Improving the Quantification of Cyanotoxins Using a Mass Balance-Based Effective Concentration-Equivalent Concentration Approach.

Two commonly used methods for cyanotoxin analysis are enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Each method has its advantages and disadvantages, and discrepancies are commonly observed between the two methods due to various factors including the ELISA antibody cross-reacting to different cyanotoxin congeners. However, reliable cyanotoxin monitoring methods and accurate interpretation of results are needed for water utilities to guide recreational water planning and drinking water treatment operations.

Modulation of gut microbiota protects against viral respiratory tract infections: a systematic review of animal and clinical studies.

Background: Earlier studies suggest that probiotics have protective effects in the prevention of respiratory tract infections (RTIs). Whether such benefits apply to RTIs of viral origin and mechanisms supporting the effect remain unclear.

Aim: To determine the role of gut microbiota modulation on clinical and laboratory outcomes of viral RTIs.

Long-term results of a randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled phase III trial: Endostar (rh-endostatin) versus placebo in combination with vinorelbine and cisplatin in advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Background:  : Phase II-III trials in patients with untreated and previously treated locally advanced or non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) suggested that Endostar was able to enhance the effect of platinum-based chemotherapy (NP regimen) with tolerable adverse effects.

Methods: Four hundred and eighty six patients were randomized into two arms: study arm A: NP plus Endostar (n = 322; vinorelbine, cisplatin, Endostar), and study arm B: NP plus placebo (n = 164; vinorelbine, cisplatin, 0.9% sodium chloride).

Sulfonic acid functionalized nano-γ-Al2O3: a new, efficient, and reusable catalyst for synthesis of 3-substituted-2H-1,4-benzothiazines.

A simple and efficient synthetic protocol has been developed for the synthesis of 3-substituted-2H-1,4-benzothiazines by using a novel sulfonic acid functionalized nano-γ-Al2O3 catalyst, devoid of corrosive acidic, and basic reagents. The developed method has the advantages of good to excellent yields, short reaction times, operational simplicity, and a recyclable catalyst. The catalyst can be prepared by a simple procedure from inexpensive and readily available nano-γ-Al2O3 and has been shown to be recoverable and reusable up to six cycles without any loss of activity.

One-pot synthesis of 2'-aminobenzothiazolo-arylmethyl-2-naphthols catalyzed by NBS under solvent-free conditions.

To develop a new facile protocol for the synthesis of 2'-aminobenzothiazolo-arylmethyl-2-naphthol derivatives, N-bromosuccinimide (NBS) was used as an efficient catalyst for the one-pot synthesis of 2'-aminobenzothiazolo-arylmethyl-2-naphthols in excellent yields from β -naphthol (1 mmol), aromatic aldehydes (1 mmol), and 2-aminobenzothiazole (1 mmol) at 60°C under solvent-free conditions.

Effects of echinacoside on histio-central levels of active mass in middle cerebral artery occlusion rats.

Objective: To investigate the effects of echinacoside on the extracellular striatal levels of norepinephrine (NE), dopamine (DA), homovanillic acid (HVA), 3, 4-dihydroxyphenylethanoid acid (DOPAC), 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (HIAA), and 5-hydroxytryptamine(5-HT) in middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO rats.

Methods: The middle cerebral artery was occluded in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Three days later microdialysis probes were placed into the right striatum of MCAO rat brains and the brains were perfused with Ringer's solution at a rate of 1.

Two new prenylated isoflavones from Sedum aizoon L.

Investigation of a methanol extract from the Chinese endemic species Sedum aizoon L. led to the isolation of two new isoflavone derivatives that were named sedacin A and B (1 and 2). Their structures were elucidated by the basis of spectroscopic analysis.