Acute Physiological and Metabolic responses for 40-minutes of Samba Dance

Dance is an enjoyable health-promoting physical activity that many people worldwide incorporate into their lifestyles today. Therefore, dance improves your heart health, overall muscle strength, balance, and coordination, and reduces depression. We aim to gain insights into the effects of samba dance on the cardiorespiratory and metabolic response during an acute session of this dance style for 40-minutes. The study was carried out on 20 female samba dancers. All of them performed two procedures: (1) a cardiopulmonary exercise test on a treadmill for physical fitness aptitude verification and (2) a 40-minutes of samba dancing monitored by analysis of expired gases. The results were: At peak exercise: oxygen uptake (VO2) =32.7 mL.kg-1.min-1; heart rate (HR) =183 bpm; the pulse of oxygen (PO2) =10.9 mL.HR-1, energy expenditure (EE) = 9.9 kcal.min-1and metabolic equivalent (METs)=13.5.Overall, each session of the dance of 40-minutes was performed at a mean VO2 of 22.8 mL.kg-1.min-1 (70%VO2max), heart rate of 162 bpm (89%HRmax), energy expenditure (EE) of 6.5 kcal.min-1 (66%max), metabolic equivalent (METs) of 6.3 (62%max), and the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) of 11.8/20. In conclusion: The findings of the current investigation might suggest that the moderate and vigorous-intensity of the exercise verified in an acute samba dance session is enough to induce a chronic training effect recommended by the criteria established by the American College of Sports Medicine for improving cardiorespiratory fitness. This information may lead to a better understanding of the energy expenditure of samba dance and add to the compendium of physical activity.

The Apparent Requirement for Protein Synthesis during G2 Phase Is due to Checkpoint Activation

Protein synthesis inhibitors have long been known to prevent G2 phase cells from entering mitosis. Lockhead et al. demonstrate that this G2 arrest is due to the activation of p38 MAPK, not insufficient protein synthesis, arguing that protein synthesis in G2 phase is not absolutely required for mitotic entry

Libidibia ferrea loaded in bacterial nanocellulose: evaluation of antimicrobial activity and wound care / Libidibia ferrea loaded in bacterial nanocellulose: evaluation of antimicrobial activity and wound care

The effects of Bacterial Nanocellulose (BNC) loaded with Libidibia ferrea (Lf) hydroalcoholic extract were investigated on the healing process of burn in diabetic and non-diabetic animals. In vivo assay was performed with 36 male rats, with streptozotocin-induced diabetes and burns induced by contact. Animals were divided into Nd-BNC (Non-diabetic + Bacterial nanocellulose membranes); Nd-BNC-Lf (Non-diabetic + Bacterial nanocellulose membranes + Libidibia ferrea); D-BNC (Diabetic + Bacterial nanocellulose membranes); D-BNC-Lf (Diabetic + Bacterial nanocellulose membranes + Libidibia ferrea). Wounds were evaluated for 28 days histologically. Lf extract and BNC-Lf extract showed antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. The severe degree of infection, granulation and inflammation observed after 14 days in diabetic rats (exposed or not to Lf extract), disappeared after 21 days. On the 28th day, there was no histological difference among the groups. BNC-Lf extract demonstrated to have antimicrobial activity, however as an wound dressing, both BNC or BNC-Lf extract were effective in the healing of second-degree burn wounds

Ineffective penicillin treatment and absence of partner treatment may drive the congenital syphilis epidemic in Brazil

