Hourly land-use regression modeling for NO and PM in the Netherlands.

Annual average land-use regression (LUR) models have been widely used to assess spatial patterns of air pollution exposures. However, they fail to capture diurnal variability in air pollution and consequently might result in biased dynamic exposure assessments. In this study we aimed to model average hourly concentrations for two major pollutants, NO and PM, for the Netherlands using the LUR algorithm.

Phytochemical Profiles and Biological Activities of Plant Extracts from Aromatic Plants Cultivated in Cyprus.

Medicinal and aromatic plants' properties, still an interesting research area, are attributed to the presence of various specialized products that possess important pharmacological activities. In the present study, six medicinal/aromatic plants (, , , , , and ) were evaluated for their phytochemical and nutritive composition, as well as their biological activities, including antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic properties. The results obtained indicate that was rich in proteins and minerals such as N and Mg, while accumulated more K, Na, P, and Ca.

The quality of OpenStreetMap food-related point-of-interest data for use in epidemiological research.

We assessed the quality of food-related OpenStreetMap (OSM) data in urban areas of five European countries. We calculated agreement statistics between point-of-interests (POIs) from OSM and from Google Street View (GSV) in five European regions. We furthermore assessed correlations between exposure measures (distance and counts) from OSM data and administrative data from local data sources on food environment data in three European countries.

Correlation Between a Self-Voice Assessment and Objective-Voice Evaluation Outcomes in Speech Language Pathology Students.

Aim: The aims of this study is to explore the correlation between the Voice Disorder Index (VDI) score and acoustic and phonatory respiratory voice parameters in speech language pathology (SLP) students with and without self-perceived voice disorders.

Methods: The Voice Disorder Index (VDI) and the Lingwaves 3 "Voice Protocol" were administered to each participant in order to assess his/her self-perceived severity of his/her voice problem, as well as, acoustic and phonatory respiratory measurements. The correlation coefficients were used to evaluate and quantify the degree of a linear relationship between VDI scores and acoustic and phonatory respiratory voice measures in students with and without self-perceived voice disorders.

Risk Factors for Voice Disorders in Undergraduate Speech Language Pathology Students.

Objectives: The aim of this research study is to determine the risk factors for voice disorders in SLP students in order to help us develop specific goals for a vocal hygiene education program specifically for SLP students.

Methods: An online questionnaire was completed by 121 undergraduate SLP students. Participants were divided into two groups, students with no self-perceived voice disorders (NVD group) and students with self-perceived voice disorders (VD group).

Predictive Risk Factors and Occupational Impact of Self-Perceived Voice Problems in Preschool-Kindergarten versus First- to Sixth-Grade Teachers.

Aim: The aim of this investigation was to complete a further analysis of existing data to compare risk factors of voice problems as well as create a hierarchical ranking of risk factors in preschool-kindergarten and 1st- to 6th-grade teachers in order to develop a voice hygiene program and prioritize its goals for each group of teachers.

Methods: An online survey was completed by 148 preschool-kindergarten and 301 1st- to 6th-grade public school teachers. Participants were divided into four groups, preschool-kindergarten and 1st- to 6th-grade teachers with no self-perceived voice disorders and preschool-kindergarten and 1st- to 6th-grade teachers with self-perceived voice disorders.

Prevalence of thyroid carcinoma in nodules with thy 3 cytology: the role of preoperative ultrasonography and strain elastography.

Background: Fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology, the gold standard in assessing thyroid nodules, is limited by its inability to determine the true risk of malignancy in Thy 3 nodules. Most patients with Thy3 cytology undergo surgery to establish a histologic diagnosis. The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of malignancy in Thy3 nodules, to examine the ultrasound (US) characteristics that are associated with a high cancer risk and to assess the role of real-time strain elastography.

Urban Emotion Sensing Beyond 'Affective Capture': Advancing Critical Interdisciplinary Methods.

