Analysis of the Willingness and Factors Influencing the Residents to Choose Between Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine under the New Coronavirus Pandemic: A Study in Zhejiang Province Community Health Service Center

Objective: To understand the willingness of Chinese residents to choose between Chinese and Western medicine in the face of sudden outbreak, this study aims to investigate and analyze the willingness and factors influencing Chinese residents (taking Zhejiang Province as an example) to choose between Chinese and Western medicine under the new coronavirus pandemic. Methods: The present study performed a large-scale cross-sectional online survey among 666 random residents in Zhejiang Province. We used questionnaires to investigate the feedback form from residents seeking medical care. In addition, a multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the influence of gender, education, medical reimbursement, and age on the choice of Chinese and Western medicine. Results: Among the patients with mild disease, 55.9% patients chose traditional Chinese medicine, while 44.1% chose Western medicine. Moreover, the proportion of patients with severe diseases who chose traditional Chinese medicine was 7.0%, while the rate of Western medicine was 93.0%. Among the patients suffering from mild diseases, the proportion of men who chose traditional Chinese medicine (46.2%) was lower than that of women (53.8%). The usage of Chinese medicine was preferred among residents of all ages, income levels, and educational backgrounds. A total of 93.0% of patients who chose Western medicine for treatment were severely ill, and the residents with severe diseases preferred Western medicine to Chinese medicine. People with high education and young were more inclined toward Western medicine for treatment compared with Chinese medicine. It was noted that people paid most attention to the medical insurance reimbursement ratio, followed by the distance between the medical institution and the place of residence. Conclusion: The acceptance of Chinese medicine among patients has generally increased; however, gender, educational background, and income still exert a great influence on the choice between Chinese and Western medicine

Resonant-Type Piezoelectric Pump Driven by Piezoelectric Stacks and a Rhombic Micro Displacement Amplifier

To obtain a high flow rate, a resonant-type piezoelectric pump is designed, fabricated, and studied in this paper. The pump consists of four parts: a piezoelectric vibrator, a pump chamber, a check valve and a compressible space. The designed piezoelectric vibrator is composed of a rhombic micro displacement amplifier, counterweight blocks and two piezoelectric stacks with low-voltage drive and a large output displacement. ANSYS software (Workbench 19.0) simulation results show that at the natural frequency of 946 Hz, the designed piezoelectric vibrator will produce the maximum output displacement. The bilateral deformation is symmetrical, and the phase difference is zero. Frequency, voltage, and backpressure characteristics of the piezoelectric pump are investigated. The experimental results show that at a certain operating frequency, the flow rate and the backpressure of the piezoelectric pump both increase with the increase in voltage. When the applied voltage is 150 Vpp, the flow rate reaches a peak of 367.48 mL/min at 720 Hz for one diaphragm pump, and reaches a peak of 700.15 mL/min at 716 Hz for two diaphragm pumps

The splicing factor Prpf31 is required for hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell expansion during zebrafish embryogenesis

Pre-mRNA splicing is a precise regulated process and is crucial for system development and homeostasis maintenance. Mutations in spliceosomal components have been found in various hematopoietic malignancies (HMs) and have been considered as oncogenic derivers of HMs. However, the role of spliceosomal components in normal and malignant hematopoiesis remains largely unknown. Pre-mRNA processing factor 31 (PRPF31) is a constitutive spliceosomal component, which mutations are associated with autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. PRPF31 was found to be mutated in several HMs, but the function of PRPF31 in normal hematopoiesis has not been explored. In our previous study, we generated a prpf31 knockout (KO) zebrafish line and reported that Prpf31 regulates the survival and differentiation of retinal progenitor cells by modulating the alternative splicing of genes involved in mitosis and DNA repair. In this study, by using the prpf31 KO zebrafish line, we discovered that prpf31 KO zebrafish exhibited severe defects in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) expansion and its sequentially differentiated lineages. Immunofluorescence results showed that Prpf31-deficient HSPCs underwent malformed mitosis and M phase arrest during HSPC expansion. Transcriptome analysis and experimental validations revealed that Prpf31 deficiency extensively perturbed the alternative splicing of mitosis-related genes. Collectively, our findings elucidate a previously undescribed role for Prpf31 in HSPC expansion, through regulating the alternative splicing of mitosis-related genes.</p