Background Sleep-disordered breathing （SDB） is known to occur frequently in and may predict worsening progression of patients with congestive heart failure （CHF）. SDB is also known to play an important role in the...Background Sleep-disordered breathing （SDB） is known to occur frequently in and may predict worsening progression of patients with congestive heart failure （CHF）. SDB is also known to play an important role in the development of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hyper- tension （PAH） via inducing endothelial dysfunction and vascular remodeling, a pathological process that can be significantly influenced by factors such as osteoprotegerin （OPG） and endothelial progenitor cells （EPCs）. The objective of this study is to determine if CHF with SDB is associated with changes in OPG, EPCs, and PAIl. Methods EPCs were isolated, cultured, and quantified from CHF patients with SDB （n = 52）, or without SDB （n - 68）. OPG and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide （NT-proBNP） from each group was analyzed and cor- related with EPCs and the mean pulmonary artery pressure （mPAP） measured by right heart catheterization. Results A significant decrease in circulating EPCs （29.30 ± 9.01 vs. 45.17 ± 10.51 EPCs/x 200 field; P 〈 0.05） was found in CHF patients with SDB compared to those without SDB. Both OPG （789.83 ±89.38 vs. 551.29 ± 42.12 pg/mL; P 〈 0.05） and NT-proBNP （5946.50 ± 1434.50 vs. 3028.60 ± 811.90 ng/mL; P 〈 0.05） were also significantly elevated in SDB CHF patients who also had significantly elevated mPAP （50.2 ± 9.5 vs. 36.4 ± 4.1 mm Hg; P 〈 0.05）. EPC numbers correlated inversely with the episodes of apnea and hypopnea per hour （RDI, r = -0.45, P = 0.037） and blood level of OPG （r =-0.53, P = 0.011）. Although NT-proBNP was also increased significantly in patients with SDB, it had no correlation with either EPCs or RD1. Conclusions SDBdue to hypoxemia from decompensated CHF is associated with （1） OPG elevation, （2） EPC depletion, and （3） mPAP elevation. The inverse relationship of circulating OPG with EPCs suggests a likely mechanism for hypoxemia and OPG in the development of pulmonary vascular dysfunction via depleting EPCs, thus worsening prognosis of CHF.展开更多
Objective To investigate the clinical application of Real-Time PCR for rapid detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) directly from nasopharyngeal swab specimens.Methods We collected the nasal an...Objective To investigate the clinical application of Real-Time PCR for rapid detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) directly from nasopharyngeal swab specimens.Methods We collected the nasal and throat swab specimens from patients or medical staffs in 3 intensive care units,blood laminar flow ward and respiratory ward in Beijing Hospital,Ministry of Health from December 2010to April 2011.Each sample was tested by RT-PCR and conventional culture-based method for the presence of MRSA.Results The total number of the specimens was 206.Compared with the conventional culture-based method,we demonstrated the diagnostic values for Real-Time PCR were 96.4%sensitivity,96.6%specificity,81.8%positive predictive rate,and 99.4%negative predictive rate.And the limit of detection was 10~2CFU/ml.Conclusions This Real-Time PCR is a simple,rapid,sensitive and specific method.With the high negative predictive value,it can be used for the exclusion of MRSA colonization or infection.However,the application of its low positive predictive value should be further evaluated.展开更多
Objective：Acute respiratory distress syndrome （ARDS） is an acute and lethal clinical syndrome that is characterized by hypoxemic respiratory failure and diffuse alveolar inflammatory damage.This review aimed to sea...Objective：Acute respiratory distress syndrome （ARDS） is an acute and lethal clinical syndrome that is characterized by hypoxemic respiratory failure and diffuse alveolar inflammatory damage.This review aimed to search and discuss the mass spectrometry （MS）-based proteomic studies on different subsets of ARDS patients.Data Sources：Original research articles were collected from the PubMed database published in English up to December 2015.Study Selection：The literature search was done using the term ＂（acute lung injury OR acute respiratory distress syndrome）AND （proteomics OR proteome OR mass spectrum OR differential in-gel electrophoresis OR two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis）＂.Related original research articles were included and were carefully analyzed.Results：Eight original proteomic researches on ARDS patients were found.The common proteomic modalities were two-dimensional （2D）high-performance liquid chromatography-based electronic spray ion-MS/MS and 2D-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis/differential in-gel electrophoresis-based matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight/MS.They compared the proteome between ARDS patients and normal controls and analyzed the dynamic changes ofproteome at different ARDS stages or severity.The disturbed proteome in ARDS patients includes plasma acute-phase proteins,inflammatory/immune-associated proteins,and coagulation proteins.Conclusions：Although several previous studies have provided some useful information about the lung proteome in ARDS patients and gained several interesting disease-associated biomarkers,clinical proteomic studies in ARDS patients are still in the initial stage.An increased cooperation is still needed to establish a global and faithful database containing disease-specific proteome from the largest ARDS subsets.展开更多
