Reformulation initiative for partial replacement of saturated with unsaturated fats in dairy foods attenuates the increase in LDL cholesterol and improves flow-mediated dilatation compared with conventional dairy: the randomized, controlled REplacement of SaturatEd fat in dairy on Total cholesterol (RESET) study

Background Modifying dairy fat composition by increasing the MUFA content is a potential strategy to reduce dietary SFA intake for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention in the population. Objectives To determine the effects of consuming SFA-reduced, MUFA-enriched (modified) dairy products, compared with conventional dairy products (control), on the fasting cholesterol profile (primary outcome), endothelial function assessed by flow-mediated dilatation (FMD; key secondary outcome), and other cardiometabolic risk markers. Methods A double-blind, randomized, controlled crossover 12-wk intervention was conducted. Participants with a 1.5-fold higher (moderate) CVD risk than the population mean replaced habitual dairy products with study products (milk, cheese, and butter) to achieve a high-fat, high-dairy isoenergetic daily dietary exchange [38% of total energy intake (%TE) from fat: control (dietary target: 19%TE SFA; 11%TE MUFA) and modified (16%TE SFA; 14%TE MUFA) diet]. Results Fifty-four participants (57.4% men; mean ± SEM age: 52 ± 3 y; BMI: 25.8 ± 0.5 kg/m2) completed the study. The modified diet attenuated the rise in fasting LDL cholesterol observed with the control diet (0.03 ± 0.06 mmol/L and 0.19 ± 0.05 mmol/L, respectively; P = 0.03). Relative to baseline, the %FMD response increased after the modified diet (0.35% ± 0.15%), whereas a decrease was observed after the control diet (−0.51% ± 0.15%; P< 0.0001). In addition, fasting plasma nitrite concentrations increased after the modified diet, yet decreased after the control diet (0.02 ± 0.01 μmol/L and −0.03 ± 0.02 μmol/L, respectively; P = 0.01). Conclusions In adults at moderate CVD risk, consumption of a high-fat diet containing SFA-reduced, MUFA-enriched dairy products for 12 wk showed beneficial effects on fasting LDL cholesterol and endothelial function compared with conventional dairy products. Our findings indicate that fatty acid modification of dairy products may have potential as a public health strategy aimed at CVD risk reduction. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02089035

The role of thymosin-β4 in kidney disease

Therapies that modulate inflammation and fibrosis have the potential to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD). A promising avenue may be manipulating thymosin-β4, a naturally occurring peptide, which is the major G-actin sequestering protein in mammalian cells and a regulator of inflammation and fibrosis. Thymosin-β4 is already being tested in clinical trials for heart disease and wound healing. This editorial outlines the evidence that thymosin-β4 may also have therapeutic benefit in CKD

Meningitis registry of hospitalized cases in children: epidemiological patterns of acute bacterial meningitis throughout a 32-year period

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Bacterial meningitis remains a source of substantial morbidity and mortality in childhood. During the last decades gradual changes have been observed in the epidemiology of bacterial meningitis, related to the introduction of new polysaccharide and conjugate vaccines. The study presents an overview of the epidemiological patterns of acute bacterial meningitis in a tertiary children 's hospital during a 32-year period, using information from a disease registry. Moreover, it discusses the contribution of communicable disease registries in the study of acute infectious diseases.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In the early 1970s a Meningitis Registry (MR) was created for patients admitted with meningitis in Aghia Sofia Children's Hospital in Athens. The MR includes demographic, clinical and laboratory data as well as treatment, complications and outcome of the patients. In 2000 a database was created and the collected data were entered, analyzed and presented in three chronological periods: A (1974–1984), B (1985–1994) and C (1995–2005).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the 2,477 cases of bacterial meningitis registered in total, 1,146 cases (46.3%) were classified as "probable" and 1,331 (53.7%) as "confirmed" bacterial meningitis. The estimated mean annual Incidence Rate (IR) was 16.9/100,000 for bacterial meningitis, 8.9/100,000 for <it>Neisseria meningitidis</it>, 1.3/100,000 for <it>Streptococcus pneumoniae</it>, 2.5/100,000 for <it>Haemophilus influenzae </it>type b (Hib) before vaccination and 0.4/100,000 for Hib after vaccination. <it>Neisseria meningitis </it>constituted the leading cause of childhood bacterial meningitis for all periods and in all age groups. Hib was the second most common cause of bacterial meningitis before the introduction of Hib conjugate vaccine, in periods A and B. The incidence of bacterial meningitis due to <it>Streptococcus pneumoniae </it>was stable. The long-term epidemiological pattern of <it>Neisseria meningitidis </it>appears in cycles of approximately 10 years, confirmed by a significant rise of IR in period C. The Case Fatality Rate (CFR) from all causes was 3.8%, while higher CFR were estimated for <it>Streptococcus pneumoniae </it>(7.5%, RR=2.1, 95% CI 1.2–3.7) and <it>Neisseria meningitidis </it>(4.8%, RR=1.7, 95% CI 1.1–2.5) compared to other pathogens. Moreover, overall CFR varied significantly among the three time periods (p = 0.0015), and was estimated to be higher in period C.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>By using the MR we were able to delineate long-term changes in the epidemiology of bacterial meningitis. Thus the MR proved to be a useful tool in the study and the prevention of communicable diseases in correlation with prevention strategies, such as vaccinations.</p

