C634Y mutation in RET-induced multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN2) is a rare, autosomal dominant endocrine disease. Currently, the RET proto-oncogene is the only gene implicated in MEN2A pathogenesis. Once an RET carrier is detected, family members should be screened to enable early detection of medullary thyroid carcinoma, pheochromocytoma, and hyperparatitity. Among these, medullary thyroid carcinoma is the main factor responsible for patient mortality. Accordingly, delineating strategies to inform clinical follow-up and treatment plans based on genes is paramount for clinical practitioners. CASE SUMMARY: Herein, we present RET proto-oncogene mutations, clinical characteristics, and treatment strategies in a family with MEN2A. A family study was conducted on patients diagnosed with MEN2A. DNA was extracted from the peripheral blood of family members, and first-generation exon sequencing of the RET proto-oncogene was conducted. The C634Y mutation was identified in three family members spanning three generations. Two patients were sequentially diagnosed with pheochromocytomas and bilateral medullary thyroid carcinomas. A 9-year-old child harboring the gene mutation was diagnosed with medullary thyroid carcinoma. Surgical resection of the tumors was performed. All family members were advised to undergo complete genetic testing related to the C634Y mutation, and the corresponding treatments administered based on test results and associated clinical guidelines. CONCLUSION: Advancements in MEN2A research are important for familial management, assessment of medullary thyroid cancer invasive risk, and deciding surgical timing.

Enhanced antioxidant, tyrosinase inhibition, and anti-inflammatory activities of Praeparatum mungo and three of its derivatives.

The main objective of this study is to explore the functions of Praeparatum mungo (PM) and three of its derivatives, Praeparatum mungo/turmeric (PM/T), Praeparatum mungo/bromelain (PM/B), and Praeparatum mungo/inorganic elements (PM/IE). The results indicated that additives included in the fermentation process of PM enhanced PM's antioxidant properties. PM/B exhibited the highest total phenolic content (19.18 ± 0.46 mg gallic acid equivalent/g), DPPH free radical scavenging activity, and ferric reducing power. PM/IE exhibited the highest ABTS free radical scavenging activity and chelating ferrous ion activity. PM/T exhibited the best inhibitory tyrosinase activity. The 625 µg/mL PM extract can extensively reduce nitric oxide production of RAW264.7 macrophages stimulated by 1 µg/mL LPS and exhibited no cytotoxicity for anti-inflammatory applications. Additives in PM natural fermentation process can enhance antioxidant, tyrosinase inhibition, and anti-inflammatory properties of PM for future applications.

Health Behavior Models and Regular Exercise Levels Among Workers in Taiwan.

Purpose: The present study aims to examine the disparate effects of health behavior models, namely exercise self-efficacy (ESE), health belief model (HBM), and planned behavior theory (PBT), applied to clarify the degree of regular exercise among workers in Taiwan. Methods: A cross-sectional research design was adopted. A questionnaire was distributed to obtain information pertaining to regular exercise level, demographic characteristics, and the scores of ESE, HBM, and PBT. In total, 400 full-time workers voluntarily participated in this study. Results: The results showed that only 20.5% of the participants exercised regularly, 37.3% exercised irregularly, and 42.3% did not exercise currently. "Perceived benefits" and "perceived barriers" pertaining to HBM; "attitude" and "perceived behavioral control" pertaining to PBT; and ESE were associated with regular exercise level in the multiple linear regression analyses of each health behavior model. When all three models were considered simultaneously, ESE provided the greatest explanation of the variances for regular exercise levels. PBT total made a smaller contribution in the prediction of regular exercise level, while the effect of HBM did not show statistical significance. In order to explore the practicality of moving beyond theoretical models and focusing on the components across health behavior models to enhance workers' exercise behavior, the components showing statistical significance in separate analysis were put into the multiple linear regression simultaneously. The results showed that ESE, perceived barriers of health behavior, attitude, and perceived behavioral control were significantly associated with regular exercise level. Conclusion: A low percentage of workers exercising regularly should be a notable issue for workplace health promotion. Neither utilizing cues to exercise nor advertising health threats of physical inactivity is sufficient to enable workers to exercise regularly. Enhancing workers' ESE and behavior control and removing the exercise barriers would constitute efficient strategies for maintaining the exercise habit of workers.

Dual Parallel Intramedullary K-Wires for Arthrodesis of the Finger Distal or Thumb Interphalangeal Joints.

