Petroleum hydrocarbons reduction by selected tropical grass species in oil-based drill cuttings contaminated soil.

The potential of phytoremediation of oil-based drill cuttings (OBDCs) contaminated soil was assessed by measuring the level of petroleum hydrocarbons reduction. The contamination experiment was simulated in a randomized complete block design by factorial of 6 × 3 × 2 × 2 for grass species (Pennisitum purpureum, Panicum maximum, Andropogon gayanus, Heteropogon contortus, Axonopus compressus, and Chloris virgata), drill cuttings treatments (0%, 25%, and 50% OBDCs contamination), time (0 day of planting and 105 days of harvesting), and growth stage (young and mature). The parameters assessed were total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) in soils, roots, and shoots; bioconcentration factor in roots and shoots; and translocation factor. The TPH reductions achieved in 25% treatment level were young A. compressus (58.01%), mature P. purpureum, young A. gayanus and C. virgata (44.24%), young P. purpureum (27.67%), mature A. compressus (25.29%), mature H. contortus (2.56%), mature P. maximum (4.01%), and unplanted soils (2.10%). Thus young A. compressus, A. gayanus, C. virgata, and mature P. purpureum are recommended for TPH reduction in 25% OBDCs contaminated soils. Young P. purpureum and mature A. compressus can be used to achieve 25% - 27% TPH reduction.

Reduction of petroleum hydrocarbon in oil-based drill cuttings (OBDCs) contaminated soils using grass species without addition of fertilizers.Addition of Axonopus compressus and Chloris virgata as grass species with potential to reduce petroleum hydrocarbon in OBDCs contaminated soils.Growth stage of grass species is an important consideration for phytoremediation of OBDCs contaminated soil.Determination of phytoremediation mechanism in OBDCs contaminated soil.

Sex differences in contextual fear learning and generalization: a behavioral and computational analysis of hippocampal functioning.

There are sex differences in anxiety disorders with regard to occurrence and severity of episodes such that females tend to experience more frequent and more severe episodes. Contextual fear learning and generalization are especially relevant to anxiety disorders, which are often defined by expressing fear and/or anxiety in safe contexts. In contextual fear conditioning, a representation of the context must first be created, and then that representation must be paired with an aversive consequence. With some variation, the experiments presented here use a 3-d procedure in which day 1 consists of pre-exposure to the to-be-shocked context, day 2 consists of a single context-shock pairing after some placement-to-shock interval (PSI), and day 3 consists of testing in either the same or a novel context. With shorter pre-exposure periods, male rats showed more contextual fear, consistent with previous literature; however, after longer pre-exposure periods, female rats showed greater contextual fear. Additionally, while pre-exposure and PSI are both periods of time prior to the shock, it was found that they were not equivalent to each other. Animals with 120 sec of pre-exposure and a 30-sec PSI show a differential level and time course of fear expression than animals who received no pre-exposure and a 150-sec PSI, and this further depended on sex of the rat. Additionally, an experiment comparing recently versus remotely acquired contextual fear was run. Males were again shown to have greater contextual fear at both time points, and this contextual fear incubated/increased over time in males but not females. To facilitate identification of what processes caused sex differences, we used BaconX, a conceptual and computational model of hippocampal contextual learning. Computational simulations using this model predicted many of our key findings. Furthermore, these simulations suggest potential mechanisms with regard to hippocampal computation; namely, an increased feature sampling rate in males, which may account for the sex differences presented here and in prior literature.

FraidyRat: A Virtual Module Examining the Neural Circuitry Underlying Fear Conditioning.

