4,4′-[8b,8c-Bis(ethoxycarbonyl)-4,8-dioxo-2,3,5,6-tetra­hydro-1H,4H-2,3a,4a,6,7a,8a-hexa­azacyclo­penta­[def]fluorene-2,6-diyl]dipyridinium bis­(tetra­fluorido­borate)

In the title compound, C26H32N8O6 2+·2BF4 −, the cation is built up from four fused rings, viz. two nearly planar imidazole rings and two triazine rings exhibiting chair conformations. One eth­oxy group is disordered between two positions in an approximate ratio 3:2. The F atoms of the two anions are each rotationally disordered between two orientations in the same 3:2 ratio. The crystal structure is stabilized by inter­molecular N—H⋯O, C—H⋯F and N—H⋯F inter­actions

RETRACTED: Effect of the Extract of Fructus Tribuli on Growth of Lactobacillus Acidophilus

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy).This article has been retracted at the request of the Editors.This article was accidentally included in this Proceedings, which neither the Editors nor the Authors intended

Characterization of Solid-State Drug Polymorphs and Real-Time Evaluation of Crystallization Process Consistency by Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Herein, we aimed to develop a strategy for evaluating the consistency of pharmaceutically important crystallization processes in real time, focusing on two typical cases of polymorphism. Theoretical analysis using a combination of 13C solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy with other polymorphism analysis techniques identified a number of marker signals, the changes of which revealed the presence of two or more structural orientations (lattices and/or molecular conformations) in both cefazolin sodium pentahydrate (α-CEZ-Na) and cephathiamidine (CETD). The proportions of these forms were shown to be batch-dependent and were defined as critical quality attributes (CQAs) to evaluate process consistency. Subsequently, real-time analysis by chemometrics-assisted near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) was used to obtain useful information corresponding to CQAs. The pretreated spectra of representative samples were transformed by first derivative and vector normalization methods and used to calculate standard deviations at each wavelength and thus detect significant differences. As a result, vibrational responses of H2O, CH3, and CH2 moieties (at 5,280, 4,431, and 4,339 cm−1, respectively) were shown to be sensitive to the CQAs of α-CEZ-Na, which allowed us to establish a highly accurate discrimination model. Moreover, signals of H2O, CONH, and COOH moieties (at 5,211, 5,284, and 5,369 cm−1, respectively) played the same role in the case of CETD, as confirmed by theoretical results. Thus, we established a technique for the rapid evaluation of crystallization process consistency and deepened our understanding of crystallization behavior by using NIR in combination with polymorphism analysis techniques

Cobrotoxin from Naja naja atra

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) becomes a global health problem with high morbidity and mortality. Adriamycin- (ADR-) induced rodent chronic nephropathy is a classic experimental model of human minimal lesion nephrotic syndrome. The present study investigated the effect of cobrotoxin (CTX) on ADR-induced nephropathy. Rats were given 6 mg/kg ADR once through the tail vein to replicate ADR nephropathy model. CTX was administered to rats daily by placing a fast dissolving CTX membrane strip under the tongue starting from 5 days prior to ADR administration until the end of experiment. The results showed that CTX ameliorated the symptoms of ADR nephropathy syndrome with reduced body weight loss, proteinuria, hypoalbuminemia, dyslipidemia, serum electrolyte imbalance, oxidative stress, renal function abnormities, and kidney pathological lesions. Anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 expression was elevated after CTX administration in ADR nephropathy model. CTX inhibited the phosphorylation of IκB-α and NF-κB p65 nuclear translocation. Meanwhile, CTX upregulated the protein level of podocyte-specific nephrin and downregulated the level of fibrosis-related TGF-β. These findings suggest that CTX may be a potential drug for chronic kidney diseases

Harnessing the wealth of Chinese scientific literature: schistosomiasis research and control in China

The economy of China continues to boom and so have its biomedical research and related publishing activities. Several so-called neglected tropical diseases that are most common in the developing world are still rampant or even emerging in some parts of China. The purpose of this article is to document the significant research potential from the Chinese biomedical bibliographic databases. The research contributions from China in the epidemiology and control of schistosomiasis provide an excellent illustration. We searched two widely used databases, namely China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and VIP Information (VIP). Employing the keyword "Schistosoma" () and covering the period 1990–2006, we obtained 10,244 hits in the CNKI database and 5,975 in VIP. We examined 10 Chinese biomedical journals that published the highest number of original research articles on schistosomiasis for issues including languages and open access. Although most of the journals are published in Chinese, English abstracts are usually available. Open access to full articles was available in China Tropical Medicine in 2005/2006 and is granted by the Chinese Journal of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases since 2003; none of the other journals examined offered open access. We reviewed (i) the discovery and development of antischistosomal drugs, (ii) the progress made with molluscicides and (iii) environmental management for schistosomiasis control in China over the past 20 years. In conclusion, significant research is published in the Chinese literature, which is relevant for local control measures and global scientific knowledge. Open access should be encouraged and language barriers removed so the wealth of Chinese research can be more fully appreciated by the scientific community

Case report: One case of umbilical vein thrombosis in the second trimester with associated portal vein thrombosis after childbirth

BackgroundUmbilical vein thrombosis is a rare pregnancy complication, that is difficult to detect prenatally but can lead to poor fetal outcomes.Case presentationWe described a 33-year-old primiparae who was identified as having umbilical vein thrombosis by ultrasound at 21 weeks gestation, and the neonate was found to have a portal vein thrombus after delivery. Following enoxaparin anticoagulant therapy, the thrombus disappeared within 4 weeks. No thrombus formation occured during the 10-month follow-up, and the baby was in excellent clinical condition.ConclusionOwing to the poor fetal outcomes related to umbilical thrombosis, pay attention to abnormal clinical signs during prenatal ultrasound, fetal heart monitoring and counting fetal movements can help in the early identification of umbilical cord thrombosis.The findings highlight the importance of regular prenatal ultrasound evaluation, enabling early detection and monitoring of any anomalies or vascular abnormalities related to the fetal umbilical vein. Further research is warranted to explore the clinical implications and long-term outcomes associated with these findings