Comprehensive Utilization of the Water Resources in small Watershed

AbstractThe water problem is a vital question which relates to the sustainable development of the national economy. And the water resource is also a kind of comprehensive natural resources which has a variety of use values and can supply with the water needs for many sections, which involves economy, resource, science and technology, ecosystem and environment. Sustainable utilization is a better form for the water resources. This paper gives a brief introduction about the technology of comprehensive utilization of the water resources in small watershed

Cerebrospinal fluid oligoclonal bands in Chinese patients with multiple sclerosis: the prevalence and its association with clinical features

BackgroundCerebrospinal fluid oligoclonal band (CSF-OCB) is an established biomarker in diagnosing multiple sclerosis (MS), however, there are no nationwide data on CSF-OCB prevalence and its diagnostic performance in Chinese MS patients, especially in the virtue of common standard operation procedure (SOP).MethodsWith a consensus SOP and the same isoelectric focusing system, we conducted a nationwide multi-center study on OCB status in consecutively, and recruited 483 MS patients and 880 non-MS patients, including neuro-inflammatory diseases (NID, n = 595) and non-inflammatory neurological diseases (NIND, n=285). Using a standardized case report form (CRF) to collect the clinical, radiological, immunological, and CSF data, we explored the association of CSF-OCB positivity with patient characters and the diagnostic performance of CSF-OCB in Chinese MS patients. Prospective source data collection, and retrospective data acquisition and statistical data analysis were used.Findings369 (76.4%) MS patients were OCB-positive, while 109 NID patients (18.3%) and 6 NIND patients (2.1%) were OCB-positive, respectively. Time from symptom onset to diagnosis was significantly shorter in OCB-positive than that in OCB-negative MS patients (13.2 vs 23.7 months, P=0.020). The prevalence of CSF-OCB in Chinese MS patients was significantly higher in high-latitude regions (41°-50°N)(P=0.016), and at high altitudes (>1000m)(P=0.025). The diagnostic performance of CSF-OCB differentiating MS from non-MS patients yielded a sensitivity of 76%, a specificity of 87%.InterpretationThe nationwide prevalence of CSF-OCB was 76.4% in Chinese MS patients, and demonstrated a good diagnostic performance in differentiating MS from other CNS diseases. The CSF-OCB prevalence showed a correlation with high latitude and altitude in Chinese MS patients

Strategic Customer Behavior and Pricing Strategy Based on the Horizontal Differentiation of Products

Manufacturers produce products with horizontal differences to meet different needs of customers. This paper compares the influence of three different sales channels on strategic customers’ choice and the pricing strategy of products with horizontal differentiation. The results show that the strategic customers whose willingness to pay (WTP) is close to 1 will buy high-performance products and whose WTP is close to 0 will not purchase any kind of products in the two dual-channel models. If the manufacturers adopt dual channel to sell products with horizontal differences, the retailers agree that the manufacturers sell high-performance products in the traditional channel and sell low-performance products in the electronic channel. In dual-channel supply chain model I, the higher the satisfaction of high-performance products and the lower the satisfaction of low-performance products, the more conducive to the retailers

Effects of hysterectomy with simultaneous bilateral salpingectomy on the subsequent pelvic mass

Abstract Objectives To analyze the clinicopathological characteristics of subsequent pelvic masses after hysterectomy for benign diseases, and to compare the masses following hysterectomy with or without simultaneous bilateral salpingectomy. Methods This study retrospectively analyzed patients undergone reoperation for pelvic mass subsequently to previous hysterectomy for benign disease from January 2012 to December 2016 in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Results A total of 247 patients were enrolled in this study, of which 80.16% (n = 198) received simple hysterectomy, and 5.67% (n = 14) underwent hysterectomy with bilateral salpingectomy. The clinicopathological data of patients undergone simple hysterectomy or simultaneous bilateral salpingectomy was compared. In the former group, we found that 68.18% (n = 135) of the pelvic massed were benign, and the remaining 31.82% (n = 63) were malignant. In latter group, 57.10% (n = 8) were benign (8%) and 42.90% (n = 6) were malignant. Univariate analysis showed that the age of surgery for pelvic masses in patients undergoing hysterectomy with simultaneous bilateral salpingectomy was significantly younger than that in patients without salpingectomy (median, 44.5 vs 50 years, P < 0.0001), and the time interval between hysterectomy and onset of pelvic masses was also significantly shorter (median, 2 vs 5 years, P < 0.0001). And the probability of pelvic encapsulated effusion was significantly higher for the salpingectomy group. Multivariate analysis showed that there was no significant difference of the age of resection of pelvic mass, the time interval hysterectomy and pelvic mass onset, and the probability of pelvic encapsulated effusion between the two groups. Conclusions The results showed that the incidence of secondary benign pelvic masses may be reduced when hysterectomy was performed with simultaneous bilateral salpingectomy. However, there was no statistical difference in the clinical characteristics and pathological types of pelvic masses between patients received hysterectomy with or without salpingectomy

Correlation of GABA+ levels in the medial prefrontal cortex and circulating follicular helper T cells in neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder patients with cognitive impairment

