Abstract A method for determination of trace mercury in water was established. The trace mercury in water was adsorbed quantitatively by activated carbon, and then determined by electrical pyrolysis atomic absorption spectrometry. In comparison with the detection methods of total mercury in water at present, the method avoids the steps of digestion, reduces the mercury pollution and the loss of the mercury, and is simple in operation. The effects of particle size of activated carbon, acid treatment method, acid medium and enrichment time on the enrichment efficiency were investigated. The effect of the pyrolysis temperature and the interfering ions on the determination results was investigated. Three standard addition procedures including activated carbon blank addition, solution blank addition and environmental water samples addition were studied. Regression correlation coefficients of three standard curves drawn by the three methods reached 0 . 9999 . The slope of the three standard curves had no difference by statistical test, indicating that the determination of mercury in environmental water samples under the experiment conditions was not interfered by the coexistent elements, which showed that the activated carbon blank addition method could be directly used for preparing standard curve of the method. The water samples containing 5 ng/L and 50 ng/L mercury were determined by the method, and the relative standard deviation were 7. 2% and 4. 2% (n=11), respectively, with a detection limit of 1. 2 ng/L. The recovery experiment was carried out after adding 10 ng/L mercury to the surface water and tap water samples, and the recoveries were between 92. 0% and 103. 0%. Analysis results were compared with ICP-MS as control and the deviation of the two methods were between 2 . 9% and 3 . 4%, indicating that the method was accurate and reliable, and had good precision.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and drug-related toxicities of pemetrexed disodium in the treatment of advanced pulmonary adenocarcinoma.Methods A total of 41 patients who had received pemetrexed disodium and cisplatin therapy were retrospectively reviewed.The patients were given respectively pemetrexed disodium (500 mg/m2,1st day) and cisplatin (200 mg/m2,1-4 day) until disease progressed.The clinical outcomes and adverse reactions were observed.Results The CR rate was 7.3 ％ (3/41),PR rate was 22.0 ％ (9/41),SD rate was 31.7 ％ (13/41),PD rate was 39.0 ％ (16/41),the DRR was 29.3 ％ (12/41),DCR rate was 61.0 ％ (25/41),the median PFS was 5 months.The age,sex,smoking history,staging and timing of treatment had not the statistics difference on ORR and DCR.The sex,smoking history,staging and timing of treatment had not the statistical difference on PFS (P ＞ 0.05).The main toxicities were fatigue,nausea,vomiting and myelosuppression.Conclusion The pemetrexed disodium and cisplatin are feasible and welltolerated for advanced pulmonary adenocarcinoma patients.

Objective To investigate the application of fetuses with talipes equinovarus (TE) using chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA) technology. Methods From May 2012 to June 2015, 54 fetuses were found with TE and with or without other structural anomalies by prenatal ultrasound. Karyotyping was taking for them all, and the fetuses with normal karyotypes took another CMA test. The data were analyzed with CHAS software. Finally all the cases were followed up to know about their pregnancy outcomes. Results One of the 54 cases was detected with abnormal karyotype which was trisomy 18 (2%, 1/54). CMA was undertaken to the remaining fetuses, they were divided into 2 groups, including isolated TE group (n=38) and complex TE group (n=15). The detection rate of clinical significant copy number variations (CNV) by CMA was 11% (6/53), while isolated and complex TE group were 5% (2/38) and 4/15, respectively (P=0.047). Of the 53 cases, 51 cases were successfully followed up. Eleven cases were found without TE after birth, and the false positive rate (FPR) of TE was 22%(11/51). Conclusions Whole-genome high-resolution CMA increased the detection rate by 11% in fetuses with TE. With the FPR and the detection rate of the clinical significant CNV of 2 groups, whole-genome CMA could be recommended to the fetuses with complex TE group but normal karyotypes. A series of ultrasonic tests should be suggested to the isolate TE group, while with the abnormal ultrasound, fetuses would be suggested to have CMA test for decreasing the rates of invasive prenatal diagnosis and FPR.

目的探讨康复患者使用经外周置入中心静脉导管(PICC)的可行性。方法对康复组16例住院患者行PICC,并与非康复组行PICC的12例患者进行对照观察,分别观察留管时间、局部症状、全身症状等。结果康复组与非康复组的留管时间、局部症状、全身症状无显著性差异。结论康复治疗活动对PICC的留管时间等无影响,PICC对康复治疗也无影响,进行康复治疗的患者可行PICC。

OBJECTIVETo analyze patients with skeletal anomalies (SA) but a normal karyotype using chromosome microarray analysis (CMA).