FraidyRat is a teaching tool that allows students to investigate the neural basis of fear conditioning and extinction using a virtual rat with a virtual brain. FraidyRat models well-known phenomena at both a behavioral and neural level. Students use virtual versions of tract tracing, systemic and intracerebrally infused drugs, neural recording, and electrical stimulation to understand the neural substrates underlying the observed behavior. This module helps students develop critical thinking skills in order to deduce immediate cause and effect as well as inductive reasoning to grasp the broader scheme. This module utilizes scaffolded instruction and formative assessment to shape the thinking of students as they unfold and discover the neural mechanisms responsible for fear conditioning and extinction in FraidyRat, which largely reflect what is found in real rats. Experience with this three-week module resulted in students showing significant gains in content knowledge as well as a trend toward gains in critical thinking. An attitudinal questionnaire showed that students had an overall positive experience. This module can be replicated at any institution with just a computer. All materials are available at: https://mdcune.psych.ucla.edu/modules/fraidy-rat.

Extinction and discrimination in a Bayesian model of context fear conditioning (BaconX).

The extinction of contextual fear is commonly an essential requirement for successful exposure therapy for fear disorders. However, experimental work on extinction of contextual fear is limited, and there little or no directly relevant theoretical work. Here, we extend BACON, a neurocomputational model of context fear conditioning that provides plausible explanations for a number of aspects of context fear conditioning, to deal with extinction (calling the model BaconX). In this model, contextual representations are formed in the hippocampus and association of fear to them occurs in the amygdala. Representation creation, conditionability, and development of between-session extinction are controlled by degree of confidence (assessed by the Bayesian weight of evidence) that an active contextual representation is in fact that of the current context (i.e., is "valid"). The model predicts that: (1) extinction which persists between sessions will occur only if at a sessions end there is high confidence that the active representation is valid. It follows that the shorter the context placement-to-US (shock) interval ("PSI") and the less is therefore learned about context, the longer extinction sessions must be for enduring extinction to occur, while too short PSIs will preclude successful extinction. (2) Short-PSI deficits can be rescued by contextual exposure even after conditioning has occurred. (3) Learning to discriminate well between a conditioned and similar safe context requires representations of each to form, which may not occur if PSI was too short. (4) Extinction-causing inhibition must be applied downstream of the conditioning locus for reasonable generalization properties to be generated. (5) Context change tends to cause return of extinguished contextual fear. (6). Extinction carried out in the conditioning context generalizes better than extinction executed in contexts to which fear has generalized (as done in exposure therapy). (7) BaconX suggests novel approaches to exposure therapy.

Cleidocranial dysplasia, a rare skeletal disorder with failure of the cranial closure: case-based update.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Cleidocranial dysplasia is a rare disorder of skeletal development that mainly promotes, among other malformations, inadequate development of clavicles and failure in cranial closure. In this affection, the role of neurosurgery in addressing cranial defects is rarely discussed. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We conducted an extensive review of the literature using the PubMed database, giving a greater focus to publications in the field of neurosurgery. Additionally, we report a case of a 2-year-old female child with cleidocranial dysplasia. RESULTS: In our review, we encountered several cases of orthodontic implications but a few cases on cranial defect approach. CONCLUSION: The articles present literature that is unanimous on the recommendation of expectant conduct in children since the cranial block can occur spontaneously, even if the delayed form. In our approach, we opted for an expected strategy concerning the cranial defect, using a helmet made for brain protection. We also made the referral for multidisciplinary monitoring of pediatrics, neuropediatrics, ophthalmology, dentistry, and orthopedics.

Phenolic Acids, Antioxidant Capacity, and Estimated Glycemic Index of Cookies Added with Brewer's Spent Grain.

Brewers' spent grain (BSG) is the major by-product of the brewing industry, with great potential as a functional ingredient due to its bioactive compounds. Thus, BSG could be suitable for improving the low nutritional quality of wheat-based snacks highly consumed by young people. The objective of this study was to substitute wheat flour with BSG (0, 10, 20, and 30%) for cookies elaboration, and evaluate the dough rheology, phenolic acids, antioxidant capacity, arabinoxylans content and proximate composition of the cookies Protein content and bioactive compounds (ferulic and p-coumaric acids, water unextractable arabinoxylans) of cookies significantly (p < 0.05) increased with the substitution level. In comparison to the wheat-alone cookies, the 20% BSG-containing cookies showed a lower hydrolysis and glycemic index (GI), and less total starch. The low cost, protein-rich BSG with antioxidant capacity improves the nutritional quality of cookies and may confer health benefits beyond basic nutrition.

