ABSTRACT
Fan Hong Hua ( saffron) is a natural product that has long been used in food and dye industries and fortreating various disorders. Saffron has a long history of applications in traditional Chinese medicine, following its introduction to China in 1979. According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, saffron is sweet, slightly cold in nature and enters heart and liver meridians. Moreover, this spice can invigorate blood circulation, eliminate blood stasis, cool blood and eliminate heat toxins. Saffron has been used to treat asthma, phlegm, insomnia, Alzheimer's disease, depression, fright, shock, hemoptysis, heartburn, and pain. Among the almost 70 bioactive ingredients of saffron, major constituents of this herb include safranal, crocin, and crocetin, which are responsible for the unique taste and color of saffron. These ingredients have been investigated using modern pharmaceutical research methods as potential therapeutics to treat disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, digestive system disorders, ocular issues, and COVID-19 infections. However, focus and emphasis on understanding the pharmacological effects of saffron in treating diseases are required. This article briefly reviews the history, cultivation processes, different qualities properties, and traditional and modern applications of this unique herb. © 2022 Chinese Medicine and Culture. All right reserved.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic imposes a severe challenge to the health care providers and patients in dental clinics as the dental procedures produce abundant airborne materials. Although dental practices use a multi-layered protective procedure to reduce the potential danger from dental aerosols, it is still beneficial to suppress the aerosol generation from the origin as much as possible. Reducing the aerosol generation (especially the droplets of smaller diameters) from the very beginning will ease the burden on all subsequent layers of protection. In this work, we first provide a relatively complete picture of the structure of the spray produced by the air turbine handpiece. We found that the spray consists of two domains: one is the canopy shaped centrifugal zone and the other is a dense ballistic spray core. The droplets from the centrifugal zone are much smaller than those of the spray core and, hence, are more prone to stay in the air. The location of the centrifugal zone also makes it more challenging to be contained by the mouth or rubber dam. To suppress the atomization of the centrifugal zone, we used the food-additive carboxymethylcellulose sodium (CMC-Na) water solutions of different concentrations. The data show that the viscoelastic property of the 0.5 wt. % CMC-Na water solution can effectively suppress the aerosol generation of the centrifugal zone. (C) 2022 Author(s).