[Pharmacodynamic substances and mechanism of action of Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules in treatment of acute upper respiratory tract infection in children].

This study aimed to forecast the main active components of Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules(XECQ) in the treatment of children with acute upper respiratory tract infection by UPLC-MS, network pharmacology, molecular docking and cell biology, and explore the mechanism of action, so as to provide certain reference for the research on its pharmacodynamics substances and mechanism of action. The main chemical components of XECQ were comprehensively analyzed by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS combined with UNIFI platform. According to the MS1 and MS2 data of XECQ, comparison and identification were carried out in combination with reference substances and reference articles. On this basis, the chemical components of XECQ were targeted and enriched by network pharmacology, to screen the main pharmacodynamic substances of XECQ in the treatment of acute upper respiratory tract infection in children and discuss the mechanism of action. In addition, the binding degree of core targets and main active components was verified by molecular docking. The results revealed that 202 compounds were identified from XECQ, among which 22 were the main active components, including obovatol, dihydroartemisinin, and longikaurin A. Enrichment analysis of the key target pathways showed that XECQ played its role in the treatment of children with acute upper respiratory tract infection mainly by regulating PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and MAPK signaling pathway. In the experimental verification by Western Blot(WB), it was found that XECQ significantly inhibited the expression of PI3K and Akt, which was consistent with the prediction results of network pharmacology. In conclusion, the potential pharmacodynamic substances of XECQ were obovatol, dihydroartemisinin, longikaurin A and other 19 active components. It treated children with acute upper respiratory tract infection by regulating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

[Phenylethanoid glycosides in Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules and its metabolic transformation in vitro and in vivo].

To clarify the metabolic transformation mechanism of phenylethanoid glycosides in Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules in vivo, this study extracted and separated the phenylethanoid glycosides in Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules. Based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS technology, the retention time and primary and secondary mass spectrometry information were analyzed by UNIFI software, and 11 phenylethanoid glycosides in Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules were preliminarily identified. Sixty-nine metabolites related to phenylethanoid glycosides were identified from the plasma samples of juvenile rats after administration of Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules. In addition, this study simulated the transformation system of intestinal flora in children, and discussed the metabolic effects of intestinal flora on the representative components forsythoside A, forsythoside E, and salidroside of phenylethanoid glycosides. The model of gastrointestinal heat retention in children with food accumulation was established to study the differential metabolites of phenylethanoid glycosides. Through the comparative analysis of the representative components absorbed in blood and the intestinal floral transformation products, it was found that the main metabolic pathways of phenylethanoid glycosides were dehydrogenation, oxidation, acetylation, sulfation, and glucuronidation. The findings of this study revealed the transformation law of phenylethanoid glycosides in the gastrointestinal tract. Through the preliminary discussion of the pharmacological mechanism, this study provides references for further clarifying the pharmacodynamic material basis of Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules and exploring the pediatric Chinese medicine compound.

[Digestive properties of flavonoid components in Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules in simulated infant gastrointestinal environment].

This study aimed to elucidate the digestive characteristics of flavonoid components in Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules(XECQ) in the gastrointestinal environment of infants. An in vitro model was established to simulate the gastric and intestinal environment of infants. UPLC was used to analyze the content change of flavonoid components in XECQ, and their overall content was integrated through the mass fraction weight coefficient method. UPLC-Q-TOF-MS was employed to determine the digestive products of flavonoid components in gastrointestinal fluids and their metabolic pathways. The results showed that in the process of digestion, 11 digestion products were generated by oxidation, reduction, deglycosylation, methylation and other phase Ⅰ metabolism. From flavonoid content and component changes, it was found that the flavonoid components in XECQ were relatively stable in the gastric fluid, while their content in the intestinal fluid was first increased and then maintained stable. This was mainly because flavonoid components were released from proteins, polysaccharides and other macromolecular substances during gastrointestinal digestion. In addition, phase Ⅰ metabolism occurred, but with relatively low metabolic rate, resulting in their stable content. This study preliminarily explored the digestive characteristics of flavonoid components in XECQ in the infant gastrointestinal environment, which laid a foundation for further studying the absorption, transport and metabolism of pharmacodynamics components in XECQ, and facilitated the study of the biopharmaceutical pro-perties of pediatric Chinese medicine.