In silico characterization of multiple genes encoding the GP63 virulence protein from Leishmania braziliensis: identification of sources of variation and putative roles in immune evasion.

BACKGROUND: The leishmaniasis are parasitic diseases caused by protozoans of the genus Leishmania, highly divergent eukaryotes, characterized by unique biological features. To survive in both the mammalian hosts and insect vectors, these pathogens make use of a number of mechanisms, many of which are associated with parasite specific proteases. The metalloprotease GP63, the major Leishmania surface antigen, has been found to have multiple functions required for the parasite's survival. GP63 is encoded by multiple genes and their copy numbers vary considerably between different species and are increased in those from the subgenus Viannia, including L. braziliensis. RESULTS: By comparing multiple sequences from Leishmania and related organisms this study sought to characterize paralogs in silico, evaluating their differences and similarities and the implications for the GP63 function. The Leishmania GP63 genes are encoded on chromosomes 10, 28 and 31, with the genes from the latter two chromosomes more related to genes found in insect or plant parasites. Those from chromosome 10 have experienced independent expansions in numbers in Leishmania, especially in L. braziliensis. These could be clustered in three groups associated with different mRNA 3' untranslated regions as well as distinct C-terminal ends for the encoded proteins, with presumably distinct expression patterns and subcellular localizations. Sequence variations between the chromosome 10 genes were linked to intragenic recombination events, mapped to the external surface of the proteins and predicted to be immunogenic, implying a role against the host immune response. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest a greater role for the sequence variation found among the chromosome 10 GP63 genes, possibly related to the pathogenesis of L. braziliensis and closely related species within the mammalian host. They also indicate different functions associated to genes mapped to different chromosomes. For the chromosome 10 genes, variable subcellular localizations were found to be most likely associated with multiple functions and target substrates for this versatile protease.

Dentate Gyrus Contributes to Retrieval as well as Encoding: Evidence from Context Fear Conditioning, Recall, and Extinction.

Dentate gyrus (DG) is widely thought to provide a teaching signal that enables hippocampal encoding of memories, but its role during retrieval is poorly understood. Some data and models suggest that DG plays no role in retrieval; others encourage the opposite conclusion. To resolve this controversy, we evaluated the effects of optogenetic inhibition of dorsal DG during context fear conditioning, recall, generalization, and extinction in male mice. We found that (1) inhibition during training impaired context fear acquisition; (2) inhibition during recall did not impair fear expression in the training context, unless mice had to distinguish between similar feared and neutral contexts; (3) inhibition increased generalization of fear to an unfamiliar context that was similar to a feared one and impaired fear expression in the conditioned context when it was similar to a neutral one; and (4) inhibition impaired fear extinction. These effects, as well as several seemingly contradictory published findings, could be reproduced by BACON (Bayesian Context Fear Algorithm), a physiologically realistic hippocampal model positing that acquisition and retrieval both involve coordinated activity in DG and CA3. Our findings thus suggest that DG contributes to retrieval and extinction, as well as to the initial establishment of context fear.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Despite abundant evidence that the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) plays a critical role in memory, it remains unclear whether the role of DG relates to memory acquisition or retrieval. Using contextual fear conditioning and optogenetic inhibition, we show that DG contributes to both of these processes. Using computational simulations, we identify specific mechanisms through which the suppression of DG affects memory performance. Finally, we show that DG contributes to fear extinction learning, a process in which learned fear is attenuated through exposures to a fearful context in the absence of threat. Our data resolve a long-standing question about the role of DG in memory and provide insight into how disorders affecting DG, including aging, stress, and depression, influence cognitive processes.

A quality improvement project to increase self-administration of medicines in an acute hospital.

