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Altered myeloid inflammation and lymphopenia are hallmarks of severe infections. We identified the upregulated EN-RAGE gene program in airway and blood myeloid cells from patients with acute lung injury from SARS-CoV-2 or other causes across 7 cohorts. This program was associated with greater clinical severity and predicted future mechanical ventilation and death. EN-RAGEhi myeloid cells express features consistent with suppressor cell functionality, including low HLA-DR and high PD-L1. Sustained EN-RAGE program expression in airway and blood myeloid cells correlated with clinical severity and increasing expression of T cell dysfunction markers. IL-6 upregulated many EN-RAGE program genes in monocytes in vitro. IL-6 signaling blockade by tocilizumab in a placebo-controlled clinical trial led to rapid normalization of EN-RAGE and T cell gene expression. This identifies IL-6 as a key driver of myeloid dysregulation associated with worse clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients and provides insights into shared pathophysiological mechanisms in non-COVID-19 ARDS.

BackgroundIn COVACTA, a randomised, placebo-controlled trial in patients hospitalised with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), tocilizumab did not improve 28-day mortality, but shortened hospital and intensive care unit stay. Longer-term effects of tocilizumab in patients with COVID-19 are unknown. Therefore, the efficacy and safety of tocilizumab in COVID-19 beyond day 28 and its impact on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) clearance and antibody response in COVACTA were investigated.MethodsAdults in Europe and North America hospitalised with COVID-19 (N = 452) between April 3, 2020 and May 28, 2020 were randomly assigned (2:1) to double-blind intravenous tocilizumab or placebo and assessed for efficacy and safety through day 60. Assessments included mortality, time to hospital discharge, SARS-CoV-2 viral load in nasopharyngeal swab and serum samples, and neutralising anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in serum. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT04320615.FindingsBy day 60, 24·5% (72/294) of patients in the tocilizumab arm and 25·0% (36/144) in the placebo arm died (weighted difference -0·5% [95% CI -9·1 to 8·0]), and 67·0% (197/294) in the tocilizumab arm and 63·9% (92/144) in the placebo arm were discharged from the hospital. Serious infections occurred in 24·1% (71/295) of patients in the tocilizumab arm and 29·4% (42/143) in the placebo arm. Median time to negative reverse transcriptase-quantitative polymerase chain reaction result in nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal samples was 15·0 days (95% CI 14·0 to 21·0) in the tocilizumab arm and 21·0 days (95% CI 14·0 to 28·0) in the placebo arm. All tested patients had positive test results for neutralising anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at day 60.InterpretationThere was no mortality benefit with tocilizumab through day 60. Tocilizumab did not impair viral clearance or host immune response, and no new safety signals were observed. Future investigations may explore potential biomarkers to optimize pa

Background: In COVACTA, a randomised, placebo-controlled trial in patients hospitalised with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), tocilizumab did not improve 28-day mortality, but shortened hospital and intensive care unit stay. Longer-term effects of tocilizumab in patients with COVID-19 are unknown. Therefore, the efficacy and safety of tocilizumab in COVID-19 beyond day 28 and its impact on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) clearance and antibody response in COVACTA were investigated. Methods: Adults in Europe and North America hospitalised with COVID-19 (N = 452) between April 3, 2020 and May 28, 2020 were randomly assigned (2:1) to double-blind intravenous tocilizumab or placebo and assessed for efficacy and safety through day 60. Assessments included mortality, time to hospital discharge, SARS-CoV-2 viral load in nasopharyngeal swab and serum samples, and neutralising anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in serum. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT04320615. Findings: By day 60, 24·5% (72/294) of patients in the tocilizumab arm and 25·0% (36/144) in the placebo arm died (weighted difference -0·5% [95% CI -9·1 to 8·0]), and 67·0% (197/294) in the tocilizumab arm and 63·9% (92/144) in the placebo arm were discharged from the hospital. Serious infections occurred in 24·1% (71/295) of patients in the tocilizumab arm and 29·4% (42/143) in the placebo arm. Median time to negative reverse transcriptase-quantitative polymerase chain reaction result in nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal samples was 15·0 days (95% CI 14·0 to 21·0) in the tocilizumab arm and 21·0 days (95% CI 14·0 to 28·0) in the placebo arm. All tested patients had positive test results for neutralising anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at day 60. Interpretation: There was no mortality benefit with tocilizumab through day 60. Tocilizumab did not impair viral clearance or host immune response, and no new safety signals were observed. Future investigations may explore potential biomarkers to

