Correlation analysis of smell and taste loss with COVID-19 outbreak trend based on big data of internet / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

Objective: To analyze the correlation between loss of smell/taste and the number of real confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide based on Google Trends data, and to explore the guiding role of smell/taste loss for the COVID-19 prevention and control. Methods: "Loss of smell" and "loss of taste" related keywords were searched in the Google Trends platform, the data were obtained from Jan. 1 2019 to Jul. 11 2021. The daily and newly confirmed COVID-19 case number were collected from World Health Organization (WHO) since Dec. 30 2019. All data were statistically analyzed by SPSS 23.0 software. The correlation was finally tested by Spearman correlation analysis. Results: A total of data from 80 weeks were collected. The retrospective analysis was performed on the new trend of COVID-19 confirmed cases in a total of 186 292 441 cases worldwide. Since the epidemic of COVID-19 was recorded on the WHO website, the relative searches related to loss of smell/taste in the Google Trends platform had been increasing globally. The global relative search volumes of "loss of smell" and "loss of taste" on Google Trends was 10.23±2.58 and 16.33±2.47 before the record of epidemic while 80.25±39.81 and 80.45±40.04 after (t value was 8.67, 14.43, respectively, both P<0.001). In the United States and India, the relative searches for "loss of smell" and "loss of taste" after the record of epidemic were also much higher than before (all P<0.001). The correlation coefficients between the trend of weekly new COVID-19 cases and the Google Trends of "loss of smell" in the global, United States, and India was 0.53, 0.76, and 0.82 respectively (all P<0.001), the correlation coefficients with Google Trends of "loss of taste" was 0.54, 0.78, and 0.82 respectively (all P<0.001). The lowest and highest point of loss of smell/taste search curves of Google Trends in different periods appeared 7 to 14 days earlier than that of the weekly newly COVID-19 confirmed cases curves, respectively. Conclusions: There is a significant positive correlation between the number of newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide and the amount of keywords, such as "loss of smell" and "loss of taste", retrieved in Google Trends. The trend of big data based on Google Trends might predict the outbreak trend of COVID-19 in advance.

Identification of critical influencing factors in dropping process of Xuesaitong Dropping Pills / 中国中药杂志

With the dropping process of Xuesaitong Dropping Pills(XDP) as the study object, critical factors affecting the quality indicators of pill pass rate, average weight of drop pills and roundness were screened out, so as to deepen the understanding of the dropping process. The critical process units, critical quality attributes and potential critical process influencing factors of XDP were determined by risk analysis and prior knowledge, and then the critical influencing factors were screened out by Plackett-Burman design. First, according to the risk assessment, the critical technique of XDP preparation process was dropping, and then the critical quality attributes of dropping process were pill pass rate, average weight of drop pills and roundness. Then, according to fishbone diagram and failure mode and effects analysis(FMEA), potential critical influencing factors were determined as flow rate, matrix ratio, solid-liquid ratio, feed-liquid temperature, top temperature of condensate, bottom temperature of condensate and dropping distance. Finally, among these seven potential factors, the critical influencing factors were determined as material liquid ratio, dropping distance, top temperature of condensate, bottom temperature of condensate. This study revealed the potential of Plackett-Burman design in screening and understanding the influence of selected factors on XDP dropping process, which could provide a reference for studying the dropping process.

Analysis on population health in Minhang District of Shanghai within circumstance of universal health / 复旦学报（医学版）

