The Use of Anodic Oxides in Practical and Sustainable Devices for Energy Conversion and Storage

This review addresses the main contributions of anodic oxide films synthesized and designed to overcome the current limitations of practical applications in energy conversion and storage devices. We present some strategies adopted to improve the efficiency, stability, and overall performance of these sustainable technologies operating via photo, photoelectrochemical, and electrochemical processes. The facile and scalable synthesis with strict control of the properties combined with the low-cost, high surface area, chemical stability, and unidirectional orientation of these nanostructures make the anodized oxides attractive for these applications. Assuming different functionalities, TiO₂-NT is the widely explored anodic oxide in dye-sensitized solar cells, PEC water-splitting systems, fuel cells, supercapacitors, and batteries. However, other nanostructured anodic films based on WO₃, Cu_xO, ZnO, NiO, SnO, Fe₂O₃, ZrO₂, Nb₂O₅, and Ta₂O₅ are also explored and act as the respective active layers in several devices. The use of AAO as a structural material to guide the synthesis is also reported. Although in the development stage, the proof-of-concept of these devices demonstrates the feasibility of using the anodic oxide as a component and opens up new perspectives for the industrial and commercial utilization of these technologies.     

Sexual behaviour and infection rates for HIV, blood-borne and sexually transmitted infections among patients attending drug treatment centres in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

A survey was carried out in 2 drug use treatment centres (TCs) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to assess risk behaviours, HIV infection and other sexually transmitted infections/blood-borne infections (STIs/BBIs). Two hundred and twenty-five drug users (195 males and 30 females) were interviewed and clinically examined, and their blood and urine were tested for STIs/BBIs. Prevalences (%) for these infections were as follows--HIV: 0.9, hepatitis B virus (HBV): 14.7, hepatitis C virus (HCV): 5.8, syphilis: 5.3, gonorrhoea/chlamydia (CT/NG): 4.7. In bivariate analyses CT/NG infection was associated with younger age (P=0.003); current genitourinary symptoms (odds ratio [OR]=6.2) and a mainly illegal source of income (OR=9.1). Hepatitis C infection was associated with a history of ever having injected any drug (OR=19.6), and with each one of the injected drugs. After multiple logistic regression, lower educational level (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=3.70) and 'ever having injected drugs' (AOR=3.69) remained as independent risk factors for hepatitis B infection. In conclusion, TCs must implement programmes directed towards the prevention of STIs/BBIs.     

Long-term survival in pulmonary arterial hypertension and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension: Insights from a referral center in Portugal

Objectives

This study aims to assess the long-term survival of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) patients followed in a Portuguese pulmonary hypertension (PH) referral center.

Randomized clinical trial of class II restoration in permanent teeth comparing ART with composite resin after 12 months

Clinical Oral Investigations - This study evaluated the effectiveness of class II restorations, in permanent teeth, through the ART technique in comparison to composite resin. Participants (154),...     

Murine CD27(?) Vγ6(+) γδ T cells producing IL-17A promote ovarian cancer growth via mobilization of protumor small peritoneal macrophages

