Impact of premature rupture of membranes on clinical outcomes of extremely premature infants: A propensity score matching study.

Background: Premature rupture of membranes (PROM) is a common cause of extremely premature infants (EPIs) and also leads to adverse preterm complications. However, the effect of PROM on EPIs remains contradictory. This study used propensity score matching (PSM) to adjust the baseline characteristics to explore the impact of PROM on clinical outcomes of extremely premature infants (EPIs). Methods: Medical data of 470 EPIs at gestational age < 28weeks who received prenatal examination in our hospital between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2020 were analyzed retrospectively. According to the presence or absence of PROM, they were divided into a PROM group and a non-PROM group. Ten covariates including birth weight, male sex, artificial conception, cesarean delivery, 5-min Apgar score ≤ 7, oligohydramnios, gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, antenatal steroid use, and complete steroid treatment were matched 1:1 by PSM. The major complication occurrence and mortality during hospitalization were compared between the two groups by t-test, nonparametric test or x 2 test. Results: Among the 470 infants enrolled, 157 (33.4%) were in the PROM group and 313 in the no-PROM group. After matching the ten confounding factors,276 cases were successfully enrolled. The incidence of early pulmonary hypertension (EPH) and severe retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in the PROM group were higher than those in the no-PROM group [44.2% (61/138) vs. 29.0% (40/138); 34.8% (48/138) vs. 21.7% (30/138), x 2 = 6.886 and 5.790, both P < 0.05]. However, there was no significant difference in the in-hospital mortality and the incidence of other major complications between the two groups (all P > 0.05). Conclusions: PROM increased the incidence of EPH and severe ROP in EPI, but had no significant impact on in-hospital mortality, length of hospital stay, and the incidence of other complications.

[Research Progress of SOA Formation from Anthropogenic VOCs Under Complex Pollution Condition].

Although the air quality in China has been greatly improved in recent years, the air pollution remains severe. The annual mean PM2.5 concentrations have not met the second grade of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards in China and are still much higher than the guideline value of the World Health Organization. Thus, the PM2.5 concentration needs to be further reduced. Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) is an important component of PM2.5 and has an important impact on air quality, global climate change, and human health. Therefore, understanding the formation mechanism of SOA is an important basis to control SOA and further reduce PM2.5. As an important precursor of SOA, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can be oxidized by oxidants such as ·OH, NO3[KG-*2/3]·, Cl·, and O3 to generate low volatile organic compounds and further to form SOA through gas-particle partitioning, homogeneous nucleation, aqueous phase reaction, and heterogeneous reaction processes. The formation of SOA can be affected by many factors, such as the types and initial concentrations of VOCs, VOCs/NOx ratios, relative humidity (RH), temperature (T), seed aerosols, oxidants, aqueous phase process, and photochemical process. The observed SOA concentration is always underestimated by air quality models because a comprehensive understanding of the complexity of SOA chemical composition and formation mechanisms is still lacking, especially that under the highly complex air pollution conditions in China. Therefore, the formation mechanism and influencing factors of SOA under highly complex air pollution conditions have become an important concern in the field of atmospheric sciences. Recently, much laboratory work has focused on the formation of SOA under complex conditions. The research progress of SOA formation from different anthropogenic VOCs are reviewed here, and the methods used and the impact of different influencing factors on SOA formation are introduced. Finally, the key scientific issues that exist in the research of the SOA mechanism at present are put forward, and the future research direction is projected.

[Sewage sludge conditioning by bioleaching combined with Fenton-like oxidation].

Bioleaching combined with Fenton-like oxidation was used to condition sewage sludge. The results showed that it took approximately 1 d to decrease pH from 6.9 to 2.5 by bioleaching, with fixed sulfur power and FeSO4 x 7H2O dosages of 3 g x L(-1) and 8 g x L(-1), respectively. After bioleaching, the volatile solids(VS) reduction was 13.4%, and the specific resistance to filtration(SRF) dropped from 3.1 x 10(9)s2 x g(-1) to 1.5 x 10(9)s2 x g(-1) with a reduction of 51.6%, but the bioleached sludge was still difficult to be dewatered. The bioleached sludge was further oxidized by Fenton-like oxidation. The results indicated that the optimal H2O2 dosage and reaction time were 3.3 g x L(-1) and 60 min, respectively. Under the optimal conditions, VS reduction was 30.8%, SRF was declined to 1.9 x 10(8) s2 x g(-1) with a reduction of 93.9%, and the moisture of sludge cake was 76.9%. After treated by bioleaching combined with Fenton-like oxidation, the dewaterability and stability of sewage sludge were significantly improved. Besides, the combined technology was more efficient in conditioning sewage sludge than single Fenton-like oxidation.