OBJECTIVE: K-wire arthrodesis methods are commonly used during arthrodesis of the finger distal interphalangeal (DIP) or thumb interphalangeal (IP) joints. Here we propose an advantageous approach involving dual parallel intramedullary K-wires with the K-wire tips cut to bury underneath the skin. METHODS: From January 2017 to December 2021, 35 patients (43 joints) underwent finger DIP or thumb IP joint arthrodesis using this method. Radiographic outcomes were evaluated, while functional outcomes were assessed using the visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain and the Quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (QuickDASH) score. Patients with at least 1 year follow-up were analyzed. The preoperative and postoperative functional results were analyzed using the paired t-test. RESULTS: Arthrodesis union was achieved in 41/43 joints (95.3%). We treated 10 thumb IP joints and 33 finger DIP joints, for which the underlying cause was osteoarthritis and trauma in 37 and six digits, respectively. The average time of K-wire removal was 8.9 (range, 7-10) weeks after surgery. Twenty-four patients (27 joints; 22 women, two men) had at least 1 year follow-up (mean 15.9; range, 12.5-40.8) months. For patients with bone healing, the VAS score improved from 6.6 (range, 5-8) to 0.6 (range, 0-1) (p < 0.001), and the QuickDASH score improved from 57.9 (range, 31.8-77.3) to 14.7 (range, 6.8-20.5) (p < 0.001) at final follow-up. Both of the two failure cases were in the thumb. There were no other complications. CONCLUSIONS: This technique is simple and cost-effective and achieves a good union rate. The advantages include the ability to choose variable K-wire sizes according to the size of the medullary canal and the ease of postoperative care.

Novel hydroxymethylbilane synthase gene mutation identified and confirmed in a woman with acute intermittent porphyria: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Acute intermittent porphyria (AIP) is a rare autosomal dominant porphyrin metabolic disease caused by a mutation in the hydroxymethylbilane synthase (HMBS) gene. This study aimed to explore the clinical manifestations of a patient with AIP, to identify a novel HMBS gene mutation in the proband and some of her family members, and to confirm the pathogenicity of the variant. CASE SUMMARY: A 22-year-old Chinese woman developed severe abdominal pain, lumbago, sinus tachycardia, epileptic seizure, hypertension, and weakness in lower limbs in March, 2018. Biochemical examinations indicated hypohepatia and hyponatremia. Her last menstrual period was 45 d prior to admission, and she was unaware of the pregnancy, which was confirmed by a pregnancy test after admission. Sunlight exposure of her urine sample for 1 h turned it from yellow to wine red. Urinary porphyrin test result was positive. Based on these clinical manifestations, AIP was diagnosed. After increasing her daily glucose intake (250-300 g/d), abdominal pain was partially relieved. Three days after hospitalization, spontaneous vaginal bleeding occurred, which was confirmed as spontaneous abortion; thereafter, her clinical symptoms completely resolved. Genetic testing revealed a novel heterozygous splicing variant of the HMBS gene in exon 10 (c.648_651+1delCCAGG) in the proband and four other family members. The pathogenicity of the variant was verified through bioinformatic methods and a minigene assay. CONCLUSION: We identified a novel HMBS gene mutation in a Chinese patient with AIP and confirmed its pathogenicity.

Gender Difference in the Relationships between Inflammatory Markers, Serum Uric Acid and Framingham Risk Score.

The purpose of the present study was to explore the role of gender in the relation of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), white blood cell (WBC) count, and serum uric acid (UA) to the risk of future cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. In total, 404 workers were recruited to obtain the measurements of serum markers for CVD risk. Demographic data, nutrition, exercise, smoking, and alcohol consumption were assessed through a questionnaire. The Framingham Risk Score (FRS) was adopted to estimate the risk of future CVD events. Multiple linear regression models were used to determine CVD risk markers in relation to the FRS by gender. The hsCRP was not significantly correlated with the FRS for all workers after adjusting for covariates, including demographic data and health-related lifestyle. WBC count was positively correlated with FRS for all workers, but WBC count did not show an interaction with gender with respect to the FRS. Serum UA showed an interaction with gender on the FRS, and UA positively correlated with the FRS in males though not in females. With respect to CVD prevention, the WBC count can be used to monitor the risk for all workers. Due to a gender difference shown in the relationship between serum UA and the FRS, serum UA can be a monitor of the risk of future CVD events in male workers only.

