Analysis of the Effect of Different Physical Exercise Protocols on Depression in Adults: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

CONTEXT: Physical exercise (PE) is an effective treatment for depression, alone or as an adjunct. OBJECTIVE: There is a lack of indicators regarding the frequency, intensity, duration, and type of physical exercise (PE). This study aims to synthesize and analyze the dose-effect of different PE protocols in adult subjects in the treatment of depression, based on the analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). DATA SOURCES: The search was conducted using Web of Science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library electronic databases. STUDY SELECTION: Studies with an exercise-based intervention published by December 31, 2021 were identified. RCTs and meta-analyses involving adults with depression were also included; 10 studies were selected, including a total of 956 subjects. STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 1. RESULTS: Effect sizes were summarized using standardized mean differences (95% confidence interval) by effected randomized models. The results reinforce that exercise appears to be beneficial in improving depression among adults aged 18 to 65 years. Interventions lasting above 150 minutes per week of moderate intensity and group interventions seem to have a more significant effect on reducing depression. Studies have revealed that aerobic exercise, compared with resistance or flexibility, has a more positive effect on depression. CONCLUSION: PE can be a way to reduce depression and can be used as a possible adjunctive tool for pharmacological and/or alternative treatments. Considering the findings of this study, it is important that health professionals (eg, exercise physiologists, physicians, nurses, psychologists) promote the practice of PE as a complementary alternative and act early to prevent the worsening of depression. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020188909.

Age and Sex Differences in Physical Activity of Portuguese Adults and Older Adults.

This study aims to explore data on objectively measured physical activity from a sample of adults and older adults and to investigate the achievement of the minimum physical activity required for health benefits. Participants, 257 women (age 58.99 ± 18.93 years, BMI 26.75 ± 4.57 kg·m-2) and 178 men (age 49.22 ± 20.39 years, BMI 26.81 ± 3.51 kg·m-2), wore an accelerometer for 4 to 7 days. Approximately 40% of the time was spent daily in sedentary behaviors during waking hours. Our results do not sustain the suggestion that adult men are more physically active than women. The results indicated a decrease in intensity of physical activity with age, in men and women, but not in successive age groups. Around 75% of adults and 30% of older adults accumulated the minimum daily physical activity for health benefits, in periods shorter than 10 min, above moderate intensity. The number of steps taken per day revealed that most men and women (except the oldest) attained or exceeded the lower threshold for deriving health benefits. To obtain relevant health benefits, future physical activity interventions should aim at reversing the amount of sedentary behaviors, emphasizing increments in, at least, the lower levels of PA, and maintaining walking habits.

Effects of Exercise on Quality of Life in Subjects with Alzheimer's Disease: Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials.

Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that progressively affects memory, thinking, and behavior. It can interfere with daily activities and lead to a decline in cognitive abilities over time. Exercise-based interventions can complement Alzheimer's disease treatment. Exercise is a valuable tool in all healthcare settings and has shown promise as an effective cognitive improvement intervention for people with cognitive impairments. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to analyze the effect of physical exercise on the QoL of subjects with Alzheimer's disease. A search was performed with the help of the electronic databases PubMed and Web of Science. Randomized controlled trials with exercise-based interventions were selected. Four studies met the inclusion criteria, which included interventions based on exercise. The effects were summarized using standardized mean differences (95% confidence intervals) using random-effect models. The results showed that exercise had no significant effect on the QoL of subjects with Alzheimer. Thus, the effect of exercise interventions on the QoL of patients with Alzheimer's disease is not conclusive. More research is needed about this topic and the way in which the QoL is assessed; the necessity to conduct an objective way to assess the QoL in this population is mandatory.

Analysing the Effects of Different Types of Exercise on Dyspnoea and Fatigue in Adults through COPD-Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Clinical Trials.

