Treatment adherence following national antiretroviral rollout in South Africa

The national antiretroviral (ARV) programme in South Africa commenced in 2004. ARV drugs became readily available to all South Africans due to the concerted efforts of ‘access to all’ campaigns. This study investigates medication adherence among a sample of South Africans after the ARV rollout in order to gain insight into the adherence challenges they face. A semi-structured questionnaire was completed by 439 participants from across the country. The results show that only 40% of the respondents were able to reach the optimum adherence level of 90% or above. The patients who displayed below-optimum adherence often had not been part of an ARV-preparation programme, did not have HIV-treatment supporters, lacked general knowledge about drug adherence, and felt unsupported by healthcare providers in their day-to-day effort to adhere to their medications. They often had no money for food or transportation, ran out of ARVs for various reasons, suffered from HIV-treatment fatigue, battled with depression, abused alcohol, could not disclose to sexual partners that they were on ARVs, and often had to hide or skip ARV dosages because they feared stigma and discrimination. Suggestions to assist patients to adhere to their ARV medications are made.     

Characterization of Printed Circuit Boards for Metal and Energy Recovery after Milling and Mechanical Separation

The proper disposal of electrical and electronic waste is currently a concern of researchers and environmental managers not only because of the large volume of such waste generated, but also because of the heavy metals and toxic substances it contains. This study analyzed printed circuit boards (PCBs) from discarded computers to determine their metal content and characterized them as solid waste and fuel. The analysis showed that PCBs consist of approximately 26% metal, made up mainly of copper, lead, aluminum, iron and tin, as well as other heavy metals such as cadmium and nickel. Comparison with the results of other studies indicated that the concentration of precious metals (gold and silver) has declined over time. Analysis of the leachate revealed high concentrations of cadmium and lead, giving the residue the characteristics of hazardous waste. After milling the PCBs, we found that larger amounts of metal were concentrated in smaller fractions, while the lightest fraction, obtained by density separation, had a gross calorific value of approximately 11 MJ/kg, although with a high ash content. Milling followed by density separation proved potentially useful for recovery of metals and energy-rich fractions.     

关于医疗卫生体制改革的认知差异性

卫生改革的顺利实施依赖于卫生系统内不同群体的合作,但是现有的文献表明,不同群体对于医疗卫生体制改革的认知存在较为明显的差异,影响卫生政策的实践效果.通过对文献的分析,对差异的程度进行定性分析;对认知差异的定量研究是未来研究需关注的领域.     

Deliberate induction of alcohol tolerance: empirical introduction to a novel health risk

Aims Alcohol tolerance is a hallmark indicator of alcohol dependence. Even so, the allure of peers' admiration for having the ability to drink heavily may lead some adolescents and young adults to practice, or ‘train’, to increase their tolerance (particularly at US colleges, where heavy drinking is highly prevalent and central to the social culture). This is a potential health hazard that has not been documented empirically. Thus, we initiated a study of tolerance ‘training’ and its association to risky and heavy drinking. Design, setting and participants A cross‐sectional online survey of 990 college student life‐time drinkers at a large Midwestern US university. Findings Of the sample, 9.9% (n = 97) reported deliberately ‘training’ to increase tolerance. On average, they reported increasing from approximately seven to 10 US standard drinks in a night prior to ‘training’ to 12–15 drinks at the end of ‘training,’ over approximately 2–3 weeks' duration. Although the proportion of frequent binge drinking among ‘non‐trainers’ (34.4%) was similar to national rates, ‘trainers’ were much more likely to be frequent bingers (76.3%; OR = 6.15). Conclusions A number of students report deliberately inducing alcohol tolerance, probably directly increasing the risk for alcohol poisoning and other acute harms and/or dependence. This phenomenon might additionally be applicable to other populations, and deserves further study and attention as a potential personal and public health risk. Prevention efforts might aim to reduce the perceived importance of heavy‐drinking abilities.     

生活垃圾集装箱在集装化转运系统中的改进技术研究

为延长生活垃圾集装箱及其零配件的使用寿命,以及解决箱门无法正常开闭和在运输途中的垃圾渗沥液渗漏问题,对部分零部件(扇齿轮、水平杆、兼容箱箱门门框密封技术)进行了技术革新,有效缓解了现存的问题.     

复跳前控制性温血停跳液灌注的心肌保护作用

目的探讨复跳前自体氧合温血停跳液控制性灌注在体外循环手术中对心肌缺血再灌注损伤的保护作用.方法选择256例复杂或重症患者,随机分为对照组128例,实验组128例.常规在体外循环下进行各种手术,均采用4℃ThomasⅡ号液间断顺灌行心肌保护.实验组在主动脉开放前约5min,用4:1自体氧合温血停跳液控制性灌注(压力:50mmHg,量:10ml/kg,流量:100～200ml/min,温度:35℃).分别在阻断主动脉前和开放主动脉后0,1,6,24h测定心肌酶,比较二组自动复跳率、复跳后血流动力学、围术期升压药应用、心律失常发生率、病死率、术后心功能等指标.结果实验组心肌酶含量低于对照组(P＜0.05),其余各指标优于对照组(P＜0.05).结论复跳前控制性温血灌注对心肌缺血有良好保护作用,方法简单、可行,值得临床应用.     

