OBJECTIVETo establish a rapid determination method with gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) for thiodiglycolic acid (TDGA), a vinyl chloride (VCM) biomarker.

METHODSA high- sensitivity determination method was established using a moderate methyl esterification instead of methyl esterification of highly toxic diazo reaction.

RESULTSThe standard curve regression linear equation of the method was: y=8460.5x-4758.2, the linear coefficient was 0.999 7, the minimum quantity concentration was 2.0 µg/L, the range of precision value was 0.81%-2.38%, and the average recovery of standard addition was 99.0%-102.9%.

CONCLUSIONThis method reduces the risk of traditional methyl esterification, improves the determination sensitivity compared with the GC-FPD method, and meets the determination requirement of TDGA.

Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry ; Humans ; Thioglycolates ; urine ; Vinyl Chloride

Objective To analyze the impact of multiple factors on the incidence of pneumothorax associated with CT-guided transthoracic needle aspiration biopsy.Methods The sign of pneumothorax after 162 cases(lesion diameter from 1cm to 6cm)CT-guided transthoracic needle aspiration biopsy was observed and its relationship with multivariate factors were analyzed by multivariate logistic regression model.Results Thirty-two cases presented pneumothorax accounting for 19.8%.Single variate analysis showed that the sign of pneumothorax ralated to intercurrent COPD,distance from lesion and chest wall,needle dwelling time and lesion diameter.67 patients of intercurrent COPD with postoperative pneumothorax occurred in 22 cases (32.8%);With respect to those having lesions close to the chest wall(48 cases),and the cases with the distance between the chest wall and lesions less than 2cm(55 cases)and greater than 2cm(59 cases), the postoperative pneumothorax occurred in 0,14(25.5%),18(30.5%)cases respectively;For those patients with needle in the chest residence time of less than 10 minutes(82 cases),10—20 minutes (51 cases),more than 20 minutes(28 cases)after the occurrence of pneumothorax were 8(9.6%), 10(19.6%),14(50%)cases respectively;In contrast,those with lesion diameter less than 2 cm (65 cases),2—4cm(52 cases),more than 4cm(45 cases)were 19(29.2%),8(15.4%) and 5(11.1%)respectively.The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the prior three factors were risk factors of pneumothorax(OR=4.652,4.030,2.855 respectively).Conclusions To avoid the pneumothorax,caution must be taken with respect to CT-guided transthoracic needle aspiration biopsy, patients with intercurrent COPD,long distance between lesion and chest wall,and smaller lesion diameter. For operation the needle dwell time within thorax should be minimized.

ObjectiveTo report the results of preventive control program of severe thalassemias in Zhuhai City of Guangdong Province from 1998 to 2010.MethodsAs the guide centre of marriage and childbearing and the greatest maternity hospital in Zhuhai City of Guangdong Province,Zhuhai Municipal Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital constructed the genetic screening network for thalassemias testing and referred for follow-up and for genetic counseling.The couples for premarital medical examination or regular healthcare examination in pregnancy were enrolled to this preventive control program.A conventional strategy of screening for heterozygote was used to identify the α- and β-thalassemia traits in women and their spouses according to the standard procedures of hematological phenotype analysis which was recommended by Thalassemia International Federation (T IF).Then those suspected couples at risk were diagnosed for α- and β-thalassemia by PCR-based DNA assays.The couples at risk for severe thalassemias were counseled and offered prenatal diagnosis and termination of pregnancy in case of an affected fetus in the rights of consent and of option voluntarily.ResultsFrom January 1998 to December 2010,85 522 brides and grooms-to-be for premarital screening and 41 503 pregnant women in addition to 14 141 partners for prenatal screening were recorded,the covering rates of premarital screening and prenatal screening in the city were 92.698％ (from 1998 to 2003) and 27.667％ (from 2004 to 2010),respectively.Totally 10 726 cases were found to be the carriers of thalassemias,with 7393 for o-thalassemia (5.237％,7 393/141 166) and 3333 for β-thalassemia (2.361％,3 333/141 166).A total of 257 couples at-risk for severe thalassemias were detected including 190 for α-thalassemia and 67 for β-thalassemia.Among them,251 (97.7％,251/257) couples were performed prenatal diagnosis.During the preventive control program,a total of 72 fetuses with severe thalassemias including hemoglobin H disease were voluntarily terminated.In Zhuhai City,the average annual birth rate of fetuses with severe thalassemia was declined by 32.9％ (49/149).ConclusionsThis study has reduced effectively birth rate of perinatal infants with severe thalassemias in Zhuhai City by genetic screening and prenatal diagnosis of thalassemia in the large population of 13 years.Our summary comes out of technical proposals for prenatal screening and diagnosis,which could be take example by preventative control of thalassemia in other regions of China where are prevalent.

