Cross‑Cultural Validation of the Chronic Rhinosinusitis Patient-Reported Outcomes (CRS-PRO) Questionnaire in Portuguese.

Introduction Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) presents with different clinical patterns with variable responses to treatment. Clear criteria for specifying disease severity and assessing symptom control are lacking in the current literature. We aimed to perform a cross-cultural adaptation of the chronic rhinosinusitis patient-reported outcomes (CRS-PRO), creating a Portuguese version to use as a routine questionnaire in the evaluation of patients with CRS.

The Influence of Including Goalkeepers on the Intensity Demands of Walking Football Practice.

This preliminary study examined the effects of playing walking football with and without a goalkeeper (GK) on physiological, physical, technical, and perceptual variables in older men. Twenty participants (67 ± 4.7 years) engaged in two five vs.

Prenatal Exposure to Dibutyl Phthalate and Its Negative Health Effects on Offspring: In Vivo and Epidemiological Studies.

Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) is a low-molecular-weight phthalate commonly found in personal care products, such as perfumes, aftershaves, and nail care items, as well as in children's toys, pharmaceuticals, and food products. It is used to improve flexibility, make polymer products soft and malleable, and as solvents and stabilizers in personal care products. Pregnancy represents a critical period during which both the mother and the developing embryo can be significantly impacted by exposure to endocrine disruptors.

Specialist training in infectious diseases in Europe.

Objectives: The objectives were to determine the structure of training programmes and assessment of physicians training to become infectious disease (ID) specialists in Europe in early 2024 and to document the provision of specialists, trainees and training centres in each country.

Methods: Delegates to the ID Section and Board of the European Union of Medical Specialists entered national data on a web-based survey tool in late 2023-early 2024. Results were compared with European Union of Medical Specialists recommendations on the structure and content of postgraduate training in ID in Europe (2018), and to results of a similar survey in early 2021.

Effects of 12-Week Moderate-Intensity Versus High-Intensity Water-Aerobic Training on Physical Fitness, Cardiovascular Health, and Well-Being in Adults and Older Adults: A Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background And Aims: The current study aimed to compare the effects of 12 weeks of moderate versus high-intensity water aerobics on muscle strength, body composition, lipid profile, blood pressure, and quality of life in both adults and older adults.

Methods: Twenty-one women (65.19 ± 9.

The impact of extract on pharmacokinetics of phenytoin in rats.

Epilepsy patients are at a higher risk of developing overweight and obesity. Given the thermogenic properties of (Guarana), this study aimed to evaluate a potential pharmacokinetic interaction between extract and phenytoin in rats. Two pharmacokinetic studies were developed with and phenytoin: a coadministration and a pre-treatment study.

Exploring Adolescents' Understanding, Experiences and Beliefs About Pain: A Qualitative Study.

Background: Pain is prevalent across the lifespan and contributes to significant societal and economic burdens. The public often holds misconceptions about pain and pain management. Despite this, there are no well-resourced public health initiatives delivering information about pain and pain management to the public.

Quorum sensing inhibition evaluation method: An experiment-based microbiology laboratory course.

Bacteria have developed a cell-to-cell communication system called quorum sensing (QS), allowing them to regulate group behavior and synchronize the expression of virulence factors, responsible for increasing their infection capacity and resistance to antimicrobials. Although the control of microbial infections through the inhibition of microbial growth has traditionally been the basis of antimicrobial chemotherapy, the emergence of antimicrobial resistance has led to the search for new microbial control strategies, namely through the inhibition of QS. Among the agents studied to inhibit this bacterial communication are essential oils (EO), which are considered very effective QS inhibitors.

Continuous assessment in medical education: Exploring students' views on the progress test.

The Progress Test (PT) is a valuable tool for the continuous assessment of medical students' learning. This quantitative, cross-sectional study aimed to understand the perceptions of 908 medical students (702 from a private and 206 from a public institution) in São Paulo, Brazil, regarding the design and implementation of PT. Analysis included descriptive statistics, Spearman's correlation, Pearson's Chi-square test, and Fisher's exact test.

A New Demand for Improved Selectivity and Potency of Cyanine Dyes as Antiproliferative Agents Against Colorectal Cancer Cells.

Cancer treatment remains a significant challenge, with chemotherapy still being one of the most common therapeutic approaches. Based on our initial studies of symmetric monomethine cyanine dyes, which showed potential against colorectal cancer, this study explored several asymmetric cyanines, aiming to develop more potent and selective antitumor agents, particularly against colorectal cancer. In pursuit of this goal, we have designed, synthesized, and structurally characterized twelve new cyanine dyes.

Downregulated Regucalcin Expression Induces a Cancer-like Phenotype in Non-Neoplastic Prostate Cells and Augments the Aggressiveness of Prostate Cancer Cells: Interplay with the G Protein-Coupled Oestrogen Receptor?

Background/objectives: Regucalcin (RGN) is a calcium-binding protein and an oestrogen target gene, which has been shown to play essential roles beyond calcium homeostasis. Decreased RGN expression was identified in several cancers, including prostate cancer (PCa). However, it is unknown if the loss of RGN is a cause or a consequence of malignancy.

Immune digital twins for complex human pathologies: applications, limitations, and challenges.

Digital twins represent a key technology for precision health. Medical digital twins consist of computational models that represent the health state of individual patients over time, enabling optimal therapeutics and forecasting patient prognosis. Many health conditions involve the immune system, so it is crucial to include its key features when designing medical digital twins.

Comparative efficacy of essential oils against Cutibacterium acnes: Effect upon strains from phylotypes with different virulence patterns.

Objectives: Despite being a commensal of human skin, Cutibacterium acnes plays an important role in the pathogenesis of Acne vulgaris, with the loss of bacterial phylotype diversity being related to disease progression. This study evaluated differences in the virulence profile of C. acnes strains from different phylotypes and investigated the possible phylotype-selective efficacy of essential oils (EOs) from Thymus x citriodorus (TC), Thymus mastichina, and Cistus ladanifer compared to Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree), focusing on both planktonic and biofilm growth forms, the latter being related with pathogenesis and treatment resistance.

Mechanical Behaviour of Green Epoxy Composites Reinforced with Sheep and Dog Wool from Serra Da Estrela.

Environmental awareness has led industries and consumers to replace products derived from oil resources with products derived from natural sources. In the case of the composite materials industry, the replacement of synthetic fibres with natural fibres has increased in recent years. To study the influence that different types of natural fibres and different textile manufacturing techniques have on the mechanical properties of composites, bio-based epoxy matrix composites reinforced with different natural animal fibres were produced, some reinforced with sheep's wool and others with dog wool, which were later subjected to bending and tensile tests.

Development and Characterization of Sodium Bicarbonate-Based Gel for Cytolytic Vaginosis.

Cytolytic vaginosis or, classically, Doderlein's cytolysis is characterized by significant growth of species of the genus, which leads to high amounts of lactic acid in the vaginal environment. has been proposed as a key pathogen in this clinical condition. The symptomatology of cytolytic vaginosis is commonly confused with that of vulvovaginal candidosis, leading to inadequate and ineffective azole therapies.

Design of Experiments to Tailor the Potential of BSA-Coated Peptide Nanocomplexes for Temozolomide/p53 Gene Co-Delivery.

Gene therapy can be viewed as a promising/valuable therapeutic approach directed to cancer treatment, including glioblastoma. Concretely, the combination of gene therapy with chemotherapy could increase its therapeutic index due to a synergistic effect. In this context, bovine serum albumin (BSA)-coated temozolomide (TMZ)-peptide (WRAP5)/p53 gene-based plasmid DNA complexes were developed to promote payload co-delivery.

Kallmann Syndrome: Functional Analysis of a Missense Variant Shows Aberrant RNA Splicing.

Kallmann syndrome is a rare disorder characterized by hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and an impaired sense of smell (anosmia or hyposmia) caused by congenital defects in the development of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and olfactory neurons. Mutations in several genes have been associated with Kallmann syndrome. However, genetic testing of this disorder often reveals variants of uncertain significance (VUS) that remain uninterpreted without experimental validation.

Effect of Diosgenin in Suppressing Viability and Promoting Apoptosis of Human Prostate Cancer Cells: An Interplay with the G Protein-Coupled Oestrogen Receptor?

Diosgenin is a phytosteroid sapogenin with reported antitumoral activity. Despite the evidence indicating a lower incidence of prostate cancer (PCa) associated with a higher consumption of phytosteroids and the beneficial role of these compounds, only a few studies have investigated the effects of diosgenin in PCa, and its mechanisms of action remain to be disclosed. The present study investigated the effect of diosgenin in modulating PCa cell fate and glycolytic metabolism and explored its potential interplay with G protein-coupled oestrogen receptor (GPER).

Use of Extrinsic Motivators to Improve the Body Mass Index of Obese or Overweight Adolescents: A Systematic Review.

Background: The prevalence of overweight and obesity is increasing at an alarming rate in children and adolescents worldwide. Given the dimension of the problem, treatments of childhood obesity are recognized as of extreme importance. Current evidence indicates that behavioural and cognitive behavioural strategies combined with diet and physical activity approaches may assist in reducing adolescent obesity.

Delphi definition of general practice/family medicine specialty for a post-COVID world: in-person and remote care delivery.

Introduction: The evolving landscape of general practice (GP)/family medicine (FM) in the post-COVID-19 era, focussing on integrating telemedicine and remote consultations requires a new definition for this specialty. Hence, a broader consensus-based definition of post-COVID-19 GP/FM is warranted.

Methods: This study involved a modified electronic Delphi technique involving 27 specialists working in primary care recruited via convenient and snowball sampling.

Classification of recovery states in U15, U17, and U19 sub-elite football players: a machine learning approach.

Introduction: A promising approach to optimizing recovery in youth football has been the use of machine learning (ML) models to predict recovery states and prevent mental fatigue. This research investigates the application of ML models in classifying male young football players aged under (U)15, U17, and U19 according to their recovery state. Weekly training load data were systematically monitored across three age groups throughout the initial month of the 2019-2020 competitive season, covering 18 training sessions and 120 observation instances.