110023 research outputs found
Sort by
Fake News and Internet Shutdowns in Indonesia: Symptoms of Failure to Uphold Democracy
No full text[[abstract]]The Indonesian government limited or shut down internet access during
separate riots in Jakarta and Papua in 2019. The justification for blocking the
internet and disabling certain features of social media platforms was to quell
the unrest by ceasing the spread of fake news. Nevertheless, the government
did not declare a state of emergency in response to either situation, triggering
debate on whether the internet restrictions had any strong constitutional basis
or if they were out of proportion and unconstitutional. This study evaluates
the government’s policy on internet shutdowns to reduce the spread of fake
news amid riots, and explicates when the state of emergency “feature” might
be activated. The research method of this article is a doctrinal legal approach,
which critically examines whether the government policy was excessive, and to
what extent a state of emergency can be implemented by minimum standard
requirements. The result of this study shows the riots in Jakarta and Papua
ought not be categorized as national threats; hence, the internet shutdown was
out of proportion. Fake news is part of the price we pay for a free society; thus
the article argues that an internet shutdown is not a proper way to combat fake news. Furthermore, the government has failed to fulfill the minimum standards to
justify the internet shutdowns. Access to the internet is a new face of democratic
pillars, so blocking internet access without any sufficient legal instruments and
correct constitutional interpretation might indicate symptoms of a failure to
uphold democracy
Contribution of Cyclin-dependent Kinase Inhibitor 1B Genotypes to Childhood Leukemia Risk
No full text[[abstract]]Background/aim: Although genetic differences in cell-cycle control genes have been associated with cancer risk, to our knowledge, no report has specifically examined the role of gene variants in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1B (CDKN1B; also known as p27/KIP1) is a cell-cycle regulating gene. This study aimed at investigating the association between CDKN1B genotypes and childhood ALL risk.
Materials and methods: In 266 childhood ALL cases and 266 healthy controls, the CDKN1B rs34330 and 2066827 polymorphisms were genotyped, and the association of CDKN1B genotypes with childhood ALL risk were analyzed.
Results: The genotypes of CDKN1B rs34330 and 2066827 were similarly distributed between the control and case groups (p for trend=0.8718 and 0.4030, respectively). The allelic frequency also exhibited no statistical difference (p=1.0000 and 0.6666, respectively). There was no significant interaction between CDKN1B genotypes and age or sex.
Conclusion: CDKN1B genotypes were not found to be minor contributors to childhood ALL susceptibility in Taiwan
Effect of opioids on cancer survival in patients with chronic pain: a propensity score-matched population-based cohort study
No full text[[abstract]]Background
The impact of opioid analgesic use before cancer diagnosis on survival in patients with chronic pain is unclear. Therefore, we designed a propensity score-matched population-based cohort study to compare overall and cancer-related survival of patients with chronic pain who received long-term opioid analgesic treatment with that of those who did not receive such treatment.
Methods
We included patients with chronic pain and categorised them into the following two groups according to their analgesic use: patients with cancer and chronic pain who were prescribed ?180 defined daily doses of opioid analgesics per year >3 months before cancer diagnosis comprised the case group, and those who were prescribed <28 defined daily doses of opioid analgesics per year before cancer diagnosis comprised the control group. Patients in both groups were matched at a ratio of 1:5. The primary outcome was overall long-term survival.
Results
The matching process yielded a final cohort of 1716 patients (286 and 1430 in the case and control groups, respectively) who were eligible for further analysis. The adjusted hazard ratio for overall survival in patients receiving long-term opioids was 3.53 (95% confidence interval: 3.03–4.11; P<0.001).
