Health Literacy and Adherence to Therapy in Type 2 Diabetes: A Cross-Sectional Study in Portugal.

Background: Therapy adherence is a key factor in the control of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Optimal self-care requires skills in health literacy (HL).

Objective: This study aims to analyze the relationship between HL and adherence to therapy and to understand the possible influence of other sociodemographic and disease variables.

Phosphonium-enhanced chitosan for Cr(VI) adsorption in wastewater treatment.

Adsorption is a commonly used method for industrial wastewater treatment because of its low-cost, easy operation and high efficiency. In this work, chitosan was crosslinked and functionalized with a low-cost phosphonium salt, tetrakis(hydroxymethyl)phosphonium sulfate (THPS), to enhance its adsorption capacity for Cr(VI). The novel phosphonium-crosslinked chitosan (PCC) was characterized using elemental analysis, XRF, FTIR, NMR and SEM-EDX.

Institutional and matrix support and its relationship with primary healthcare.

Objective: To analyze whether the level of institutional and matrix support is associated with better certification of primary healthcare teams.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated two kinds of primary healthcare support - 14,489 teams received institutional support and 14,306 teams received matrix support. Logistic regression models were applied.

Immunoexpression of the COX-2, p53, and caspase-3 proteins in colorectal adenoma and non-neoplastic mucosa.

Objective: To analyze the immunoexpression of the COX-2, p53, and caspase-3 proteins in colorectal adenomas and non-neoplastic mucosa.

Methods: 72 individuals were subjected to colonoscopy, which provided 50 samples of adenomas and 45 samples of non-neoplastic colorectal mucosa. The tissue samples were obtained via the tissue microarray technique and subjected to immunohistochemical analysis using primary anti-p53, anti-COX-2, and anti-caspase-3 antibodies.

Artifact level produced by different femoral head prostheses in CT imaging: diamond coated silicon nitride as total hip replacement material.

Commercial femoral head prostheses (cobalt-chromium alloy, yttria partially stabilized zirconia (Y-PSZ) and alumina) and new silicon nitride ceramic ones (nanocrystalline diamond coated and uncoated) were compared in terms of artifact level production by computed tomography (CT). Pelvis examination by CT allows the correct diagnosis of some pathologies (e.g.

High-throughput sequencing of black pepper root transcriptome.

Background: Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) is one of the most popular spices in the world. It is used in cooking and the preservation of food and even has medicinal properties.

Unraveling new genes associated with seed development and metabolism in Bixa orellana L. by expressed sequence tag (EST) analysis.

The tropical tree Bixa orellana L. produces a range of secondary metabolites which biochemical and molecular biosynthesis basis are not well understood. In this work we have characterized a set of ESTs from a non-normalized cDNA library of B.

Isolation and purification of RNA from tissues rich in polyphenols, polysaccharides, and pigments of annatto (Bixa orellana L.).

The tropical plant Bixa orellana L. (annatto) produces an array of natural products, including the pigment bixin used in the food and cosmetics industries. In order to understand the biochemical and molecular basis of the biosynthesis of these natural products, a reliable method for isolating high yields of high-quality RNA is required.

Arabidopsis and tobacco plants ectopically expressing the soybean antiquitin-like ALDH7 gene display enhanced tolerance to drought, salinity, and oxidative stress.

Despite extensive studies in eukaryotic aldehyde dehydrogenases, functional information about the ALDH7 antiquitin-like proteins is lacking. A soybean antiquitin homologue gene, designated GmTP55, has been isolated which encodes a dehydrogenase motif-containing 55 kDa protein induced by dehydration and salt stress. GmTP55 is closely related to the stress-induced plant antiquitin-like proteins that belong to the ALDH7 family.