Determination of Critical Influencing Factor on pH Stability of Yuxingcao Injection

The change of drug quality of Yuxingcao injection after formulation is considered as one of the causes for adverse reactions. In this study, orthogonal experimental design was used to investigate the influencing factors on the pH stability of Yuxingcao injection. Two methods of accelerated tests were carried out in the experiments. The results showed that using Tween 80 as the solubilizer could significantly decrease the pH value of Yuxingcao injection after accelerated tests. There was no significant difference in the pH value after the accelerated tests when the other 6 factors varied, including the type of liquid processed, the dosage of activated carbon, heating temperature, reagents for pH adjustment, pH value range after adjustment, and sterilization conditions. In order to improve the quality stability of Yuxingcao injection, the quality of Tween 80 should be strictly controlled to minimize the change of pH value of Yuxingcao injection.

Sinomenine Purification by Continuous Liquid-Liquid Extraction Process with Centrifugal Extractors

Continuous manufacturing is considered as one of the future trends of pharmaceutical engineering. In this work, continuous liquid-liquid extraction for sinomenine purification was realized with the usage of centrifugal extractors. Chloroform was used as the extractant because of the high distribution coefficient (>100). Higher extraction ratio can be obtained when using the centrifugal extractor of Model CWL50-N. The extraction ratio of the second-stage extraction was higher than that of the first-stage extraction. The extraction ratio of the second-stage countercurrent extraction was higher than that of second-stage cross-flow extraction. When chloroform phase was recycled for liquid-liquid extraction, the extraction ratio was also higher than 95%. This work can also be an example of continuous liquid-liquid extraction for the separation of other Chinese medicine components.

Conductive PS inverse opals for regulating proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells

The development of neural tissue engineering has brought new hope to the treatment of spinal cord injury(SCI).Up to date,various scaffolds have been developed to induce the oriented growth and arrangement of nerves to facilitate the repair after injury.In this work,a conductive and anisotropic inverse opal substrate was presented by modifying polystyrene(PS)inverse opal films with carbon nanotubes and then stretching them to varying degrees.The film had good biocompatibility,and neural stem cells(NSCs)grown on the film displayed good orientation along the stretching direction.In addition,benefiting from the conductivity and anisotropy of the film,NSCs differentiated into neurons significantly.These results suggest that the conductive and anisotropic PS inverse opal substrates possess value in nerve tissue engineering regeneration.

Supply-side drivers of phosphorus emissions from phosphorus supply chains in China

Human activities interfere with natural Phosphorus(P)cycles by introducing increased levels of P emissions to air,land,and water.A supply-side analysis of P supply chains and associated P emissions can provide insights into underlying economic activities and transitions responsible for human-induced P emissions.Taking the China's Mainland as the case,this study constructs time-series physical input-output tables to describe P supply chains during 1949-2012.Subsequently,it identifies critical products and influencing factors of P supply chains enabling P emissions to the environment(including air,land,and water)from the supply perspective.The results show that phosphate rock,an important initial supplier of P from natural environment to China’s P supply chain,was responsible for 86%of P emissions in 2012.Moreover,food crops and livestock are important initial suppliers of P from soil to China’s P supply chain,through cultivation and pasturing,respectively.From 1949 to 2012,the change in primary input level was the largest driver of P emission increments,followed by changes in population,emission intensity,and primary input structure.On the contrary,changes in production structure reduced P emissions.These findings could support supply-side policy decisions on P emission control.