Analysis of Food Security of Older Rural Indigenous People in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Food insecurity is a critical issue in the Americas, with severe impacts in the Caribbean, Mesoamerica, and South America, particularly affecting older adults in Indigenous and rural contexts where it intersects with poverty, gender, and ethnicity. This study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the current research about food insecurity among older Indigenous adults in Latin America and the Caribbean. A comprehensive literature review was conducted, utilizing specific search queries and the population, intervention, comparison, and outcome (PICO) strategy across multiple databases to identify the pertinent studies. The findings indicate an increase in academic output on this topic since 2018, with significant emphasis on the interplay between climate change and food insecurity. The review highlights the importance of developing targeted food programs, reforming policies, and fostering collaboration between academia and local communities to implement practical interventions. Despite the growing body of literature, a notable research gap persists in rural areas of Latin America and the Caribbean. This study underscores the necessity of balancing the geographic distribution of research and emphasizes the preservation of cultural practices and the adaptation of public policies to support traditional food practices. It advocates for culturally sensitive interventions and interdisciplinary collaboration to formulate comprehensive strategies. The originality and value of this study lie in its focused analysis of older Indigenous adults, contributing crucial insights to the international literature on food security.

Chilean Digital Press Coverage of the Relation between Diet and Mental Health.

Chile has a serious public health problem due to the high prevalence of both unhealthy dietary patterns and mental illnesses. Given that dietary quality is positively associated with the quality of mental health, it is urgent that healthy dietary patterns be promoted among Chileans. The WHO recommends the use of mass media for the dissemination of knowledge about mental health. Since health news affect people's attitudes and health behaviors, this study analyzed the coverage by three Chilean online newspapers with the largest readership regarding the relation between diet and mental health in 2016. A previously constructed corpus of 2551 news items about food was analyzed quantitatively. The results show that the relevance of the topic diet and mental health was low in all three newspapers. The most frequent type of information was on "foods" and not "nutrients" that "benefit"-not that "damage"-mental health. The quality of the news was poor as a narrow range of sources was found. An individual responsibility frame predominated in the information to the detriment of a public health frame.

SARS-CoV-2 Infection Induces a Dual Response in Liver Function Tests: Association with Mortality during Hospitalization.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is associated with abnormal liver function tests. We hypothesized that early altered liver biochemistries at admission might have different clinical relevance than subsequent changes during hospitalization. A single-center retrospective study was conducted on 540 consecutive hospitalized patients, PCR-diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2. Liver test abnormalities were defined as the elevation of either gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), or aspartate aminotransferase (AST), above the upper limit of normality set by our laboratory. Linear mixed models (LMM) evaluated longitudinal associations, incorporating all available follow-up laboratory chemistries. By the end of the follow-up period, 502 patients (94.5%) were discharged (109 (20.5%) died). A total of 319 (64.3%) had at least one abnormal liver test result at admission. More prevalent were elevated AST (40.9%) and GGT (47.3%). Abnormalities were not associated with survival but with respiratory complications at admission. Conversely, LMM models adjusted for age and sex showed that longitudinal increases during hospitalization in ferritin, GGT, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP), as well as a decreased albumin levels, were associated with reduced survival. This dual pattern of liver damage might reconcile previous conflicting reports. GGT and ALP trajectories could be useful to determine who might need more surveillance and intensive care.

Effectiveness and security of chronic hepatitis C treatment in coinfected patients in real-world.

Background HIV-HCV coinfection produces high morbi-mortality. Direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) have shown high efficacy, although special attention should be paid to the risk of drug interactions. However, due to the lack of representativeness of coinfected patients in clinical trials, it is important to know real-world results. Objective To evaluate DAA treatment effectiveness in coinfected patients. We also analyse safety profile of DAA treatment and drug interactions between HCV and HIV therapy. Setting Descriptive study carried in a tertiary hospital of Spain Method HIV-HCV coinfected patients treated with DAAs between November 2014 and June 2016 were included. Main outcome measure Efficacy was measured in terms of sustained virologic response at week 12 after the end of therapy. Adverse events that led to treatment discontinuation were registered to evaluate the safety profile, and also drug interactions between DAAs and antiretroviral treatment were evaluated. Results Main HCV genotypes were 1a (34.9%) and 4 (24.5%). 51.9% were HCV previously treated, 54.7% had grade 4 liver fibrosis. SVR12 was reported in 90.6%. HCV treatment was well tolerated and there were no discontinuations because of adverse events. 30.2% of HIV treatments had to be modified before DAA treatment was started due to interactions, HIV suppression was not compromised. Conclusion DAA treatment in coinfected patients seems to be highly effective and secure. Evaluation of drug interactions must be a priority in order to maximize effectiveness and avoid toxicity.

