Risk of congenital anomalies associated with antithyroid treatment during pregnancy: a meta-analysis

To evaluate the association of either propylthiouracil or methimazole treatment for hyperthyroidism during pregnancy with congenital malformations, relevant studies were identified by searching Medline, PubMed, the Cochrane Library and EMBASE. We intended to include randomized controlled trials, but no such trials were identified. Thus, we included cohort studies and case-control studies in this meta-analysis. A total of 7 studies were included in the meta-analyses. The results revealed an increased risk of birth defects among the group of pregnant women with hyperthyroidism treated with methimazole compared with the control group (odds ratio 1.76, 95% confidence interval 1.47-2.10) or the non-exposed group (odds ratio 1.71, 95% confidence interval 1.39-2.10). A maternal shift between methimazole and propylthiouracil was associated with an increased odds ratio of birth defects (odds ratio 1.88, 95% confidence interval 1.27-2.77). An equal risk of birth defects was observed between the group of pregnant women with hyperthyroidism treated with propylthiouracil and the non-exposed group (odds ratio 1.18, 95% confidence interval 0.97-1.42). There was only a slight trend towards an increased risk of congenital malformations in infants whose mothers were treated with propylthiouracil compared with in infants whose mothers were healthy controls (odds ratio 1.29, 95% confidence interval 1.07-1.55). The children of women receiving methimazole treatment showed an increased risk of adverse fetal outcomes relative to those of mothers receiving propylthiouracil treatment. We found that propylthiouracil was a safer choice for treating pregnant women with hyperthyroidism according to the risk of birth defects but that a shift between methimazole and propylthiouracil failed to provide protection against birth defects

Drug-Loaded Chitosan Film Prepared via Facile Solution Casting and Air-Drying of Plain Water-Based Chitosan Solution for Ocular Drug Delivery

Chitosan is a nature-based polymer with low toxicity, excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability. However, the intractable solubility of chitosan in water and most conventional solvents hampers its biomedical applications. Following the dissolution method for dissolving chitosan in plain water developed by us, chitosan was dissolved in ionic liquid followed by overnight freezing at −20 °C and subsequent solvent exchange with plain water at room temperature. In this study, we fabricated a drug-carrying chitosan film via solution casting and air-drying by using the plain water-based chitosan solution. Specifically, brimonidine tartrate (BT), an antiglaucoma drug, was dissolved in the plain-water based solution and used to prepare BT-loaded chitosan film, i.e., chitosan-BT film. The resulting film is transparent, structurally stable, and mucoadhesive. Micro-sized antiglaucoma BT drug crystals form and are well dispersed in the chitosan film. The chitosan-BT film enables BT to have a high corneal permeability with fast drug release kinetics for potential ocular drug delivery

Two-copy Quantum Teleportation

We investigate two-copy scenario of quantum teleportation based on Bell measurements. The detailed protocol is presented and the general expression of the corresponding optimal teleportation delity is derived, which is given by the two-copy fully entangled fraction that is invariant under local unitary transformations. We prove that under a speci c case of the protocol, which is signi cant for improving the optimal delity, the set of states with their two-copy fully entangled fractions bounded by a threshold value that required for useful two-copy teleportation is convex and compact. Hence the witness operators exist to separate states that are useful for two-copy teleportation from the rest ones. Moreover, we show that the optimal delity of two-copy teleportation surpasses that of the original one copy teleportation.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figure

A protocol for rapid and high-frequency in vitro propagation of solanum nigrum L.

Solanum nigrum L. is a species highly valued for its medicinal properties. In the present study, an efficient propagation system was established by using five explants of S. nigrum namely, roots, leaves, rooted hypocotyls, nodal segments and petioles. Various types of plant growth regulators (PGRs) were used to determine the most effective hormone combination for callus induction and organogenesis. Zeatin (ZT), thidiazuron (TDZ), kinetin (Kin) and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) were found to induce multiple shoots. Shoot organogenesis was induced in the five explants. The highest mean for number of shoots per petioles (31.54±5.76) and rooted hypocotyls (44.00±1.51) with a 100% induction rate was obtained on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium fortified with 0.4 mg/L IAA and 3.0 mg/L ZT. MS medium containing 0.4 mg/L IAA and 3.0 mg/L TDZ was found to be optimal for shoot regeneration of roots, leaves and nodal segments. The highest regeneration frequency (100%) with mean numbers of shoots equal to 38.77±6.87 for roots, 42.73±7.75 for leaves and 56.73±7.98 for nodal segments was produced. Regenerated shoots rooted effectively on half-strength MS medium and acclimatized successfully in soil with a 100% survival rate and normal growth. The protocol can be used for the large-scale propagation of S. nigrum to meet the increasing demand of commercial cultivation

Biogeochemistry of dimethylsulfide in the South China Sea

The distribution of dimethylsulfide (DMS) was studied in surface seawater and vertical profiles at nineteen stations in the Nansha Islands sea area of the South China Sea. The concentrations of DMS in surface-layer (0-1 m) seawater vary from 64 to 140 ng S/L with high values found in the productive regions, in agreement with the horizontal distribution of chlorophyll a. The vertical profiles of DMS show a single peak shape with maximum concentrations occurring at depths between 30-75 m. The DMS concentrations are correlated with chlorophyll a levels both in the upper 20 m of seawater as well as in vertical profiles. A clear diel variation in DMS concentration is observed at the 50-m water layer at a fixed station with the highest DMS concentration found in the late afternoon. The DMS concentrations are associated with environmental factors such as seawater temperature, dissolved O2 and nutrient contents. Although DMS is correlated to chlorophyll a, the phytoplankton species is a major factor responsible for the obviously higher DMS concentration than expected from the phytoplankton biomass in this sea area. The sea-to-air flux of DMS from this sea area is calculated to be 7.6 µmol m-2 d-1

Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy with FOLFOX4 Regimen to Treat Advanced Gastric Cancer Improves Survival without Increasing Adverse Events: A Retrospective Cohort Study from a Chinese Center

Background/Aim. To evaluate the clinical efficacy of FOLFOX4 (5-fluomumcil/leucovorin combined and oxaliplatin) neoadjuvant chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer (AGC). Patients and Methods. Fifty-eight AGC patients were enrolled in this retrospective cohort study, 23 in the neoadjuvant group and 35 in the adjuvant group. R0 resection, survival, and adverse events were compared. Results. The two groups were well-matched, with no significant differences in R0 resection rate (82.6% versus 82.0%) and number of lymph nodes dissection (16 (0–49) versus 13 (3–40)) between the two groups (P>0.05). The number of lymph node metastases in the neoadjuvant group (3 (0–14)) was significantly fewer than that in the adjuvant group (6 (0–27)) (P=0.04). The neoadjuvant group had significantly better median overall survival (29.0 versus 22.0 months) and 3-year survival rate (73.9% versus 40.0%) than the adjuvant group (P=0.013). The positive expression rate of Ki-67 in the neoadjuvant group (40.0%, 8/20) was lower than that in the adjuvant group (74.2%, 23/31; P=0.015). Conclusion. The FOLFOX4 neoadjuvant chemotherapy could improve survival without increasing adverse events in patients with AGC