We update the Standard Model (SM) predictions for the branching ratios of the rare top-quark decays $t \to cg(g)$, and evaluate the maximum rates that can be reached in the aligned as well as in the four conventional two-Higgs-doublet models (2HDMs) with $\mathcal{Z}_2$ symmetries. Taking into account the relevant constraints on the model parameters resulting from a global fit obtained at the $95.5\%$ confidence level, we find that the branching ratios of $t \to cg$ and $t \to cgg$ decays can reach up to $3.36\times 10^{-9}$ and $2.95\times 10^{-9}$ respectively, being therefore of the same order, in the aligned 2HDM (A2HDM). This is obviously different from the SM case, where the predicted branching ratio of the three-body decay $t \to cgg$ is about two orders of magnitude larger than that of the two-body decay $t \to cg$. On the other hand, compared with the SM predictions, no significant enhancements are observed in the four conventional 2HDMs with $\mathcal{Z}_2$ symmetries for the branching ratios of these two decays. Nevertheless, the predicted branching ratios of $t \to cg$ and $t \to cgg$ decays in the A2HDM are still out of the expected sensitivities of the future high-luminosity Large Hadron Collider and the Future Circular Collider in hadron-hadron mode., Comment: 48 pages, 6 figures, and 4 tables; more references and discussions added, final version published in the journal

Host genetics is a key determinant of COVID-19 outcomes. Previously, the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative genome-wide association study used common variants to identify multiple loci associated with COVID-19 outcomes. However, variants with the largest impact on COVID-19 outcomes are expected to be rare in the population. Hence, studying rare variants may provide additional insights into disease susceptibility and pathogenesis, thereby informing therapeutics development. Here, we combined whole-exome and whole-genome sequencing from 21 cohorts across 12 countries and performed rare variant exome-wide burden analyses for COVID-19 outcomes. In an analysis of 5,085 severe disease cases and 571,737 controls, we observed that carrying a rare deleterious variant in the SARS-CoV-2 sensor toll-like receptor TLR7 (on chromosome X) was associated with a 5.3-fold increase in severe disease (95% CI: 2.75-10.05, p = 5.41x10-7). This association was consistent across sexes. These results further support TLR7 as a genetic determinant of severe disease and suggest that larger studies on rare variants influencing COVID-19 outcomes could provide additional insights.

Background: In COVACTA, a randomised, placebo-controlled trial in patients hospitalised with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), tocilizumab did not improve 28-day mortality, but shortened hospital and intensive care unit stay. Longer-term effects of tocilizumab in patients with COVID-19 are unknown. Therefore, the efficacy and safety of tocilizumab in COVID-19 beyond day 28 and its impact on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) clearance and antibody response in COVACTA were investigated. Methods: Adults in Europe and North America hospitalised with COVID-19 (N = 452) between April 3, 2020 and May 28, 2020 were randomly assigned (2:1) to double-blind intravenous tocilizumab or placebo and assessed for efficacy and safety through day 60. Assessments included mortality, time to hospital discharge, SARS-CoV-2 viral load in nasopharyngeal swab and serum samples, and neutralising anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in serum. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT04320615. Findings: By day 60, 24·5% (72/294) of patients in the tocilizumab arm and 25·0% (36/144) in the placebo arm died (weighted difference –0·5% [95% CI –9·1 to 8·0]), and 67·0% (197/294) in the tocilizumab arm and 63·9% (92/144) in the placebo arm were discharged from the hospital. Serious infections occurred in 24·1% (71/295) of patients in the tocilizumab arm and 29·4% (42/143) in the placebo arm. Median time to negative reverse transcriptase–quantitative polymerase chain reaction result in nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal samples was 15·0 days (95% CI 14·0 to 21·0) in the tocilizumab arm and 21·0 days (95% CI 14·0 to 28·0) in the placebo arm. All tested patients had positive test results for neutralising anti–SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at day 60. Interpretation: There was no mortality benefit with tocilizumab through day 60. Tocilizumab did not impair viral clearance or host immune response, and no new safety signals were observed. Future investigations may explore potential biomarkers to optimiz

