Hydration status and water sources in free-living physically active elderly

[resumo][abstract

Multidimensional Health Impact of Multicomponent Exercise and Sustainable Healthy Diet Interventions in the Elderly (MED-E): Study Protocol

Data concerning the combined effect of diet and exercise interventions on overall health in the elderly are scarce. The MED-E project's primary aim is to assess the effect of the different 3-month sustainable healthy diet (SHD) and multicomponent training (MT) interventions on several health outcomes in the elderly. A quasi-experimental study assigned older adults into four groups: (1) SHD, (2) MT, (3) SHD + MT, or (4) control group (CG). The SHD intervention included a weekly offer of a mixed food supply and individual and group nutritional sessions on the principles of an SHD. The MT groups were submitted to 50-min exercise sessions three times a week. The primary outcomes were blood biomarkers and metabolic profile alterations that were assessed pre- and post-intervention. Additionally, data on dietary intake and nutritional adequacy, physical fitness, body composition and anthropometry, cognitive function, quality of life, and geographical data were assessed at the same time points. The MED-E project's study protocol and future results will add to knowledge about the importance and beneficial contribution of combined SHD and MT interventions on healthy ageing policies

IMPACT OF DIFFERENT SUGARY BEVERAGES ON THIRST

Dubois Raphaël. Sur la fonction purpurigène dans l'œuf du murex producteur de la pourpre . In: Annales de la Société linnéenne de Lyon, tome 63, Année 1916. 1917. pp. 5-8

Urinary Hydration Biomarkers and Water Sources in Older Adults with Neurocognitive Disorder

The risk of dehydration in older adults with neurocognitive disorder (NCD) is controversial. The purpose of this study was to assess hydration status, its determinants, and water intake sources in older adults with NCD. A sample of 30 participants (>= 60 years) was included. Sociodemographic, clinical data and one 24-h urine sample were collected. Urinary osmolality, sodium, potassium, volume, and creatinine were quantified. Inadequate hydration status corresponded to urine osmolality > 500 mOsm/Kg, or a negative Free Water Reserve (FWR). Two 24-h food recalls were used to assess dietary intake and water sources. The adequacy of total water intake (TWI) was estimated according to EFSA. The contribution of food and beverages to TWI was calculated, and their associations with the urinary osmolality median were tested. Of the total number of participants, 30% were classified as having inadequate hydration status, with no differences between sexes. Regarding TWI, 68.4% of women and 77.8% of men did not reach the reference values. Water (23%), followed by soup (17%), contributed the most to TWI, while vegetables (2%) and alcoholic/other beverages (3%) contributed the least. According to the median urinary osmolality, there was no significant difference in sociodemographic/clinical characteristics. It is critical not to overlook hydration in this vulnerable population

Assessing cognitive function in older adults using a videoconference approach

Background: The use of communication technologies is an emerging trend in healthcare and research. Despite efficient, reliable and accurate neuropsychological batteries to evaluate cognitive performance in-person, more diverse and less expensive and time consuming solutions are needed. Here we conducted a pilot study to determine the applicability of a videoconference (VC, Skype (R)) approach to assess cognitive function in older adults, using The Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status-Modified - Portuguese version (TICSM-PT). Methods: After inclusion and exclusion criteria, 69 individuals (mean age = 74.90 +/- 9.46 years), selected from registries of local health centers and assisted-living facilities, were assessed on cognitive performance using videoconference, telephone and in-person approaches. Findings: The videoconference administration method yielded comparable results to the traditional application. Correlation analyses showed high associations between the testing modalities: TICSM-PT VC and TICSM-PT telephone (r=0.885), TICSM-PT VC and MMSE face-to-face (r=0.801). Using the previously validated threshold for cognitive impairment on the TICSM-PT telephone, TICSM-PT VC administration presented a sensitivity of 87.8% and a specificity of 84.6%. Interpretation: Findings indicate for the range of settings where videoconference approaches can be used, and for their applicability and acceptability, providing an alternative to current cognitive assessment methods. Continued validation studies and adaptation of neuropsychological instruments is warranted.This work was funded by the European Commission (FP7): "SwitchBox" (Contract HEALTH-F2-2010-259772), and co-financed by the Portuguese North Regional Operational Program (ON.2 - O Novo Norte), under the National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN), through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), and by the Fundacao Calouste Gulbenkian (Portugal) (Contract grant number: P-139977; project "Better mental health during ageing based on temporal prediction of individual brain ageing trajectories (TEMPO)"). TCC and LA are recipients of a doctoral fellowship from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal; SFRH/BD/90078/2012 and SFRH/BD/101398/2014, respectively, the latter from the POCH program and co-financed by the Fundo Social Europeu and MCTES); PSM is supported by the FCT fellowship grant (PDE/BDE/113601/2015 from the PhD-iHES program); and, NCS of a Research Assistantship by FCT through the "FCT Investigator Programme (2008 Ciencia)".info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