Cerium/Ascorbic Acid/Iodine Active Species for Redox Flow Energy Storage Battery.

In this study, we developed a novel cerium/ascorbic acid/iodine active species to design a redox flow battery (RFB), in which the cerium nitrate hexahydrate [Ce(NO3)3·6H2O] was used as a positive Ce3+/Ce4+ ion pair, and the potassium iodate (KIO3) containing ascorbic acid was used as a negative I2/I- ion pair. In order to improve the electrochemical activity and to avoid cross-contamination of the redox pair ions, the electroless plating and sol-gel method were applied to modify the carbon paper electrode and the Nafion 117 membrane. The electrocatalytic and electrochemical properties of the composite electrode using methanesulfonic acid as a supporting electrolyte were assessed using the cyclic voltammetry (CV) test. The results showed that the Ce (III)/Ce (IV) active species presented a symmetric oxidation/reduction current ratio (1.09) on the C-TiO2-PdO composite electrode. Adding a constant amount of ascorbic acid to the iodine solution led to a good reversible oxidation/reduction reaction. Therefore, a novel Ce/ascorbic acid/I RFB was developed with C-TiO2-PdO composite electrodes and modified Nafion 117-SiO2-SO3H membrane using the staggered-type flow channel, of which the energy efficiency (EE%) can reach about 72%. The Ce/ascorbic acid/I active species can greatly reduce the electrolyte cost compared to the all-vanadium redox flow battery system, and it therefore has greater development potential.

Effects of Storage Time and Temperature on Antioxidants in Juice from Momordica charantia L. and Momordica charantia L. var. abbreviata Ser.

This study determined the antioxidant activities of juice from Momordica charantia L. (MC) and MC var. abbreviata Ser. (MCVAS) by analyzing 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging ability, ferric reducing power (FRP), and total phenolic content (TPC). The effects of storage time and storage temperature on these antioxidant activities were investigated. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was conducted to identify the major components of MC and MCVAS. The results revealed that the antioxidant activity of MCVAS was better than that of MC, possibly because of richer components of MCVAS. For MC and MCVAS, the scavenging concentrations of 50% DPPH were 3.33 and 1.19 mg/mL, respectively; moreover, the FRP values were 68.93 and 118.14 mg ascorbic acid equivalent/g dry weight, respectively; and the TPC values were 8.15 and 11.47 mg gallic acid equivalent/g dry weight, respectively. The antioxidant activities of MC and MCVAS decreased with storage time. High storage temperature decreased antioxidant activity more quickly than a low temperature. In addition, MC had exhibited a faster decline in DPPH scavenging ability and FRP than MCVAS during 24-day storage, but no difference was observed in TPC.

Preparation and Characterization of pH Sensitive Chitosan/3-Glycidyloxypropyl Trimethoxysilane (GPTMS) Hydrogels by Sol-Gel Method.

pH responsive chitosan and 3-Glycidyloxypropyl trimethoxysilane (GPTMS) hydrogels were synthesized by the sol-gel crosslinking reaction. GPTMS was introduced to influence several behaviors of the chitosan hydrogels, such as the swelling ratio, mechanical properties, swelling thermodynamics, kinetics, and expansion mechanism. The functional groups of Chitosan/GPTMS hybrid hydrogels were verified by FT-IR spectrometer. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to analyzed the thermal behavior of water molecules, the expansion of thermodynamics, and the content of water molecules in the hydrogel. The results show that hydrogel consists of 50 wt.% GPTMS (CG50) and has good mechanical properties and sensitivity to pH response characteristics in the acidic/alkaline buffer solution. The increase of GPTMS content leads to the increase of hydrophobic groups in the hydrogel and causes the decrease of the overall water content and the freezing bond water content. When the hydrogels were immersed in acid solution, the interaction force parameter was smaller than that of DI-water and alkaline. It means that the interaction forces between hydrogel and water molecules are relatively strong. The swelling kinetics of hybrid hydrogels were investigated to inspect the swelling mechanism. The result is consistent with the Fisk's diffusion mechanism, meaning that the rate of water penetration is adjustable. The biodegradable hydrogel (CG50) in this study has good environmental sensitivity and mechanical properties. It is suitable to be applied in the fields of drug release or biomedical technology.

Work Ability and Quality of Life in Patients with Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders.

