Study on rainfall threshold of different lithologic landslides in Bailong River Basin of Gansu Province

The research results regarding the threshold values for slope disasters caused by rainfall are crucial for geological disaster prevention. In this study，landslides induced by long-term heavy rainfall occurred in five counties within the Gansu section of the Bailongjiang Basin between 2004 and 2019. Using the frequency method, the rainfall thresholds for early warning of rainfall type landslides with different rock characteristics were investigated. A relationship model between event rainfall and the duration of rainfall leading to landslides was constructed under different probability levels, and a lower threshold for critical cumulative rainfall was provided. Through verification of landslide characteristics and rainfall data resulting from a flash flood disaster in Wudu District in 2020，the accumulated rainfall measured by the rainfall gauge before the landslide is found to be consistent with the threshold given by the model. This finding is of guiding significance for early warning of landslide disasters caused by sustained heavy rainfall

Efficacy of Danshen Class Injection in the Treatment of Acute Cerebral Infarction: A Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Introduction. As a common chronic disease with high morbidity and recurrent rate, acute cerebral infarction (ACI) affects the life quality of patients and gives them heavy psychological burden. And Danshen class injections (DSCIs) are commonly adopted in treating ACI. So, this network meta-analysis (NMA) was designed to assess the clinical efficacy of eight kinds of DSCIs. Methods. A systematic literature search was performed in PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure Database, the China Biomedical Literature Service System, the Chinese Scientific Journals Full-text Database, and Wanfang database from their inception to 16th Dec. 2017 aiming to collect related randomized controlled trials (RCTs). And then data were analyzed through Stata and WinBUGS software based on the Bayesian statistical model. The results were reported as odds ratio (OR) and mean difference (MD) with 95% credible intervals (CIs). The consistency test between direct and indirect comparisons was also evaluated and inconsistency factor was presented to manifest the heterogeneity among them. Meanwhile, the surface under the cumulative ranking probabilities (SUCRA) was utilized to rank the treatments in different outcomes. Results. Finally, 157 RCTs with 15570 patients were included. A total of eight types DSCIs were identified. Based on the results, Sodium Tanshinone IIA Sulfonate injection (STS) plus western medicine (WM) had better effect on the clinical effectiveness rate, neurological impairment, and activities of daily living function than others. Meanwhile, Danhong injection (DS) and Danshen Salvianolic Acids injection (DSSA) had excellent performance in perfecting hemorheological indexes. Conclusions. In conclusion, STS plus WM may be the optimum treatment for ACI. The following therapies were DS plus WM and DSSA plus WM. Nevertheless, in terms of the limitations of the study, more large samples, multicenter, and double-blind RCTs are still needed for validating our findings

Continuous fabrication of multi-stimuli responsive graphene oxide composite hydrogel fibres by microfluidics

Microfluidics appeared in the 1990s as a promising technology and has received considerable attention in developing stimuli-responsive hydrogel fibres in microscale for tissue engineering and actuation devices. In this work, thermo- and electro-responsive graphene oxide/poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)/sodium alginate (GO/PNIPAM/SA) hydrogel fibres were prepared via microfluidics and off-chip free radical polymerization. The composite hydrogel fibres were characterised using FTIR, SEM, and DSC. The thermo-triggered volume-phase transition and electrically triggered bending behaviours were also investigated. The results show that the hydrogel fibres have porous internal structures and the pore size becomes smaller with the increase of GO content due to the hydrogen bonding between the amide groups of PNIPAM chains and oxygen-containing groups on the GO nanosheets. Besides this, the incorporation of increased GO content enlarges the swelling ratio of the hydrogel fibre. The hydrogel fibres also exhibit bending behaviour under the non-contact direct current electric field

A Network Pharmacology Approach to Uncover the Multiple Mechanisms of Hedyotis diffusa

