Obesity is considered a low-grade chronically inflamed state that contributes to communicable chronic diseases. This inflammation may be modulated by consuming spices like turmeric daily. However, ...few studies have looked at the inclusion of spice within whole foods.
The purpose of this feasibility pre/posttrial was to assess the influence of turmeric in a muffin on salivary IL-6 and CRP in adults who were obese.
Participants consumed one, 60-gram muffin containing 3 g turmeric for 10 days. Participants provided a urinary sample at baseline, a 2-ml saliva sample, and a 30-day food frequency and spice consumption questionnaire at baseline and post-trial. A one-sample t-test was conducted using SAS v 9.4 with significance determined at
< 0.05.
A total of 14 participants, average BMI of 32.16 kg/m
with 10 identifying as female, completed the trial after 5 dropped due to various reasons. The visit lengths and collection of data with participants adhering to the instructions were deemed a success. There was a significant decrease in salivary IL-6 (
= 0.03) but no statistical difference in salivary CRP (
= 0.46). Participants consumed fruits and vegetables at least once daily, chicken and eggs 5-6 times per week, and beef, pork, and fish at least once per week. Participants consumed chili pepper, garlic, cinnamon, cilantro, and ginger at least once per week. No changes were observed in dietary/spice habits during this trial.
The feasibility pre/post study revealed that consumption of a muffin with turmeric reduced at least salivary IL-6 in 10 days. Modifications to the study design such as lengthier trial time to assess the impact of this muffin on CRP is necessary prior to implementing larger-scale randomized control trials.
Aim
To assess the effect of immersion in distilled water or phosphate‐buffered saline (PBS) on the solubility, volumetric change and presence of voids of calcium silicate‐based root canal sealers ...(TotalFill BC, Sealer Plus BC and Bio‐C), in comparison with the gold standard epoxy resin‐based sealer (AH Plus).
Methodology
All properties were evaluated after immersion in distilled water or PBS. Solubility was determined by the percentage of mass loss, whereas volumetric change and presence of voids were evaluated by micro‐computed tomography, after 7 days of immersion. The volumetric change and percentage of voids between the baseline (after setting) and the experimental period were calculated. Statistical analysis was performed using one‐way anova and Tukey's or Student's t‐tests (α = 0.05).
Results
The calcium silicate‐based sealers had significantly greater solubility and volumetric loss than AH Plus, after immersion in distilled water or PBS (P < 0.05). Bio‐C had the greatest solubility (P < 0.05), followed by TotalFill BC and Sealer Plus BC, which were similar (P > 0.05). Regarding the volumetric change, AH Plus had a volume increase, with similar values in distilled water and PBS (P > 0.05). TotalFill BC, Sealer Plus BC and Bio‐C had a similar volumetric change (P > 0.05). The calcium silicate‐based materials had the greatest solubility and volume loss after immersion in distilled water (P < 0.05). There was no difference in the percentage of voids amongst the sealers, before and after immersion in distilled water or PBS (P > 0.05).
Conclusions
TotalFill BC, Sealer Plus BC and Bio‐C had significantly greater solubility and volumetric loss than AH Plus. Although storage in PBS significantly reduced the solubility and volumetric change of calcium silicate‐based sealers, their solubility remained above that recommend by ISO 6876. All the sealers evaluated had low and similar voids, even after immersion in distilled water or PBS.
Context The increase in the population aging has brought more significant concern about how proper care will be provided to the elderly in the future. Thus, the development of technological solutions ...for the health domain has gained more prominence. Joining this scenario to the growing use of mobile devices for daily activities, several mobile applications focused on the elderly healthcare have been developed with healthcare and software engineer professionals involved. However, there is no survey to help both professionals to take decisions on the target of application, elderly profile, empirical validation techniques, among others. Thus, the following question arises: how have mobile applications for elderly healthcare been addressed in the literature in the past years? Objective To identify the state of the art in the literature concerned with the development of mobile applications for elderly healthcare, considering healthcare and software Engineering viewpoints. Method We performed a systematic mapping conducted by health and software engineering researchers to provide an interdisciplinary investigation of the papers that address mobile applications for elderly healthcare, summarizing the data collected under the following classification: target of application, older adult profile, spatial-temporal distribution, techniques for empirical validation and type of software engineering research. Results We found a total of 2533 papers and, after applying our eligibility criteria, we got 149. We observed aspects related to the digital health initiative type, using the classification proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO), the elderly profile prioritized by the application, the spatial-temporal distribution of the studies, the empirical validation type, and the research contribution of each analyzed paper to the software engineering area. Conclusions Regarding the WHO classification, we noticed that two categories were more frequently found, Clients and Data Services, and that none of the mobile apps were classified in the Health System Manager category. The data extraction result also reveals that most of the applications found in the literature focused on the independent elderly. Moreover, we observed that most of the studies were proposals of solutions for elderly health and the validation process of these solutions generally consisted of controlled experiments and usability evaluations. At last, the research focused on mobile applications for elderly healthcare has been performed mostly by developed countries.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
NiZnFe2O4 superparamagnetic nanoparticles were coated with silica by impregnation with tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and further activated with divinylsulfone (DVS) and p-benzoquinone (BQ) for covalent ...immobilization lipase from Pseudomonas fluorescens (PFL), producing the biocatalysts TEOS-NANO-DVS-PFL and TEOS-NANO-BQ-PFL. The optimal conditions for enzyme immobilization were found to be pH 7 and 0.1 M of both activating reagents. PFL was also immobilized on TEOS nanoparticles without any activation as a reference (TEOS-NANO-PFL). Results indicated that TEOS could be released from the nanoparticles at alkaline pH value. Optimal TEOS-NANO-PFL exhibited a recovered activity of 55% and a t1/2(60°C) of just over 150 min; while TEOS-NANO-DVS-PFL showed 82% of activity recovered and t1/2(60°C) of 225 min; being the TEOS-NANO-BQ-PFL the biocatalyst offering the best results (89% of recovered activity and a half-life over 1440 min), the maximum enzyme load was ≈300 U/g.
