Effectiveness of nurse-led interventions on medication adherence in adults taking medication for metabolic syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To determine the effectiveness of nurse-led interventions on medication adherence, medication knowledge and clinical outcomes in adults taking medication for metabolic syndrome. BACKGROUND: Despite the significance of interventions designed to improve medication adherence, a systematic review of nurse-led intervention studies for metabolic syndrome is lacking. DESIGN: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. METHODS: The study was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines checklist. PubMed, EMBASE, PsychINFO, CINAHL, Cochrane CENTRAL and other manual sources were searched in May 2021.The quality assessment was conducted using the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies. Comprehensive Meta-Analysis 3.0 was used to calculate the pooled effect sizes with 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: This review included 20 studies of nurse-led medication adherence interventions in 6017 adults at risk for metabolic syndrome. The pooled effect size using the random effects model indicated that nurse-led interventions had a significantly moderate impact on enhancing medication adherence and medication knowledge and improving selected clinical outcomes of available studies in nurse-led intervention groups compared with control groups. Duration of intervention (median 12 weeks), mode of delivery (group vs. individual) and using multiple strategies influenced outcomes of nurse-led medication adherence interventions. The results revealed that interventions of moderate- to high-quality studies were more likely to show significant improvements in medication adherence than those of low-quality studies. CONCLUSION: The meta-analyses showed that nurse-led interventions may enhance medication adherence and knowledge and improve clinical outcomes of this population. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The findings may contribute to evidence-based information about nurse-led intervention and its selection of appropriate interventions for improving medication adherence in this population. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Patients or the public were not directly involved in this review.

The role of social support on the relationship of depressive symptoms to medication adherence and self-care activities in adults with type 2 diabetes.

AIM: To examine the mediating role of social support on the relationship of depressive symptoms to medication adherence and self-care activities in Korean adults. BACKGROUND: Recent evidence suggests that higher levels of social support are associated with improved medication adherence and self-care activities; however, the role of social support on the relationship of depressive symptoms to medication adherence and self-care activities is less well understood. DESIGN: A cross-sectional survey. METHODS: The data were collected from 311 Korean adults with type 2 diabetes who were taking hypoglycaemic agents in the period 2012-2013. Depressive symptoms, social support, medication adherence and self-care activities were assessed using structured questionnaires. Multiple regression analysis with adjustment for covariates and the Sobel test were used to examine the mediating effect of social support on the relationship of depressive symptoms to medication adherence and self-care activities. RESULTS: There were statistically significant differences by subgroups with and without depressive symptoms in social support, medication adherence and self-care activities of diet, physical activity and stress management. The Sobel test confirmed that social support mediated the effect of depressive symptoms on medication adherence and self-care activities of diet, physical activity and stress management. CONCLUSION: The evidence from this study suggests that social support-enhancing interventions that also manage depressive symptoms may be more timely and effective than interventions that target depressive symptoms alone in promoting adherence to medication adherence and self-care activities in this population.

Compound K modulates fatty acid-induced lipid droplet formation and expression of proteins involved in lipid metabolism in hepatocytes.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: A key factor in the development of type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is hepatic steatosis. Incubation of human hepatic cells with free fatty acids (FFAs) causes accumulation of neutral lipids in lipid droplets (LDs) and serves as a model for hepatic steatosis. Ginsenosides, active constituents of ginsengs, have demonstrated beneficial effects in various pharmacological areas, including diabetes, however their effect on lipid accumulation in hepatocytes remains unclear. Here, we examine the effect of compound K (ComK), an active metabolite of ginsenosides, on the regulation of LD formation and on the expression of proteins involved in lipid homeostasis in hepatocytes. METHODS: HuH7 cells were pretreated with ComK, followed by lipid loading with FFA. LDs were visualized using Oil Red O staining and immunohistochemistry for the LD-related protein PLIN2. Triglyceride levels were determined in isolated LDs. The expression of proteins involved in lipid homeostasis was examined by Western blotting. RESULTS: Treatment with ComK significantly decreased LD formation in FFA-loaded HuH7 cells and increased phosphorylation levels of AMPK, and its substrate ACC. ComK also increased protein expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α (PPAR-α) and acyl-CoA oxidase (ACOX1) together with elevated activity of a PPAR-α response element reporter construct. These effects were inhibited by the PPAR-α antagonist MK886. CONCLUSIONS: ComK reduced LD formation and TG accumulation in FFA-loaded hepatocytes, in part by up-regulating AMPK activity and PPAR-α related pathways. These results suggest that ComK may have efficacy for the treatment of hepatic steatosis and associated diseases.