Objective To evaluate the population health for disease prevention and control in Shanghai Minhang District of Shanghai the data of mortality from 1993 to 2015 and communicable diseases from 2002 to 2015.Methods We adopted descriptive epidemiological method to analyze the trends of average life expectancy (ALE),specific death rate and causes of death cis-position from 1993 to 2015,and the incident rates of communicable diseases,incidence trends in Minhang District from 2002 to 2015.Results Overall,the ALE of population in Minhang District increased 11.80 years from 1993 to 2015 (from 71.78 years in 1993 to 83.58 years in 2015),including the ALE of male population increased 14.03 years (from 67.43 years in 1993 to 81.37 years in 2015) and the ALE of female population elevated 9.67 years (from 76.22 years in 1993 to 85.89 years in 2015).In 2015,Crude death rate (CDR) was 755.35/105,which was 21.45％ higher than in 1993 and 2.71％ higher than in 2014,respectively.In the same year,standardized mortality rate (SMR) was 196.07/105,which was 54.17％ lower than in 1993 and 0.51％ lower than in 2014.The top five leading causes of death were circulatory system diseases,tumors,respiratory diseases,endocrine and metabolic diseases,and injury and poisoning,which contributed 91.33％ of the population death.From 2002 to 2015,a total of 23 kinds of notifiable infectious diseases were reported in Minhang District,including 62 845 cumulative cases and 152 cases died.The total reported incidence rate of communicable diseases sharply elevated by 291.98％ during 14 years (Z=10 943.83,P＜0.001),and it increased after standardized.The top five communicable diseases were hand foot and mouth disease (HFMD),scarlet fever,syphilis,tuberculosis and hepatitis B in 2015.Conclusions Over the years,Minhang District of Shanghai comprehensive implemented "health in all policies" by integrating the resources of all levels of regional healthcare institutions.The ALE of the residents was at a high level.The control and prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases and major communicable diseases will continue to be the priority of public health.

Analysis on cause of death in residents of Minhang District of Shanghai from 1996 to 2015 / 复旦学报（医学版）

Objective To analyze changes and trends of the mortality and causes of death in the residents of Minhang District of Shanghai from 1996 to 2015.Methods Crude death rates (CDR) and age-standardized death rates (ADR) were calculated,respectively.Joinpoint regression was used to analyze the trends in the leading causes of death.Permutation test was used to find whether the joinpoints were statistically significant based on P value＜0.05.Results The elderly population in Minhang District accounted for 18.07％ of the total population in 2015,which increased by 73.89％ than it in 1996.The CDRs of all causes for resent 20 years gradually increased with the annual percentage change (APC) of 0.62％ (P＜0.05),but decreased significantly after standardization (APC =-3.73％,P＜0.05).In 2015,the top five causes of death were circulatory disease;neoplasms;respiratory disease;endocrine,nutritional and metabolic diseases;injury and poisoning in the total population,males and females registered in Minhang District.ADRs of circulatory disease,neoplasms,respiratory disease and injury and poisoning decreased to-3.16％,-1.86％,-8.03％ and -4.96 ％,respectively (P＜0.05).ADRs of endocrine,nutritional and metabolic diseases significantly increased during 1996 to 2001 (APC=16.58％,P＜0.05) and thereafter remained stable.Conclusions The issue of population aging in Minhang District is getting worse,and chronic non-communicable diseases and injury and poisoning can be identified as major public health concerns at present.

Analysis on population health in Minhang District of Shanghai within circumstance of universal health / 复旦学报（医学版）

Objective To evaluate the population health for disease prevention and control in Shanghai Minhang District of Shanghai the data of mortality from 1993 to 2015 and communicable diseases from 2002 to 2015.Methods We adopted descriptive epidemiological method to analyze the trends of average life expectancy (ALE),specific death rate and causes of death cis-position from 1993 to 2015,and the incident rates of communicable diseases,incidence trends in Minhang District from 2002 to 2015.Results Overall,the ALE of population in Minhang District increased 11.80 years from 1993 to 2015 (from 71.78 years in 1993 to 83.58 years in 2015),including the ALE of male population increased 14.03 years (from 67.43 years in 1993 to 81.37 years in 2015) and the ALE of female population elevated 9.67 years (from 76.22 years in 1993 to 85.89 years in 2015).In 2015,Crude death rate (CDR) was 755.35/105,which was 21.45％ higher than in 1993 and 2.71％ higher than in 2014,respectively.In the same year,standardized mortality rate (SMR) was 196.07/105,which was 54.17％ lower than in 1993 and 0.51％ lower than in 2014.The top five leading causes of death were circulatory system diseases,tumors,respiratory diseases,endocrine and metabolic diseases,and injury and poisoning,which contributed 91.33％ of the population death.From 2002 to 2015,a total of 23 kinds of notifiable infectious diseases were reported in Minhang District,including 62 845 cumulative cases and 152 cases died.The total reported incidence rate of communicable diseases sharply elevated by 291.98％ during 14 years (Z=10 943.83,P＜0.001),and it increased after standardized.The top five communicable diseases were hand foot and mouth disease (HFMD),scarlet fever,syphilis,tuberculosis and hepatitis B in 2015.Conclusions Over the years,Minhang District of Shanghai comprehensive implemented "health in all policies" by integrating the resources of all levels of regional healthcare institutions.The ALE of the residents was at a high level.The control and prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases and major communicable diseases will continue to be the priority of public health.