•NiZnFe2O4 superparamagnetic nanoparticles were coated TEOS and further activated with DVS or BQ.•The support activation has been optimized, the release of TEOS at alkaline pH values become a problem.•PFL has been immobilized on NANO-TEOS, NANO-TEOS-DVS and NANO-TEOS BQ.•Optimal biocatalyst has been obtained by immobilizing PFL on NANO-TEOS BQ at pH 7 for 24 h.•Under stress inactivations, TEOS-NANO-BQ-PFL half live was 24 h while that of TEOS-NANO-PFL was 2.5 h.
Genus and species of phlebotomine sand flies have been recorded and described in caves in Brazil, but no study has provided the food source used by sand flies in these environments. Herein, we ...identified the blood source used by sand fly species in caves located at “Quadrilátero Ferrífero” (QF), Minas Gerais state. Specimens were manually collected near or on anurans inside ferruginous caves in Serra do Gandarela National Park and Serra do Rola Moça State Park. Males and females were placed in vials with 70% alcohol and stored at −10°C. Females engorged, after specific identification, had DNA extracted and followed for PCR amplification using specific primers. Sequencing was analyzed in the GenBank and Barcode of Life. A total of 198 specimens were collected (107 females and 91 males), all of them belonging to species
Sciopemyia aff. microps
(88.89%),
Sciopemyia sordellii
(10.61%), or
Martinsmyia oliveirai
(0.50%)
.
When it comes to the females, 89 were
S. aff. microps
and 18
S. sordellii.
Nineteen engorged females of
S. aff. microps
were analyzed and most of them (
n
=18) presented blood from
Bokermannohyla martinsi
and one contained blood from
Scinax fuscovarius
. The blood present in engorged females of
S. sordellii
(
n
=4) was from
B. martinsi. Sciopemyia
genus specimens are commonly found in collections carried out inside natural caves, but this was the first study to prove that females of this genus feed on cold-blooded animals in nature.
Highlights
•
Here we proved that sand flies feed in cold-blooded animals in in Brazilian caves.
•
Females of the
Sciopemyia
genus were for the first time found feeding in natural habitats.
•
Anurans of the family Hylidae were identified as source by molecular analyzes.
•
Insect bloodmeal identification can help assessing the fauna in several biomes.
•
This is the first record of
S. aff. microps
in caves of Brazil.
We study the relativistic quantum dynamics of a DKP oscillator field subject to a linear interaction in cosmic string space-time in order to better understand the effects of gravitational fields ...produced by topological defects on the scalar field. We obtain the solution of DKP oscillator in the cosmic string background. Also, we solve it with an ansatz in the presence of a linear interaction. We obtain the wave functions and the energy levels of the relativistic field in that background.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Triacylglycerides (TAGs) are a class of neutral lipids that represent the most important storage form of energy for eukaryotic cells. DGAT (acyl-CoA: diacylglycerol acyltransferase; EC 2.3.1.20) is a ...transmembrane enzyme that acts in the final and committed step of TAG synthesis, and it has been proposed to be the rate-limiting enzyme in plant storage lipid accumulation. In fact, two different enzymes identified in several eukaryotic species, DGAT1 and DGAT2, are the main enzymes responsible for TAG synthesis. These enzymes do not share high DNA or protein sequence similarities, and it has been suggested that they play non-redundant roles in different tissues and in some species in TAG synthesis. Despite a number of previous studies on the DGAT1 and DGAT2 genes, which have emphasized their importance as potential obesity treatment targets to increase triacylglycerol accumulation, little is known about their evolutionary timeline in eukaryotes. The goal of this study was to examine the evolutionary relationship of the DGAT1 and DGAT2 genes across eukaryotic organisms in order to infer their origin.
