Coupled controls of the infiltration of rivers, urban activities and carbonate on trace elements in a karst groundwater system from Guiyang, Southwest China.

Hydrogeochemical processes of trace elements (TEs) are of considerable significance to river water and groundwater resource assessment and utilization in the karst region. Therefore, seven TEs were analyzed to investigate their contents, spatial variations, sources, and controlling factors in Guiyang, a typical karst urban area in southwest China. The results showed that the average content of TEs in river water (e.g., As = 1.44 ± 0.47 µg/L andCo = 0.15 ± 0.06 µg/L) was higher than that of groundwater (e.g., As = 0.51 ± 0.42 µg/L andCo = 0.09 ± 0.05 µg/L). The types of groundwater samples were dominated by Ca/Mg-HCO3 and Ca/Mg-Cl types, while those of the river water samples were Ca-Cl and Ca/Mg-Cl types. Principal component analysis (PCA) and correlation analysis (CA) analyses indicated that As and Mn in the groundwater of the study area were related to river infiltration. The end-member analysis further revealed that river infiltration (As = 0.86-1.81 µg/L, Cl/SO42- = 0.62-0.89) and urban activities (As = 0.21-0.32 µg/L, Cl/SO42- = 0.51-0.89) were two main controlling factors of TEs (e.g., As, Co, and Mn) in the study area. In addition, the ion ratios in river and groundwater samples indicated that the weathering of carbonates was also an important control on the hydrogeochemistry of TEs (e.g., Fe and Mn) in Guiyang waters. This study showed that the trace element (TE) contents of groundwater in the Guiyang area were greatly associated with urban input and river recharge, and provided a new perspective for understanding the geochemical behavior of TEs in urban surface and groundwater bodies, which will help the protection of groundwater in the karst areas of southwest China.

Distribution, source, water quality and health risk assessment of dissolved heavy metals in major rivers in Wuhan, China.

Heavy metals are released into the water system through various natural processes and anthropogenic activities, thus indirectly or directly endangering human health. The distribution, source, water quality and health risk assessment of dissolved heavy metals (V, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Zn, As, Mo, Sb) in major rivers in Wuhan were analyzed by correlation analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA), heavy metal pollution index (HPI), hazard index (HI) and carcinogenic risk (CR). The results showed that the spatial variability of heavy metal contents was pronounced. PCA and CA results indicated that natural sources controlled Mn, Fe, Co, Ni and Mo, and industrial emissions were the dominant factor for V, Zn and Sb, while As was mainly from the mixed input of urban and agricultural activities. According to the heavy metal pollution index (HPI, ranging from 23.74 to 184.0) analysis, it should be noted that As and Sb contribute most of the HPI values. The health risk assessment using HI and CR showed that V and Sb might have a potential non-carcinogenic risk and As might have a potential carcinogenic risk to adults and children in the study area (CR value exceeded target risk 10-4). At the same time, it was worth noting that As might have a potential non-carcinogenic risk for children around QLR (HI value exceeded the threshold value 1). The secular variation of As and Sb should be monitor in high-risk areas. The results of this study can provide important data for improving water resources management efficiency and heavy metal pollution prevention in Wuhan.

The effects of wenxin keli on left ventricular ejection fraction and brain natriuretic Peptide in patients with heart failure: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Objective. To evaluate the beneficial and adverse effects of Wenxin Keli (WXKL), either alone or in combination with Western medicine, on the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) in the treatment of heart failure (HF). Methods. Seven major electronic databases were searched to retrieve potential randomized controlled trials (RCTs) designed to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of WXKL, either alone or in combination with Western medicine, for HF, with the LVEF or BNP after eight weeks of treatment as main outcome measures. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed using criteria from the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Review of Interventions, Version 5.1.0, and analyzed using RevMan 5.1.0 software. Results. Eleven RCTs of WXKL were included. The methodological quality of the trials was generally evaluated as low. The risk of bias was high. The results of the meta-analysis showed that WXKL, either alone or in combination with Western medicine, was more effective in LVEF and BNP, compared with no medicine or Western medicine alone, in patients with HF or HF complicated by other diseases. Five of the trials reported adverse events, while the others did not mention them, indicating that the safety of WXKL remains uncertain. Conclusions. WXKL, either alone or in combination with Western medicine, appears to be more effective in improving the LVEF and BNP in patients with HF and HF complications.