Analysis on cause of death in residents of Minhang District of Shanghai from 1996 to 2015 / 复旦学报（医学版）

Objective To analyze changes and trends of the mortality and causes of death in the residents of Minhang District of Shanghai from 1996 to 2015.Methods Crude death rates (CDR) and age-standardized death rates (ADR) were calculated,respectively.Joinpoint regression was used to analyze the trends in the leading causes of death.Permutation test was used to find whether the joinpoints were statistically significant based on P value＜0.05.Results The elderly population in Minhang District accounted for 18.07％ of the total population in 2015,which increased by 73.89％ than it in 1996.The CDRs of all causes for resent 20 years gradually increased with the annual percentage change (APC) of 0.62％ (P＜0.05),but decreased significantly after standardization (APC =-3.73％,P＜0.05).In 2015,the top five causes of death were circulatory disease;neoplasms;respiratory disease;endocrine,nutritional and metabolic diseases;injury and poisoning in the total population,males and females registered in Minhang District.ADRs of circulatory disease,neoplasms,respiratory disease and injury and poisoning decreased to-3.16％,-1.86％,-8.03％ and -4.96 ％,respectively (P＜0.05).ADRs of endocrine,nutritional and metabolic diseases significantly increased during 1996 to 2001 (APC=16.58％,P＜0.05) and thereafter remained stable.Conclusions The issue of population aging in Minhang District is getting worse,and chronic non-communicable diseases and injury and poisoning can be identified as major public health concerns at present.

Putrescine Promotes Human Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells to Differentiate along Osteogenic Pathway / 中国实验血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effects of putrescine on the growth and differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) to develop a new inductive medium mixture for their osteogenic differentiation.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Human bone marrow MSC were collected from three healthy donors and were used to observe the growth-promoting activity of putrescine with MTT test. Experiments were divided into 3 groups: (1) putrescine group, (2) positive control group (presence of dexamethasone, ascorbate, and glycerol phosphate) and negative group (d-alpha with 5% FCS). The cellular expression level of Runx-2 was detected by PCR assay after the culture was maintained for 1 week. After 2 weeks, the intracellular activity of alkaline phosphatase was revealed by histochemistry staining, the phosphatase activity, and the protein concentration in the cell lysates were also detected. Furthermore, MSC were cultured in the presence of putrescine for 2 weeks and Oil-red O staining was performed to reveal the differentiated adipocytes; the cells induced by the standard agent cocktail were used as the positive control.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Putrescine promoted the proliferation of human marrow MSC in a dose-dependent manner. MSC exposed to putrescine at a concentration of 100 µmol/L for 1 week expressed greatly higher level of Runx-2, compared with the negative control. Alkaline phosphatase activity was evidently observed after MSC were maintained in the presence of putrescine for 2 weeks. The phosphatase activity contrasted to the protein content in putrescine-treated MSC was significantly higher than that of the control cells (0.87±0.012 vs 0.52±0.010) (P<0.01), and also greatly higher than that of the positive control (0.83±0.029) (P=0.02). Oil red O staining showed that MSC treated by putrescine did not differentiate into adipoblasts.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Putrescine can promote the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of MSC, suggesting the potential application of putrescine as a novel inductive agent for in vitro osteogenesis of MSC.</p>

Progesterone Promotes Human Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells to Synthesize Fibronectin via ERK Pathway / 中国实验血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate whether the progesterone can promote fibronection (FN) synthesis by human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and to explore the potential underlying mechanism.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The human bone marrow MSCs were cultured in a serum-free medium with progesterone for 72 hours, the MTT test was performed to observe the proliferation status and adhension ability of the treated cells. Western blot was used to detect the content of FN in MSDs with GAPDH as the internal reference, the phosphorylation of ERK1/2, as well as the FN content in MSC treated by PD98059, a specific inhibitor of ERK1/2.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The progesterone at a range of certain doses not effect on the proliferation of human bone marrow MSCs. Progesterone (25 µg/L) treatment enhanced the FN expression and adherent ability of marrow MSCs. Progesterone could induce prompt phosphorylation of ERK 1/2 and its promoting effects on FN synthesis was reversed by PD98059.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The progesterone can promote FN synthesis by human bone marrow MSCs via ERK 1/2 pathway, and it might be used to culture MSCs in serum-free medium.</p>