High-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy(HFNC)is a novel respiratory support technology and has been extensively applied in clinics in recent years.This therapeutic equipment mainly includes an air-oxygen blender,an act...High-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy(HFNC)is a novel respiratory support technology and has been extensively applied in clinics in recent years.This therapeutic equipment mainly includes an air-oxygen blender,an active humidifier,a high-flow nasal cannula,and a connecting inspiratory circuit.It provides patients a humidified high-flow gas(8-80 L/min)with relatively stable oxygen concentration(21-100%),temperature(31-37℃)and performs oxygen therapy via a nasal cannula,which is very comfortable.展开更多
Background:Information on the prevalence and resistance spectrum of nontuberculous mycobacteria(NTM)in China is mainly based on regional or local data.To estimate the proportion of NTM cases in China,a national survey...Background:Information on the prevalence and resistance spectrum of nontuberculous mycobacteria(NTM)in China is mainly based on regional or local data.To estimate the proportion of NTM cases in China,a national survey of NTM pulmonary disease was carried out based on acid-fast positive sputum samples collected in 2013.展开更多
We present a method of discriminant diffusion maps analysis(DDMA) for evaluating tool wear during milling processes. As a dimensionality reduction technique, the DDMA method is used to fuse and reduce the original fea...We present a method of discriminant diffusion maps analysis(DDMA) for evaluating tool wear during milling processes. As a dimensionality reduction technique, the DDMA method is used to fuse and reduce the original features extracted from both the time and frequency domains, by preserving the diffusion distances within the intrinsic feature space and coupling the features to a discriminant kernel to refine the information from the high-dimensional feature space. The proposed DDMA method consists of three main steps:(1) signal processing and feature extraction;(2) intrinsic dimensionality estimation;(3) feature fusion implementation through feature space mapping with diffusion distance preservation. DDMA has been applied to current signals measured from the spindle in a machine center during a milling experiment to evaluate the tool wear status. Compared with the popular principle component analysis method, DDMA can better preserve the useful intrinsic information related to tool wear status. Thus, two important aspects are highlighted in this study: the benefits of the significantly lower dimension of the intrinsic features that are sensitive to tool wear, and the convenient availability of current signals in most industrial machine centers.展开更多
Background:Malaria and neglected communicable protozoa parasitic diseases,such as leishmaniasis,and trypanosomiasis,are among the otherwise called diseases for neglected communities,which are habitual in underprivileg...Background:Malaria and neglected communicable protozoa parasitic diseases,such as leishmaniasis,and trypanosomiasis,are among the otherwise called diseases for neglected communities,which are habitual in underprivileged populations in developing tropical and subtropical regions of Africa,Asia,and the Americas.Some of the currently available therapeutic drugs have some limitations such as toxicity and questionable efficacy and long treatment period,which have encouraged resistance.These have prompted many researchers to focus on fin ding new drugs that are safe,effective,and affordable from marine environ merits.The aim of this review was to show the diversity,structural scaffolds,in-vitro or in-vivo efficacy,and recent progress made in the discovery/isolation of marine natural products(MNPs)with potent bioactivity against malaria,leishmaniasis,and trypanosomiasis.Main text:We searched PubMed and Google scholar using Boolean Operators(AND,OR,and NOT)and the combination of related terms for articles on marine natural products(MNPs)discovery published only in English language from January 2016 to June 2020.Twenty nine articles reported the isolation,identification and antiparasitic activity of the isolated compounds from marine environment.A total of 125 compounds were reported to have been isolated,out of which 45 were newly isolated compounds.These compounds were all isolated from bacteria,a fungus,sponges,algae,a bryozoan,cnidarians and soft corals.In recent years,great progress is being made on anti-malarial drug discovery from marine organisms with the isolation of these potent compounds.Comparably,some of these promising antikinetoplastid MNPs have potency better or similar to conventional drugs and could be developed as both antileishmanial and antitrypanosomal drugs.However,very few of these MNPs have a pharmaceutical destiny due to lack of the following:sustainable production of the bioactive compounds,stan da rd efficient screening methods,knowledge of the mechanism of action,partnerships between researchers and pharmaceutical industries.Conclusions:It is crystal clear that marine organisms are a rich source of antiparasitic compounds,such as alkaloids,terpenoids,peptides,polyketides,terpene,coumarins,steroids,fatty acid derivatives,and lactones.The current and future technological innovation in natural products drug discovery will bolster the drug armamentarium for malaria and neglected tropical diseases.展开更多
