Clinical application of dual-layer spectral CT multi-parameter feature to predict microvascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of using dual-layer spectral CT multi-parameter feature to predict microvascular invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma. METHODS: This retrospective study enrolled 50 HCC patients who underwent multiphase contrast-enhanced spectral CT studies preoperatively. Combined clinical data, radiological features with spectral CT quantitative parameter were constructed to predict MVI. ROC was applied to identify potential predictors of MVI. The CT values obtained by simulating the conventional CT scans with 70 keV images were compared with those obtained with 40 keV images. RESULTS: 50 hepatocellular carcinomas were detected with 30 lesions (Group A) with microvascular invasion and 20 (Group B) without. There were significant differences in AFP,tumer size, IC, NIC,slope and effective atomic number in AP and ICrr in VP between Group A ((1000(10.875,1000),4.360±0.3105, 1.7750 (1.5350,1.8825) mg/ml, 0.1785 (0.1621,0.2124), 2.0362±0.2108,8.0960±0.1043,0.2830±0.0777) and Group B (4.750(3.325,20.425),3.190±0.2979,1.4700 (1.4500,1.5775) mg/ml, 0.1441 (0.1373,0.1490),1.8601±0.1595, 7.8105±0.7830 and 0.2228±0.0612) (all p < 0.05). Using 0.1586 as the threshold for NIC, one could obtain an area-under-curve (AUC) of 0.875 in ROC to differentiate between tumours with and without microvascular invasion. AUC was 0.625 with CT value at 70 keV and improved to 0.843 at 40 keV. CONCLUSION: Dual-layer spectral CT provides additional quantitative parameters than conventional CT to enhance the differentiation between hepatocellular carcinoma with and without microvascular invasion. Especially, the normalized iodine concentration (NIC) in arterial phase has the greatest potential application value in determining whether microvascular invasion exists, and can offer an important reference for clinical treatment plan and prognosis assessment.

Effect of biochar with different particle sizes on the sorption-desorption characteristics of soil phosphorus.

The size of particles determines the adsorption reaction. In this study, three different particle sizes of biochar (0.25-1 mm, 0.075-0.25 mm, <0.075 mm) were produced from rapeseed straw (SBC) and chicken manure (MBC). The biochar was mixed with high phosphorus (P) soil and low P soil and then incubated for 30 days. We conducted isothermal P sorption and desorption experiments to evaluate the effects of biochar particle size on sorption-desorption characteristics of soil P, and analyzed soil properties associated with P sorption. The results showed that P sorption capacity of SBC and MBC in the water system was highest for the smallest particle size (<0.075 mm) (SBC: 43125 mg·kg-1, MBC: 20083 mg·kg-1), followed by the intermediate particle size (0.075-0.25 mm) (SBC: 37376 mg·kg-1, MBC: 13199 mg·kg-1) and the largest particle size (0.25-1 mm) (SBC: 27749 mg·kg-1, MBC: 12251 mg·kg-1). However, there was little difference in soil P sorption between the three particle sizes of the same biochar in the soil system. In comparison with no biochar treatment, the addition of SBC increased the Langmuir P sorption maximum (Smax) by 236.8%-755.7%, and decreased soil P desorption rate. The addition of MBC increased Smax, but the enhancement was less than that of SBC. Soil P desorption rate was increased by 7.2%-295.9%. Both SBC and MBC significantly increased the contents of soil total P, available P, and exchangeable calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg). The increases in Ca and Mg contents due to biochar addition was 64.0%-257.1% (SBC) and 39.1%-205.3% (MBC), respectively. The contents of soil exchangeable Ca and Mg were positively correlated with Smax. These results suggested that biochar particle size had little effect on soil P sorption, but the enrichment of Ca and Mg due to biochar addition played a critical role in regulating soil P sorption. The rapeseed straw biochar had a high adsorption capacity for soil P, making it suitable for improving the P fixation capacity of soil rich in P and reducing the loss of excess P. Chicken manure biochar could be used to improve the P availability of low P soils and increase the contents of available P.

Occurrence of bisphenol diglycidyl ethers and bisphenol analogs, and their associations with DNA oxidative damage in pregnant women.