Conclusions
Long-term opioid analgesic use before cancer diagnosis might be associated with poor overall survival in patients with chronic pain compared with such patients who did not receive long-term opioid analgesics
Establishment of optimal QuEChERS conditions of various food matrices for rapid measurement of heterocyclic amines in various foods
No full text[[abstract]]The optimal conditions for QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe) with superior performance were established to rapidly extract 21 heterocyclic amines (HAs) from 9 categories of food matrices including meat and poultry, eggs, soy beans and products, composite foods, fish and seafood, grains, beer, dairy foods, and coffee. The QuEChERS conditions and the developed ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis conditions were then applied to the determination of HAs in popular food products sold in the Taiwan market. The conditions comply with the food chemical analysis specifications of Taiwan Food and Drug Administration. Coffee products and braised products that require a longer cooking time contained relatively high content of HAs (mainly Harman and Norharman), and their consumption is relatively high resulting in relatively high intake of HAs from these products. The dietary intake of HAs in plant-based protein food products should also be of concern
Considering the asymmetric effect of financial deepening on environmental quality in BRICS economies: Policy options for the green economy
No full text[[abstract]]This study aims to estimate the nexus between financial deepening and environmental quality in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) economies by using the data over 1990–2019. For analysis, we relied on panel linear and nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL). Three different variables i.e. financial deepening index, financial institution deepening, and financial market deepening are used to represent financial deepening in BRICS countries. In the long run, our linear models confirmed the positive role of financial deepening in improving environmental quality. Conversely, the symmetric estimates of financial institution deepening and financial market deepening are positively significant implying that both these measures cause the CO2 emissions to rise, thus hurts the environmental quality in BRICS in long run. In the non-linear models, the positive shock in all the measures of financial deepening increases the CO2 emissions while the negative shock deteriorates the CO2 emissions, in all three models, in the long run. In the short-run, the variables of financial deepening provide mixed results during linear and non-linear analysis. Moreover, CO2 emissions respond asymmetrically to a positive and negative change in financial deepening in the long run only. Although financial deepening in the BRICS economies helps reduce the CO2 emissions, the BRICS are still among the top ten emitters of the world. Therefore, the role of financial deepening should be further enhanced in achieving a sustainable environment
N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids block the trimethylamine-N-oxideACE2- TMPRSS2 cascade to inhibit the infection of human endothelial progenitor cells by SARS-CoV-2
No full text[[abstract]]Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2) is a novel coronavirus that infects many types of cells and causes cytokine storms, excessive inflammation, acute respiratory distress to induce failure of respiratory system and other critical organs. In this study, our results showed that trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), a metabolite generated by gut microbiota, acts as a regulatory mediator to enhance the inerleukin-6 (IL-6) cytokine production and the infection of human endothelial progenitor cells (hEPCs) by SARS-CoV-2. Treatment of N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) could effectively block the entry of SARS-CoV-2 in hEPCs. The anti-infection effects of N-3 PUFAs were associated with the inactivation of NF-κB signaling pathway, a decreased expression of the entry receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and downstream transmembrane serine protease 2 in hEPCs upon the stimulation of TMAO. Treatment of DHA and EPA further effectively inhibited TMAO-mediated expression of IL-6 protein, probably through an inactivation of MAPK/p38/JNK signaling cascades and a downregulation of microRNA (miR)-221 in hEPCs. In conclusion, N-3 PUFAs such as DHA and EPA could effectively act as preventive agents to block the infection of SARS-CoV-2 and IL-6 cytokine production in hEPCs upon the stimulation of TMAO
The nexus between access to electricity and CO2 damage in Asian Countries: The evidence from quantile regression models
No full text[[abstract]]Energy poverty and environmental degradation are two main important issues in the literature of energy and environmental degradation. Energy poverty might affect adversely the health, productivity the environment. In this study, the effects of energy access on the environment are examined. Although there exist some similar studies in the related literature, our study differently (a) uses CO2 damage data, (b) performs parameter estimations corresponding to different quantiles instead of fixed-parameter estimations. This paper hence aims at analyzing the impacts of access to electricity on CO2 damage in Asian countries through panel quantile regression estimations by employing the panel data for 36 Asian countries for the period 1997–2017. CO2 damage is the cost of damage caused by CO2 emissions stemming from fossil fuel use and the manufacture of cement. While the main interest was to investigate the influence of access to electricity on CO2 damage, the variables of renewable energy and agricultural activities were also employed as control variables in the quantile estimations. The findings reveal that (i) Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis holds in panel data which in turn implies that as economies develop, the CO2 damage will decrease, (ii) as access to electricity increases, the CO2 damage will decrease as well, (iii) the renewable energy use also lowers the CO2 damage and (iv) agricultural activities on the other hand increase the CO2 damage in panel data. Finally, this paper suggests that the authorities increase access to electricity to diminish indoor and outdoor pollution
Analyses and identification of ICD codes for dementias in the research based on the NHIRD: a scoping review protocol
No full text[[abstract]]Introduction: Studies based on health claims data (HCD) have been increasingly adopted in medical research for their strengths in large sample size and abundant information, and the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) has been widely used in medical research across disciplines, including dementia. How the diagnostic codes are applied to define the diseases/conditions of interest is pivotal in HCD-related research, but the consensus on the issue that diagnostic codes most appropriately define dementias in the NHIRD is lacking. The objectives of this scoping review are (1) to investigate the relevant characteristics in the published reports targeting dementias based on the NHIRD, and (2) to address the diversity by a case study.