The effect of pH on crystal characteristics and IR absorbance of copper sulfide nanoparticles.

Copper sulfide, CuS, was synthesized by an aqueous sonochemical method and it was investigated the effect of pH on crystal characteristics of CuS and IR absorbance. The formed CuS has main peaks as 27.68 degrees, 29.28 degrees, 31.79 degrees, 32.85 degrees, 47.94 degrees, 52.72 degrees and 59.3 degrees with the hexagonal structure. Average diameter of CuS was about 18 nm and molar ratio of Cu:S was as 1:1. The CuS prepared at pH 11 presents the highest visible light transmittance of 82.6% and that at pH 4 presents the highest IR rejected of 93.8%. The formation of CuS was affected by pH and led to new absorption band in the IR region. The CuS nanoparticles from this study could be used as thermal insulating materials for car- and house-window films with a high IR-cut.

Psychometric Properties of the Korean Version of the Perceived Therapeutic Efficacy Scale for Physical Activity in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to translate the Perceived Therapeutic Efficacy Scale (PTES) into Korean and investigate its validity and reliability. METHODS: The authors conducted a cross-sectional survey using baseline data from a randomized controlled study to psychometrically validate the PTES-Korean (PTES-K) among 108 adults with type 2 diabetes from an outpatient clinic at a university-affiliated hospital in Korea. The original PTES was forward-translated and back-translated to ensure translation equivalence of the PTES-K. Structured questionnaires were used for psychometric evaluation; exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis assessed validity, and Cronbach's alpha coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were used for reliability. RESULTS: The interitem correlation analyses revealed that 5 items were redundant; thus, the scale was reduced to 5 items. A 1-factor model explained 76.85% of the variance; confirmatory factor analysis showed that this model adequately fit the data. The ICC for test-retest reliability was .78; Cronbach's alpha was .92. The PTES-K showed significant associations with the scores of diabetes self-care activities for physical activity, quality of life, and depressive symptoms. Participants with good glycemic control and regular physical activity tended to have a higher score on the PTES-K than their counterparts, demonstrating known-groups validity. CONCLUSIONS: The cross-cultural applicability, reliability, and validity of the PTES-K were confirmed. The PTES-K may be used in clinical settings to examine the potential role of perceived therapeutic efficacy for physical activity in enhanced glycemic control among patients with diabetes.

Under Our Nose: The Use of GIS Technology and Case Notes to Focus Search Efforts.

Missing person searches can entail much time, effort, and resources. With scientific data and techniques increasingly available to law enforcement and investigations units, can these tools be used to predict likely areas where persons or remains may be discovered, especially in cases where little to no information about the disappearance is available? A retrospective study of seventy-three (73) cases was conducted in Onondaga County, New York, U.S.A., in order to explore this question. Quantitative (geospatial) and qualitative (investigator notes) data were utilized to determine whether patterns exist that may assist in investigations of recent and "cold" missing person cases. Results showed a majority of cases with relative proximity (<5 miles) between victim last seen (VLS) and body recovered (BR) locations. Furthermore, investigators' notes demonstrated repeated descriptors reflecting natural or cultural features associated with hidden, clandestine provenance (e.g., near bodies of water, wooded areas). With future external validation of this study, consistent priority areas may be identified as foci of searches; these priority areas ideally should be thoroughly checked/cleared before the search zone is expanded.

Optimal management for alcoholic liver disease: Conventional medications, natural therapy or combination?