Slowly-adhered primary bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells may exhibit more potent immuno-regulatory activity / 中国实验血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>This study was to investigate the relationship between the adherent ability of freshly isolated MSCs with their inhibitory effect on lymphocyte activation.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Human bone marrow mononucleated cells were maintained in culture for 48 hours, the attached and the non-attached cells were then cultured separately and the adherent cells were collected and passaged. Cellular surface markers were analyzed with flow cytometry. Alkaline phosphatase activity and the intracellular lipid droplets were measured by histological staining, the in vitro osteogenesis and adipogenesis were identified. One-way mixed lymphocyte reaction was used to evaluate the suppressive activity of the adherent cells on lymphocyte proliferation, the prostaglandin E2 level in supernatant of cultured cells was detected by ELISA.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Some cells attached to the plastic after the bone marrow mononucleated cells were allowed to adhere for 48 hours. The slowly-attached cells were fibroblast-like in morphology, homogenously positive for CD44 and CD73 and negative for CD31 and CD45. They could be coaxed into osteoblasts and adipoblasts under the standard inductive conditions. These cells were able to inhibit lymphocyte proliferation in mixed lymphocyte reaction and their effect was more potent than those from the adherent cells appeared within 48 hours. The concentration of prostaglandin E-2 in the supernatants of the slowly-adhered cells was significantly higher than that in the MSCs cultured with the traditional method (90.8 ± 10.37 ng/ml vs 70.2 ± 8.98 ng/ml) (P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The MSCs exist in the marrow mononucleated cells after adherent culture for 48 hours, and the MSCs may exhibit more potently inhibitory activity on lymphocyte activation.</p>

Exploration of conditions for releasing microvesicle from human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells / 中国实验血液学杂志

The release of microvesicles(MV) is one of the critical mechanisms underlying the angiogenesis-promoting activity of mesenchymal stem cells(MSC). This study was aimed to explore the appropriate condition under which MSC releases MV. Bone marrow samples from 5 healthy adults were collected, and MSC were isolated, culture-expanded and identified. MSC at passage 5 were suspended in medium without or medium with 10% fetal(FCS) calf serum and seeded into culture dishes. The culture was separately maintained in hypoxia (1% oxygen) or normoxia (around 20% oxygen), and 20 dishes of cells (2×10(6)/dish) were used for each group. The supernatants were collected for MV harvesting. The cell number was counted with trypan blue exclusion test and the protein contents in the MV were determined. MV were identified by observation under an electron microscope. The surface markers on MV were analyzed by flow cytometry. MTT test was performed to observe the pro-proliferative activity of MV that were added into the culture of human umbilical cord vein endothelial cells at a concentration of 10 µg/ml. The results showed that the majority of MV released by MSC were with diameters of less than 100 nm, and MV took the featured membrane-like structure with a hypodense center. They expressed CD29, CD44, CD73 and CD105, while they were negative for CD31 and CD45. The increase multiples of the adherent trypan blue-resistant cells cultured in normoxia with serum, in normoxia without serum, in hypoxia with serum and hypoxia in the absence of serum were 4.05 ± 0.73, 1.77 ± 0.48, 5.80 ± 0.65 and 3.69 ± 0.85 respectively, and the estimated protein contents per 10(8) cells were 463.48 ± 138.74 µg, 1604.07 ± 445.28 µg, 2389.64 ± 476.75 µg and 3141.18 ± 353.01 µg. MTT test showed that MV collected from MSC in hypoxia seemed to promote the growth of endothelial cells more efficiently than those from cells in normoxia. It is concluded that hypoxia can enhance the release of microvesicles from MSC, and cultivation of MSC in hypoxia and medium without serum may provide an appropriate condition for MV harvesting.