Products and kinetics of the heterogeneous reaction of particulate ametryn with NO3 radicals.

As a renowned s-triazine herbicide, ametryn is worldwide emitted into the atmosphere in both gaseous and particulate phases via spray drifts from treatments and post application emissions, but its chemical degradation in the atmosphere has not been well characterized. In this study, the heterogeneous kinetics of particulate ametryn with NO3 radicals were investigated with a mixed-phase relative rate method. A vacuum ultraviolet photoionization aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (VUV-ATOFMS) and an atmospheric gas analysis mass spectrometer were synchronously used to online monitor the decays of particulate ametryn and gas-phase isoprene. The reactive uptake coefficient of NO3 radicals on ametryn particles was calculated to be 2.9 × 10(-2), according to the measured ametryn loss ratio and the average NO3 concentration. The effective rate constant for the heterogeneous reaction of particulate ametryn with NO3 radicals measured under experimental conditions was 8.4 × 10(-13) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1). In addition, atraton, ametryn sulfoxide and ametryn sulfone were identified as the reaction products by gas-chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. The experimental results might shed light on the chemical behavior of atmospheric ametryn at night-time.

[Effect of Erigeron Breviscapus on the expression of OPG/RANKL/RANK in osteoblasts and pre-osteoclasts in vitro].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of Erigeron Breviscapus (EB) at different concentrations and different intervention time points on the mRNA and protein expression of OPG/RANKL/RANK in MG63 osteoblast-like cells and RAW264. 7 pre-osteoclast cells cultured in vitro, thus exploring roles EB played in bone rebuilding and its mechanisms. METHODS: MG63 osteoblast-like cells and RAW264.7 pre-osteoclast cells were cultured in vitro. The 3rd passage cells were divided into the control group and different experimental groups. Total RNA and protein were respectively isolated from cells treated with different concentrations of EB (0, 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, and 1.0 mg/mL) for 48 h. Meanwhile, the protein was extracted from 0 and 1 mg/mL EB groups at 12, 24, and 48 h respectively. Expression of OPG mRNA and RANKL mRNA in MG63 osteoblast-like cells, and expression of RANK mRNA in RAW264.7 pre-osteoclast cells were detected by semi-quantitative RT-PCR. Expression of OPG protein and RANKL protein in MG63 osteoblast-like cells, and expression of RANK protein in RAW264. 7 pre-osteoclast cells were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: Along with increased EB concentration, expression of OPG mRNA and protein in MG63 osteoblast-like cells was gradually lowered (P < 0.05) after 48-h intervention of EB, the expression of RANKL mRNA and protein in MG63 osteoblast-like gradually increased (P < 0.05); the expression of RANK mRNA in RAW264.7 pre-osteoclast cells increased (P < 0.05). But the expression of RANK mRNA was slightly lower in the 0.1 mg/mL EB group than in the 0.01 mg/mL EB group, and the expression of RANK protein in RAW264.7 pre-osteoclast cells gradually increased (P < 0.05). After treatment with 1 mg/mL EB for 12, 24, 48 h, the expression of OPG protein in MG63 osteoblast-like cells gradually decreased as time went by (P < 0.05), and the expression of RANKL protein in MG63 osteoblast-like and RANK protein in RAW264.7 pre-osteoclast cells gradually increased (P < 0.05). The expression of RANKL protein in RAW264.7 pre-osteoclast cells increased as time went by (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: EB could inhibit the expression of OPG in osteoblasts in a dose- and time-dependent manner, promote the expression of RANKL in osteoblasts and the secretion of RANK in pre-osteoclast, indicating EB might play roles in promoting bone resorption.

[Sewage sludge conditioning by bioleaching-dual PAC and PAM addition].