OBJECTIVES: To explore candidate prognostic and predictive biomarkers identified in retrospective observational studies (interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, d-dimer, and platelets) in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 pneumonia after treatment with tocilizumab, an anti-interleukin-6 receptor antibody, using data from the COVACTA trial in patients hospitalized with severe coronavirus disease 2019 pneumonia. DESIGN: Exploratory analysis from a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial. SETTING: Hospitals in North America and Europe. PATIENTS: Adults hospitalized with severe coronavirus disease 2019 pneumonia receiving standard care. INTERVENTION: Randomly assigned 2:1 to IV tocilizumab 8 mg/kg or placebo. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Candidate biomarkers were measured in 295 patients in the tocilizumab arm and 142 patients in the placebo arm. Efficacy outcomes assessed were clinical status on a seven-category ordinal scale (1, discharge; 7, death), mortality, time to hospital discharge, and mechanical ventilation (if not receiving it at randomization) through day 28. Prognostic and predictive biomarkers were evaluated continuously with proportional odds, binomial or Fine-Gray models, and additional sensitivity analyses. Modeling in the placebo arm showed all candidate biomarkers except lactate dehydrogenase and d-dimer were strongly prognostic for day 28 clinical outcomes of mortality, mechanical ventilation, clinical status, and time to hospital discharge. Modeling in the tocilizumab arm showed a predictive value of ferritin for day 28 clinical outcomes of mortality (predictive interaction, p = 0.03), mechanical ventilation (predictive interaction, p = 0.01), and clinical status (predictive interaction, p = 0.02) compared with placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple biomarkers prognostic for clinical outcomes were confirmed in COVACTA. Ferritin was identified as a pre

OBJECTIVES: To explore candidate prognostic and predictive biomarkers identified in retrospective observational studies (interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, d-dimer, and platelets) in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 pneumonia after treatment with tocilizumab, an anti-interleukin-6 receptor antibody, using data from the COVACTA trial in patients hospitalized with severe coronavirus disease 2019 pneumonia. DESIGN: Exploratory analysis from a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial. SETTING: Hospitals in North America and Europe. PATIENTS: Adults hospitalized with severe coronavirus disease 2019 pneumonia receiving standard care. INTERVENTION: Randomly assigned 2:1 to IV tocilizumab 8 mg/kg or placebo. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Candidate biomarkers were measured in 295 patients in the tocilizumab arm and 142 patients in the placebo arm. Efficacy outcomes assessed were clinical status on a seven-category ordinal scale (1, discharge; 7, death), mortality, time to hospital discharge, and mechanical ventilation (if not receiving it at randomization) through day 28. Prognostic and predictive biomarkers were evaluated continuously with proportional odds, binomial or Fine-Gray models, and additional sensitivity analyses. Modeling in the placebo arm showed all candidate biomarkers except lactate dehydrogenase and d-dimer were strongly prognostic for day 28 clinical outcomes of mortality, mechanical ventilation, clinical status, and time to hospital discharge. Modeling in the tocilizumab arm showed a predictive value of ferritin for day 28 clinical outcomes of mortality (predictive interaction, p = 0.03), mechanical ventilation (predictive interaction, p = 0.01), and clinical status (predictive interaction, p = 0.02) compared with placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple biomarkers prognostic for clinical outcomes were confirmed in COVACTA. Ferritin was identified as a predic