Bisphenol diglycidyl ethers (BDGEs) and Bisphenol A and its analogs (bisphenols) may have the same exposure routes and coexposure phenomenon in sensitive populations such as pregnant women. Previous biomonitoring studies on BDGEs are limited. Levels of fifteen bisphenols, six BDGEs and the DNA oxidative damage biomarker 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) were measured in the urine of pregnant women recruited in south China (n = 358). We aimed to provide the occurrence of bisphenols and BDGEs in pregnant women, and to investigate the potential relationship between their exposure and oxidative stress. Bisphenol A, bisphenol S, bisphenol F, bisphenol AP and all BDGEs (except for BADGE·2HCl) were frequently detected. The total concentrations of all bisphenols and BDGEs were 0.402-338 and 0.104-32.5 ng/mL, with geometric means of 2.87 and 2.48 ng/mL, respectively. BFDGE was the most abundant chemical of BDGEs, with a median concentration of 0.872 ng/mL, followed by BADGE·H2O·HCl (0.297 ng/mL). Except for pre-pregnancy obesity, maternal age/height, employment, fasting in the morning and parity did not affect the urinary concentrations of BDGEs. Significant and weak correlations were observed between concentrations (unadjusted) of total bisphenols and BDGEs (r = 0.389, p < 0.01), indicating their similar sources and exposure routes. The biomarker 8-OHdG was detected in all samples, with concentrations ranging from 1.98 to 32.6 ng/mL (median: 9.96 ng/mL). Levels of 8-OHdG were positively correlated with urinary several bisphenol concentrations (adjusted ß range: 0.037-0.089, p < 0.05) but were not correlated with those of BDGEs. Further studies should focus on whether BDGEs and bisphenols exert combined effects on oxidative stress. Our study provided the first BDGEs exposure data in pregnant women and indicated that BDGEs exposure was highly prevalent in pregnant women as early as 2015 in south China.

[Guideline for clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine (2022 version)].

Currently,the research or publications related to the clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine are increasing,which attracts the broad attention of all circles. According to the completed clinical evaluation report on Chinese patent medicine,there are still practical problems and technical difficulties such as unclear responsibility of the evaluation organization,unclear evaluation subject,miscellaneous evaluation objects,and incomplete and nonstandard evaluation process. In terms of evaluation standards and specifications,there are different types of specifications or guidelines with different emphases issued by different academic groups or relevant institutions. The professional guideline is required to guide the standardized and efficient clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine and further improve the authority and quality of evaluation. In combination with the characteristics of Chinese patent medicine and the latest research achievement at home and abroad,the detailed specifications were formulated from six aspects including design,theme selection,content and index,outcome,application and appraisal,and quality control. The guideline was developed based on the guideline development requirements of China Assoication of Chinese medicine. After several rounds of expert consensus and public consultation,the current version of the guideline has been developed.

Current status and quality of radiomic studies for predicting KRAS mutations in colorectal cancer patients: A systematic review and meta­analysis.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the methodological quality of radiomics-based studies for noninvasive, preoperative prediction of Kirsten rat sarcoma (KRAS) mutations in patients with colorectal cancer; furthermore, we systematically evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of predicting models. METHODS: We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Web of Science databases up to 20 April 2022 for eligible studies. The methodological quality of included studies was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2) and Radiomics Quality Score (RQS) tools. A meta-analysis of studies on the prediction of KRAS status in colorectal cancer patients was performed. RESULT: Twenty-nine studies were identified in the systematic review, including three studies on the prediction of KRAS status in colorectal cancer liver metastases. All studies had an average RQS score of 9.55 (26.5% of the total score), ranging from 3 to 17. Most studies demonstrated a low or unclear risk of bias in the domains of QUADAS-2. Nineteen studies were included in the meta-analysis, mostly imaged with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), followed by computed tomography (CT), positron emission tomography-CT (PET/CT). With pooled sensitivity, specificity and area under the curve (AUC) of the training cohorts were 0.80(95% confidence interval(CI), 0.75-0.84), 0.80(95% CI, 0.74-0.85) and 0.87(95% CI, 0.84-0.90),respectively. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, and AUC for the validation cohorts (13 studies) were 0.78(95% CI, 0.71-0.84), 0.84(95% CI, 0.74-0.90), and 0.86(95% CI, 0.83-0.89), respectively. CONCLUSION: Radiomics is a potential noninvasive technology that has a moderate preoperative diagnosis and prediction effect on KRAS mutations. However, it has not been implemented as a clinical decision-making tool. Future researchers should pay more attention to the methodological quality of the study and further externally validate the model using multicenter datasets.