The Influence of Solar Power Plants on Microclimatic Conditions and the Biotic Community in Chilean Desert Environments.

The renewable energy sector is growing at a rapid pace in northern Chile and the solar energy potential is one of the best worldwide. Therefore, many types of solar power plant facilities are being built to take advantage of this renewable energy resource. Solar energy is considered a clean source of energy, but there are potential environmental effects of solar technology, such as landscape fragmentation, extinction of local biota, microclimate changes, among others. To be able to minimize environmental impacts of solar power plants, it is important to know what kind of environmental conditions solar power plants create. This study provides information about abiotic and biotic conditions in the vicinity of photovoltaic solar power plants. Herein, the influence of these power plants as drivers of new microclimate conditions and arthropods diversity composition in the Atacama Desert was evaluated. Microclimatic conditions between panel mounts was found to be more extreme than in the surrounding desert yet beneath the panels temperature is lower and relative humidity higher than outside the panel area. Arthropod species composition was altered in fixed-mount panel installations. In contrast, solar tracking technology showed less influence on microclimate and species composition between Sun and Shade in the power plant. Shady conditions provided a refuge for arthropod species in both installation types. For example, Dipterans were more abundant in the shade whereas Solifugaes were seldom present in the shade. The presented findings have relevance for the sustainable planning and construction of solar power plants.

Intracellular acidification increases adenosine transport in human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

INTRODUCTION: Adenosine is taken up via human equilibrative nucleoside transporters 1 (hENT1) and 2 (hENT2) at a physiological extracellular pH (pHo ∼7.4) in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Acidic pHo increases the uptake of adenosine and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5HT) via hENT4 in this cell type. However, modulation of hENT1 and hENT2 transport activity by the pHi is unknown. We investigated whether hENT1 and hENT2-adenosine transport was regulated by acidic pHi. METHODS: HUVECs loaded with a pH sensitive probe were subjected to 0.1-20 mmol/L NH4Cl pulse assay to generate 6.9-6.2 pHi. Before pHi started to recover, adenosine transport kinetics (0-500 µmol/L, 37 °C) in the absence or presence 1 or 10 µmol/L S-(4-nitrobenzyl)-6-thio-inosine (NBTI), 2 mmol/L hypoxanthine, 2 mmol/L adenine, 100 µmol/L 5HT, or 500 µmol/L adenosine, was measured. RESULTS: Overall adenosine transport (i.e., hENT1+hENT2) was semisaturable and partially inhibited by 1 µmol/L, but abolished by 10 µmol/L NBTI in cells non-treated or treated with NH4Cl. The initial velocity and non-saturable, lineal component for overall transport were increased after NH4Cl pulse. hENT1 and hENT2-mediated adenosine transport maximal capacity was increased by acidic pHi. hENT1 activity was more sensitive than hENT2 activity to acidic pHi. DISCUSSION: hENT1 and hENT2-adenosine transport is differentially regulated by acidic pHi in HUVECs. These findings are important in pathologies associated with pHi alterations such as gestational diabetes mellitus.

[Echinocandins: searching for differences. The example of their use in patients requiring continuous renal replacement therapy]. / Equinocandinas: buscando diferencias. El ejemplo de su uso en pacientes sometidos a técnicas continuas de reemplazamiento renal.

The echinocandins have a growing role in the treatment of fungal infections because of their novel mechanism of action. This is reflected in recently published management guidelines, but available in vitro data, animal studies, and clinical studies do not clearly differentiate the three agents in class. Comparative clinical efficacy among agents within the class, pharmacokinetic profiles in special populations, pharmacoeconomics justifications, and place in therapy have been largely unanswered. They share many common properties but marketing strategies of drug manufacturers are engaged in product differentiation. Although exist similarities in the pharmacokinetic (PK) profiles of the echinocandins, limited data have been published regarding their pharmacokinetics in continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) patients. The pharmacokinetics of drug removal in critically ill patients receiving CRRT is very complex, with multiple variables affecting clearance. This review outlines the basic principles that determine whether a dose adjustment is required. Two studies with data on PK parameters of micafungin and anidulafungin in CRRT patients have been published and are compared following that basic principles in the review.