Rapid determination of volatile constituents in safflower from Xinjiang and Henan by ultrasonic-assisted solvent extraction and GC–MS

AbstractThe total volatile components were extracted from safflower by ultrasonic-assisted solvent extraction (USE) and their chemical constituents were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) to provide scientific basis for the quality control of safflower. Five different solvents (diethyl ether, ethanol, ethyl acetate, dichloromethane and acetone) were used and compared in terms of number of volatile components extracted and the peak areas of these components in TIC. The results showed that USE could be used as an efficient and rapid method for extracting the volatile components from safflower. It also could be found that the number of components in the TIC of ethyl acetate extract was more than that in the TIC of other solvent ones. Meanwhile, the volatile components of safflower from Xinjiang Autonomous Region and Henan Province of China were different in chemical components and relative contents. It could be concluded that both the extraction solvents and geographical origin of safflower are responsible for these differences. The experimental results also indicated that USE/GC–MS is a simple, rapid and effective method to analyze the volatile oil components of safflower

Diagnostic Accuracy of CEUS LI-RADS for the Characterization of Liver Nodules 20 mm or Smaller in Patients at Risk for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background: American College of Radiology contrast agent–enhanced US Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (CEUS LI-RADS) was developed to improve the accuracy of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) diagnosis at contrast agent2enhanced US. However, to the knowledge of the authors, the diagnostic accuracy of the system in characterization of liver nodules 20 mm or smaller has not been fully evaluated. Purpose: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of CEUS LI-RADS in diagnosing HCC in liver nodules 20 mm or smaller in patients at risk for HCC. Materials and Methods: Between January 2015 and February 2018, consecutive patients at risk for HCC presenting with untreated liver nodules 20 mm or less were enrolled in this retrospective double-reader study. Each nodule was categorized according to the CEUS LI-RADS and World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (WFUMB)–European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB) criteria. Diagnostic performance of CEUS LI-RADS and WFUMB-EFSUMB characterization was evaluated by using tissue histologic analysis, multiphase contrast-enhanced CT and MRI, and imaging follow-up as reference standard and compared by using McNemar test. Results: The study included 175 nodules (mean diameter, 16.1 mm 6 3.4) in 172 patients (mean age, 51.8 years 6 10.6; 136 men). The sensitivity of CEUS LR-5 versus WFUMB-EFSUMB criteria in diagnosing HCC was 73.3% (95% confidence inter-val [CI]: 63.8%, 81.5%) versus 88.6% (95% CI: 80.9%, 94%), respectively (P, .001). The specificity of CEUS LR-5 versus WFUMB-EFSUMB criteria was 97.1% (95% CI: 90.1%, 99.7%) versus 87.1% (95% CI: 77%, 94%), respectively (P = .02). No malignant lesions were found in CEUS LR-1 and LR-2 categories. Only two nodules (of 41; 5%, both HCC) were malignant in CEUS LR-3 category. The incidences of HCC in CEUS LR-4, LR-5, and LR-M were 48% (11 of 23), 98% (77 of 79), and 75% (15 of 20), respectively. Two of 175 (1.1%) histologic analysis2confirmed intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas were categorized as CEUS LR-M by CEUS LI-RADS and misdiagnosed as HCC by WFUMB-EFSUMB criteria. Conclusion: The contrast-enhanced US Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (CEUS LI-RADS) algorithm was an effective tool for characterization of small (≤20 mm) liver nodules in patients at risk for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Compared with World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology2European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology criteria, CEUS LR-5 demonstrated higher specificity for diagnosing small HCCs with lower sensitivity

Two NHX-type transporters from Helianthus tuberosus improve the tolerance of rice to salinity and nutrient deficiency stress.

The NHX-type cation/H+ transporters in plants have been shown to mediate Na+ (K+ )/H+ exchange for salinity tolerance and K+ homoeostasis. In this study, we identified and characterized two NHX homologues, HtNHX1 and HtNHX2 from an infertile and salinity tolerant species Helianthus tuberosus (cv. Nanyu No. 1). HtNHX1 and HtNHX2 share identical 5'- and 3'-UTR and coding regions, except for a 342-bp segment encoding 114 amino acids (L272 to Q385 ) which is absent in HtNHX2. Both hydroponics and soil culture experiments showed that the expression of HtNHX1 or HtNHX2 improved the rice tolerance to salinity. Expression of HtNHX2, but not HtNHX1, increased rice grain yield, harvest index, total nutrient uptake under K+ -limited salt-stress or general nutrient deficiency conditions. The results provide a novel insight into NHX function in plant mineral nutrition

Neurochemical characterization of pERK-expressing spinal neurons in histamine-induced itch

Date of Acceptance: 08/07/2015 Acknowledgements This work was supported by grants from the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (2012CB966904, 2011CB51005), National Natural Science Foundation of China (31271182, 81200692, 91232724, 81200933, 81101026), Shanghai Natural Science Foundation (12ZR1434300), Key Specialty Construction Project of Pudong Health Bureau of Shanghai (PWZz2013-17), Shenzhen Key Laboratory for Molecular Biology of Neural Development (ZDSY20120617112838879), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (1500219072) and Sino-UK Higher Education Research Partnership for PhD Studies.Peer reviewedPublisher PD