BACKGROUND: Reducing congenital syphilis has been the focus of Brazilian health programs for decades, yet the cases continue to increase. Although health interventions have targeted HIV screening and treatment, syphilis management continues to be challenging. Syphilis during pregnancy may enhance the HIV maternal seroconversion risk. The potential factors fueling the syphilis epidemic were evaluated in south Brazil, an area of high HIV or syphilis endemicity. OBJECTIVE: We hypothesized that ineffective treatment because of a lack of partner treatment, late presentation to care, and reinfection of previously treated mothers were potential drivers of syphilis mother-to-child transmission. STUDY DESIGN: Data on women diagnosed with syphilis during pregnancy between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2018 were obtained from a large urban hospital in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The patients were stratified into effective vs ineffective treatment groups according to the World Health Organization guidelines. Crude and adjusted risk ratios for the prediction of congenital syphilis and adverse fetal or neonatal outcomes were computed using Poisson regression. RESULTS: Nearly 56,000 pregnant women delivered over the 11-year period; 1541 (2.8%) had confirmed syphilis during pregnancy, with 934 (61%) receiving ineffective syphilis treatment because of late presentation and diagnosis, delayed treatment initiation, and loss to follow-up with no treatment recorded. Ineffective treatment was associated with maternal education, prenatal care, timing of syphilis diagnosis, venereal diseases research laboratory titers, and maternal HIV coinfection. On multivariate regression analysis, ineffective treatment (adjusted risk ratio, 4.52; 95% confidence interval, 2.35–8.69), absence of prenatal care (adjusted risk ratio, 9.31; 95% confidence interval, 3.77–23.0), syphilis diagnosis at delivery (adjusted risk ratio, 3.08; 95% confidence interval, 2.07–4.58), and maternal nontreponemal titers ≥1:64 (1.09–1.93) were associated with an increased risk of fetal loss. Ineffective treatment (adjusted risk ratio, 1.71; 95% confidence interval, 1.59–1.84), year of diagnosis 2014 to 2016 (adjusted risk ratio, 1.07; 95% confidence interval, 1.02–1.13), absence of prenatal care (adjusted risk ratio, 1.44; 95% confidence interval, 1.17–1.76), and maternal nontreponemal titers >1:4 were associated with an increased risk of congenital syphilis. Although partner treatment reduced the congenital syphilis risk (adjusted risk ratio, 0.60; 95% confidence interval, 0.55–0.66), only 31.8% of partners received treatment. Maternal HIV coinfection was not associated with an increased risk of fetal loss, low birthweight, preterm birth, congenital syphilis, or symptomatic neonatal infection. CONCLUSION: Public health initiatives promoting effective syphilis treatment in pregnancy, increased access to high-quality prenatal care, and partner treatment should be considered to reduce congenital syphilis.Revisión por pare

Multiply charged naphthalene and its C10H8 isomers: bonding, spectroscopy and implications in AGN environments

Naphthalene (C10H8) is the simplest polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and an important component in a series of astrochemical reactions involving hydrocarbons. Its molecular charge state affects the stability of its isomeric structures, which is specially relevant in ionised astrophysical environments. We thus perform an extensive computational search for low-energy molecular structures of neutral, singly, and multiply charged naphthalene and its isomers with charge states +q = 0-4 and investigate their geometric properties and bonding situations. We find that isomerisation reactions should be frequent for higher charged states and that open chains dominate their low-energy structures. We compute both the scaled-harmonic and anharmonic infrared spectra of selected low-energy species and provide the calculated scaling factors for the naphthalene neutral, cation, and dication global minima. All simulated spectra reproduce satisfactorily the experimental data and, thus, are adequate for aiding observations. Moreover, the potential presence of these species in the emission spectra of the circumnuclear regions of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), with high energetic X-ray photon fluxes, is explored using the experimental value of the naphthalene photodissociation cross-section, \sigma_{ph-d}, to determine its half-life, t_{1/2}, at a photon energy of 2.5 keV in a set of relevant sources. Finally, we show that the computed IR bands of the triply and quadruply charged species are able to reproduce some features of the selected AGN sources.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 15 pages, 7 pages, supplementary information available onlin

Antimicrobial silver coating using PVD-PECVD system

Physical Vapor Deposition - Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PVD-PECVD) systems are used exclusively for deposition and doping of carbonaceous films. However, this technique presents promising characteristics for the deposition of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) on textiles, which meet the industrial demand for a more versatile and efficient methodology than the Magnetron Sputtering (MS) technique. In this regard, cotton textiles were coated with Ag-NP films produced by PVD-PECVD, and compared in terms of technical Physical vapor deposition - plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PVD-PECVD) system has been used exclusively for deposition and doping of carbonaceous films [silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs)] on cotton fabrics and the findings are compared, in terms of technical efficiency and microbial inhibition, with those of the magnetron sputtering (MS) technique. It is found that the proposed technique presents promising characteristics for the deposition of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) on textiles, which meet the industrial demand.efficiency and microbial inhibition, with findings in the literature for the MS technique

The Global Refugee Crisis: Pathway for a More Humanitarian Solution

The global refugee crisis reveals refugees and other forcibly displaced persons (FDP) are uniquely vulnerable consumers on a dynamic pathway precipitated by trigger events that have disrupted or fractured marketing systems requisite for safety and well-being, resulting in dangerous journeys to temporary or permanent settlements. The Syrian Conflict is introduced to contextualize the challenges along the pathway and to show that a more Humanitarian Marketing System, spanning time, space and other systems, brings opportunities for governments, NGOs and businesses to cooperate and to provide FDP with resources, which enhance connectedness, reduce vulnerabilities and suffering, illuminate good practices and enable FDP to flourish when resettled. The authors discuss research-opportunities to facilitate further understanding, to develop and repair marketing systems, and to enhance the well-being of FDP and other stakeholders of the crisis