METHODSFrom June 2012 to May 2015, 43 children found to have skeletal anomalies with or without other abnormalities were subjected to karyotyping analysis. For those with a normal karyotype, DNA was extracted and hybridized with Affymetrix CytoScan 750 kb arrays following the manufacturer's protocol. The results were analyzed with CHAS v2.0 software.

RESULTSTwo patients (4.65%) were detected with an abnormal karyotype. The remaining 41 patients with a normal karyotype were classified into 3 groups: isolated SA (n=17), SA with mental retardation (n=6), and SA with other structural anomalies (n=18). Clinically significant copy number variations (CNVs) were found in 21.95% (9/41) of the cases, which included 17.65% (3/17) with isolated SA, 33.33% (2/6) with SA and mental retardation, and 22.22% (4/18) of SA with other structural deformities.

CONCLUSIONWhole-genome CMA can detect clinically significant CNVs which may not be found by conventional karyotyping analysis and increase the detection rate by approximately 21.95%. It may be recommended for patients with SA but a normal karyotype.

Bone and Bones ; abnormalities ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Chromosome Aberrations ; DNA Copy Number Variations ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Karyotype ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis

OBJECTIVETo analyze the correlation between the genotype and phenotype of 18q deletion syndrome with chromosome microarray analysis (CMA).

METHODSEight cases with 18q deletion syndrome were selected, including two affected fetuses and six children patients. DNA was extracted and hybridized with Affymetrix CytoScan TM 750K arrays following the manufacturer's standard protocol. The data was analyzed with a special software package.

RESULTSCMA analysis identified pathogenic copy number variations (CNVs) on 18q in all cases, which ranged from 6.612 Mb to 22.973 Mb. NFATC1, GALR1, MBP, SALL3 and TSHZ1 are likely to be causative genes for congenital heart disease, psychological, growth retardation, and cleft palate.

CONCLUSIONCMA can precisely locate the breakpoints of 18q and facilitate definition of the genotype-phenotype correlations, which is useful for prognosis.

Child, Preschool ; Chromosome Deletion ; Chromosome Disorders ; genetics ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 18 ; genetics ; DNA Copy Number Variations ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Microarray Analysis

The composition of serum is extremely complex,which complicates the discovery of new pharmaco-dynamic biomarkers via serum proteome for disease prediction and diagnosis.Recently,nanoparticles have been reported to efficiently reduce the proportion of high-abundance proteins and enrich low-abundance proteins in serum.Here,we synthesized a silica-coated iron oxide nanoparticle and devel-oped a highly efficient and reproducible protein corona(PC)-based proteomic analysis strategy to improve the range of serum proteomic analysis.We identified 1,070 proteins with a median coefficient of variation of 12.56％using PC-based proteomic analysis,which was twice the number of proteins iden-tified by direct digestion.There were also more biological processes enriched with these proteins.We applied this strategy to identify more pharmacodynamic biomarkers on collagen-induced arthritis(CIA)rat model treated with methotrexate(MTX).The bioinformatic results indicated that 485 differentially expressed proteins(DEPs)were found in CIA rats,of which 323 DEPs recovered to near normal levels after treatment with MTX.This strategy can not only help enhance our understanding of the mechanisms of disease and drug action through serum proteomics studies,but also provide more pharmacodynamic biomarkers for disease prediction,diagnosis,and treatment.

Hepatic stellate cells(HSCs)are essential drivers of fibrogenesis.Inducing activated-HSC apoptosis is a promising strategy for treating hepatic fibrosis.18beta-glycyrrhetinic acid(18β-GA)is a natural com-pound that exists widely in herbal medicines,such as Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch,which is used for treating multiple liver diseases,especially in Asia.In the present study,we demonstrated that 18β-GA decreased hepatic fibrosis by inducing the apoptosis in activated HSCs.18β-GA inhibited the expression of α-smooth muscle actin and collagen type Ⅰ alpha-1.Using a chemoproteomic approach derived from activity-based protein profiling,together with cellular thermal shift assay and surface plasmon reso-nance,we found that 18β-GA covalently targeted peroxiredoxin 1(PRDX1)and peroxiredoxin 2(PRDX2)proteins via binding to active cysteine residues and thereby inhibited their enzymatic activities.18β-GA induced the elevation of reactive oxygen species(ROS),resulting in the apoptosis of activated HSCs.PRDX1 knockdown also led to ROS-mediated apoptosis in activated HSCs.Collectively,our findings revealed the target proteins and molecular mechanisms of 18β-GA in ameliorating hepatic fibrosis,highlighting the future development of 18β-GA as a novel therapeutic drug for hepatic fibrosis.