With updated experimental data and improved theoretical calculations, several significant deviations are being observed between the Standard Model predictions and the experimental measurements of the branching ratios of $\bar{B}_{(s)}^0\to D_{(s)}^{(*)+} L^-$ decays, where $L$ is a light meson from the set $\{\pi,\rho,K^{(\ast)}\}$. Especially for the two channels $\bar{B}^0\to D^{+}K^-$ and $\bar{B}_{s}^0\to D_{s}^{+}\pi^-$, both of which are free of the weak annihilation contribution, the deviations observed can even reach 4-5$\sigma$. Here we exploit possible new-physics effects in these class-I non-leptonic $B$-meson decays within the framework of QCD factorization. Firstly, we perform a model-independent analysis of the effects from twenty linearly independent four-quark operators that can contribute, either directly or through operator mixing, to the quark-level $b\to c\bar{u} d(s)$ transitions. It is found that, under the combined constraints from the current experimental data, the deviations observed could be well explained at the $1\sigma$ level by the new-physics four-quark operators with $\gamma^{\mu}(1-\gamma_5)\otimes\gamma_{\mu} (1-\gamma_5)$ structure, and also at the $2\sigma$ level by the operators with $(1+\gamma_5)\otimes(1-\gamma_5)$ and $(1+\gamma_5)\otimes(1+\gamma_5)$ structures. However, the new-physics four-quark operators with other Dirac structures fail to provide a consistent interpretation, even at the $2\sigma$ level. Then, as two specific examples of model-dependent considerations, we discuss the case where the new-physics four-quark operators are generated by either a colorless charged gauge boson or a colorless charged scalar, with their masses fixed both at the $1$~TeV. Constraints on the effective coefficients describing the couplings of these mediators to the relevant quarks are obtained by fitting to the current experimental data., Comment: 49 pages, 21 figures, and 7 tables; v2: typos corrected, parts of the plots updated; v3: estimation of annihilation contributions and more discussions added, final version published in JHEP

This paper proposes an innovative 'carbothermal reduction roasting-low carbon redox refining' process for recovering valuable metals including copper, zinc, nickel, tin and lead from copper-containing sludge. First, valuable metals are volatilised into the flue gas by carbothermal reduction roasting. At a reduction temperature of 1 473 K, a carbon content of 20%, and for a reaction time of 60 min, the ratio of Pb, Sn and Zn removal reached 90.77%, 95.14% and 99.92%, respectively. At an oxidation temperature of 1 573 K, a SiO2 content of 6% and a reaction time of 180 min, a water quenching slag suitable for building materials was obtained by low-carbon oxidation reduction refining. Finally, at a reduction temperature of 1 473 K, 8% C addition, and a reaction time of 20 min, copper and nickel were enriched on an anode copper plate and the copper content reached more than 98%, meeting the requirements for copper electrolysis. This study realises the full recovery of valuable metals. Compared with the existing copper-containing sludge treatment process, it has the obvious advantages of short process, low energy consumption, high recovery rate of valuable metals, economy and environmental protection. (Authors.), This paper proposes an innovative 'carbothermal reduction roasting-low carbon redox refining' process for recovering valuable metals including copper, zinc, nickel, tin and lead from copper-containing sludge. First, valuable metals are volatilised into the flue gas by carbothermal reduction roasting. At a reduction temperature of 1 473 K, a carbon content of 20%, and for a reaction time of 60 min, the ratio of Pb, Sn and Zn removal reached 90.77%, 95.14% and 99.92%, respectively. At an oxidation temperature of 1 573 K, a SiO2 content of 6% and a reaction time of 180 min, a water quenching slag suitable for building materials was obtained by low-carbon oxidation reduction refining. Finally, at a reduction temperature of 1 473 K, 8% C addition, and a reaction time of 20 min, copper and nickel were enriched on an anode copper plate and the copper content reached more than 98%, meeting the requirements for copper electrolysis. This study realises the full recovery of valuable metals. Compared with the existing copper-containing sludge treatment process, it has the obvious advantages of short process, low energy consumption, high recovery rate of valuable metals, economy and environmental protection. (Authors.)

[EN] An increasingly strong focus of higher education is now placed on the acquisition of skills that will strengthen the employability prospects of learners. This has led to, among other provisions, the embedding of work-related, workbased and project-based components into the academic curriculum for which newer forms of assessment and assessment feedback are necessary. This paper reports on a pilot study which aimsto understand the relationship between learning development in the last stages of an undergraduate’s journey and their first experiences of employment. The study was conducted with a small cohort of computing graduates whose degree includes an embedded final year work-related learning module. The outcome of this study shows that whilst employability skills were reported to have indeed improved through this module, the graduates felt ill-prepared for the productivity demands of the workplace. There was also a strong reflection among them now in employment that an additional exposure, as part of the module, to formal appraisal techniques and competency terminology utilised throughout industry sectors would have had an added benefit.