O PROGRAMA CIÊNCIA SEM FRONTEIRAS SOB O OLHAR DOS ESTUDANTES DO IFPB: EXPERIÊNCIA E PERSPECTIVAS

Esta pesquisa teve por objetivo analisar o Programa Ciências sem Fronteiras enquanto política pública de internacionalização da educação superior, a partir da experiência de estudantes do Instituto Federal da Paraíba. Para isso, realizou-se uma pesquisa mista, em que se realizou, primeiramente, uma revisão bibliográfica sobre o contexto do Programa na Instituição. Posteriormente foi desenvolvida a pesquisa empírica, através da aplicação de questionário e de entrevista com os estudantes. O tratamento dos dados se deu através da análise descritiva e da análise de conteúdo. A partir das falas dos sujeitos referenciadas, identificou-se que a principal dificuldade dos alunos foi com relação ao conteúdo curricular das disciplinas e ao domínio do segundo idioma. Apesar disso, a maior parte dos entrevistados teve um aproveitamento considerável no Programa, que contribuiu em suas trajetórias acadêmicas e profissionais

Biological evaluation of naproxen–dehydrodipeptide conjugates with self-hydrogelation capacity as dual LOX/COX inhibitors

The use of peptide–drug conjugates is emerging as a powerful strategy for targeted drug delivery. Previously, we have found that peptides conjugated to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), more specifically naproxen–dehydrodipeptide conjugates, readily form nanostructured fibrilar supramolecular hydrogels. These hydrogels were revealed as efficacious nano-carriers for drug delivery applications. Moreover, the incorporation of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) rendered the hydrogels responsive to external magnetic fields, undergoing gel-to-solution phase transition upon remote magnetic excitation. Thus, magnetic dehydrodipeptide-based hydrogels may find interesting applications as responsive Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) contrast agents and for magnetic hyperthermia-triggered drug-release applications. Supramolecular hydrogels where the hydrogelator molecule is endowed with intrinsic pharmacological properties can potentially fulfill a dual function in drug delivery systems as (passive) nanocariers for incorporated drugs and as active drugs themselves. In this present study, we investigated the pharmacological activities of a panel of naproxen–dehydrodipeptide conjugates, previously studied for their hydrogelation ability and as nanocarriers for drug-delivery applications. A focused library of dehydrodipeptides, containing N-terminal canonical amino acids (Phe, Tyr, Trp, Ala, Asp, Lys, Met) N-capped with naproxen and linked to a C-terminal dehydroaminoacid (ΔPhe, ΔAbu), were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer activities, as well as for their cytotoxicity to non-cancer cells, using a variety of enzymatic and cellular assays. All compounds except one were able to significantly inhibit lipoxygenase (LOX) enzyme at a similar level to naproxen. One of the compounds 4 was able to inhibit the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) to a greater extent than naproxen, without inhibiting cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1), and therefore is a potential lead in the search for selective COX-2 inhibitors. This hydrogelator is a potential candidate for dual COX/LOX inhibition as an optimised strategy for treating inflammatory conditions.This work is funded by National Funds through FCT-Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under the Project cand CQ/UM UID/QUI/00686/2013 and UID/QUI/0686/2016. The NMR spectrometers are part of the National NMR Network (PTNMR) and are partially supported by Infrastructure Project No 022161 (co-financed by FEDER through COMPETE 2020, POCI and PORL and FCT through PIDDAC).This work is funded by FEDER funds through the COMPETE 2020 Programme and National Funds through FCT-Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under the Project UID/CTM/50025/2013 and UIDB/50006/2020. We thank Vera Alexandra de Macedo Ribeiro for isolation of the 26S proteasome subunit. We acknowledge the precious advice of Tarsila Castro on the docking studies. For computing resources:”Search-ON2: Revitalization of HPC infrastructure of UMinho, (NORTE-07-0162-FEDER-000086), co-funded by the North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (ON.2-O Novo Norte), under the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF), through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

