Physiological Effects of Co-exposure to Ionizing Radiation and Noise within Occupational Exposure Limits.

ABSTRACT: Workers are frequently exposed to the occupational hazards of ionizing radiation and noise. Co-exposure to these hazards is not well understood in terms of their physiological effects. The aim of this study was to investigate the physiological effects of co-exposure to ionizing radiation and noise within the occupational limit. This study extracted the physical examination parameters of workers who met the screening criteria from the occupational health surveillance database. The workers were divided into three groups: the co-exposure (COE) group, the ionizing radiation exposure (ION) group, and the non-exposure (NON) group. The age and sex of the three groups were matched with a sample size ratio of 1:3:3. The physical examination parameters of the three groups of workers were compared. The results showed that there was no significant difference in blood pressure and blood biochemical parameters among the three groups. The COE group had higher levels of free triiodothyronine than the ION group, but there was no difference with the NON group. Moreover, the COE group had lower levels of free tetraiodothyronine than the ION group and the NON group. There was no significant difference in thyroid stimulating hormone, total triiodothyronine, and total tetraiodothyronine among the three groups. Additionally, the number of white blood cells of the COE group was lower than that of ION group and NON group. This study suggests that co-exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation and noise can cause alterations in thyroid hormone and peripheral white blood cells. These alterations are different from those observed after single exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation and require further research.

Dose Effect of Bovine Lactoferrin Fortification on Iron Metabolism of Anemic Infants.

To evaluate the effect of iron-fortified formula with different concentrations of bovine lactoferrin (bLF) on improvement of anemic status in term infants who were previously breast-fed. A randomized, controlled, open, and post-market intervention study. A total of 108 infants aged 6-9 mo who were previously breast-fed and weaned were selected. The subjects were divided into three groups with the sequence of outpatient: fortified group 1 (FG1) with a bLF concentration of 38 mg/100 g, FG2 with 76 mg/100 g bLF, FG0 with no bLF. The intervention duration was 3 mo. Weight, height, head circumference and the concentration of hemoglobin (Hb), serum ferritin (SF), serum transferring receptor (sTfR) were measured and sTfR-SF index (TFR-F index) and total body iron content (TBIC) were computed before and after intervention. The primary outcome measures were obtained from 96 infants (35, 33 and 28 for FG0, FG1 and FG2, respectively). After 1 mo of intervention, the changes of Hb level showed no significant difference (p>0.05) among the three groups, however, the Hb level of infants in FG2 were significantly higher than those of infants in the other two groups after 3 mo of intervention (p<0.05). The present data indicated that the formula fortified with 76 mg/100 g bLF positively affected the Hb of anemic infants who were previously breastfed when compared with fortification with 38 mg/100 g bLF and no bLF fortification.

Dying and relational aftermath concerns among terminal cancer patients in China.

The need to make sense of one's mortality is of central concern for death studies. We aimed to explore the meaning of aftermath concerns in the process of preparing for death. Using a qualitative approach, we explored aftermath concerns among 25 participants with terminal cancer in China. Three aftermath concern themes were developed from the participants' narratives: mental concerns about parents, material concerns about children, and spiritual concerns about the self. Aftermath concerns are relational because they are not about what happens within an individual, but between individuals which are manifested within the broader cultural, social, economic, and political contexts.

Assessing the Pharmacological and Therapeutic Efficacy of Traditional Chinese Medicine Liangxue Tongyu Prescription for Intracerebral Hemorrhagic Stroke in Neurological Disease Models.

