Spectrum-effect relationships between high performance liquid chromatography fingerprints and bioactivities of charred areca nut

Purpose: To investigate the spectrum-effect relationships between high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprints and duodenum contractility of charred areca nut (CAN) on rats.Methods: An HPLC method was used to establish the fingerprint of charred areca nut (CAN). The promoting effect on contractility of intestinal smooth was carried out to evaluate the duodenum contractility of CAN in vitro. In addition, the spectrum-effect relationships between HPLC fingerprints and bioactivities of CAN were investigated using multiple linear regression analysis (backward method).Results: Fourteen common peaks were detected and peak 3 (5-Hydroxymethyl-2-furfural, 5-HMF) was selected as the reference peak to calculate the relative retention time of 13 other common peaks. In addition, the equation of spectrum-effect relationships {Y = 3.818 - 1.126X1 + 0.817X2 - 0.045X4 - 0.504X5 + 0.728X6 - 0.056X8 + 1.122X9 - 0.247X13 - 0.978X14 (p < 0.05, R2 = 1)} was established in the present study by the multiple linear regression analysis (backward method). According to the equation, the absolute value of the coefficient before X1, X2, X4, X5, X6, X8, X9, X13, X14 was the coefficient between the component and the parameter.Conclusion: The model presented in this study successfully unraveled the spectrum-effect relationship of CAN, which provides a promising strategy for screening effective constituents of areca nut.Keywords: Charred areca nut, Spectrum-effect relationships, HPLC fingerprints, Duodenum contractilit

Enhancement of the mariculture wastewater treatment based on the bacterial-microalgal consortium

Though bacterial-microalgal consortium (BM) system showed significant advantages for the mariculture wastewater treatment, how the high saline to the degradation of nitrogen, phosphorus and organic component shift need to be further investigated. In this study, three systems including the microalgae system (MA), activated sludge system (AS) and BM were parallel operated. The mariculture wastewater treatment performance and the shifts of soluble microbial products (SMPs) components were compared among the above systems. The result showed that the highest removals of NH4+-N (92.78%), PO43−-P (79.47%) and total organic carbon (TOC) (81.67%) were obtained in the BM system. This result demonstrated that the confederate effect between bacteria and microalgae showed satisfying mariculture wastewater treatment performance compared to the individual MA or AS system. In terms of the SMP production, the high salinity resulted in much SMP accumulation (178.89 mg/L of protein and 71.35 chancinmg/L of carbohydrate) in the MA system. Fortunately, the high salinity inhibition effect was dramatic reduction with less SMP accumulation in the BM system. The EEM result showed amounts of macromolecular organics of protein (aromatic-like substances and tryptophan-like substances) were the main components in the MA system, which were much higher than that in the AS and BM system. This indicated the macromolecular protein-like matters could not be removed absolutely based the individual MA system. Comparatively, the composition of SMP was shifted by the bacterial-microalgal consortium with less humic-like matters and tryptophan-like matters production in the BM system. The less SMP release had advantage to the stable operation of the bacterial-microalgal consortium. Hence, the bacterial-microalgal consortium contributed to a much stable micro-ecological environment formation for enhancing the high salinity mariculture wastewater treatment performanc

Nomogram for Postoperative Headache in Adult Patients Undergoing Elective Cardiac Surgery

Background Postoperative headache (POH) is frequent after cardiac surgery; however, few studies on risk factors for POH exist. The aims of the current study were to explore risk factors related to POH after elective cardiac surgery and to establish a predictive system. Methods and Results Adult patients undergoing elective open‐heart surgery under cardiopulmonary bypass from 2016 to 2020 in 4 cardiac centers were retrospectively included. Two thirds of the patients were randomly allocated to a training set and one third to a validation set. Predictors for POH were selected by univariate and multivariate analysis. POH developed in 3154 of the 13 440 included patients (23.5%) and the overall mortality rate was 2.3%. Eight independent risk factors for POH after elective cardiac surgery were identified, including female sex, younger age, smoking history, chronic headache history, hypertension, lower left ventricular ejection fraction, longer cardiopulmonary bypass time, and more intraoperative transfusion of red blood cells. A nomogram based on the multivariate model was constructed, with reasonable calibration and discrimination, and was well validated. Decision curve analysis revealed good clinical utility. Finally, 3 risk intervals were divided to better facilitate clinical application. Conclusions A nomogram model for POH after elective cardiac surgery was developed and validated using 8 predictors, which may have potential application value in clinical risk assessment, decision‐making, and individualized treatment associated with POH

A trifunctional contraceptive gel enhances the safety and quality of sexual intercourse

Current contraceptive methods come with a number of drawbacks, including low efficacy, in the case of commercial contraceptive gels, and a reduction in the quality of sexual intercourse, in the case of condoms. Adding pharmacologically-active agents to contraceptive gels holds the potential to improve sexual experience, and hardbor safety and hygiene. In this study, we fabricated a carbomer-based contraceptive gel consisting of three agents: tenofovir, gossypol acetate, and nitroglycerin (TGN), with pH adjusted to 4.5 (to be compatible with the vagina). In vitro, the gossypol component of the contraceptive gel proved to be an effective spermicide. When the concentration of gossypol acetate was 10 mg/ml, the spermicidal ability reached 100% after 30 s. In addition, tenofovir in the gel significantly inhibited lentiviral transfection efficiency in cell-containing media. In 6 pairs of rats, the gel successfully prevented all females from conceiving after successful mating. Moreover, increased sexual frequency and enhanced erection, which were promoted by the nitroglycerin in the components, were observed in male rats that had the gel applied to their penises. This novel TGN contraceptive gel yielded a higher contraceptive success rate than that of the commercial contraceptive gel (Contragel®). In addition, it has the added benefits to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and improve male libido and erectile function during sexual intercourse. Combining three FDA-approved and marketed agents together, our trifunctional TGN gel has a great potential for further translation and commercialization