Construction and optimization of an efficient amplification method of a random ssDNA library by asymmetric emulsion PCR.

Construction of a random ssDNA sublibrary is an important step of the aptamer screening process. The available construction methods include asymmetric PCR, biotin-streptavidin separation, and lambda exonuclease digestions, in which PCR amplification is a key step. The main drawback of PCR amplification is overamplification increasing nonspecific hybridization among different products and by-products, which may cause the loss of potential high-quality aptamers, inefficient screening, and even screening failure. Cycle number optimization in PCR amplification is the main way to avoid overamplification but does not fundamentally eliminate the nonspecific hybridization, and the decreased cycle number may lead to insufficient product amounts. Here, we developed a new method, "asymmetric emulsion PCR," which could overcome the shortcomings of conventional PCR. In asymmetric emulsion PCR, different templates were separated by emulsion particles, allowing single-molecule PCR, in which each template was separately amplified, and the nonspecific hybridization was avoided. Overamplification or formation of by-products was not observed. The method is so simple that direct amplification of 40 or more cycles can provide a high-quality ssDNA library. Therefore, the asymmetric emulsion PCR would improve the screening efficiency of systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment.

A rapid method for the determination of vitamin D3 in milk and infant formula by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry.

A rapid method for the determination of vitamin D3 applicable to milk and infant formula products is described. Samples are saponified at high temperature, and lipophilic components are extracted into isooctane in a single tube. Vitamin D3 is derivatized with 4-phenyl-1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione (PTAD) to form a Diels-Alder adduct, which is re-extracted into a small volume of acetonitrile and analyzed by UHPLC-MS/MS with quantification accomplished by an internal standard technique utilizing deuterium-labeled vitamin D3. The analysis of vitamin D3 as the PTAD adduct offers a significant increase in sensitivity and selectivity, allowing for rapid sample preparation and short chromatographic run times. The method was shown to be accurate, with spike recoveries of 94.7-104.7% and no statistical bias against both a certified reference material (P = 0.37, α = 0.05) and a reference LC-UV analytical method (P = 0.09, α = 0.05). Acceptable precision was confirmed with a repeatability RSD of 1.4-4.5% and corresponding HorRat values of 0.1-0.2. This high-throughput method is ideal for routine compliance testing, with more than 50 samples/day achievable by a single analyst.

Differential absorption and metabolic characteristics of organic acid components in Pudilan Xiaoyan Oral Liquid between young rats and adult rats.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Pudilan Xiaoyan Oral Liquid (PDL) is a proprietary Chinese medicinal preparation approved by the State for treating acute pharyngitis in both adults and children (Approval No. Z20030095). It is worth noting that children exhibit unique physiopathological characteristics compared to adults. However, the in vivo regulatory characteristics of PDL in treating acute pharyngitis in children remain incompletely understood. AIM OF THE STUDY: The differential absorption and metabolism characteristics of the main pharmacological components in PDL in young and adult rats were investigated with a view to providing a reference for preclinical data of PDL in medication for children. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study utilized UPLC-Q-TOF-MS to investigate the pharmacodynamic material basis of PDL. The focus was on the gastrointestinal digestion and absorption characteristics of organic acid components in PDL (PDL-OAC), known as the primary pharmacodynamic components in this formulation. The research combined in vitro dynamic simulation and a Quadruple single-pass intestinal perfusion model to examine these characteristics. The permeability properties of PDL-OAC were evaluated using an artificial parallel membrane model. Additionally, an acute pharyngitis model was established to evaluate the histopathological condition of the pharynx in young rats using H&E staining. The levels of IL-1ß, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-10 in blood and pharyngeal tissue homogenates of young rats were quantified using ELISA kits. RESULTS: A total of 91 components were identified in PDL, including 33 organic acids, 24 flavonoids, 14 alkaloids, 5 terpenoids and coumarins, 3 sugars, and 12 amino acids. The PDL-OAC exhibited a significant reduction in IL-1ß, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-10 levels in the pharyngeal tissues of young rats with acute pharyngitis. Results from dynamic simulation studies of gastrointestinal fluids revealed that the PDL-OAC (Specifically chlorogenic acid (CGA), gallic acid (GA), chicoric acid (CRA), and caffeic acid (CA)) were effectively stabilized in the gastrointestinal fluids of both children and adults in vitro. Young rats, characterized by thinner intestinal walls and higher permeability, efficiently absorbed the four organic acids across the entire intestinal segment. The absorption of CGA, GA, and CRA followed a concentration-dependent pattern, with CGA and GA absorption being influenced by exocytosis. CONCLUSION: The efficacy of the PDL-OAC in treating acute pharyngitis was demonstrated in young rats. The absorption rate of these components was observed to be faster in young rats compared to adult rats, underscoring the need for dedicated studies on the drug's usage in children. This research provides valuable insights for the appropriate clinical use of PDL in pediatric patients.

