维药小茴香根皮化学成分初步研究

目的对维药小茴香根皮化学成分进行初步研究。方法采用试管法和滤纸法对维药小茴香根皮的水、酸水、95%乙醇、石油醚提取物进行研究,通过预实验,初步推断维药小茴香根皮中可能含有的化学成分。结果维药小茴香根皮中可能含有糖类及其苷、内酯化合物、酚类、鞣质、黄酮类、生物碱、挥发油、油脂、三萜及甾醇等化学成分。结论本研究为维药小茴香根皮的进一步开发利用提供了实验基础。     

Antioxidant activity of different white teas: Comparison of hot and cold tea infusions

The study investigates the antioxidant characteristics of various white teas steeped in either hot or room-temperature water in relation to grade of tea and brewing conditions. Antioxidant activity, chelating activity, total phenol (TPC), flavonoids (TFC), theaflavins and individual catechin content were examined. The results confirm that extraction of tea leaves carried out with water at room temperature leads to the formation of infusions particularly rich in compounds with antioxidant activity. In fact, for all the white teas studied, cold infusions had a higher content of phenols (4.77–7.63 mmol/L Gallic Acid Equivalents, GAE), flavonoids (1.47–2.53 mmol/L Catechin Equivalents, CE) and catechins (441.5–1328.2 μg/mL) compared to hot infusions (1.43–4.02 mmol/L GAE, 0.70–1.13 mmol/L CE, 83.4–534.8 μg/mL, respectively). The same trend was also observed for antioxidant activities examined using the ABTS assay (cold: 17.09–34.23; hot: 5.26–17.07 mmol/L Trolox Equivalents) and by monitoring the effects of the infusions on LDL oxidation (lag time, cold: 172.4–271.2; hot: 88.4–145.9 min). A general trend in antioxidant activity and in polyphenolic compound content can be delineated between Chinese teas, i.e. Bai Mu Dan ≥ Xue Ya ≥ White Lung Ching > Anji Needle Mao Feng > Yhin Zhen Bai Hao and between African teas, i.e. White Salima Peony > Thyolo Bsp > Bvumbwe Bsp. Concerning metal chelating activity, all the white teas displayed similar levels (0.3–0.6 mmol/L EDTA Equivalents) with no significant differences between the hot and cold infusions (except Bvumbwe Bsp and Thyolo Bsp). This paper contains key information on the antioxidant properties, TPC, TFC, and individual catechin content of several white teas commercially available and the outcomes suggest that preparing tea infused in room temperature water for approximately 2 h may constitute an alternative tea beverage potentially richer in healthful bioactive compounds compared to the more commonly consumed hot tea infusions.     

Estimation of annual effective dose due to ingestion of natural radionuclides in foodstuffs and water at a proposed uranium mining site in India

Abstract

Purpose: To study the distribution of ²¹⁰Po, ²²⁶Ra, ²³⁰Th and U(nat) (naturally occurring radioisotopes of uranium [²³⁴U, ²³⁵U and ²³⁸U]) in food and water around the Bagjata uranium mining area in India.

Materials and methods: Radionuclides were analyzed in food samples of plant and animal origin after acid digestion. Intake and ingestion dose of the radionuclides were estimated.

Results: ²¹⁰Po, ²²⁶Ra, ²³⁰Th and U(nat) in all the dietary components ranged widely from < 0.2–36, < 0.02–1.58, < 0.01–2.8 and < 0.017–0.39 Bqkg^-1, respectively. The range of ²²⁶Ra and U(nat) in water was < 3.5–206 and < 12.6–693 mBql^?1, respectively. The intake of radionuclides considering food and water was calculated to be 760 BqY^?1 while the ingestion dose was 601 μSvY^?1. The estimated doses reflect the natural background dose via route of ingestion, which is below the 1 mSvY^?1 limit set by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). However, the doses are more than the dose constraint of 300 μSvY^?1 as suggested by the ICRP for members of the public for planned disposal of long-lived radioactive waste.

Conclusion: The study confirms that current levels of radionuclides do not pose significant radiological risk to the local inhabitants, but they need close investigation in the near future.     

Knowledge,attitudes, and practices regarding seasonal influenza vaccination during pregnancy in Costa Rica: A mixed-methods study

BackgroundInfluenza increases stillbirth risk, morbidity and mortality in pregnant women. Vaccination protects pregnant women against severe disease and indirectly protects their infants, but coverage among pregnant women remains low worldwide. We aimed to describe knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding seasonal influenza vaccination among postpartum women and prenatal care physicians in Costa Rica.MethodsWe conducted cross-sectional KAP surveys to women one to three days after childbirth at Costa Rican Social Security Fund maternity hospitals, and obstetricians and general practitioners who provided prenatal care in 2017. Principal components analysis, multiple imputation, and logistic regression were used to examine associations between influenza vaccination and demographics, prenatal care, and sources of information—separately for postpartum women and physicians. We also held two focus groups of six healthcare workers each to further describe vaccination KAP.ResultsWe surveyed 642 postpartum women and 146 physicians in maternity hospitals in five Costa Rican provinces of whom 85.5 % (95 % CI: 82.6 %-88.0 %) and 57.9 % (95 % CI: 49.6 %-65.7 %) were vaccinated for influenza, respectively. Factors associated with influenza vaccination for postpartum women included tetanus vaccination (aOR: 3.62, 95 % CI: 1.89–6.92); received vaccination recommendations from clinicians during prenatal check-ups (aOR: 3.39, 95 % CI: 2.06–5.59); had other children in household vaccinated for influenza (aOR: 2.25, 95 % CI: 1.08–4.68); and secondary/university education (aOR: 0.15–0.31) with no formal education as reference. For postpartum women, reasons for vaccination were perceived benefits for mother and infant, whereas not being offered vaccines was most cited for non-vaccination. Most prenatal care physicians recommended influenza vaccines during prenatal check-ups but believed vaccination causes flu-like symptoms.ConclusionVaccination campaigns and provisions of free vaccines effectively increased knowledge and coverage among women in Costa Rica. To improve access, women should be offered vaccines during prenatal care appointments. Educating healthcare workers about vaccine benefits for themselves and patients is needed to mitigate safety concerns.     

