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Purpose: To investigate the current status of marriage and fertility of patients with epilepsy (PWE) and characterize its influencing factors.Methods: A total of 1,823 adult patients (males age 22 years or older, females age 20 years or older) were included in this study. Data concerning sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were collected. Descriptive analyses, followed by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were utilized to examine factors associated with marriage and fertility of PWE. Marital status of PWE was compared with Chinese population. Standardized marriage rate (SMR) for age and sex was estimated based on the 2010 sixth national population census.Results: 1,132 patients (62.1%) were married and 823 (45.1%) had a history of fertility. Patients had lower marriage rates than Chinese population (62.1% vs 78.4%). Patients with adult-onset epilepsy (>18 years) had a significantly higher rate of marriage and fertility (p ＜ 0.001) compared to those with childhood-onset epilepsy (≤18 years). Employed patients had higher marriage rates than unemployed patients (64.9% vs 58.6%, p = 0.006), with only male patients being significantly affected by employment status (p ＜ 0.001). Multiple logistic regression revealed that age, age at first seizure onset, and employment status were related to both marriage and fertility.Conclusion: Epilepsy had negative effects on marriage and fertility status. Marriage and fertility rates were lower in patients with Childhood-onset epilepsy (≤18 years). Furthermore, employment status mainly affected the marriage rate of male patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Multiple-effect membrane distillation (MEMD) process, by using a hollow fiber-based AGMD module and an external heat exchanger, was studied to concentrate dilute sulfuric acid solution. Latent heat of distillate was in-situ recovered by directly heating the cold feed within the AGMD module of special configuration. Permeation flux (J w ) and performance ratio (PR) parameters were used to characterize the operation performance of MEMD process. PR value obtained in the MEMD process was much higher than that obtained in traditional and the other modified membrane distillation process. The effects of heated feed-in temperature, cold feed-in temperature, feed-in flow rate and feed-in concentration on the MEMD performance were experimentally investigated. The dilute sulfuric acid in 2wt.% could be concentrated up to about 40wt.% by using MEMD process. The maximum value of PR and J w could reach 11.5 and 5.3L/m2h, respectively. When the feed concentration was up to 20wt.%, the value of PR and J w could still be 4.9 and 1.9L/m2h, respectively. In a long-term stability test lasting for >30days, the electrical conductivity of the distillate was always less than 150μs/cm, which demonstrated that the performance of MEMD modules was kept in good condition. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The separation and recovery of the greenhouse gases CHF 3 and CHClF 2 from emissions is essential to avoid adverse environmental effects. Faujasite has shown its credibility in separation of hydrofluorocarbons during the synthesis of chlorofluorocarbons substitutes. Investigation of adsorption site and energy about CHClF 2 and CHF 3 on zeolite is essential to understand the process of adsorption separation of CHClF 2 and CHF 3 mixtures. However, the underlying adsorption mechanism of CHClF 2 and CHF 3 on zeolite is not yet understood at the molecular level. A new force field was developed for CHClF 2 and CHF 3 and applied to the adsorption of these species on NaX using Monte Carlo simulations. The preferred binding site on NaX involves CHClF 2 and CHF 3 anchored by both site II and site III' (III) cations. Adsorption enthalpy predicted is highly correlated upon adsorption site and geometry structure of CHClF 2 and CHF 3 on NaX. The CHF 3 is preferentially adsorbed on NaX for CHClF 2 and CHF 3 adsorption, owing to short-range force of CHF 3 hydrogen center with the lattice oxygen of the supercage, which is confirmed by FT-IR results. This research helps elucidate a molecular mechanism for the adsorption of CHClF 2 and CHF 3 on NaX, which contributes to understanding adsorption separation processes for the of CHClF 2 and CHF 3 on zeolites. Image 1 • The preferred binding site on NaX involves CHClF 2 and CHF 3 anchored by both site II and site III' (III) cations. • Adsorption enthalpy predicted is highly correlated upon adsorption site and geometry structure of CHClF 2 and CHF 3 on NaX. • The CHF 3 molecule is preferentially adsorbed via the short-range force of its hydrogen center with the lattice oxygens of the NaX supercage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pressure swing adsorption (PSA) is a very versatile, albeit complex gas separation and purification technology. Due to its complexity and periodic operation, calculation of the optimal PSA system that simultaneously obtains process design and control decision variables is a complicated task. This work presents detailed design and control optimization study of a two-bed, six-step PSA system aimed at heavy component CH 4 upgrading. The key optimization objective is to enhance product CH 4 recovery while achieving a closed loop product CH 4 purity of 75% for separating 68%N 2 /32%CH 4 feed under external disturbances. Traditional sequential and simultaneously design and control approach are employed and compared based on this purpose. The benefits of simultaneous methodology over conventional sequential approach are successfully demonstrated by closed-loop performance results and simulation profiles. The simultaneously design and control methodology has succeeded in synthesizing the optimal PSA cycle which can generate CH 4 recovery as high as 97.30%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The removal and enrichment of aliphatic amines with low molecular weights from their individual aqueous solutions was investigated theoretically and experimentally via a hollow-fiber supported-gas-membrane (SGM) process. Aqueous solutions containing 