Objective:To summarize the clinical characteristics of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infected with Delta variant, so as to provide further references for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:A real-world study was conducted to analyze the characteristics of 166 COVID-19 patients infected with Delta variant at Guangzhou Eighth People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University.Results:The study enrolled 5 asymptomatic cases, 123 non-severe cases (mild and moderate type), and 38 severe cases (severe and critical type). Among these patients, 69 (41.6%) were male and 97 (58.4%) were female, with a mean age of 47.0±23.5 years. Thirty-nine cases (23.5%) had received 1 or 2 doses of inactivated vaccine. The incidence of severe COVID-19 cases was 7.7% in 2-doses vaccinated patients, which was lower than that of 11.5% in 1-dose and 26.8% in unvaccinated patients. The proportion of severe cases in 2 dose-vaccinated patients was 7.7%, which was lower than that of 11.5% in 1-dose vaccinated patients and 26.8% in unvaccinated patients, but the difference was not significant ( P>0.05). The most common clinical symptom was fever (134 cases, 83.2%), and 39.1% of cases presented with high-grade fever (≥39 °C); other symptoms were cough, sputum, fatigue, and xerostomia. The proportion of fever in severe cases was significantly higher than that of non-severe cases (97.4% vs. 76.4%, P<0.01). Similarly, the proportion of severe cases with high peak temperature (≥39 ℃) () was also higher than that of non-severe cases (65.8% vs. 30.9%, P<0.01). The median minimal Cycle threshold (Ct) values of viral nucleic acid N gene and ORFlab gene were 20.3 and 21.5, respectively, and the minimum Ct values were 11.9 and 13.5, respectively. Within 48 h of admission, 9.0% of cases presented with decreased white blood cell counts, and 52.4% with decreased lymphocyte counts. The proportions of increased C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, interleukin 6, and interleukin 10 were 32.5%, 57.4%, 65.3%, and 35.7%, respectively. The proportions of elevated C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A and interleukin-6 in severe cases were significantly higher than those in non-severe cases ( P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that older age and higher peak temperature were associated with a higher likelihood of severe cases ( OR>3, 95% CI: 2-7, P<0.01). In terms of treatment, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was used in 97.6% of non-severe cases and 100% in severe cases. Other treatments included respiratory and nutritional support, immunotherapy (such as neutralizing antibodies and plasma of recovered patients). The median times from admission to progression to severe cases, of fever clearance, and of nucleic acid conversion were 5 days, 6 days and 19 days, respectively. No deaths were reported within 28 days. Conclusions:The symptoms of Delta variant infection in Guangzhou are characterized by a high proportion of fever, high peak temperature, long duration of fever, high viral load, a long time to nucleic acid conversion, and a high incidence of severe cases. The severe cases exhibit a higher percentage of elderly patients, a longer duration of fever and have a higher fever rate and a higher hyperthermia rate than non-severe cases. Age and hyperthermia are independent risk factors for progression to severe disease. The combination of TCM and Western medicine can control the progression of the disease effectively.

Malaria is an ancient infectious disease that threatens millions of lives globally even today. The discovery of artemisinin, inspired by traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has brought in a paradigm shift and been recognized as the "best hope for the treatment of malaria" by World Health Organization. With its high potency and low toxicity, the wide use of artemisinin effectively treats the otherwise drug-resistant parasites and helps many countries, including China, to eventually eradicate malaria. Here, we will first review the initial discovery of artemisinin, an extraordinary journey that was in stark contrast with many drugs in western medicine. We will then discuss how artemisinin and its derivatives could be repurposed to treat cancer, inflammation, immunoregulation-related diseases, and COVID-19. Finally, we will discuss the implications of the "artemisinin story" and how that can better guide the development of TCM today. We believe that artemisinin is just a starting point and TCM will play an even bigger role in healthcare in the 21st century.
Artemisinins/therapeutic use* ; COVID-19/drug therapy* ; Drug Repositioning ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Neoplasms/drug therapy*