This study aimed to investigate level of work ability and quality of life (QOL) as well as the relationship between them among patients suffering from work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) in Taiwan. A cross-sectional study design with continuous sampling and a questionnaire were used to obtain the research data. Controlling for personal characteristics, pain, psychological distress, and social support, multiple linear regressions were adopted to explore the relationship between work ability and overall QOL. Further analyses were also made to clarify the relationships between work ability and each domain of QOL. In total, 165 patients with WMSDs were recruited. Compared with general workers, the participants reported a lower level of work ability and overall QOL. Work ability was significantly associated with overall QOL when covariates were controlled. Among the four domains of QOL, work ability was significantly associated with both the physical and psychological domains. The conclusion was that work ability is a definite factor of QOL for patients with WMSDs; the essence of work ability may be beyond economic function or social support. Strategies to help workers with WMSDs enhance their work ability to fit their new or temporary jobs would be beneficial to their QOL.

Light Energy Conversion Surface with Gold Dendritic Nanoforests/Si Chip for Plasmonic Polymerase Chain Reaction.

Surfaces with gold dendritic nanoforests (Au DNFs) on Si chips demonstrate broadband-light absorption. This study is the first to utilize localized surface plasmons of Au DNFs/Si chips for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) applications. A convenient halogen lamp was used as the heating source to illuminate the Au DNFs/Si chip for PCR. A detection target of Salmonella spp. DNA fragments was reproduced in this plasmonic PCR chip system. By semi-quantitation in gel electrophoresis analysis, the plasmonic PCR with 30 cycles and a largely reduced processing time provided results comparable with those of a commercial PCR thermal cycler with 40 cycles in more than 1 h. In the presence of an Au DNFs/Si chip, the plasmonic PCR provides superior results in a short processing time.

Work Hours and Difficulty in Leaving Work on Time in Relation to Work-to-Family Conflict and Burnout Among Female Workers in Taiwan.

The present study explores the relations between work hours and the difficulty in leaving work on time to both work-to-family conflict (WFC) and burnout among female workers in Taiwan. A cross-sectional research design and questionnaire were employed to obtain the research data. In total, 738 full-time female workers took part in the study. The results of regression analyses showed that when age, marital status, economic status, occupation, parental status, and housework responsibilities were controlled, more work hours were positively associated with WFC and burnout. When the difficulty in leaving work on time was also considered in the analysis, long working hours were still significantly associated with burnout; however, the significant relation with WFC disappeared. It is surmised that if female employees work overtime voluntarily, the perception of WFC diminishes; nevertheless, the adverse effect of long working hours on health remains unabated. This study concludes that female employees who work overtime on a voluntary basis are at risk of health problems, which should be a focus of concern.

Well-Being: Its Relationship with Work-to-Family Conflict and Burnout among Males and Females.

The present study aims to apply gender-specific analyses to examine how work-to-family conflict (WFC) and burnout are related to well-being among the workers in Taiwan. A cross-sectional research design was adopted. A questionnaire was distributed to obtain information pertaining to demographic characteristics, WFC, burnout, and well-being. In total, 4259 full-time workers in the manufacturing industry were recruited. Gender-specific statistical analyses were used. The results showed that no significant gender difference occurred on WFC; however, females had higher scores on burnout compared to males. In the correlation analyses, WFC as well as burnout were negatively associated with well-being in both genders. In the regression analyses when demographic factors were controlled, burnout explained larger variances of well-being in both genders compared with WFC. WFC made a smaller contribution to the models predicting well-being in males in contrast to females. Moreover, the significant association between WFC and well-being for males disappeared when burnout was taken into account. The conclusion reached was that to improve workers' well-being, organizations should develop relevant policies to decrease the extent of burnout for different genders. The policies that the organization adopted should consider females' needs beyond work-related burden. Moreover, merely decreasing the extent of WFC is insufficient to enhance males' well-being.

Artesunate exerts protective effects against ulcerative colitis via suppressing Toll­like receptor 4 and its downstream nuclear factor­κB signaling pathways.

