Association of bariatric surgery with indicated and unintended outcomes: An umbrella review and meta-analysis for risk-benefit assessment.

Bariatric surgery can cause numerous functional changes to recipients, some of which are unintended. However, a systematic evaluation of wide-angled health benefits and risks following bariatric surgery has not been conducted. We systematically evaluated published systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials and observational studies reporting the association between bariatric surgery and health outcomes. We performed subgroup analyses by surgery type and sensitivity analysis, excluding gastric band. Thirty systematic reviews and 82 meta-analyzed health outcomes were included in this review. A total of 66 (80%) health outcomes were significantly associated with bariatric surgery, of which 10 were adverse outcomes, including suicide, fracture, gastroesophageal reflux after sleeve gastrectomy, and neonatal morbidities. The other 56 outcomes were health benefits including new-onset diabetes mellitus (DM) (odds ratio [OR] = 0.39; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.19-0.79), hypertension (OR = 0.36; 95% CI = 0.33-0.40), dyslipidemia (OR = 0.33; 95% CI = 0.14-0.81), cancers (OR = 0.65; 95% CI = 0.53-0.80), cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), and women's health. Surgery is associated with reductions in all-cause mortality and death due to cancer, DM, and CVD. Bariatric surgery has both beneficial and harmful effects on a broader than expected array of patients' health outcomes. An expansion of the indication for bariatric surgery could be discussed to include a broader population with metabolic vulnerabilities.

Influence of Pd Doping on Electrical and Thermal Properties of n-Type Cu0.008Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 Alloys.

Doping is known as an effective way to modify both electrical and thermal transport properties of thermoelectric alloys to enhance their energy conversion efficiency. In this project, we report the effect of Pd doping on the electrical and thermal properties of n-type Cu0.008Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 alloys. Pd doping was found to increase the electrical conductivity along with the electron carrier concentration. As a result, the effective mass and power factors also increased upon the Pd doping. While the bipolar thermal conductivity was reduced with the Pd doping due to the increased carrier concentration, the contribution of Pd to point defect phonon scattering on the lattice thermal conductivity was found to be very small. Consequently, Pd doping resulted in an enhanced thermoelectric figure of merit, zT, at a high temperature, due to the enhanced power factor and the reduced bipolar thermal conductivity.

Differential Microbicidal Effects of Bimetallic Iron-Copper Nanoparticles on Escherichia coli and MS2 Coliphage.

Bimetallic iron-copper nanoparticles (Fe/Cu-NPs) were synthesized by a single-pot surfactant-free method in aqueous solution [via the reduction of ferrous ion to zerovalent iron nanoparticles (Fe-NPs) and the subsequent copper-coating by metal ion exchange]. The produced Fe/Cu-NPs formed aggregates of spherical nanoparticles (approximately 30-70 nm) of Fe-Cu core-shell structures with 11 wt % copper content. The microbicidal effects of Fe/Cu-NPs were explored on Escherichia coli and MS2 coliphage, surrogates for bacterial and viral pathogens, respectively. Fe/Cu-NPs exhibited synergistically enhanced activity for the inactivation of E. coli and MS2, compared to single-metal nanoparticles (i.e., Fe-NPs and Cu-NPs). Various experiments (microbial inactivation tests under different conditions, fluorescence staining assays, experiments using ELISA and qRT-PCR, etc.) suggested that Fe/Cu-NPs inactivate E. coli and MS2 via dual microbicidal mechanisms. Two biocidal copper species [Cu(I) and Cu(III)] can be generated by different redox reactions of Fe/Cu-NPs. It is suggested that E. coli is strongly influenced by the cytotoxicity of Cu(I), while MS2 is inactivated mainly due to the oxidative damages of protein capsid and RNA by Cu(III).

Strong chromate-adsorbent based on pyrrolic nitrogen structure: An experimental and theoretical study on the adsorption mechanism.

Chromate is considered a toxic contaminant in various water sources because it poses a risk to animal and human health. To meet the stringent limits for chromium in water and wastewater, pyrrolic nitrogen structure was investigated as a chromate adsorbent for aqueous solutions, employing a polypyrrole coating on carbon black. The characteristics of the adsorbent were analyzed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Chromate was adsorbed as both Cr(III) and Cr(VI). The chromate adsorption capacity increased (from 50.84 to 174.81 mg/g) with increasing amounts of pyrrole monomers (from 50 to 86%) in the adsorbent. The adsorption capacity was well-correlated with the pyrrolic nitrogen content (from 2.06 to 6.57 at%) in the adsorbent, rather than other types of nitrogen. The optimized adsorption capacity (174.81 mg/g in the equilibrium batch experiment and 211.10 mg/g at an initial pH of 3) was far superior to those of conventional adsorbents. We investigated the mechanism behind this powerful chromate adsorption on pyrrolic nitrogen via physical/chemical analyses of the pH-dependent adsorption behavior, supported by first-principles calculation based on density functional theory. We found that Cr(III) and Cr(VI) adsorption followed different reaction paths. Cr(III) adsorption occurred in two sequential steps: 1) A Jones oxidation reaction (JOR)-like reaction of Cr(VI) with pyrrolic N that generates Cr(III), and 2) Cr(III) adsorption on the deprotonated pyrrolic N through Cr(III)-N covalent bonding. Cr(VI) adsorption followed an alternative path: hydrogen-bonding to the deprotonation-free pyrrolic N sites. The pH-dependent fractional deprotonation of the pyrrolic N sites by the JOR-like reaction in the presence of chromate played an important role in the adsorption.

