate the tumor growth in the environment with a finite carrying capacity considering the nutrients or inhibitors. The simulations show that the tumor growth can reach an equilibrium state or an oscillatory state with the net growth rate of AI cells being androgen independent. Our results suggest that the competition and the restraint of a limited environment can enhance the possibility of relapse prevention.

Homocysteine and Alzheimer's Disease: Evidence for a Causal Link from Mendelian Randomization.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: The relationship between plasma homocysteine (Hcy) levels and Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been studied for many years, but remains controversial. While a recent meta-analysis of epidemiological studies, which included observational studies, indicated that homocysteine may be a risk factor for AD, there remains a need to further demonstrate this link due to the large degree of heterogeneity between studies. Epidemiological studies have certain limitations, as their results can be affected by confounding factors and reverse causation. In this study, we evaluated the relationship between plasma homocysteine and AD by using a Mendelian randomization method to avoid problems of confounding bias and reverse causality. METHODS: We searched the PubMed and EMBASE databases for reports regarding the MTHFR C677T polymorphism (rs1801133) from the time of their inception to September 2015. These reports were combined with related observational studies, and used to evaluate the effect of MTHFR C677T (rs1801133) on the risk for AD. A recent meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies had previously suggested a relationship between homocysteine and MTHFR C677T (rs 1801133). RESULTS: Our met-analysis included 34 studies with 9397 subjects, and demonstrated a significant relationship between plasma total homocysteine levels and the risk for AD (OR = 3.37; 95% CI = 1.90-5.95; p = 2.9×10-5). CONCLUSION: Our meta-analysis demonstrated a causal link between plasma total homocysteine and the risk for AD, and provides a new insight into the etiology and prevention of AD.