Response surface analysis of sevoflurane-remifentanil interactions on consciousness during anesthesia

Background Recently, the combination of sevoflurane and remifentanil has been widely used in general anesthesia. In this study, we investigated the sevoflurane-remifentanil pharmacodynamic interactions at clinical concentrations using the observer＇s assessment of alertness/sedation （OAA/S） and the bispectral index （BIS） by response surface analysis. Methods Totally 65 American Society of Anesthesiologists （ASA） I patients age 20 to 50 years old were included in this study. Patients were randomly assigned to be anesthetized with different target end-tidal sevoflurane concentrations that ranged from 0.2% to 3.4% in increments of 0.2%. The end-tidal sevoflurane concentration was maintained constant throughout the study. Remifentanil was infused with a target controlled infusion （TCI） system at increasing step-wise concentrations from 1 ng/ml to 10 ng/ml. The values of OAA/S and BIS at different sevoflurane-remifentanil concentration combinations were measured. The pharmacodynamic interactions between sevoflurane and remifentanil were analyzed by a response surface method. The three-dimensional response surfaces were constructed with Minitab Software. Model parameters were estimated with NONMEM program. Results Sevoflurane and remifentanil acted synergistically on OANS. Sevoflurane alone could produce OANS 〈1 at a minimal alveolar concentration （MAC） of 0.93%. When used in combination with remifentanil at 1, 3, 6, and 10 ng/ml, the corresponding sevoflurane MACs were reduced to 0.79%, 0.58%, 0.48%, and 0.38%, with reductions of 17.2%, 37.6%, 48.4%, and 62.0% from baseline, respectively. In patients administered remifentanil alone, the OANS score was 〉3 even when the remifentanil concentration reached 10 ng/ml. BIS was closely associated with the sevoflurane concentration and the remifentanil concentration did not noticeably influence the relationship between the sevoflurane concentration and BIS. A sevoflurane concentration of （1.04＋0.19）% to （1.81＋0.21）% could maintain a BIS between 60 and 40. Conclusions The response surface method can analyze the pharmacodynamic interactions between remifentanil and sevoflurane qualitatively and quantitatively. Within the range of our study （remifentanil 〈10 ng/ml, sevoflurane 〈3.4%）, the two drugs produced synergistic effects on OAA/S but had no interactive effect on BIS. A guideline of BIS between 40 and 60 may cause excessive anesthesia when opioids are used to maintain anesthesia.

CHINA'S EMERGENCY RESPONSE SYSTEM FOR NATURAL DISASTERS

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The Planet’s Response to Human Activity. Thermodynamic Approach

The applicability of the laws of thermodynamics to processes on Earth is discussed and it is shown that the chemical thermodynamics provides the reasonable basis for predicting probable changes. The historical evolution of the planet is considered in the framework of the Harari approach;a civilization’s level is estimated by the Kardashev scale based on the amount of energy it is able to use. During a short historical interval (≈500 years), when the effect of biological evolution is imperceptible and the main changes on the planet are caused by human activity, two systems are considered: 1) a nonequilibrium inhabited planet and 2) a quasi-equilibrium hypothetical planet without people, which is accepted as a comparison system. It is shown that in response to the energy impact, the equilibrium of the hypothetical system with the primordial nature is disturbed and processes are initiated aimed to prevent further growth of energy production. In the case of a real planet, this implements changes preventing the uncontrolled activities of humans—the energy producers. Climate change, an increase in the number of natural disasters and epidemics can be recognized as a direct response of the planet, while changes in socio-economic relations, morality, demographic situation, new threats etc. can be considered as an indirect reaction to changing conditions of human beings. The latter results from the mutual correlation between the progress of society, on the one hand, and humanitarian and political processes, on the other. The role of renewable and non-renewable energy sources in evolution is taken into account. Obviously, it is better to take meaningful measures to achieve an acceptable balance now than to wait for the blind and extremely painful action of the laws of nature, which would lead to a reduction in the population.