Effects of SGLT2 inhibitors on cardiovascular outcomes in patients with stage 3/4 CKD: A meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: After stage 3 CKD, the risk of adverse cardiovascular events increased significantly. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to investigate the cardiovascular protective effect of SGLT2 inhibitors in patients with stage 3/4 CKD with different baseline kidney function or underlying diseases. METHOD: To identify eligible trials, we systematically searched the Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane library databases from inception to April 15, 2021. The primary cardiovascular outcome was defined as a combination of cardiovascular mortality and hospitalization due to heart failure. Baseline kidney functions (stage 3a CKD: eGFR45-59mL/min per 1.73m2, stage 3b CKD: eGFR30-44mL/min per 1.73m2, stage 4 CKD: eGFR<30mL/min per 1.73m2) and underlying diseases (Type 2 diabetes, heart failure (Preserved ejection fraction or reduced ejection fraction), atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease) were used to stratify efficacy and safety outcomes. The results were subjected to a sensitivity analysis to ensure that they were reliable. RESULTS: In the present study, a total of eleven trials were included that involved a total of 27,823 patients with stage 3/4 CKD. The treatment and control groups contained 14,451 and 13,372 patients, respectively. In individuals with stage 3/4 CKD, SGLT2 inhibitors reduced the risk of primary cardiovascular outcomes by 26% (HR 0.74, [95% CI 0.69-0.80], I2 = 0.00%), by 30% in patients with stage 3a CKD (HR 0.70, [95% CI 0.59-0.84], I2 = 18.70%), by 23% in patients with stage 3b CKD (HR 0.77, [95% CI 0.66-0.90], I2 = 2.12%), and by 29% in patients with stage 4 CKD (HR 0.71, [95% CI 0.53-0.96], I2 = 0.00%). The risk of primary outcomes was reduced by 29% (HR 0.71, [95% CI 0.63-0.80], I2 = 0.00%) in patients with type 2 diabetes, by 28% (HR 0.72, [95% CI 0.56-0.93], I2 = 37.23%) in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, by 21% (HR 0.79, [95% CI 0.70-0.89], I2 = 0.00%) in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, and by 25% (HR 0.75, [95% CI 0.64-0.88], I2 = 0.00%) in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. CONCLUSIONS: For stage 3/4 CKD, SGLT2 inhibitors significantly decreased the risk of primary cardiovascular outcomes, and these benefits were consistent throughout the spectrum of different kidney functions, even in stage 4 CKD. There was no evidence of increased adverse outcomes across different baseline clinical complications, such as type 2 diabetes, heart failure, or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Effects of SGLT2 Inhibitors on Renal Outcomes in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease: A Meta-Analysis.

Introduction: The effects of sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors on renal outcomes in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) were initially demonstrated in recent trials. However, the magnitude of renal benefits for CKD patients with different baseline features and underlying diseases remains unclear. Method: We systematically searched the Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane library databases from inception to April 15, 2021 to identify eligible trials. The primary outcome was a composite of worsening kidney function, end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), or renal death. Efficacy and safety outcomes were stratified by baseline features, such as type 2 diabetes, heart failure, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, proteinuria, and renal function. Results: A total of nine studies were included. These studies included 25,749 patients with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR)<60 mL/min/1.73 m2 and 12,863 patients with urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) >300 mg/g. SGLT2 inhibitors reduced the risk of the primary renal outcome by 30% in patients with eGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m2 (HR 0.70, [95% CI 0.58-0.83], I2 = 0.00%) and by 43% in patients with UACR > 300 mg/g (HR 0.57, [95% CI 0.48-0.67], I2 = 16.59%). A similar benefit was observed in CKD patients with type 2 diabetes. SGLT2 inhibitors had no clear effects on renal outcomes in patients with eGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m2 combined with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (HR 0.74, [95% CI 0.51-1.06], I2 = 0.00%). However, they reduced the risk of major renal outcomes by 46% (HR 0.54, [95% CI 0.38-0.76], I2 = 0.00%) in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and macroalbuminuria (defined as UACR > 300 mg/g). SGLT2 inhibitors did not significantly reduce the risk of major renal outcomes in CKD patients with heart failure (eGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m2: HR 0.81, [95% CI 0.47-1.38], I2 = 0.00%; UACR > 300 mg/g: HR 0.66, [95% CI 0.41-1.07], I2 = 0.00%). SGLT2 inhibitors showed consistent renal benefits across different levels of eGFR (P interaction = 0.48). Conclusion: SGLT2 inhibitors significantly reduced the risk of the primary outcome in CKD patients. However, for patients with different features and underlying diseases, there exists differences in the renal protective effect.