Cancer-associated inflammation mobilizes a variety of leukocyte populations that can inhibit or enhance tumor cell growth in situ. These subsets include γδ T cells, which can infiltrate tumors and typically provide large amounts of antitumor cytokines, such as IFN-γ. By contrast, we report here that in a well-established transplantable (ID8 cell line) model of peritoneal/ovarian cancer, γδ T cells promote tumor cell growth. γδ T cells accumulated in the peritoneal cavity in response to tumor challenge and could be visualized within solid tumor foci. Functional characterization of tumor-associated γδ T cells revealed preferential production of interleukin-17A (IL-17), rather than IFN-γ. Consistent with this finding, both T cell receptor (TCR)δ-deficient and IL-17–deficient mice displayed reduced ID8 tumor growth compared with wild-type animals. IL-17 production by γδ T cells in the tumor environment was essentially restricted to a highly proliferative CD27⁽⁻⁾ subset that expressed Vγ6 instead of the more common Vγ1 and Vγ4 TCR chains. The preferential expansion of IL-17–secreting CD27⁽⁻⁾ Vγ6⁽⁺⁾ γδ T cells associated with the selective mobilization of unconventional small peritoneal macrophages (SPMs) that, in comparison with large peritoneal macrophages, were enriched for IL-17 receptor A, and for protumor and proangiogenic molecular mediators, which were up-regulated by IL-17. Importantly, SPMs were uniquely and directly capable of promoting ovarian cancer cell proliferation. Collectively, this work identifies an IL-17–dependent lymphoid/myeloid cross-talk involving γδ T cells and SPMs that promotes tumor cell growth and thus counteracts cancer immunosurveillance.Developing tumors are infiltrated by a variety of leukocyte subsets that can either promote or inhibit inflammation, and thus impact on cancer progression (1). Among such populations are γδ T cells, which are major players in lymphoid stress surveillance likely due to their recognition of stress-inducible molecules independently of MHC-mediated antigen presentation (2). Moreover, abundant IFN-γ secretion and cytotoxic effector functions endow γδ T cells with potent antitumor activity. This has been clearly documented in murine models of spontaneous (3), chemically induced (4), transgenic (5), and transplantable (6, 7) tumors. For example, in the widely used B16 melanoma model, γδ T cells were shown to infiltrate tumors very early and provided a critical source of IFN-γ that significantly delayed tumor growth (6, 7).Human γδ T cells also possess IFN-γ–secreting potential, which is displayed immediately at birth (8) and display cytotoxicity against tumor lines of diverse origin, including epithelial (9, 10) and hematological (11, 12) tumors. This has prompted the development of cancer clinical trials targeting γδ T cells, which have produced encouraging, albeit highly variable, degrees of therapeutic responses (13–15). There is therefore great interest in maximizing the antitumor functions of γδ T cells for cancer immunotherapy.Despite these highly promising reports, a clinical study on breast cancer tissue revealed a surprising inverse correlation between infiltrating γδ T cells and overall patient survival (16). In fact, γδ T cells represented the most significant independent prognostic factor for assessing severity of breast cancer (16). Similarly, a recent report on colorectal cancer showed a positive correlation between clinopathological parameters and the infiltration of γδ T cells specifically producing interleukin-17 (IL-17) (17). A tumor-promoting function of γδ T cells was also suggested in murine fibrosarcoma (18) and hepatocellular carcinoma (19) models, in which γδ T cells were the major cellular source of IL-17, which was required for optimal tumor growth in vivo. These data raise the interesting question as to whether distinct functional attributes of γδ T cells, for example differential cytokine production, may associate with markedly different outcomes for tumor growth.Along these lines, we have pioneered the identification of two distinct functional subsets of murine γδ T cells based on the expression levels of the CD27 coreceptor (20). We showed that robust IFN-γ production is associated with the CD27⁽⁺⁾ phenotype, whereas secretion of IL-17 is restricted to CD27⁽⁻⁾ γδ T cells. This dichotomy of hard-wired commitment to specific cytokine production is established during thymic development and maintained during the immune response to various infection agents (21, 22). Thus, the overall impact of γδ T cells in a given disease may depend on the balance between distinct proinflammatory effector cell subsets.Building on these foundations, we have here analyzed the overall and subset-specific contributions of γδ T cells to a well-established murine syngeneic model of ovarian cancer (ID8; transplantable cell line) that has a strong inflammatory component (23–25), akin to that observed in human patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer (25, 26). In this murine model, we demonstrate that γδ T cells are major sources of IL-17, and both T cell receptor (TCR)δ-deficient and IL-17–deficient mice display reduced ID8 tumor growth. Interestingly, IL-17 production by γδ T cells in the tumor environment is essentially restricted to a CD27⁽⁻⁾ subset that does not express the commonly used Vγ1 or Vγ4 TCR chains, but rather Vγ6; these Vγ6⁽⁺⁾ cells are highly biased toward IL-17 production, in contrast to their IFN-γ–producing Vγ1⁽⁺⁾ and Vγ4⁽⁺⁾ counterparts. The ID8 tumor environment gets progressively enriched in the IL-17–promoting factor IL-7, whose receptor is highly expressed on Vγ6⁽⁺⁾ cells. This associates with preferential Vγ6⁽⁺⁾ cell proliferation and accumulation of IL-17 in the tumor bed, which in turn induces the mobilization of (recently described) small peritoneal macrophages (SPMs) that are enriched in IL-17 receptor A (IL-17RA) and in protumor and proangiogenic molecular mediators. Importantly, in comparison with large peritoneal macrophages (LPMs), SPMs can strongly and directly promote ovarian cancer cell proliferation. In summary, our work identifies an IL-17–dependent γδ T-cell/SPM axis that promotes tumor cell growth and thus opposes the widely accepted antitumor (and IFN-γ mediated) function of γδ T cells.     

Cr(VI)‐induced genotoxicity and cell cycle arrest in human osteoblast cell line MG‐63

Occupational environments are major exposure routes to Cr(VI). However, Cr(VI) may also establish in bone tissues by ingestion or through Cr containing orthopaedic prostheses that, due to wear and corrosion, may release metal particles and ions potentially affecting bone tissue. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of clinically relevant concentrations of Cr(VI) in human osteoblasts, by integrating genotoxic effects, evaluated by the comet assay and cytokinesis‐blocked micronucleus assay (scoring the presence of micronucleus, nucleoplasmic bridges and nuclear division index), with the effects on cell cycle and cell viability. Human osteoblasts MG‐63 were in vitro exposed to Cr(VI) at concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 5 μm , for 24 and 48 hours. Results pointed out to a decrease of cell viability for both time exposures in a time‐ and dose‐dependent manner, which was related to cell cycle arrest and DNA damage. Chromosome abnormalities were also observed. Hence, these data suggest that cells arrested in the cell division with DNA damage may have followed cell death pathways, while some surviving ones still revealed DNA damage at chromosome level indicating abnormal cell division progression. In conclusion, Cr(VI) induced cytotoxic and genotoxic effects in human bone cells at concentrations that could be found in patients with metal‐on‐metal prostheses. In addition, the early onset of genotoxic damage induced by Cr(VI) at low concentrations after 24 hours of cell exposure alert to the relevance of periodic monitoring of patients for genotoxicity diagnosis after implantation of prostheses before clinical symptoms appear.     

Between spiritual wellbeing and spiritual distress: possible related factors in elderly patients with cancer

Objective

this article describes the assessment of the spiritual wellbeing of elderly patients with cancer submitted to chemotherapy and possible predictive factors of the spiritual distress diagnosis.

Methodology

this is a methodological study for clinical validation of a nursing diagnosis, using interviews to assist in completing the form.

Results

45 elderly patients participated in this study, Catholics, mostly female, diagnosed with breast cancer, average age of 70.3 years. The prevalence of spiritual distress was of 42%; 24.4% of the elderly patients were under anti-depressant medication. A significant association was noted between spiritual distress, anti-depressant medication and level of education; an increase (not significant) was acknowledged at the start of the treatment.

Conclusion

these results emphasize the relevance of clarifying this diagnosis and the responsibility of nurses to provide spiritual care to patients. Interventions should be planned appropriately every time a nursing diagnosis is identified as a complex answer and for which pharmacological treatment is not sufficient.