Alcohol consumption is the principal factor in the pathogenesis of chronic liver diseases. Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is defined by histological lesions on the liver that can range from simple hepatic steatosis to more advanced stages such as alcoholic steatohepatitis, cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma and liver failure. As one of the oldest forms of liver injury known to humans, ALD is still a leading cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality and the burden is exerting on medical systems with hospitalization and management costs rising constantly worldwide. Although the biological mechanisms, including increasing of acetaldehyde, oxidative stress with induction of cytochrome p450 2E1, inflammatory cytokine release, abnormal lipid metabolism and induction of hepatocyte apoptosis, by which chronic alcohol consumption triggers serious complex progression of ALD is well established, there is no universally accepted therapy to prevent or reverse. In this article, we have briefly reviewed the pathogenesis of ALD and the molecular targets for development of novel therapies. This review is focused on current therapeutic strategies for ALD, including lifestyle modification with nutrition supplements, available pharmacological drugs and new agents that are under development, liver transplantation, application of complementary medicines, and their combination. The relevant molecular mechanisms of each conventional medication and natural agent have been reviewed according to current available knowledge in the literature. We also summarized efficacy vs safety on conventional and herbal medicines which are specifically used for the prevention and treatment of ALD. Through a system review, this article highlighted that the combination of pharmaceutical drugs with naturally occurring agents may offer an optimal management for ALD and its complications. It is worthwhile to conduct large-scale, multiple centre clinical trials to further prove the safety and benefits for the integrative therapy on ALD.

Psychometric Evaluation of a Korean Version of the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale (ARMS) in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study was to examine the reliability and validity of the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale-Korean (ARMS-K) among Korean adults with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: The Korean translated ARMS-K was back-translated to ensure translation equivalency. A cross-sectional survey was used to evaluate the psychometric properties with exploratory factor analysis for validity and Cronbach's alpha coefficients for reliability. RESULTS: The factor analysis of construct validity identified 3 dimensions of the ARMS-K, explaining 54.7% of the total variance. The internal consistency reliability for the total instrument was acceptable with a Cronbach's alpha of .801. There was good correlation between the ARMS-K and 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale-Korean version (r = -0.698), indicating that these scales measure theoretically related constructs as evidence of convergent validity. As evidence of known groups validity, there was a significant association between the ARMS-K score and glycemic control (P = .048), indicating that the good glycemic controlled group was more likely to have a higher rate of adherence to refills and medications than the poor glycemic controlled group. CONCLUSIONS: These results support the cross-cultural applicability of the concepts underlying the ARMS-K. The ARMS-K can be used not only to assess adherence to refills and medications in Koreans with diabetes but also to examine the potential role of adherence to refills and medications in enhanced glycemic control of people with diabetes in a variety of clinical settings.

Evaluation of the Measurement Properties of Self-reported Medication Adherence Instruments Among People at Risk for Metabolic Syndrome: A Systematic Review.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to present a systematic review of available published studies that evaluated the measurement properties of self-reported instruments assessing global medication adherence in adults at risk for metabolic syndrome. METHODS: The authors searched PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL in January 2015 for appropriate studies. The methodological quality (based on reliability, validity, responsiveness, and interpretability) of selected studies was assessed with the COSMIN checklist (Consensus-Based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments). RESULTS: Of the 44 studies reviewed, 32 used classical test theory, and 14 used self-reported medication adherence instruments. More than half the studies included patients with hypertension, followed by diabetes, dyslipidemia, and increased body mass index. Among the measurement properties, internal consistency, hypothesis testing, and structural validity were frequently assessed items, whereas only 1 study evaluated responsiveness, and none evaluated measurement error. The MMAS-8 (Morisky Medication Adherence Scale-8 items) and the Hill-Bone scale were the most frequently used instruments. They were found to be well validated, with strong evidence for internal consistency and strong positive evidence for reliability, structural validity, hypothesis testing, and criterion validity. CONCLUSIONS: The MMAS-8 and Hill-Bone scale seem to be well-validated instruments for assessing medication adherence in adults at risk for metabolic syndrome. These findings may assist clinicians with selecting the appropriate instruments for assessing medication adherence in this population. However, further studies might be needed to define concepts to better understand the dimensions of each medication adherence instrument.

Simultaneous determination of myristyl nicotinate, nicotinic acid, and nicotinamide in rabbit plasma by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry using methyl ethyl ketone as a deproteinization solvent.

