110023 research outputs found
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國小教師壓力源對身心健康之影響:休閒調適策略的中介效果
No full text[[abstract]]目前國小教師普遍缺少休閒活動的參與，讓教師壓力無法獲得有效地調適，導致影響身心健康。本研究旨在探討國小教師壓力源、休閒調適與身心健康之現況，並分析影響效果。以「國小教師壓力源、身心健康與休閒調適量表」為研究工具，採便利取樣方式抽取樣本，共回收459份問卷，所得資料經描述性統計及結構方程模式進行資料分析，結果如下：一、個人背景變項部分：以女性、41－50歲、已婚、擔任級任教師（未兼任行政工作）、22年以上服務年資及市區學校之教師居多數。二、壓力源透過休閒調適策略之中介效果，會產生緩衝的功能，降低壓力源對身心 @ @[[abstract]]Since teachers of primary school are few to participate in leisure, their pressures cannot be relieved effectively. It will inevitably affect physical and mental health. This research aims to investigate the status quo of the elementary school teachers' stressors, leisure coping, physical and mental health as well, analyze the influential effects. The study was conducted by means of questionnaire surveys. The researcher compiled the questionnaire based on relevant literature. ＂The Scale for Elementary School Teachers' Stressors, physical and mental health and Leisure Coping＂ was used as a research tool for the study. This study was based on the convenience sampling. Among the mailed questionnaires, 459 were retrieved. The statistical procedures used in this research were descriptive statistics and Structural Equation Modeling(SEM).The research obtained conclusions as follows: 1.Personal background variables: Most of the teachers are female, at the age of 41-50 ,married and are the homeroom teachers(not worked the administrative jobs at the same time),over 21 years of seniority. 2. The stressors via the mediation effect of leisure coping strategies, as a buffer, will reduce the negative influences to the physical and mental health and maintain the physical and mental health indirectly. Finally, based on the outcomes and the conclusions of this study, the propositions are provided for practical strategies and the researches in the future
Cordycepin prevents and ameliorates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by inhibiting leukocyte infiltration and reducing neuroinflammation
No full text[[abstract]]Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neuroinflammatory autoimmune disease characterized by multifocal perivascular infiltration of immune cells in the central nervous system (CNS). Cordycepin (3'-deoxyadenosine), an adenosine analogue initially extracted from the fungus Cordyceps militarisa, is one of the candidates that has multiple actions. We investigated that cordycepin attenuated the activation of LPS-induced mouse bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDCs) and human monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MoDCs) through the inhibition of the AKT, ERK, NFκB, and ROS pathways and impaired the migration of BMDCs through the downregulation of adhesion molecules and chemokine receptors in vitro. In experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model, preventive treatment with cordycepin decreased the expression of trafficking factors in the CNS, inhibited the secretion of inflammatory cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-17), and attenuated disease symptoms. A chemokine array indicated that cordycepin treatment reversed the high levels of CCL6, PARRES2, IL-16, CXCL10, and CCL12 in the brain and spinal cord of EAE mice, consistent with the RNA-seq data. Moreover, cordycepin suppressed the release of neuroinflammatory cytokines by activated microglial cells, macrophages, Th17 cells, Tc1 cells, and Th1 cells in vitro. Furthermore, cordycepin treatment exerted therapeutic effects on attenuating the disease severity in the early disease onset stage and late disease progression stage. Our study suggests that cordycepin treatment may not only prevent the occurrence of MS by inhibiting DC activation and migration but also potentially ameliorates the progression of MS by reducing neuroinflammation, which may provide insights into the development of new approaches for the treatment of MS
Board game intervention to improve cognitive and daily functioning in elderly people with mild cognitive impairment: A randomized controlled trial
No full text[[abstract]]Objective: To examine the effectiveness of a 12-week board game intervention for seniors with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in improving cognitive functioning and scores on the instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) scale. Methods: A single-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted to collect data from a long-term care facility in central Taiwan. Sixty-eight MCI seniors were recruited and randomized into a board game group (trial group) and a health promotion group (control group). Participants in both groups received a 2-hour intervention once a week for 12 weeks, with the trial group receiving 12 weeks of board games and the control group receiving 12 weeks of health promotion activities. Before and after the intervention, the primary assessment was conducted using the Saint Louis University Mental Status Exam, Contextual Memory Test, and Trail Making Test part-A; the secondary assessment was conducted using the IADL scale. Results: The results of the primary assessment indicated that the participants in the trial group showed significant differences in immediate recall and delayed recall compared to the control group (p < 0.01). The results of the secondary assessment indicated that participants in the trial group differed significantly (p < 0.01) only on the item of using the telephone compared to the control group. Conclusions: Compared to the health-promoted MCI seniors, those who participated in the board game had significant improvements in memory (immediate recall and delayed recall), but not in IADL (except for using the telephone)
Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate Pretreatment Improves Autologous Adipose-derived Stem Cells Against Rheumatoid Arthritis-induced Neuroinflammation in the Brain of Collagen-induced Rats
