Personal Recovery and Its Determinants Among People Living With Schizophrenia in China.

Objective: The past few decades have seen an evolution in the understanding of recovery from a clinical-based view that focuses on symptoms and functioning to a more consumer-oriented perspective that focuses on personal recovery. The present study aimed to assess personal recovery among people living with schizophrenia and determine its predictors. Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited a random sample of 400 people living with schizophrenia (PLS) from twelve community health centers of Hunan, China. Recovery was assessed using the short-form 8-item Recovery Assessment Scale (RAS-8). PLS disability and functioning were assessed using the 12-item World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0) and the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF), respectively. Results: Participants had a mean personal recovery score of 20.29 (SD: 9.31, Range: 8-40). Personal recovery was predicted by both socio-demographic and clinical characteristics. Older age (r = -0.17, p < 0.001), being female (r = -2.29, p = 0.019), and higher disability (r = -0.22, p < 0.001) were independently associated with worse personal recovery, while having a college education (r = 5.49, p = 0.002), and higher functioning (r = 0.09, p = 0.017) were independently associated with better personal recovery. Conclusion: Interventions to improve recovery among PLS may be best served by reducing the impact of disability and improving functioning, with targeted interventions for individuals who are older, female and less educated in order to increase their likelihood of recovery.

Fengbaisan suppresses endoplasmic reticulum stress by up-regulating SIRT1 expression to protect rats with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases.

CONTEXT: Our previous study found that Fengbaisan improved chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). OBJECTIVE: To elucidate the mechanism of Fengbaisan in COPD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Rats in Model, FBS, FBS + DMSO and FBS + EX527 groups received cigarette smoke extract (CSE) inhalation and intratracheal instillation of lipopolysaccharide to establish COPD model. Normal group received room air and normal saline. The COPD rats were given Fengbaisan (1 mL/d) or combined with EX527 (5 mg/kg/2 d) by intraperitoneal injection. Human lung carcinoma (A549) cells were treated with 10% CSE, 10% serum-containing Fengbaisan or EX527. We observed lung percentage of forced expiratory volume in first 0.3 sec to forced vital capacity (FEV0.3/FVC), inspiratory resistance (RI) and lung dynamic compliance (Cdyn) of rats. The lung pathological changes, the number of inflammatory cells and neutrophils, inflammatory factor, apoptosis, gene and protein expression were examined. RESULTS: SIRT1 was downregulated in lung tissues of COPD rats and CSE-induced A549 cells. Fengbaisan enhanced FEV0.3/FVC (74.28%) and Cdyn (0.28 cm H2O/mL/s), and reduced RI (0.48 mL/cm H2O) of COPD rats. Moreover, Fengbaisan promoted SIRT1 expression, and repressed TIMP-1/MMP-9 expression. Fengbaisan enhanced apoptosis and the expression of GRP78, caspase-12 and caspase-3. The inflammatory factor levels, the number of inflammatory cells and neutrophils, and lung lesions were inhibited by Fengbaisan in COPD rats. The influence conferred by Fengbaisan was abolished by EX527. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Fengbaisan inhibits endoplasmic reticulum stress and inflammation reaction by up-regulating SIRT1 expression to improve COPD. Therefore, Fengbaisan may be an effective Chinese medicine for treating COPD.

[Convertibility of the data determined by ICP-AES and FAAS for soil available K and Na].

In recent years, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) have been commonly used to determine the soil available K and Na with the extraction solution of HCl-H2SO4, while previous data of soil available K and Na were measured by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) with the extraction solution of NH4OAc. In order to utilize previous data, quest for the convertibility of the data determined by ICP-AES and FAAS, and compare the data determined by both methods, the authors chose four types of soil to determine soil available K and Na by ICP-AES and FAAS, respectively. Four types of soil represent grit soil, clay, silt from river and silt from sea, respectively. Soil samples included four types of soil and these samples represent different soil nutrition. The authors analyzed the correlations of two kinds of measured data. The paired samples t-test proves that there was significantly positively correlation between these two methods. The correlation coefficient of the data between these two methods for measuring soil available K is 0.98. The results of soil available K determined by the two methods can be conversed through the formula, y = l.14x + 6.53 (R2 = 0.91, n=24, p < 0.001). As for Na, although there is a significantly positively correlation between these two methods, the slopes of single model of clay and grit soil were different from that of general model. And so the results determined by the two methods can be conversed through different formula according to the types of soil, that is, for clay: y = l.23x + 10.03; for grit soil: y = 3.12x - 23.03; for silt: y = 0.60x. In conclusion, the authors' results showed that previous data of available K and Na measured by FAAS with the extraction solution of NH4OAc were available. And these data were comparable to the data measured by ICP-AES through definite formula The authors' results also suggested that ICP-AES was preferable when many elements were measured at the same time. Under this condition, ICP-AES was economical, efficient and reliable.