Artesunate (ART) is a semi­synthetic derivative of artemisinin used in the treatment of patients with malaria, which has also been reported to have immunoregulatory, anticancer and anti­inflammatory properties. The aim of the present study was to investigate the possible beneficial effects of ART on ulcerative colitis (UC) rats and to detect the possible mechanisms underlying these effects. A UC rat model was established using dextran sulfate sodium (DSS). Rats were randomly divided into the following groups: Normal control, UC model group, UC rats treated with a low, medium or high dose of ART (10, 30 and 50 mg/kg/day, respectively), and the positive control group (50 mg/kg/day 5­aminosalicylic acid). The damage status of colonic mucosal epithelial tissue was investigated by hematoxylin and eosin staining, and then the weight, colon length and disease activity index (DAI) were measured. Western blotting and reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis were used to detect the levels of cytokines associated with UC and proteins associated with Toll­like receptor 4 (TLR4)­nuclear factor (NF)­κB pathway. ELISA was also performed to measure the levels of inflammatory cytokines. In addition, the viability and infiltration of RAW264.7 cells were examined using Cell Counting Kit­8 and Transwell assays. The results demonstrated that treatment with ART significantly alleviated the UC symptoms induced by DSS in the rat model, lowered the DAI, ameliorated pathological changes, attenuated colon shortening, inhibited the levels of pro­inflammatory mediators and myeloperoxidase activity, and increased hemoglobin expression. Additionally, inflammatory and apoptotic markers were found to be significantly downregulated following treatment with ART in UC rats and RAW264.7 cells. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first to demonstrate that ART exerts anti­inflammatory effects via regulating the TLR4­NF­κB signaling pathway in UC.

Health-Associated Nutrition and Exercise Behaviors in Relation to Metabolic Risk Factors Stratified by Body Mass Index.

This study aimed to investigate the relationships of nutrition and exercise behaviors on metabolic risk factors (MRF) when body mass index (BMI) was considered. Health-associated nutrition and exercise behaviors were assessed by a questionnaire, anthropometric values, blood pressure and biochemical determinations that were obtained from 4017 workers. The nutrition score was negatively associated with triglycerides in the overweight subgroup and with systolic blood pressure (SBP) in the obese subgroup. The exercise score was negatively associated with triglycerides and waist circumference (WC) and positively associated with SBP and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in the ideal weight subgroup as well as being negatively associated with WC and positively associated with HDL-C in the overweight subgroup. Similarly, the exercise score was negatively associated with WC and positively associated with SBP in the obese subgroup. However, no significant association was found between nutrition or exercise behavior and MRF in the underweight subgroup. In conclusion, the relationships of exercise and nutrition behaviors on MRF varied for different levels of BMI. Exercise showed a significant association with lower WC. Moreover, its effect showed a gradient trend in accordance with the levels of BMI. For ameliorating MRF, exercise seemed to have better effects than nutrition behavior, especially in the ideal weight subgroup.

Association of functional dorsal attention network alterations with breast cancer and chemotherapy.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide. Adjuvant chemotherapy has significantly reduced mortality but increased cognitive impairments, including attention function, making quality of life issues a crucial concern. This study enrolled nineteen breast cancer patients who were treated with standard chemotherapy within 6 months and 20 sex-matched healthy controls to investigate the brain effects of chemotherapy. All participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) with mean fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (mfALFF) analysis and were correlated with neuropsychological tests, including the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Cognitive and Affective Mindfulness Scale-Revised (CAMS-R), and the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), to explore the possible underlying mechanism of cognitive alternations. We found increased mfALFF over the frontoparietal lobe and decreased mfALFF over the occipital lobe in the cancer patients compared with the healthy controls; the altered brain regions may be associated with the dorsal attention network (DAN) and may be explained by a compensatory mechanism. Both MMSE and CAMS-R scores showed a positive correlation with mfALFF in the occipital lobe but a negative correlation in the frontoparietal lobe. By contrast, IES-R scores showed a positive correlation with mfALFF in the frontoparietal lobe but a negative correlation in the occipital lobe. These alterations are potentially related to the effects of both chemotherapy and psychological distress. Future research involving a larger sample size of patients with breast cancer is recommended.

Green biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles using Chenopodium formosanum shell extract and analysis of the particles' antibacterial properties.

