Low-Protein Diets, Malnutrition, and Bone Metabolism in Chronic Kidney Disease.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has a high prevalence worldwide, with increasing incidence in low- and middle-income countries, and is associated with high morbidity and mortality, particularly from cardiovascular disease. Protein-restricted diets are one of the most widely used non-pharmacological approaches to slow the progression of CKD and prevent associated metabolic abnormalities. However, some concerns have been raised about the long-term safety of these diets, particularly with regard to patients' nutritional status and bone and mineral disorders.

Detection of NT-proBNP Using Optical Fiber Back-Reflection Plasmonic Biosensors.

Heart failure (HF) is a clinical entity included in cardiovascular diseases affecting millions of people worldwide, being a leading cause of hospitalization of older adults, and therefore imposing a substantial economic burden on healthcare systems. HF is characterized by dyspnea, fatigue, and edema associated with elevated blood levels of natriuretic peptides, such as N Terminal pro-B-type Natriuretic Peptide (NT-proBNP), for which there is a high demand for point of care testing (POCT) devices. Optical fiber (OF) biosensors offer a promising solution, capable of real-time detection, quantification, and monitoring of NT-proBNP concentrations in serum, saliva, or urine.

Validation of the Bipolar Recovery Questionnaire for the Portuguese Population: Recovery and Predictors in People with Bipolar Disorder.

Introduction: The paradigm in mental health care is progressively moving towards a recovery-focused perspective. Thus, there is a need for validated instruments to measure recovery in bipolar disorder (BD). The Bipolar Recovery Questionnaire (BRQ) is the most used instrument to assess it.

Prevention of risky sexual behavior in primary healthcare: a best practice implementation project.

Introduction And Objectives: Sexually transmitted infections are a public health problem affecting 45% of adolescents and young adults worldwide. The evidence suggests that primary care settings are uniquely positioned to provide an opportunity for these preventive interventions. The aim of this project is to improve nurses' interventions for preventing risky sexual behaviors in adolescents attending nursing consultations in a primary healthcare unit.

Determinants of psychotherapists' attitudes to online psychotherapy.

Introduction: Online psychotherapy is a form of work that is becoming more and more popular. Public health problems, such as COVID-19, forced mental health professionals and patients to incorporate new methodologies such as the use of electronic media and internet to provide follow-up, treatment and also supervision. The aim of this study was to investigate which factors shape the therapists' attitudes toward online psychotherapy during a pandemic taking into account: (1) attitudes toward the COVID-19 pandemic (fear of contagion, pandemic fatigue, etc.

Corrigendum: Colloidal nanomaterials for water quality improvement and monitoring.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2022.

Autochthonous endophytic bacteria from Musa sp. controls Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense under in vitro conditions.

Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (foc) is one of the main diseases affecting banana crops.

Colloidal nanomaterials for water quality improvement and monitoring.

Water is the most important resource for all kind forms of live. It is a vital resource distributed unequally across different regions of the globe, with populations already living with water scarcity, a situation that is spreading due to the impact of climate change. The reversal of this tendency and the mitigation of its disastrous consequences is a global challenge posed to Humanity, with the scientific community assuming a major obligation for providing solutions based on scientific knowledge.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on MS-Based Proteomics Applied to Human Peripheral Fluids to Assess Potential Biomarkers of Bipolar Disorder.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a clinically heterogeneous condition, presenting a complex underlying etiopathogenesis that is not sufficiently characterized. Without molecular biomarkers being used in the clinical environment, several large screen proteomics studies have been conducted to provide valuable molecular information. Mass spectrometry (MS)-based techniques can be a powerful tool for the identification of disease biomarkers, improving prediction and diagnosis ability.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Mass Spectrometry Proteomics Applied to Human Peripheral Fluids to Assess Potential Biomarkers of Schizophrenia.

Mass spectrometry (MS)-based techniques can be a powerful tool to identify neuropsychiatric disorder biomarkers, improving prediction and diagnosis ability. Here, we evaluate the efficacy of MS proteomics applied to human peripheral fluids of schizophrenia (SCZ) patients to identify disease biomarkers and relevant networks of biological pathways. Following PRISMA guidelines, a search was performed for studies that used MS proteomics approaches to identify proteomic differences between SCZ patients and healthy control groups (PROSPERO database: CRD42021274183).

Physical exercise positively modulates nonalcoholic steatohepatitis-related hepatic endoplasmic reticulum stress.

Obesity is a predictive factor for the development of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Although some of the mechanisms associated with NASH development are still elusive, its pathogenesis relies on a complex broad spectrum of (interconnected) metabolic-based disorders. We analyzed the effects of voluntary physical activity (VPA) and endurance training (ET), as preventive and therapeutic nonpharmacological strategies, respectively, against hepatic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, ER-related proapoptotic signaling, and oxidative stress in an animal model of high-fat diet (HFD)-induced NASH.

Prediction scenarios of past, present, and future environmental suitability for the Mediterranean species Arbutus unedo L.

Climate change is a challenge for forests in the coming decades, with a major impact on species adaptation and distribution. The Mediterranean Basin is one of the most vulnerable hotspots for biodiversity conservation under climate change in the world. This research aimed at studying a Mediterranean species well adapted to the region: the Arbutus unedo L.

Direct tissue-sensing reprograms TLR4 Tfh-like cells inflammatory profile in the joints of rheumatoid arthritis patients.