No full text[[abstract]]Adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSC) exert neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects. ADSCs are considered potential therapeutics for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an inflammatory, multisystemic autoimmune disease. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the major polyphenolic compound in green tea, has strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This study aimed to investigate whether EGCG has a synergistic effect on the neuroprotective effects of ADSCs to protect the RA-damaged brain. Wistar rats were classified into four groups: sham, RA, RA + ADSCs (1 × 106 cells per rat), and RA + EGCG (10 ?M)-pretreated ADSCs. After 2 months of treatment, the brain tissues from the rats were collected and investigated. The brains of RA rats had higher inflammation and apoptosis. ADSC treatment ameliorated these negative effects significantly; however, the neuroprotective abilities of EGCG-pretreated ADSCs were significantly higher than ADSCs. Furthermore, the RA-induced repression of the PI3K/Akt survival pathway was reactivated by EGCG-pretreated ADSCs. Collectively, this study provides evidence that EGCG synergistically enhances the neuroprotective ability of ADSCs to repress the negative effects of RA on the brain. These findings could help develop new therapeutic strategies against RA or other neurodegenerative diseases after clinical validation in the future
Fine particulate matter measured by satellites predicts the risk of age-related macular degeneration in a longitudinal cohort study
No full text[[abstract]]Although studies have revealed that ambient particulate matter (PM) has detrimental effects on the ocular surface, there have been limited reports detailing the effect of ambient PM on the posterior segment of the eye. A large-scale longitudinal cohort study evaluating the association between fine PM, especially PM2.5, and the retina could elucidate the risk of ambient pollutants for retinal diseases. We investigated the association between PM2.5 and the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). We conducted a population-based cohort study of 4,284,128 participants in Taiwan between 2001 and 2011. PM2.5 was continuously measured by satellites and subsequently assigned to each geographic district along with its postcode. A time-dependent Cox proportional-hazard model was used to assess the overall effects of average PM2.5. We used distributed lag non-linear models to evaluate the dose-response relationship between PM2.5 and AMD development. The annual mean of PM2.5 exposure was 34.23 ± 7.17 μg/m3. The PM2.5 concentrations were highest in spring, followed by those in winter, autumn, and summer. Twelve thousand ninety-five new AMD cases were reported during the study period. After adjusting for covariates, the AMD risk increased by 19% (95% confidence interval 1.13-1.25) for a 10 μg/m3 PM2.5 increase. The present study demonstrated that chronic exposure to PM2.5 increases the risk of AMD. Almost half of the Taiwanese live in a polluted area where the PM2.5 levels are higher than the World Health Organization recommended air quality guideline of 10 μg/m3 had a 1.4-fold risk, which significantly increases concern about their visual health and social burden
Haplotype distribution of SARS-CoV-2 variants in low and high vaccination rate countries during ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic in early 2021
No full text[[abstract]]The widespread severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continuously impacts our economic and public health. The potential of emerging variants to increase transmissibility and evade vaccine-induced immunity lets us put more effort to research on viral mutations and explore the pathogenic haplotypes. In this study, we characterized the haplotype and sub-haplotype diversity of SARS-CoV-2 global variants in January–March and the areas with low and high COVID19 vaccination rates in May 2021 by analyzing viral proteome of complete genome sequences published. Phylogenetic tree analysis of the proteomes of SARS-CoV-2 variants with Neighbor-Joining and Maximum Parsimony methods indicated that haplotype 2 variant with nsp12 P323L and Spike D614G was dominant (98.81%), including new sub-haplotypes 2A_1 to 2A_3, 2B_1 to 2B_3, and 2C_1 to 2C_2 emerged post-one-year COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, the profiling of sub-haplotypes indicated that sub-haplotype 2A_1 with the mutations at N501Y, A570D, D614G, P681H, T716I, S982A, and D118H in Spike was over 58% in May 2021 in the high partly vaccinated rate group (US, Canada, and Germany). Meanwhile, the new haplotype 2C_3 bearing the mutations at EFR156-158del, T19R, A222V, L452R, T478K, and D614G in Spike occupied over 54.8% in May 2021 in the low partly vaccinated rate group (India, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam). Sub-haplotypes 2A_1 and 2C_3 had a meaningful alternation of ACE2-specific recognition site, neutralization epitopes, and furin cleavage site in SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. The results discovered the haplotype diversity and new sub-haplotypes of SARS-CoV-2 variants post one-year pandemic in January–March 2021, showing the profiles of sub-haplotypes in the groups with low and high partly vaccinated rates in May 2021. The study reports the emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 sub-haplotypes during ongoing pandemic and vaccination in early 2021, which might help inform the response to vaccination strategies
Low-dose rapamycin prevents Ang-II-induced toxicity in Leydig cells and testicular dysfunction in hypertensive SHR model