Artificial intelligence with magnetic resonance imaging for prediction of pathological complete response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in rectal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of artificial intelligence (AI) models with magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) in predicting pathological complete response(pCR) to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) in patients with rectal cancer. Furthermore, assessed the methodological quality of the models. Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of science for studies published before 21 June 2022, without any language restrictions. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2) and Radiomics Quality Score (RQS) tools were used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies. We calculated pooled sensitivity and specificity using random-effects models, I2 values were used to measure heterogeneity, and subgroup analyses to explore potential sources of heterogeneity. Results: We selected 21 papers for inclusion in the meta-analysis from 1562 retrieved publications, with a total of 1873 people in the validation groups. The meta-analysis showed that AI models based on MRI predicted pCR to nCRT in patients with rectal cancer: a pooled area under the curve (AUC) 0.91 (95% CI, 0.88-0.93), sensitivity of 0.82(95% CI,0.71-0.90), pooled specificity 0.86(95% CI,0.80-0.91). In the subgroup analysis, the pooled AUC of the deep learning(DL) model was 0.97, the pooled AUC of the radiomics model was 0.85; the pooled AUC of the combined model with clinical factors was 0.92, and the pooled AUC of the radiomics model alone was 0.87. The mean RQS score of the included studies was 10.95, accounting for 30.4% of the total score. Conclusions: Radiomics is a promising noninvasive method with high value in predicting pathological response to nCRT in patients with rectal cancer. DL models have higher predictive accuracy than radiomics models, and combined models incorporating clinical factors have higher diagnostic accuracy than radiomics models alone. In the future, prospective, large-scale, multicenter investigations using radiomics approaches will strengthen the diagnostic power of pCR. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier CRD42021285630.

Artificial intelligence model on chest imaging to diagnose COVID-19 and other pneumonias: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: When diagnosing Coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19), radiologists cannot make an accurate judgments because the image characteristics of COVID-19 and other pneumonia are similar. As machine learning advances, artificial intelligence(AI) models show promise in diagnosing COVID-19 and other pneumonias. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the diagnostic accuracy and methodological quality of the models. Methods: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase, preprints from medRxiv and bioRxiv to locate studies published before December 2021, with no language restrictions. And a quality assessment (QUADAS-2), Radiomics Quality Score (RQS) tools and CLAIM checklist were used to assess the quality of each study. We used random-effects models to calculate pooled sensitivity and specificity, I2 values to assess heterogeneity, and Deeks' test to assess publication bias. Results: We screened 32 studies from the 2001 retrieved articles for inclusion in the meta-analysis. We included 6737 participants in the test or validation group. The meta-analysis revealed that AI models based on chest imaging distinguishes COVID-19 from other pneumonias: pooled area under the curve (AUC) 0.96 (95 % CI, 0.94-0.98), sensitivity 0.92 (95 % CI, 0.88-0.94), pooled specificity 0.91 (95 % CI, 0.87-0.93). The average RQS score of 13 studies using radiomics was 7.8, accounting for 22 % of the total score. The 19 studies using deep learning methods had an average CLAIM score of 20, slightly less than half (48.24 %) the ideal score of 42.00. Conclusions: The AI model for chest imaging could well diagnose COVID-19 and other pneumonias. However, it has not been implemented as a clinical decision-making tool. Future researchers should pay more attention to the quality of research methodology and further improve the generalizability of the developed predictive models.

Long-term stability of several endocrine disruptors in the first morning urine samples and their associations with lifestyle characteristics.