[Cross immunity study of two different influenza A3 virus vaccine strain].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the cross immunity response between two similar strains of influenza A3 virus vaccine from 2007 to 2008. METHODS: Healthy adults aged 18-60 years old without history of flu vaccination were inoculated Anflu ™( 52 cases) or VAXIGRIP ® (137 cases) influenza split vaccine. A micro-hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assay was used to test the serum specimens collected from the subjects before and after vaccination. The seroconversion rate, geometric mean titer (GMT) and antibody protective rate were used to evaluate the effect. RESULTS: The seroconversion rates of Anflu ™ and VAXIGRIP ® tested by A/Hiroshima/52/2005 virus antigen were 82.7% (95%CI: 69.2% - 91.8%) and 80.3% (95%CI: 72.4% - 86.5%) respectively and there was no significant difference (χ(2) = 0.141, P > 0.05). The seroconversion rates of Anflu™ and VAXIGRIP ® tested by A/Wisconsin/67/2005 (H3N2)-like virus antigen were 71.2% (95%CI: 56.7% - 82.8%) and 73.7% (95%CI: 65.4% - 80.8%) respectively and there was no significant difference observed (χ(2) = 0.126, P > 0.05). GMT of Anflu™ and VAXIGRIP ® tested by A/Hiroshima/52/2005 virus antigen after vaccination increased 11.5 (95%CI: 7.5 - 17.5) times and 13.0 (95%CI: 10.0 - 16.9) times without significant difference (F = 0.497, P > 0.05). GMT of Anflu ™ and VAXIGRIP ® tested by A/Wisconsin/67/2005 (H3N2)-like virus antigen after vaccination increased 9.5 (95%CI: 6.3 - 14.3) and 10.9 (95%CI: 8.5 - 13.7) times, and there was no significant difference either (F = 0.554, P > 0.05). The antibody protective rate of two vaccines before and after immunity tested by A/Hiroshima/52/2005 virus antigen were 48.1% and 54.7% before vaccination and 98.1% and 95.6%after vaccination respectively without significant difference (χ(2) = 0.135 - 0.673, P > 0.05). The antibody protective rates of two vaccines tested by A/Wisconsin/67/2005 (H3N2)-like virus antigen were 11.5% and 13.9%before vaccination and 80.8% and 86.1%after vaccination respectively, and there was no significant difference (χ(2) = 0.178 - 0.834, P > 0.05). But the results tested by A/Hiroshima/52/2005 virus antigen were higher than those of A/Wisconsin/67/2005 (H3N2)-like virus antigen (χ(2) = 7.111 - 52.155, P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: The two similar seasonal influenza vaccine strains recommended by WHO had a good cross immunity response, but the systematic error of test existed in two similar stains and the same strains should be used.

Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and red blood cell distribution width-to-platelet ratio predict cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients.

