Efficacy of Antioxidant Supplementation to Non-Surgical Periodontal Therapy on Metabolic Control in Type 2 Diabetes Patients: A Network Meta-Analysis.

This network meta-analysis (NMA) investigated the effectiveness of antioxidants as adjuncts to non-surgical periodontal therapy (NSPT) in the glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) control of type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients with periodontitis. PubMed, Cochrane, LILACS, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, LIVIVO, and grey literature were searched. Risk of bias was assessed with the RoB v2.0 tool. A frequentist NMA assessed HbA1c improvement, through standardized mean difference under a random-effects model. Certainty of evidence was addressed through the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations) partially contextualized framework. Ten randomized controlled clinical trials were included, with 234 patients receiving alpha lipoic acid (ALA), cranberry juice, cranberry juice enriched with omega-3, fenugreek, ginger, grape seed, lycopene, melatonin, omega-3, propolis or vitamin C supplementation to NSPT, and 220 patients receiving NSPT alone or with placebo. Nine studies were meta-analyzed. HbA1c improved when NSPT was combined with propolis, ALA and melatonin supplementation (moderate-to-low certainty), compared to NSPT alone or with placebo. Risk of bias issues were found in eight studies. In conclusion, the use of propolis supplementation to NSPT probably results in HbA1c improvement in T2D patients with periodontitis (large effect with moderate certainty), while ALA and melatonin supplementation may contribute to reduce the HbA1c in T2D patients with periodontitis (large effects with low certainty).

Automontage microscopy and SEM: A combined approach for documenting ancient lice.

Human ectoparasites, including lice, have been recovered from a wide range of archaeological materials. The human head louse, Pediculus humanus capitis, has been identified from mummies and sediments for decades. Louse eggs are the body part most commonly encountered and therefore the most frequently quantified. Typically, several types of microscopy are applied for egg documentation. For studies in which quantification of infestation is a goal, counting is done with the naked eye or with the aid of handheld lenses. For determination and stage classification, stereomicroscopy is commonly used. For more detailed examination of microstructure, light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) can be employed. In most reports, researchers use two or more techniques to accomplish interrelated goals. Automontage microscopy is used to document prehistoric arthropods with good success. Herein, we report the results of a combination of SEM and automontage microscopy to document lice and eggs recovered from South American mummies. This combined approach allows for simultaneous examination of internal and external characteristics. Thirty automontage composite images of 2 adult lice and 16 eggs showed that egg internal morphologies were easily examined showing the within-egg anatomy of emergent nymphs. SEM imaging of 9 lice and 129 eggs was completed. In the case of two adults and several eggs, SEM imaging was accomplish after automontage image capture of the same specimens. This one-to-one image comparison of SEM and automontage shows that transmitted light of automontage reveals egg internal structures and details of the adult lice. SEM allows for high magnification examination of egg, nymph and adult microstructures. We conclude that automontage imaging followed by SEM results in efficient graphic documentation of rare louse specimens.

Ecofenotipos en la depresión mayor: el papel del maltrato físico en la infancia / Ecophenotypes in major depression: the role of child physical abuse

La depresión mayor puede derivarse de distintos factores de riesgo, entre los cuales se han destacado las experiencias de adversidad a lo largo de los años de desarrollo. En la presente investigación, nos preguntamos si la experiencia de maltrato físico, uno de los factores de riesgo documentados, se asocia a características clínicas diferenciales en los pacientes con depresión mayor. En el estudio, con un diseño transversal, comparamos dos grupos de pacientes que cumplían criterios diagnósticos DSM-IV para depresión mayor. El primer grupo estaba formado por 20 pacientes que refirieron maltrato físico en la infancia y el segundo, por otros 52 pacientes que no refirieron maltrato físico u otras formas de maltrato. Los resultados indican características clínicas diferenciales. En concreto, el maltrato se asocia a una mayor frecuencia de episodios depresivos previos al actual, a mayor intensidad de la sintomatología depresiva, tendencia a la autodevaluación, conducta suicida a lo largo de la vida, rasgos disfuncionales de la personalidad, funcionamiento académico/laboral más afectado, disfunciones cognitivas sutiles, paranoidismo y dificultades en la interacción social. Se discuten las posibles vías a través de las cuales la adversidad en la infancia puede ejercer su impacto en este ecofenotipo clínico, así como algunas implicaciones terapéuticas

Major depression can be derived from different risk factors, among which experiences of adversity throughout the years of development have been highlighted. In the present work, we investigated whether the experience of physical abuse, one of the documented risk factors, is associated with distinct clinical characteristics among patients with major depression. In the study, with a cross-sectional design, we compared two groups of patients with major depression according to DSM-IV. One group consisted of 20 patients who reported child physical abuse and the other consisted of 52 patients who did not report child physical abuse or other forms of child abuse. Our results showed differential clinical features. In particular, child physical abuse was associated with a higher number of previous depressive episodes, higher levels of depressive symptoms, self-deprecation, suicidal behavior throughout the life span, dysfunctional personality traits, impaired academic/work performance, subtle cognitive dysfunctions, paranoidism, and difficulties in social relationships. The pathways through which childhood adversity may have an impact on this clinical ecophenotype and some therapeutic implications are discussed