Parabens, triclosan (TCS), bisphenols, benzophenones, and phthalates are typical endocrine disruptors (EDs) with short half-lives in the human body. The concentration levels of those EDs in a spot urine sample are frequently used in exposure assessment studies, and the reproducibility of urinary levels of these nonpersistent EDs should be considered. In the present study, we consecutively collected 45-day first morning void (FMV) urine samples, as well as daily questionnaires, in six recruited participants and measured the urinary concentrations of six parabens, TCS, nine bisphenols, five benzophenones, and ten phthalate metabolites by using high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. MeP, EtP, PrP, TCS, BPA, BPS, BPF, and most phthalate metabolites were frequently detected (over 62 % of samples). The intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for ED concentrations in FMV urine samples ranged from fair to excellent for MeP (0.683), EtP (0.702), BPA (0.505), BPS (0.908), BPF (0.887), BP-3 (0.712), mMP (0.661), mEP (0.523), mBP (0.500), miBP (0.724), mBzP (0.961) and all metabolites of DEHP (0.867-0.957), whereas they were low for PrP (0.321) and TCS (0.306). After creatinine adjustment, the values of ICCs for most target EDs were increased with mild to significant improvement. The stability of ED concentrations was affected by daily diet (MeP, TCS, BPA, mMP, miBP, mBP and mBzP), food containers (PrP and mECPP), use of personal care products (HMWP metabolites), pharmaceuticals (EtP) and recorded activities (BPS, mEHP, mBzP, mEHHP and mEOHP), as confirmed by a general linear mixed model. Furthermore, extending the FMV sampling period improved the probability of acceptable reproducibility (ICCs > 0.40) of MeP, EtP, BP-3 and mEP concentrations. For BPS, BPF and HMWP metabolite concentrations showed high probabilities (>80 %) of acceptable reproducibility in the last three days, and the increasing sample size slowly improved the ability to discriminate the subjects. The results were exactly the opposite for BPA concentrations.

[Clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine based on EVIDEM].

The clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine is an important direction in the evaluation of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), which positively promotes the development of TCM industry. The evaluation system of Chinese patent medicine is helpful to comprehensively evaluate the clinical value of different Chinese patent medicine in the same category, different dosage forms, and specifications, from different manufacturers on the basis of evidence and value. The establishment of a scientific and reasonable comprehensive evaluation index system for Chinese patent medicine is an important prerequisite to ensure clinical value. However, there has been neither a recognized systematic review on the clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine nor a methodological system used for reference. The evidence and value: impact on decision-making(EVIDEM), developed by the international research team, is used to evaluate the comprehensive value of medical interventions. EVIDEM provides a methodological tool for scientific decision-making to evaluate evidence and value for health technologies on the basis of the multi-criteria decision analysis(MCDA) model and health technology assessment(HTA). Based on the ongoing EVIDEM research, the present study put forward that EVIDEM-based clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine consisted of four aspects, seven modules, and ten steps, which is expected to references and practical experience for the follow-up comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine in the TCM field.

Phthalate exposure and DNA oxidative damage in young people of takeaway food lovers.

Numerous studies have demonstrated the ubiquitous of phthalates in materials of food and food packaging, and the effects of regular eating takeaway food for a long time on human health and phthalate exposure levels were not fully investigated. A total of 288 college students who love eating takeaway food were recruited to explore phthalate exposure and oxidative stress, by measuring metabolites of traditional or alternative phthalates and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG, a biomarker of DNA oxidative damage) in their urine samples. Both traditional and alternative phthalates were highly detected. Based on weekly frequency of takeaway eating collecting from questionnaire, the students were divided into four groups including level 1 (L1, < 3 times), level 2 (L2, 3-7 times), level 3 (L3, 8-12 times) and level 4 (L4, > 12 times). The total concentrations of all phthalate metabolites were 42.5-893 ng/mL in all students, which were significantly different among four groups, with the lowest level in L1 (p < 0.05). Checking with the generalized linear model (L1 as the reference), the concentrations of most phthalate metabolites increased 12.0-144% in L2 and L3 compared with those in L1. For each group increase, the concentrations of total metabolites, and metabolites of high and low molecular weight phthalates will increase by 0.156%, 0.128%, and 0.142%, respectively. Besides, levels of 8-OHdG (0.639-33.7 ng/mL) were positively correlated with phthalate daily exposure doses. The each increase of a percentage unit of daily exposure of phthalates, the concentrations of 8-OHdG will increase by 0.258-0.405%. However, levels of 8-OHdG were not significantly different among the four groups. The alternative phthalates have already entered the body of Chinese young people. Our results indicated the regular consumption of takeaway food (e.g., more than three times per week) may increase the chance of exposure to certain phthalates, and may not significantly increase the levels of DNA oxidative damage, unless exposed to other pollutants such as phthalates.

Parabens and bisphenol A and its structural analogues in over-the-counter medicines from China.