Cardiovascular diseases are among the primary causes of decreased quality of life as well as mortality of hemodialysis patients with end-stage renal disease. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the predictive value of the red blood cell distribution width (RDW)-to-platelet ratio (RPR) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) regarding the occurrence or development of cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients, as well as the prognostic value of this metric. A total of 219 hemodialysis patients with cardiovascular events (HCE group) and 276 hemodialysis patients with no cardiovascular events (HNCE group) were enrolled in the present study. The clinical characteristics and laboratory parameters on admission, including RDW, as well as neutrophil, lymphocyte and platelet counts, were recorded. The NLR and RPR were increased in the HCE group compared with those in the HNCE group and there was a positive association between the NLR or RPR and the incidence of cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients. In the receiver operating characteristics curve analysis, the area under the curve of the RPR for predicting cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients was 0.88, while that for the NLR was 0.84. The sensitivity and specificity of the RPR for predicting cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients were 0.87 and 0.82 respectively, and for the NLR, they were 0.75 and 0.79, respectively. The RPR was an independent risk factor for the prognosis regarding cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients. In addition, the NLR and RPR were correlated with brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), cardiac troponin I (cTnI), creatine kinase isoenzyme-MB (CK-MB), and associated with ST segment changes in HCE patients. In conclusion, it was possible to predict the incidence of cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients using the NLR and RPR, while the RPR had a better sensitivity and specificity than the NLR. The RPR was an independent risk factor for the prognosis regarding cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients. These routinely available parameters should be considered as novel diagnostic markers for the occurrence and development of cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients and their prognosis.

[Design and application of the improved atomized airway humidifier].

Airway humidification is an important treatment for tracheotomy patients. At present, the commonly used methods of humidification are atomization inhalation, intra-tracheal drip, etc., but most of them have the disadvantages of interrupted humidification, inadequate humidification, repeated exposure of airway, increased nursing workload, etc. An improved disposable atomizer was designed by the emergency department of Jiaxing First Hospital in Zhejiang Province, which solved the above problems and obtained the National Utility Model Patent of China (ZL 2014 2 0406688.9). In the traditional atomizer, a make-up pipeline is added to run through the liquid container. The replenishing pipe is connected with an external infusion device. At the end of the pipeline inside the liquid container, a buoy with a guide rod is designed to continuously add liquid and automatically control the make-up speed. The device is driven by oxygen to perform airway humidification. The design can keep sufficient airway humidification, avoid frequent addition of humidification fluid, achieve the effect of increasing humidification, reducing the occurrence of complications, increasing the comfort of patients, and reducing the workload of nursing, and has a certain clinical value.

Long non-coding RNA Hottip modulates high-glucose-induced inflammation and ECM accumulation through miR-455-3p/WNT2B in mouse mesangial cells.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in the pathogenesis of various diseases, including diabetic nephropathy (DN). However, the detailed mechanism is still largely unknown. High-glucose treated SV40-MES13 cells was used to mimic diabetic nephropathy in vitro. qRT-PCR was introduced to measure Hottip, collagen type I (Col. I), collagen type IV (Col. IV), fibronectin (FN), PAI-1, miR-455-3p and Wnt2B, IL-6, TNF-α mRNA level. Ellisa was used to examine the expression level of IL-6, TNF-α in the cell culture medium. Western blotting was employed to detect the protein level of Col. I, Col. IV, FN, PAI-1, Wnt2B, ß-catenin and cyclin D1. Cell viability was examined by MTT assay, luciferase reporter assay were used to determine the relationship between Hottip, miR-455-3p and Wnt2B. In the results, Hottip and Wnt2B was upregulated in db/db DN mice and high-glucose treated mouse mesangial cells (MMCs) while miR-455-3p was downregulated. High glucose treatment could enhance cell proliferation, and inflammation, increase fibrosis-related protein expression and active Wnt2B/ß-catenin/cyclin D1 pathway, while Hottip silencing reversed all the effects caused by high-glucose treatment. miR-455-3p was a sponge target of Hottip while Wnt2B was a downstream target of miR-445-3p. miR-445-3p inhibitor could suppress the effect of Hottip knockdown in cell proliferation, inflammation and fibrosis-related protein expression. Our data supported lncRNA Hottip/miR-455-3p/Wnt2B axis plays an important role in cell proliferation, inflammation, and extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation in diabetic nephropathy.

Five-year antibody persistence in children after one dose of inactivated or live attenuated hepatitis A vaccine.