Efficient and stable air-processed ternary organic solar cells incorporating gallium-porphyrin as electron cascade material

Two gallium porphyrins, a tetraphenyl GaCl porphyrin, termed as (TPP)GaCl, and an octaethylporphyrin GaCl porphyrin, termed as (OEP)GaCl, were synthesized to use as an electron cascade in ternary organic bulk heterojunction films. A perfect matching of both gallium porphyrins’ energy levels with that of poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) or poly[N-9′-heptadecanyl-2,7-carbazole-alt-5,5-(4′,7′-di-2-thienyl-2′,1′,3′-benzothiadiazole)] (PCDTBT) polymer donor and the 6,6-phenyl C71 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) fullerene acceptor, forming an efficient cascade system that could facilitate electron transfer between donor and acceptor, was demonstrated. Therefore, ternary organic solar cells (OSCs) using the two porphyrins in various concentrations were fabricated where a performance enhancement was obtained. In particular, (TPP)GaCl-based ternary OSCs of low concentration (1:0.05 vv%) exhibited a ~17% increase in the power conversion efficiency (PCE) compared with the binary device due to improved exciton dissociation, electron transport and reduced recombination. On the other hand, ternary OSCs with a high concentration of (TPP)GaCl (1:0.1 vv%) and (OEP)GaCl (1:0.05 and 1:0.1 vv%) showed the poorest efficiencies due to very rough nanomorphology and suppressed crystallinity of ternary films when the GaCl porphyrin was introduced to the blend, as revealed from X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The best performing devices also exhibited improved photostability when exposed to sunlight illumination for a period of 8 h than the binary OSCs, attributed to the suppressed photodegradation of the ternary (TPP)GaCl 1:0.05-based photoactive film

Greece in crisis: austerity, populism and the politics of blame

Within the broader debate on the Greek crisis, the theory of ‘populist democracy’ postulates that populism is fundamental to the sustenance of the Greek political system and is at the heart of Greece's endemic domestic weaknesses. This article tests this assumption empirically through the use of a sophisticated framing analysis of speeches delivered by the leaders of the five parties in the Greek parliament in the period 2009–11. The findings confirm that populism: (a) is expressed through the narratives of political actors; (b) is observed across the party system; (c) is expressed in the forms of blame-shifting and exclusivity; and (d) differs depending on position in the party system. The article contributes to the debate by testing and building on the theory of democratic populism, providing a novel way of measuring and operationalizing populism and identifying a new typology that distinguishes between mainstream and fringe populism

Preanalysis of Neutron Activation Measurements in Shielding Penetrations at JET

In the present work, the preanalysis of activation foil experiments to determine neutron fluence rates along JET hall ducts and labyrinths is discussed. Simulations were performed using computational codes MCNPX and FISPACT-II and a detailed model of the JET hall, including the tokamak, biological shield and penetrations. The induced activity and detector count rate were predicted for activation foils placed at selected positions within the JET hall for Deuterium-Deuterium and Deuterium-Tritium JET plasma sources. The results of the calculations showed that satisfactory counting statistics can be obtained with the use of activation detectors and therefore activation analysis offers an unbiased and robust cross-benchmarking tool for comparison against other experimental and computation techniques applied in neutron streaming studies at JET

calibration of activation foils at the 14 mev frascati neutron generator

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