Association between habitual snoring,middle ear disease,and speech problems in young children with non-syndromic cleft palate anomalies

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between habitual snoring (HS), middle ear disease (MED), and speech problems in children with cleft palate. This cross-sectional study included children aged 2.0–7.9 years with non-syndromic cleft palate anomalies. Parents completed the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire and a questionnaire about MED. Audiograms and speech assessment were also conducted. Ninety-five children were enrolled; 15.2% of families reported HS, 97.6% MED, and 17.1% speech problems. HS (37.5% vs 10.3%, P = 0.007) and early episodes of MED (92.3% vs 58.2%, P = 0.021) were more likely to be reported for children with isolated cleft palate when compared to those with cleft lip and palate. Children with cleft lip and palate had a higher frequency of MED with effusion compared to those with Robin sequence (86.4% vs 57.1%, P = 0.049). The odds ratio for HS in children with ≥1 episode of MED in the last year was 7.37 (95% confidence interval 1.55–35.15, P = 0.012). There was a trend for children with speech problems reported by parents to have HS (30.8% vs 11.5%, P= 0.076). Anatomical factors play a role in the frequency of upper airway symptoms in children with cleft palate. A recent history of at least one episode of MED was associated with an increased frequency of HS.     

The usefulness of measuring n-butyric acid concentration as a new indicator of blood decomposition in forensic autopsy

In forensic medicine, although various alcohols have been reported as indicators of decomposition in collected blood, no studies have examined short-chain fatty acids as indicators. In this study, the blood n-butyric acid concentration was quantified, and the association between n-butyric acid and decomposition was investigated to determine whether the detection of n-butyric acid could be a new indicator of decomposition. Among the forensic autopsies performed from 2016 to 2018 in our laboratory, the cases were divided into decomposed (n = 20) and non-decomposed (n = 20) groups based on macroscopic findings. Blood samples collected at the time of autopsy were derivatized with 3-nitrophenylhydrazine hydrochloride after solid-phase extraction. The n-butyric acid concentration was measured using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. In addition, ethanol and n-propanol were measured using a gas chromatography-flame ionization detector. There was a significant difference (p < 0.01) in the concentrations of n-butyric acid between the decomposed and non-decomposed groups (0.343 ± 0.259 [0.030–0.973] and 0.003 ± 0.002 [0.001–0.007] mg/mL, respectively). In the decomposed group, n-butyric acid was detected at high concentrations, even in cases where n-propanol was low. These results suggest that n-butyric acid is more likely to be an indicator of blood decomposition than n-propanol.     

Zhang Weishen: A Pioneer in the Development and Industrial Production of Penicillin in New China

The research and development of penicillin started with difficulty before 1949 and achieved certain results. In 1951, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zhang Weishen, as the only Chinese scientist who had been trained and worked in a penicillin research and development center in the United States for many years, overcame many difficulties and returned to China. In 1953, with the efforts of Zhang Weishen and his colleagues, China realized the industrialized production of penicillin, alleviating the urgent needs of the masses. Antibiotics has also become the first discipline to achieve major scientific and technological achievements after the founding of the New China. In the mid-1950s, the technical breakthrough in the localization of lactose substitutes marked the localization of the raw materials of the penicillin-producing culture medium, which paved the way for the industrialized production of penicillin with Chinese characteristics. Antibiotics have become one of the most widely used and affordable drugs for hundreds of millions of patients in China, and China has since ended the humiliating history of the “Sick Man of East Asia".     

Adaptation of Vero cells to suspension growth for rabies virus production in different serum free media

Vero cells are nowadays widely used in the production of human vaccines. They are considered as one of the most productive and flexible continuous cell lines available for vaccine manufacturing. However, these cells are anchorage dependent, which greatly complicates upstream processing and process scale-up. Moreover, there is a recognized need to reduce the costs of vaccine manufacturing to develop vaccines that are affordable worldwide. The use of cell lines adapted to suspension growth contributes to reach this objective.The current work describes the adaptation of Vero cells to suspension culture in different serum free media according to multiple protocols based on subsequent passages. The best one that relies on cell adaption to IPT-AFM an in-house developed animal component free medium was then chosen for further studies. Besides, as aggregates have been observed, the improvement of IPT-AFM composition and mechanical dissociation were also investigated.In addition to IPT-AFM, three chemically defined media (CD293, Hycell CHO and CD-U5) and two serum free media (293SFMII and SFM4CHO) were tested to set up a serum free culture of the suspension-adapted Vero cells (VeroS) in shake flasks. Cell density levels higher than 2 × 10⁶ cells/mL were obtained in the assessed conditions. The results were comparable to those obtained in spinner culture of adherent Vero cells grown on Cytodex 1 microcarriers.Cell infection with LP-2061 rabies virus strain at an MOI (Multiplicity of Infection) of 0.1 and a cell density of 8 ± 0.5 × 10⁵ cells/mL resulted in a virus titer higher than 10⁷ FFU/mL in all media tested. Nevertheless, the highest titer equal to 5.2 ± 0.5 × 10⁷ FFU/mL, was achieved in IPT-AFM containing a reduced amount of Ca⁺⁺ and Mg⁺⁺. Our results demonstrate the suitability of the obtained VeroS cells to produce rabies virus at a high titer, and pave the way to develop VeroS cells bioreactor process for rabies vaccine production.     

