Clinical-functional characteristics of children with asthma and obstructive sleep apnea overlap associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Asthma and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are common chronic respiratory disorders in children. The relationship between asthma and OSA is bidirectional; these conditions share multiple epidemiological risk factors. Untreated OSA may cause attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of ADHD in asthmatic children with OSA and the link between asthma control and lung function of children with asthma and OSA. Methods: A total of 96 children aged 6-15 years diagnosed with asthma, according to the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) 2020, were enrolled in this study. All demographic data, including age, gender, body mass index, asthma control status, therapy, the Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Parent Rating Scale, lung function, and exhaled nitric oxide, were collected. In addition, home respiratory polygraphy was used to identify OSA in study subjects. Results: A total of 96 patients (8.4 ± 2.4 years) were included in the present study. OSA was identified in 60.4% of asthmatic children with a mean apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) of 3.5 ± 3.0 event/h. The inattentive ADHD subtype was significantly lower in the non-OSA asthmatic group than in the OSA asthmatic group (7.9 vs. 34.5%, p < 0.05). ADHD had a higher probability of presence (OR: 3.355; 95% CI: 1.271-8.859; p < 0.05) in the OSA group (AHI >1 event/h). Children with poorly controlled asthma had a significantly high risk of OSA (83.0 vs. 17.0%, p < 0.001) than children with well-controlled asthma. Allergic rhinitis increased the odds of having OSA in patients with asthma [OR: 8.217 (95% CI: 3.216-20.996); p < 0.05]. Conclusion: The prevalence of OSA is increased among poorly controlled asthma. ADHD may have a higher prevalence in children with OSA. Therefore, prompt diagnosis of OSA will lead to an accurate asthma control strategy in patients with asthma.

Ethnic Variations in Nutritional Status among Preschool Children in Northern Vietnam: A Cross-Sectional Study.

(1) Background: Vietnam is a multiethnic country undergoing rapid economic development, the improvement in nutritional status in preschool children is not equally shared by all ethnic groups; (2) Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed from September-December 2018 on 16,177 children aged 24-60 months representing Kinh (n = 14421), Muong (n = 1307) and Tay (n = 449) ethnic groups. Prevalence of malnutrition, overweight, obesity and anthropometric indices were compared across ethnic groups, using WHO 2006 child growth standards; (3) Results: The prevalence of malnutrition among children of Kinh, Muong and Tay origins was 14.7%, 34.3% and 43.2%, respectively. The corresponding data for overweight was 5.5%, 2.7%, 2.2% and for obesity 2.8%, 0.8% and 0.4%, respectively. The prevalence of stunting remained the highest in three subtypes of malnutrition in all ethnic groups. Kinh children were heavier and taller than the other groups, while Muong children were taller than Tay children (p-value < 0.001); and (4) Conclusions: Malnutrition remains a major public health issue among children of minor ethnicities while overweight and obesity is an emerging challenge for the Kinh ethnic group. The results imply that a community-based intervention should be specific to ethnicity to reduce the gap in nutritional status between ethnic groups in Vietnam.

Hopea odorata extract inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma via induction of caspase-dependent apoptosis.

INTRODUCTION: Cancer is a disease with a global burden and is a major and increasing threat to public health. The demand for new modalities to treat and prevent cancer is high. Given the toxic side effects of standard treatments, such as chemotherapy, there is greater research interest in naturally derived compounds due to their selective toxicity to cancer cells. This study aimed to test the anticancer activity of a crude extract of Hopea odorata on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) HepG2 cell line. METHODS: Methanol extracts of H. odorata were prepared from the bark of H. odorata plants (H. odorata extract). The in vitro cytotoxicity of H. odorata extracts on human HCC cell line HepG2 compared to normal human fibroblasts (HFs) was assessed by Alamar Blue assay. Caspase-3/7 was detected using a reagent that consists of DEVD peptide conjugated to a nucleic acid-binding dye. Apoptosis induction by the H. odorata plant extract on HepG2 was evaluated by Annexin V/7-AAD using flow cytometry. Disintegrated nuclei of plant-treated cells were observed under a fluorescent microscope using Hoechst and propidium iodide (PI) staining. In addition, using the Hoechst/PI staining technique, the ratio of dead to total cells was determined by distinguishing Hoechst and PI fluorescent signals. RESULTS: We found that the IC50 value of H. odorata extract on HepG2 was 12.67±5 µg/mL and on HF was 44±3 µg/mL. The IC50 value of doxorubicin on HepG2 was 153.3±15 ng/mL and on HF was 6.3±0.6 ng/mL. The selectivity index (SI) of H. odorata extract for HepG2 cells was ~3.48, while the SI of doxorubicin for HepG2 cells was ~0.04. The ratio of dead to total cells increased in a dose-dependent manner for HepG2 cells when observed under a fluorescent microscope, while the ratio of dead to total cells barely changed for HF cells. The H. odorata extract inhibited HepG2 cells via the activation of caspase-3/7. At 250 µg/mL concentration of the H. odorata extract, 35% of HepG2 cells were induced into apoptosis, and the cells exhibited disintegrated nuclei under a fluorescent microscope. CONCLUSION: These findings demonstrate that the methanolic bark extracts of H. odorata plant induce apoptosis and selective cytotoxicity toward HepG2 but not HF. Therefore, purification of compounds from H. odorata bark extracts may be useful as anticancer agents, and thus, more studies are warranted to investigate the anticancer properties of H. odorata.