Pharmaceuticals, such as over-the-counter (OTC) medicines, may be an important source of human exposure to several endocrine disruptors, though unnoticed to date. In the present study, we investigated the presence of six parabens and nine bisphenol A (BPA) and its analogues in OTC medicines manufactured in China. Parabens and bisphenols were present in more than 90% of the samples. The total measured concentrations of parabens and bisphenols were in the range of non-detectable (ND) to 213 ng/g and ND to 415 ng/g, respectively. Regarding parabens, methyl paraben (MeP) was the predominant analog, accounting for 43 ± 36% of the total amount, followed by ethyl paraben (EtP) (39 ± 35%), and others (< 10%). Bisphenol F and BPA were the predominant bisphenols, accounting for 24 ± 28% and 22 ± 26% of the total amount, respectively. The median values of estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of parabens and bisphenols were the highest for infants (2.96 and 3.14 ng/kg_bw/day, respectively) and the lowest for adults (0.69 and 0.25 ng/kg_bw/day, respectively); moreover, the EDIs of parabens and bisphenols were higher in Chinese patent medicines than in western pediatric medicines. The hazard quotient (HQ) for sum of MeP and EtP (∑(MeP + EtP)) and BPA in three age groups were within the safe zone (HQ < 0.0004). Monte Carlo simulation was applied to predict the human exposure risk of parabens and bisphenols. The predicted ranges of EDIs of parabens and bisphenols were much wider, and the extreme predicted values were observed in all four age groups, which were higher than the acceptable daily intake. The extreme predicted values of ∑(MeP + EtP) and BPA were indicative of carcinogenic risk in toddlers. These results implied potential risks for the Chinese people existed. Considering the huge export of Chinese traditional medicines and western medicines worldwide, and easy access to OTC medicines for the general population, the presence of parabens, bisphenols, and other environmental contaminants in medicines still need to be monitored.

Exploring the drug-induced anemia signals in children using electronic medical records.

Objectives: The objectives were to identify drugs related with anemia in children and evaluate the novelty of these correlations. Methods: The authors established a two-step method for detecting the relationship between drugs and anemia using electronic medical records (EMRs), which were obtained from 247,136 patients in Beijing Children's Hospital between 2007 and 2017. The authors extracted potential drugs by mining cases for hemoglobin abnormalities from the EMR and then performed a retrospective cohort study to correlate them with anemia by calculating the matched odds ratios and 95% confidence interval using unconditional logistic regression analysis. Results: In total, nine positive drug-anemia associations were identified. Among them, the correlations of drugs fluconazole (OR 3.95; 95%CI: 2.65-5.87) and cefathiamidine (OR 3.49; 95%CI: 2.94-4.15) with anemia were considered new signals in both children and adults. Three associations of drugs, vancomycin, cefoperazone-sulbactam and ibuprofen, with anemia were considered new signals in children. Conclusion: The authors detected nine signals of drug-induced anemia, including two new signals in children and adults and three new signals in children. This study could serve as a model for using EMR and automatic mining to monitor adverse drug reaction signals in the pediatric population.

Pediatric drug safety signal detection of non-chemotherapy drug-induced neutropenia and agranulocytosis using electronic healthcare records.

Objectives: This study aimed to develop a procedure to explore the adverse drug reaction signals of drug-induced neutropenia (DIN) or drug-induced agranulocytosis (DIA) in children using an electronic health records (EHRs) database. Methods: A two-stage design was presented. First, the suspected drugs to induce DIN or DIA were selected. Second, the associations were evaluated by a retrospective cohort study. Results: Ten and five drugs were potentially identified to be associated with DIN and DIA, respectively. Finally, five (oseltamivir, chlorpheniramine, vancomycin, meropenem, and ganciclovir) and two (chlorpheniramine, and vancomycin) drugs were found to be associated with DIN and DIA, respectively. Of these, the association between oseltamivir and neutropenia (P = 9.83 × 10-9; OR, 2.10; 95% CI, 1.62-2.69) was considered as a new signal for both adults and children. Chlorpheniramine-induced neutropenia (P = 3.01 × 10-8; OR, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.35-1.87) and agranulocytosis (P = 3.16 × 10-7; OR, 3.76; 95% CI, 2.25-6.26) were considered as new signals in children. Other drugs associated with DIN or DIA were confirmed by previous studies. Conclusion: A method to detect signals for DIN and DIA has been described. Several pediatric drugs were found to be associated with DIN or DIA.

Triclosan in over the counter medicines of South China.

