The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy and safety of frequently inhaled nebulized hypertonic saline (HS) in infants with moderate to severe bronchiolitis. One hundred and twenty-six infants were randomized to receive either nebulized 3% hypertonic saline (HS) or 0.9% normal saline (NS), but only 112 patients completed the whole study. Cough, wheezing, pulmonary physical signs, clinical severity scores and the hospital length of stay (LOS) were recorded. The wheezing remission time was 4.8 ± 1.0 days in the NS group and 3.6 ± 0.9 days in the HS group (p <0.01). The cough remission time was 5.5 ± 0.9 days in the NS group and 4.3 ± 0.7 days in the HS group (p <0.01). The moist crackles disappeared at 6.2 ± 0.7 days in the NS group and at 4.4 ± 0.9 days in the HS group (p <0.01). The clinical severity scores decreased more significantly in the HS group than in the NS group on each day within 96 h after enrolment (p <0.01). The LOS decreased from 6.4 ± 1.4 days in the NS group to 4.8 ± 1.2 days in the HS group (p <0.01). The treatment was well tolerated, with no adverse effects attributable to nebulized HS. The conclusions are that frequently inhaled HS relieved symptoms and signs faster than NS, and shortened LOS significantly for infants with moderate to severe bronchiolitis, without apparent adverse effects.

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is a University Lecturer and coordinator of the MPhil/MEd in Research in Second Language Education programme at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge. He is also founding convener of Cambridge Research in Community Language Education Network. His current research interests lie in sociocultural theory and second language acquisition, community/heritage language education, and language teacher development.

Background Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are considered as the major cause to tumor initiation, recurrence, metastasis, and drug resistance, driving poor clinical outcomes in patients. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have emerged as crucial regulators in cancer development and progression. However, limited lncRNAs involved in CSCs have been reported. Methods The novel lncROPM (a regulator of phospholipid metabolism) in breast CSCs (BCSCs) was identified by microarray and validated by qRT-PCR in BCSCs from breast cancer cells and tissues. The clinical significance of lncROPM was evaluated in two breast cancer cohorts and TANRIC database (TCGA-BRCA, RNAseq data). Gain- and loss-of-function assays were performed to examine the role of lncROPM on BCSCs both in vitro and in vivo. The regulatory mechanism of lncROPM was investigated by bioinformatics, RNA FISH, RNA pull-down, luciferase reporter assay, and actinomycin D treatment. PLA2G16-mediated phospholipid metabolism was determined by UHPLC-QTOFMS system. Cells’ chemosensitivity was assessed by CCK8 assay. Results LncROPM is highly expressed in BCSCs. The enhanced lncROPM exists in clinic breast tumors and other solid tumors and positively correlates with malignant grade/stage and poor prognosis in breast cancer patients. Gain- and loss-of-function studies show that lncROPM is required for the maintenance of BCSCs properties both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, lncROPM regulates PLA2G16 expression by directly binding to 3'-UTR of PLA2G16 to increase the mRNA stability. The increased PLA2G16 significantly promotes phospholipid metabolism and the production of free fatty acid, especially arachidonic acid in BCSCs, thereby activating PI3K/AKT, Wnt/β-catenin, and Hippo/YAP signaling, thus eventually involving in the maintenance of BCSCs stemness. Importantly, lncROPM and PLA2G16 notably contribute to BCSCs chemo-resistance. Administration of BCSCs using clinic therapeutic drugs such as doxorubicin, cisplatin, or tamoxifen combined with Giripladib (an inhibitor of cytoplasmic phospholipase A2) can efficiently eliminate BCSCs and tumorigenesis. Conclusions Our study highlights that lncROPM and its target PLA2G16 play crucial roles in sustaining BCSC properties and may serve as a biomarker for BCSCs or other cancer stem cells. Targeting lncROPM-PLA2G16 signaling axis may be a novel therapeutic strategy for patients with breast cancer.

This article explores teachers' assessment knowledge and practice through a narrative inquiry of a college EFL teacher, Betty (pseudonym), in the People's Republic of China. Drawing on Crites' (1971) notions of sacred stories and secret stories in teachers' professional knowledge landscapes (Connelly & Clandinin, 1995), it examines Betty's account of her experience of assessment reform. This account comprises three stories involving her colleagues and students. Following Connelly and Clandinin's (2006) three strands of narrative inquiry, this article discusses three structural conditions of teacher knowledge, temporality , sociality , and place , and their effects on teachers' knowledge construction of assessment. We argue that teachers' prior assessment experience will affect their current practices and future plans for assessment (temporality); power relationships in teachers' workplace will greatly in uence their assessment decision-making (sociality); and the specifi c contexts in which assessment takes place will affect teachers' sense of security and therefore the effectiveness of the assessment (place). The fi ndings highlight the recognition of teachers' agency in assessment practice, the importance of negotiation with teachers of the reform policies, and the urgent need for professional development. 1 The CET is a large-scale standardized test administered nationwide by the National College English Testing Committee on the behalf of the Higher Education Department of the Ministry of Education in China. It is intended to measure the language profi ciency of non-English-major college students. 2 According to a survey conducted by Zhou (2005) among 1,200 EFL teachers in 49 different colleges, 56% of teachers hold a bachelor of arts degree, and 28% hold a master of arts degree. The bachelor's degree programs that prepare English teachers are mostly provided by English departments in teachers' colleges, where most of the teacher training focuses on practical teaching (Wu, 2002). According to Wang (2003), most of the master's degree programs of applied linguistics that prepare college EFL teachers in China generally provide one testing course, which has little to do with formative assessment.