Abstract Background Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) associated with cognitive impairment (CI) is acknowledged. However, the underlying pathogenesis and involvement of the immune system remain unclear. Objectives This study aimed to investigate the alterations in immune cells, cytokines, and GABA+ levels in NMOSD patients with cognitive deficits. Methods Thirty‐eight NMOSD patients and 38 healthy controls (HCs) were included. NMOSD patients were stratified as NMOSD‐CI and NMOSD‐CP groups. The difference in cognitive functions, Tfh and cytokines, and GABA+ levels were assessed, and their correlations were calculated. Results NMOSD‐CI patients showed worse performance on all cognitive tests, and the percentage of circulating follicular helper T cells (cTfh) was significantly elevated. The frequency of cTfh was positively and negatively correlated with Stroop‐A and AVLT long‐delayed scores, respectively. IL‐21 was remarkably higher in NMOSD‐CI and NMOSD‐CP. The level of GABA+ in medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) was significantly decreased in NMOSD‐CI and was proved positively and negatively correlated with Symbol Digit Modalities Test and the frequency of circulating Tfh cells, respectively. Conclusion In NMOSD‐CI patients, all cognitive domains were impacted, , while GABA+ levels in mPFC were decreased. GABA+ levels in NMOSD‐CI were negatively correlated with the frequency of cTfh, suggesting the underlying coupling mechanism between immune responses and neurotransmitter metabolism in CI in NMOSD patients

Image_1_Selexipag-based triple combination therapy improves prognosis in Chinese pulmonary arterial hypertension patients.JPEG

AimSelexipag is an oral selective prostacyclin receptor agonist approved for treatment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). In the present study, we aim to assess the safety and efficacy of selexipag in triple combination therapy with endothelial receptor antagonists (ERAs) and PDE5is for Chinese PAH patients.Methods and resultsA single center retrospective study was performed on group 1 PAH patients (n = 68) initiating triple combination therapy with selexipag from 1 February 2020 to 31 August 2021 in Qilu Hospital of Shandong University (Shandong, China). Adolescents, children, and PAH patients with unrepaired congenital heart disease were excluded. The French pulmonary hypertension network (FPHN) non-invasive risk assessment, echocardiogram parameters, and clinical data, including tolerability, safety, and death/hospitalization events associated with PAH, were collected. Of the 68 patients, 31 (45.6%) patients had tolerable side effects while only a single patient discontinued selexipag due to severe diarrhea. In the analysis of the efficacy set of 62 patients, the median selexipag treatment time from selexipag initiation to last risk assessment was 27 (21, 33) weeks. Compared to baseline parameters, the percentage of WHO FC III/IV decreased from 77.4% (48) to 24.2% (15) (p = 0.000), median 6-min walk distance (6MWD) increased 82 m [from 398 (318, 450) to 480 (420, 506) m; p = 0.000], and NT-proBNP levels decreased from 1,216 (329, 2,159) to 455 (134, 1,678) pg/mL (p = 0.007). Patients who improved to three low-risk criteria increased from 9.7 to 38.7%. Right ventricular diameter (RV) diameter also decreased and was accompanied by an improved tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE). Patients transitioning from subcutaneous treprostinil to selexipag continued to show improvements in WHO FC, 6MWD (404 ± 94 vs. 383 ± 127 m) and NT-proBNP levels (2,319 ± 2,448 vs. 2,987 ± 3,770 pg/mL). Finally, the 1-year event free survival rate was 96.7% for patients initiating the triple combination therapy within 3 years of PAH diagnosis.ConclusionTriple combination therapy with selexipag was safe and effective in Chinese PAH patients, which was confirmed by acceptable tolerability, and improved exercise capacity, right heart function, risk assessment, and prognosis.</p

Paroxysmal Hypertension Associated With Urination.

Case Introduction : Two cases were hospitalized in our hospital at the same period. Case 1 was a 40-year-old woman who presented with a 2-year history of episodes of high blood pressure associated with severe headache, pallor in appearance, and cold sweating. The high blood pressure episodes occurred within 1 to 2 minutes after urination, at which time her blood pressure shot up to 180/120 mm Hg. They only lasted for a few minutes and then relieved spontaneously. However, she complained of a 1-month history of aggressive symptoms before admission. Her father had a history of hypertension. On physical examination, her blood pressure was 130/80 mm Hg, with a heart rate of 70 bpm. Other systemic examinations were normal. The urinalysis, electrocardiography and echocardiography tests were normal. [...

Hole-type superconducting gatemon qubit based on Ge/Si core/shell nanowires

Abstract We demonstrate that superconducting gatemon qubits based on superconductor-semiconductor-superconductor Josephson junctions can be constructed on hole-type Ge/Si core/shell nanowires. The frequency of the qubit can be set firstly by controlling the diffusion of Al in the nanowire via thermal annealing, which yields a suitable critical supercurrent allowing the qubit frequency to be within the experimentally accessible range, and then by fine tuning of a gate voltage, by which an accurate adjustment of the frequency can be realized. On the resulted qubit, Rabi oscillation with an energy relaxation time $${T}_{1} \sim 180\,{\rm{ns}}$$ T 1 ~ 180 ns was observed in the time domain, an average decoherence time $${T}_{2}^{* } \sim 15\,{\rm{ns}}$$ T 2 * ~ 15 ns was obtained, and the gate voltage dependence of both $${T}_{1}$$ T 1 and $${T}_{2}^{* }$$ T 2 * was investigated. Such a hole-type superconducting gatemon qubit, based on materials with strong spin-orbit coupling and potentially the absence of hyperfine interaction after isotope purification, could be used for exploring the quantum coherence phenomena of hole-gas and even Majorana physics in Ge-based quantum devices