Insight into chemical basis of traditional Chinese medicine based on the state-of-the-art techniques of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been an indispensable source of drugs for curing various human diseases. However, the inherent chemical diversity and complexity of TCM restricted the safety and efficacy of its usage. Over the past few decades, the combination of liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry has contributed greatly to the TCM qualitative analysis. And novel approaches have been continuously introduced to improve the analytical performance, including both the data acquisition methods to generate a large and informative dataset, and the data post-processing tools to extract the structure-related MS information. Furthermore, the fast-developing computer techniques and big data analytics have markedly enriched the data processing tools, bringing benefits of high efficiency and accuracy. To provide an up-to-date review of the latest techniques on the TCM qualitative analysis, multiple data-independent acquisition methods and data-dependent acquisition methods (precursor ion list, dynamic exclusion, mass tag, precursor ion scan, neutral loss scan, and multiple reaction monitoring) and post-processing techniques (mass defect filtering, diagnostic ion filtering, neutral loss filtering, mass spectral trees similarity filter, molecular networking, statistical analysis, database matching, etc.) were summarized and categorized. Applications of each technique and integrated analytical strategies were highlighted, discussion and future perspectives were proposed as well.

Experiencia de trabajo grupal con padres de niños con síndrome de déficit atencional / Experience of therapy group to parents of children with attention deficit disorder

El Programa de Trastornos del Desarrollo del Centro de Salud Mental San Joaquín, de la Universidad Católica en respuesta a las necesidades del grupo consultante y debido a la alta demanda de atención de niños diagnosticados con SDA, decidió diseñar e implementar una intervención para padres, de forma complementaria y paralela al taller en el que participaban sus hijos. Los objetivos de la intervención parental fueron psicoeducar respecto a la comprensión del trastorno y desarrollar estrategias de manejo, y a su vez, favorecer la adherencia y el compromiso con el tratamiento de sus hijos. Esta experiencia se realizó los años 2007 y 2008, mediante seis sesiones teórico-prácticas, las que revelaron escasa delimitación entre el sistema parental y el filial, dificultad en el desarrollo de la autonomía, inquietudes respecto del rol de padres y sentimiento de exclusión respecto del tratamiento de su hijo. A partir de esta intervención se evidenció una disminución en la sensación de exclusión de los padres, además permitió una mejor elaboración del diagnóstico y optimizó el tiempo de atención respecto de las consultas individuales.

The Developmental Disorders Program mental health center San Joaquin, of the Catholic University of Chile, due to its high demand of attention for patiens with DDA, decided to design and implement a workshop for parents with children with Deficit Disorder Attention (DDA), as a complement estrategy of intervention to the workshop in wich their children participate.The objectives of the parental intervention were educated in psychological subjets, regarding the understanding of their children´s disorder and the development of management strategies, and in turn, promote adherence and commitment to the treatment of their children. This experiment was conducted in the years 2007 and 2008, through six theoretical and practical sessions, which revealed little distinction between the parental and the filial system, difficulties in the development of autonomy, concerns about the parenting role and feelings of exclusion from the treatment of their son. This intervention promoted a decrease in the sense of exclusion of parents also enabled better diagnosis and development of optimized on-call time for individual consultations.

Effects of DDA, CpG-ODN, and plasmid-encoded chicken IFN-gamma on protective immunity by a DNA vaccine against IBDV in chickens

This study examined the adjuvant effects of dimethyl dioctadecyl ammonium bromide (DDA), CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODN), and chicken interferon-gamma (ChIFN-gamma) on a DNA vaccine (pcDNA-VP243) against the infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV). A plasmid encoding chicken IFN-atilde was constructed. Twice at 2-week intervals, twoweek-old chickens were injected intramuscularly and intraperitoneally with either a DNA vaccine alone or a DNA vaccine together with the respective adjuvants. On week 2 after the second immunization, the chickens were orally challenged with the highly virulent IBDV. The groups that received the DNA vaccines plus either DDA or CpG-ODN showed significantly lower survival rates than the group that received the DNA vaccine alone. However, the survival rates for the DNA vaccine alone and for the DNA vaccine plus ChIFN-gamma were similar. The chickens had no detectable antibodies to the IBDV before the challenge but all the surviving chickens in all groups except for the normal control group showed the induction of antibodies to the IBDV at day 10 after the challenge. As judged by the lymphocyte proliferation assays using the a WST-8 solution performed on the peripheral blood and splenic lymphocytes, the stimulation indices (SI) of the peripheral blood lymphocytes in all groups except for the normal control group were similar immediately before the challenge. At 10 days post-challenge, the SI for DNA vaccine plus either CpG-ODN or ChIFN-gamma was similar to that of the DNA vaccine control group. For splenic lymphocytes, the SI in the DNA vaccine plus CpG-ODN and DNA vaccine plus ChIFN-gamma groups were higher than for the DNA vaccine control. These results suggest that DDA actually compromises the protection against the IBDV by DNA vaccine, and CpG-ODN and IFN-gamma had no significant effect.

