Ballistocardiogram (BCG) signal is a physiological signal, reflecting heart mechanical status. It can be measured without any electrodes touching subject's body surface and can realize physiological monitoring ubiquitously. However, BCG signal is so weak that it would often be interferred by superimposed noises. For measuring BCG signal effectively, we proposed an approach using joint time-frequency distribution and empirical mode decomposition (EMD) for BCG signal denoising. We set up an adaptive optimal kernel for BCG signal and extracted BCG signals components using it. Then we de-noised the BCG signal by combing empirical mode decomposition with it. Simulation results showed that the proposed method overcome the shortcomings of empirical mode decomposition for the signals with identical frequency content at different times, realized the filtering for BCG signal and also reconstructed the characteristics of BCG.
Algorithms ; Ballistocardiography ; methods ; Humans ; Monitoring, Physiologic

Objective To compare the effect of low concentration versus ultra-low concentration of ropivacaine in combination with sufentanil delivered via programmed intermittent epidural bolus (PIEB) with patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) during labour on obstetric and anesthetic outcomes.Methods Seventy-six ASA Ⅰ or Ⅱ nulliparous parturients who were at full term with a singleton fetus in vertex presentation were randomized to receive 0.1 ％ ropivacaine with 0.5 μg/mL sufentanil (Group L,38 cases) or 0.06％ ropivacaine with 0.5 μg/mL sufentanil (Group UL,38 cases).Another matched 76 cases of primiparas without labor analgesia (Group C) served as controls.For primiparas received analgesia,an epidural catheter was inserted when the cervical dilatation was up to 2-3 cm.The analgesia level was controlled below T8,and VAS score was controlled below 4.Thirty minutes after analgesia started,Group L and UL received PIEB with PCEA regimen including basal infusion of 8 mL/h of ropivacaine with sufentanil,patient-controlled bolus 6 mL and lockout interval 10 minutes.The duration of labor,delivery mode,Apgar score,VAS score and anesthetic drug consumption of each group were recorded.Results The second stage of labor were not statistically different between Group UL and C.The second stage of Group L was longer than that of Group C (P＜0.05).Furthermore,with similar performance in pain score and satisfactory level at each time point,Group UL consumed much less ropivacaine than Group L (P＜0.05).The cesarean section rate,instrumental delivery rate and the Apgar score were not significantly different among the 3 groups.Conclusions While using PIEB with PCEA,0.06％ ropivacaine was capable of providing satisfactory analgesia effects for primipara and has less effects on the obstetric outcome.Therefore,it could be recommended for labour analgesia.

Penaeidin-2 (Pen-2) is an important antimicrobial peptide derived from the Pacific white shrimp, Penaeus vannamei, and possesses both antibacterial and antifungal activities. Recent studies suggest that recombinant penaeidins show similar activities to the native Pen-2 protein. Previous researches have shown that some antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) exhibit cytotoxic activity against cancer cells. To date, there have been no studies on the antitumor effects of Pen-2. This study evaluated the potential of recombinant pen-2 (rPen-2) in the selective killing of kidney cancer cell lines ACHN and A498, and its action mechanism. MTT assays found the maximal growth inhibition of HK-2, ACHN and A498 cells treated with 100 μg/mL rPen-2 at 48 h was 13.2%, 62.4%, and 70.4%, respectively. DNA-specific fluorescent dye staining showed a high percentage of apoptosis on cancer cells. Flow cytometry revealed that the apoptosis rate of HK-2, ACHN and A498 cells was 15.2%, 55.2%, and 61.5% at 48 h respectively, suggesting that rPen-2 induced higher apoptosis rate in cancer cells than in HK-2 cells. Laser confocal scanning microscopy demonstrated that the plasma membrane was the key site where rPen-2 interacted with and destroyed tumor cells. Scanning electron microscopy showed the morphologic changes of the cell membranes of kidney cancer cells treated with rPen-2. These results suggest that rPen-2 is a novel potential therapeutic agent that may be useful in treating kidney cancers.

Chinese patent medicine with double identity was a special phenomenon, and many preparations not only were prescription drugs but also over the counter ( OTC) drugs, which brought a lot of trouble. Based on statistics of list of OTC medicines of CFDA, related varieties, route of administration and functions of these drugs were searched. The causes of insufficient were analyzed and the potential risk was investigated. To ensure the safety of drug usage for the patient, risk management system should be set up by improving the technical requirements for registration, improving the drug labels and manuals, playing the role of pharmacists in pharmacy services and raising awareness of doctor and patient for these drugs.
China ; Humans ; Nonprescription Drugs ; adverse effects ; Risk Management

Objective To provide a new method for sacral fracture fixation by means of 3D recon-struction and reverse engineering technique. Methods Pelvis images of 3D CT scan were obtained from patients with sacral fracture. The digital data were transferred into a computer workstation. 3D models of pelvis were reconstructed using Amira 3.1 software and saved in STL format. The 3D fracture models were imported into Imageware 10.0 software. Different situations of reduction (total reduction, half reduction and no-reduction) were simulated using Imageware 10.0 software. The extract locations and the best directions of inserting iliosacral lag screws were defined using Reverse Engineering according to the 3 situations to before navigation templates were designed according to the posterior anatomic features of the ilium and the insertion channels. Exact navi-gational templates were manufactured by rapid prototyping. Drill guides were sterilized and used intraoperatively to assist surgical navigation and placement of iliosacral lag screws. Results Accurate screw placement was confirmed with postoperative X-ray and CT scanning. The navigation templates were found to be helpful and highly accurate. Conclusion The navigation template may be a useful method for mini-invasive fixation of sacroiliac joint fracture.