文摘Background Sleep-disordered breathing （SDB） is known to occur frequently in and may predict worsening progression of patients with congestive heart failure （CHF）. SDB is also known to play an important role in the development of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hyper- tension （PAH） via inducing endothelial dysfunction and vascular remodeling, a pathological process that can be significantly influenced by factors such as osteoprotegerin （OPG） and endothelial progenitor cells （EPCs）. The objective of this study is to determine if CHF with SDB is associated with changes in OPG, EPCs, and PAIl. Methods EPCs were isolated, cultured, and quantified from CHF patients with SDB （n = 52）, or without SDB （n - 68）. OPG and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide （NT-proBNP） from each group was analyzed and cor- related with EPCs and the mean pulmonary artery pressure （mPAP） measured by right heart catheterization. Results A significant decrease in circulating EPCs （29.30 ± 9.01 vs. 45.17 ± 10.51 EPCs/x 200 field; P 〈 0.05） was found in CHF patients with SDB compared to those without SDB. Both OPG （789.83 ±89.38 vs. 551.29 ± 42.12 pg/mL; P 〈 0.05） and NT-proBNP （5946.50 ± 1434.50 vs. 3028.60 ± 811.90 ng/mL; P 〈 0.05） were also significantly elevated in SDB CHF patients who also had significantly elevated mPAP （50.2 ± 9.5 vs. 36.4 ± 4.1 mm Hg; P 〈 0.05）. EPC numbers correlated inversely with the episodes of apnea and hypopnea per hour （RDI, r = -0.45, P = 0.037） and blood level of OPG （r =-0.53, P = 0.011）. Although NT-proBNP was also increased significantly in patients with SDB, it had no correlation with either EPCs or RD1. Conclusions SDBdue to hypoxemia from decompensated CHF is associated with （1） OPG elevation, （2） EPC depletion, and （3） mPAP elevation. The inverse relationship of circulating OPG with EPCs suggests a likely mechanism for hypoxemia and OPG in the development of pulmonary vascular dysfunction via depleting EPCs, thus worsening prognosis of CHF.
文摘Objective To investigate the clinical application of Real-Time PCR for rapid detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) directly from nasopharyngeal swab specimens.Methods We collected the nasal and throat swab specimens from patients or medical staffs in 3 intensive care units,blood laminar flow ward and respiratory ward in Beijing Hospital,Ministry of Health from December 2010to April 2011.Each sample was tested by RT-PCR and conventional culture-based method for the presence of MRSA.Results The total number of the specimens was 206.Compared with the conventional culture-based method,we demonstrated the diagnostic values for Real-Time PCR were 96.4%sensitivity,96.6%specificity,81.8%positive predictive rate,and 99.4%negative predictive rate.And the limit of detection was 10~2CFU/ml.Conclusions This Real-Time PCR is a simple,rapid,sensitive and specific method.With the high negative predictive value,it can be used for the exclusion of MRSA colonization or infection.However,the application of its low positive predictive value should be further evaluated.
基金This work was supported by grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China （No. 81490534, No. 81490530, and No. 81270123）.
文摘Objective：Acute respiratory distress syndrome （ARDS） is an acute and lethal clinical syndrome that is characterized by hypoxemic respiratory failure and diffuse alveolar inflammatory damage.This review aimed to search and discuss the mass spectrometry （MS）-based proteomic studies on different subsets of ARDS patients.Data Sources：Original research articles were collected from the PubMed database published in English up to December 2015.Study Selection：The literature search was done using the term ＂（acute lung injury OR acute respiratory distress syndrome）AND （proteomics OR proteome OR mass spectrum OR differential in-gel electrophoresis OR two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis）＂.Related original research articles were included and were carefully analyzed.Results：Eight original proteomic researches on ARDS patients were found.The common proteomic modalities were two-dimensional （2D）high-performance liquid chromatography-based electronic spray ion-MS/MS and 2D-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis/differential in-gel electrophoresis-based matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight/MS.They compared the proteome between ARDS patients and normal controls and analyzed the dynamic changes ofproteome at different ARDS stages or severity.The disturbed proteome in ARDS patients includes plasma acute-phase proteins,inflammatory/immune-associated proteins,and coagulation proteins.Conclusions：Although several previous studies have provided some useful information about the lung proteome in ARDS patients and gained several interesting disease-associated biomarkers,clinical proteomic studies in ARDS patients are still in the initial stage.An increased cooperation is still needed to establish a global and faithful database containing disease-specific proteome from the largest ARDS subsets.