Intracerebral hemorrhage is a fatal subtype of stroke, with crucial impact on public health. Surgical removal of the hematoma as an early-stage treatment for ICH can't improve long-term prognosis remarkably. Liangxue tongyu prescription (LP), a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) formula, includes eight ingredients and has been used to treat ICH in the clinical. In the study, we elucidated the pharmacological efficacy and therapeutic efficacy of LP to dissect the mechanism of LP against ICH via network analysis and experimental validation. First, we discovered 34 potential compounds and 146 corresponding targets in LP based on network prediction. 24 signal pathway were obtained by the Clue Go assay based on potential compounds in LP against ICH. Second, we found that LP can not only decreased the level of high sensitive C reactive protein (HS-CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), NF-kß, D-dimmer (D2D), estradiol (E2), S-100B, neuron specific enolase (NSE), and interleukin 1 (IL-1) in plasma on spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), but also promoted cell proliferation and inhibited cell apoptosis on the glutamate-induced PC12 cell. The compounds including Taurine, Paeonol, and Ginsenoside Rb1 in LP can activate PI3K/AKT pathway. Third, from the three-factor two-level factorial design, compound combinations in LP, such as Taurine and Paeonol, Taurine and Geniposide, Ginsenoside Rg1, and Ginsenoside Rb1, had first-level interactions on cell proliferation. Compound combinations including Taurine and Paeonol, Ginsenoside Rg1 and Ginsenoside Rb1 had as significant increase in efficiency on inhibiting the apoptosis of PC12 cells at the low concentration and up-regulating of PI3K and AKT. Overall, our results suggested that LP had integrated therapeutic effect on ICH due to activities of anti-inflammatory, anti-coagulation, blood vessel protection, and protection neuron from excitotoxicity based on the way of "multi-component, multi-target, multi-pathway," and compound combination in LP can offer protection neuron from excitotoxicity at the low concentration by activation of the PI3K/Akt signal pathway.

Therapeutic Effects of Cyathula officinalis Kuan and Its Active Fraction on Acute Blood Stasis Rat Model and Identification Constituents by HPLC-QTOF/MS/MS.

BACKGROUND: Cyathula officinalis Kuan is widely used in the clinics for the treatment of blood stasis in China. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the improving blood rheology and anti-inflammatory properties of C. officinalis Kuan extract (CO) and its active fraction (ACO) on acute blood stasis model Wistar rats and characterize the correlative constituents. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CO at 0.26, 0.53, and 1.04 g/kg and ACO at 0.38, 0.75, and 1.5 g/kg were administered to acute blood stasis model Wistar rats for 3 days. Whole blood viscosity, plasma viscosity, and the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in the plasma were measured. HPLC-QTOF/MS/MS method was used to identify the major constituents of ACO; the properties of two representative components (cyasterone and chikusetsusaponin IV) from ACO on thrombin-induced human umbilical vein endothelial cells damage model were also assessed by the levels of thromboxane A2 (TXA2), endothelin (ET), malondialdehyde (MDA), COX-2, endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). RESULTS: CO and ACO significantly reduced whole blood viscosity, plasma viscosity, and levels of IL-6, NO, TNF-α, and COX-2 in vivo. Forty compounds were identified from ACO, mainly as phytoecdysteroids and saponins. Cyasterone and chikusetsusaponin IV could significantly inhibit levels of TXA2, ET, MDA, and COX-2 and promote the activities of eNOS and SOD in vitro. CONCLUSION: CO and ACO possessed significant improving blood rheology and anti-inflammatory effects on acute blood stasis model rats and the representative components Cyasterone and chikusetsusaponin IV showed significant anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anticoagulant effects in vitro. SUMMARY: Cyathula officinalis Kuan is widely used in the clinic for the treatment of blood stasis in ChinaThe C. officinalis Kuan extract and the active fraction of C. officinalis Kuan (ACO) possessed significant improving blood rheology and anti-inflammatory effects on acute blood stasis model ratsForty compounds were identified from ACO, mainly as phytoecdysteroids and saponins Abbreviations used: TCM: Traditional Chinese Medicine, CO: Cyathula officinalis Kuan extract, ACO: Active fraction of Cyathula officinalis Kuan, ROS: Reactive oxygen species, IL-6: Interleukin-6, TNF-α: Tumor necrosis factor alpha, NO: Nitric oxide, COX-2: Cyclooxygenase-2, TXA2: Thromboxane A2, ET: Endothelin, MDA: Malondialdehyde, eNOS: Endothelial nitric oxide synthase, SOD: Superoxide dismutase, ESI: Electronic spray ionization, ELISA: Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, HUVECs: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells, DMEM: Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium, MMP: Matrix metalloproteinase.