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Methylphenidate Use and Infectious Diseases in Children With Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder: A Population-Based Study
No full text[[abstract]]Objective: Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have more visits to the emergency department (ED) due to injuries than those without ADHD. However, no study has investigated whether children with ADHD have more ED visits or hospitalizations due to infectious diseases (IDs) and whether methylphenidate (MPH) treatment may reduce the risk.
Method: The incidence of ID-related ED visits or hospitalizations was defined as the main outcome. The Cox regression and conditional Poisson regression models were calculated to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) in the population level and relative risks for the self-controlled case series design, respectively.
Results: Children with ADHD had higher rates of emergency visits (HR = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.23~1.27) and hospitalizations (HR = 1.28, 95% CI: 1.26~1.31) due to IDs than those without ADHD. In the ADHD subgroup, those who received MPH treatment have a reduced risk of emergency visits (HR = 0.10, 95% CI: 0.09~0.10) and hospitalizations (HR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.71~0.75), compared to those without treatment. The risk of ID-related emergency visits decreased to 0.21 (95% CI: 0.21~0.22); and hospitalizations decreased to 0.71 (95% CI: 0.69~0.73). Within self-controlled analysis, it is demonstrated that compared with non-MPH exposed period, children with ADHD had significantly decreased risks for infection-related emergency visits (RR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.68~0.78) or hospitalizations (RR = 0.19, 95% CI: 0.17~0.21) during MPH-exposed periods.
Conclusions and relevance: This is the first study that reported an increased risk of ID-related healthcare utilizations in children with ADHD compared to those without, and that such risks may be significantly reduced in ADHD children that received MPH treatment
以團隊即興觀點探討團隊創造力之影響因素-團隊關係品質之中介效果
No full text[[abstract]]團隊即興是一種團隊成員面對無前例的挑戰時，能經由快速的討論與互動所產生多元性新構想的能力，此種模式源自於爵士樂的臨場創作並將其精神運用在管理學界。過去研究提到這類即興團隊，成員能更主動、即時地展開行動，且團隊成員較不會框架自己的想法、思考，亦能激發團隊創新想法，使其提升團隊創造力，因此團隊即興對於團隊創造力應有正向影響。本研究發現過去探討團隊關係品質對團隊即興與團隊創造力間關係的影響研究甚少且檢視過去文獻團隊成員間的關係應會對團隊即興與團隊創造力間關係產生中介作用。本研究採用實驗研究的方法，研究對象是高中一年級共638位學生，依各班人數規模共分成117組團隊，如此較能控制其他因素的干擾，也較能瞭解彼此間的實際關係為何，以提供後續研究之?考。研究結果發現，團隊即興正向影響團隊創造力，而團隊即興與團隊創造力中間透過團隊成員關係品質所影響。當團隊展現高度即興風氣，表示團隊成員間信任度高，成員間關係也非常密切，也就是說團隊即興對於團隊關係品質有正向影響，這對未來後續進行團隊即興的研究有?考的價值。[[abstract]]Team improvisation is an ability of team members to develop diversified new ideas through quick discussions and interactions when facing unprecedented challenges. This method applies the essence of jazz improvisation in the field of management. Previous studies had mentioned members of this kind of improvisation teams can take actions more actively and promptly. And these members are less likely to limit their ideas and thoughts. Team improvisation helps team members to come up with new ideas and facilitates improvements in team creativity. Thus, there should be a positive influence of team improvisation on team creativity. This study found that there have been only a few studies on the influences of team relationship quality on team improvisation and team creativity and inferred based on previous literature that there should be mediating effects of relationships among team members on team improvisation and team creativity. Thus, this study adopted the experimental research approach with 638 high school freshmen as research subjects who were grouped into 117 teams according to the number of students in each class for the purpose of avoiding interferences from other factors and exploring the real associations among the factors in question, to provide references for future research. The results of this study showed a positive influence of team improvisation on team creativity and a mediating effect of team relationship quality between team improvisation and team creativity. When improvisation takes place very often in a team, it means that the trust among the members of this team is strong and the relationships among those members are very tight. In other words, team improvisation may positively affect team relationship quality. The value of these findings as references for future research on team improvisation is high