Age-related changes of NGF, BDNF, parvalbumin and neuronal nitric oxide synthase immunoreactivity in the mouse hippocampal CA1 sector

We investigated the age-related alterations in nerve growth factor (NGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), parvalbumin and neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) immunoreactivity of the mouse hippocampal CA1 sector. NGF and BDNF immunoreactivity was unchanged in the hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons from 2 to 50-59 weeks of birth. In contrast, a significant increase in the NGF and BDNF immunoreactivity was observed in glial cells of the hippocampal CA1 sector from 40-42 to 50-59 weeks of birth. On the other hand, the number of parvalbumin- and nNOS-positive interneurons was unchanged in the hippocampal CA1 sector during aging processes, except for a significant decrease of nNOS-positive interneurons 2 weeks of birth. Our results indicate that NGF and BDNF immunoreactivity was unaltered in the hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons during aging processes. In contrast, a significant increase in the NGF and BDNF immunoreactivity was observed in glial cells of the hippocampal CA1 sector during aging processes. The present study also shows that the number of parvalbumin- and nNOS-positive interneurons was unchanged in the hippocampal CA1 sector during aging processes, except for a significant decrease of nNOS-positive interneurons 2 weeks of birth. These results demonstrate that the expression of glial NGF and BDNF may play a key role for helping survival and maintenance of pyramidal neurons and neuronal functions in the hippocampal CA1 sector during aging processes. Furthermore, our findings suggest that parvalbumin- and nNOS-positive interneurons in the hippocampal CA1 sector are resistant to aging processes. Moreover, our findings suggest that nitric oxide synthesized by the nNOS may play some role for neuronal growth during postnatal development.     

乙型肝炎病毒多聚酶末端蛋白重链可变区抗体体外抑制病毒的复制

目的用蛋白片段互补法(PCA)选择HBV多聚酶末端蛋白(TP)重链可变区(VH)抗体,研究特异性VH抗体体外抑制HBV的复制与分泌。方法以HBV多聚酶TP区为抗原,用PCA法进行特异性VH抗体筛选。特异性VH抗体基因定向亚克隆人真核表达载体pZeoSV2( ),构建pZeoSV2( )-VH重组质粒,用脂质体介导的转染技术,将其导入HepG 2.2.15细胞,观察特异性抗体的生物学活性。结果用PCA法从抗体库中选择出3个特异性抗体:VH1、VH2和VH3,其中与抗原亲和力最高的是VH1。转染pZeoSV2( )-VH1的HepG 2.2.15细胞比未转染pZeoSV2 ( )-VH1或只转染空载体pZeoSV2( )的HepG 2.2.15细胞病毒颗粒分泌明显减少,上清液内为2.978 7±0.276 1比5.150 4±0.276 1和5.295 1±0.241 0(P<0.05);细胞内为5.283 9±0.162 9比8.300 4±0.323 2和8.532 1±0.138 3(P<0.05)。结论用PCA法可从抗体库中选择出HBV多聚酶TP区特异性VH抗体,该抗体在体外可抑制HBV的复制与分泌。     

Effectiveness and safety of warm needle acupuncture for sciatica: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Background:Sciatica is a syndrome characterized by sciatic nerve path and distribution area pain. Many kinds of literature reported the definite effect of warm needle acupuncture (WNA) on sciatica. However, there is no systematic review or meta-analysis on WNA for sciatica. Therefore, this study will design a protocol to comprehensively and systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of WNA on sciatica.Methods:The two researchers in this study will search the electronic database for randomized controlled trials, (RCTs) of WNA on sciatica, The databases we will search include PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Chinese national knowledge infrastructure (CNKI), China Science and Technology Journal Database (VIP), Wanfang Database, and Chinese biomedical literature database (CBM). Review Manager 5.4 software and Cochrane risk bias tool will be us used for data analysis and to evaluate research quality. The main clinical indicators will include visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI).Results:This study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of WNA for sciatica.Conclusion:This study will provide a reliable scheme for objectively and comprehensively evaluating the efficacy and safety of WNA on sciatica.Trial registration number:INPLASY2020110074     

Determination of heavy metals in albumen of hen eggs from the Markazi Province (Iran) using ICP-OES technique

Increase of distribution of environmental contaminants such as heavy metals have been caused the knowledge of the safety and hygiene of food is very important, especially eggs, because of its role in the daily diet. There are very few studies about the investigation of the heavy metal contents in egg-white. In this study, six heavy metals include Aluminium (Al), Arsenic (As), Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd), Mercury (Hg), Antimony (Sb) in egg-white from 32 industrial poultry farms were investigated, by ICP-OES. All the samples were collected in all area of Markazi Province, Iran in autumn 2013. The mean concentrations of heavy metals in egg-white as follows: 0.119 for Al, 0.785 for As, 0.750 for Pb, 0.249 for Cd, 0.270 for Hg and 0.186?mg/kg for Sb. Also, the concentration of the some heavy metals were higher than maximum allowable concentration that probably it is associated to use pesticides and activities of industrial factories around the poultry farms.