The impact of the tobacco market opening on smoking status in Taiwan: findings from a secular smoking rates analysis

The forced opening of Taiwan's tobacco market in 1987 has changed the smoking environment. This study analyzes the effects this market opening had on Taiwan's secular smoking rates over 15 years. The data sources used were consumer surveys conducted by the Taiwan Tobacco & Wine Monopoly Bureau 1964-1996, the 2001 National Health Interview Survey, and a series of annual per capita gross national product (GNP) data reported by the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting & Statistics. After Taiwan's tobacco market was forced open in 1987 by the U.S. government in trade negotiations, smoking rates rose (7%-10% for males and 39%-75% for females) for the first three years. After the initial 3-year surge, smoking rates gradually declined to 1986 baseline rates or even lower for all groups except females aged 30 and younger, who have shown a small but steady increase in cigarette consumption. Results of multiple regression analysis showed per capita GNP and age to be the two major factors affecting smoking rate change after the Taiwan market opening. National tobacco control policies and campaigns seem to have an impact on tempering the effect of foreign tobacco imports in all groups, except young females, whose rise in smoking rate is significant and alarming.     

Variability,toxicity, and antioxidant activity of Eupatorium cannabinum (hemp agrimony) essential oils

Content: Eupatorium cannabinum L. (Asteraceae) is as a potential source of biologically active compounds. The plant is used in traditional medicine for the treatment of diarrhea and livers diseases.

Objective: The present study provides investigation on pharmacological properties (antioxidant and toxic activities) of essential oils of E. cannabinum, collected from 11 wild populations in Lithuania.

Materials and methods: Twenty-two hemp agrimony essential oil samples were prepared by hydrodistillation according to the European Pharmacopoeia, and their chemical composition was determined by GC–FID and GC–MS. Compositional data were subjected to principal components analysis (PCA). Instead of conventional spectrophotometric methods, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and square wave voltammetry (SWV) techniques were applied to determine antioxidant activity of hemp agrimony essential oils. Meanwhile, toxicity of the oils was determined using brine shrimp (Artemia sp.) assay.

Results: Chemical profiles of E. cannabinum oils were described according to the first predominant components: germacrene D (≤22.0%), neryl acetate (≤20.0%), spathulenol (≤27.2%), and α-terpinene (11.5%). For the first time, α-zingiberene (≤7.8%) was found to be among three major constituents (as the second one) for hemp agrimony oils. SWV measurements revealed that oxidation potentials of compounds present in the oils are lower (below 0.1 V) compared with that of well-known antioxidant quercetin (0.15 V). Toxicity tests evaluated that hemp agrimony oils containing predominant amounts of germacrene D and neryl acetate were notably toxic (LC₅₀ value 16.3–22.0 μg/mL).

Conclusion: The study provided some new data concerning chemical composition and pharmaceutical properties of E. cannabinum essential oils.     

Incidence and survival in non-hereditary amyloidosis in Sweden

Background

Energy from liquids is one of the most important factors that could impact on the high prevalence of children and adolescents obesity around the world. There are few data on the liquid consumption in Brazil. The aim of this study is to evaluate the volume and quality of liquids consumed by Brazilian children and adolescents and to determine the proportion of their daily energy intake composed of liquids.

Methods

A multicenter study was conducted in five Brazilian cities; the study included 831 participants between 3 and 17 years of age. A four-day dietary record specific to fluids was completed for each individual, and the volume of and Kcal from liquid intake were evaluated. The average number of Kcal in each beverage was determined based on label information, and the daily energy intake data from liquids were compared with the recommendations of the National Health Surveillance Agency (Agência Nacional de Vigilancia Sanitária?C ANVISA), the Brazilian food regulation authority, according to each subject??s age.

Results

As the children aged, the volume of carbonated beverages that they consumed increased significantly, and their milk intake decreased significantly. For children between the ages of 3 and 10, milk and dairy products contributed the greatest daily number of Kcal from liquids. Sugar sweetened beverages which included carbonated beverages, nectars and artificial beverages, accounted for 37% and 45% of the total Kcal from liquid intake in the 3- to 6-year-old and 7- to 10- year-old groups, respectively. Among adolescents (participants 11- to 17- years old), most of the energy intake from liquids came from carbonated beverages, which accounted for an average of 207 kcal/day in this group (42% of their total energy intake from liquids). Health professionals should be attentive to the excessive consumption of sugar sweetened beverages in children and adolescents. The movement toward healthier dietary patterns at the individual and population levels may help to improve programs for preventing overweight and obesity in children and adolescents.

