Polarised phosphorescent emission in an organoplatinum(II)-based liquid-crystalline polymer.

By combination of mesogenic rod-like cycloplatinated monomers based on 2,5-di(4-alkenyloxyphenyl)pyridine ligands with 1,1,3,3,5,5-tetramethyltrisiloxane, a phosphorescent, liquid-crystalline polymer was obtained, which showed polarised emission.

Novel risk factors and the prediction of type 2 diabetes in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine potential added value of novel risk factors in predicting the development of type 2 diabetes beyond that provided by standard clinical risk factors.

Research Design And Methods: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study is a population-based prospective cohort study in four U.S.

Fibre intake and evolution of BMI: from pre-pregnancy to postpartum.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of fibre intake on the evolution of maternal BMI from pregnancy to postpartum and to identify dietary patterns associated with fibre intake.

Design: Cohort study. Food intake was obtained using an FFQ.

Racial differences in association of elevated interleukin-18 levels with type 2 diabetes: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study.

Objective: Elevated plasma interleukin-18 (IL-18) has been linked to onset of diabetes mellitus (DM) and its complications. However, so far this association has been shown only in predominantly white populations. We examined IL-18 levels and their association with incident DM in a racially heterogeneous population.

Novel loci for adiponectin levels and their influence on type 2 diabetes and metabolic traits: a multi-ethnic meta-analysis of 45,891 individuals.

Circulating levels of adiponectin, a hormone produced predominantly by adipocytes, are highly heritable and are inversely associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) and other metabolic traits. We conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in 39,883 individuals of European ancestry to identify genes associated with metabolic disease. We identified 8 novel loci associated with adiponectin levels and confirmed 2 previously reported loci (P = 4.

Gestational diabetes and pregnancy outcomes--a systematic review of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Association of Diabetes in Pregnancy Study Groups (IADPSG) diagnostic criteria.

Background: Two criteria based on a 2 h 75 g OGTT are being used for the diagnosis of gestational diabetes (GDM), those recommended over the years by the World Health Organization (WHO), and those recently recommended by the International Association for Diabetes in Pregnancy Study Group (IADPSG), the latter generated in the HAPO study and based on pregnancy outcomes. Our aim is to systematically review the evidence for the associations between GDM (according to these criteria) and adverse outcomes.

Methods: We searched relevant studies in MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, the Cochrane Library, CINHAL, WHO-Afro library, IMSEAR, EMCAT, IMEMR and WPRIM.

Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil): objectives and design.

Although low- and middle-income countries still bear the burden of major infectious diseases, chronic noncommunicable diseases are becoming increasingly common due to rapid demographic, epidemiologic, and nutritional transitions. However, information is generally scant in these countries regarding chronic disease incidence, social determinants, and risk factors. The Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) aims to contribute relevant information with respect to the development and progression of clinical and subclinical chronic diseases, particularly cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.

Impact of statin dose on major cardiovascular events: a mixed treatment comparison meta-analysis involving more than 175,000 patients.

Background: The benefit of statins in the reduction of cardiovascular events was demonstrated in several placebo-controlled trials. More intensive therapy seems to be associated with greater benefit. Our objective was to compare different statin doses in the reduction of cardiovascular events and deaths, combining direct and indirect evidence, through mixed treatment comparisons (MTC).

Bioelectrical impedance values among indigenous children and adolescents in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Objective: To describe the nutritional status of indigenous children and adolescents in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, through bioelectrical values, and to compare the nutritional classifications of the anthropometric method to those of the body composition method.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 3 204 subjects at 35 schools in the 12 Kaingang indigenous lands of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Following World Health Organization recommendations, the weight and height (H) of each subject was measured twice and the body mass index/age (BMI/A) was classified.

[Food and Nutritional Surveillance System (SISVAN) in children from Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil: coverage, nutritional status, and data reliability].

This study aimed to evaluate: the coverage of the Food and Nutritional Surveillance System (SISVAN) in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, and it Regional Health Offices in 2006; the nutritional status of children 0-10 years of age; and the reliability of data on nutritional status recorded in the system. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted with secondary data on 63,320 children. Coverage was defined as the proportion of children younger than 10 years covered by the Family Health Strategy in the State's various municipalities (counties).

Lesser than diabetes hyperglycemia in pregnancy is related to perinatal mortality: a cohort study in Brazil.

Background: Gestational diabetes related morbidity increases along the continuum of the glycemic spectrum. Perinatal mortality, as a complication of gestational diabetes, has been little investigated. In early studies, an association was found, but in more recent ones it has not been confirmed.

Effectiveness of community health workers in Brazil: a systematic review.

The objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of community health workers (CHWs) in Brazil. This systematic review included all studies that sought to assess interventions involving CHWs. Despite the low quality of evidence for most outcomes, analysis of the 23 publications included often found benefit for CHW intervention, best documented for frequency of child weighing, prevalence of breast-feeding, and delayed introduction of bottle-feeding.

In situ biomonitoring of caged, juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in the Lower Duwamish Waterway.

Contaminated sediments may have wide-ranging impacts on human and ecological health. A series of in situ caged exposure studies using juvenile Chinook salmon was conducted in the Lower Duwamish Waterway (LDW). Chemical analysis of sediment, water, and fish tissue were completed.

Halogen bonding interaction between fluorohalides and isocyanides.