In China, both inactivated hepatitis A (HA) vaccine and live attenuated HA vaccine are available. We conducted a trial to evaluate 5-year immune persistence induced by one dose of inactivated or live attenuated HA vaccines in children. Subjects with no HA vaccination history had randomly received one dose of inactivated or live attenuated HA vaccine at 18-60 months of age. Anti-HAV antibody concentrations were measured before vaccination and at the first, second, and fifth year after vaccination. Suspected cases of hepatitis A were monitored during the study period. A total of 332 subjects were enrolled and 182 provided evaluable serum samples at all planned time points. seropositive rate at 5 y was 85.9% in the inactivated HA vaccine group and 90.7% in the live attenuated HA vaccine group. GMCs were 76.3% mIU/ml (95% CI: 61.7 - 94.4) and 66.8mIU/ml (95% CI: 57.8 - 77.3), respectively. No significant difference in antibody persistence between 2 groups was found. No clinical hepatitis A case was reported. A single dose of an inactivated or live attenuated HA vaccine at 18-60 months of age resulted in high HAV seropositive rate and anti-HAV antibody concentrations that lasted for at least 5 y.

Surface EMG decomposition based on K-means clustering and convolution kernel compensation.

A new approach has been developed by combining the K-mean clustering (KMC) method and a modified convolution kernel compensation (CKC) method for multichannel surface electromyogram (EMG) decomposition. The KMC method was first utilized to cluster vectors of observations at different time instants and then estimate the initial innervation pulse train (IPT). The CKC method, modified with a novel multistep iterative process, was conducted to update the estimated IPT. The performance of the proposed K-means clustering-Modified CKC (KmCKC) approach was evaluated by reconstructing IPTs from both simulated and experimental surface EMG signals. The KmCKC approach successfully reconstructed all 10 IPTs from the simulated surface EMG signals with true positive rates (TPR) of over 90% with a low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of -10 dB. More than 10 motor units were also successfully extracted from the 64-channel experimental surface EMG signals of the first dorsal interosseous (FDI) muscles when a contraction force was held at 8 N by using the KmCKC approach. A "two-source" test was further conducted with 64-channel surface EMG signals. The high percentage of common MUs and common pulses (over 92% at all force levels) between the IPTs reconstructed from the two independent groups of surface EMG signals demonstrates the reliability and capability of the proposed KmCKC approach in multichannel surface EMG decomposition. Results from both simulated and experimental data are consistent and confirm that the proposed KmCKC approach can successfully reconstruct IPTs with high accuracy at different levels of contraction.

[Evaluation on the hepatitis A vaccine in preventing hepatitis A infection in Tianjin, from 2000 to 2011].

OBJECTIVE: Hepatitis A immunization strategies were carried out in 2001 in Tianjin. We wanted to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies related to hepatitis A control programs and to provide the basis for further modification of the strategies. METHODS: Descriptive epidemiology study was used to analyze the hepatitis A epidemic situation in 2000-2011 in Tianjin and to evaluate the disease reporting system. Hepatitis A vaccine coverage of target population and serum epidemiological study were carried out in 1999, 2005 and 2010 to check on the hepatitis A antibody levels so as to evaluate the immuno-barrier condition in the normal population. Cox-Stuart test was used to analyze the epidemic trend of hepatitis A and other intestinal infectious diseases in Tianjin. RESULTS: The incidence rate of hepatitis A decreased from 2.89/100 000 in 2000 to 0.12/100 000 in 2011, and the percentage of hepatitis A in all types of viral hepatitis decreased from 8.02% in 2000 to 0.48% in 2011 in Tianjin. The positive rates of hepatitis A antibody also increased in the residents. CONCLUSION: The hepatitis A vaccination program was successful in the programs on prevention and control of hepatitis A in Tianjin, China.

Effectiveness of 10-year vaccination (2001-2010) on Hepatitis A in Tianjin, China.

Vaccination is an effective strategy to prevent and control the transmission of hepatitis A. Hepatitis A immunization program has been taken into effect since 2001 in Tianjin, China. This study evaluated the effectiveness of strategies in the prevention and control of hepatitis A. Data of serological survey, annual hepatitis A incidence, immunization coverage and the positive rate of hepatitis A IgG before and after the immunization program in residents under 15 years old were used to do the analysis. The results indicated that hepatitis A vaccine induced a striking decrease of hepatitis A incidence and a significant increase in the positive rate of anti-HAV IgG among the children younger than 15 years old. Hepatitis A vaccination in children was proved to be effective in the prevention and control of hepatitis A in Tianjin, China.

Comparing algorithms for automated vessel segmentation in computed tomography scans of the lung: the VESSEL12 study.