The development of skills in Primary Health Care nurses for coping with social inequalities in health

The objective of this study was to identify and develop skills with Primary Health Care nurses to work the social inequalities in health. This is a qualitative research based on action-research, performed with six primary health care nurses in a municipality of Minas Gerais, who participated in educational workshops addressing coping strategies for social inequalities in health. The data collection occurred through a focal group and non-participant observation, from March to May 2018. The data were analyzed through the thematic content analysis technique. The identification and training of skills to cope with this was founded on knowledge, skills and attitudes. The participants stressed the importance of knowing their role in the scenario where they work, as well as the functioning of the Health Care Network and legislation to support them to coping with this problem, being the communicational skills essential in this process. The knowledge acquired in the workshop enabled participants to recognize attitudes in their professional routine, which enable them to act in the face of this reality. The present study indicates the importance of appreciating and strengthening the training of nurses for the development of competences to act on social inequalities

Longitudinal measurement invariance of memory performance and executive functioning in healthy aging

In this work, we examined the longitudinal measurement invariance of a battery composed of distinct cognitive parameters. A sample of 86 individuals (53.5% females; mean age = 65.73), representative of the Portuguese older population, with respect to sex, age and level of education was assessed twice over an average of two years. By means of a confirmatory factor analysis approach, we tested whether a two-factor solution [corresponding to measures of memory performance (MEM) and executive functioning (EXEC)] was reliable over time. Nested models of longitudinal invariance demonstrated the existence of partial strong invariance over time. In other words, this indicates that there is an equivalence of the factorial structure and factor loadings for all items; this was also observed for the item intercepts for all the items, except for one of the items from the EXEC dimension. Stability coefficients revealed high associations between the dimensions over time and that, whereas there was a significant decline of the MEM across time, this was not observed for the EXEC dimension. These findings reveal that changes in MEM and EXEC scores can be attributed to true changes on these constructs, enabling the use of this battery as a reliable method to study cognitive aging.PSM (ref: PDE/BDE/113601/2015 - PhD-iHES program), TCC (ref: SFRH/BD/90078/2012), LA (SFRH/BD/101398/2014) and CPN (ref: PD/BD/106050/2015 - PhDOC program) were supported by FCT fellowship grants. The work has been developed under the scope of the projects NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000013 supported by the Northern Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the Portugal 2020 (P2020) Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016428 supported by the Operational Programme Competitiveness and Internationalization (COMPETE 2020) and the Regional Operational Program of Lisbon and National Funding through Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal); and, by the Portuguese North Regional Operational Programme (ON.2 - O Novo Norte), under the National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN), through FEDER, the Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian (Portugal) (contract grant number: P-139977; project "TEMPO - Better mental health during ageing based on temporal prediction of individual brain ageing trajectories") and SwitchBox-FP7-HEALTH-2010-grant 259772-2info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio