Heavy metal(loid)s and nutrients in sewage sludge in Portugal - Suitability for use in agricultural soils and assessment of potential risks.

The presence of heavy metal(loid)s in sewage sludge is a cause of concern and an obstacle to its agricultural valorisation. This study analysed the elemental composition of sewage sludge from 42 Portuguese wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) during summer and winter, investigating heavy metal(loid) contamination, nutrient content, and potential risks related to sludge application to agricultural soils. Levels of 8 heavy metal(loid)s were investigated, ranging from not detected (Hg) to 5120 mg kg dw (Zn), decreasing in the order Zn > Cu > Cr > Ni > Pb > As>Cd > Hg.

Validation of the Portuguese version of the Movement Disorder Society non-motor rating scale (MDS-NMS) in Parkinson's disease.

Background: The Movement Disorder Society Non-Motor Rating Scale (MDS-NMS) serves as a comprehensive clinical assessment tool for non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD) OBJECTIVES: This study aims to validate the Portuguese version of the MDS-NMS, addressing the critical need for culturally adapted rating scales in Portuguese-speaking populations.

Methods: This multicenter, cross-sectional study engaged native Portuguese-speaking PD patients from 16 Movement Disorders Centers across Portugal and Brazil. We conducted a meticulous translation process into Portuguese, including forward-backward translation and cognitive pretesting.

Nationwide study on multimorbidity prevalence: 7.64 million primary healthcare users in Portugal with multiple chronic conditions.

Objectives: The goal of this study was to explore the prevalence of multimorbidity, its geographic variation, and changes from 2022 to 2024 in Portugal.

Study Design: Information regarding the chronic health conditions active in the primary healthcare patients' health problems lists on the electronic health records are derived from the digital platform Identity Card of Primary Healthcare (Bilhete de Identidade dos Cuidados de Saúde Primários, BI CSP) data for the period of 2022 and 2024.

Methods: BI CSP nationwide data from May 2024 of the 10,366,861 registered users in Portuguese primary healthcare were used to determine the prevalence of multimorbidity (presence of 2 or more chronic health conditions) and analize differences to 2022.

Wavefront sensing: A breakthrough for objective evaluation of dynamic accommodation in accommodative dysfunctions.

The purpose of this study was to use wavefront sensing as an objective method to detect and assess dynamic accommodation in subjects with accommodative dysfunctions and symptoms related to near-vision tasks. Sixty-three subjects were divided into control (N = 18), symptomatic without any accommodative dysfunction (SWD) (N = 18), infacility of accommodation (INFA) (N = 6), excess of accommodation (EA) (N = 9), and insufficiency of accommodation (INSA) (N = 12) groups. Accommodation was stimulated in different cycles of accommodation and disaccommodation while ocular aberrations were measured.

Metformin reverses infertility in a mouse model of endometriosis: unveiling disease pathways and implications for future clinical approaches.

Research Question: Does metformin reverse endometriosis-associated infertility?

Design: Endometriosis was induced by transplanting uterus fragments from B6CBAF1 mice into recipients of the same strain. The mice were divided into groups: endometriosis (End, n = 24), sham-operated (Sham, n = 12), endometriosis with metformin (0.5mg/ml) orally administered for 3 months (EndMet, n = 21) and sham-operated metformin-treated (ShamMet, n = 16).

A single gene orchestrates androgen variation underlying male mating morphs in ruffs.

Androgens are pleiotropic and play pivotal roles in the formation and variation of sexual phenotypes. We show that differences in circulating androgens between the three male mating morphs in ruff sandpipers are linked to 17-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2 (HSD17B2), encoded by a gene within the supergene that determines the morphs. Low-testosterone males had higher expression in blood than high-testosterone males, as well as in brain areas related to social behaviors and testosterone production.

Expert navigators deploy rational complexity-based decision precaching for large-scale real-world planning.

Efficient planning is a distinctive hallmark of intelligence in humans, who routinely make rapid inferences over complex world contexts. However, studies investigating how humans accomplish this tend to focus on naive participants engaged in simplistic tasks with small state spaces, which do not reflect the intricacy, ecological validity, and human specialization in real-world planning. In this study, we examine the street-by-street route planning of London taxi drivers navigating across more than 26,000 streets in London (United Kingdom).

Survey of legislative frameworks and national recommendations governing paediatric maintenance haemodialysis in Europe.

Background: The application of international recommendations for paediatric maintenance haemodialysis (HD) could be strengthened by national laws or written recommendations. Our aim was therefore to describe the national rules governing paediatric maintenance HD in European countries.

Methods: A national representative, approved by the president of each paediatric nephrology society, was contacted in all 42 European countries to complete two online questionnaires.

Hydrogen-Bonding-Driven Design of Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Ferroelastics with Reversible Photoisomerization.

The development of photoresponsive ferroelastics, which couple light-induced macroscopic mechanical and microscopic domain properties, represents a frontier in materials science with profound implications for advanced functional applications. In this study, we report the rational design and synthesis of two new organic-inorganic hybrid ferroelastic crystals, (MA)(MeN)[Fe(CN)(NO)] (MA = methylammonium) () and (MA)(MeNOH)[Fe(CN)(NO)] (), using a dual-organic molecular design strategy that exploits hydrogen-bonding interactions for tailoring ferroelastic properties. Specifically, exhibits a two-step phase transition at 138 and 242 K, while the introduction of a hydroxyl group in stabilizes its ferroelastic phase to a significantly higher temperature, achieving a phase transition at 328 K, 86 K above that of .

Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) Classes in MASK-air Users.

Background And Objectives: The Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) guidelines classify rhinitis as "intermittent" or "persistent" and "mild" or "moderate-severe". To assess ARIA classes in a real-world study in terms of phenotypic differences and their association with asthma.

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional real-world study based on users of the MASK-air® app who reported data for at least 3 different months.

Exercise-Driven Comprehensive Recovery: Pulmonary Rehabilitation's Impact on Lung Function, Mechanics, and Immune Response in Post-COVID-19 Patients.

We sought to evaluate the effects of a 12-week pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) program on lung function, mechanics, as well as pulmonary and systemic inflammation in a cohort of 33 individuals with moderate to severe post-COVID-19. : The pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) program employed a combination of aerobic and resistance exercises. Thirty minutes of treadmill training at 75% of the maximum heart rate, combined with 30 min resistance training consisting of 75% of one maximum repetition, three times a week throughout 12 weeks.

Why Is the Association Between Mediterranean Diet and Physical Performance in Athletes Inconclusive? Implications for Future Studies.

: Athletes increasingly turn to nutrition and supplements to enhance performance, yet the evidence surrounding the efficacy of the Mediterranean diet (MD) remains inconclusive. This scoping review aims to evaluate identify gaps in the existing literature and provide implications for future research on the MD's potential to improve athletic performance across various demographics, sport types, and performance measures. : We conducted a systematic search of peer-reviewed studies published across four databases (PubMed, Scopus, Scielo, and Google Scholar) using the following terms and their combinations: "mediterranean diet", "performance", "athlete", "sport".

Therapeutic Physical Exercise for Dysmenorrhea: A Scoping Review.

Dysmenorrhea affects many women of reproductive age. Physical exercise has been used as an effective intervention for pain reduction and to improve well-being. Physiotherapy, involving movement and exercise, can be effective in relieving menstrual pain and provide additional benefits.

Pharmacist-Mediated Deprescribing in Long-Term Care Facilities: A Systematic Review.

Multimorbidity and polypharmacy are prevalent among Long-Term Care (LTC) users. Older people, who most use LTC services, are more prone to drug-related problems, which polypharmacy aggravates. Deprescribing is a key intervention to address polypharmacy and inappropriate medication.

Visual Noise Mask for Human Point-Light Displays: A Coding-Free Approach.

Human point-light displays consist of luminous dots representing human articulations, thus depicting actions without pictorial information. These stimuli are widely used in action recognition experiments. Because humans excel in decoding human motion, point-light displays (PLDs) are often masked with additional moving dots (noise masks), thereby challenging stimulus recognition.

Understanding the Role of Irisin in Longevity and Aging: A Narrative Review.

Irisin is a protein resulting from a proteolytic cleavage of fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FND5). The ability of irisin to modulate adipocyte and control glucose metabolism in human metabolic diseases gave rise to the hypothesis that irisin could have a pivotal role in aging-related diseases. Although in animal models, increased levels of irisin have been positively associated with better health outcomes, in humans, its role remains controversial.

Billion-Scale Expansion of Functional hiPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes in Bioreactors Through Oxygen Control and Continuous Wnt Activation.

Generation of upscaled quantities of human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CM), for therapeutic or testing applications, is both expensive and time-consuming. Herein, a scalable bioprocess for hiPSC-CM expansion in stirred-tank bioreactors (STB) is developed. By combining the continuous activation of the Wnt pathway, through perfusion of CHIR99021, within a mild hypoxia environment, the expansion of hiPSC-CM as aggregates is maximized, reaching 4 billion of pure hiPSC-CM in 2L STB.

Flexibility between immersion and distancing: Relationship with depressive symptoms and therapeutic alliance.

Objectives: High levels of change are linked to the flexibility between immersion and distancing, as well as to higher levels of therapeutic alliance. This study aims to explore the evolution of flexibility between immersion and distancing throughout the entire therapeutic process and its relationship with therapeutic alliance and depressive symptoms in a clinical case.

Method: We analyzed five sessions of a good outcome case of depression undergoing cognitive-behavioral therapy.

Anterior chamber morphological and refractive outcomes following phacoemulsification in pseudoexfoliative eyes: A case-control study.

Purpose: To compare changes in angle morphology, anterior chamber depth (ACD) and refractive prediction error (PE) after phacoemulsification between pseudoexfoliative (PEX) and non-PEX eyes.

Methods: Prospective case-control study of eyes submitted to cataract surgery. Biometric data and angle parameters - Anterior Chamber Angle (ACA), Angle Opening Distance (AOD), Scleral Spur Angles (SSA) and Trabecular Iris Space Area (TISA) - were measured preoperatively and 1-month postoperatively through swept-source anterior segment optical coherence tomography.

Upper arm movements in the last days of life: A new possible sign of impending death.

One of the most crucial stages of palliative care is the last days and hours of life, which require special attention and knowledgeable identification of clinical signs described as signs of impending death (SID). Our case series of 11 patients receiving home palliative care describes bilateral hypoactive, stereotyped upper arm movements (scratching of the head, forehead, and nose) that were previously unknown or described, often accompanied by SID.

Development and validation of a UV-Vis spectrophotometric method for estimation of total content of chalcone.

In this study, a straightforward spectrophotometric method was developed for quantifying the total content of chalcones in a sample. The method exhibits linearity, accuracy, precision, repeatability, and enables the estimation of total chalcone content in trans-chalcone equivalents for a sample diluted in carbon tetrachloride and added to antimony pentachloride. The analytical wavelength was determined to be 390 nm.

Development of a Novel Clinical Classification for Radiation-induced Cystitis: The Portuguese Navy Radiation-induced Cystitis (PNRC) Scale.

Background And Objective: Radiation-induced cystitis (RIC) is an important consequence of pelvic radiotherapy that can cause high morbidity and, in extreme cases, mortality. The lack of a widely accepted classification system makes it difficult to compare treatment regimens. Our aim was to develop a new classification system covering the RIC spectrum to improve treatment comparisons and accurate incidence estimates for systematic use in clinical and research settings.