The optimized geometries and corresponding binding energies of complexes between fluorohalides, FX (X = Cl, Br, and I), and isocyanides, CNY (Y = CN, NC, NO(2), F, CF(3), Cl, Br, H, CCF, CCH, CH(3), SiH(3), Li, and Na), were calculated at the MP2(Full)/aug-cc-pVTZ (aug-cc-pVTZ-PP on I) level of theory, without and with basis set superposition error (BSSE) corrections through the counterpoise (CP) method. The optimized complex geometries were analyzed through the Steiner-Limbach relationship, which can be used to establish correlations between the F-X and X-C bond lengths. For all complexes, the correlations were shown to improve considerably when using optimized geometries including BSSE corrections.

Assessment of risks to ground-feeding songbirds from lead in the Coeur d'Alene Basin, Idaho, USA.

Previous assessment of ecological risks within the Coeur d'Alene River Basin identified Pb as a key risk driver for ground-feeding songbirds. Because this conclusion was based almost exclusively on literature data, its strength was determined to range from low to moderate. With the support of the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the US Fish and Wildlife Service collected site-specific data to address the uncertainty associated with Pb risks to songbirds.

Intensive practical lifestyle intervention improves endothelial function in metabolic syndrome independent of weight loss: a randomized controlled trial.

The objective was to evaluate the metabolic and vascular effects of lifestyle interventions involving a healthy diet and either a moderate- or a high-intensity exercise regimen in nondiabetic subjects with metabolic syndrome. The effects of these interventions on flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) and risk profiles were compared with a standard low-fat diet and engaging in daily walking (standard of care). Seventy-five healthy adults with metabolic syndrome (30-55 years old) were randomized to a 10,000-steps-a-day exercise program, a 3-times-a-week fitness (>75% peak VO(2)) program, or a 1-hour-walking-a-day program for 12 weeks.

Trends in hospitalizations for primary care sensitive conditions following the implementation of Family Health Teams in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

Objectives: How to provide effective and efficient care to the burgeoning and aging populations of the major cities of low- and middle-income countries constitutes one of the principle public health issues of our times. We evaluated the Family Health Strategy, the Brazilian national health system's public approach to primary health care, in the major city of Belo Horizonte, describing trends and factors associated with hospitalizations for primary care sensitive conditions following the implementation of 506 family health teams, most of which were established in 2002.

Methods: We conducted an ecological study covering 2003 to 2006, using mixed models to investigate time trends in public system hospitalizations as well as their association with social vulnerability and primary care team characteristics.

Chronic non-communicable diseases in Brazil: burden and current challenges.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have become a major health priority in Brazil--72% of all deaths were attributable to NCDs in 2007. They are also the main source of disease burden, with neuropsychiatric disorders being the single largest contributor. Morbidity and mortality due to NCDs are greatest in the poor population.

Phosphorescence vs fluorescence in cyclometalated platinum(II) and iridium(III) complexes of (oligo)thienylpyridines.

Two newly prepared oligothienylpyridines, 5-(2-pyridyl)-5'-dodecyl-2,2'-bithiophene, HL(2), and 5-(2-pyridyl)-5''-dodecyl-2,2':5',2''-ter-thiophene, HL(3), bind to platinum(II) and iridium(III) as N∧C-coordinating ligands, cyclometallating at position C(4) in the thiophene ring adjacent to the pyridine, leaving a chain of either one or two pendent thiophenes. The synthesis of complexes of the form [PtL(n)(acac)] and [Ir(L(n))(2)(acac)] (n = 2 or 3) is described. The absorption and luminescence properties of these four new complexes are compared with the behavior of the known complexes [PtL(1)(acac)] and [Ir(L(1))(2)(acac)] {HL(1) = 2-(2-thienyl)pyridine}, and the profound differences in behavior are interpreted with the aid of time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations.

Emissive metallomesogens based on 2-phenylpyridine complexes of iridium(III).

Preparation of Ir(III) complexes using anisotropic 2,5-di(4-alkoxyphenyl)pyridine ligands leads to emissive, liquid-crystalline complexes containing bound Cl and dimethyl sulfoxide. Using analogous poly(alkoxy) ligands allows the preparation of bis(2-phenylpyridine)iridium(III) acac complexes, which are also mesomorphic. The observation of liquid crystallinity in octahedral complexes of this type is without precedent.

Improved motor function with Bowen therapy for rehabilitation in chronic stroke: a pilot study.

Introduction: Bowen therapy is an established complementary therapy with anecdotal reports of effectiveness. However, there is limited published research to substantiate safety or effectiveness. This is a pilot study to explore the potential impact of Bowen therapy in chronic stroke.

Nutrition, mental health and violence: from pregnancy to postpartum Cohort of women attending primary care units in Southern Brazil--ECCAGE study.

Background: Woman's nutritional status, before and during pregnancy, is a strong determinant of health outcomes in the mother and newborn. Gestational weight gain and postpartum weight retention increases risk of overweight or obesity in the future and they depend on the pregestational nutritional status and on food consumption and eating behavior during pregnancy. Eating behavior during pregnancy may be the cause or consequence of mood changes during pregnancy, especially depression, which increases likelihood of postpartum depression.

High-molecular-weight adiponectin and the risk of type 2 diabetes in the ARIC study.

Context: Adiponectin, synthesized by adipocytes, has been shown to be a predictor of type 2 diabetes. Adiponectin circulates in plasma as three oligomeric isoforms. High-molecular-weight (HMW) adiponectin is thought to be the most biologically active form of adiponectin in terms of glucose homeostasis.