Health-Related Effects of the Elderly Care Program.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the health-related effects of elderly care through the elderly program (ECEP) compared to those who were put on standby. METHODS: Analysis was conducted concerning the demographic characteristics and chronic disease prevalence status of 108,803 ECEP participants from 2007 to 2013 and 33,932 recipients of elderly care by the elderly (ECE) in 2013. A survey was conducted to determine the effects of emotional support on 508 elders who received ECE in 2014. To determine the effect of elderly care by participation, a comparative analysis was performed using the propensity score method and a differences-in-differences model. Statistical tests were performed on these study subjects' medical expenses and utilization of medical care, while they participated in the ECEP. RESULTS: ECEP participants incurred a lower total medical expense increase by US$431.94, US$75.54 lower copayment, US$357.60 lower insurance payment, and US$403.04 lower hospitalization costs, compared to the elders who were on standby. Furthermore, a significant decrease was observed in the number of days of hospitalization, even in the case of medical care utilization. Those who were receiving elderly care scored an average of 7.70 points on the Short Geriatric Depression Scale. 51% of these individuals showed a significantly high level of depression, with a score of 8 points or higher, which is a criterion for screening for depression. CONCLUSIONS: The present study showed differences in medical expenses and the utilization of medical care associated with ECEP.

Enhanced phosphate selectivity from wastewater using copper-loaded chelating resin functionalized with polyethylenimine.

In water and wastewater, phosphate is considered a critical contaminant due to cause algae blooms and eutrophication. To meet the stringent regulation of phosphate in water, a new commercial chelating resin functionalized with polyethylenimine was tested for phosphate removal by loading Cu(2+) and Fe(2+)/Fe(3+) to enhance selectivity for phosphate. Batch and column experiments showed that CR20-Cu exhibited high selectivity for phosphate over other strong anions such as sulfate. The average binary phosphate/nitrate and phosphate/sulfate factors for CR20-Cu were calculated to be 7.3 and 4.8, respectively, which were more than 0.97 and 0.22 for a commercial anion exchanger (AMP16). The optimal pH for the phosphate removal efficiency was determined to be 7. According to the fixed-bed column test, the breakthrough sequence for multiple ions was HPO4(2-)>SO4(2-)>NO3(-)>Cl(-). Saturated CR20-Cu can be regenerated using 4% NaCl at pH 7. More than 95% of the phosphate from CR20-Cu was recovered, and the phosphate uptake capacity for CR20-Cu was not reduced after 7 regeneration cycles.

Selective oxidative degradation of organic pollutants by singlet oxygen-mediated photosensitization: tin porphyrin versus C60 aminofullerene systems.

This study evaluates the potential application of tin porphyrin- and C(60) aminofullerene-derivatized silica (SnP/silica and aminoC(60)/silica) as (1)O(2) generating systems for photochemical degradation of organic pollutants. Photosensitized (1)O(2) production with SnP/silica, which was faster than with aminoC(60)/silica, effectively oxidized a variety of pharmaceuticals. Significant degradation of pharmaceuticals in the presence of the 400-nm UV cutoff filter corroborated visible light activation of both photosensitizers. Whereas the efficacy of aminoC(60)/silica for (1)O(2) production drastically decreased under irradiation with λ > 550 nm, Q-band absorption caused negligible loss of the photosensitizing activity of SnP/silica in the long wavelength region. Faster destruction of phenolates by SnP/silica and aminoC(60)/silica under alkaline pH conditions further implicated (1)O(2) involvement in the oxidative degradation. Direct charge transfer mediated by SnP, which was inferred from nanosecond laser flash photolysis, induced significant degradation of neutral phenols under high power light irradiation. Self-sensitized destruction caused gradual activity loss of SnP/silica in reuse tests unlike aminoC(60)/silica. The kinetic comparison of SnP/silica and TiO(2) photocatalyst in real wastewater effluents showed that photosensitized singlet oxygenation of pharmaceuticals was still efficiently achieved in the presence of background organic matters, while significant interference was observed for photocatalyzed oxidation involving non-selective OH radical.