[Conférence. 2014-01-25], Collection : Conférences de la Bibliothèque nationale de France, Enregistrement : (France) Paris, BnF, 25-01-2014, Durée : 00:36:53, Thème : Économie

Examines evidence from firm and household surveys on the effects of the global financial crisis on employment in China, highlighting descriptive statistics from firm surveys suggesting most of the adjustment was borne by migrant workers, and reviewing rural household survey data to examine the net effect of the crisis on employment of rural registered workers. In response to the crisis, China’s government responded with a massive stimulus program, equivalent to over 13 percent of annual gross domestic product (GDP), complemented by a range of active labor market programs, training programs, and credit support for small and medium enterprises. Lack of public availability of implementation information and important data frustrates efforts to determine the relative role of programs, stimulus, and general economic growth, but available evidence does suggest the stimulus helped expand employment outside of export sectors and that the vast majority of rural registered residents were reemployed by late 2009.

The Chinese economy is undergoing profound change in policy and structure. The change is necessary to increase the value of growth to the Chinese community, and to sustain growth into the future. The changes are so comprehensive and profound that they represent a new model of Chinese economic growth. This book describes the replacement of an old uninhibited investment expansion model of growth, by transition to modern economic growth and provides insights into recent changes and where they are likely to lead. These include requirements for building the new institutions including its public finances for future growth, adjustments in its savings, industry and agriculture, changes in its demographic structure, business environment, and pattern of rural-urban migration, prospects for ‘green growth’, its energy policy trilemma and the climate change mitigation strategy, and changes for China’s interaction with the international economy through its overseas investment and trade in high tech products. China’s adoption of a new model of economic growth is of immense importance to people in China and everywhere. This book is an early attempt to take a close look at many of the features of the new model.

PR, IFPRI3, DSGD

PR, IFPRI4; GRP2, DSGD

A thermodynamic analysis was carried out to study the effects of process parameters on the decomposition of scheelite with soda. The results indicated that the CO3(2-) concentration has a significant effect on the decomposition process. At low alkalinity values the CO3(2-) is hydrolysed to HCO3(2-) and the decomposition rate decreases. In order to obtain a high leaching rate in industrial practice, it is necessary to use sufficient soda as digestion reagent and an appropriate amount of NaOH to maintain high alkalinity., A thermodynamic analysis was carried out to study the effects of process parameters on the decomposition of scheelite with soda. The results indicated that the CO3(2-) concentration has a significant effect on the decomposition process. At low alkalinity values the CO3(2-) is hydrolysed to HCO3(2-) and the decomposition rate decreases. In order to obtain a high leaching rate in industrial practice, it is necessary to use sufficient soda as digestion reagent and an appropriate amount of NaOH to maintain high alkalinity.

With the aid of an analytical framework of the Lewis model revised to reflect the experience of China, this paper examines the country’s dualistic economic development and its unique characteristics. The paper outlines the major effects of China’s growth as achieved during the course of economic reform and the opening-up of the country: the exploitation of the demographic dividend, the realization of comparative advantage, the improvement of total factor productivity, and participation in economic globalization. By predicting the long-term relationship between the labour force demand and supply, the paper reviews the approaching turning point in China’s economic development and examines a host of challenges facing the country in sustaining growth.

The honeybee waggle dance, through which foragers advertise the existence and location of a food source to their hive mates, is acknowledged as the only known form of symbolic communication in an invertebrate. However, the suggestion, that different species of honeybee might possess distinct ‘dialects’ of the waggle dance, remains controversial. Furthermore, it remains unclear whether different species of honeybee can learn from and communicate with each other. This study reports experiments using a mixed-species colony that is composed of the Asiatic bee Apis cerana cerana (Acc), and the European bee Apis mellifera ligustica (Aml). Using video recordings made at an observation hive, we first confirm that Acc and Aml have significantly different dance dialects, even when made to forage in identical environments. When reared in the same colony, these two species are able to communicate with each other: Acc foragers could decode the dances of Aml to successfully locate an indicated food source. We believe that this is the first report of successful symbolic communication between two honeybee species; our study hints at the possibility of social learning between the two honeybee species, and at the existence of a learning component in the honeybee dance language.

