Proficiency testing of maternal serum prenatal screening in second trimester in China, 2015

Introduction: Prenatal screening and diagnosis is important for the detection of birth defects and genetic diseases. The nationwide proficiency testing (PT) of maternal serum prenatal screening in second trimester in China has been launched since 2003 and partly reflected the performance of screening laboratories. This study analysed the 2015 PT results to examine the performance of clinical laboratories and different platforms. Materials and methods: Fifteen lyophilized samples with different concentrations divided into three panels, were distributed to 613 clinical laboratories in 2015. Acceptable performance was defined as scores more than 80% of acceptable responses with the evaluation criterion of ± 30%. The robust coefficient of variation (CV) was also analysed. Chi-square (?2) test was used to compare the acceptable performance while Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney test were applied to compare the robust CV among analytes and mainstream platforms. Results: Overall, 605, 61, 214, 416, 303 laboratories submitted effective results for alpha fetoprotein (AFP), total human chorionic gonadotropin (t-hCG), ß-hCG, unconjugated estriol (uE3) and free ß-hCG. The acceptable performances of AFP (µg/L), AFP (KIU/L), t-hCG, ß-hCG, uE3, and free ß-hCG were 98.45%, 99.24%, 95.58%, 98.72%, 94.50%, and 98.66%, respectively. The ?2 test indicated significant differences existed in the acceptable performances among different analytes and platforms for uE3. Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney test suggested the robust CV differed significantly in different analytes and platforms. Conclusions: The majority of results were acceptable. However, further effort is needed to achieve the standardization and harmonization among analytes and various platforms, particularly for uE3

The removal of phosphorus and boron by slag and acid leaching treatment

The rapid development of photovoltaic industry is causing many researches on the refining of silicon, especially the purification of silicon by metallurgical method from the metallurgical-grade silicon (MG-Si). The removal of phosphorus and boron is one of the major problems on the refining of MG-Si to Solar-grade silicon (SoG-Si). At present, the removal method of phosphorous and boron by slagging of CaO-SiO2-CaF2 and acid leaching treatment is being researched. It was found that the best removal ratio of phosphorous and boron could reach up to 81% and 92%. Meanwhile, the principle of removal of phosphorous and boron has been studied

National survey on intra-laboratory turnaround time for some most common routine and stat laboratory analyses in 479 laboratories in China

Introduction: To investigate the state of the art of intra-laboratory turnaround time (intra-TAT), provide suggestions and find out whether laboratories accredited by International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 15189 or College of American Pathologists (CAP) will show better performance on intra-TAT than non-accredited ones. Materials and methods: 479 Chinese clinical laboratories participating in the external quality assessment programs of chemistry, blood gas, and haematology tests organized by the National Centre for Clinical Laboratories in China were included in our study. General information and the median of intra-TAT of routine and stat tests in last one week were asked in the questionnaires. Results: The response rate of clinical biochemistry, blood gas, and haematology testing were 36% (479 / 1307), 38% (228 / 598), and 36% (449 / 1250), respectively. More than 50% of laboratories indicated that they had set up intra-TAT median goals and almost 60% of laboratories declared they had monitored intra-TAT generally for every analyte they performed. Among all analytes we investigated, the intra-TAT of haematology analytes was shorter than biochemistry while the intra-TAT of blood gas analytes was the shortest. There were significant differences between median intra-TAT on different days of the week for routine tests. However, there were no significant differences in median intra-TAT reported by accredited laboratories and non-accredited laboratories. Conclusions: Many laboratories in China are aware of intra-TAT control and are making effort to reach the target. There is still space for improvement. Accredited laboratories have better status on intra-TAT monitoring and target setting than the non-accredited, but there are no significant differences in median intra-TAT reported by them

Haematology specimen acceptability: a national survey in Chinese laboratories

Introduction: Specimen adequacy is a crucial preanalytical factor affecting accuracy and usefulness of test result. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and reasons for rejected haematology specimens, preanalytical variables which may affect specimen quality, and consequences of rejection, and provide suggestions on monitoring quality indicators as to obtain a quality improvement. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted and a questionnaire was sent to 1586 laboratories. Participants were asked to provide general information about institution and practices on specimen management and record rejections and reasons for rejection from 1st to 31st July. Results: A total survey response rate was 56% (890/1586). Of 10,181,036 tubes received during the data collection period, 11,447 (0.11%) were rejected, and the sigma (σ) was 4.6. The main reason for unacceptable specimens was clotted specimen (57%). Rejected specimens were related to source department, container type, container material type, transportation method and phlebotomy personnel. The recollection of 84% of the rejected specimens was required. The median specimen processing delay in inpatient, outpatient and emergency department were 81.0 minutes, 57.0 minutes and 43.3 minutes, respectively. Conclusions: Overall, rejection rate was a slightly lower than previously published data. In order to achieve a better quality in the preanalytical phase, haematology laboratories in China should pay more attention on training for phlebotomy and sample transportation, identify main reasons for clotted specimen and take effective measures. The platform in the study will be helpful for long-term monitoring, but simplification and modification should be introduced in the following investigation

National survey on current situation of critical value reporting in 973 laboratories in China