WTO DDA and Negotiations on Healthcare Servics

The multilateral trading system embodied in the World Trade Organization has contributed significantly to economic growth, development and employment throughout the past fifty years. We are determined, particularly in the light of the global economic slowdown, to maintain the process of reform and liberalization of trade policies, thus ensuring that the system plays its full part in promoting recovery, growth, and development. The negotiations on trade in services shall be conducted with a view to promoting the economic growth of all trading partners and the development of developing and least-developed countries. The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) is among the World Trade Organization's most important agreements. The accord, which came into force in January 1995, is the first and only set of multilateral rules covering international trade in services. Ig has been negotiated by the Governments themselves, and it sets the framework within which firms and individuals can operate. The GATS has two part: the framework agreement containing the general rules and disciplines ; and the notional "schedules" which list individual countries' specific commitments on access to their domestic markets by foreign suppliers. Each WTO Member lists in its national schedule those services for which it wishes to guarantee access to foreign suppliers. All commitments apply on a non-discriminatory basis to all other Members. There is complete freedom to choose which services to commit. In addition to the services committed, the schedules limit the degree to which foreign services providers can operate in the market. For example, a country making a commitment to allow foreign banks to operate in its territory may limit the number of banking licenses to be granted (a market access limitation). It might also fix a limit on the number of branches a foreign bank may open (a national treatment limitation). The GATS covers all internationally-traded services with two exception : services provided to the public in the exercise of governmental authority, and , in the air transport sector, traffic rights and all services directly related to the exercise of traffic rights and all services directly related to the exercise of traffic rights. The GATS also defines four ways in which a service can be traded, known as "modes of supply" Services supplied from one country to another (e.g international telephone calls), officially known as "cross-border supply"; Consumers from one country making use of a service in another country(e.g tourism), officially known as "consumption abroad"; A company from ton country setting up subsidiaries or branches to provide services in another country (e.g a bank from one country setting up operations in another country), officially known as "commercial presence" ; and Individuals travelling from their own country to supply services in another (e.g an actress or construction worker), officially known as "movement of natural persons". Trade liberalization, and even economic growth, are not the ends in themselves. The ultimate aim of Government is to promote human welfare in the broadest sense, and trade policy is only one of many instruments Governments use in pursuing this goal. But trade policy is nevertheless very important, both in promoting growth and in preventing conflict. The building of the multilateral trading system over teh past 50 years has been one of the most remarkable achievements of international cooperation in history. The system is certainly imperfect, which is one of the reasons why periodic negotiations are necessary, but the world would be a far poorer and more dangerous place without it. In January 2000, WTO Member Governments started a new round of negotiations to promote the progressive liberalization of trade in services. The GATS agreement specifically states that the negotiations "shall take place with a view to promoting the interests of all participants on a mutually advantageous basis" and "with due respect for national policy objectives and the level of development of individual Members". The pace and extent of these negotiations are set by the WTO's 140 Member Goverments themselves according to their different national policy priorities. Recently, however, the negotiations and the GATS itself have become the subject of ill-informed and hostile criticism. Scare stories are invented and unquestioningly repeated, however implausible. It is claimed for example that the right to maintain public services and the power to enforce health and safty standards are under threat, though both are explicitly safeguarded under the GATS. How have serious people come to believe what is, on the face of it, out of the question? Why should any Government, let alone 140 Governments, agrees to allow themselves to be forced, or force each toher, to surrender of compromise powers which are important to them, and to all of us? Decision-making in open societies presupposes informed public discussion. It must be based on fact rather than fiction. The purpose of this booklet is to contribute to this discussion and to a greater public understanding of the GATS by correcting statements made in some recent publication which we believe are misleading the public and undermining support for international economic cooperation. It must not be assumed that becuase we have disputed some allegations we accept that others are well-founded: these are merely examples.