QUALITY PROBLEM OR ISSUE: A patient survey found significantly fewer patients reported they had self-administered their medicines while in hospital (20% of 100 patients) than reported that they would like to (44% of 100). We aimed to make self-administration more easily available to patients who wanted it. INITIAL ASSESSMENT: We conducted a failure, modes and effects analysis, collected baseline data on four wards and carried out observations. CHOICE OF SOLUTION: Our initial assessment suggested that the main areas we should focus on were raising patient awareness of self-administration, changing the patient assessment process and creating a storage solution for medicines being self-administered. We developed new patient information leaflets and posters and a doctor's assessment form using Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles. We developed initial designs for a storage solution. IMPLEMENTATION: We piloted the new materials on three wards; the fourth withdrew due to staff shortages. EVALUATION: Following collection of baseline data, we continued to collect weekly data. We found that the proportion of patients who wished to self-administer who reported that they were able to do so, significantly increased from 41% (of 155 patients) to 66% (of 118 patients) during the study, despite a period when the hospital was over capacity. LESSONS LEARNED: Raising and maintaining healthcare professionals' awareness of self-administration can greatly increase the proportion of patients who wish to self-administer who actually do so. Healthcare professionals prefer multi-disciplinary input into the assessment process.

A long-term study examining the antibacterial effectiveness of Agion silver zeolite technology on door handles within a college campus.

Laboratory studies have shown that small concentrations of silver are effective at inhibiting the growth micro-organisms through the disruption of important cell structures and processes. The additional ability to incorporate silver into surfaces has increased the usage of silver in the medical field and expanded its use into the consumer market. To understand the impact of increased silver-containing antimicrobial use, it is important to determine whether silver-based consumer goods are effective at reducing bacterial populations. Our study examined the antibacterial effectiveness of Agion silver zeolite technology applied to 25 silver- and control-coated door handles across a college campus. Door handles were sampled for 6 week periods in both the fall and spring semester, and bacteria were cultured and enumerated on tryptic soy agar (TSA), MacConkey agar (MAC) and mannitol salt agar (MSA). A significant difference was observed between the bacterial populations isolated from silver- and control-coated door handles after 3 years. However, bacteria were consistently isolated from silver-coated door handles suggesting that the silver zeolite was only effective against a portion of the bacterial populations, and further studies are necessary to determine the identities of the isolated bacteria and the prevalence of silver resistance.

Amygdaloid and non-amygdaloid fear both influence avoidance of risky foraging in hungry rats.

Considerable evidence seems to show that emotional and reflex reactions to feared situations are mediated by the amygdala. It might therefore seem plausible to expect that amygdala-coded fear should also influence decisions when animals make choices about instrumental actions. However, there is not good evidence of this. In particular, it appears, though the literature is conflicted, that once learning is complete, the amygdala may often not be involved in instrumental avoidance behaviours. It is therefore of interest that we have found in rats living for extended periods in a semi-naturalistic 'closed economy', where they were given random shocks in regions that had to be entered to obtain food, choices about feeding behaviour were in fact influenced by amygdala-coded fear, in spite of the null effect of amygdalar lesions on fear of dangerous location per se. We suggest that avoidance of highly motivated voluntary behaviour does depend in part on fear signals originating in the amygdala. Such signalling may be one role of well-known projections from amygdala to cortico-striate circuitry.

Willingness-to-use and preferences for model-informed antenatal doses: a cross-sectional study among European healthcare practitioners and pregnant women.

Background: Physiological changes in pregnancy may affect drug safety and efficacy, sometimes requiring dose adjustments. Pregnancy-adjusted doses, however, are missing for most medications. Increasingly, pharmacokinetic models can be used for antenatal dose finding. Given the novelty of this technique and questions regarding dose credibility, the acceptability of model-informed antenatal doses should be explored. Objective: We aimed to assess the willingness-to-use and preferred features for model-informed antenatal doses among healthcare practitioners (HCPs) and pregnant women in European countries. Methods: A cross-sectional, web-based study drawing on two open surveys was performed between 8 September and 30 November 2022. Each survey comprised statements drawn from prior focus groups, associated with Likert-scales. Themes included respondents' information needs, search behaviours along with their willingness-to-use and preferred features for model-informed antenatal doses. The surveys were disseminated through professional societies, pregnancy websites and social media. A descriptive analysis was performed. Results: In total, 608 HCPs from different specialties and 794 pregnant women across 15 countries participated, with 81% of respondents across both groups in the Netherlands or Belgium. Among pregnant women, 31% were medical professionals and 85% used medication during pregnancy. Eighty-three percent of HCPs found current antenatal pharmacotherapy suboptimal and 97% believed that model-informed antenatal doses would enhance the quality of antenatal care. Most HCPs (93%) and pregnant women (75%) would be willing to follow model-informed antenatal doses. Most HCPs desired access to the evidence (88%), including from pharmacokinetic modelling (62%). Most pregnant women (96%) wanted to understand antenatal dosing rationales and to be involved in dosing decisions (97%). Conclusion: The willingness-to-use model-informed antenatal doses is high among HCPs and pregnant women provided that certain information needs are met.

