Effect of ageing and immersion in different beverages on properties of denture lining materials

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the color stability and hardness of two denture liners obtained by direct and indirect techniques, after thermal cycling and immersion in beverages that can cause staining of teeth. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Seventy disc-shaped specimens (18 x 3 mm) processed by direct (DT) and indirect techniques (IT) were made from Elite soft (n=35) and Kooliner (n=35) denture liners. For each material and technique, 10 specimens were subjected to thermal cycling (3,000 cycles) and 25 specimens were stored in water, coffee, tea, soda and red wine for 36 days. The values of color change, Shore A hardness (Elite soft) and Knoop hardness (Kooliner) were obtained. The data were subjected to ANOVA, Tukey's multiple-comparison test, and Kruskal-Wallis test (P<0.05). RESULTS: The thermal cycling promoted a decrease on hardness of Kooliner regardless of the technique used (Initial: 9.09± 1.61; Thermal cycling: 7.77± 1.47) and promoted an increase in the hardness in the DT for Elite Soft (Initial: 40.63± 1.07; Thermal cycling: 43.53± 1.03); hardness of Kooliner (DT: 8.76± 0.95; IT: 7.70± 1.62) and Elite Soft (DT: 42.75± 1.54; IT=39.30± 2.31) from the DT suffered an increase after the immersion in the beverages. The thermal cycling promoted color change only for Kooliner in the IT. Immersion in the beverages did not promote color change for Elite in both techniques. The control group of the DT of Kooliner showed a significant color change. Wine and coffee produced the greatest color change in the DT only for Elite Soft when compared to the other beverages. CONCLUSION: The three variation factors promoted alteration on hardness and color of the tested denture lining materials.

Validation of the Deardorff model for estimating energy balance components for a sugarcane crop

The quantification of the available energy in the environment is important because it determines photosynthesis, evapotranspiration and, therefore, the final yield of crops. Instruments for measuring the energy balance are costly and indirect estimation alternatives are desirable. This study assessed the Deardorff's model performance during a cycle of a sugarcane crop in Piracicaba, State of São Paulo, Brazil, in comparison to the aerodynamic method. This mechanistic model simulates the energy fluxes (sensible, latent heat and net radiation) at three levels (atmosphere, canopy and soil) using only air temperature, relative humidity and wind speed measured at a reference level above the canopy, crop leaf area index, and some pre-calibrated parameters (canopy albedo, soil emissivity, atmospheric transmissivity and hydrological characteristics of the soil). The analysis was made for different time scales, insolation conditions and seasons (spring, summer and autumn). Analyzing all data of 15 minute intervals, the model presented good performance for net radiation simulation in different insolations and seasons. The latent heat flux in the atmosphere and the sensible heat flux in the atmosphere did not present differences in comparison to data from the aerodynamic method during the autumn. The sensible heat flux in the soil was poorly simulated by the model due to the poor performance of the soil water balance method. The Deardorff's model improved in general the flux simulations in comparison to the aerodynamic method when more insolation was available in the environment.

Lateral asymmetry of voluntary attention orienting

We recently demonstrated that automatic attention favors the right side of space and, in the present study, we investigated whether voluntary attention also favors this side. Six reaction time experiments were conducted. In each experiment, 12 new 18-25-year-old male right-handed individuals were tested. In Experiments 1, 2, 3 (a, b) and 4 (a, b), tasks with increasing attentional demands were used. In Experiments 1, 2, 3a, and 4a, attention was oriented to one or both sides by means of a central spatially informative visual cue. A left or right side visual target appeared 100, 300, or 500 ms later. Attentional effects were observed in the four experiments. In Experiments 2, 3a and 4a, these effects were greater when the cue indicated the right side than when it indicated the left side (respectively: 16 ± 10 and 44 ± 6 ms, P = 0.015, for stimulus onset asynchrony of 500 ms in Experiment 2; 38 ± 10 and 70 ± 7 ms, P = 0.011, for Experiment 3a, and 23 ± 11 and 61 ± 10 ms, P = 0.009, for Experiment 4a). In Experiments 3b and 4b, the central cue pointed to both sides and was said to be non-relevant for task performance. In these experiments right and left reaction times did not differ. The most conservative interpretation of the present findings is that voluntary attention orienting favors the right side of space, particularly when a difficult task has to be performed.