Bioleaching-dual polyaluminum chloride (PAC) and polyacrylamide (PAM) addition was used to condition sewage sludge. The results showed that FeSO4 x 7H2O addition improved the bioleaching rate obviously with a fixed sulfur power dosage of 3 g x L(-1); when the FeSO4 x 7H2O dosage was 8 g x L(-1), the bioleaching lasted 1.5 d to decrease the sludge pH below 2. Bioleaching improved the sludge dewaterability significantly with a specific resistance to filtration (SRF) reduction of 77.52% from 6.45 x 10(10)s2 x g(-10 to 1.45 x 10(10)s2 x g(-1), but the bioleached sludge was still difficult to be dewatered. After adjusting the bioleached sludge pH to 6, PAC and PAM were used to enhance conditioning of the bioleached sludge. The results indicated that the optimal dosage was 200 mg x L(-1) for PAC or 50 mg x L(-1) for PAM when single chemical was used. When PAC and PAM were dually used, the optimal dosages of PAC and PAM were 100 mg x L(-1) and 25 mg x L(-1), respectively; SRF and moisture of sludge cake reduced to 2.02 x 10(8) s2 x g(-1) and 74.81%, respectively, showing good dewaterability of the treated sludge. Compared with the single use of PAC and PAM, the dual use of PAC and PAM showed the advantages of lower cost and better conditioning effect.

Very high frequency (beyond 100 MHz) PZT kerfless linear arrays.

This paper presents the design, fabrication, and measurements of very high frequency kerfless linear arrays prepared from PZT film and PZT bulk material. A 12-microm PZT thick film fabricated from PZT-5H powder/solution composite and a piece of 15-microm PZT-5H sheet were used to fabricate 32-element kerfless high-frequency linear arrays with photolithography. The PZT thick film was prepared by spin-coating of PZT sol-gel composite solution. The thin PZT-5H sheet sample was prepared by lapping a PZT-5H ceramic with a precision lapping machine. The measured results of the 2 arrays were compared. The PZT film array had a center frequency of 120 MHz, a bandwidth of 60% with a parylene matching layer, and an insertion loss of 41 dB. The PZT ceramic sheet array was found to have a center frequency of 128 MHz with a poorer bandwidth (40% with a parylene matching layer) but a better sensitivity (28 dB insertion loss).

[Effect of erigeron breviscapus on the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in the periodontal tissues of rabbits during orthodontic tooth movement].

OBJECTIVE: To detect the effect of erigeron breviscapus on the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the periodontal tissues during orthodontic tooth movement. METHODS: 45 rabbits were divided into 3 groups (groups A, B and C). Groups A and B included experimental group of 1, 3, 7 and 14 days respectively. The mandibular first molar of each experimental rabbit was observed. The rabbits of group A and group B received iontophoresis with erigeron breviscapus into the right (group A-R and group B-R) and with normal sodium into the left as the control (group A-L and group B-L). Additionally, the rabbits of group B were designed orthodontic appliance, by which 0.78 N mesial force was applied to pull the mandibular first molars. Group C, group of 0 day, was no iontophoresis and orthodontic appliance as the control. After killed on schedule, the amount of experimental tooth movement was measured and the expression of VEGF was examined by immunohistochemical method. RESULTS: The amount of experimental tooth movement increased successively from 1 to 14 days. The differences among days 3, 7 and 14 were significant in the comparison between group B-R and group B -L (P < 0.01). The expression of VEGF in groups A-R and B-L enhanced apparently compared with that in groups C and A-L (P < 0.01), but that in group B-R was the most apparent (P < 0.01). The expression of VEGF reached the peak level on day 3 in groups A-R and B-R (P < 0.01), but it reached the peak level on day 7 in group B-L (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Erigeron breviscapus by iontophoresis can accelerate orthodontic tooth movement, and can meanwhile up-regulate the expression of VEGF in periodontium in the earlier period of orthodontic tooth movement. Thus it can be presumed that one of its mechanisms for erigeron breviscapus to accelerate orthodontic tooth movement is erigeron breviscapus effects the metabolism and differentiation of osteoblast and osteoclast through up-regulating the expression of VEGF in periodontium.