Triclosan (TCS) is an endocrine disruptor which may affect endocrine function, antibiotic resistance, and thyroid hormone homeostasis. As a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent used in medical and personal care products, TCS was frequently detected in human urine, indicating widespread human exposure to this chemical. Over-the-counter medicines (OTCs) may be a potential source of human exposure to TCS. In this study, 84 OTCs were collected from Guangzhou, South China, including medicines intended for both children and adults. We determined the concentration of TCS in OTCs and the estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of TCS by evaluating OTCs for different age groups of the Chinese population. Our results indicated over half of the evaluated medicines contained TCS and the highest concentration reached 7.825 ng/g, with a median value of 0.017 ng/g. TCS was frequently found in adult medicines (detected in 85% of samples), and the concentrations were significantly higher than those in children's medicines. TCS in OTCs may come from packaging materials, cultivated soils, or production process (Chinese patent medicines). The EDIs of TCS (estimated with 95th concentration in OTC medicines) were 0.305, 0.191, 0.287, 0.331, and 0.135 and 0.110 ng/kg-bw/day for infants, toddlers, children, teenagers, and adult females and males, respectively. Compared to other potential sources, human exposure to TCS from OTCs was limited in China-much less than TCS exposure through personal care products or indoor dust.

Licorice root extract and magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate protect against triptolide-induced hepatotoxicity via up-regulation of the Nrf2 pathway.

Triptolide, the predominant biologically active component of the Chinese herb Tripterygium wilfordii Hook f., possesses numerous pharmacological activities, including anti-inflammatory, anti-fertility, anti-neoplastic, and immunosuppressive effects. However, toxicity and severe adverse effects, particularly hepatotoxicity, limit the clinical application of triptolide. Licorice root extract contains various bioactive compounds and is potent hepatoprotective. Magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate, a magnesium salt of the 18α-glycyrrhizic acid stereoisomer of glycyrrhizic acid, is used clinically in China to treat chronic viral hepatitis and acute drug-induced liver injury. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 pathway in the protective effects of LE and MIG against triptolide-induced hepatotoxicity. Hepatotoxicity models were established in L-02 cells and rats using triptolide, and the protective effects of LE and MIG were investigated in vitro and in vivo, respectively. LE and MIG significantly protected against triptolide-induced cytotoxicity. Additionally, triptolide decreased the mRNA and protein levels of Nrf2 and down-regulated Nrf2 target genes, including UGT1A, BSEP, and MRP2, while pretreatment with LE and MIG reversed these effects. Finally, Nrf2-involved antioxidant responses were activated in the presence of LE and MIG.

[Effects of different substrates on low temperature fresh ginseng].

The SOD and POD enzyme activities were detected, ginseng saponin content and protein concentration at 4 ℃ preservation on fresh ginseng by different substrates were determined. The results showed that the appearance of the ginseng and the survival ability were good after six months by perlite preservation. It has lower SOD, POD enzyme activity and higher saponins and protein contention. It is the best fresh storing conditions for ginseng by using perlite at 4 ℃ preservation.

Occurrence of phthalate esters in over-the-counter medicines from China and its implications for human exposure.

Food, air, personal care products and indoor dust have been recognized as the main routes of exposure to phthalates in Chinese population, but other sources may have been overlooked, e.g., medicines. To fill the knowledge gap, phthalate esters were measured in 96 over-the-counter medicines made in China, including selected 71 Chinese patented medicines and 25 western medicines. It was found that none of the medicines was free of phthalates. The mean concentrations of individual phthalates ranged from 0.001µg/g (dicyclohexyl phthalate) to 5.85µg/g (diethyl phthalate). Among 9 targeted phthalates, di-n-butyl phthalate was the dominant congener, accounting for >65% of the total phthalates in all medicine samples, followed by di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and diethyl phthalate. Phthalates in medicines appeared to derive from gastroresistant film coatings, plastic packing materials or phthalate contaminated rural herbal plants (especially for Chinese patented medicines). Daily human exposure to phthalates was estimated for local patients for one treatment cycle (e.g., one week) based on suggested consumption dosage and phthalate concentrations. Almost all exposure levels were below the guidelines suggested by the United States Environmental Protection Agency or European Food Safety Authority, indicating low health risk with phthalates from consumption of the medicines. In addition, concentration levels of phthalates in patients would increase upon administration but are expected to decrease to the same values as those in patients before they took medicines in several days. Because the number of medicine samples was limited and the concentrations of phthalates varied in a large range, further investigations are needed to acquire more data for better assessment of human health effects for Chinese population. Capsule: Distribution of phthalate esters in over-the-counter medicines and related exposure for Chinese population are examined.