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a heterogeneous lung condition, the main symptoms of which are dyspnoea and fatigue. Though exercise has been recommended for subjects with COPD, its benefits remain unclear. The aim of this study was to summarise, through a systematic review and meta-analysis, the available evidence on the effects of aerobic, resistance, stretching, and combined exercise on the main symptoms of COPD. METHODS: Search was performed using the electronic databases PubMed and Web of Science. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with interventions based on aerobic, resistance and/or combined exercise published until July 2022 were identified. The effects were summarised based on standardised mean differences (95% confidence intervals) using random and fixed effect models. RESULTS: Eight studies were selected, including a total of 375 subjects. The results obtained showed that resistance exercise, aerobic exercise and combined exercise seem to improve dyspnoea and fatigue symptoms in COPD subjects. CONCLUSIONS: In general, we can conclude that exercise-based interventions appear to improve the main COPD symptoms and may benefit quality of life in this population.

Motivational Correlates, Satisfaction with Life, and Physical Activity in Older Adults: A Structural Equation Analysis.

Background: Motivation is a crucial factor in predicting health-related outcomes, and understanding the determinants of motivation can provide valuable insights into how to improve health behaviors and outcomes in older adults. In this study, we aimed to investigate the associations between intrinsic and extrinsic exercise motivation, basic psychological needs, satisfaction with life, and physical activity among the elderly population. Methods: The sample consisted of 268 older adults (59 male, 209 female) aged 65-90 years old (Mage = 68.11, SD = 6.95). All participants reported that they were exercising, on average, 1.65 days (SD = 0.51) per week. Factor analysis was conducted using a two-step approach. First, a confirmatory factor analysis and then a structural equation model considering all variables under analysis was performed. Results: the structural model displayed acceptable fit to the data: χ2/df = 3.093; CFI = 0.913; TLI = 0.908; SRMR = 0.071; RMSEA 0.079 [0.066, 0.092]. Significant direct effects were found as theoretically proposed, namely: (a) intrinsic motivation were positively and significantly associated with basic psychological need satisfaction (p < 0.001); (b) extrinsic motivation were negatively but not significantly associated with basic psychological needs (p < 0.001); and (c) basic psychological need satisfaction were positively and significantly associated with satisfaction with life (p < 0.001) and physical activity (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Intrinsic motivation and basic psychological needs play a crucial role in shaping exercise behavior and overall well-being. By understanding these motivation and needs, exercise and health professionals can work towards fulfilling them and achieving a greater sense of satisfaction in the life of the elderly and promote exercise adherence.

IgG+ Extracellular Vesicles Measure Therapeutic Response in Advanced Pancreatic Cancer.

(1) Background: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is expected to be the second-leading cause of cancer deaths by 2030. Imaging techniques are the standard for monitoring the therapy response in PDAC, but these techniques have considerable limits, including delayed disease progression detection and difficulty in distinguishing benign from malignant lesions. Extracellular vesicle (EV) liquid biopsy is an emerging diagnosis modality. Nonetheless, the majority of research for EV-based diagnosis relies on point analyses of EVs at specified times, while longitudinal EV population studies before and during therapeutic interventions remain largely unexplored. (2) Methods: We analyzed plasma EV protein composition at diagnosis and throughout PDAC therapy. (3) Results: We found that IgG is linked with the diagnosis of PDAC and the patient's response to therapy, and that the IgG+ EV population increases with disease progression and reduces with treatment response. Importantly, this covers PDAC patients devoid of the standard PDAC seric marker CA19.9 expression. We also observed that IgG is bound to EVs via the tumor antigen MAGE B1, and that this is independent of the patient's inflammatory condition and IgG seric levels. (4) Conclusions: We here propose that a population analysis of IgG+ EVs in PDAC plasma represents a novel method to supplement the monitoring of the PDAC treatment response.

Effect of different types of exercise in adult subjects with fibromyalgia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials.