The VESSEL12 (VESsel SEgmentation in the Lung) challenge objectively compares the performance of different algorithms to identify vessels in thoracic computed tomography (CT) scans. Vessel segmentation is fundamental in computer aided processing of data generated by 3D imaging modalities. As manual vessel segmentation is prohibitively time consuming, any real world application requires some form of automation. Several approaches exist for automated vessel segmentation, but judging their relative merits is difficult due to a lack of standardized evaluation. We present an annotated reference dataset containing 20 CT scans and propose nine categories to perform a comprehensive evaluation of vessel segmentation algorithms from both academia and industry. Twenty algorithms participated in the VESSEL12 challenge, held at International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging (ISBI) 2012. All results have been published at the VESSEL12 website http://vessel12.grand-challenge.org. The challenge remains ongoing and open to new participants. Our three contributions are: (1) an annotated reference dataset available online for evaluation of new algorithms; (2) a quantitative scoring system for objective comparison of algorithms; and (3) performance analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the various vessel segmentation methods in the presence of various lung diseases.

High-density surface EMG decomposition based on a convolutive blind source separation approach.

A novel automatic approach is developed in the present study to decompose high density surface electromyography (EMG) signals into motor unit (MU) firing patterns. The observed surface EMG signals are first modeled as a convolutive mixture of active MU sources. Contrast function maximization is employed to extract the first source, and separation of other sources is then carried out by an iterative deflation approach. Each extracted source is further processed and verified with the characteristics of motor unit action potential and firing patterns. The performance of the proposed automatic approach is evaluated in well-designed computer simulation. Results show that 4.7±0.5 and 7.1±0.6 MUs were correctly identified in the case of 5 and 10 active MUs respectively.

A novel spatiotemporal muscle activity imaging approach based on the Extended Kalman Filter.

A novel spatiotemporal muscle activity imaging (sMAI) approach has been developed using the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) to reconstruct internal muscle activities from non-invasive multi-channel surface electromyogram (sEMG) recordings. A distributed bioelectric dipole source model is employed to describe the internal muscle activity space, and a linear relationship between the muscle activity space and the sEMG measurement space is then established. The EKF is employed to recursively solve the ill-posed inverse problem in the sMAI approach, in which the weighted minimum norm (WMN) method is utilized to calculate the initial state and a new nonlinear method is developed based on the propagating features of muscle activities to predict the recursive state. A series of computer simulations was conducted to test the performance of the proposed sMAI approach. Results show that the localization error rapidly decreases over 35% and the overlap ratio rapidly increases over 45% compared to the results achieved using the WMN method only. The present promising results demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing the proposed EKF-based sMAI approach to accurately reconstruct internal muscle activities from non-invasive sEMG recordings.

Interchangeability and tolerability of two inactivated hepatitis A vaccines in Chinese children.

In China, no data are available to evaluate the interchangeability between Chinese domestic inactivated hepatitis A vaccines (Healive) and imported inactivated hepatitis A vaccines (Havrix). A double-blind, randomized controlled study was to compare interchangeability and safety of Healive and Havrix among Chinese children. Vaccine was administered to 303 healthy children at 0 and 6 months in one of four vaccine regimens: Healive-Healive; Healive-Havrix; Havrix-Healive or Havrix-Havrix. We collected sera samples at 0 (before vaccination), 6 (before second dose) and 7 months (after second dose), and compared groups in terms of proportion of sero-conversions which is defined as ≥ 20 mIU/ml, and geometric mean concentrations (GMCs) of anti-hepatitis A virus (HAV) antibody. Seroconversion rates were 133/133 (100%) for those received one dose of Healive and 105/131 (80.2%) for those received one dose of Havrix at 6 months, respectively (P<0.001), GMCs for Healive and Havrix were 126.1 and 40.9 mIU/ml (P<0.001), respectively. At 7 months, the seroconversion rate was 100% among all groups. The GMC after two doses of Healive was 8905.5 mIU/ml compared with 1900.9 mIU/ml after two doses of Havrix (P<0.001). The GMC in the Healive-Havrix group was 3275.8 mIU/ml compared with 4165.8 mIU/ml in the Havrix-Healive group (P=0.058). There is not different of reported adverse reactions across the groups. The present study indicated that both vaccines can be recommended for interchangeable using of immunization among Chinese healthy children.