The renaissance of Odum\u27s outwelling hypothesis in \u27blue carbon\u27 science

The term ‘Blue Carbon’ was coined about a decade ago to highlight the important carbon sequestration capacity of coastal vegetated ecosystems. The term has paved the way for the development of programs and policies that preserve and restore these threatened coastal ecosystems for climate change mitigation. Blue carbon research has focused on quantifying carbon stocks and burial rates in sediments or accumulating as biomass. This focus on habitat-bound carbon led us to losing sight of the mobile blue carbon fraction. Oceans, the largest active reservoir of carbon, have become somewhat of a blind spot. Multiple recent investigations have revealed high outwelling (i.e., lateral fluxes or horizontal exports) of dissolved inorganic (DIC) and organic (DOC) carbon, as well as particulate organic carbon (POC) from blue carbon habitats. In this paper, we conceptualize outwelling in mangrove, saltmarsh, seagrass and macroalgae ecosystems, diagnose key challenges preventing robust quantification, and pave the way for future work integrating mobile carbon in the blue carbon framework. Outwelling in mangroves and saltmarshes is usually dominated by DIC (mostly as bicarbonate), while POC seems to be the major carbon species exported from seagrass meadows and macroalgae forests. Carbon outwelling science is still in its infancy, and estimates remain limited spatially and temporally. Nevertheless, the existing datasets imply that carbon outwelling followed by ocean storage is relevant and may exceed local sediment burial as a long-term ( \u3e centuries) blue carbon sequestration mechanism. If this proves correct as more data emerge, ignoring carbon outwelling may underestimate the perceived sequestration capacity of blue carbon ecosystems

The renaissance of Odum's outwelling hypothesis in 'Blue Carbon' science

The term ‘Blue Carbon’ was coined about a decade ago to highlight the important carbon sequestration capacity of coastal vegetated ecosystems. The term has paved the way for the development of programs and policies that preserve and restore these threatened coastal ecosystems for climate change mitigation. Blue carbon research has focused on quantifying carbon stocks and burial rates in sediments or accumulating as biomass. This focus on habitat-bound carbon led us to losing sight of the mobile blue carbon fraction. Oceans, the largest active reservoir of carbon, have become somewhat of a blind spot. Multiple recent investigations have revealed high outwelling (i.e., lateral fluxes or horizontal exports) of dissolved inorganic (DIC) and organic (DOC) carbon, as well as particulate organic carbon (POC) from blue carbon habitats. In this paper, we conceptualize outwelling in mangrove, saltmarsh, seagrass and macroalgae ecosystems, diagnose key challenges preventing robust quantification, and pave the way for future work integrating mobile carbon in the blue carbon framework. Outwelling in mangroves and saltmarshes is usually dominated by DIC (mostly as bicarbonate), while POC seems to be the major carbon species exported from seagrass meadows and macroalgae forests. Carbon outwelling science is still in its infancy, and estimates remain limited spatially and temporally. Nevertheless, the existing datasets imply that carbon outwelling followed by ocean storage is relevant and may exceed local sediment burial as a long-term (>centuries) blue carbon sequestration mechanism. If this proves correct as more data emerge, ignoring carbon outwelling may underestimate the perceived sequestration capacity of blue carbon ecosystems.publishedVersio

The integrated stress response effector ATF4 is an obligatory metabolic activator of NRF2

The redox regulator NRF2 becomes activated upon oxidative and electrophilic stress and orchestrates a response program associated with redox regulation, metabolism, tumor therapy resistance, and immune suppression. Here, we describe an unrecognized link between the integrated stress response (ISR) and NRF2 mediated by the ISR effector ATF4. The ISR is commonly activated after starvation or ER stress and plays a central role in tissue homeostasis and cancer plasticity. ATF4 increases NRF2 transcription and induces the glutathione-degrading enzyme CHAC1, which we now show to be critically important for maintaining NRF2 activation. In-depth analyses reveal that NRF2 supports ATF4-induced cells by increasing cystine uptake via the glutamate-cystine antiporter xCT. In addition, NRF2 upregulates genes mediating thioredoxin usage and regeneration, thus balancing the glutathione decrease. In conclusion, we demonstrate that the NRF2 response serves as second layer of the ISR, an observation highly relevant for the understanding of cellular resilience in health and disease