Using data from the China Urban Labour Survey conducted in five large Chinese cities at year end 2001, we quantify the nature and magnitude of shocks to employment and worker benefits during the period of economic restructuring from 1996 to 2001, and evaluate the extent to which adversely affected urban workers had access to public and private assistance. Employment shocks were large and widespread, and were particularly hard on older workers and women. During the period of economic restructuring, unemployment reached double figures in all sample cities and labour force participation declined by 8.9 per cent. Urban residents faced modest levels of wage and pension arrears, and sharp declines in health benefits. Public assistance programmes for dislocated workers had limited coverage, with most job-leavers relying upon private assistance to support consumption, mainly from other household members. © The China Quarterly, 2006.

Using original survey data from China, we estimate a discrete duration model to study the reemployment of urban workers who lost jobs involuntarily during the restructuring of China's state sector. Taking the number of relatives living in the same city as an exogenous measure of social networks, we provide empirical evidence of the importance of these networks in job search. In contrast to studies of other transition economies, our results suggest that access to unemployment subsidies reduces the probability of reemployment within a year by 34 percent for men. Unlike men, women's reemployment is not responsive to public subsidies, although it is responsive to family circumstances. Women with children of college age are reemployed faster, especially if the local community provides employment referral services, while women with older adult children are less likely to be reemployed within a year. Journal of Comparative Economics 34 (3) (2006) 582-607. © 2006 Association for Comparative Economic Studies.

As population aging becomes more pronounced in the developing world, the uneven implementation of social safety nets raises important questions as to how well traditional family-based mechanisms insure elderly incomes when pension systems fail. Using a unique dataset from a recent household survey conducted in urban China, we find evidence that private transfers respond to low household income of retired workers when income falls below the poverty line. This finding is consistent with an altruistic motive for transfers at low levels of household income. At the same time, however, the transfer response to elderly pre-transfer income is not sufficient to fully cover shortfalls that arise with severe pension arrears and low retirement income.

Before economic reform, economists rarely played any important roles in the decision-making process of China’s economy. This paper discusses the change of roles and professional capacity building of the Chinese economists in response to the challenges of economic reform, how economists have influenced the decision-making process of reform, Chinese economists’ special roles in promoting pro-reform social consciousness and undertakes an analytical review of institutional constraints and historical circumstances limiting the roles that Chinese economists have played in economic reform from an international perspective.

Research based on extensive field interviews and county-level data for Shaanxi Province in northwest China reveals that fundamental policy changes in the grain management system during the reform era correspond with observed changes in equity, stabilization efforts, and efficiency in the rural economy. Throughout the 1980s, the grain system was consistently progressive in terms of procurement and resold grain policies, but beginning in the mid-1980s the progressivity declined. The stabilization of grain availability has been constrained by poor storage and transport infrastructure, as well as local financial and political incentives. However, liberalized production and trade measures have stimulated an increase in marketing activity by grain bureaus and private traders, especially in poor areas. Rank correlation analysis of yield and changes in sown area ratios, and observed yield ratios over time, show with significance that commercialization policies were strongly associated with better use of comparative advantage in crop production during the late 1980s. © 1994.

Adjuvant use of safe compounds with anti-tumour properties has been proposed to improve cancer chemotherapy outcome. We aimed to investigate the effects of fish oil emulsion (FOE) rich in n-3 PUFA with the standard chemotherapeutic agents 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), oxaliplatin (OX) or irinotecan (IRI) on two human colorectal adenocarcinoma cells with different genetic backgrounds. The HT-29 (Bax+/+) and LS174T (Bax−/−) cells were co-treated for 24-72h with 1μm-5-FU, 1μm-OX or 10μm-IRI and/or FOE dilution corresponding to 24μm-EPA and 20·5μm-DHA. Soyabean oil emulsion (SOE) was used as isoenergetic and isolipid control. Cell viability, apoptosis and nuclear morphological changes were evaluated by cytotoxic colorimetric assay, flow cytometry analysis with annexin V and 4′,6′-diamidino-2-phenylindole staining, respectively. A cationic fluorescent probe was used to evaluate mitochondrial dysfunction, and protein expression involved in mitochondrial apoptosis was determined by Western blot. In contrast to SOE, co-treatment with FOE enhanced significantly the pro-apoptotic and cytotoxic effects of 5-FU, OX or IRI in HT-29 but not in LS174T cells (two-way ANOVA, P<0·01). These results were confirmed by the formation of apoptotic bodies in HT-29 cells. A significant increase in mitochondrial membrane depolarisation was observed after the combination of 5-FU or IRI with FOE in HT-29 but not in LS174T cells (P<0·05). Co-administration of FOE with the standard agents, 5-FU, OX and IRI, could be a good alternative to increase the efficacy of chemotherapeutic protocols through a Bax-dependent mitochondrial pathway