Objective:To discuss the effect ofChinese herbal medicine ofremoving toxic and blood stasis and nourishing yin on lymphocyte apoptosis in spleen ofMRL/lpr mouse and expression ofCyt-C and Bcl-2.Methods:50 2-month-old male MRL/lpr mouse and 10 2-month-old male C57BL/6 mouse were randomly divided into six groups:high, middle and low dosage groups, pre-treatment group, model group and control group.After 30days treatment, the lymphocyte apoptosis in spleen oflupus mouse and expression ofCyt-C mRNA and Bcl-2 mRNA were detected.Results:The percentages oflymphocyte apoptosis in model group were(57.18?1.72)% lower than that in normal group(78.99?3.76)%(P

This study is to report the establishment of an UPLC-MS/MS method for the determination of plasma concentration of UA carried in self-microemulsifying drug delivery system (SMEDDS) and its pharmacokinetics in rats. It was used for determination and analysis when serum with internal standard was extracted from C18 solid-phase column. Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column (100 mm x 2.1 mm, 1.7 microm) was used for separation. The mobile phase was acetonitrile -0.1% ammonia with gradient elution at the flow rate of 0.2 mL x min(-1). The column temperature was 40 degrees C and the detection wave length was 210 nm. It was detected by negative ion using electrospray ionization source (ESI) and scanned by multiple reaction ion monitoring (MRM) mode. The liner relationship of UA was very good in the range of 1.19-3 815.00 ng x mL(-1) (r = 0.999 0). Recovery rate of different concentrations were 87.42%-89.95%. The precision of inter-day and intra-day were less than 11%. The method developed in our study was proved to be sensitive, rapid and simple. It is suitable for the pharmacokinetic study of UA-SMEDDS in rats.
Animals ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Drug Delivery Systems ; Emulsions ; chemistry ; Rats ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry ; Triterpenes ; blood ; pharmacokinetics

Objective:To amendment a tool of theory of mind (TOM) tests that can be applied to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in mainland China,and assess the ability of ToM of children with ASD.Methods:The items of the ToM tests were revised by observing and recording events of children's life.Totally 200 normal children were selected in line with the standard from kindergarten to Grade 6 for formal tes-ting.With 156 valid data,Pearson correlation coefficient and Cronbach α coefficient were established for the test.Three experts were invited to make sure the content validity.Researchers randomly selected 30 normal children for retest purpose after 2 months.Twenty five children with ASD were tested and compared with normal children's test scores.Results:The revised test included 39 entries,which was divided into three sub-tests,42 points in total.The correlation coefficient of three subtests of the tests was 0.54-0.77,the correlation coefficient between the test and the subtest was 0.62-0.93 (Ps ＜ 0.01).The scores of three experts for the test were 114,108,and 105.The total scores and subtest scores were lower in children with ASD than in normal children (Ps ＜0.01).The Cronbach a coefficient of the test was 0.84,Cronbach a coefficients for three subtest were 0.83,0.80,and 0.78,respectively.The retest reliability was 0.84,and reliabilities for three subtest were 0.75,0.74,and 1.00.Conclusion:The revised Theory of Mind Tests for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder are fulfilled mostly in line with psychometric testing requirement.It might be a selection to measure the ability of theory of mind of children with ASD in mainland China.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the changes of encephalic contents of somatostatin (SS) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) in rats with vascular dementia.

METHODSTwenty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: vascular dementia group (VDMG), sham operation group (SOG) and control group (CG). The vascular dementia model was established by permanent bilateral vertebral artery occlusion through electric coagulation and shut-off the bilateral carotid arteries. The remember behavior of animals was tested and the contents of SS and AVP in various encephalic region (frontal cortex, temporal lobe, hippocampus, cerebral ganglion and corpora striatum) were determined with radioimmunoassay.

RESULTDuring the 15-day-long remembering test, the frequency of making mistakes in the VDMG was higher remarkably than that in SOG and CG (P<0.05); and the relative contents of SS were decreased in frontal area cortex, temporal lobe, hippocampus, cerebral ganglion and corpora striatum (P<0.01), while decrease of AVP contents was only detected in temporal lobe and corpora striatum (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe disturbance of learning and memory function might be associated with SS and AVP after multiple cerebral infarction in the animals.

Animals ; Arginine Vasopressin ; metabolism ; Brain ; metabolism ; Dementia, Vascular ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Male ; Memory ; physiology ; Neuropeptides ; metabolism ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Somatostatin ; metabolism

Objective To quantitatively detect circulating DNA levels in the plasma of patients withcervical lesion and to determine the value for diagnosis of cervical lesion and cervical cancer . Methods Preoperative blood samples were collected from 53 cases of low-grade lesions, 49 cases of high-grade lesions, 44 cases of cervical invasive cancer and 70 cases of healthy women. Plasma DNA was extracted by magnetic bead method (BILATEST DNA kit). The quantity of plasma DNA was determined by duplex real-time quantitative PCR. Results Median plasma DNA level of invasive cervical cancer patients was 61. 59 mg/L (32. 06 - 162. 16 mg/L) , which was significantly higher than that of healthy women [16. 35 mg/L(11. 98 -22.71 mg/L), P < 0.01]. Among invasive cervical cancer patients, median plasma DNA level of squamous carcinoma patients was slightly higher than that of adenocarcinoma (50. 43 versus 47. 31 mg/L,P>0. 05). Median plasma DNA level of stage I patients was lower than that of stage Ⅱ- Ⅲ patients (46. 02 versus 71. 35 mg/L, P <0. 05). Conclusion Quantitatively detecting plasma circulating DNA may be with some application prospect in the diagnosis of cervical diseases.