The efficient and safe delivery of drugs to the therapeutic site through the biofilm has traditionally been a difficult and hot topic in the field of drug delivery. In recent years, alkyl polyglycoside (APG) have become ideal penetration enhancers for drug delivery systems because of their high permeability, good safety and biodegradability, which has attracted wide attention of domestic and foreign researchers. In this paper, the physical and chemical properties, characteristics, action mechanism and application of APG in drug delivery system are reviewed, and its application prospect in drug delivery system is prospected.

OBJECTIVETo prepare the low molecular weight chitosan (LMWC) and establish the method for quality control.

METHODUse enzymatic degradation to prepare LMWC with chitosan, and separate by ultrafiltration; the molecular weight and purity were determined by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and colorimetry respectively.

RESULTLMWC was prepared by control the hours of enzymatic degradation and ultrafiltered through filter with cutoff molecular of 10K Dalton and 50 K dalton; the average molecular weight was 20 K dalton and the purity was (96.60 +/- 1.56)%.

CONCLUSIONThe condition of enzymatic degradation is geniality and easy to control, LMWCs with different molecular weight can separate by ultrafiltration efficiently; the quality of LMWC can control with gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and colorimetry.

Cellulase ; metabolism ; Chitosan ; chemistry ; Chromatography, Gel ; Colorimetry ; Hydrolysis ; Molecular Weight ; Quality Control ; Technology, Pharmaceutical ; methods

It is unanimously accepted that stroke is a highly heterogeneous disorder.Different subtypes of ischemic stroke may have different risk factors,clinical features,and prognoses.The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk factors,clinical characteristics,and prognoses of different subtypes of ischemic stroke defined by the Trial of ORG10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) criteria.We prospectively analyzed the data from 530 consecutive patients who were admitted to our hospital with acute ischemic stroke within 7 days of stroke onset during the study period.Standardized data assessment was used and the cause of ischemic stroke was classified according to the TOAST criteria.Patients were followed up till 30 and 90 days after stroke onset.It was found that large-artery atherosclerosis was the most frequent etiology of stroke (37.4％),and showed the highest male preponderance,the highest prevalence of previous transient ischemic attack,and the longest hospital stay among all subtypes.Small artery disease (36.4％) was associated with higher body mass index,higher plasma triglycerides,and lower plasma high-density lipoprotein cholesterol than cardioembolism.Cardioembolism (7.7％),which was particularly common in the elderly (i.e.,individuals aged 65 years and older),showed the highest female preponderance,the highest prevalence of atrial fibrillation,the earliest presentation to hospital after stroke onset,the most severe symptoms on admission,the maximum complications associated with an adverse outcome,and the highest rate of stroke recurrence and mortality.Our results suggest that ischemic stroke should be regarded as a highly heterogeneous disorder.Studies involving risk factors,clinical features,and prognoses of ischemic stroke should differentiate between etiologic stroke subtypes.