Evidence for divided automatic attention

A long-standing debate in the literature is whether attention can form two or more independent spatial foci in addition to the well-known unique spatial focus. There is evidence that voluntary visual attention divides in space. The possibility that this also occurs for automatic visual attention was investigated here. Thirty-six female volunteers were tested. In each trial, a prime stimulus was presented in the left or right visual hemifield. This stimulus was characterized by the blinking of a superior, middle or inferior ring, the blinking of all these rings, or the blinking of the superior and inferior rings. A target stimulus to which the volunteer should respond with the same side hand or a target stimulus to which she should not respond was presented 100 ms later in a primed location, a location between two primed locations or a location in the contralateral hemifield. Reaction time to the positive target stimulus in a primed location was consistently shorter than reaction time in the horizontally corresponding contralateral location. This attentional effect was significantly smaller or absent when the positive target stimulus appeared in the middle location after the double prime stimulus. These results suggest that automatic visual attention can focus on two separate locations simultaneously, to some extent sparing the region in between.

Capacidade para o trabalho: revisão de literatura

O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar uma revisão de literatura sobre a capacidade para o trabalho de trabalho e envelhecimento funcional. Foi realizada uma extensa busca de publicações do período de 1966 a 2006, usando as bases de dados MEDLINE, Lilacs e SciELO. São apresentados vários aspectos relativos à capacidade para o trabalho: o contexto histórico no qual o tema emergiu, o referencial teórico, os fatores determinantes, um modelo explicativo, a metodologia atual para avaliar e monitorar a capacidade para o trabalho e a importância de sua promoção. Também é destacada a situação atual da pesquisa, prática e perspectivas futuras relativas ao tema. No contexto do envelhecimento da força de trabalho, a capacidade para o trabalho tornou-se um indicador importante em função de suas consequências para a saúde, bem-estar e empregabilidade dos trabalhadores, com impactos para os indivíduos, organizações e sociedade. As questões sobre o tema, apesar de relevantes, ainda carecem de maior atenção.

O segredo da longevidade segundo as percepções dos próprios longevos

Estudos apontam fatores que podem aumentar a longevidade; no entanto, muitas questões pertinentes a este tema ainda não foram elucidadas. Percepções do próprio longevo a respeito dos fatores contribuintes para longevidade são importantes, permitindo levantamento de cada fator e suas interações com demais variáveis que promovem a longevidade. O presente artigo relata dados da investigação sobre "o segredo da longevidade", segundo percepções dos próprios longevos, analisados pelo referencial metodológico da grounded theory. Foram entrevistados trinta ferroviários longevos do município de Botucatu (SP). A análise das falas dos longevos possibilitou determinar que a percepção dos fatores se aglutina em torno de categorias progressivamente abrangentes que culminam na representação coletiva de que a longevidade é dependente do embate entre fatores prejudiciais que aniquilam a vida e fatores saudáveis que geram e preservam a vida, sobre o qual a falta de controle social e do Estado torna pessimista a visão do futuro.

Polyelectrolyte-protein complexation driven by charge regulation

The interplay between the biocolloidal characteristics (especially size and charge), pH, salt concentration and the thermal energy results in a unique collection of mesoscopic forces of importance to the molecular organization and function in biological systems. By means of Monte Carlo simulations and semi-quantitative analysis in terms of perturbation theory, we describe a general electrostatic mechanism that gives attraction at low electrolyte concentrations. This charge regulation mechanism due to titrating amino acid residues is discussed in a purely electrostatic framework. The complexation data reported here for interaction between a polyelectrolyte chain and the proteins albumin, goat and bovine alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin, insulin, k-casein, lysozyme and pectin methylesterase illustrate the importance of the charge regulation mechanism. Special attention is given to pH congruent to pI where ion-dipole and charge regulation interactions could overcome the repulsive ion-ion interaction. By means of protein mutations, we confirm the importance of the charge regulation mechanism, and quantify when the complexation is dominated either by charge regulation or by the ion-dipole term.

Minor and Unsystematic Cortical Topographic Changes of Attention Correlates between Modalities

In this study we analyzed the topography of induced cortical oscillations in 20 healthy individuals performing simple attention tasks. We were interested in qualitatively replicating our recent findings on the localization of attention-induced beta bands during a visual task [1], and verifying whether significant topographic changes would follow the change of attention to the auditory modality. We computed corrected latency averaging of each induced frequency bands, and modeled their generators by current density reconstruction with Lp-norm minimization. We quantified topographic similarity between conditions by an analysis of correlations, whereas the inter-modality significant differences in attention correlates were illustrated in each individual case. We replicated the qualitative result of highly idiosyncratic topography of attention-related activity to individuals, manifested both in the beta bands, and previously studied slow potential distributions [2]. Visual inspection of both scalp potentials and distribution of cortical currents showed minor changes in attention-related bands with respect to modality, as compared to the theta and delta bands, known to be major contributors to the sensory-related potentials. Quantitative results agreed with visual inspection, supporting to the conclusion that attention-related activity does not change much between modalities, and whatever individual changes do occur, they are not systematic in cortical localization across subjects. We discuss our results, combined with results from other studies that present individual data, with respect to the function of cortical association areas.