The use of mobile sensor methodologies in urban analytics to study 'urban emotions' is currently outpacing the science required to rigorously interpret the data generated. Interdisciplinary research on 'urban stress' could help inform urban wellbeing policies relating to healthier commuting and alleviation of work stress. The purpose of this paper is to address-through methodological experimentation-ethical, political and conceptual issues identified by critical social scientists with regards to emotion tracking, wearables and data analytics.

An Interdisciplinary Mixed-Methods Approach to Analyzing Urban Spaces: The Case of Urban Walkability and Bikeability.

Human-centered approaches are of particular importance when analyzing urban spaces in technology-driven fields, because understanding how people perceive and react to their environments depends on several dynamic and static factors, such as traffic volume, noise, safety, urban configuration, and greenness. Analyzing and interpreting emotions against the background of environmental information can provide insights into the spatial and temporal properties of urban spaces and their influence on citizens, such as urban walkability and bikeability. In this study, we present a comprehensive mixed-methods approach to geospatial analysis that utilizes wearable sensor technology for emotion detection and combines information from sources that correct or complement each other.

Risk factors for voice disorders in public school teachers in Cyprus.

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate risk factors for self-perceived voice disorders in teachers in Cyprus in order to determine the necessity for a preventative vocal hygiene education program which could improve their work performance.

Methods: An online questionnaire was completed by 449 teachers. The questionnaire extracted data regarding risk factors that may contribute to the development of voice disorders, occupational consequences of voice disorders and vocal hygiene education, as well as, a self-perceived severity of a participant's voice problem.

Acid Ceramidase Depletion Impairs Neuronal Survival and Induces Morphological Defects in Neurites Associated with Altered Gene Transcription and Sphingolipid Content.

The gene encodes acid ceramidase (AC), an enzyme that is implicated in the metabolism of ceramide (Cer). Mutations in the gene cause two different disorders, Farber disease (FD), a rare lysosomal storage disorder, and a rare form of spinal muscular atrophy combined with progressive myoclonic epilepsy (SMA-PME). In the absence of human in vitro neuronal disease models and to gain mechanistic insights into pathological effects of deficiency, we established and characterized a stable knockdown () SH-SY5Y cell line.

Wearables and the Quantified Self: Systematic Benchmarking of Physiological Sensors.

Wearable sensors are increasingly used in research, as well as for personal and private purposes. A variety of scientific studies are based on physiological measurements from such rather low-cost wearables. That said, how accurate are such measurements compared to measurements from well-calibrated, high-quality laboratory equipment used in psychological and medical research? The answer to this question, undoubtedly impacts the reliability of a study's results.

Detecting Moments of Stress from Measurements of Wearable Physiological Sensors.

There is a rich repertoire of methods for stress detection using various physiological signals and algorithms. However, there is still a gap in research efforts moving from laboratory studies to real-world settings. A small number of research has verified when a physiological response is a reaction to an extrinsic stimulus of the participant's environment in real-world settings.

Annonacin promotes selective cancer cell death via NKA-dependent and SERCA-dependent pathways.

In the healthcare sector, phytocompounds are known to be beneficial by contributing or alleviating a variety of diseases. Studies have demonstrated the progressive effects of phytocompounds on immune-related diseases and to exhibit anticancer effects. Graviola tree is an evergreen tree with its extracts (leafs and seeds) been reported having anticancer properties, but the precise target of action is not clear.

Risk Factors for Voice Disorders in University Professors in Cyprus.

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate risk factors for voice pathologies in university professors to determine the need for a preventative vocal hygiene education program that could improve the quality of life of university faculty.

Methods: An online questionnaire was completed by 196 professors from 12 universities in Cyprus. The questionnaire elicited data regarding risk factors that may lead to voice disorders on parameters including general health, voice use, lifestyle, and environment and the self-perceived severity of a subject's voice problem.

Identification of exosomal muscle-specific miRNAs in serum of myotonic dystrophy patients relating to muscle disease progress.

Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is the most common form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy, which is characterised by progressive muscle wasting and the discovery of reliable blood-based biomarkers could be useful for the disease progress monitoring. There have been some reports showing that the presence of specific miRNAs in blood correlates with DM1. In one of these, our group identified four muscle-specific miRNAs, miR-1, miR-133a, miR-133b and miR-206, which correlated with the progression of muscle wasting observed in DM1 patients.

