Green coffee nanoparticles: optimisation, in vitro bioactivity and bio-release property.

Nanoencapsulation by spray drying was performed to protect and preserve antioxidant rich dietary polyphenols from green coffee beans. Nano-encapsulation of green coffee was done using maltodextrin as wall material. The nanoparticles were further characterised by zetasizer, differential scanning colorimetry, X-ray diffraction, In vitro gastric intestinal studies and storage stability. Optimal nanoparticles were obtained at a drying temperature of 125 °C and 2:1 Mwall/Mcore ratio (10% w/w maltodextrin), provided better encapsulation yield (40% w/w) and 70 ± 5% (w/w) encapsulation efficiency with 82.34 nm particle size, -28.8 mV zeta-potential. The In-vitro bioactivity of nanoparticles ensured 80 ± 2% (w/w) of chlorogenic acid availability in a controlled release in the intestine. Storage stability of nanoparticles under varied temperature was remarkably improved compared to non-encapsulated green coffee extract. However, the results indicated that the potential benefits of using maltodextrin coated green coffee nanoparticles for controlled release of Chlorogenic acid and sufficient antioxidative protection during prolonged period.

Identifying vulnerable populations to death and injuries from residential fires.

OBJECTIVE: This study proposes and evaluates the theory that people who are susceptible to injury in residential fires are not susceptible to death in residential fires and vice versa. It is proposed that the population vulnerable to death in residential fires can be proxied by 'frailty', which is measured as age-gender adjusted fatality rates due to natural causes. METHODS: This study uses an ecological approach and controls for exposure to estimate the vulnerability of different population groups to death and injury in residential fires. It allows fatalities and injuries to be estimated by different models. RESULTS: Frailty explains fire-related death in adults while not explaining injuries, which is consistent with the idea that deaths and injuries affect disjoint populations. CONCLUSIONS: Deaths and injuries in fire are drawn from different populations. People who are susceptible to dying in fires are unlikely to be injured in fires, and the people who are susceptible to injury are unlikely to die in fires.

Estimating the impact of the mattress fire safety Standard 16 CFR Part 1633 on bed fire outcomes.

Beds are a prevalent combustible in fatal fires in the United States effective 1 July 2007, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission promulgated a standard to severely reduce the heat release rate and the early heat output from mattresses and foundations when ignited by a flaming ignition source. This study estimates the Standard's success over its first decade using fire incidence, US population, and mattress sales data. The technique mitigates the influence of some exogenous factors that might have changed during this decade. The Standard is accomplishing its purpose, preventing approximately 65 fatalities (out of an estimated 95 fatalities in 2002-2005) from bed fires annually during 2015-2016, although not all pre-Standard mattresses had yet been replaced. Compared to residential upholstered furniture fires, which were not affected by the Standard, the numbers of bed fires decreased by 12%, injuries by 34%, and deaths by 82% between 2005-2006 and 2015-2016. Per bed fire, injuries decreased by 25% and fatalities decreased by 67%, indicating that the severity of bed fires is being reduced.

Stimulation of liver IGF-1 expression promotes peak bone mass achievement in growing rats: a study with pomegranate seed oil.

Peak bone mass (PBM) achieved at adulthood is a strong determinant of future onset of osteoporosis, and maximizing it is one of the strategies to combat the disease. Recently, pomegranate seed oil (PSO) has been shown to have bone-sparing effect in ovariectomized mice. However, its effect on growing skeleton and its molecular mechanism remain unclear. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of PSO on PBM in growing rats and associated mechanism of action. PSO was given at various doses to 21-day-old growing rats for 90 days by oral gavage. The changes in bone parameters were assessed by micro-computed tomography and histology. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed to analyze the levels of serum insulin-like growth factor type 1 (IGF-1). Western blotting from bone and liver tissues was done. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay was performed to study the histone acetylation levels at IGF-1 gene. The results of the study show that PSO treatment significantly increases bone length, bone formation rate, biomechanical parameters, bone mineral density and bone microarchitecture along with enhancing muscle and brown fat mass. This effect was due to the increased serum levels of IGF-1 and stimulation of its signaling in the bones. Studies focusing on acetylation of histones in the liver, the major site of IGF-1 synthesis, showed enrichment of acetylated H3K9 and H3K14 at IGF-1 gene promoter and body. Further, the increased acetylation at H3K9 and H3K14 was associated with a reduced HDAC1 protein level. Together, our data suggest that PSO promotes the PBM achievement via increased IGF-1 expression in liver and IGF-1 signaling in bone.

Suppressive therapy versus episodic therapy with oral valacyclovir for recurrent herpes labialis: efficacy and tolerability in an open-label, crossover study.