Thoughts on International Situation and China's Response

As a major event at the turn of the century, NATO’s world-shocking air strikesagainst Yugoslavia represent certain dangerous trends in US global strategyand international strategic configuration. The event has aroused widespread con-cern and heightened vigilance among the international community. Althoughflames of war have died out in the Balkans, yet the dust there has yet to settle. It,therefore, remains a matter of urgency to engage in some comprehensive, in-depth, strategic reflections on the major event itself, its international

CHINA'S VEGETATION/ECOSYSTEM RESPONSE TO GLOBAL CHANGE: RESEARCH PROGRESS & PROSPECTS

This paper presents the latest developments in the re search progress on mechanisms by which natural plants and crops respond to the doubled concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, resultant climatic change and the modeling of vegetation and eco-systems in China. In addition, it points out that the future study on global change and terrestrial ecosystems should stress m(?)iti-disciplinary teamwork and inter-discipline penetration. Finally, the paper emphasizes 10 research realms in the field to be enhanced in the future.

Association of rs1568885, rs1813443 and rs4411591 polymorphisms with anti-TNF medication response in Greek patients with Crohn's disease

AIM: To investigate the correlation between rs1568885, rs1813443 and rs4411591 polymorphisms and response to infliximab in a cohort of Greek patients with Crohn’s disease (CD).

The Dilemma and Way Out of China’s Participation in the Development of Marine Genetic Resources in ABNJ from the Perspective of BBNJ

The fifth intergovernmental negotiations on marine BBNJ(Biodiversity beyond Areas of National Jurisdiction)concluded in August 2022,in which there are still major differences regarding access to marine genetic resources,management,and technology transfer.China’s participation in the development of marine genetic resources in ABNJ(areas beyond national jurisdiction)has many dilemmas,which are linked to the difficulties faced in advancing the BBNJ negotiations.The following countermeasures are proposed at the institutional and practical levels respectively:clarifying the legal attributes and applicability of the principles of marine genetic resources;establishing mechanisms for access,management,environmental impact assessment and benefit sharing of marine genetic resources;and using the“Blue Partnership”to build a governance mechanism for marine genetic resources to achieve mutual benefits.

Assessment of the Influence of Sulfuric Acid/Hydrogen Peroxide Mixture on Organic Sulfur Reduction of High Sulfur Coals and Their Chemical Composition

One of the contaminants in coal is sulphur. The adverse impact of sulfur on coal, such as environmental pollution, degradation of steel quality, and reduction of coal’s thermal value, has led to the attention of sulfur separation methods in recent decades. Leaching (chemical dissolution) is one of the best methods for desulfurising coal, reducing sulfur in coal. In this study, hydrogen peroxide as an oxidising agent on sulfuric acid yield in reducing sulfur types of coal and chemical structure and the organic texture of high sulfur coal was investigated. The experiments were designed using a three-level response surface methodology with four duplicate points and 27 experiments. The independent variables studied were temperature, time, stirring speed and ratio of sulfuric acid to hydrogen peroxide. Dependent variables included reduction percentage of total, pyritic and organic sulfur. This study showed that 99.99% of total sulfur, 30.11% of pyritic sulfur and 69.08% of organic sulfur were reduced. These values were obtained at a temperature of 60°C, time 120 min, stirring speed 200 rpm and 3:1 ratio of sulfuric acid to hydrogen peroxide. Significant changes were observed by infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) of the coal structure before and after desulphurisation. On the other hand, the studies showed no specific changes in the bonds related to the organic coal matrix. The results showed that this method could be used as a secure process for removing inorganic and organic sulfur without destroying the organic coal matrix.

A direct probabilistic approach to solve state equations for nonlinear systems under random excitation

In this paper, a direct probabilistic approach（DPA） is presented to formulate and solve moment equations for nonlinear systems excited by environmental loads that can be either a stationary or nonstationary random process.The proposed method has the advantage of obtaining the response＇s moments directly from the initial conditions and statistical characteristics of the corresponding external excitations. First, the response＇s moment equations are directly derived based on a DPA, which is completely independent of the It？/filtering approach since no specific assumptions regarding the correlation structure of excitation are made.By solving them under Gaussian closure, the response＇s moments can be obtained. Subsequently, a multiscale algorithm for the numerical solution of moment equations is exploited to improve computational efficiency and avoid much wall-clock time. Finally, a comparison of the results with Monte Carlo（MC） simulation gives good agreement.Furthermore, the advantage of the multiscale algorithm in terms of efficiency is also demonstrated by an engineering example.