Remote memory in a Bayesian model of context fear conditioning (BaconREM).

Here, we propose a model of remote memory (BaconREM), which is an extension of a previously published Bayesian model of context fear learning (BACON) that accounts for many aspects of recently learned context fear. BaconREM simulates most known phenomenology of remote context fear as studied in rodents and makes new predictions. In particular, it predicts the well-known observation that fear that was conditioned to a recently encoded context becomes hippocampus-independent and shows much-enhanced generalization ("hyper-generalization") when systems consolidation occurs (i.e., when memory becomes remote). However, the model also predicts that there should be circumstances under which the generalizability of remote fear may not increase or even decrease. It also predicts the established finding that a "reminder" exposure to a feared context can abolish hyper-generalization while at the same time making remote fear again hippocampus-dependent. This observation has in the past been taken to suggest that reminders facilitate access to detail memory that remains permanently in the hippocampus even after systems consolidation is complete. However, the present model simulates this result even though it totally moves all the contextual memory that it retains to the neo-cortex when context fear becomes remote.

The physicochemical and structural properties and in vitro digestibility of pea starch isolated from flour ground by milling and air classification.

The fine, coarse and parent starches were isolated from pea flour by milling and air-classification. Their structural, thermal, physicochemical properties and in vitro digestibility were investigated. Particle Size Distribution showed the fine starch with the smallest unimodal distribution (18.33 and 19.02 µm) displayed higher degree of short-range molecular order and lower number of double helix structure. Scanning Electron Microscopy showed the morphology of the coarse starch granules as uniform in size and lacking protein particles on its smooth surface. Differential Scanning Calorimetry revealed the coarse starch had higher enthalpy changes while Rapid Visco Analysis showed higher peak, trough, and breakdown viscosities for the fine starch. In vitro digestibility featured the fine starch containing lower fast digesting starch contents, but with higher resistant starch content, indicating its resistance to enzymatic hydrolysis. The results could provide theoretical support for application of pea starch in functional foods and the manufacture of emerging starch products.

Social Vulnerability and Risk of Suicide in US Adults, 2016-2020.

Importance: There were over 45 000 suicides in the US in 2020, making suicide the 12th leading cause of death. If social vulnerability is associated with suicide rates, targeted interventions for at-risk segments of the population may reduce US suicide rates. Objective: To determine the association between social vulnerability and suicide in adults. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study analyzed 2 county-level social vulnerability measures (the Social Vulnerability Index [SVI] and the Social Vulnerability Metric [SVM]) and US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-reported county-level suicides from 2016 to 2020. Data were analyzed November and December 2022. Exposures: County-level variability in social vulnerability. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome measure was number of county-level adult suicides from 2016 to 2020, offset by county adult population during those years. The association between social vulnerability (measured using the SVI and the newly created SVM for 2018) and suicide was modeled using a bayesian-censored Poisson regression model to account for the CDC's suppression of county-level suicide counts of less than 10, adjusted for age, racial and ethnic minority, and urban-rural county characteristics. Results: From 2016 to 2020, there were a total of 222 018 suicides in 3141 counties. Comparing the least socially vulnerable (0% to 10%) to the most socially vulnerable (90% to 100%) counties, there was a 56% increase in suicide rate (17.3 per 100 000 persons to 27.0 per 100 000 persons) as measured by the SVI (incidence rate ratio, 1.56; 95% credible interval, 1.51-1.60) and an 82% increase in suicide rate (13.8 per 100 000 persons to 25.1 per 100 000 persons) as measured by the SVM (incidence rate ratio, 1.82; 95% credible interval, 1.72-1.92). Conclusions and Relevance: This cohort study found that social vulnerability had a direct association with risk for adult suicide. Reducing social vulnerability may lead to life-saving reduction in the rate of suicide.