CD4 T cells mediate rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pathogenesis through both antibody-dependent and independent mechanisms. It remains unclear how synovial microenvironment impinges on CD4 T cells pathogenic functions. Here, we identified a TLR4 follicular helper T (Tfh) cell-like population present in the blood and expanded in synovial fluid.

Slower access to visual awareness but otherwise intact implicit perception of emotional faces in schizophrenia-spectrum disorders.

Schizophrenia-spectrum disorders are characterized by deficits in social domains. Extant research has reported an impaired ability to perceive emotional faces in schizophrenia. Yet, it is unclear if these deficits occur already in the access to visual awareness.

Histological scores and tumor size on stage II in adrenocortical carcinomas.

Adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC) are aggressive tumors with a poor prognosis. Histological scores are advised for the diagnosis, however, there are borderline cases that may be misjudged as adrenocortical adenomas (ACA). The three main scores used are: Weiss Modified System (WMS), Reticulin Algorithm (RA), and Helsinki Score (HS).

Gut Microbiota, in the Halfway between Nutrition and Lung Function.

The gut microbiota is often mentioned as a "forgotten organ" or "metabolic organ", given its profound impact on host physiology, metabolism, immune function and nutrition. A healthy diet is undoubtedly a major contributor for promoting a "good" microbial community that turns out to be crucial for a fine-tuned symbiotic relationship with the host. Both microbial-derived components and produced metabolites elicit the activation of downstream cascades capable to modulate both local and systemic immune responses.

Maternal high-fat high-sucrose diet and gestational exercise modulate hepatic fat accumulation and liver mitochondrial respiratory capacity in mothers and male offspring.

Background: Maternal high-caloric nutrition and related gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are associated with a high-risk for developing metabolic complications later in life and in their offspring. In contrast, exercise is recognized as a non-pharmacological strategy against metabolic dysfunctions associated to lifestyle disorders. Therefore, we investigated whether gestational exercise delays the development of metabolic alterations in GDM mothers later in life, but also protects 6-week-old male offspring from adverse effects of maternal diet.

Alkaline phosphatase dual-binding sites for collagen dictate cell migration and microvessel assembly in vitro.

Interactions between cell types, growth factors, and extracellular matrix components involved in angiogenesis are crucial for new vessel formation leading to tissue regeneration. This study investigated whether cocultures of fibroblasts and endothelial cells (ECs; from macro- or microvasculature) play a role in the formation of microvessel-like structures by ECs, as well as modulate fibroblast differentiation and growth factors production (vascular endothelial cell growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, active transforming growth factor-β1, and interleukin-8), which are important for vessel sprouting and maturation. Data obtained revealed that in vitro coculture systems of fibroblasts and human ECs stimulate collagen synthesis and growth factors production by fibroblasts that ultimately affect the formation and distribution of microvessel-like structures in cell cultures.

Functional Diversity of Riparian Woody Vegetation Is Less Affected by River Regulation in the Mediterranean Than Boreal Region.

River regulation may filter out riparian plants often resulting in reduced functional diversity, i.e., in the range of functions that organisms have in communities and ecosystems.

Metabolically Healthy Obesity-Heterogeneity in Definitions and Unconventional Factors.

The concept of heterogeneity among obese individuals in their risk for developing metabolic dysfunction and associated complications has been recognized for decades. At the origin of the heterogeneity idea is the acknowledgement that individuals with central obesity are more prone to developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease than those with peripheral obesity. There have been attempts to categorize subjects according to their metabolic health and degree of obesity giving rise to different obese and non-obese phenotypes that include metabolically unhealthy normal-weight (MUHNW), metabolically healthy obese (MHO), and metabolically unhealthy obese (MUO).

Physical exercise mitigates behavioral impairments in a rat model of sporadic Alzheimer's disease.

Physical exercise has proven to be beneficial to mitigate several deleterious effects associated with neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Here, we investigated the role of long-term exercise as a preventive and therapeutic tool against AD cognitive and behavioral impairments using a sporadic AD-like rat model, established through the administration of streptozotocin (STZ) inside both cerebral ventricles (icv). Six-weeks-old Wistar male rats (56) were divided into groups (either saline or STZ): sedentary (Sed), voluntary physical activity (VPA), VPA + endurance treadmill training (VPA + ET) and VPA + ET only after the injection (VPA + ET-post).

Are shame and self-criticism the path to the pervasive effect of social stress reactivity on social functioning in psychosis?

It is widely known that stress reactivity and social functioning impairment are important difficulties in people with psychosis. However, the specific impact of stress reactivity on social functioning and its underlying mechanisms are still less explored. Social rank variables, such as shame and self-criticism, have been pointed out as relevant in the development, maintenance of several types of psychosocial suffering and, specifically, in psychotic disorders.

Differential Modulation of Cancellous and Cortical Distal Femur by Fructose and Natural Mineral-Rich Water Consumption in Ovariectomized Female Sprague Dawley Rats.

Bone mineral density (BMD) and microstructure depend on estrogens and diet. We assessed the impact of natural mineral-rich water ingestion on distal femur of fructose-fed estrogen-deficient female Sprague Dawley rats. Ovariectomized rats drank tap or mineral-rich waters, with or without 10%-fructose, for 10 weeks.