Government's Responsibility for Control of Agricultural Environmental Pollution in China

In this paper,the current situation of agricultural environmental pollution caused by the increase of chemicals input in agriculture in China was analyzed,and it is found that agricultural pollution is related to agricultural industrial policies,urban-rural economic structure,funds input in pollution control,comprehensive environmental management,laws of pollution control,and so forth. To control agricultural pollution effectively,it is needed to implement integration of agricultural and environmental policies,establish environmentally friendly agricultural technology popularizing system,implement integrated planning and management of a basin,and set up and improve legislation to protect agricultural environment.

Crosstalk Model and Estimation Formula for VLSI Interconnect Wires

We develop an interconnect crosstalk estimation model on the assumption of linearity for CMOS device. First, we analyze the terminal response of RC model on the worst condition from theS field to the time domain. The exact 3 order coefficients inS field are obtained due to the interconnect tree model. Based on this, a crosstalk peak estimation formula is presented. Unlike other crosstalk equations in the literature, this formula is only used coupled capacitance and grand capacitance as parameter. Experimental results show that, compared with the SPICE results, the estimation formulae are simple and accurate. So the model is expected to be used in such fields as layout-driven logic and high level synthesis, performance-driven floorplanning and interconnect planning.

On the Government's Responsibility in China's Rural Land Transfer

There is an urgent need for China's rural land transfer in order to develop modern agriculture,ensure food security,transfer rural population,and accelerate industrialization and urbanization.At present,there is still disordered transfer of rural land in China,making the interests of the transferors and transferees difficult to be effectively guaranteed;there is inefficient transfer,leading to decline in actual agricultural production level after transfer;there is jobless transfer,leading to difficult placement for rural surplus labor after transfer,seriously restricting rural land transfer.Therefore,the Chinese government's legal responsibility,economic responsibility and social responsibility in rural land transfer should be further strengthened.

Global analysis of Ivlev's type predator-prey dynamic systems

Consider a class of Ivlev＇s type predator-prey dynamic systems with prey and predator both having linear density restricts. By using the qualitative methods of ODE, the global stability of positive equilibrium and existence and uniqueness of non-small amplitude stable limit cycle are obtained. Especially under certain conditions, it shows that existence and uniqueness of non-small amplitude stable limit cycle is equivalent to the local un-stability of positive equilibrium and the local stability of positive equilibrium implies its global stability. That is to say, the global dynamic of the system is entirely determined by the local stability of the positive equilibrium.

Winter Olympics Diplomacy,South Korea-DPRK Contacts and US-DPRK Summit:Historic Changes for Korean Peninsula?

The ⅩⅩⅢ Olympic Winter Games in South Korea lit a flame for the dramatic development of inter-Korean relations. Rapid changes in the geopolitical situation on the peninsula since the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang have included high-level DPRK talks with South Korea, China and the United States. President Xi Jinping＇ s meetings with DPRK leader Kim Jong-un in Beijing and Dalian, and the upcoming Trump-Kim summit on June 12 are all about timing. A new diplomacy on DPRK＇ s part has unfolded out of the extemal pressure the DPRK experienced from the US, China and the international community but also out of the difficulties the DPRK faces in advancing its nuclear options. Unless the DPRK makes substantial concessions, the US will not alter policy. Real success means historic change, not only a reunion of families and an official end to the Korean War, but also a potential shift in the Asian power structure. There are diverse possibilities and much at stake. The fundamental way forward is restarting Six Party Talks and regional mechanism.

Responsibilities of the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China (SIPO)

According to the "Notice on OrganizationStructure of the State Council", the formerChina Patent Office was changed into StateIntellectual Property Office of P. R. China(SIPO). SIPO falls within the category ofdirect authorities under State Council and isresponsible for patent work andcomprehensively coordination of the foreignrelated affairs in the field of intellectualproperty.