We have conducted a broad survey of fully sequenced genomes, including representatives of Amoebozoa, yeasts, fungi, algae, musses, plants, vertebrate and invertebrate species, for the presence of DGAT1 and DGAT2 gene homologs. We found that the DGAT1 and DGAT2 genes are nearly ubiquitous in eukaryotes and are readily identifiable in all the major eukaryotic groups and genomes examined. Phylogenetic analyses of the DGAT1 and DGAT2 amino acid sequences revealed evolutionary partitioning of the DGAT protein family into two major DGAT1 and DGAT2 clades. Protein secondary structure and hydrophobic-transmembrane analysis also showed differences between these enzymes. The analysis also revealed that the MGAT2 and AWAT genes may have arisen from DGAT2 duplication events.
In this study, we identified several DGAT1 and DGAT2 homologs in eukaryote taxa. Overall, the data show that DGAT1 and DGAT2 are present in most eukaryotic organisms and belong to two different gene families. The phylogenetic and evolutionary analyses revealed that DGAT1 and DGAT2 evolved separately, with functional convergence, despite their wide molecular and structural divergence.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The continuous degradation and synthesis of prokaryotic mRNAs not only give rise to the metabolic changes that are required as cells grow and divide but also rapid adaptation to new environmental ...conditions. In bacteria, RNAs can be degraded by mechanisms that act independently, but in parallel, and that target different sites with different efficiencies. The accessibility of sites for degradation depends on several factors, including RNA higher-order structure, protection by translating ribosomes and polyadenylation status. Furthermore, RNA degradation mechanisms have shown to be determinant for the post-transcriptional control of gene expression. RNases mediate the processing, decay and quality control of RNA. RNases can be divided into endonucleases that cleave the RNA internally or exonucleases that cleave the RNA from one of the extremities. Just in Escherichia coli there are >20 different RNases. RNase E is a single-strand-specific endonuclease critical for mRNA decay in E. coli. The enzyme interacts with the exonuclease polynucleotide phosphorylase (PNPase), enolase and RNA helicase B (RhlB) to form the degradosome. However, in Bacillus subtilis, this enzyme is absent, but it has other main endonucleases such as RNase J1 and RNase III. RNase III cleaves double-stranded RNA and family members are involved in RNA interference in eukaryotes. RNase II family members are ubiquitous exonucleases, and in eukaryotes, they can act as the catalytic subunit of the exosome. RNases act in different pathways to execute the maturation of rRNAs and tRNAs, and intervene in the decay of many different mRNAs and small noncoding RNAs. In general, RNases act as a global regulatory network extremely important for the regulation of RNA levels.
Infrared spectrometry (IR) became a workhorse to characterize microplastics (MPs) worldwide. However, reports on the experimental conditions to measure them decreased alarmingly. As complete, ...relevant information on the instrumental setup determining IR spectra is crucial for scientific reproducibility, ca. 50% of the papers that reported FTIR to measure MPs were evaluated and it was found that most studies cannot be replicated due to missing experimental details. To ameliorate this, the most critical parameters influencing IR spectra are depicted, their impact when matching a spectrum against databases exemplified, and, following efforts from other scientific fields, a minimum information for publication of IR-related data on MPs characterization (MIPIR-MP) is proposed, along with a brief, simple paragraph to resume the most critical information to be reported. This can be used to improve the worrying figures that point out to a reproducibility crisis in the field, as disclosed by the survey.
•Studies on microplastics lack information on IR measurement setup parameters•Around 25% of published papers do not offer useful instrumental information•A lack of understanding of basic IR parameters might affect polymer identifications•The quality of reported data on microplastics is compromised•A paragraph is proposed to minimize the lack of IR instrumental information
The Brazilian Cerrado is one of the most endangered biomes in the world. We evaluated the sustainability of leaf harvest in one of the most important Cerrado tree species, Stryphnodendron ...adstringens. The bark of this tree is used as a source of medicinal tannin. Harvesting bark, however, often kills the tree. In a manipulative field experiment, we tested the hypothesis that harvesting leaves, which might serve as an alternative source of tannin, would be less detrimental for tree survival, growth, reproduction, and defense than harvesting bark. In a two-way crossed experimental design, we either clipped 100% of a plant's leaves or applied NPK fertilizer to the soil. Our predictions of the experimental outcomes were based on plant resource and defense theory. Growth was determined by total leaf dry mass production, reproduction by inflorescence and fruit production traits, and defense by total phenolics, hydrolyzable tannins, and condensed tannins. Fertilization had a marginally positive effect on total leaf dry mass. Defoliation had no effect on subsequent leaf production, and most importantly, no plants died as a result of defoliation. We found high tannin amounts in leaves of S. adstringens produced both prior to and subsequent to clipping, further suggesting that leaves could serve as a sustainable alternative source of tannin. After clipping, plants invested more in tannin production and less in reproduction. Our results suggest that leaf harvest may be more sustainable than harvesting of bark in S. adstringens. We suggest the need for further investigation of the medicinal properties of leaf tannins to formulate a viable sustainable management plan for the exploitation of this plant species.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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