The development of printing ink is a challenge for binder jetting 3D printed preparations, which directly determines the quality of the printed product. This study adopted a 2³ full-factor Design of Experiment (DoE) with three central points to optimize the printing ink composition of levetiracetam 3D printed dispersible tablet based on the concept of Quality by Design. Firstly, using polyvinyl pyrrolidone K30, glycerin and polysorbate 20 as independent variables based on 40% (v/v) isopropanol aqueous solution, and weight variation, hardness, friability and dispersion uniformity of the printed tablets were used as dependent variables. Then obtained the design space of the printing ink prescription by DoE model analysis, and the response optimizer was used to obtain the optimal printing ink prescription: isopropanol aqueous solution containing 0.1% (w/w) polyvinyl pyrrolidone K30 and 4.0% (w/w) glycerin. The jetting mechanism and wettability of the printing ink were analyzed, and different strengths of personalized 3D printed tablets were prepared and characterized, which verified the rationality of the printing ink formulation. This study provided a reference for the development of printing ink for binder jetting 3D printed preparations.

OBJECTIVETo explore the etiopathogenesis, therapy and incidence of pulmonary infection in kidney transplantation recipients taking new immunosuppressant.

METHODSThe clinical data from 752 kidney transplant recipients were retrospectively analyzed, who were divided into 3 groups according to the immunosuppressants administered, namely group A (CsA+MMF+Pred, n=226), group B (FK506+MMF+Pred, n=386) and group C (FK506+Rap+Pred, n=140). The incidence and mortality of pulmonary infection were recorded and the analysis of etiopathogenesis, diagnosis and therapy of pulmonary infection were carried out in the 3 groups.

RESULTSFifty-three patients acquired post-transplant pulmonary infection. The incidence of pulmonary infection was 7.08% (16/226) in group A, 7.25% (28/386) in group B and 6.43% (9/140) in group C. One patient died in group A and 2 in group B. Among the 53 patients, 24 had simple bacterial infection, 9 had cytomegalovirus infection, 1 had mycotic infection, 17 had combined infection, and 2 had unidentified pathogen infection. Of the pathogenic bacteria detected, 68.35% were Gram-negative.

CONCLUSIONGram-negative bacteria are most likely responsible for pulmonary infection after kidney transplantation, which most possibly occurs within 6 months after kidney transplantation. Early diagnosis and early treatment are critical for decreasing the mortality of severe pneumonia and for improving the survival rate of the patients and grafts.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Cyclosporine ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; Cytomegalovirus Infections ; chemically induced ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Female ; Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections ; chemically induced ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; Kidney Transplantation ; Lung Diseases ; chemically induced ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Tacrolimus ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects

OBJECTIVETo investigate the dynamic changes of lymphocyte subsets before and after autologous hemopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in severe/refractory autoimmune disease (AID) and study the post-transplantation immunological reconstitution in AID.

METHODSThirteen patients with severe/refractory AID who registered for HSCT from April 2003 to April 2005 in Peking Union Medical College Hospital, including 8 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, 4 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, and 1 patient with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were collected before/after mobilization, before conditioning, and 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, and 18 months post-transplantation. Lymphocyte subsets were tested by flow cytometry as follows: T cell (CD3 +), B cell (CD19 +), natural killer (CD3-CD16 + CD56 +), Th (CD3 + CD4 +), Tc (CD3 + CD8 +), naïve T (CD4 + CD45RA), memory T (CD4 + CD45RO), and CD4/CD8 ratio.

RESULTSLymphocyte subsets for SLE patients were severely abnormal compared to normal or RA patients (both P < 0.01). B cell reconstituted to normal level within 18 months, meanwhile NK and T cell remained low. The repopulations of Th and naive T cell were delayed, which caused the up-side-down of CD4/CD8 ratio and low level of naYve T cell percentage for a relatively long time.

CONCLUSIONSLymphocyte subsets abnormality in SLE patients are more severe than in RA patients. Although most autoimmune T/B cell in the grafts and patients can be effectively removed after transplantation, nonmyeloablative conditioning may be a risk for the relapse of AID. The long-term inhibition of CD4 + T cell may be related with the relief of AID after transplantation.

Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; blood ; immunology ; therapy ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Humans ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; blood ; immunology ; therapy ; Lymphocyte Subsets ; immunology ; pathology ; Sjogren's Syndrome ; immunology ; therapy