基金Funding was provided by the China National Key Research Program(2016YFC1304300,2018ZX09201013)the China National Clinical Center Program for Geriatric Diseases(NCRCG-PLAGH-2017003).
文摘High-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy(HFNC)is a novel respiratory support technology and has been extensively applied in clinics in recent years.This therapeutic equipment mainly includes an air-oxygen blender,an active humidifier,a high-flow nasal cannula,and a connecting inspiratory circuit.It provides patients a humidified high-flow gas(8-80 L/min)with relatively stable oxygen concentration(21-100%),temperature(31-37℃)and performs oxygen therapy via a nasal cannula,which is very comfortable.
文摘Background:Information on the prevalence and resistance spectrum of nontuberculous mycobacteria(NTM)in China is mainly based on regional or local data.To estimate the proportion of NTM cases in China,a national survey of NTM pulmonary disease was carried out based on acid-fast positive sputum samples collected in 2013.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51305258)the National Science and Technology Major Project,China(No.2014ZX04015021)Shanghai Science Project,China(No.1411104600)
文摘We present a method of discriminant diffusion maps analysis(DDMA) for evaluating tool wear during milling processes. As a dimensionality reduction technique, the DDMA method is used to fuse and reduce the original features extracted from both the time and frequency domains, by preserving the diffusion distances within the intrinsic feature space and coupling the features to a discriminant kernel to refine the information from the high-dimensional feature space. The proposed DDMA method consists of three main steps:(1) signal processing and feature extraction;(2) intrinsic dimensionality estimation;(3) feature fusion implementation through feature space mapping with diffusion distance preservation. DDMA has been applied to current signals measured from the spindle in a machine center during a milling experiment to evaluate the tool wear status. Compared with the popular principle component analysis method, DDMA can better preserve the useful intrinsic information related to tool wear status. Thus, two important aspects are highlighted in this study: the benefits of the significantly lower dimension of the intrinsic features that are sensitive to tool wear, and the convenient availability of current signals in most industrial machine centers.
文摘Background:Malaria and neglected communicable protozoa parasitic diseases,such as leishmaniasis,and trypanosomiasis,are among the otherwise called diseases for neglected communities,which are habitual in underprivileged populations in developing tropical and subtropical regions of Africa,Asia,and the Americas.Some of the currently available therapeutic drugs have some limitations such as toxicity and questionable efficacy and long treatment period,which have encouraged resistance.These have prompted many researchers to focus on fin ding new drugs that are safe,effective,and affordable from marine environ merits.The aim of this review was to show the diversity,structural scaffolds,in-vitro or in-vivo efficacy,and recent progress made in the discovery/isolation of marine natural products(MNPs)with potent bioactivity against malaria,leishmaniasis,and trypanosomiasis.Main text:We searched PubMed and Google scholar using Boolean Operators(AND,OR,and NOT)and the combination of related terms for articles on marine natural products(MNPs)discovery published only in English language from January 2016 to June 2020.Twenty nine articles reported the isolation,identification and antiparasitic activity of the isolated compounds from marine environment.A total of 125 compounds were reported to have been isolated,out of which 45 were newly isolated compounds.These compounds were all isolated from bacteria,a fungus,sponges,algae,a bryozoan,cnidarians and soft corals.In recent years,great progress is being made on anti-malarial drug discovery from marine organisms with the isolation of these potent compounds.Comparably,some of these promising antikinetoplastid MNPs have potency better or similar to conventional drugs and could be developed as both antileishmanial and antitrypanosomal drugs.However,very few of these MNPs have a pharmaceutical destiny due to lack of the following:sustainable production of the bioactive compounds,stan da rd efficient screening methods,knowledge of the mechanism of action,partnerships between researchers and pharmaceutical industries.Conclusions:It is crystal clear that marine organisms are a rich source of antiparasitic compounds,such as alkaloids,terpenoids,peptides,polyketides,terpene,coumarins,steroids,fatty acid derivatives,and lactones.The current and future technological innovation in natural products drug discovery will bolster the drug armamentarium for malaria and neglected tropical diseases.