200–5000 mg L −1 amine were tested as feed, and an aqueous solution of 10 wt% sulfuric acid was used as an absorbing solution. Amines such as methylamine, dimethylamine, trimethylamine, ethylamine, diethylamine and triethylamine, as well as ammonia, were tested in the SGM process. The experimental data demonstrated that the overall mass transfer coefficient was a strong function of the polarity of the amine or amine/water volatility and was not a simple function of the molecular weight or boiling point of amines; the order was determined to be trimethylamine>ammonia>triethylamine>diethylamine>ethylamine>dimethylamine>methylamine. The influences on mass transfer coefficients of the feed-in temperature, feed-in concentration, feed flow rate, and the concentration of NaOH pre-added to the feed were also investigated. Among these operating factors, the feed-in temperature and NaOH concentration were crucial; increasing the feed-in temperature and the NaOH concentration led to a significant increase in the mass transfer coefficient, especially when the amine concentration in the feed was low. Mathematical models incorporating laminar flow, ion and molecular diffusion, dissociation equilibrium and vapor–liquid equilibrium were established and solved numerically. When the surface tension of the feed solution was >45 mN m −1 , the SGM process demonstrated good stability during a test period of at least 30 days. Greater than 95% of the amine was recovered, and the amine could be enriched by >20 times in the absorbing solution. Thus, this SGM-based separation process is suitable to remove, recover, and concentrate amines from their aqueous solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addition of fenofibrate to statin therapy might represent a viable treatment option for patients whose high risk for coronary heart disease is not controlled by a statin alone. However, safety of coadministration of statin with fenofibrate has been a great concern. The present study tested the safety of coadministration of statin with fenofibrate. We systematically searched the literature to identify randomized controlled trials examining safety of coadministration of statin with fenofibrate. A meta-analysis was performed to estimate safety of coadministration of statin with fenofibrate using fixed-effects models. There were 1,628 subjects in the identified 6 studies. Discontinuation attributed to any adverse events (4.5% vs 3.1%, p = 0.20), any adverse events (42% vs 41%, p = 0.82), adverse events related to study drug (10.9% vs 11.0%, p = 0.95), and serious adverse events (2.0% vs 1.5%, p = 0.71) were not significantly different in the 2 arms. Incidence of alanine aminotransferase and/or aspartate aminotransferase ≥3 times upper limit of normal in the combination therapy arm was significantly higher than in the statin monotherapy arm (3.1% vs 0.2%, p = 0.0009). In the 6 trials with 1,628 subjects no case of myopathy or rhabdomyolysis was reported. In conclusion, statin–fenofibrate combination therapy was tolerated as well as statin monotherapy. Physicians should consider statin–fenofibrate combination therapy to treat patients with mixed dyslipidemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The activation of renin-angiotensin system contributes to the development of metabolic syndrome and diabetes as well as hypertension. However, it remains undetermined how renin-angiotensin system is implicated in feeding behavior. Here, we show that angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor signaling regulates the hypothalamic neurocircuit that is involved in the control of food intake. Compared with wild-type Agtr1a+/+ mice, AT1 receptor knock-out (Agtr1a-/-) mice were hyperphagic and obese with increased adiposity on an ad libitum diet, whereas Agtr1a-/- mice were lean with decreased adiposity on a pair-fed diet. In the hypothalamus, mRNA levels of anorexigenic neuropeptide corticotropin-releasing hormone (Crh) were lower in Agtr1a-/- mice than in Agtr1a+/+ mice both on an ad libitum and pair-fed diet. Furthermore, intracerebroventricular administration of CRH suppressed food intake both in Agtr1a+/+ and Agtr1a-/- mice. In addition, the Crh gene promoter was significantly transactivated via the cAMP-responsive element by angiotensin II stimulation. These results thus demonstrate that central AT1 receptor signaling plays a homeostatic role in the regulation of food intake by maintaining gene expression of Crh in hypothalamus and suggest a therapeutic potential of central AT1 receptor blockade in feeding disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) on chronic myocardial ischemia in swine. Background: We recently have reported that G-CSF prevents cardiac remodeling and dysfunction after acute myocardial infarction in mice and swine. It remains unclear whether G-CSF has beneficial effects on chronic myocardial ischemia. Methods: An ameroid constrictor was placed on left circumflex coronary artery of swine. The presence of myocardial ischemia was verified at four weeks after the operation, and the animals were randomly assigned into the following two groups: 1) administration of vehicle (control group, n = 10), and 2) administration of G-CSF (10 μg/kg/day) for seven days (G-CSF group, n = 10). Results: Echocardiographic examination revealed that the G-CSF treatment prevented left ventricular dilation and dysfunction at eight weeks after the operation. Stress echocardiography revealed that G-CSF ameliorated the regional contractility of chronic myocardial ischemia. Morphological analysis revealed that the extent of myocardial fibrosis of the ischemic region was less in the G-CSF group than in control group. There were more vessels and less apoptotic cells at the ischemic region of the heart of the G-CSF group than control group. Moreover, Akt1 was more strongly activated in the heart of the G-CSF group than control group. Conclusions: These findings suggest that G-CSF improves cardiac function of chronic myocardial ischemia through decreases in fibrosis and apoptotic death and an increase in vascular density in the ischemic region. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]