Serum procalcitonin and interleukin-6 levels may help to differentiate systemic inflammatory response of infectious and non-infectious origin

To evaluate the efficacy of using procalcitonin (PCT) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) to differentiate sepsis from non-infectious systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) Methods We made a prospective study in a general intensive care unit at Peking Union Medical College Hospital Twenty patients with sepsis and 31 patients with non-infectious SIRS were enrolled in this study Serum concentrations of PCT, IL-6 and C-reactive protein (CRP) were determined within 24 h after clinical onset of sepsis or non-infectious SIRS Leukocyte count, percentage of neutrophils, and absolute neutrophil count, as well as maximal body temperature were also recorded Results Serum concentrations of PCT, IL-6, and CRP, as well as maximal body temperature, were significantly higher in septic patients [3 6 (1 8, 27 5) μg/L, 810±516 ng/L, 180±108 g/L, 38 6±1 2℃] than non-infectious SIRS patients [0 5 (0 2, 1 8) μg/L, 235±177 ng/L, 109±70 g/L, 37 9±0 9℃] IL-6 and PCT exhibited the best discriminative power between sepsis and non-infectious SIRS, with sensitivity above 80% and specificity above 70% A sepsis score with combination of IL-6 and PCT showed the best discriminative power with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0 923 Conclusions Assessing IL-6 and PCT levels are more reliable ways to differentiate sepsis from non-infectious SIRS, compared with conventional inflammatory parameters

Study of acupuncture in inducing body responses of Swiss patients

Objective To observe Europeans’ different responses to acupuncture,to analyze body tolerance,and to provide objective basis for clinical intervention temporal frequency of acupuncture-moxibustion in Europe.Methods The information of 168 patients（Swiss original residents） who visited doctor for the first time from December,2013 to June,2015（MediQi AG Die Zentrenfur TCM）was collected,the duration and property of responses to acupuncture were analyzed,and SPSS 18.0 software was adopted to analyze the study result.Results Responses to acupuncture were observed in 65 patients（28 males and 37 females） with an incidence rate of 38.69%（65/168）.According to Chisquared test,the difference was not statistically significant（P〉0.05）.Among the patients with response,49 patients felt fatigue（19 males and 30 females）,12 cases felt sore and swelling pain（7 males and 5 females）,conduction along meridian occurred in 2 patients（1 males and 1 females）,and 1 patient suffered from spasm（male）.Based on statistical analysis,the differences were not statistically significant（all P〉0.05）.The duration of responseis（13.00 ± 12.51）h for male,and（32.81 ± 25.59） h for female,according to t-test,the difference was statistically significant（P〈0.001）.Conclusion The incidence rate and property of responses to acupuncture has nothing to do with gender;the duration of responses to acupuncture is closely related with gender,and the duration of responses to acupuncture is longer in females.

The Dynamics of a Predator-prey Model with Ivlev's Functional Response Concerning Integrated Pest Management

A mathematical model of a predator-prey model with Ivlev’s functional response concerning integrated pest management (IPM) is proposed and analyzed. We show that there exists a stable pest-eradication periodic solution when the impulsive period is less than some critical values. Further more, the conditions for the permanence of the system are given. By using bifurcation theory, we show the existence and stability of a positive periodic solution. These results are quite different from those of the corresponding system without impulses. Numerical simulation shows that the system we consider has more complex dynamical behaviors. Finally, it is proved that IPM stragey is more effective than the classical one.

ALMOST PERIODIC SOLUTION OF MULTISPECIES COMPETITION-PREDATOR SYSTEM WITH ROLLING'S TYPE Ⅲ FUNCTIONAL RESPONSE

In this paper, we consider a nonautonomous multispecies competition-predator system with Holling＇s type Ⅲ functional response. The coexistence of the system, under some conditions, is obtained. Furthermore, using Lyapunov function, we show that the system has a strictly positive almost periodic solution which is globally asymptotically stable.

Georgia's Response to COVID-19

As the vast majority of coun-tries around the globe could not avoid the spread of COVID-19,G eorgia,thanks to the government’s quick reaction to the potential pandemic threat declared by the WHO,could keep the rate of infection relatively low,compared with its neighbours in the region and many other countries in Europe.This article introduces the countermeasures taken by Georgia from the following aspects.