Myristyl nicotinate (Nia-114) is an ester prodrug being developed for delivery of nicotinic acid (NIC) into the skin for prevention of actinic keratosis and its progression to skin cancer. To facilitate dermal studies of Nia-114, a novel liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method using methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) as a deproteinization solvent was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of Nia-114, NIC, and nicotinamide (NAM) in rabbit plasma. NAM is the principal metabolite of NIC, which is also expected to have chemopreventive properties. The analytes were chromatographically separated using a Spherisorb Cyano column under isocratic conditions, and detected by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) in positive-ion electrospray ionization mode with a run time of 9 min. The method utilized a plasma sample volume of 0.2 ml and isotope-labeled D4 forms of each analyte as internal standards. The method was linear over the concentration range of 2-1000, 8-1000, and 75-1000 ng/ml, for Nia-114, NIC, and NAM, respectively. The intra- and inter-day assay accuracy and precision were within +/-15% for all analytes at low, medium, and high quality control standard levels. The relatively high value for the lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) of NAM was demonstrated to be due to the high level of endogenous NAM in the rabbit plasma (about 350 ng/ml). Endogenous levels of NIC and NAM in human, dog, rat, and mouse plasma were also determined, and mean values ranged from <2 ng/ml NIC and 38.3 ng/ml NAM in human, to 233 ng/ml NIC and 622 ng/ml NAM in mouse. Nia-114 was generally unstable in rabbit plasma, as evidenced by loss of 44-50% at room temperature by 2 h, and loss of 64-70% upon storage at -20 degrees C for 1 week, whereas it was stable (<7% loss) upon storage at -80 degrees C for 1 month.

Effect of ferric ion added on photodegradation of alachlor in the presence of TiO2 and UV radiation.

The effect of in situ photodeposited ferric ion onto TiO2 surface on the degradation of alachlor was investigated in the presence of the UV radiation. The photodegradation rate of alachlor could be described as an apparent first order. The rate constant (K(a)) of alachlor increased from 0.021 to 0.060 h(-1) as the number of coating times increased from 1- to 5-times in the absence of ferric ion, where the corresponding thicknesses of the TiO2 film were 67 and 174 nm. The rate constant (K(a)) increased from 0.030 to 0.060 h(-1) as pH value decreasd from pH 9 to 5 in the presence of only TiO2 immobilised with 5-times of coating. The rate constant increased slightly from 0.031 to 0.050 h(-1) as the concentration of ferric ion increased from 0.75 to 7.5 mg Fe3+ l(-1) in the absence of TiO2. However, those increased from 0.051 to 0.110 h(-1) in the presence of both TiO2 and ferric ion. In situ photodeposition of ferric ion onto the TiO2 surface enhanced the rate constant of photodegradation of alachlor by about 80% with an adding 7.5 mgFe3+ l(-1). During the alachlor photodegradation, three kinds of non-toxic organic compounds derived from alachlor were detected in 1 h.

Photodegradation of DDT with the photodeposited ferric ion on the TiO2 film.

The photodegradation capability of DDT has been enhanced by Fe/TiO2 film in a photoreactor with UV radiation. The optimal thickness of TiO2 for the DDT photodegradation was 2.94 microm with a 3-time coating, where the first-order rate constant was 0.077 min(-1). The optimal Fe3+(ferric ion) photodeposition amount was estimated as 3.7 x 10(-4) mg mm(-2) corresponding with 0.73 mg Fe3+ (mg TiO2)(-1). Photoremoval rate of DDT increased with an increasing pH value, while the pH value of solution decreased to acidic region during the DDT photodegradation. The photodegradation efficiency was 85% in 20 min with only TiO2 film and increased from 85% up to 96% by the photodeposition of 0.73 mg Fe3+ (mg TiO2)(-1) on TiO2 film as a sensitizer since the band gap energy of Fe2O3 (2.2 eV) is lower than that of TiO2 (3.0 eV).

Study on the effect of temperature and pressure on nickel-electroplating characteristics in supercritical CO2.