Subclinical hyperthyroidism and dementia: the Sao Paulo Ageing & Health Study (SPAH)

Background: Several epidemiologic studies have shown a possible association between thyroid function and cognitive decline. Our aim was to evaluate the association of subclinical hyperthyroidism and dementia in a population sample of older people Methods: A cross-sectional study - Sao Paulo Ageing & Health Study (SPAH) - in a population sample of low-income elderly people >= 65 years-old to evaluate presence of subclinical thyroid disease as a risk factor for dementia. Thyroid function was assessed using thyrotropic hormone and free-thyroxine as well as routine use of thyroid hormones or antithyroid medications. Cases of dementia were assessed using a harmonized one-phase dementia diagnostic procedure by the ""10/66 Dementia Research Group"" including Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. Logistic regression models were used to test a possible association between subclinical hyperthyroidism and dementia. Results and discussion: Prevalence of dementia and of subclinical hyperthyroidism were respectively of 4.4% and 3.0%. After age adjustment, we found an association of subclinical hyperthyroidism and any type of dementia and vascular dementia (Odds Ratio, 4.1, 95% Confidence Interval [95% CI] 1.3-13.1, and 5.3 95% CI, 1.1-26.4; respectively). Analyzing data by gender, we found an association of subclinical hyperthyroidism with dementia and Alzheimer's disease only for men (OR, 8.0; 95% CI, 1.5-43.4; OR, 12.4; 95% CI, 1.2-128.4; respectively). No women with subclinical hypothyroidism presented Alzheimer's disease in the sample. Conclusion: The results suggest a consistent association among people with subclinical hyperthyroidism and dementia.

Balance control in hemiparetic stroke patients: Main tools for evaluation

Balance problems in hemiparetic patients after stroke can be caused by different impairments in the physiological systems involved in Postural control, including sensory afferents, movement strategies, biomechanical constraints, cognitive processing, and perception of verticality. Balance impairments and disabilities must be appropriately addressed. This article reviews the most common balance abnormalities in hemiparetic patients with stroke and the main tools used to diagnose them.

Balance functions from Au+Au, d+Au, and p+p collisions at root s(NN)=200 GeV

Balance functions have been measured for charged-particle pairs, identified charged-pion pairs, and identified charged-kaon pairs in Au + Au, d + Au, and p + p collisions at root s(NN) = 200 GeV at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider using the STAR detector. These balance functions are presented in terms of relative pseudorapidity, Delta eta, relative rapidity, Delta y, relative azimuthal angle, Delta phi, and invariant relative momentum, q(inv). For charged-particle pairs, the width of the balance function in terms of Delta eta scales smoothly with the number of participating nucleons, while HIJING and UrQMD model calculations show no dependence on centrality or system size. For charged-particle and charged-pion pairs, the balance functions widths in terms of Delta eta and Delta y are narrower in central Au + Au collisions than in peripheral collisions. The width for central collisions is consistent with thermal blast-wave models where the balancing charges are highly correlated in coordinate space at breakup. This strong correlation might be explained by either delayed hadronization or limited diffusion during the reaction. Furthermore, the narrowing trend is consistent with the lower kinetic temperatures inherent to more central collisions. In contrast, the width of the balance function for charged-kaon pairs in terms of Delta y shows little centrality dependence, which may signal a different production mechanism for kaons. The widths of the balance functions for charged pions and kaons in terms of q(inv) narrow in central collisions compared to peripheral collisions, which may be driven by the change in the kinetic temperature.

Association Between Urinary Incontinence in Elderly Patients and Caregiver Burden in the City of Sao Paulo/Brazil: Health, Wellbeing, and Ageing Study

Aim: Some elderly patients with incontinence require the care of third parties, known as caregivers. Such care can occur on a daily basis leaving little opportunity for the caregiver to take care of himself/herself. The aims are to assess the association between urinary incontinence in elderly patients and caregiver burden and identify independent factors for caregiver`s burden in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Methods: The Pan-American Health Organization and World Health Organization coordinated a multicenter study named Health, Wellbeing and Aging (SABE Study) in elderly people living in seven countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. In Brazil, the study population carried out in Sao Paulo in the year 2000 and reassessed in 2006 (COHORT A). Urinary incontinence was assessed by ICIQ-SF and caregiver burden by means of Zarit Burden Scale. Results: A total of 327 patients with caregivers were included in the study. The general prevalence of urinary incontinence was 25.8%, higher among the women. There was a significant positive association between caregiver burden and incontinent patients, demonstrating that urinary incontinence in elderly patients produced greater caregiver burden. In the present study, the variables with significant correlations were assessed using the multivariate logistic regression model. Category 2 of the ICIQ-SF (incontinent patients) increased the chances of caregiver burden 1.96-fold in comparison to Category 1 (continent patients). Likewise, the category of impaired cognition increased the chances of caregiver burden 2.34-fold. Conclusions: Urinary incontinence and cognitive impairment in elderly patients were associated to an increase in caregiver burden. Neurourol. Urodynam. 30:1281-1285, 2011. (C) 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Angiotensin receptor blockade improves the net balance of cardiac Ca(2+) handling-related proteins in sympathetic hyperactivity-induced heart failure