BACKGROUND: Various physical and chemical methods for synthesis of metal nanoparticles have had some drawbacks. Therefore, green synthesis of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) has became one of the most crucial emerging areas of nanobiotechnology. In the present study, plant-mediated synthesis of Au NPs was performed using Djulis (Chenopodium formosanum) shell extract as a reducing and stabilizing agent. RESULTS: Reaction parameters were manipulated to optimize the Au NPs using a UV-visible spectrophotometer. Optimized Au NPs with a surface plasmon resonance band at 533 nm were prepared using a 744 µg mL-1 extract and a solution of pH 2.62 chloroauric acid (HAuCl4 ·3H2 O) at 40 °C. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) results indicated that most of the resultant Au NPs were spherical in shape and exhibited a mean size of 8 ± 6 nm. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and selected area electron diffraction (SAED), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the elemental gold and crystalline nature of the resultant NPs. FTIR spectrum analysis indicated the critical role of phenolic groups in the reduction of Au3+ ions and stabilization of the formed Au NPs. Moreover, the synthesized Au NPs possessed antibacterial activity for Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. CONCLUSION: In this study, Au NPs were synthesized with high efficiency and stability using Djulis shell extract, and related antibacterial applications were demonstrated. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.

Investigation of chemotherapy-induced brain structural alterations in breast cancer patients with generalized q-sampling MRI and graph theoretical analysis.

BACKGROUND: Breast neoplasms are the most common cancer among women in Taiwan. Cognitive deficits are common complications of breast cancer survivors treated with chemotherapy. The most frequently observed disorders involve executive function and memory impairment. With improvements in tumor intervention and the consequent increase in the number of cancer survivors, the quality of life of patients has become an important issue. We are interested in the early effects of chemotherapy on the brain structures of patients. In addition, generalized q-sampling imaging (GQI), a wide range of q-space datasets for a more accurate and sophisticated diffusion MR approach, was first used in this topic. METHODS: As diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is associated with restrictions in the resolution of crossing fibers, we attempted to use GQI, which can overcome these difficulties and is advantageous over DTI for tractography of the crossing fibers. This cross-sectional study included two groups: breast cancer survivors who had completed their chemotherapy (n = 19) and healthy controls (n = 20). All participants underwent diffusion MRI exams and neuropsychological assessments. We included four parts in our image analysis, i.e., voxel-based statistical analysis, multiple regression analysis, graph theoretical analysis and network-based statistical analysis. RESULTS: The results from the voxel-based statistical analysis showed significantly lower GFA and NQA values in the breast cancer group than those in the control group. We found significant positive correlations between the FACT-Cog and GQI indices. In the graph theoretical analysis, the breast cancer group demonstrated significantly longer characteristic path length. Adjuvant chemotherapy affected the integrity of white matter and resulted in poor cognitive performance, as indicated by the correlations between the neuropsychological assessment scales and the GQI indices. In addition, it was found that the characteristic path lengths in the breast cancer group increased, indicating that the brain network integration became worse. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated alterations in structural brain networks and associated neuropsychological deficits among breast cancer survivors.

Relationships between different types of physical activity and metabolic syndrome among Taiwanese workers.

This study aimed to investigate the relationships between different types of physical activity (PA) and metabolic syndrome (MetS). In this cross-sectional study, 3,296 Taiwanese workers were enrolled. A self-reported questionnaire was used to assess nutritional health behavior and PA levels related to occupation, leisure time, and commuting. Anthropometric measures, blood pressure and biochemical determinations of the blood were also obtained. Multiple logistic regression was used to evaluate the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of MetS and its components associated with different types of PA. The prevalence of MetS was 16.6% in workers. Compared with a low level of leisure-time PA, a high level of leisure-time PA showed a significantly lower risk of high triglycerides (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.61-0.87) and MetS (OR 0.76, 95% CI 0.62-0.95). Compared with a low level of occupational PA, a high level of occupational PA represented a significantly lower risk of both abdominal adiposity (OR 0.64, 95% CI 0.49-0.84) and high triglycerides (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.55-0.90). However, commuting PA levels were not significantly associated with MetS and its components. In conclusion, occupational PA as well as leisure-time PA could be important for the prevention of MetS.

Recent Advances in Antimicrobial Polymers: A Mini-Review.

Human safety and well-being is threatened by microbes causing numerous infectious diseases resulting in a large number of deaths every year. Despite substantial progress in antimicrobial drugs, many infectious diseases remain difficult to treat. Antimicrobial polymers offer a promising antimicrobial strategy for fighting pathogens and have received considerable attention in both academic and industrial research. This mini-review presents the advances made in antimicrobial polymers since 2013. Antimicrobial mechanisms exhibiting either passive or active action and polymer material types containing bound or leaching antimicrobials are introduced. This article also addresses the applications of these antimicrobial polymers in the medical, food, and textile industries.