Abstract Paeonia ostii is the representative of oil-utilized peony, its roots (PR) and leaves (PL) are discarded as by-products, resulting in a waste of resources. The exploration of extraction process of active ingredients from PR/PL is beneficial to the comprehensive utilization. In this work, the optimum process of Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction (UAEo) of total flavonoids content (TFC) from PR and PL was determined by single factor and response surface methodology. The results showed that UAEo was 80 min, 1:5 g/mL, 250 W, 33.83 mg Rutin/g dw for PR and 60 min, 1:10 g/mL, 250 W, 25.85 mg Rutin/g dw for PL. Then, Homogenization-Assisted Extraction (HAE), Homogenization-Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction (HUAEo) and Ultrasound-Homogenization-Assisted Extraction (UHAEo) were further analyzed. The highest PR(PL)-TFC by HUAEo at homogenization 5 min was 49.58 ± 0.25 mg/g with an increase of 46.6% (33.02 ± 0.04 mg/g with an increase of 27.7%). The highest PR/PL-total phenolic content by the HUAEo reached 77.84 ± 0.52 mg/g dw and 146.62 ± 2.77 mg/g dw for homogenization 3 min. However, there was no significant difference between HUAEo and UHAEo. In conclusion, the TFC increased with the extension of HAE time, and the combined extraction was higher yield than the single extraction.

Abstract A large number of cracks occur in concrete structure after projectile penetration. The study of crack distribution and propagation process is the basis of damage assessment, structural repair and high dynamic fracture mechanism. In this paper, wire saw cutting, X-ray computed tomography (X-CT) and mechanical property testing of damaged concrete were carried out on deep penetration targets. According to X-CT images of radial core samples in target and the mechanical properties of damaged concrete, the crack distribution in the target was divided into a plastic damage zone and a brittle damage zone, and the microcracks only existed in the plastic damage zone. The initial growth process of three-dimensional cracks was obtained by X-CT images of axial core samples in target, that is, the cracks in the pure mortar target gradually developed from the radial direction to the tangential direction, and the target containing coarse aggregate directly formed tangential cracks. The propagation progress of cracks was obtained through the target section, that is, the tangential cracks bent in the pure mortar target, and were relatively straight in the target containing coarse aggregate. A crack propagation model was established, and the tangential crack formula and the crack propagation velocity were obtained.

Abstract Deep penetration experiments were performed on five types of concrete with different coarse aggregate content. The projectile diameter was 29.9 mm, the initial velocity was 647 m/s, and the volume fraction of the coarse aggregate was between 0% and 59.0%. The damage laws and damage mechanism of the target were analyzed. The pure mortar target had the smallest radial crack origin diameter and crater depth. Too high of the coarse aggregate content led to the formation of many voids, which led to the disappearance of radial cracks, crater surface bypassing the coarse aggregate and a large reduction of crater diameter. The influence laws and mechanism of the coarse aggregate on the penetration depth were also analyzed. The increase of volume fraction of coarse aggregate was beneficial to reducing penetration depth and the increase of voids volume fraction was opposite. The penetration depth was the lowest when the volume fraction of the coarse aggregate reached the maximum and no voids formed. By modifying the static resistance stress in the Forrestal penetration formula, a penetration depth model considering the volume fractions of the coarse aggregate and voids was established. The predicted results were in good agreement with the experimental results.

OBJECTIVES: Pathological complete response has shown a better prognosis for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer after preoperative chemoradiotherapy. However, correlations between post-chemoradiotherapy clinical factors and pathologic complete response are not well confirmed. The aim of the current study was to identify post-chemoradiotherapy clinical factors that could serve as indicators of pathologic complete response in locally advanced rectal cancer. METHODS: This study retrospectively analyzed 544 consecutive patients with locally advanced rectal cancer treated at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center from December 2003 to June 2014. All patients received preoperative chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed to identify post-chemoradiotherapy clinical factors that are significant indicators of pathologic complete response. RESULTS: In this study, 126 of 544 patients (23.2%) achieved pathological complete response. In multivariate analyses, increased pathological complete response rate was significantly associated with the following factors: post-chemoradiotherapy clinical T stage 0-2 (odds ratio=2.098, 95% confidence interval=1.023-4.304, p=0.043), post-chemoradiotherapy clinical N stage 0 (odds ratio=2.011, 95% confidence interval=1.264-3.201, p=0.003), interval from completion of preoperative chemoradiotherapy to surgery of >7 weeks (odds ratio=1.795, 95% confidence interval=1.151-2.801, p=0.010) and post-chemoradiotherapy carcinoembryonic antigen ≤2 ng/ml (odds ratio=1.579, 95% confidence interval=1.026-2.432, p=0.038). CONCLUSIONS: Post-chemoradiotherapy clinical T stage 0-2, post-chemoradiotherapy clinical N stage 0, interval from completion of chemoradiotherapy to surgery of >7 weeks and post-chemoradiotherapy carcinoembryonic antigen ≤2 ng/ml were independent clinical indicators for pathological complete response. These findings demonstrate that post-chemoradiotherapy clinical factors could be valuable for post-operative assessment of pathological complete response.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a new nickel-titanium shape memory alloy compression anastomosis ring, NiTi CAR 27, in constructing an anastomosis for colorectal cancer resection compared with conventional staples. METHODS: In total, 234 consecutive patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer receiving sigmoidectomy and anterior resection for end-to-end anastomosis from May 2010 to June 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. The postoperative clinical parameters, postoperative complications and 3-year overall survival in 77 patients using a NiTi CAR 27 compression ring (CAR group) and 157 patients with conventional circular staplers (STA group) were compared. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the patients in the two groups in terms of general demographics and tumor features. A clinically apparent anastomotic leak occurred in 2 patients (2.6%) in the CAR group and in 5 patients (3.2%) in the STA group (p=0.804). These eight patients received a temporary diverting ileostomy. One patient (1.3%) in the CAR group was diagnosed with anastomotic stricture through an electronic colonoscopy after 3 months postoperatively. The incidence of postoperative intestinal obstruction was comparable between the two groups (p=0.192). With a median follow-up duration of 39.6 months, the 3-year overall survival rate was 83.1% in the CAR group and 89.0% in the STA group (p=0.152). CONCLUSIONS: NiTi CAR 27 is safe and effective for colorectal end-to-end anastomosis. Its use is equivalent to that of the conventional circular staplers. This study suggests that NiTi CAR 27 may be a beneficial alternative in colorectal anastomosis in Chinese colorectal cancer patients.