Screening and identification of yeasts from fruits and their co-culture for cider production
No full text[[abstract]]Coculturing non-Saccharomyces yeasts with Saccharomyces cerevisiae could enrich the aromatic complexity of alcoholic beverages during cider brewing. Therefore, the present study performed rapid strain screening via selective culture medium and aroma analysis and adopted a response surface methodology to optimize fermentation conditions to produce 2-phenylethyl acetate (PEA), which presents a rose and honey scent. The effects of coculturing yeasts on cider quality were evaluated through hedonic sensory analysis and the check-all-that-apply (CATA) method. Hanseniaspora vineae P5 and S. cerevisiae P1 produced ciders with high levels of PEA and 2-phenylethanol, respectively. The optimal fermentation process consisted of sequential inoculation with a 31 h delay between inoculations, followed by fermentation for 14.5 d at 18.7 °C, yielding 17.41 ± 0.51 mg/L of PEA, which was 4.6-fold higher than that obtained through the unoptimized fermentation process. Additionally, the CATA results revealed that the cider produced through coculturing was associated with descriptors such as “smooth taste”, “honey”, “pineapple”, and “fruity”, which can be attributed to the high ethyl acetate and PEA levels in the cider
Aqueous extract of Solanum nigrum attenuates Angiotensin-II induced cardiac hypertrophy and improves cardiac function by repressing protein kinase C-ζ to restore HSF2 deSUMOlyation and Mel-18-IGF-IIR signaling suppression
No full text[[abstract]]Ethnopharmacological relevance: Solanum nigrum, commonly known as Makoi or black shade has been traditionally used in Asian countries and other regions of world to treat liver disorders, diarrhoea, inflammatory conditions, chronic skin ailments (psoriasis and ringworm), fever, hydrophobia, painful periods, eye diseases, etc. It has been observed that S. nigrum contains substances, like steroidal saponins, total alkaloid, steroid alkaloid, and glycoprotein, which show anti-tumor activity. However; there is no scientific evidence of the efficacy of S. nigrum in the treatment of cardiac hypertrophy.
Aim: To investigate the ability of S. nigrum to attenuate Angiotensin II - induced cardiac hypertrophy and improve cardiac function through the suppression of protein kinase PKC-ζ and Mel-18-IGF-IIR signaling leading to the restoration of HSF2 desumolyation.
Materials and methods: Cardiomyoblast cells (H9c2) were challenged with 100 nM Angiotensin-II (AngII) for 24 h and were then treated with different concentration of S.nigrum or Calphostin C for 24 h. The hypertrophic effect in cardiomyoblast cells were determined by immunofluorescence staining and the modulations in hypertrophic protein marker along with Protein Kinase C-ζ, MEL18, HSF2, and Insulin like growth factor II (IGFIIR), markers were analyzed by western blotting. In vivo experiments were performed using 12 week old male Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY) and Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) separated into five groups. [1]Control WKY, [2] WKY -100 mg/kg of S.nigrum treatment, [3] SHR, [4] SHR-100 mg/kg of S.nigrum treatment, [5] SHR-300 mg/kg of S.nigrum treatment. S. nigrum was administered intraperitoneally for 8 week time interval.
Results: Western blotting results indicate that S. nigrum significantly attenuates AngII induced cardiac hypertrophy. Furthermore, actin staining confirmed the ability of S. nigrum to ameliorate AngII induced cardiac hypertrophy. Moreover, S. nigrum administration suppressed the hypertrophic signaling mediators like Protein Kinase C-ζ, Mel-18, and IGFIIR in a dose-dependent manner and HSF2 activation (restore deSUMOlyation) that leads to downregulation of IGF-IIR expression. Additionally in vivo experiments demonstrate the reduced heart sizes of S. nigrum treated SHRs rats when compared to control WKY rats.