Oral valacyclovir's efficacy and tolerability as suppressive therapy versus episodic therapy were compared for recurrent herpes labialis (RHL). Subjects with a history of at least 3 RHL episodes in the past year were randomized to receive 6 months of oral valacyclovir episodic therapy at the first sign of prodrome (two 2-g doses separated by 12 hours) and 6 months of oral valacyclovir suppressive therapy (1 g once daily) for 6 months in open-label, crossover fashion. The mean +/- SE number of recurrences per 120 days of follow-up (primary endpoint) was lower with suppressive therapy (0.30 +/- 0.41) than episodic therapy (0.71 +/- 0.79) (P < .005). The probability of remaining recurrence free over 6 months was significantly higher with suppressive therapy than episodic therapy. The median time to first recurrence was 81 days with episodic therapy and was not calculable (> 180 days) for suppressive therapy (P = 0.021). Data for secondary efficacy endpoints (pain severity score, mean duration of recurrences, maximal total lesion area) showed approximately a 30% to 50% reduction in mean values with suppressive therapy compared with episodic therapy, but results were statistically significantly different between the regimens for pain severity only. The percentage of subjects with at least one adverse event over 6 months of treatment that was considered to be drug related was 3% with suppressive therapy and 6% with episodic therapy. Suppressive therapy with oral valacyclovir was more effective than episodic therapy with oral valacyclovir in reducing the frequency of recurrences of herpes labialis and prolonging the time to first recurrence and was also similarly well-tolerated.

Models for the Economics of Resilience.

Estimating the economic burden of disasters requires appropriate models that account for key characteristics and decision making needs. Natural disasters in 2011 resulted in $366 billion in direct damages and 29,782 fatalities worldwide. Average annual losses in the US amount to about $55 billion. Enhancing community and system resilience could lead to significant savings through risk reduction and expeditious recovery. The management of such reduction and recovery is facilitated by an appropriate definition of resilience and associated metrics with models for examining the economics of resilience. This paper provides such microeconomic models, compares them, examines their sensitivities to key parameters, and illustrates their uses. Such models enable improving the resiliency of systems to meet target levels.

Management and prevention of recurrent herpes labialis in immunocompetent patients.

A range of topical and systemic therapies exists for treating recurrent herpes labialis. Among the topical agents, aciclovir and its derivatives can lessen the symptoms and duration of disease if applied frequently in the proper vehicle and started during the prodromal phase. Delivering these agents to the lesion via novel devices or vehicles may enhance their topical efficacy in the future. Among the systemic agents, new high-dose, 1-day regimens using either famciclovir or valaciclovir offer greater convenience and cost-effectiveness compared with traditional 5-7-day therapy. Combining either topical or systemic antinucleoside agents with topical anti-inflammatories such as corticosteroids may also lead to enhanced efficacy. Novel agents such as docosanol, toll-like receptor agonists, and viral ribonucleoside reductase inhibitors may also play a larger role in the future.

An update on short-course intermittent and prevention therapies for herpes labialis.

Infection with herpes simplex virus (HSV) has increased in prevalence worldwide over the past two decades, making it a major public health concern. Approximately 90% of recurrent HSV type 1 (HSV-1) infections manifest as non-genital disease, primarily as orofacial lesions known as herpes labialis. Improvements in our understanding of the natural history of herpes labialis support the rationale for early treatment (during the prodrome or erythema stages) with high doses of antiviral agents in order to maximize drug benefit. When evaluating the efficacy of different antiviral and anti-inflammatory agents in clinical trials, episode duration, lesion healing time, reduction in maximum lesion size and the proportion of aborted lesions should be used as the most reliable measures of therapeutic efficacy. There has also been considerable research into the most beneficial treatment for recurrent episodes of herpes labialis in immunocompetent individuals. Data from clinical studies confirm that short-course, high-dose oral antiviral therapy should be offered to patients with recurrent herpes labialis to accelerate healing, reduce pain and most likely increase treatment adherence. Optimal benefits may be obtained when these oral antiviral agents are combined with topical corticosteroids, but more research is needed with this combination. Patients undergoing facial cosmetic procedures (i.e.facial resurfacing) are at risk of HSV reactivation, but further data are required on the actual risk according to the specific procedure. Aciclovir, valaciclovir and famciclovir all provide effective prophylaxis against HSV-1 reactivation following ablative facial resurfacing. However, no definitive recommendations can be made regarding prophylactic therapy for minimally invasive procedures at present.

Oral shedding of herpes simplex virus type 1 in immunocompetent persons.

BACKGROUND: Reactivation of herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) can result in recurrent herpes labialis lesions (RHL) and in oral shedding of virus. This study utilized polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to document the frequency and quantity of such shedding. METHODS: Thirty adults with greater than three RHL episodes per year were followed through one recurrence. They collected swabs for PCR every 12 h starting at prodrome and for 10 days thereafter. Shedding was analyzed with regard to frequency, timing and quantity. RESULTS: HSV-1 was detectable in 87% of participants for a mean of 4 days. Shedding occurred most frequently during the vesicle/ulcer stage (91% of subjects), but was common in both clinical and subclinical stages (50% vs. 23%, average log DNA copy number/ml(2) 2.6 vs. 1.4). CONCLUSION: The majority of RHL patients shed viral DNA. Shedding occurred before and after the appearance of clinical lesions. Such findings may be useful in designing methods to reduce viral shedding and prevent transmission.