Impact of obesity on iron metabolism and the effect of intravenous iron supplementation in obese patients with absolute iron deficiency.

Obesity and iron deficiency (ID) are widespread health issues, with subclinical inflammation in obesity potentially contributing to ID through unclear mechanisms. The aim of the present work was to elucidate how obesity-associated inflammation disturb iron metabolism and to investigate the effect of intravenous (IV) iron supplementation on absolute iron deficient pre-obese (BMI 25.0-29.

Echinococcosis: An Uncommon Cause of Thoracic Pain.

Echinococcosis is caused by larvae, the metacestode stage of the tapeworm , and poses a public health issue in many developing countries. It generally affects a single organ, most commonly the liver or lungs, and rarely involves multiple organs. We present the case of a 24-year-old Indian man living in Portugal, who was admitted to the Emergency Department with left-sided thoracic pain radiating to the back.

The Effects of the Nocturnal Sleep on Learning of a Complex Motor Skill in Young and Older Adults.

Background/study Context: Research on older adults has shown impairments in nocturnal sleep, impacting motor memory consolidation and learning. However, previous studies primarily focus on simple tasks, limiting generalization to complex motor activities. Moreover, no evidence exists on how sleep influences adaptability and relearning in older adults.

A review on the biological activities and the nutraceutical potential of chitooligosaccharides.

Chitooligosaccharides (CHOS) or chitosan oligosaccharides (COS) are oligomers mainly composed of d-glucosamine (GlcN) units and structured in a positively charged, basic, amino molecule obtained from the degradation of chitin/chitosan through physical, chemical, or enzymatic methods. CHOS display physicochemical properties attractive to applications from the food to the biomedical field, such as non-toxicity to humans, high water solubility, low viscosity, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. These properties also allow CHOS to exert important biological activities, for example, antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, antitumor, and hypocholesterolemic ones, besides to exhibit applications in food systems, technological, and nutraceutical potential.

Optical performance analysis of a hybrid parabolic trough collector with photovoltaic slats.

Small-sized parabolic trough collectors are a promising solution for renewable heat supply, meeting the industrial demand for thermal energy up to 250°. In this manuscript, a novel, to our knowledge, optical design hybridizing parabolic trough concentrators with photovoltaic generators is introduced, incorporating actionable photovoltaic slats in the aperture plane. This configuration allows efficient operation under diffuse irradiance and improves electricity production when direct irradiation is insufficient.