Patient-physician discordance in assessment of adherence to inhaled controller medication: a cross-sectional analysis of two cohorts

We aimed to compare patient's and physician's ratings of inhaled medication adherence and to identify predictors of patient-physician discordance.(SFRH/BPD/115169/2016) funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT); ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) through the operations: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029130 ('mINSPIRERS—mHealth to measure and improve adherence to medication in chronic obstructive respiratory diseases—generalisation and evaluation of gamification, peer support and advanced image processing technologies') cofunded by the COMPETE2020 (Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização), Portugal 2020 and by Portuguese Funds through FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Avaliação da diferenciação osteoblástica de células-tronco mesenquimais de ratos tratados cronicamente com bifosfonatos

Apesar dos bifosfonatos (BPs), fármacos antirreabsortivos, atuarem principalmente nos osteoclastos, a ação desses medicamentos em osteoblastos tem sido demonstrada em experimentos in vitro. Porém, na maioria desses experimentos, há exposição das culturas de osteoblastos aos BPs. Na presente investigação, foram avaliados osteoblastos diferenciados a partir de células-tronco mesenquimais (CTMs) de ratos tratados in vivo com alendronato de sódio (ALE: 1mg/ml/kg/semana), ácido zoledrônico (ZOL: 0,3mg/ml/kg/semana) ou solução salina (VEH: 0,009mg/ml/kg/semana) durante 13 semanas. As CTMs da medula óssea dos fêmures direitos dos animais foram cultivadas em meio osteogênico, na densidade de 5.000 células/200μl/poço. Após 21 dias de cultura, osteoblastos foram avaliados quanto à viabilidade celular e à formação de matriz mineralizada. Foram observadas viabilidades celulares semelhantes nos grupos BPs (ALE e ZOL) e superiores ao controle (VEH). Quanto à formação da matriz mineralizada, houve maior mineralização no grupo ZOL em relação ao grupo ALE, sendo ambas inferiores ao observado no grupo VEH. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que a exposição in vivo das CTMs ao ALE e ao ZOL influenciou a atividade dos osteoblastos in vitro. Ambos os medicamentos utilizados são BPs nitrogenados; contudo, na dose empregada, o ALE afetou mais significativamente a formação de matriz mineralizada

Calcium biofortification of Rocha pears, tissues accumulation and physicochemical implications in fresh and heat-treated fruits

Low dietary intake of Ca in humans has been epidemiologically linked to various diseases, which can have serious health consequences over time. Accordingly, the development of an agronomic itinerary for Ca biofortification of Rocha pears and the assessment of physicochemical deviations prompted this study. Two orchards with contrasting soil and water characteristics were selected, characterized through orthophotomaping and, during fruits development, leaves were sprayed twice with Ca(NO3)2 (0.1, 0.3 and 0.6 kg ha - 1) or CaCl2 (0.4, 0.8 and 1.6 kg ha - 1), followed by pulverization only with CaCl2 (first once with 4 kg ha - 1 and then four times with 8 kg ha - 1). During fruits development net photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, transpiration rates, instantaneous and water use efficiency, only showed minor deviations, which indicated that the threshold of toxicity was not surpassed. Calcium contents varied during fruits development and at harvesting the average biofortification index varied between 47 %–63 % and 24 %–59 % in each of the orchards. Besides, the equatorial region of the fruits showed for all treatments (substantially in Ca treated samples) higher Ca contents in the epidermal and in the central regions. Fresh and heat-treated fruits (in a thermomix at 90 ◦C, during 10 min) biofortified with Ca only revealed minor differences and the sensory acceptability did not vary markedly. It is concluded that, although prevailing a heterogeneous distribution of Ca in fruit tissues, high indexes of biofortification in Rocha pears can be prompt in the orchards, without substantial physicochemical changes. Accordingly, agronomic biofortification with Ca can be used as a strategy for benefiting consumer’s healthinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Implications for Quality and Wine Production

UID/FIS/04559/2020Nowadays, there is a growing concern about micronutrient deficits in food products, with agronomic biofortification being considered a mitigation strategy. In this context, as Zn is essential for growth and maintenance of human health, a workflow for the biofortification of grapes from the Vitis vinifera variety Fernão Pires, which contains this nutrient, was carried out considering the soil properties of the vineyard. Additionally, Zn accumulation in the tissues of the grapes and the implications for some quality parameters and on winemaking were assessed. Vines were sprayed three times with ZnO and ZnSO4 at concentrations of 150, 450, and 900 g ha−1 during the production cycle. Physiological data were obtained through chlorophyll a fluorescence data, to access the potential symptoms of toxicity. At harvest, treated grapes revealed significant increases of Zn concentration relative to the control, being more pronounced for ZnO and ZnSO4 in the skin and seeds, respectively. After winemaking, an increase was also found regarding the control (i.e., 1.59-fold with ZnSO4-450 g ha−1). The contents of the sugars and fatty acids, as well as the colorimetric analyses, were also assessed, but significant variations were not found among treatments. In general, Zn biofortification increased with ZnO and ZnSO4, without significantly affecting the physicochemical characteristics of grapes.publishersversionpublishe

Chronic caffeine use does not influence behavior and brain oxidative status in mice: O uso crônico de cafeína não influencia o comportamento e o status oxidativo em camundongos