The thermodynamics of the Ca-Si-W-H2O system were investigated and a series of equilibrium diagrams were obtained. A theoretical analysis indicated that scheelite could be decomposed by sodium silicate under certain conditions, the solid reaction products being CaSiO3 and Ca3Si2O7. At low pH, scheelite was decomposed to CaSiO3 by sodium silicate, but the tungsten concentration in solution was low. At higher pH values, scheelite was decomposed to Ca3Si2O7 by Na2SiO3-NaOH and the tungsten concentration increased markedly with increasing pH. Experimental results confirmed that increasing the Na2SiO3 concentration and the addition of NaOH to give pH values in the range 12-15.5 improved the scheelite decomposition efficiency. When the mass fraction of WO3 in scheelite was 55.0% and the respective Si/W, OH/W and H2O/W molar ratios were 2.0, 0.5 and 35.3, the tungsten leaching rate reached 96.9% at 180 degrees C for 4 h., The thermodynamics of the Ca-Si-W-H2O system were investigated and a series of equilibrium diagrams were obtained. A theoretical analysis indicated that scheelite could be decomposed by sodium silicate under certain conditions, the solid reaction products being CaSiO3 and Ca3Si2O7. At low pH, scheelite was decomposed to CaSiO3 by sodium silicate, but the tungsten concentration in solution was low. At higher pH values, scheelite was decomposed to Ca3Si2O7 by Na2SiO3-NaOH and the tungsten concentration increased markedly with increasing pH. Experimental results confirmed that increasing the Na2SiO3 concentration and the addition of NaOH to give pH values in the range 12-15.5 improved the scheelite decomposition efficiency. When the mass fraction of WO3 in scheelite was 55.0% and the respective Si/W, OH/W and H2O/W molar ratios were 2.0, 0.5 and 35.3, the tungsten leaching rate reached 96.9% at 180 degrees C for 4 h.

The development of a low-cost method was investigated using a model solution containing 0.05 mol/l each of Na2WO4 and Na2MoO4 and ferrous sulphate as reagent for the selective precipitation of W. Experiments carried out at 10, 30, 50, 70 and 90 degrees C showed that the optimum temperature was 10 degrees C when a W precipitation rate and a separation factor of 95% and 90%, respectively, could be achieved. Slow addition of the precipitation reagent was beneficial for improving the separation efficiency. The separation factor did not improve for reaction times longer than 7 h. The addition of sulphuric acid to a neutral solution was favourable at H+/W molar ratios below 1/1 but the addition of NaOH reduced the separation efficiency. A high W precipitation rate and separation factor were obtained in the presence of ammonium concentrations below 3 mol/l. Tests on an industrial solution containing 12.9 g/l W, 9.1 g/l Mo, 0.3 g/l P, 0.1 g/l Si and 0.9 g/l C confirmed that W precipitation rates were significantly higher using FeSO4 than Mn2+., The development of a low-cost method was investigated using a model solution containing 0.05 mol/l each of Na2WO4 and Na2MoO4 and ferrous sulphate as reagent for the selective precipitation of W. Experiments carried out at 10, 30, 50, 70 and 90 degrees C showed that the optimum temperature was 10 degrees C when a W precipitation rate and a separation factor of 95% and 90%, respectively, could be achieved. Slow addition of the precipitation reagent was beneficial for improving the separation efficiency. The separation factor did not improve for reaction times longer than 7 h. The addition of sulphuric acid to a neutral solution was favourable at H+/W molar ratios below 1/1 but the addition of NaOH reduced the separation efficiency. A high W precipitation rate and separation factor were obtained in the presence of ammonium concentrations below 3 mol/l. Tests on an industrial solution containing 12.9 g/l W, 9.1 g/l Mo, 0.3 g/l P, 0.1 g/l Si and 0.9 g/l C confirmed that W precipitation rates were significantly higher using FeSO4 than Mn2+.