Exercise has been recommended for fibromyalgia treatment. However, doubts related to exercise benefits remain unclear. The objective of this study was to summarise, through a systematic review with meta-analysis, the available evidence on the effects of aerobic, resistance and stretching exercise on pain, depression, and quality of life. Search was performed using electronic databases Pubmed and Cochrane Library. Studies with interventions based on aerobic exercise, resistance exercise and stretching exercise published until July 2020 and updated in December 2021, were identified. Randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses involving adults with fibromyalgia were also included. Eighteen studies were selected, including a total of 1184 subjects. The effects were summarised using standardised mean differences (95% confidence intervals) by random effect models. In general, aerobic exercise seems to reduce pain perception, depression and improves quality of life; it also improves mental and physical health-related quality of life. Resistance exercise decreases pain perception and improves quality of life and moreover improves the physical dimension of health-related quality of life. It was also observed that resistance exercise appears to have a non-significant positive effect on depression and the mental dimension of health-related quality of life. Studies revealed that stretching exercise reduces the perception and additionally improves quality of life and health-related quality of life. However, a non-significant effect was observed on depression. We conclude that exercise may be a way to reduce depression, and pain and improve the quality of life in adult subjects with fibromyalgia and should be part of the treatment for this pathology.

Assessment in Sport and Exercise Psychology: Considerations and Recommendations for Translation and Validation of Questionnaires.

Translating and validating measurement instruments in sport and exercise psychology is not an easy task. Rather, it is a task that requires effort and time, for the process is not limited to a simple translation to translate words from one language to another, just in order to make valid and reliable measure. All researchers should be aware that the only proper way is to adopt rigorous and robust methodologies to conduct the process from the preliminary stage of translation to reaching the validation stage of the psychological variable. Only so is it possible to avoid creating fragile and inadequate psychological assessment instruments that can jeopardize the entire investigation to be held with its use. Thus, the main objective of this work is to promote reflection and discussion on the subject by presenting some considerations and recommendations about translation and validation of questionnaires for psychological assessment applied to sport and exercise domain.

Treatment optimization of locally advanced and metastatic pancreatic cancer (Review).

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most lethal malignant tumor types, being the sixth leading cause of mortality worldwide and the fourth in Europe. Globally, it has a mortality/incidence ratio of 98%, and the 5­year survival rate in Europe is only 3%. Although risk factors, such as obesity, diabetes mellitus, smoking, alcohol consumption and genetic factors, have been identified, the causes of PDAC remain elusive. Additionally, the only curative treatment for PDAC is surgery with negative margins. However, upon diagnosis, ~30% of the patients already present with locally advanced disease. In these cases, a multidisciplinary approach is required to improve disease­related symptoms and prolong patient survival. In the present article, a comprehensive review of PDAC epidemiology, physiology and treatment is provided. Moreover, guidelines on patient treatment are suggested. Among the different available therapeutic options for the treatment of advanced PDAC, results are modest, most likely due to the complexity of the disease, and so the prognostic remains poor. Molecular approaches based on multi­omics research are promising and will contribute to groundbreaking personalized medicine. Thus, economic investment that promotes research of pancreatic cancer will be critical to the development of more efficient diagnostic and treatment strategies.

Establishment of Pancreatobiliary Cancer Zebrafish Avatars for Chemotherapy Screening.

BACKGROUND: Cancers of the pancreas and biliary tree remain one of the most aggressive oncological malignancies, with most patients relying on systemic chemotherapy. However, effective biomarkers to predict the best therapy option for each patient are still lacking. In this context, an assay able to evaluate individual responses prior to treatment would be of great value for clinical decisions. Here we aimed to develop such a model using zebrafish xenografts to directly challenge pancreatic cancer cells to the available chemotherapies. METHODS: Zebrafish xenografts were generated from a Panc-1 cell line to optimize the pancreatic setting. Pancreatic surgical resected samples, without in vitro expansion, were used to establish zebrafish patient-derived xenografts (zAvatars). Upon chemotherapy exposure, zAvatars were analyzed by single-cell confocal microscopy. RESULTS: We show that Panc-1 zebrafish xenografts are able to reveal tumor responses to both FOLFIRINOX and gemcitabine plus nanoparticle albumin-bound (nab)-paclitaxel in just 4 days. Moreover, we established pancreatic and ampullary zAvatars with patient-derived tumors representative of different histological types. CONCLUSION: Altogether, we provide a short report showing the feasibility of generating and analyzing with single-cell resolution zAvatars from pancreatic and ampullary cancers, with potential use for future preclinical studies and personalized treatment.

