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A correctional study of caring needs assessment on activites of daily living, balance and mobility for older adults with intellectual disabilities
Effects of Tai chi exercises on adults with metabolic syndrome: a systematic review protocol
Background: Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of metabolic disturbances that increases the likelihood of developing cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and mortality. The economic burden of metabolic syndrome in individuals with hypertension is projected to rise by 179% by 2020 (Wille et al., 2011). Although pharmacological and non-pharmacological management options including herbal medicine and lifestyle and dietary modifications appear to be effective, the numerous potential adverse effects may deter its use (Mallappa et al., 2012).
Aim: This systematic review aims to present the best available research evidence related to the effectiveness of Tai Chi Exercises on community-dwelling adults with metabolic syndrome. The specific review questions to be addressed include the effectiveness of Tai Chi exercises on physiological and psychosocial outcomes among community-dwelling adults with metabolic syndrome; and the effectiveness of different types, duration, and frequency of Tai Chi exercises on client outcomes.
Methods: All published and unpublished studies in both English and Chinese will be searched using a three-stage approach. The English databases to be searched include MEDLINE, CINAHL, Allied and Complementary Medicine, British Nursing Index, EBSCOhost, EMBASE, Health and Medical Complete, Health Sciences, ProQuest, PsycINFO, PsycArticles, Science Citation Index, Science Direct, Scopus, and SPORTDiscus. The Chinese databases to be searched include China Journal Net, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, MyRead, Taiwan Electronic Periodical Services, and WanFang Data. Two reviewers will independently review the articles and chose those to be included based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The methodological quality of included studies will be assessed and details of all included studies will be extracted by two reviewers. If appropriate, quantitative results of comparable studies will be pooled in statistical meta-analysis. Narrative summary will be provided when statistical pooling is not possible.
Conclusion: This systematic review protocol describes the methods and steps necessary to conduct a systematic review on the effectiveness of Tai Chi Exercises on client outcomes. The review will provide useful guidance for healthcare providers to choose the most suitable and effective alternative intervention for the community-dwelling adults with metabolic syndrome
Resveratrol and cardiovascular health: promising therapeutic or hopeless illusion?
Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxy-trans-stilbene) is a natural polyphenolic compound that exists in Polygonum cuspidatum, grapes, peanuts and berries, as well as their manufactured products, especially red wine. Resveratrol is a pharmacologically active compound that interacts with multiple targets in a variety of cardiovascular disease models to exert protective effects or induce a reduction in cardiovascular risks parameters. This review attempts to primarily serve to summarize the current research findings regarding the putative cardioprotective effects of resveratrol and the molecular pathways underlying these effects. One intent is to hopefully provide a relatively comprehensive resource for clues that may prompt ideas for additional mechanistic studies which might further elucidate and strengthen the role of the stilbene family of compounds in cardiovascular disease and cardioprotection. Model systems that incorporate a significant functional association with tissues outside of the cardiovascular system proper, such as adipose (cell culture, obesity models) and pancreatic (diabetes) tissues, were reviewed, and the molecular pathways and/or targets related to these models and influenced by resveratrol are discussed. Because the body of work encompassing the stilbenes and other phytochemicals in the context of longevity and the ability to presumably mitigate a plethora of afflictions is replete with conflicting information and controversy, especially so with respect to the human response, we tried to remain as neutral as possible in compiling and presenting the more current data with minimal commentary, permitting the reader free reign to extract the knowledge most helpful to their own investigations
BAFS in the new world (business, accounting and financial studies) 4B: accounting--financial accounting II
辨别酒店环保成就的基准: 环保评估方法和标签 Tools for benchmarking and recognizing hotels\u27 green effort: environmental assessment methods and eco-labels
基于环保酒店的不断崛起,此文以研究中国环保评估方法 (EAMs) 和标签为目的。在此文中,三个 EAMs 被纳入研究范围:绿色环保 21,酒店的建筑环境评估方案,环保酒店认证。它们的共同点被比较从而关键问题被得出和分析。这些关键问题包含,能源,水,废弃物,建筑系统,设计,环境质量,排放,健康和安全管理。结果表明这些基准缺乏统一性。此外,结果表明获得EAM的直接益处尚不明显。同时权重和评价方程也不明晰。此研究表明需要创建一个全面广泛的指导方针来知道酒店管理者选择最适合的环保基准。
Due to the increasing attention on green hotels, this article aims to investigate environmental assessment methods (EAMs) and eco-labels in China. In this study, three EAMs for the evaluation of hotel environmental performance are included: Green Globe 21 Certification, Hotel Building Environmental Assessment Scheme, and Green Hotel Certification are chosen for reviewing and benchmarking. General features are compared, then key issues are categorized, dissected, and analyzed. These major issues include energy, water, waste, building systems, design, environmental quality, emissions, health, and safety management. The results show that these assessments lack uniformity. In addition, results indicate that benefits from EAMs are uncertain. Queries on the weight and credit formulation are also raised. The study also implies that there is a need to create comprehensive guidelines for hotel operators to select the most suitable assessments for their hotels
Rapid but mild genoprotective effect on lymphocytic DNA with Panax notoginseng extract supplementation
Background: Panax notoginseng (PN) is a well-known Chinese medicinal herb traditionally used as a hemostatic agent that strengthens and builds blood. The free radicals scavenging and antioxidant property of PN have been demonstrated in various studies either in vitro or in animal models, however, the genoprotective effect at human cellular level remains to be elucidated.
Aim: The current supplementation study aimed to investigate the genoprotective effect of PN. The study explored the DNA protection effect after a single dose of 2500 mg commercial notoginseng extract in water.
Materials and Methods: Six subjects, (3 males, 3 females) were recruited and each attended two trials. In the first trial, pre-ingestion and 2 hour-post-ingestion blood samples were collected and they were challenged with 50 µM H2O2. In the second trial, water was taken instead as control. Lymphocytes with or without challenge were then subjected to comet assay. DNA damage was assessed under fluorescent microscope.
Results: Results showed a significant (P \u3c 0.05) but mild decrease (3%) in the comet score after PN supplementation, indicating that PN supplementation reduces the H2O2-induced DNA damage in the lymphocytes and enhanced their resistance to oxidative damage giving a mild acute genoprotective effect against oxidant challenge. No change of comet score was observed in control trial
Structure and properties of a (1→3)-β-d-glucan from ultrasound-degraded exopolysaccharides of a medicinal fungus
A high molecular weight (MW) exopolysaccaride (EPS) fraction EPS1 was isolated from the fermentation broth of a medicinal fungus Cordyceps sinensis Cs-HK1 and partially degraded by high-intensity ultrasound (US) into a lower MW fraction EPS1U. EPS1U exhibited a single, symmetric peak on size exclusion chromatography with an average MW of 730kDa by light scattering analysis. It had a much lower intrinsic viscosity (1.7 versus 15.6dL/g) but a much higher solubility in water (77.5 versus 5.1g/L) than EPS1. Based on methylation analysis and NMR spectrometry, the structure of EPS1U was deduced as a (1→3)-β-d-glucan with glucose side chains attached to O-6 position at the branching points. EPS1U showed a high moisture absorption capability comparable to chitosan and urea, suggesting its potential as a moisturizing agent for food and cosmeceutical application. This is the first report on a high MW (1→3)-β-d-glucan isolated from EPS produced by Cordyceps sinensis