No full text[[abstract]]Hypertension is a common chronic cardiovascular disease reported among both men and women. Hypertension in males affects the testis and reproduction function; however, the pathogenesis is poorly understood. Rapamycin has been reported to have a variety of beneficial pharmacological effects; however, high-doses rapamycin does have side effects such as immunosuppression. The present study investigates whether low-dose rapamycin can reduce the damage caused by hypertension to the testis of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and further examines molecular mechanism of low-dose rapamycin in preventing testicular toxicity induced by angiotensin II (Ang II). Low rapamycin dose restores the testicle size, histological alterations, 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD) expression, and prevents apoptosis in SHR rats. Ang II downregulates angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2) expression through AT1R, p-ERK, and MAS receptor in LC-540 Leydig cells in a dose-dependent manner. Low doses of rapamycin effectively upregulate steroidogenic enzymes, steroidogenic acute regulatory protein and 3β-HSD expression in Leydig cells. Rapamycin upregulates ACE2 expression through p-PKAc and p-PI3k in Ang II-treated cells. Further, rapamycin curbs mitochondrial superoxide generation and depleted mitochondrial membrane potential induced by Ang II through activation of Nrf2-mediated Gpx4 and superoxide dismutase 2 expression. Our results revealed the involvement of ACE2, AT1R, AT2R, PKAc, and oxidative stress in Ang-II-induced testicular toxicity, suggesting low-dose rapamycin could be a potential therapeutic candidate to attenuate testicular toxicity
Neuroprotective Effects of Probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri GMNL-263 in the Hippocampus of Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats
No full text[[abstract]]Diabetes-related brain complications have been reported in clinical patients and experimental models. The objective of the present study was to investigate the neuroprotective mechanisms of Lactobacillus reuteri GMNL-263 in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. In this study, three different groups, namely control group, STZ-induced (55 mg/kg streptozotocin intraperitoneally) diabetic rats (DM), and DM rats treated with Lactobacillus reuteri GMNL-263 (1 × 109 CFU/rat/day), were utilized to study the protective effect of GMNL-263 in the hippocampus of STZ-induced diabetic rats. The results demonstrated that GMNL-263 attenuated diabetes-induced hippocampal damage by enhancing the cell survival pathways and repressing both inflammatory and apoptotic pathways. Histopathological analysis revealed that GMNL-263 prevented structural changes in the hippocampus in the DM group and decreased the level of inflammation and apoptosis in the hippocampus of DM rats. The IGF1R cell survival signaling pathway also improved after GMNL-263 treatment. These results indicate that probiotic GMNL-263 exerts beneficial effects in the brain of diabetic rats and has potential ability for clinical application
Structure related α-glucosidase inhibitory activity and molecular docking analyses of phenolic compounds from Paeonia suffruticosa
No full text[[abstract]]High postprandial hyperglycaemia is an important determinant of the development and progression of type 2 diabetes. Thus, inhibition of key digestive enzymes such as α-amylase and α-glucosidase is considered an efficient approach to control glycaemic levels in diabetics. In search of α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors, the root bark of Paeonia suffruticosa was screened for inhibitors, resulting in the isolation of eleven phenolic compounds (1–11). Their enzymes inhibitory activities and inhibition mechanism were investigated using an in vitro inhibition assay and molecular docking studies. Compounds 2, 5, 6, and 8–11 (IC50 between 290 and 431??M) inhibited α-glucosidase more effectively than the reference compound acarbose (IC50?=?1463.0?±?29.5??M). However, the compounds (IC50?>?800??M) were less effective against α-amylase than acarbose (IC50?=?16.6?±?0.9??M). Among them, compound 10 exhibited the highest α-glucosidase inhibitory effect with an IC50 value of 290.4?±?9.6??M. Compounds 2, 5, 9 10 and 11 were found to be competitive inhibitors, while compounds 6 and 8 were noncompetitive inhibitors of α-glucosidase. Computational analyses showed that the main binding forces between the compounds and the main residues were hydrogen bonds. The results suggest that these compounds have the potential to be developed as α-glucosidase inhibitors
Tannic acid attenuate AKT phosphorylation to inhibit UMUC3 bladder cancer cell proliferation
No full text[[abstract]]Urothelial bladder cancer is rapidly spreading across Western countries, and therapy has shown little-to-moderate effects on bladder cancer. Thus, focusing on curbing cancer incidence has become crucial. The aim of the present study was to investigate the anticancer effects of Tannic acid (TA) in human bladder cancer. UMUC3 bladder cancer cells were treated with different concentrations of TA (0-100 ?M) and tested for cell viability, colony formation, and apoptosis. The involvement of the phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway in the action of TA was examined. TA treatment significantly inhibited the viability and increased percentage of apoptotic cells, thereby decreasing antiapoptotic proteins (BCL2, MCL-1, and BCL-XL) expression, resulting in the Caspase-3 activation. TA treatment decreased stem cell markers expression such as SOX2, OCT4, and NANOG. Additionally, TA treatment significantly reduced the phosphorylation levels of Akt in bladder cancer cells. Our study demonstrates the growth inhibitory effects of TA in bladder cancer cells, and highlights its potential as an anticancer agent for bladder cancer