Pancreatic intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm associated colloid carcinoma.

Colloid carcinomas are rare pancreatic tumors characterized by the presence of mucin pools with scarce malignant cells. Most of these neoplasms arise from intestinal-type intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs). We report a case of a 77-year-old male patient who presented with weight loss, asthenia, lumbar pain and diabetes. Imaging studies revealed a mixed-type IPMN with high-risk features and a possible invasive component. The patient underwent surgical resection and the histology confirmed an invasive colloid carcinoma of the pancreas associated with an intestinal-type IPMN. Although invasive ductal and colloid carcinomas may look similar on imaging studies, its distinction is important because the latter have a better prognosis.

Employing Flow Cytometry to Extracellular Vesicles Sample Microvolume Analysis and Quality Control.

Extracellular Vesicles (EVs), membrane vesicles released by all cells, are emerging mediators of cell-cell communication. By carrying biomolecules from tissues to biofluids, EVs have attracted attention as non-invasive sources of clinical biomarkers in liquid biopsies. EVs-based liquid biopsies usually require EVs isolation before content analysis, which frequently increases sample volume requirements. We here present a Flow Cytometry (FC) strategy that does not require isolation or concentration of EVs prior to staining. By doing so, it enables population analysis of EVs in samples characterized by challenging small volumes, while reducing overall sample processing time. To illustrate its application, we performed longitudinal non-lethal population analysis of EVs in mouse plasma and in single-animal collections of murine vitreous humor. By quantifying the proportion of vesicular particles in purified and non-purified biological samples, this method also serves as a precious tool to quality control isolates of EVs purified by different protocols. Our FC strategy has an unexplored clinical potential to analyze EVs in biofluids with intrinsically limited volumes and to multiply the number of different analytes in EVs that can be studied from a single collection of biofluid.

Basic psychological needs and subjective well-being in Portuguese older people / Necesidades psicológicas básicas y bienestar subjetivo en personas mayores portuguesas

This study's goal is the validation of the Portuguese version of the Basic Need Satisfaction General Scale (BNSG-S: Sousa, Pais Ribeiro, Palmeira, Teixeira, & Silva, 2012) in a sample of Portuguese older people, and analyze through a structural equations model the effect of the Portuguese elderly individuals' global perception about the satisfaction of basic psychological needs on subjective well-being. Two samples of Portuguese elderly people aged between 60 and 90 years old were considered in this study. The results reveal that only Model 3 of the BNSG-S (3 factors, 11 items) showed good results of adjustment to the data (Χ2103,16, df=41, SRMR=.05, TLI=.90, CFI=.93, RMSEA=.07, 90% CI=.05-.08). In the second part of the study, we verified that satisfaction of basic psychological needs has a positive effect on subjective well-being in Portuguese elderly people. In the presence of this evidence, we concluded that the Portuguese version of the BNSG-S can be used as a means to evaluate the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs of the older population and their satisfaction has a positive effect on subjective well-being in the Portuguese older population