In this work, it was investigated the effect of solubility in supercritical CO2 on the nickel-electroplating characteristics. The plating characteristics could be controlled by electric resistance and dispersion in emulsion as well. CO2 concentration had better be controlled at lower concentration than 50 CO2 wt% to decrease electric resistance since supercritical CO2 is non-polar material. Non-ionic surfactant with EO/PO block copolymer was more efficient than any other surfactant and the dispersion at 0.2 surfactant wt% was better than at any surfactant concentration and over-added surfactant concentration over 0.2 wt% brought to the decrease of dispersion properties. Electric resistance was constant at 20Omega in ranging from pH 2.2 to pH 3.5 and increased slowly to 50Omega at pH 4 and rapidly to 400Omega at pH 5. Characteristics of nickel film has a close relation with solubility in supercritical CO2 and solubility is dependent on pressure and temperature. Solubility at 16 MPa was higher than that any other at pressure and at constant pressure of 16 MPa, solubility in supercritical CO2 increased with an increasing temperature from 31 to 45 degrees C and decreased over 45 degrees C.

Suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS) genes are silenced by DNA hypermethylation and histone deacetylation and regulate response to radiotherapy in cervical cancer cells.

Suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS) family is an important negative regulator of cytokine signaling and deregulation of SOCS has been involved in many types of cancer. All cervical cancer cell lines tested showed lower expression of SOCS1, SOCS3, and SOCS5 than normal tissue or cell lines. The immunohistochemistry result for SOCS proteins in human cervical tissue also confirmed that normal tissue expressed higher level of SOCS proteins than neighboring tumor. Similar to the regulation of SOCS in other types of cancer, DNA methylation contributed to SOCS1 downregulation in CaSki, ME-180, and HeLa cells. However, the expression of SOCS3 or SOCS5 was not recovered by the inhibition of DNA methylation. Histone deacetylation may be another regulatory mechanism involved in SOCS1 and SOCS3 expression, however, SOCS5 expression was neither affected by DNA methylation nor histone deacetylation. Ectopic expression of SOCS1 or SOCS3 conferred radioresistance to HeLa cells, which implied SOCS signaling regulates the response to radiation in cervical cancer. In this study, we have shown that SOCS expression repressed by, in part, epigenetically and altered SOCS1 and SOCS3 expression could contribute to the radiosensitive phenotype in cervical cancer.

Tetracyclic triterpenoids in herbal medicines and their activities in diabetes and its complications.

Tetracyclic triterpenoids, including the dammarane, cucurbitane, cycloartane, lanostane and protostane groups, is a class of triterpenoids widely distributed in various medicinal plants, particularly those commonly used for the treatment of diabetes and its complications, such as Panax ginseng, Panax quinquefolium, Panax notoginseng, Gynostemma pentaphyllum, Astragalus membranaceus, Momordica charantia, and Ganoderma lucidum. This review highlights recent findings on the chemistry and bioactivities of tetracyclic triterpenoids from these plants and other popular herbal medicines.

Identification of alpha-dicarbonyl scavengers for cellular protection against carbonyl stress.

Tissue deterioration and aging have long been associated with the accumulation of chemically induced protein and DNA damage. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive carbonyl species (RCS), especially alpha-dicarbonyl compounds, are key mediators of damage caused by oxidative stress, glycation, and UV-irradiation. The toxic effects of ROS are counteracted in vivo by antioxidants and antioxidant enzymes, and the deleterious effects of one RCS, methylglyoxal, are counteracted by a ubiquitous glyoxalase system. Carbonyl stress as a result of toxic effects of various mono-dicarbonyls (e.g. 4-hydroxynonenal) and alpha-dicarbonyls (e.g. glyoxal and deoxyosones) cannot be directly antagonized by antioxidants, and only a small number of biological carbonyl scavengers like glutathione (GSH) have been identified to date. We have developed a new screening method for the identification of carbonyl scavengers using a rapid glycation system that proceeds independent of oxygen and therefore, excludes identification of inhibitory compounds acting as antioxidants. Using this screening assay adapted to 96-well microtiter plates, we have identified the cysteine derivative 3,3-dimethyl-D-cysteine as a potent inhibitor of non-oxidative advanced glycation. Comparative kinetic analyses demonstrated the superior alpha-oxoaldehyde-scavenging activity of D-penicillamine over that of aminoguanidine. D-Penicillamine traps alpha-oxoaldehydes by forming a 2-acylthiazolidine derivative as shown by structure elucidation of reaction products between D-penicillamine and methylglyoxal or phenylglyoxal. We demonstrated that upon co-incubation, D-penicillamine protects human skin keratinocytes and fibroblasts (CF3 cells) against glyoxal- and methylglyoxal-induced carbonyl toxicity. Our research qualifies alpha-amino-beta-mercapto-beta,beta-dimethyl-ethane as a promising pharmacophore for the development of related alpha-dicarbonyl scavengers as therapeutic agents to protect cells against carbonyl stress.