Copolymerization of Norbornene and Norbornadiene Using a cis-Selective Bimetallic W-Based Catalytic System.

The bimetallic cluster Na[W₂(-Cl)₃Cl₄(THF)₂]·(THF)₃ ({W₂}, {W W}, a'²e'⁴), which features a triple metal-metal bond, is a highly efficient room-temperature initiator for ring opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) of norbornene (NBE) and norbornadiene (NBD), providing high- polymers. In this work, {W₂} was used for the copolymerization of the aforementioned monomers, yielding statistical poly(norbornene)/poly(norbornadiene) PNBE/PNBD copolymers of high molecular weight and high- content. The composition of the polymer chain was estimated by C CPMAS NMR data and it was found that the ratio of PNBE/PNBD segments in the polymer chain was relative to the monomer molar ratio in the reaction mixture.

Type 2 diabetes and its correlates in a first nationwide study among Cypriot adults.

Obesity rates in Cyprus are very high and epidemiological information on type 2 diabetes mellitus is limited. The correlates of type 2 diabetes among adults remain unknown in the Cypriot population. Thus, the purpose of this study is to provide the first national estimate of the prevalence of type 2 diabetes and investigate its correlates.

Risk factors of obesity in a cohort of 1001 Cypriot adults: An epidemiological study.

Background And Aims: To measure the prevalence of overweight and obesity in adults in the Republic of Cyprus, and to evaluate and relate possible obesity risk factors of the adult Cypriot population.

Methods: This is an epidemiological cross-sectional study on a stratified random sample of 1001 (48.5% males-51.

Intraperitoneal melatonin is not neuroprotective in the G93ASOD1 transgenic mouse model of familial ALS and may exacerbate neurodegeneration.

In amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) reactive oxygen species and apoptosis are implicated in disease pathogenesis. Melatonin with its anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic properties is expected to ameliorate disease phenotype. The aim of this study was to assess possible neuroprotection of melatonin in the G93A-copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (G93ASOD1) transgenic mouse model of ALS.

Benefits of the fiber optic versus the electret microphone in voice amplification.

Background: Voice disorders that result in reduced loudness may cause difficulty in communicating, socializing and participating in occupational activities. Amplification is often recommended in order to facilitate functional communication, reduce vocal load and avoid developing maladaptive compensatory behaviours. The most common microphone used with amplification systems is the electret microphone.

Development of a lifestyle-diet quality index for primary schoolchildren and its relation to insulin resistance: the Healthy Lifestyle-Diet Index.

Objective: The aim of this work was to develop an index that evaluates the degree of adherence to existing dietary and lifestyle guidelines for primary school-aged children (Healthy Lifestyle-Diet Index (HLD-Index)) and examine its relationship with selected nutrient intake and insulin resistance (IR).

Methods: Ten components were used to develop the HLD-Index. Scores from 0 to 4 were assigned to all components.

Hb Agrinio [alpha29(B10)Le-->uPro (alpha2)] in combination with --(MED I). Results in a severe form of Hb H disease.

We report two cases of compound heterozygote patients for the --(MED I) and Hb Agrinio [alpha29(B10)Le-->uPro (alpha2)] anomalies in two unrelated Greek Cypriot families. The first patient had a serious form of Hb H disease and died at the age of 21 due to complications arising during an operation. The second patient showed a severe hematological picture and has been regularly transfused since an early age.

Expression of p27KIP1, p21WAF1 and p53 does not correlate with prognosis in node-negative invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast.

The expressions ofp27Kip1 (p27) and p21waf1 (p21) cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors and p53 were examined in a series of 170 node-negative breast carcinomas (NNBCs) to evaluate their prognostic significance. Low nuclear (p27TN) and cytoplasmic (p27TC) p27 expressions were noted in 66% and 81% of NNBCs, respectively. p21 and p53 overexpressions were detected in 56% and 26%, respectively.