Updated incidence rates and risk factors of esophageal cancer in Nan'ao Island, a coastal high-risk area in southern China.

Esophageal cancer (EC) is one of the most common cancers in China. The purpose of this study was to investigate the updated incidence rates and risk factors of EC in Nan'ao Island, where the EC incidence rate was chronically the highest in southern China. To calculate the annual incidence rate, data on 338 EC cases from Nan'ao Cancer Registry system diagnosed during 2005-2011 were collected. A case-control study was conducted to explore the EC risk factors. One hundred twenty-five alive EC patients diagnosed during 2005-2011 and 250 controls were enrolled into the case-control study. A pre-test questionnaire on demography, dietary factors, drinking water treatment, and behavioral factors was applied to collect information of all participants. The average EC incidence rates during 2005-2011 were 66.09/105, 94.62/105, 36.83/105 for both genders, males and females, respectively, in Nan'ao Island. The EC incidence rate in males was 2.40- to 4.55-fold higher than that in females in the period from 2006 to 2011 (P < 0.05). Considering the onset age, males tend to be much younger than females and reached peak incidence rate at a younger age (P < 0.05). Drinking water treatment by filter (odds ratio [OR] = 0.28, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] = 0.13-0.58) and fruit consumption (OR = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.32-0.94) reduced the risk for EC. On the contrary, the pickled vegetables consumption (OR = 2.64, 95% CI = 1.46-4.76) and liquor drinking (OR = 2.32, 95% CI = 1.21-4.44) increased the risk for EC. These results may be of importance for future research on EC etiology and prevention strategies.

[The Impacts of the Variation of Myanmar Jade Component on Its Infrared Spectroscopy].

Myanmar jade is crystalline aggregate with the major mineral of jadeite. Jadeite can be represented by the crystal-chemical formula NaAlSi2O6. Isomorphous substitution occurs in the natural jadeite frequently, with replacement of Na by Ca, and replacement of Al by Mg, Fe, Cr etcetera, which makes the component of Myanmar jade much more complex and leads to the variation of its physical features, including color, transparency, refractive index, specific gravity and infrared spectrum characteristics, forming different types of Myanmar jade. The studies show that the vibrational spectra characteristics of the Myanmar jade varies depending on the substitution of different elements. In this work, we studied the impacts of the variation of Myanmar jade component on its infrared spectroscopy. 10 Myanmar jade samples which consisted of different chemical composition were measured using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and results show that the IR absorption peaks shift to higher wave numbers, as the atomic ratio of Na/Na+Ca of the samples increases. In the low wave number region, the wave number of the IR absorption peaks at 424, 576 and 658 cm(-1) and the atomic ratio of Na/Na+Ca of the samples share fine linear correlation, and the correlation coefficients (R2) are, in order, R1(2)=0.9442, R2(2)=0.9283, R3(2)=0.9097. We can utilize infra-red spectrum technologies combined with linear model built by us in this work to predicate the atomic ratio of Na/Na+Ca of the unknown Myanmar jade samples. As the atomic ratio of Na/Na+Ca of the unknown Myamar jade samples equals 0.8, the IR absorption peaks should be at 658.7, 574.5, 422.5 cm(-1). If the wavenumbers of the IR absorption peaks are less than 658.7, 574.5 and 422.5 cm(-1), the atomic ratio of Na/Na+Ca of the unknown Myanmar jade samples is less than 0.8, which is indicating that the unknown Myanmar jade sample isomphacitic jade, while the wavenumbers of the IR absorption peaks are more than 658.7, 574.5 and 422.5 cm(-1), the atomic ratio of Na/Na+Ca of the unknown Myanmar jade samples is more than 0.8, which is indicating that the unknown Myanmar jade sample is jadeitic jade. The studies of this work offer a super-quick time-saving and labor-saving nondestructivetesting method for using infrared spectrum technologies to test Myanmar jade samples, analyze their component and predicate which mineral styles the unknown samples are.

[Study on the vibrational spectra characters of Taiwan blue chalcedony].

Blue chalcedony is one of the precious gems produced in Taiwan, known as "Taiwan Sapphire" in the world. The infrared absorption spectrum and Raman spectrum were employed to study the characters of the vibrational spectrum of the blue chalcedony with different color and texture. It was indicated that the Taiwan blue chalcedony shows the typical spectral characteristics of the vibrational spectra of the quartziferous jade. The infrared absorption spectra show that the strongest absorption region 1 250-1 110 cm(-1) is induced by Si-O asymmetric stretching vibration, the medium-intensity absorption band 800-600 cm(-1) is mainly induced by the Si-O-Si symmetric stretching vibration and the Si--O bending vibration displays the peaks in the range of 600-300 cm(-1). The Raman spectra scattering peaks of the Taiwan blue chalcedony samples are mainly at 499 cm(-1) +/-, 464 cm(-1) +/-, and 208-214 cm(-1) and are mainly induced by the Si-O symmetric bending vibration, Si-O bending vibration, and [SiO4] rotational vibration or translation vibration of the "Moganite" quartz.

[Study on the treatment turquoise using Raman spectroscopy].

Due to a variety of the enhancement and treatment turquoises discovered in gem markets, the identification of turquoise is becoming more and more difficult. By using laser Raman spectroscopy analysis, the characteristics of Raman spectra of the pressed and filled turquoises were studied. The results show that laser Raman spectroscopy is an effective technique to identify the enhancement and treatment turquoises and the natural ones, moreover, it's a non-destructive testing method. The Raman spectra of the enhancement and treatment turquoises are resulted mainly from the vibrational mode and frequency of water, hydroxyl units, PO4 tetrahedron and CH2 units. Besides, they have the characteristic Raman spectra peaks at 2,937, 2,883 and 1,451 cm(-1) which are attributed to the stretching vibration and the bending vibration of CH2, respectively. These characteristic Raman vibration bands, it will help to distinguish the natural turquoises and the treatment ones. The study provides a new train of thought on the rapid, accurate, and non-destructive identification of turquoise.