El objetivo de este estudio es la validación de la versión en portugués de la Escala General de Satisfacción de Necesidades Básicas (BNSG-S) en una muestra de personas mayores portuguesas, y analizar mediante el modelo de ecuaciones estructurales, el efecto de la percepción global de los ancianos portugueses sobre la satisfacción de las necesidades psicológicas básicas en el bienestar subjetivo. En este estudio se emplearon dos muestras de ancianos portugueses de entre 60 y 90 años de edad. Los resultados revelan que solo el Modelo 3 del BNSG-S (tres factores, 11 ítems) mostró buenos resultados de ajuste a los datos ((Χ2 = 103.16, df = 41, SRMR = .05, TLI = .90, CFI = .93, RMSEA = .07, 90% CI = .05-.08). En la segunda parte del estudio verificamos que la satisfacción de las necesidades psicológicas básicas tiene un efecto positivo en el bienestar subjetivo en los ancianos portugueses. En presencia de esta evidencia, llegamos a la conclusión de que la versión portuguesa del BNSG-S puede utilizarse como un medio para evaluar la satisfacción de las necesidades psicológicas básicas de la población de mayor edad y su satisfacción tiene un efecto positivo sobre el bienestar subjetivo en la población portuguesa de más edad

The Gastrointestinal Tumor Microenvironment: An Updated Biological and Clinical Perspective.

Gastrointestinal cancers are still responsible for high numbers of cancer-related deaths despite advances in therapy. Tumor-associated cells play a key role in tumor biology, by supporting or halting tumor development through the production of extracellular matrix, growth factors, cytokines, and extracellular vesicles. Here, we review the roles of these tumor-associated cells in the initiation, angiogenesis, immune modulation, and resistance to therapy of gastrointestinal cancers. We also discuss novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies directed at tumor-associated cells and their potential benefits for the survival of these patients.

Exosome-Based Cell-Cell Communication in the Tumor Microenvironment.

Tumors are not isolated entities, but complex systemic networks involving cell-cell communication between transformed and non-transformed cells. The milieu created by tumor-associated cells may either support or halt tumor progression. In addition to cell-cell contact, cells communicate through secreted factors via a highly complex system involving characteristics such as ligand concentration, receptor expression and integration of diverse signaling pathways. Of these, extracellular vesicles, such as exosomes, are emerging as novel cell-cell communication mediators in physiological and pathological scenarios. Exosomes, membrane vesicles of endocytic origin released by all cells (both healthy and diseased), ranging in size from 30 to 150 nm, transport all the main biomolecules, including lipids, proteins, DNAs, messenger RNAs and microRNA, and perform intercellular transfer of components, locally and systemically. By acting not only in tumor cells, but also in tumor-associated cells such as fibroblasts, endothelium, leukocytes and progenitor cells, tumor- and non-tumor cells-derived exosomes have emerged as new players in tumor growth and invasion, tumor-associated angiogenesis, tissue inflammation and immunologic remodeling. In addition, due to their property of carrying molecules from their cell of origin to the peripheral circulation, exosomes have been increasingly studied as sources of tumor biomarkers in liquid biopsies. Here we review the current literature on the participation of exosomes in the communication between tumor and tumor-associated cells, highlighting the role of this process in the setup of tumor microenvironments that modulate tumor initiation and metastasis.

Exosomes as emerging players in cancer biology.

Oncologic diseases do not behave as isolated entities. Instead, they are based on complex systemic networks involving cell-cell communication between cancerous and healthy cells of the host, which may either facilitate or prevent cancer progression. In addition to cell-cell contacts, cells communicate through secreted factors in a process modulated by ligand concentration, receptor availability and synergy amongst several signaling circuits. Of these secreted factors, exosomes, 30-150 nm membrane vesicles of endocytic origin released by virtually all cells, have emerged as important cell-cell communication players both in physiological and pathological scenarios by being carriers of all the main biomolecules, including lipids, proteins, DNAs, messenger RNAs and microRNA, and performing intercellular transfer of components, locally and systemically. By acting both in tumor and non-tumor cells, such as fibroblasts, leukocytes, endothelial and progenitor cells, tumor- and non-tumor cells-derived exosomes can modulate tumor growth and invasion, tumor-associated angiogenesis, tissue inflammation and the immune system. In this Review, we summarize the main findings of the literature on the roles of exosomes in mediating interactions between tumor and tumor-associated cells. We also discuss how the molecular composition analysis of circulating exosomes in clinical settings has emerged as an attractive non-invasive source of liquid biopsies for early diagnosis, prognosis and follow-up of patients with oncologic diseases.