Conclusion: Collectively, the data reveals the cardioprotective effect of S. nigrum inhibiting PKC-ζ with alleviated IGF IIR level in the heart that profoundly remits cardiac hypertrophy for hypertension-induced heart failure
Arecoline induces cardiotoxicity by upregulating and activating cardiac hypertrophy-related pathways in Sprague–Dawley rats
No full text[[abstract]]Habitual chewing of the areca nut increases the risk of mortality owing to cardiovascular disease, but few reports have revealed the cardiotoxicity mechanism of the areca nut. Arecoline has been reported to be the primary toxic constituent in the areca nut. In order to study the acute cardiotoxicity of the areca nut in the development of pathologic heart hypertrophy, we induced heart injury in rats using arecoline. Arecoline at a low dosage (5 mg/kg/day) or a high dosage (50 mg/kg/day) was intraperitoneally injected to Sprague-Dawley rats for 21 days. The change of heart function and biochemical pathways were investigated with echocardiography and Western blot. The results were presented that heart functions were weakened by arecoline stimulation, and western blotting analysis revealed an elevation in BNP levels in the heart after arecoline exposure. Arecoline induced IL-6-mediated activation of the MEK5/ERK5 and JAK2/STAT3 pathways, as well as mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling cascades. Further, arecoline increased the calcineurin and NFATc3 levels in the heart. In summary, our results suggest that arecoline causes significantly cardiotoxicity and heart damage by inducing several hypertrophy-related signaling pathways, including IL-6-induced MEK5/ERK5, JAK2/STAT3, mitogen-activated protein kinases, and calcineurin signaling pathways. The study elucidated, for the first time, the possible cardiac hypertrophy mechanisms underlying the cardiotoxicity of the areca nut
Calycosin alleviates H 2 O 2 -induced astrocyte injury by restricting oxidative stress through the Akt/Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway
No full textFadACB and smeU1VWU2X Contribute to Oxidative Stress-Mediated Fluoroquinolone Resistance in Stenotrophomonas maltophilia
No full text[[abstract]]Pathogenic bacteria experience diverse stresses induced by host cells during infection and have developed intricate systems to trigger appropriate responses. Bacterial stress responses have been reported to defend against these stresses and cross-protect bacteria from antibiotic attack. In this study, we aimed to assess whether oxidative stress affects bacterial susceptibility to fluoroquinolone (FQ) and the underlying mechanism. Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, a species with high genetic diversity, is distributed ubiquitously and is an emerging multidrug-resistant opportunistic pathogen. FQs are among the limited antibiotic treatment options for S. maltophilia infection. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 103 S. maltophilia clinical isolates against ciprofloxacin (CIP) and levofloxacin (LVX) were determined using the agar dilution method in Mueller-Hinton plates with or without menadione (MD), a superoxide generator. The resistance rates for ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin were 40% and 18% in the MD-null group and increased to 91% and 23%, respectively, in the MD-treated group. Of the 103 isolates tested, 54% and 27% had elevated MICs against ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin, respectively, in the presence of MD. The involvement of oxidative stress responses in the MD-mediated FQ resistance was further assessed by mutants construction and viability assay. Among the 16 oxidative stress alleviation systems evaluated, fadACB and smeU1VWU2X contributed to MD-mediated FQ resistance. The antibiotic susceptibility test is an accredited clinical method to evaluate bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics in clinical practice. However, oxidative stress-mediated antibiotic resistance was not detected using this test, which may lead to treatment failure
Does Smartphone Addiction, Social Media Addiction, and/or Internet Game Addiction Affect Adolescents’ Interpersonal Interactions?
No full text[[abstract]]The purpose of this study is to investigate the correlations that levels of addiction to smartphones, social media, and online games have with levels of real-life and online interpersonal interactions among adolescents. In this cross-sectional study of adolescents in a college in Taiwan, structured questionnaire surveys were used to collect information. The questionnaire included the following: demographic background, Real Interpersonal Interaction Scale (RIIS), Internet Interpersonal Interaction Scale (IIIS), Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale (SABAS), Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS), and Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form (IGDS9-SF). Multiple regression analyses were carried out to investigate the correlations between SABAS, BSMAS, IGDS9-SF, and RIIS/IIIS. We recruited 998 students (413 boys). The average age was 17.18 ± 1.46. The study results show that adolescents with higher levels of addiction to smartphones and social media may have greater interpersonal interaction with friends in real life, but adolescents with high levels of addiction to online games may have less interpersonal interactions with friends in real life. Adolescents with high levels of addiction to smartphones, social media, and online games may have greater interpersonal interactions with friends online