Aims: The clinical benefits of angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor blockers (ARB) in heart failure (HF) include cardiac anti-remodeling and improved ventricular function. However, the cellular mechanisms underlying the benefits of ARB on ventricular function need to be better clarified. In the present manuscript, we evaluated the effects of AT1 receptor blockade on the net balance of Ca(2+) handling proteins in hearts of mice lacking alpha(2A) and alpha(2C) adrenoceptors (alpha(2A)/alpha(2C)ARKO), which develop sympathetic hyperactivity (SH) induced-HF. Main methods: A cohort of male wild-type (WT) and congenic alpha(2A)/alpha(2C)ARKO mice in a C57BL6/J genetic background (5-7 mo of age) was randomly assigned to receive either placebo or ARB (Losartan, 10 mg/kg for 8wks). Ventricular function (VF) was assessed by echocardiography, and cardiac myocyte width and ventricular fibrosis by a computer-assisted morphometric system. Sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+) ATPase (SERCA2), phospholamban (PLN), phospho-Ser(16)-PLN, phospho-Thr(17)-PLN, phosphatase 1 (PP1), Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchanger (NCX), Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase 11 (CaMKII) and phospho-Thr(286)-CaMKII were analyzed by Western blot. Key findings: alpha(2A)/alpha(2C)ARKO mice displayed ventricular dysfunction, cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and cardiac fibrosis paralleled by decreased SERCA2 and increased phospho-Thr(17)-PLN, CaMKII, phospho-Thr(286)-CaMKII and NCX levels. ARB induced anti-cardiac remodeling effect and improved VF in alpha(2A)/alpha(2C)ARKO associated with increased SERCA2 and phospho-Ser(16)-PLN levels, and SERCA2:NCX ratio. Additionally, ARB decreased phospho-Thr(17)-PLN levels as well as reestablished NCX, CaMKII and phospho-Thr(286)-CaMKII toward WT levels. Significance: Altogether, these data provide new insights on intracellular Ca(2+) regulatory mechanisms underlying improved ventricular function by ARB therapy in HF. (c) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Leg preference and interlateral asymmetry of balance stability in soccer players

To examine the effect of long lasting practice on pedal behavior in sport, we compared experienced adult soccer players and nonsoccer players on leg preference in motor tasks requiring general mobilization, soccer related mobilization, and body balance stabilization. We also evaluated performance asymmetry between the right and left legs in static and dynamic unipedal body balance based on center of pressure displacement, and correlated that with kg preference in balance stabilization tasks. Results revealed (a) a distinct leg preference between mobilization and stabilization tasks, which were significantly different between Mayers and nonplayers, (b) similar balance stability between the right and left legs, (c) greater stability of experienced players compared with nonplayers in static and dynamic balance, and (d) absence of a significant kg preference correlation with interlateral balance asymmetry. These results suggest an effect of extensive soccer skill practice on establishing leg preference for specific mobilization tasks and overall balance control.

Effects of joint immobilization on standing balance

We investigated the effect of joint immobilization on the postural sway during quiet standing. We hypothesized that the center of pressure (COP), rambling, and trembling trajectories would be affected by joint immobilization. Ten young adults stood on a force plate during 60 s without and with immobilized joints (only knees constrained, CK; knees and hips, CH; and knees, hips, and trunk, CT). with their eyes open (OE) or closed (CE). The root mean square deviation (RMS, the standard deviation from the mean) and mean speed of COP, rambling, and trembling trajectories in the anterior-posterior and medial-lateral directions were analyzed. Similar effects of vision were observed for both directions: larger amplitudes for all variables were observed in the CE condition. In the anterior-posterior direction, postural sway increased only when the knees, hips, and trunk were immobilized. For the medial-lateral direction, the RMS and the mean speed of the COP, rambling, and trembling displacements decreased after immobilization of knees and hips and knees, hips, and trunk. These findings indicate that the single inverted pendulum model is unable to completely explain the processes involved in the control of the quiet upright stance in the anterior-posterior and medial-lateral directions. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.