Translation and adaptation of the physical activity enjoyment scale (PACES) in a sample of Portuguese athletes, invariance across genders nature sports and swimming / Tradução e adaptação do physical activity enjoyment scale (PACES) numa amostra de atletas portuguesas, invariância entre géneros, desporto de natureza e natação

Abstract The aim of this study was to translate and validate of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) from Mullen et al. version in Portuguese athletes, invariance across genders and nature sports and swimming, as well as, external validity, through the Portuguese version of BRSQ.Athletes (n=1032; 273 nature sports, 759 swimming) with an average age of 18,95 ± 6,59 years participated in this study. Confirmatory factor analysis (maximum likelihood), multigroup analysis (measurement invariance) and correlation analysis were used for data analyzed. Results supported the suitability of the models (one factor which eight items) showing an adequate fit to the data in each sample (general:χ2=181,96, p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,04, NNFI=0,94, CFI=0,96, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90% IC=0,06-0,08; male:χ2=113,27, p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,04, NNFI=0,95, CFI=0,97, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90% IC=0,06-0,08; female: χ2=67,59, p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,03, NNFI=0,94, CFI=0,96, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90% IC=0,06-0,09; nature sports: χ2=42,32, p=0,02, df=20, SRMR=0,037, NNFI=0,96, CFI=0,98, RMSEA=0,06, RMSEA 90% IC=0,04-0,08; swimming: χ2=130,14, p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,04, NNFI=0,94, CFI=0,96, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90% IC=0,06-0,08), as well as, were invariant across genders and nature sports and swimming (∆CFI<0,01). Enjoyment was, on the one hand, found to be positively and significantly correlated with identified regulation (r=0,82), integrated regulation (r=0,62) and intrinsic motivation (r=0,90). On the other, it was negatively and significantly correlated with amotivation (r=-0,25) and external and introjected regulation (r=-0,42; -0,38), respectively. Those findings allow concluding that PACES can be used to measure enjoyment in the future studies, thus filling an existing gap to date.

Resumo O objetivo deste estudo foi a tradução e validação do Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale, a partir da versão de Mullen et al., numa amostra de atletas portugueses e a invariância entre gêneros, desportos de natureza e natação, bem como, comprovar critérios de validade externa através da versão portuguesa do BRSQ. Participaram neste estudo 1032 atletas (273 desporto natureza; 759 natação), com uma média de 18,95 ± 6,59 anos de idade. Os dados foram analisados através de análise fatorial confirmatória (método da máxima verosimilhança), análise multigupos (invariância entre grupos) e análise correlacional. Os resultados suportam a adequação dos modelos (1 fator, oito itens), para cada uma das amostras (geral. χ2=181,96, p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,04, NNFI=0,94, CFI=0,96, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90% IC=0,06-0,08; masculino: x2=113,27, p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,035,NNFI=0,95, CFI=0,97, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90%IC=0,06-0,08;feminino: χ2=67,59,p=<0,01, df=20, SRMR=0,03,NNFI=0,94, CFI=0,96, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA90% IC=0,06-0,09; desporto de natureza: χ2=42,32, p=0,02, df=20, SRMR=0,037, NNFI=0,96, CFI=0,98, RMSEA=0,06, RMSEA90%IC=0,04-0,08; natação:χ2=130,14,p=<0,001, df=20, SRMR=0,04, NNFI=0,943, CFI=0,.96, RMSEA=0,07, RMSEA 90% IC=0,06-0,08), bem como, revelou ser invariante em função dos gêneros e das modalidades (∆CFI<0,01). O divertimento correlacionou-se positivamente com regulação identificada (r=0,82), regulação integrada (r=0,62) e motivação intrínseca (r=0,90), e negativamente com a amotivação (r=-0,25), regulação externa (r=-0,42) e regulação introjetada (r=-0,38). Estes resultados permitem-nos afirmar que a tradução e adaptação do PACES, pode ser utilizada com elevado grau de validade e fiabilidade na avaliação do divertimento em futuros estudos, suprimindo uma lacuna existente.

