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Gel mixtures play an important role in food processing. We investigated the interactions among three polysaccharides, konjac glucomannan (KGM), κ-carrageenan (κCG), and modified corn starch (MCS), by applying central composite design of response surface methodology to model and optimize the weighted value (WV) for water holding capacity (WHC), hardness (H), and springiness (S) of gelation. Using statistical analysis, we determined the optimum gel mixture formulation as 6 g κCG, 8 g KGM, and 9 g MCS, with a maximum WV of 0.945. The order of influence of the three polysaccharides on the gel properties of the mixture was κCG > MCS > KGM. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that KGM and κCG formed a spiral structure with the gaps filled with MCS; the three polysaccharides formed a closely networked structure. Our results demonstrated that optimizing gel mixture using response surface methodology is effective, particularly, where high-quality gel mixture is required.

Background: The order of clinical symptoms of POEMS syndrome is different, and the first diagnosis department is different accordingly, which is easy to cause misdiagnosis by clinicians., Methods: A retrospective study was conducted between 2019 and 2023 in West China Hospital. Demographic, clinical and laboratory test indicators data were collected., Results: Out of a total of 48 patients, 32 patients were from outpatient clinics and 16 were inpatients. The median age was 51 years old, and 30 were male. The most prevalent initial symptom is polyneuropathy (77.1%). 22 out of the 48 patients had an elevated VEGF. The most prevalent serum M protein was lgA λ(54.2%), and one patient had no M protein which could be regarded as the atypical POEMS syndrome., Conclusions: At present, the diagnosis of POEMS syndrome is based on the combination of clinical manifestations and laboratory tests. Emphasizing pluralism is of great significance for the diagnosis of this disease., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U.)

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) has the close relation to thyroid dysfunction and these two diseases lead to poor cardiovascular outcomes. But the prognostic value of thyroid diseases in AF remains unclear. We aimed to determine whether history of thyroid diseases is associated with risk of in-hospital cardiovascular outcomes in AF., Methods: Based on the data from the CCC-AF (Improving Care for Cardiovascular Diseases in China-Atrial Fibrillation) project, 31,486 inpatients with a definitive diagnosis of AF and record of history of thyroid diseases were included. Logistic regression analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between history of thyroid diseases and risk of in-hospital major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in AF., Results: Among AF patients, 503 (1.6%) had a history of hypothyroidism, 642 (2.0%) had a history of hyperthyroidism and 30,341 (96.4%) had no thyroid dysfunction. During this hospitalization, 5146 (16.3%) AF patients suffered from MACE. The incidence was 13.1% in hypothyroidism, 16.3% in euthyroidism and 19.0% in hyperthyroidism, in which there was a significant difference among three groups (p=0.028). Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that history of hypothyroidism decreased but history of hyperthyroidism increased the risk of in-hospital MACE in AF patients (adjusted odds ratio [OR]=0.603; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.449-0.811; p=0.001 versus adjusted OR=1.327; 95% CI, 1.060-1.661; p=0.013)., Conclusion: History of hypothyroidism was an independent protective factor, whereas history of hyperthyroidism was an independent risk factor for in-hospital cardiovascular outcomes in AF. Our study indicated that hyperthyroidism should be treated aggressively in order to improve the prognosis of AF., (Copyright © 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)