As a valuable complement to its proton-based counterpart (1H MRI/NMR), fluorine-based magnetic resonance imaging/spectroscopy (19F MRI/NMR) provides quantitative images or spectroscopy without background interference, which has become an extensively used...

Poly(ethylene glycol)s (PEGs) are the most used polymers in biomedicine, and their so-called "stealth" effects are the "gold standard" for biomaterials. However, the polydispersity in regular PEGs hampers their biomedical application, especially in modification of small molecular drugs (SMDs). To address this issue, many synthetic strategies for monodisperse PEGs (M-PEGs) have recently been developed. More importantly, M-PEGs have been successfully employed to modify SMDs, and the crucial roles of M-PEGs in PEGylated SMDs have been discovered in many cases. Herein we summarize the strategies for the synthesis of M-PEGylated SMDs, including Movantik, NKTR-181, polidocanol, propofol, and camptothecin, and the important roles of M-PEGs in optimizing the physicochemical properties, bioavailability, and therapeutic efficacy of SMDs. M-PEGylation is a convenient and effective strategy to develop novel SMDs, especially on the basis of marketed drugs. This review may shed light on the rational design and efficient synthesis of new M-PEGylated SMDs.

Aims:To evaluate the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its correlates in patients with bipolar disorder (BD) during acute-phase treatment in southern China.Methods: This study included 148 BD patients presenting with acute mood symptoms and 65 healthy controls at entry. Sociodemographic characteristics were noted for all participants. For patients, lifestyle information (alcohol, smoking, and exercise habits) and clinical characteristics were also collected. Patients were followed up for 6 months after the commencement of pharmacological treatment. Using the Chinese Medical Association Diabetes Branch criteria, MetS prevalence rates were calculated at entry and recalculated for patients at months 1, 3, and 6.Results: At baseline, MetS was presented in 11.5% of the patients; overweight, 34.5%; low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, 15.5%; hypertriglyceridemia, 29.1%; hypertension, 14.9%; and hyperglycemia, 5.4%. Compared with controls, the patients had a significantly higher prevalence of MetS and all its components except for hyperglycemia (P < 0.05). In the regression analysis, history of hypertension, presence of diabetes, and alcohol drinking were associated with MetS. During the follow-up period, rates of MetS and overweight increased gradually and stably, hypertriglyceridemia and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol increased significantly in the first month and then remained stable, and hypertension and hyperglycemia remained stable all the time.Conclusions: These data show that MetS is highly prevalent in Chinese BD patients. Weight gain and dyslipidemia result from a short period of treatment. Early interventions for weight gain and dyslipidemia are warranted.

In biomedicine, PEGylation is one of the most successful strategies to modify the physicochemical and biological properties of peptides, proteins, and other biomacromolecules. Because of the polydisperse nature of regular PEGs and limited PEGylation strategies, it is challenging to quantitatively fine-tune and accurately predict the properties of biomacromolecules after PEGylation. However, such fine-tuning and prediction may be crucial for their biomedical applications. Herein, some monodisperse PEGylation strategies, including backbone PEGylation, side-chain PEGylation, and highly branched PEGylation, have been developed. In a comparative fashion, the impact of PEGylation strategies and monodisperse PEG sizes on the physicochemical and biological properties, including lipophilicity, thermosensitivity, biocompatibility, plasma stability, and drug delivery capability, of peptidic polymers has been quantitatively studied. It was found that the physicochemical and biological properties of PEGylated peptidic polymers can be quantitatively fine-tuned and accurately predicted through these monodisperse PEGylation strategies. After the comparative study, a side-chain monodisperse PEGylated peptidic polymer was chosen as fluorine-19 magnetic resonance and fluorescence dual-imaging traceable drug delivery vehicle. Our study may not only promote the transformation of PEGylation from an empirical technology to a quantitative science but also shed light on the rational design of PEGylated biomaterials and pharmaceutics.