Background. As one of the most frequently diagnosed cancer diseases globally, colorectal cancer (CRC) remains an important cause of cancer-related death. Although the traditional Chinese herb Hedyotis diffusa Willd. (HDW) has been proven to be effective for treating CRC in clinical practice, its definite mechanisms have not been completely deciphered. Objective. The aim of our research is to systematically explore the multiple mechanisms of HDW on CRC. Methods. This study adopted the network pharmacology approach, which was mainly composed of active component gathering, target prediction, CRC gene collection, network analysis, and gene enrichment analysis. Results. The network analysis showed that 10 targets might be the therapeutic targets of HDW on CRC, namely, HRAS, PIK3CA, KRAS, TP53, APC, BRAF, GSK3B, CDK2, AKT1, and RAF1. The gene enrichment analysis implied that HDW probably benefits patients with CRC by modulating pathways related to cancers, infectious diseases, endocrine system, immune system, nervous system, signal transduction, cellular community, and cell motility. Conclusions. This study partially verified and predicted the pharmacological and molecular mechanism of HDW against CRC from a holistic perspective, which will also lay a foundation for the further experimental research and clinical rational application of HDW

Thermoresponsive Semi-IPN Hydrogel Microfibers from Continuous Fluidic Processing with High Elasticity and Fast Actuation

Hydrogels with rapid and strong response to external stimuli and possessing high elasticity and strength have been considered as platform materials for numerous applications, e.g., in biomaterials engineering. Thermoresponsive hydrogels based on semi-interpenetrating polymer networks (semi-IPN) featuring <i>N</i>-isopropylacrylamide with copolymers of poly­(<i>N</i>-isopropylacrylamide-<i>co</i>-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) p­(NIPAM-HEMA) chains are prepared and described. The copolymer was characterized by FTIR, NMR, and GPC. The semi-IPN structured hydrogel and its responsive properties were evaluated by dynamic mechanical measurements, SEM, DSC, equilibrium swelling ratio, and dynamic deswelling tests. The results illustrate that the semi-IPN structured hydrogels possess rapid response and high elasticity compared to conventional pNIPAM hydrogels. By using a microfluidic device with double coaxial laminar flow, we succeeded in fabricating temperature responsive (“smart”) hydrogel microfibers with core–shell structures that exhibit typical diameters on the order of 100 μm. The diameter of the fibers can be tuned by changing the flow conditions. Such hydrogel fibers can be used to fabricate “smart” devices, and the core layer can be potentially loaded with cargos to incorporate biological function in the constructs. The platforms obtained by this approach hold promise as artificial “muscles”, and also “smart” hydrogel carriers providing a unique biophysical and bioactive environment for regenerative medicine and tissue engineering

Thermoresponsive Membranes from Electrospun Mats with Switchable Wettability for Efficient Oil/Water Separations

ISSN:1520-5835ISSN:0024-929

Network Pharmacology-Based Approach to Investigate the Mechanisms of Hedyotis diffusa Willd. in the Treatment of Gastric Cancer

Background. Hedyotis diffusa Willd. (HDW) is one of the renowned herbs often used in the treatment of gastric cancer (GC). However, its curative mechanism has not been fully elucidated. Objective. To systematically investigate the mechanisms of HDW in GC. Methods. A network pharmacology approach mainly comprising target prediction, network construction, and module analysis was adopted in this study. Results. A total of 353 targets of the 32 bioactive compounds in HDW were obtained. The network analysis showed that CA isoenzymes, p53, PIK3CA, CDK2, P27Kip1, cyclin D1, cyclin B1, cyclin A2, AKT1, BCL2, MAPK1, and VEGFA were identified as key targets of HDW in the treatment of GC. The functional enrichment analysis indicated that HDW probably produced the therapeutic effects against GC by synergistically regulating many biological pathways, such as nucleotide excision repair, apoptosis, cell cycle, PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway, VEGF signaling pathway, and Ras signaling pathway. Conclusions. This study holistically illuminates the fact that the pharmacological mechanisms of HDW in GC might be strongly associated with its synergic modulation of apoptosis, cell cycle, differentiation, proliferation, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis

Thermoresponsive Membranes from Electrospun Mats with Switchable Wettability for Efficient Oil/Water Separations