Simultaneous expression of allogenic class II MHC and B7.1 (CD80) molecules in A20 B-lymphoma cell line enhances tumor immunogenicity.

We expressed the allogenic class II MHC antigen and B7.1 (CD80) co-stimulatory molecule in A20 beta-lymphoma cells in order to test their efficacy as immuno-stimulating adjuvant agents in inducing tumor-specific immunity. The transduction of the allogenic I-Ab alpha and beta chain genes into A20 cell resulted in a surface expression of the allogenic class II MHC molecules. The expression of the allogenic class II MHC antigen (I-Ab) in A20 cells enhanced the proliferation of T cells in a mixed lymphocyte tumor culture and in vitro cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) generation against parental cells. The B7.1 gene, which is known to be a potent co-stimulatory molecule, was also transduced and expressed in A20 cells, either alone or in combination with I-Ab. The B7.1 transduction alone leads to a similar in vitro immune enhancing effect as I-Ab. When both the I-Ab and B7.1 genes were transduced, the in vitro immunostimulating capacity was further enhanced. Finally, we also tested the A20 cells that were transduced with I-Ab and/or B7.1 for their efficacy as preventive tumor vaccines in vivo. The results indicate that the A20 cells that express both the I-Ab and B7.1 have more potent vaccinating potential, compared to the cells that express only one of the molecules.

Removal of paraquat dissolved in a photoreactor with TiO2 immobilized on the glass-tubes of UV lamps.

Experiments were performed to investigate the effects of operating parameters, such as air-inflow rate, UV-light intensity, and film thickness of the photocatalyst, on the photo-decomposition efficiency of paraquat in an immersion-type reactor with TiO2 immobilized by three kinds of methods on the glass tube of UV lamps. As the number of TiO2 coating-time increased from 1 to 4, film thickness on the glass tube by a dip-coating method increased from 355 to 1180 A. The removal efficiency of paraquat using TiO2 prepared by the hydrothermal method was the highest, being 99% in a 12 h operation of 3-type TiO2 immobilized by a sol-gel method and a hydrothermal method, including a commercial product P-25, while that in the absence of TiO2 with only the UV light was the lowest, being 50% in 12 h. The conversion ratios of paraquat at the volumetric flow rates of 5, 10, and 20 mL min(-1) were 46%, 25%, and 17% in 18 h, respectively.

Photodegradation of bisphenol-A with TiO2 immobilized on the glass tubes including the UV light lamps.

Photodegradation experiments of bisphenol-A (BPA) were performed with TiO(2) particles as a photocatalyst, where particles were immobilized using a titanium sol-solution synthesized by a sol-gel method. The effects of immobilized TiO(2)-film thickness, UV radiation intensity, and pH on the photodegradation of BPA were investigated. Apparent rate constant of the first order increased with increasing TiO(2)-coating time from 1 to 3, however, decreased over 4-coating time. Rate constant (K) increased with increasing the UV light intensity, which was related with the number of inserted UV lamps. Rate constant (K) increased as the pH value shifted from basic to acidic regions. Four kinds of byproducts were derived during the photodegradation of BPA, which were identified as 1.1-ethenylidenebis-benzene, 4-isopropylphenol, 4-tert-butylphenol, and phenol.

Removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions by adsorption process with anatase-type titanium dioxide.

The experiment was performed in the reactor with suspended anatase-type titanium dioxide particles. The adsorption amount increased rapidly with an increasing pH value from pH 2 to 5 and remained constant over pH 5. The adsorption amount of Cu(2+) increased with temperature from 15 degrees C to 40 degrees C. The adsorption equilibrium constant (K(ads)) was 0.854 and adsorption isotherm of Cu(2+) adsorption on titanium dioxide was more suitable in Langmuir adsorption isotherm than in Freundlich isotherm. The adsorption rate was rapid with an increasing number of UV lamps of 254 nm.