Smart humancentric lighting system improves sleep efficiency of nursing home residents.

The global phenomenon of population aging presents a significant challenge, affecting both the increasing number of older individuals and their duration of living with disability. Tailored care services are crucial for improving the quality of life of older adults, particularly those with disabilities residing in nursing homes. However, ensuring personalized care and mitigating the risks associated with institutionalization are essential in optimizing care quality. One particular challenge in nursing homes is maintaining residents' personal routines and addressing sleep disturbances linked to neurodegenerative disorders. Non-pharmacological interventions are increasingly recognized as preventive and management strategies for behavioral and psychiatric symptoms in nursing home residents. Sleep disruptions, such as reduced duration and increased nocturnal awakenings, are prevalent among nursing home residents. Excessive nocturnal lighting and frequent caregiver interventions contribute to these disturbances. This study aimed to investigate the impact of implementing smart humancentric lighting on the sleep efficiency of nursing home residents. Data from pressure sensors embedded in mattresses were collected to assess sleep efficiency. The findings suggest that smart humancentric lighting can significantly reduce sleep disturbances and improve sleep quality in nursing home residents. Future research should delve into specific symptoms, care burden, and psychotropic agent utilization to validate the effectiveness of this intervention.

Comparative Proteomic Analysis of Rat Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid after Exposure to Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) are one of the most widely used nanomaterials in consumer products and industrial applications. As a result of all these uses, this has raised concerns regarding their potential toxicity. We previously found that candidate markers of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and lung cancer were significantly up-regulated in rat bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) following exposure to ZnO NPs by using a liquid chromatography (LC)-based proteomic approach. To achieve comprehensive protein identification analysis, we conducted the two-dimensional gel electrophosis (2-DE)-based proteomic workflow to analyze the differences in BALF proteins from rats that had been exposed to a high dose of 35 nm ZnO NPs. A total of 31 differentially expressed protein spots were excised from the gels and analyzed by nanoLC-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). Gene ontology (GO) annotation of these proteins showed that most of the differentially expressed proteins were involved in response to stimulus and inflammatory response processes. Moreover, pulmonary surfactant-associated protein D and gelsolin, biomarkers of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, were significantly up-regulated in rat BALF after ZnO NPs exposure (2.42- and 2.84-fold, respectively). The results obtained from this present study could provide a complementary consequence with our previous study and contribute to a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in ZnO NP-induced lung disorders.

Oxygenated cembranoids from the cultured and wild-type soft corals Sinularia flexibilis.

Two new cembranoids, flexibilisolide A (1) and flexibilisin A (2), along with one known combranoid 5 have been isolated from the cultured soft coral Sinularia flexibilis. Furthermore, two new cembranoids, flexibilisolide B (3) and flexibilisin B (4), along with two known combranoids (5, 6), have been isolated from the wild-type soft coral S. flexibilis. The structures of the new metabolites were determined on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis and by comparison of NMR data with those of known compounds. The metabolites 5 and 6 have been shown to exhibit weak cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cancer cell line.

Novel norhumulene and xeniaphyllane-derived terpenoids from a formosan soft coral Sinularia gibberosa.

A novel skeletal norhumulene (1) and six xeniaphyllane-derived compounds, including norditerpenoids (2, 3) and diterpenoids (4-7), were isolated from the EtOAc extract of the Formosan soft coral Sinularia gibberosa. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis. In vitro cytotoxic evaluation of the above metabolites revealed that 2 and 4 showed weak cytotoxicity toward a few cancer cell lines.

Heavy metal concentrations of the soldier crab (Mictyris brevidactylus) along the inshore area of Changhua, Taiwan.

In order to compare with and assess the metal-accumulating ability of the soldier crab (Mictyris brevidactylus), the concentrations of copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb) and cadmium of ambient water and the Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) were investigated. Seawater, soldier crabs and Pacific oysters were simultaneously collected from the Changhua coastal area, located in West-Central Taiwan. The Pacific oyster and stream results proved that site B is contaminated by Cu, Zn and Pb from streams B-1 and B-2. The highest Cu, Zn, Ni and Pb concentrations in soldier crabs appeared at site B, and significant differences in the accumulated concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn and Ni in soldier crabs were found between the sites tested. The highest bioconcentration factors of Cu, Zn, Ni and Pb in soldier crabs appeared at site B, indicating that the soldier crab can accumulate Cu, Zn and Pb to the same degree as the Pacific oyster. In fact, soldier crabs can accumulate more Ni than Pacific oysters, better reflecting the conditions of the ambient environment. These phenomena, as well as the fact that the soldier crab is able to accumulate relatively high levels of Cu, Zn, Pb and Ni, suggest that this crab is a potential biomonitor of Pb and Ni pollution in aquatic ecosystems.

Cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory cembranoids from the soft coral Lobophytum crassum.

Five new cembranoids, namely, crassumolides A and B and D-F (1 and 2 and 4-6), along with four known metabolites, 7-10, were isolated from the soft coral Lobophytum crassum. Crassumolide C (3) was isolated for the first time from a natural source. The structures of these compounds were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic analysis and comparison of the NMR data with those of known analogues. The absolute stereochemistry of 1 was determined using the modified Mosher's method. Chemical transformation of 7 into the corresponding methyl ester 3 revealed the absolute stereochemistry of 3. Compounds 1, 3, and 7 were cytotoxic toward Ca9-22 cancer cells, and 10 was broadly cytotoxic toward all six test cancer cell lines used. Compounds 1, 3, 7, and 10 were found to inhibit the accumulation of the pro-inflammatory proteins iNOS and COX-2 at 10 µM.