Validation of the Subjective Vitality Scale and study of the vitality of elderly people according to their physical activity / Validação da Subjective Vitality Scale e estudo da vitalidade nos idosos em função da sua atividade física

Abstract The main aim of the study was to validate the Portuguese version of the Subjective Vitality Scale - SVS for the Portuguese elderly population through of confirmatory factorial analysis. The existence of differences in the perception of subjective vitality among sufficiently active and insufficiently active older adults was also analyzed. A total of 309 Portuguese elderly (242 females, 67 males) aged 60-90 years (M = 68.59, SD = 6.60) participated in this study. Of the total sample, 256 are sufficiently active, while 53 are insufficiently active. The results show that the model was adjusted to data in a satisfactory way (χ2 = 28.95; df = 9; CFI = .97; TLI = .94; SRMR = .04; RMSEA = .08; RMSEA 90% CI = .05 - .12), and show a concurrent validity with the Portuguese version of the Satisfaction with Life Scale. The data obtained allow us concluding that the Portuguese version of the Subjective Vitality Scale can be used as a measure of subjective vitality in the Portuguese elderly population. It was also verified that the subjective perception of vitality is greater among individuals sufficiently active compared with their peers that do not reach the amount of practice of recommended physical activity.

Resumo O objetivo do estudo foi validar a versão portuguesa da Subjetive Vitality Scale - SVS para a população idosa portuguesa com recurso a uma análise fatorial confirmatória. Foi ainda analisada a existência de diferenças na perceção de vitalidade subjetiva entre idosos suficientemente ativos e insuficientemente ativos. Participaram neste estudo 309 idosos (242 sexo feminino, 67 sexo masculino) de nacionalidade portuguesa, com idades compreendidas entre os 60 e os 90 anos (M= 68.59; DP = 6.60). Do total da amostra, 256 são suficientemente ativos e 53 são insuficientemente ativos. Os resultados alcançados revelam que o modelo apresenta valores satisfatórios de ajustamento aos dados (χ2 = 28.95; df = 9; CFI = .97; TLI = .94; SRMR = .04; RMSEA = .08; RMSEA 90% CI = .05 - .12). Foi, também, obtida validade concorrente com a versão portuguesa da Escala de Satisfação com a Vida. Os dados obtidos permitem concluir que a versão portuguesa da SVS pode ser utilizada como medida de avaliação de vitalidade subjetiva na população idosa portuguesa. Verificou-se ainda, que a percepção subjetiva de vitalidade é maior entre os idosos suficientemente ativos comparados com seus pares que não atingem a quantidade de prática de atividade física recomendada.

Prognostic value of unrelated atypical serum immunofixation patterns during multiple myeloma therapy.

Autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) is the gold standard therapy for suitable multiple myeloma (MM) patients after induction with high dose therapy. To date, the evidence of a reliable marker of prognosis in these cases remains scarce. Our aim was to evaluate appearance of unrelated atypical serum immunofixation patterns (ASIPs) as a marker of prognosis in MM patients submitted to ASCT. We retrospectively analysed data from 65 patients. Interestingly, we observed that presence of ASIPs was associated with longer progression-free survival and longer overall survival. Our results suggested that presence of ASIPs could be a novel marker of good prognosis in MM patients submitted to ASCT.

Transport through graphene on SrTiO3.

We report transport measurements through graphene on SrTiO(3) substrates as a function of magnetic field B, carrier density n, and temperature T. The large dielectric constant of SrTiO(3) very effectively screens long-range electron-electron interactions and potential fluctuations, making Dirac electrons in graphene virtually noninteracting. The absence of interactions results in an unexpected behavior of the longitudinal resistance in the N=0 Landau level and in a large suppression of the transport gap in nanoribbons. The "bulk" transport properties of graphene at B=0 T, on the contrary, are completely unaffected by the substrate dielectric constant.