The present study investigated whether and to what extent caffeine chronic use can influence the brain oxidative status and the behavioral activity of the C57BL/6 female mice. For this, fifteen animals were randomized in the following groups: Control, Caf10: 10 mg/kg caffeine, and Caf50: 50 mg/kg caffeine. The animals received one daily caffeine dose by i.p route by 120 days. Twenty-four hours after the last administration, the animals were subjected to behavioral tests and euthanized. The blood was used by biochemical analysis and the brain to evaluate the oxidative status and micromineral levels. The caffeine does not influence the anthropometric parameters, lipid profile, and the C-reactive protein levels. In the same way, SOD and glutathione-s-transferase (GST) activities maintained the same response profile. On the other hand, catalase (CAT) activity was decreased in both groups receiving caffeine. Despite this, malondialdehyde and carbonyl protein levels did not change among the groups, as well as the distribution of the chemical elements. In the same way, none caffeine dose was caused increased anxiety degree in the animals. Considering the time of caffeine administration, we believe that there was the cellular adaptation triggered by its use, tending to a protective effect on the brain.Amplamente consumida nos alimentos e como suplemento alimentar, a cafeína tem sido estudada devido aos seus efeitos farmacológicos, principalmente no sistema nervoso central (SNC). O presente estudo investigou se o uso crônico da cafeína pode influenciar o estado oxidativo do cérebro e a atividade comportamental de camundongos fêmeas C57BL/6. Para isso, quinze animais foram randomizados nos seguintes grupos: Controle (solução salina à 0,9%), Caf10 (10 mg / kg de cafeína) e Caf50 (50 mg / kg de cafeína). Os animais receberam uma dose diária de cafeína por via i.p. durante 120 dias. Vinte e quatro horas após a última administração, os animais foram submetidos a testes comportamentais e foram eutanasiados. O sangue foi utilizado para análises bioquímicas. No cérebro, foi avaliado o estado oxidativo e os níveis de microminerais. A cafeína não influenciou os parâmetros antropométricos, perfil lipídico e níveis de proteína Creativa. Ademais, as atividades de superóxido dismutase (SOD) e glutationa-Stransferase (GST) mantiveram o mesmo perfil de resposta. Em contrapartida, a atividade da catalase (CAT) diminuiu em ambos os grupos que receberam cafeína. Já os níveis de malondialdeído e proteína carbonilada não se alteraram entre os grupos, assim como a distribuição dos microminerais. Nenhuma dose de cafeína desencadeou comportamento do tipo ansioso nos animais. Portanto, considerando o tempo de administração da cafeína, acreditamos que houve a adaptação celular desencadeada pelo seu uso, tendendo a um efeito protetor no  cérebro. Além disso, o espaço amostral reduzido foi uma limitação para entendimentos mais acurados sobre os efeitos da cafeína no SNC. Palavras-chave: Cafeína. Espécies reativas de oxigênio. Comportamento Animal

Identification of clusters of asthma control: A preliminary analysis of the inspirers studies

This work was funded by ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) through the operations: POCI- -01-0145-FEDER-029130 (“mINSPIRERS—mHealth to measure and improve adherence to medication in chronic obstructive respiratory diseases - generalisation and evaluation of gamification, peer support and advanced image processing technologies”) co-funded by the COMPETE2020 (Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização), Portugal 2020 and by Portuguese Funds through FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia).© 2020, Sociedade Portuguesa de Alergologia e Imunologia Clinica. All rights reserved. Aims: To identify distinct asthma control clusters based on Control of Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma Test (CARAT) and to compare patients’ characteristics among these clusters. Methods: Adults and adolescents (≥13 years) with persistent asthma were recruited at 29 Portuguese hospital outpatient clinics, in the context of two observational studies of the INSPIRERS project. Demographic and clinical characteristics, adherence to inhaled medication, beliefs about inhaled medication, anxiety and depression, quality of life, and asthma control (CARAT, >24 good control) were collected. Hierarchical cluster analysis was performed using CARAT total score (CARAT-T). Results: 410 patients (68% adults), with a median (percentile 25–percentile 75) age of 28 (16-46) years, were analysed. Three clusters were identified [mean CARAT-T (min-max)]: cluster 1 [27(24-30)], cluster 2 [19(14-23)] and cluster 3 [10(2-13)]. Patients in cluster 1 (34%) were characterised by better asthma control, better quality of life, higher inhaler adherence and use of a single inhaler. Patients in clusters 2 (50%) and 3 (16%) had uncontrolled asthma, lower inhaler adherence, more symptoms of anxiety and depression and more than half had at least one exacerbation in the previous year. Further-more, patients in cluster 3 were predominantly female, had more unscheduled medical visits and more anxiety symp-toms, perceived a higher necessity of their prescribed inhalers but also higher levels of concern about taking these inhalers. There were no differences in age, body mass index, lung function, smoking status, hospital admissions or specialist physician follow-up time among the three clusters. Conclusion: An unsupervised method based on CARAT--T, identified 3 clusters of patients with distinct, clinically meaningful characteristics. The cluster with better asthma control had a cut-off similar to the established in the validation study of CARAT and an additional cut-off seems to distinguish more severe disease. Further research is necessary to validate the asthma control clusters identified.publishersversionpublishe

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others