Evolución e impacto bibliométrico de las becas de la Sociedad Española de Cardiología/Fundación Española del Corazón en el periodo 2007-2012

Introduction and objectivesThe Spanish Society of Cardiology/Spanish Heart Foundation (SEC/FEC) annually awards grants for cardiovascular research projects. Our objective was to analyze the trend in these investments and their resulting scientific production from 2007 to 2012.MethodsA search of the publications funded by the SEC/FEC was carried out, according to the following inclusion criteria: publication in a journal indexed in MEDLINE or EMBASE, publication date after the grant, authorship by the principal investigator of the grant, and acknowledgment of SEC/FEC funding. The impact factor and subsequent citations of the articles were analyzed (Web of Science).ResultsA total of 235 grants were awarded (39/y) with an allocation of €3 854 300 (€642 383/y), 37% of them to women. In all, 122 publications resulted from 88 research projects (37%) funded by the SEC/FEC. Up to October 2017, these publications had received 2258 citations in subsequent studies in the Web of Science, with a mean of 18.5 and a median of 8 citations/study.ConclusionsDespite the economic crisis, the mean number and size of the grants awarded by the SEC/FEC increased in the period analyzed. Grants were awarded on an equal opportunity basis to men and women. The bibliometric impact of the funded projects is acceptable, although efforts should be made to improve it.     

药用胶带纸层厚度检测系统

设计并试制了一种药用胶带纸层厚度在线检测系统．该系统将高精度电容传感器与计算机结合起来，同时配有丰富的外围器件，实现了多种实际生产中所需要的功能．它的出现，彻底解决了药用胶带纸胶层厚度在线检测这个难题，经过两年多的实际应用的检验，该系统实现了在线非接触测量，精度高，动态性能好，实现功能全面，价格合理，是药用胶带纸生产的必备检测仪器．由于该系统还可以很方便在纸张、塑料薄膜等其它生产线上进行推广，因而，其应用前景十分看好．     

Effect of Coenzyme Q10 and green tea on plasma and liver lipids, platelet aggregation, TBARS production and erythrocyte Na leak in simvastatin treated hypercholesterolmic rats

This study was conducted to investigate the hypocholesterolemic effect of simvastatin (30 mg/kg BW) and antioxidant effect of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10, 15 mg/kg BW) or green tea (5%) on erythrocyte Na leak, platelet aggregation and TBARS production in hypercholesterolemic rats treated with statin. Food efficiency ratio (FER, ADG/ADFI) was decreased in statin group and increased in green tea group, and the difference between these two groups was significant (p<0.05). Plasma total cholesterol was somewhat increased in all groups with statin compared with control. Plasma triglyceride was decreased in statin group and increased in groups of CoQ10 and green tea, and the difference between groups of statin and green tea was significant (p<0.05). Liver total cholesterol was not different between the control and statin group, but was significantly decreased in the group with green tea compared with other groups (p<0.05). Liver triglyceride was decreased in groups of statin and green tea compared with the control, and the difference between groups of the control and green tea was significant (p<0.05). Platelet aggregation of both the initial slope and the maximum was not significantly different, but the group with green tea tended to be higher in initial slope and lower in the maximum. Intracellular Na of group with green tea was significantly higher than the control or statin group (p<0.05). Na leak in intact cells was significantly decreased in the statin group compared with the control (p<0.05). Na leak in AAPH treated cells was also significantly reduced in the statin group compared with groups of the control and CoQ10 (p<0.05). TBARS production in platelet rich plasma was significantly decreased in the groups with CoQ10 and green tea compared with the control and statin groups (p<0.05). TBARS of liver was significantly decreased in the group with green tea compared with the statin group (p<0.05). In the present study, even a high dose of statin did not show a cholesterol lowering effect, therefore depletion of CoQ10 following statin treatment in rats is not clear. More clinical studies are needed for therapeutic use of CoQ10 as an antioxidant in prevention of degenerative diseases independent of statin therapy.     

从文体学角度鉴赏《礼物》一文

大学英语第一册第三课《礼物》是一篇故事短文 ,文中语言简单 ,词汇量少。学生能够在没有教师的指导下掌握文章的主要内容 ,但这并不意味着读懂该篇文章。对文本作深层的理解 ,掌握作者的写作目的 ,是大学英语精读的学习目的和要求。如何帮助学生达到对文本的真正的理解 ,这是一个一直来值得我们研究的问题。针对该文的简洁语体 ,笔者试着从文体学角度进行分析 ,在实际教学过程中 ,取得了较好的效果。在一定程度上提高了学生语篇理解和鉴赏能力。笔者试从文体语言、文体结构和修辞手段三方面分析该文的文体结构。1　文体语言1 .1　故事叙述…