WTO DDA and lssues on Healthcare Services

The GATS is the first and only set of multilateral rules and commitment covering Government measures which affect trade in services. It has two parts-the framework agreement containing the rules, and the national schedules of commitments through which each Member specifies the degree of access and is prepared for foreign service suppliers. The GATS covers all services with two exceptions, i.e., services provided in the exercise of governmental authority and , in the air transport sector, air traffic rights and all services directly related to the exercise of traffic rights. Notwithstanding this very broad scope, the agreement and the negotiations taking place under it are one of the least controversial areas of the current work in the WTO. This is because of its remarkable flexibility, which allows Governments, to a very great extent, to determine the level of obligations they will assume. There are four main elements of flexibility: Member Governments choose those service sectors or subsectors on which they will make commitments guaranteeing the right of foreign suppliers to provide the service. Each Member must have a schedule of commitments, but there is no minimum requirement as to its coverage and some cover only a small part of one sector; For those services that are committed, Governments may set limitations specifying the level of market access and the degree of national treatment they are prepared to guarantee; Governments were able to limit commitments to one or more of the four re cognized "modes of supply" through which services are traded. They may also withdraw and renegotiate commitments ; In order to provide more favorable treatment to certain trading partners, Governments may take exemption, in principle limited to a 10 years’ duration, from the MFN principle, which is otherwise applicable to all services, whether scheduled or not. The agreement contains a number of general obligations applicable to all services, the most important of which is the MFN rule. But apart from these, each Member defines its own obligations through the commitments undertaken in its schedule. Because it is a basic principle of the agreement that developing countries are expected to liberalize fewer sectors and types of transactions, in line with their development situation, the commitments of developing countries are in general less extensive than those of more industrialized countries. It was this flexibility in the scheduling of commitments which put an end to the north-south controversy over services which marked the early years of th e Uruguay Round. So far, South Korea has been asked by 14 economies, including the U.S., EU, and China, to open its services market wider. According to the initial requests submitted to the World Trade Organization (WTO), these countries urged Seoul to grant greater access to the domestic medical treatment, legal services, education, finance, and distribution markets. The ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MOFAT) plans to hold a related ministerial meeting today and roll out countermeasures by next March for follow-up negotiations with the nations concerned. In the initial requests, Korean newspapers reported that the U.S has demanded Seoul guarantee full access to the medical service markets and provide the same business conditions for American companies as local ones. This was, however, denied by the Korean government, while it accepted that fact that the China also called for the removal of barriers in the herbal medicine market as well as in the education. The WTO member economies have submitted initial requests for follow-up negotiations by sector to the new round of WTO talks in November last year. Thereafter, South Korea is required to come up with a response by next March to resolve the issues by the end of 2004. An agreement with the 14 countries should take effect from January 2005.

Progress of WTO Negotiation and KMA's Countermeasures

Although the issue on trade in professional services has been mentioned as one of the built-in agendas since 1995, the Ministry of Health and Welfare(MOHW) formed the committee on WTO DDA(New Development Agenda in Doha) last November and there is no countermeasure on a government level by the time. The Korean Medical Association(KMA) has been formed the WTO DDA committee composed of standing directors and experts on this last January and actively working at present. Last April, the WTO DDA Joing Committee of Associations of Healthcare Sectors has been established by six associations, such as the Korean Medical Association(KMA), the Korean Dental Association(KDA), the Association Korean Oriental Medicine(AKOM), the Korean Nurses Association(KNA), the Korean Hospital Association(KHA), the Korean Dental Hospital Association(KDHA), and they have closely collaborated. The WTO DDA Committee of KMA has submitted the request list to the government last May on the basis of results of four times meetings for special lectures and discussion, three times surveys, and the research paper. The request list of KMA includes the contents of mode 2(consumption abroad) and 4(presence of natural persons). For the mode 3(commercial presence), it is suspended because it is related with the permission of profit-making corporation on healthcare sector which is prohibited at present. The government announced 19 countries has submitted the request list to Korea as of august 1 and among them, the healthcare relevant requests are from China and Poland. Especially China is requesting as a whole, including the education sector on oriental medicine. On this point, the main subjects which the KMA should established its position urgently are the issues regarding the permission of profit-making corporation and who should give and manage the medical license. For this, the KMA will continue to collect and analyze the relevant information and will relay these information to the members.