Effect of cooking duration on carotenoid content, digestion and potential absorption efficiencies among refined semolina and whole wheat pasta products.

The bioaccessibility of carotenoids varies among different foods due to factors such as food matrix composition and type or extent of processing. Hence it is important to understand the extent to which these factors influence carotenoid bioaccessibility after the consumption and digestion of food. This study evaluated the carotenoid content, micellization efficiency, digestive stability, antioxidant activity and bioaccessibility of carotenoids as impacted by wheat cultivar and cooking duration among whole wheat flour (WWF) and refined semolina (RS) pasta. WWF and RS pasta were processed from three durum wheat cultivars (AAC Spitfire, CDC Precision, and Transcend) and cooked to al dente (Al), fully cooked (FCT) or overcooked (OC). The study showed that the wheat cultivar and cooking duration were significant functions of bioaccessible lutein in RS samples while only the cultivar influenced the bioaccessibility of zeaxanthin and lutein in WWF samples. In both WWF and RS, the effect of the cultivar on the bioaccessibility of lutein and zeaxanthin was similar and was as follows: Transcend > CDC Precision > AAC Spitfire. Cooking to Al significantly caused an increment in bioaccessible lutein in RS samples regardless of the wheat cultivar. This influence of cooking duration (Al > FCT > OC) was inversely related to the lutein concentrations in undigested pasta (OC = FCT > Al). DPPH scavenging activity among WWF samples was about 2-fold greater or more than that of RS samples regardless of the cultivar or cooking duration before and after digestion. Our data suggest that the effect of wheat cultivar and cooking duration modulates the bioaccessibility and antioxidant activity of RS and WWF pasta products.

Increased central adiposity in morbidly obese patients with obstructive sleep apnoea.

BACKGROUND: With the growing epidemic of obesity, few data are available regarding adipose distribution and the severity of sleep apnoea. Our aim was to measure precisely adipose distribution with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in a morbidly obese population with and without obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). METHODS: Morbidly obese female subjects without a history of OSA underwent overnight polysomnography and DXA analysis. Subject demographics, DXA variables, serum laboratory markers and physical exam characteristics were compared between individuals with and without OSA. RESULTS: For the study population (n= 26), mean body mass index (BMI) was 45.9 ± 7.8 kg/m(2); mean age was 47.5 ± 10.2 years and all were female. The central adiposity ratio (CAR) was higher in individuals with OSA (apnoea-hypopnoea index > 5) than those without OSA (1.1 ± 0.05 vs 1.0 ± 0.04; P = 0.004). No difference was observed in Epworth Sleepiness Scale scores, body mass index (BMI) or neck circumference between groups. CONCLUSIONS: OSA is associated with increased central adipose deposition in patients with a BMI of >40 kg/m(2). These data may be helpful in designing future studies regarding the pathophysiology of OSA, and potential treatment options.

The environmental sculpting hypothesis of juvenile and adult hippocampal neurogenesis.