A simple and versatile method is described to obtain polycaprolactone (PCL) porous membranes, consisting of fibers prepared by electrospinning. The surface of the fibers is modified by grafting poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) brushes by surface-initiated atom-transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). PCL mixtures, featuring Br end-functionalized and nonfunctionalized polymer, are used to enable SI-ATRP. Wettability at variable temperatures is governed by the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of PNIPAM as contact angle and swelling ratio measurements demonstrate. Because of the PNIPAM LCST, the membranes show a variation of pore size with temperature, which is accompanied by flux changes of water permeating the membranes. Temperature gated separation is demonstrated using oil/water emulsions at 1 bar pressure. Typical separation efficiencies are 92% and 25% at 25 and 50 °C, respectively. Employment of anionic and neutral surfactants shows that the separation efficiency also depends on the interaction between the membranes and the emulsions

Investigation on the Efficiency of Tonic Chinese Herbal Injections for Treating Dilated Cardiomyopathy Based on Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis

Introduction. This network meta-analysis investigated the efficacy of six tonic Chinese herbal injections (Huangqi injection, Shenfu injection, Shengmai injection, Shenmai injection, Shenqi Fuzheng injection, and Yiqifumai injection) compared to Western medicine for the treatment of the deteriorating state associated with dilated cardiomyopathy. Methods. PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, the Chinese Biological Medicine Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, the Wanfang Database, and the Chinese Scientific Journal Database were searched from their inception to October 15, 2020, to retrieve randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Study selection and data extraction conformed to a priori criteria. The risk of bias of the included RCTs was determined, and GRADE was used to evaluate outcomes. The network meta-analysis was calculated using WinBUGS 1.4.3 and Stata 13.0 software. The clinical effective rate, left ventricular ejection fraction, 6-minute walk test, left ventricular end-diastolic dimension, heart rate, and cardiac output were deemed outcomes. All outcomes were summarized as odds ratios or mean differences with their 95% credible intervals. The ranking probability of the interventions across various outcomes was also presented. Results. Forty RCTs and 2970 patients were enrolled. Integration of the outcome results revealed that a combination of Shenfu injection and Western medicine ranked ahead of the other injections in most outcomes, especially in the clinical effective rate (OR = 0.21, 95% CI: 0.12–0.34), left ventricular ejection fraction (MD = 7.43, 95% CI: 2.41–12.38), and 6-minute walk test (MD = 50.39, 95% CI: 25.78–76.33). Shenmai injection plus Western medicine ranked ahead of the other injections in left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (69.5%) and cardiac output (60.9%). The cluster analysis suggested that Shenfu injection plus Western medicine was the most effective intervention for dilated cardiomyopathy. Conclusions. Shenfu injection plus Western medicine may be a preferable treatment in dilated cardiomyopathy. Clinicians should also consider the specific patient’s various conditions when making diagnostic decisions. Due to an insufficient network meta-analysis, more high-quality RCTs need to be implemented to support our conclusions

Comparative Efficacy of Chinese Herbal Injections for Treating Acute Exacerbation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Introduction. Acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) imposes a huge economic burden on healthcare systems worldwide. Chinese herbal injections (CHIs) are widely used to treat AECOPD. In this study, we examined the efficacy of CHIs in the treatment of AECOPD using a network meta-analysis (NMA). Methods. Literature search was conducted from electronic databases of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on CHIs plus Western medicine (WM) versus WM. WinBUGS 1.4.3 and STATA 12.0 were adopted to compute calculations and prepare graphs, respectively. Results. We included 155 RCTs with 13,218 patients. The results revealed that Danhong injection (DH) + WM had the greatest therapeutic potential in terms of rate of clinical efficacy (RCE). In addition, in comprehensively improving RCE and FEV1%, and RCE and C-reactive protein, Huangqi injection (HQ) +WM was associated with preferable effects. Similarly, Xixinnao injection + WM, Reduning injection (RDN) +WM, and HQ+WM had a favorable effect on RCE and PaO2. The effect of RDN+WM was favorable in all outcomes except RCE. The safety of CHIs needs to be further assessed. Conclusions. Based on this NMA, DH+WM, HQ+WM, and RDN+WM were potential optimal therapies in AECOPD and their safety should be strictly monitored