Introduction: The aim of the study was to investigate the state-of-the-art of the performance of critical value reporting and provide recommendations for laboratories setting critical value reporting time frames. Materials and methods: The National Centre for Clinical Laboratories in China initiated a critical value reporting investigation in 2015. A questionnaire related to critical value reporting policy was sent to 1589 clinical laboratories in China online. The questionnaire consisted of a set of questions related to critical value reporting policy and a set of questions related to timeliness of critical value reporting. The survey data were collected between March and April 2015. Results: A total survey response rate was 61.2%. The critical value unreported rate, unreported timely rate, and clinical unacknowledged rate of more than half of participants were all 0.0%. More than 75.0% of participants could report half of critical values to clinicians within 20 minutes and could report 90.0% of critical values to clinicians within 25 minutes (from result validation to result communication to the clinician). The median of target critical value reporting time was 15 minutes. “Reporting omission caused by laboratory staff”, “communications equipment failure to connect”, and “uncompleted application form without contact information of clinician” were the three major reasons for unreported critical value. Conclusions: The majority of laboratories can report critical values to responsible clinical staff within 25 minutes. Thus, this value could be recommended as suitable critical value reporting time frame for biochemistry laboratories in China. However, careful monitoring of the complete reporting process and improvement of information systems should ensure further improvement of critical value reporting timeliness

The magnetic genome of two-dimensional van der Waals materials

Magnetism in two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) materials has recently emerged as one of the most promising areas in condensed matter research, with many exciting emerging properties and significant potential for applications ranging from topological magnonics to low-power spintronics, quantum computing, and optical communications. In the brief time after their discovery, 2D magnets have blossomed into a rich area for investigation, where fundamental concepts in magnetism are challenged by the behavior of spins that can develop at the single layer limit. However, much effort is still needed in multiple fronts before 2D magnets can be routinely used for practical implementations. In this comprehensive review, prominent authors with expertise in complementary fields of 2D magnetism (i.e., synthesis, device engineering, magneto-optics, imaging, transport, mechanics, spin excitations, and theory and simulations) have joined together to provide a genome of current knowledge and a guideline for future developments in 2D magnetic materials research

Interactions hyaluronane-protéines : hydrolyse du hyaluronane caractérisée par la hyaluronidase et complexation non spécifique hyaluronane-protéines. Influence de la longueur de la chaîne de hyaluronane

ROUEN-BU Sciences Madrillet (765752101) / SudocSudocFranceF

Prognostic Significance of Tag SNP rs1045411 in HMGB1 of the Aggressive Gastric Cancer in a Chinese Population.

Compelling evidences have suggested that high mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) gene plays a crucial role in cancer development and progression. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in HMGB1 gene on the survival of gastric cancer (GC) patients. Three tag SNPs from HMGB1 gene were selected and genotyped using Sequenom iPEX genotyping system in a cohort of 1030 GC patients (704 in training set, 326 in validation set). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard model and Kaplan-Meier Curve were used for prognosis analysis. AG/AA genotypes of SNP rs1045411 in HMGB1 gene were significantly associated with better overall survival (OS) in a set of 704 GC patients when compared with GG genotypes (HR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.60-0.97, P = 0.032). This prognostic effect was verified in an independent validation set and pooled analysis (HR = 0.80, 95% CI: 0.62-0.99, P = 0.046; HR = 0.78, 95% CI: 0.55-0.98, P = 0.043, respectively). In stratified analysis, the protective effect of rs1045411 AG/AA genotypes was more prominent in patients with adverse strata, compared with patients with favorable strata. Furthermore, strong joint predictive effects on OS of GC patients were noted between rs1045411 genotypes and Lauren classification, differentiation, stage or adjuvant chemotherapy. Additionally, functional assay indicated a significant effect of rs1045411 on HMGB1 expression. Our results suggest that rs1045411 in HMGB1 is significantly associated with clinical outcomes of Chinese GC patients after surgery, especially in those with aggressive status, which warrants further validation in other ethnic populations

The Effect of Calcium Oxide Addition on the Removal of Metal Impurities from Metallurgical-Grade Silicon by Acid Leaching

The removal of metal impurities from metallurgical grade silicon (MG-Si) by acid leaching has been investigated with the addition of CaO. Prior to adding CaO, Fe is the main impurity in the MG-Si sample, and the 2nd-phase precipitates in silicon are Si-Fe-based alloys, such as Si-Fe, Si-Fe-Ti, Si-Fe-Al, Si-Fe-Mn, and Si-Fe-Ni. The phases of Si-Fe and Si-Fe-Ti are not appreciably soluble in HCl. After the introduction of CaO, Ca becomes the dominant impurity, and the 2nd-phase precipitates become Si-Fe-based alloys, such as Si-Ca, Si-Ca-(Fe, Ti, Ni, Al), and Si-Ca-Fe-Al. These are effectively leached with HCl. Therefore, the HCl leaching effect on the removal of metal impurities has been improved. The optimum content of Ca in the MG-Si samples after adding CaO is in the range of 1 pct to 4 pct, the contents of Fe, Al, Ti, and Ni have been decreased to a minimum of less than 5 ppmw (ppm by weight) each, and the acid leaching results do not show a dependence on Ca content at this range