The Current Situation and Strategy for the Building of State Leaders’ Public Image: Based on the Investigation for College Students’ Identification Degree on the Building of State Leaders’ Public Image

Globalization has triggered a holistic change in today’s world, and the emergence of new media has also broken the closed system of political communication in China so that it is altering the political communication environment to a certain extent and colonizing the effective mechanism for the communication of the state leaders’ public image, which creates specific and stereoscopic image of the state leaders vividly from all-around and multiple directions, making college students deepen our understanding about the state leaders in the common social world. And it is invisibly narrowing the distance between the state leaders and college students in order to realize the two-way interaction between state leaders and the public. Therefore, college students’ individual development and the building of the state leaders’ new image proceed simultaneously, which is bound to produce unexpected interaction, so we need to encourage the reconciliation between college students’ self-identity and social identity. It is regarded as the new measure to establish a new image of the state’s leaders

Salvianolic Acids: Potential Source of Natural Drugs for the Treatment of Fibrosis Disease and Cancer

Salvianolic acids, the most effective and abundant compounds extracted from Salvia miltiorrhiza (Danshen), are well known for its good anti-oxidative activity. Danshen has been extensively used as a traditional medicine to treat cardiovascular-related diseases in China and other Asian countries for hundreds of years. Recently, more and more studies have demonstrated that salvianolic acids also have a good effect on the alleviation of fibrosis disease and the treatment of cancer. In vivo and in vitro experiments have demonstrated that salvianolic acids can modulate signal transduction within fibroblasts and cancer cells. It is discovered that the cancer treatment of salvianolic acids is not only because salvianolic acids promote the apoptosis of cancer cells, but also due to the inhibition of cancer-associated epithelial-mesenchymal transition processes. In this article, we review a variety of studies focusing on the comprehensive roles of salvianolic acids in the treatment of fibrosis disease and cancer. These perspectives on the therapeutic potential of salvianolic acids highlight the importance of these compounds, which could be the novel and attractive drugs for fibrosis disease and cancer

Quantum phases of SrCu2(BO3)2 from high-pressure thermodynamics

We report heat capacity measurements of SrCu$_2$(BO$_3$)$_2$ under high pressure along with simulations of relevant quantum spin models and map out the $(P,T)$ phase diagram of the material. We find a first-order quantum phase transition between the low-pressure quantum dimer paramagnet and a phase with signatures of a plaquette-singlet state below T = $2$ K. At higher pressures, we observe a transition into a previously unknown antiferromagnetic state below $4$ K. Our findings can be explained within the two-dimensional Shastry-Sutherland quantum spin model supplemented by weak inter-layer couplings. The possibility to tune SrCu$_2$(BO$_3$)$_2$ between the plaquette-singlet and antiferromagnetic states opens opportunities for experimental tests of quantum field theories and lattice models involving fractionalized excitations, emergent symmetries, and gauge fluctuations.Comment: 6 pages + 8 pages supplemental informatio

Sensitivity and specificity of the ankle–brachial index to diagnose peripheral artery disease: a structured review

The ankle—brachial index (ABI) is a simple, inexpensive diagnostic test for peripheral artery disease (PAD). However, it has shown variable accuracy for identification of significant stenosis. The authors performed a structured review of the sensitivity and specificity of ABI ≤ 0.90 for the diagnosis of PAD. MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane databases, Science Citation Index database, and Biological Abstracts database were searched for studies of the sensitivity and specificity of using ABI ≤ 0.90 for the diagnosis of PAD. Eight studies comprising 2043 patients (or limbs) met the inclusion criteria. The result indicated that, although strict inclusion criteria on studies were formulated, different reference standards were found in these studies, and methods of ABI determination and characteristics of populations varied greatly. A high level of specificity (83.3—99.0%) and accuracy (72.1—89.2%) was reported for an ABI ≤ 0.90 in detecting ≥ 50% stenosis, but there were different levels of sensitivity (15—79%). Sensitivity was low, especially in elderly individuals and patients with diabetes. In conclusion, the test of ABI ≤ 0.90 can be a simple and useful tool to identify PAD with serious stenosis, and may be substituted for other non-invasive tests in clinical practice

Critical Evaluation and Thermodynamic Optimization of the Cu-Zn, Cu-Se and Zn-Se Binary Systems

ABSTRACT: In our study, a complete review of the literature, critical evaluation and thermodynamic assessment of the Cu-Zn, Cu-Se and Zn-Se binary systems were carried out. The modified quasi-chemical model (MQM) was applied to describe the Gibbs energy of the liquid phase. The Gibbs energies of all intermetallic compounds and terminal solid solutions were described using the compound energy formalism (CEF) model. The re-optimization of the Cu-Zn binary system was carried out by considering the ordered bcc_B2 crystal structure of the β’ phase. Moreover, the β and δ phases in the Cu-Zn binary system with the same bcc_A2 crystal structure were modeled as one single phase in the present work. A self-consistent thermodynamic database was constructed for the Cu-Zn, Cu-Se and Zn-Se binary systems, work that formed part of a comprehensive thermodynamic database development project researching zinc-based biodegradable materials

How early can myocardial iron overload occur in Beta thalassemia major?