Utilidad clínica y propiedades psicométricas del inventario conductual de Cambridge / Clinical usefulness and psychometric properties of the Cambridge Behavioural Inventory

Introducción. Un área importante de la evaluación neuropsicológica son los síntomas psicológicos y conductuales. El inventario conductual de Cambridge -Cambridge Behavioural Inventory (CBI)- es una medida de autoinforme dirigida a allegados que recoge una amplia variedad de síntomas conductuales que pueden darse en el curso de las enfermedades neurológicas. El principal objetivo del estudio es comprobar la utilidad clínica de su adaptación al castellano. Sujetos y métodos. El CBI fue cumplimentado por 215 allegados de pacientes remitidos desde los servicios de neurología y psiquiatría. Se compararon los perfiles del CBI de cuatro grupos de pacientes formados sobre la base de sus principales características clínicas, datos psicométricos, pruebas de imagen y juicio clínico del profesional solicitante del estudio neuropsicológico. Resultados. La mayoría de las escalas (10 de 13) del CBI tuvo valores de consistencia interna aceptables, y las escalas de memoria y atención/orientación, correlaciones elevadas con medidas objetivas de memoria y orientación temporal. Los perfiles del CBI de los grupos de pacientes con distintas condiciones (trastorno orgánico de la memoria, trastorno funcional de la memoria, variante conductual de demencia frontotemporal y enfermedad de Alzheimer) fueron consistentes con sus principales características. Conclusiones. El CBI es un instrumento psicométricamente fiable y con adecuada validez convergente y discriminante que puede ser útil en el proceso de evaluación neuropsicológica, aportando información relevante no sólo sobre el funcionamiento cognitivo y las capacidades funcionales, sino también sobre los síntomas conductuales y psicológicos de los pacientes con trastornos cognitivos (AU)

Introduction. An important area in neuropsychological assessment is that of psychological and behavioural symptoms. The Cambridge Behavioural Inventory (CBI) is a self-report measure aimed at relatives which takes account of a wide range of behavioural symptoms that may occur during the course of neurological diseases. The main objective of the study is to test the clinical usefulness of its Spanish adaptation. Subjects and methods. The CBI was completed by 215 members of kin of patients referred from neurology and psychiatry services. The CBI profiles of four groups of patients were compared, these being grouped according to their main clinical characteristics, psychometric data, imaging tests and the clinical judgement of the professional requesting the neuropsychological study. Results. Most of the scales (10 out of 13) of the CBI yielded acceptable internal consistency values, and the memory and attention/orientation scales showed high correlations with objective measures of memory and time orientation. The CBI profiles of the groups of patients with different conditions (organic memory disorder, functional memory disorder, behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s disease) were consistent with their main features. Conclusions. The CBI is a psychometrically reliable instrument with adequate convergent and discriminant validity that can be useful in the process of neuropsychological assessment. It can provide relevant information not only about cognitive functioning and the functional capabilities, but also about the behavioural and psychological symptoms of patients with cognitive disorders (AU)

Effect of surfactants on Fenton's reagent-mediated degradation of Kraft black liquor.

One of the limitations of the biodegradation of hydrophobic chemical compounds, like lignins, is their low solubility in the aqueous solution where this process takes place. To resolve this problem, surfactants have been used to improve the solubility of these hydrophobic compounds. In this investigation, we studied the effect of surfactants (anionic, cationic, and non-ionic) on the treatment of Kraft black liquor with Fenton's reagent. In the Fenton reaction, H2O2 (two different concentrations, 10 mM and 20 mM), FeCl2 (1 mM) and surfactant solution (10%) were used. Black liquor degradation was determined by UV/Visible spectrophotometry and by measuring phenolic groups. In the presence of Fenton's reagent, the optimum conditions for the oxidative degradation of black liquor were 10 mM H2O2, 1 microL of 10% solution of anionic surfactant (SDS). The importance of the use of surfactants for preparing black liquor for subsequent Fenton's reagent-mediated degradation was discussed.

Fenton's reagent-mediated degradation of residual Kraft black liquor.

In this work, the effect of Fenton's reagent on the degradation of residual Kraft black liquor was investigated. The effect of Fenton's reagent on the black liquor degradation was dependent on the concentration of H2O2. At low concentrations (5 and 15 mM) of H2O2, Fenton's reagent caused the degradation of phenolic groups (6.8 and 44.8%, respectively), the reduction of reaction medium pH (18.2%), and the polymerization of black liquor lignin. At a high concentration (60 mM) of H2O2, Fenton's reagent induced an extensive degradation of lignin (95-100%) and discoloration of the black liquor. In the presence of traces of iron, the addition of H2O2 alone induced mainly lignin fragmentation. In conclusion, Fenton's reagent and H2O2 alone can degrade residual Kraft black liquor under acidic conditions at room temperature.