Effect of pH and coexisting anions on removal of phosphate from aqueous solutions by inorganic-based mesostructures.

This study investigated the effect of pH and the presence of coexisting (competitive) anions on the removal of phosphate by titanium mesostructures synthesized using do- or hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide. To address these research objectives, experiments were conducted (1) under controlled initial pH values (2 to 10); and (2) through injection of nitrate, fluoride, chloride, or sulfate anions into a phosphate solution. Based on the experimental results, an initial of pH of 2 was found to be optimal for use of titanium mesostructures. The presence of fluoride anions in solution significantly decreased the removal efficiency of phosphate removal (3.56% at 3.95 mg/g). However, the addition of nitrate, chloride, and sulfate anions did not affect phosphate removal.

Magnetite/mesocellular carbon foam as a magnetically recoverable fenton catalyst for removal of phenol and arsenic.

A magnetite-loaded mesocellular carbonaceous material, Fe(3)O(4)/MSU-F-C, exhibited superior activity as both a Fenton catalyst and an adsorbent for removal of phenol and arsenic, and strong magnetic property rendering it separable by simply applying magnetic field. In the presence of hydrogen peroxide, the catalytic process by Fe(3)O(4)/MSU-F-C completely oxidized phenol and As(III) under the conditions where commercial iron oxides showed negligible effects. Notably, the decomposition of H(2)O(2) by Fe(3)O(4)/MSU-F-C was not faster than those by commercial iron oxides, indicating that hydroxyl radical produced via the catalytic process by Fe(3)O(4)/MSU-F-C was used more efficiently for the oxidation of target contaminants compared to the other iron oxides. The homogeneous Fenton reaction by the dissolved iron species eluted from Fe(3)O(4)/MSU-F-C was insignificant. At relatively high doses of Fe(3)O(4)/MSU-F-C, total concentration of arsenic decreased to a significant extent due to the adsorption of arsenic on the catalyst surface. The removal of arsenic by adsorption was found to proceed via preoxidation of As(III) into As(V) and the subsequent adsorption of As(V) onto the catalyst.

Investigation of phosphate removal using sulphate-coated zeolite for ion exchange.

Sulphate-coated zeolite (SCZ) was characterized and employed for the removal of phosphate from aqueous solutions using both batch and column tests. Batch experiments were conducted to assess the sulphate dilution ratio, reaction time for coating, surface washing and calcination temperature during the synthesis of SCZ. Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-first-order models were suitable to explain the sorption characteristics of phosphate onto the SCZ. Equilibrium tests showed that SCZ was capable of removing phosphate, with a maximum binding energy beta = 30.2 mg g(-1), compared to other adsorbents, such as activated alumina and ion exchange resin. The Thomas model was applied to the adsorption of phosphate to predict the breakthrough curves and the parameters of a column test. The model was found to be suitable for describing the adsorption process of the dynamic behaviour of the SCZ column. The total adsorbed quantity and equilibrium uptake ofphosphate related to the effluent volumes were determined by evaluating the breakthrough curves obtained under the allowed conditions. The results of batch and column experiments, as well as the low cost of the adsorbent, suggested that SCZ could be used as an adsorbent for the efficient and cost-effective removal of phosphate from aqueous solution.

Photosensitized oxidation of emerging organic pollutants by tetrakis C60 aminofullerene-derivatized silica under visible light irradiation.

We recently reported that C(60) aminofullerenes immobilized on silica support (aminoC(60)/silica) efficiently produce singlet oxygen ((1)O(2)) and inactivate virus and bacteria under visible light irradiation. (1) We herein evaluate this new photocatalyst for oxidative degradation of 11 emerging organic contaminants, including pharmaceuticals such as acetaminophen, carbamazepine, cimetidine, propranolol, ranitidine, sulfisoxazole, and trimethoprim, and endocrine disruptors such as bisphenol A and pentachlorophenol. Tetrakis aminoC(60)/silica degraded pharmaceuticals under visible light irradiation faster than common semiconductor photocatalysts such as platinized WO(3) and carbon-doped TiO(2). Furthermore, aminoC(60)/silica exhibited high target-specificity without significant interference by natural organic matter. AminoC(60)/silica was more efficient than unsupported (water-suspended) C(60) aminofullerene. This was attributed to kinetically enhanced (1)O(2) production after immobilization, which reduces agglomeration of the photocatalyst, and to adsorption of pharmaceuticals onto the silica support, which increases exposure to (1)O(2) near photocatalytic sites. Removal efficiency increased with pH for contaminants with a phenolic moiety, such as bisphenol A and acetaminophen, because the electron-rich phenolates that form at alkaline pH are more vulnerable to singlet oxygenation.