BACKGROUND: Myocardial siderosis is the most common cause of death in patients with beta thalassemia major(TM). This study aimed at investigating the occurrence, prevalence and severity of cardiac iron overload in a young Chinese population with beta TM. METHODS AND RESULTS: We analyzed T2* cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and serum ferritin (SF) in 201 beta TM patients. The median age was 9 years old. Patients received an average of 13 units of blood per year. The median SF level was 4536 ng/ml and 165 patients (82.1%) had SF>2500 ng/ml. Myocardial iron overload was detected in 68 patients (33.8%) and severe myocardial iron overload was detected in 26 patients (12.6%). Twenty-two patients ≤10 years old had myocardial iron overload, three of whom were only 6 years old. No myocardial iron overload was detected under the age of 6 years. Median LVEF was 64% (measured by CMR in 175 patients). Five of 6 patients with a LVEF<56% and 8 of 10 patients with cardiac disease had myocardial iron overload. CONCLUSIONS: The TM patients under follow-up at this regional centre in China patients are younger than other reported cohorts, more poorly-chelated, and have a high burden of iron overload. Myocardial siderosis occurred in patients younger than previously reported, and was strongly associated with impaired LVEF and cardiac disease. For such poorly-chelated TM patients, our data shows that the first assessment of cardiac T2* should be performed as early as 6 years old

Can we early diagnose metabolic syndrome using brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity in community population

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) increased recently and there was still not a screening index to predict MetS. The aim of this study was to estimate whether brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV), a novel marker for systemic arterial stiffness, could predict MetS in Chinese community population. METHODS: A total of 2 191 participants were recruited and underwent medical examination including 1 455 men and 756 women from June 2011 to January 2012. MetS was diagnosed according to the criteria of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). Multiple Logistic regressions were conducted to explore the risk factors of MetS. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was performed to estimate the ideal diagnostic cutoff point of baPWV to predict MetS. RESULTS: The mean age was (45.35+/-8.27) years old. In multiple Logistic regression analysis, the gender, baPWV and smoking status were risk factors to MetS after adjusting age, gender, baPWV, walk time and sleeping time. The prevalence of MetS was 17.48% in 30-year age population in Shanghai. There were significant differences (chi(2) = 96.46, P \u3c 0.05) between male and female participants on MetS prevalence. According to the ROC analyses, the ideal cutoff point of baPWV was 1 358.50 cm/s (AUC = 60.20%) to predict MetS among male group and 1 350.00 cm/s (AUC = 70.90%) among female group. CONCLUSION: BaPWV may be considered as a screening marker to predict MetS in community Chinese population and the diagnostic value of 1 350.00 cm/s was more significant for the female group

Combined early palliative care for non-small-cell lung cancer patients: a randomized controlled trial in Chongqing, China

PurposeMore effective approaches are needed to improve the prognosis of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Thus, we used the E-warm model to assess how early integration of interdisciplinary palliative care was related to the quality of life (QoL), psychological functioning, pain management, and nutrition factors of NSCLC patients.MethodsThis randomized controlled trial enrolled 280 newly diagnosed NSCLC patients, which were randomly divided (1:1) into combined early palliative care (CEPC) and standard oncological care (SC) groups. At baseline and after 24 weeks, the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Lung (FACT-L) scale, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) were used to assess QoL and psychological function, respectively. The Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) and Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) were used to assess cancer patients’ pain and nutrition levels. The primary outcome was overall survival (OS). Secondary outcomes comprised changes in the QoL, psychological functioning, pain, and nutrition state. The intention-to-treat method was applied for analysis. This study was registered at www.chictr.org.cn (ChiCTR2200062617).ResultsOf the 140 patients enrolled in the CEPC and SC groups, 102 and 82 completed the research. The CEPC group presented higher QoL than the SC group (p &lt; 0.05). Additionally, fewer patients presented depressive symptoms in the CEPC group than in the SC group (p &lt; 0.05), as well as better nutritional status (p = 0.007) and pain management (p = 0.003). Compared to the SC group, CEPC patients had significantly longer OS (20.4 vs. 24.6 months, p = 0.042; HR: 0.19; 95% CI: 0.04-0.85, p = 0.029).ConclusionWith combined early palliative care, NSCLC patients lived longer, had better QoL, were psychologically stable, were in less pain, and were more nutritionally satisfied

The impact of hyperglycaemic crisis episodes on long-term outcomes for inpatients presenting with acute organ injury: A prospective, multicentre follow-up study

BackgroundThe long-term clinical outcome of poor prognosis in patients with diabetic hyperglycaemic crisis episodes (HCE) remains unknown, which may be related to acute organ injury (AOI) and its continuous damage after hospital discharge. This study aimed to observe the clinical differences and relevant risk factors in HCE with or without AOI.MethodsA total of 339 inpatients were divided into an AOI group (n=69) and a non-AOI group (n=270), and their differences and risk factors were explored. The differences in clinical outcomes and prediction models for evaluating the long-term adverse events after hospital discharge were established.ResultsThe mortality among cases complicated by AOI was significantly higher than that among patients without AOI [8 (11.59%) vs. 11 (4.07%), Q = 0.034] during hospitalization. After a 2-year follow-up, the mortality was also significantly higher in patients with concomitant AOI than in patients without AOI after hospital discharge during follow-up [13 (21.31%) vs. 15 (5.8%), Q &lt; 0.001]. The long-term adverse events in patients with concomitant AOI were significantly higher than those in patients without AOI during follow-up [15 (24.59%) vs. 31 (11.97%), Q = 0.015]. Furthermore, Blood β-hydroxybutyric acid (P = 0.003), Cystatin C (P &lt;0.001), serum potassium levels (P = 0.001) were significantly associated with long-term adverse events after hospital discharge.ConclusionsThe long-term prognosis of HCE patients complicated with AOI was significantly worse than that of HCE patients without AOI. The laboratory indicators were closely correlated with AOI, and future studies should explore the improvement of clinical outcome in response to timely interventions