We propose that a major contribution of juvenile and adult hippocampal neurogenesis is to allow behavioral experience to sculpt dentate gyrus connectivity such that sensory attributes that are relevant to the animal's environment are more strongly represented. This "specialized" dentate is then able to store a larger number of discriminable memory representations. Our hypothesis builds on accumulating evidence that neurogenesis declines to low levels prior to adulthood in many species. Rather than being necessary for ongoing hippocampal function, as several current theories posit, we argue that neurogenesis has primarily a prospective function, in that it allows experience to shape hippocampal circuits and optimize them for future learning in the particular environment in which the animal lives. Using an anatomically-based simulation of the hippocampus (BACON), we demonstrate that environmental sculpting of this kind would reduce overlap among hippocampal memory representations and provide representation cells with more information about an animal's current situation; consequently, it would allow more memories to be stored and accurately recalled without significant interference. We describe several new, testable predictions generated by the sculpting hypothesis and evaluate the hypothesis with respect to existing evidence. We argue that the sculpting hypothesis provides a strong rationale for why juvenile and adult neurogenesis occurs specifically in the dentate gyrus and why it declines significantly prior to adulthood.

Effect of simulated in vitro upper gut digestion of processed cowpea beans on phenolic composition, antioxidant properties and cellular protection.

The effect of simulated in vitro upper gut digestion on the phenolic composition and antioxidant properties of processed cowpea beans was studied. The samples comprised four cowpea cultivars: a cream, brownish-cream and two reddish-brown cultivars. Dry cowpea seeds were soaked in water, blended into paste and deep-fried in vegetable oil. The fried samples were taken through in vitro upper gut digestion followed by freeze-drying of the supernatant. Phenolic composition of extracts from the supernatants were determined using HPLC-MS. Radical scavenging activities were documented using the TEAC, ORAC and nitric oxide (NO) assays. In vitro digestion of the processed cowpeas resulted in phenolic-peptide complexes that were identified for the first time, and decreased extractable phenolic compounds. However, the radical scavenging activities increased. The processed cowpeas and their digests inhibited cellular NO production, and oxidative DNA and cellular damage. In conclusion, deep-fried cowpeas when consumed, could potentially help alleviate oxidative stress-related conditions.

Radiographic Outcomes, Union Rates, and Complications Associated With Plantar Implant Positioning for Midfoot Arthrodesis.

BACKGROUND: Midfoot arthrodesis has long been successfully included in the treatment paradigm for a variety of pathologic foot conditions. A concern with midfoot arthrodesis is the rate of nonunion, which historically has been reported between 5% and 10%. Plantar plating has also been noted to be more biomechanically stable when compared to traditional dorsal plating in previous studies. Practical advantages of plantar plating include less dorsal skin irritation and the ability to correct flatfoot deformity from the same medial incision. The purpose of this study is to report the arthrodesis rate, the success of deformity correction, and the complications associated with plantar-based implant placement for arthrodesis of the medial column. METHODS: A retrospective review was undertaken of all consecutive patients between 2012 and 2019 that underwent midfoot arthrodesis with plantar-positioned implants. Radiographic outcomes and complications are reported on 62 patients who underwent midfoot arthrodesis as part of a correction for hallux valgus deformity, flatfoot deformity, degenerative arthritis, Lisfranc injury, or Charcot neuroarthropathy correction. RESULTS: Statistically significant improvement was seen in the lateral talus-first metatarsal angle (Meary angle) and medial arch sag angle for patients treated for flatfoot deformity correction. In patients treated for hallux valgus deformity, there was a reduction in the intermetatarsal angle from 15.4 to 6.8 degrees. The overall nonunion rate was 6.45% in all patients. The rate of nonunion was higher at the NC joint compared to the TMT joint and with compression claw plates. One symptomatic nonunion required revision surgery (1.7%). There were no nonunions when excluding neuroarthropathy patients and smokers. The odds ratio (OR) for nonunion in patients with neuroarthropathy was 6.05 (P < .05), and in active smokers the OR was 2.33 (P < .05). CONCLUSION: Plates placed on the plantar bone surface for midfoot arthrodesis achieved and maintained deformity correction with rare instances of symptomatic hardware for a variety of orthopedic conditions. An overall clinical and radiographic union rate of 94% was achieved. The radiographic union rate improved to 100% when excluding both neuroarthropathy patients and smokers. The incidence of nonunion was higher in smokers, neuroarthropathy patients, naviculocuneiform joint fusions, use of compression claw plates, and when attempting to fuse multiple joints. Incisional healing complications were rarely seen other than in active smokers. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV, case series.