Methods and analysis: This scoping review protocol follows the methodological framework of the Joanna Briggs Institute Reviewer's Manual and the guidance of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for scoping reviews. The review will be performed between 1 March and 31 December 2022 in five stages, including identifying the relevant studies, developing search strategies, individually screening and selecting evidence, collecting and extracting data, and summarising and reporting the results. The electronic databases of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, and PsycINFO, Airiti Library Academic Database, the National Health Insurance Administration's repository, and Taiwan Government Research Bulletin will be searched. We will perform narrative syntheses of the results to address research questions and will analyse the prevalence across the included individual studies as a case study.
Ethics and dissemination: Our scoping review is a review of the published reports and ethical approval is not required. The results will provide a panorama of the dementia studies based on the NHIRD. We will disseminate our findings through peer-reviewed journals and conferences, and share with stakeholders by distributing the summaries in social media and emails
Associations among perceived sexual stigma from family and peers, internalized homonegativity, loneliness, depression, and anxiety among gay and bisexual men in Taiwan
No full text[[abstract]]This study aimed to examine the moderating factors of the association between perceived sexual stigma from family and peers and internalized homonegativity, as well as to compare the effects of perceived sexual stigma from family and peers and internalized homonegativity on loneliness, depression, and anxiety in gay and bisexual men. In total, 400 gay and bisexual men participated in this study. The experiences of perceived sexual stigma from family and peers on the Homosexuality subscale of the HIV and Homosexuality Related Stigma Scale, internalized homonegativity on the Measure of Internalized Sexual Stigma for Lesbians and Gay Men, loneliness on the UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3), depression on the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale, and anxiety on the State subscale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were collected. The results indicated that perceived sexual stigma from family and peers was significantly associated with internalized homonegativity in both gay and bisexual men, and that sexual orientation moderated the association. Moreover, the association between internalized homonegativity and loneliness was significantly greater than that between perceived sexual stigma from family and peers and loneliness, although no significant differences were observed in their associations with depression and anxiety. Intervention programs that promote changes in the attitudes toward gay and bisexual men among the general population are needed to help prevent the development of internalized homonegativity and further loneliness, depression and anxiety
Community-Based Long-Term Care in Taiwan: The Service Experiences of Tier B Centers
No full text[[abstract]]This qualitative study explored the community-based long-term care in Taiwan, examining the service experiences of Taiwan’s Tier B centers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven Tier B service centers managers. The interview transcripts were analyzed by comparing the participants’ responses to find similarities and inducted into three themes. It was found that the adversities encountered include frequent policy revisions, the lack of systematized training programs, the high turnover rate among service providers, as well as differing perceptions between family members and service providers. They tried to solve problems and suggested policy improvement, including establishing platforms for government-citizen dialogue as well as creating supervision and evaluation mechanisms. Consequently, Tier B service centers benefit the community and the long-term care industry as elderly people can age in place and reduce families’ caregiving burden. Also, the practical experiences provide the real situation of differences between policies, training, and social service promotion. For future research, it is suggested to use this study’s results as a blueprint and conduct a questionnaire survey on all Tier B service centers in the country to understand the overall service outcomes. And propose suggestions for policy revision and formulating training programs for service providers