Environmental Inequality in Exposures to Airborne Particulate Matter Components in the United States

Background: Growing evidence indicates that toxicity of fine particulate matter ≤ 2.5 μm in diameter (PM_2.5) differs by chemical component. Exposure to components may differ by population.Objectives: We investigated whether exposures to PM_2.5 components differ by race/ethnicity, age, and socioeconomic status (SES).Methods: Long-term exposures (2000 through 2006) were estimated for 215 U.S. census tracts for PM_2.5 and for 14 PM_2.5 components. Population-weighted exposures were combined to generate overall estimated exposures by race/ethnicity, education, poverty status, employment, age, and earnings. We compared population characteristics for tracts with and without PM_2.5 component monitors.Results: Larger disparities in estimated exposures were observed for components than for PM_2.5 total mass. For race/ethnicity, whites generally had the lowest exposures. Non-Hispanic blacks had higher exposures than did whites for 13 of the 14 components. Hispanics generally had the highest exposures (e.g., 152% higher than whites for chlorine, 94% higher for aluminum). Young persons (0–19 years of age) had levels as high as or higher than other ages for all exposures except sulfate. Persons with lower SES had higher estimated exposures, with some exceptions. For example, a 10% increase in the proportion unemployed was associated with a 20.0% increase in vanadium and an 18.3% increase in elemental carbon. Census tracts with monitors had more non-Hispanic blacks, lower education and earnings, and higher unemployment and poverty than did tracts without monitors.Conclusions: Exposures to PM_2.5 components differed by race/ethnicity, age, and SES. If some components are more toxic than others, certain populations are likely to suffer higher health burdens. Demographics differed between populations covered and not covered by monitors.     

Relationship between cardio-ankle vascular index and components of metabolic syndrome in combination with sex and age

ObjectiveThe relationship between cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) and components of metabolic syndrome (MetS), in addition to age and sex as confounders was explored to verify the characteristics of CAVI.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted for 144 subjects (108 males and 36 females), aged 31–86 years, who were inhabitants undergoing intensive health checkups. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the association.ResultsMetS was present in 36 of 108 males (33%) and 13 of 36 females (36%). Significant association between CAVI ≥ 9 and male subjects or age was recognized. Although five metabolic components did not show any significant association with CAVI ≥ 9, there was a trend of positive association between CAVI and BMI < 25 (p = 0.060), high blood pressure (p = 0.074) or hypertriglyceridemia (p = 0.088).ConclusionMale and age were significantly associated with CAVI ≥ 9. Further study is needed to verify the association between CAVI ≥ 9 and MetS components.     

Does long time spending on the electronic devices affect the reading abilities? A cross-sectional study among Chinese school-aged children

Home literacy environment (HLE) is one of most important modifiable risk factors to dyslexia. With the development in technology, we include the electronic devices usage at home, such as computers and televisions, to the definition of HLE and investigate its impact on dyslexia based on the on-going project of Tongji's Reading Environment and Dyslexia Study. The data include 5063 children, primary school students (grade 3–grade 6), from a middle-sized city in China. We apply the principal component analysis (PCA) to reduce the large dimension of variables in HLE, and find the first three components, denoted as PC1, PC2 and PC3, can explain 95.45% of HLE information. PC1 and PC2 demonstrate strong positive association with ‘total time spending on electronic devices’ and ‘literacy-related activity’, respectively. PC3 demonstrates strong negative association with ‘restrictions on using electronic devices’. From the generalized linear model, we find that PC1 significantly increases the risk of dyslexia (OR = 1.043, 95% CI: 1.018–1.070), while PC2 significantly decreases the risk of dyslexia (OR = 0.839, 95% CI: 0.795–0.886). Therefore, reducing the total time spending on electronic devices and increasing the literacy-related activity would be the potential protective factors for dyslexic children in China.     

Long-term activation of the innate immune system in atherosclerosis

Efforts to reverse the pathologic consequences of vulnerable plaques are often stymied by the complex treatment resistant pro-inflammatory environment within the plaque. This suggests that pro-atherogenic stimuli, such as LDL cholesterol and high fat diets may impart longer lived signals on (innate) immune cells that persist even after reversing the pro-atherogenic stimuli. Recently, a series of studies challenged the traditional immunological paradigm that innate immune cells cannot display memory characteristics. Epigenetic reprogramming in these myeloid cell subsets, after exposure to certain stimuli, has been shown to alter the expression of genes upon re-exposure. This phenomenon has been termed trained innate immunity or innate immune memory. The changed responses of ‘trained’ innate immune cells can confer nonspecific protection against secondary infections, suggesting that innate immune memory has likely evolved as an ancient mechanism to protect against pathogens. However, dysregulated processes of immunological imprinting mediated by trained innate immunity may also be detrimental under certain conditions as the resulting exaggerated immune responses could contribute to autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, such as atherosclerosis. Pro-atherogenic stimuli most likely cause epigenetic modifications that persist for prolonged time periods even after the initial stimulus has been removed. In this review we discuss the concept of trained innate immunity in the context of a hyperlipidemic environment and atherosclerosis. According to this idea the epigenome of myeloid (progenitor) cells is presumably modified for prolonged periods of time, which, in turn, could evoke a condition of continuous immune cell over-activation.