Biomimetic-Inspired One-Step Strategy for Improvement of Interfacial Interactions in Cellulose Nanofibers by Modification of the Surface of Nitramine Explosives.

Recently, a burgeoning category of biocompatible botanically derived nanomaterial cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) has captured tremendous attention on account of its entangled nanostructured network, natural abundance, and outstanding mechanical properties. Biomimetically inspired by the superior properties of CNFs, this paper examined them as the coating material to cover cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX), cyclotetramethylenetetranitramine (HMX), and hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20) via a facile water suspension method and the ultrasonic technology. The core-shell structure and the composition of energetic crystal@CNF were examined through scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses. The obtained outcomes demonstrated that the dispersibility of the CNF enhanced favorably upon covering the surface of explosive crystals; the interfacial contact ability between CNFs and energetic crystals was also manifested to be increased, which could be ascribed to the interfacial interaction of hydrogen bonds and the electrostatic force of self-assembly. In addition, the stable crystalloid construction of ß-HMX and ε-CL-20 has been preserved positively in the preparation process. In comparison with raw explosives, the thermal stability and sensitivity performances of the core-shell structure composites were outstanding. Accordingly, this work demonstrated the rewarding application of coating CNFs uniformly on the surface of energetic crystals, ulteriorly offering a potential fabrication strategy for the embellishment of high-explosive crystals.

Comparative efficacy of five Chinese medicine injections for treating dilated cardiomyopathy with heart failure: A Bayesian network meta-analysis.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Chinese medicine injections (CMIs) are widely used by clinicians in China as an adjuvant treatment in dilated cardiomyopathy with heart failure (DCM-HF). However, comprehensive and systematic evidence supporting the beneficial effects of CMIs combined with Western medicine (WM) against DCM-HF was lacking. OBJECTIVE: This network meta-analysis aimed to assess the effectiveness of five different CMIs in the treatment of DCM-HF. METHODS: The Cochrane Library, Embase, PubMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Allied and Alternative Medieine Database (AMED), Chinese Biological Medicine Database (CBM), Wanfang Database, and Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP) were comprehensively searched from their inception to March 10, 2020, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) focusing on the use of CMIs combined with WM to treat DCM-HF. The quality of the included RCTs was assessed using the Cochrane Handbook 5.1.0. Bayesian network meta-analysis were designed to access the effectiveness of different CMIs. RESULTS: A total of 38 eligible RCTs involving 3247 patients were enrolled. The study showed that Huangqi injection, Shengmai injection, Shenfu injection, Shenmai injection, and Xinmailong injection combined with WM significantly improved performance compared with WM alone in treating DCM-HF. Xinmailong injection + WM had the highest likelihood of being the best treatment in terms of the improvement in the clinical effectiveness rate, left ventricular end-diastolic dimension, and 6-min walking distance. Huangqi injection + WM had the highest probability of being the best treatment on account of the enhancement of left ventricular ejection fraction. Shenmai injection + WM had the highest likelihood of being the best treatment considering the improvement in cardiac output and the reduction in brain natriuretic peptide. CONCLUSIONS: The combination between CMIs and WM exerted a more positive effect in DCM-HF treatment. Xinmailong injection + WM had the best performance in treating DCM-HF, followed by Shenmai injection and Huangqi injection. However, due to the low qualities of the original studies, more high-quality studies are needed to support the findings.

Clinical Efficacy and Safety of Shensong Yangxin Capsule-Amiodarone Combination on Heart Failure Complicated by Ventricular Arrhythmia: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Background: Shensong Yangxin capsule (SSYX) is a well-known traditional Chinese patent medicine for treating arrhythmia. Recently, a flurry of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of SSYX combined with amiodarone (SSYX-amiodarone) was reported in the treatment of heart failure (HF) complicated by ventricular arrhythmia (VA) in China. However, these RCTs have not been systematically evaluated. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of SSYX-amiodarone in the treatment of heart failure complicated by ventricular arrhythmia (HF-VA). Methods: Seven electronic literature databases (the Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMBASE, China Biomedical database web, China National Knowledge Infrastructure Databases, Chinese Scientific Journal database and Wanfang database) were searched from their inceptions to June 1, 2020 to identify RCTs of SSYX-amiodarone in the treatment of HF-VA. The primary outcomes included the total effective rate and adverse events (ADRs). The secondary outcomes included the frequency of ventricular premature complexes, left ventricular ejection fraction, N terminal pro Btype natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), and QT dispersion (QTd). The quality of the included RCTs was assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool. All data was analyzed using RevMan 5.3 software. The registration number of this protocol is PROSPERO CRD42020196689. Results: There are Eighteen trials involving 1,697 patients were included in this study. Meta-analysis showed that SSYX-amiodarone group was superior to the amiodarone group in improving the total effective rate [RR = 1.21; 95%CI (1.16, 1.27); p < 0.01], meanwhile reducing the ADRs [RR = 0.65; 95%CI (0.45, 0.95); p = 0.03], VPCs [MD = 170.96; 95%CI (159.88, 182.04); p < 0.01] and QTd [MD = 8.39; 95%CI (6.91, 9.87); p < 0.01]. No significant difference of enhancing LVEF [MD = 4.32; 95%CI (-0.56, 9.20); p = 0.08] and reducing NT-proBNP [SMD = 0.17; 95%CI (-0.81, 1.14); p = 0.73] was observed between SSYX-amiodarone and amiodarone group. Conclusions: Despite the apparent positive findings reported, the evidence provided by this meta-analysis was still insufficient to support the routine use of SSYX-amiodarone for HF-VA due to the poor methodological quality of included studies. The overall effect should to be verified in further through more well-design clinical studies with reasonable sample and good methodological quality.