Conclusion

From childhood to adolescence the daily volume of liquid ingested increased reaching a total of 2.0 liters on average. Of this volume, the daily volume of milk ingested decreased while the carbonated drinks, sweetened, nectars and artificial beverages increased significantly. The proportion of water remained constant in about 1/3 of the total volume. From 3 to 17 years of age the energy intake from carbonated beverages increased by about 20%. The carbonated drinks on average corresponded to a tenth of the daily requirements of energy of adolescents.     

Promoter hypermethylation in tumour suppressor genes and response to interleukin-2 treatment in bladder cancer: a pilot study

Purpose  

Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (BC) is a highly recurrent disease, with the first recurrences arising shortly after transurethral resection of the bladder (TURB). Topical administration of interleukin-2 (IL-2) has been shown as an effective adjuvant therapy for BC; however, predictive biomarkers that may identify suitable subgroups of patients are lacking. In this pilot study we sought to determine the prognostic value of epigenetic and genetic inactivation of tumour suppressor genes (TSGs) among BC patients treated with IL-2.     

Sex differences in the serotonin 1A receptor and serotonin transporter binding in the human brain measured by PET

Women and men differ in serotonin associated psychiatric conditions, such as depression, anxiety and suicide. Despite this, very few studies focus on sex differences in the serotonin system. Of the biomarkers in the serotonin system, serotonin(1A) (5-HT(1A)) receptor is implicated in depression, and anxiety and serotonin transporter (5-HTT) is a target for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, psychotropic drugs used in the treatment of these disorders. The objective of the present study was to study sex related differences in the 5-HT(1A) receptor and 5-HTT binding potentials (BP(ND)s) in healthy humans, in vivo. Positron emission tomography and selective radioligands [(11)C]WAY100635 and [(11)C]MADAM were used to evaluate binding potentials for 5-HT(1A) receptors (14 women and 14 men) and 5-HTT (8 women and 10 men). The binding potentials were estimated both on the level of anatomical regions and voxel wise, derived by the simplified reference tissue model and wavelet/Logan plot parametric image techniques respectively. Compared to men, women had significantly higher 5-HT(1A) receptor and lower 5-HTT binding potentials in a wide array of cortical and subcortical brain regions. In women, there was a positive correlation between 5-HT(1A) receptor and 5-HTT binding potentials for the region of hippocampus. Sex differences in 5-HT(1A) receptor and 5-HTT BP(ND) may reflect biological distinctions in the serotonin system contributing to sex differences in the prevalence of psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety. The result of the present study may help in understanding sex differences in drug treatment responses to drugs affecting the serotonin system.     

A PIXE and ICP-MS analysis of metallic atmospheric contaminants in tree bark tissues, a basis for biomonitoring uses

The qualitative and quantitative metallic content of tree barks of Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels were studied. Argania spinosa is an endemic species in Morocco. This tree is adapted to semi-arid climates and exposed to specific conditions of relative humidity, temperature, wind, and particle transport. Three sites were sampled in Morocco: the large town of Rabat, the harbor of Agadir, and A?t Baha, a countryside location exposed to continuous desert wind. The methodologies included (1) in situ microanalysis with proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) and (2) trace element determinations by mass spectrometry with inductively coupled plasma (ICP-MS) associated with extraction procedures. Both methods allowed detection of elements coming from different bark compartments. The profile of airborne contaminants in the barks was typical of the sampling sites. The level of lead in barks sampled in Rabat reached 100 ng cm(-2), or higher, while it varied between 3 and 35 ng cm(-2) in A?t Baha. The in situ study of the microscopic structure of the bark provided the location of major and minor elements at various depths inside the bark. A differential between free deposit on the bark surface and penetrated content was found for the major and trace elements. The free deposit on the bark surface was suspected to be mostly the result of recent contamination. Part of the contaminants spread out on the surface penetrated the superficial suber. This long-term accumulation affected mostly Pb. In deeper levels, airborne elements at low concentrations and elements resulting from root uptake were concurrently present and resulted in a complex situation, as noted for zinc.     

Autoimmune diseases as comorbidities for liver,gallbladder, and biliary duct cancers in Sweden

Background

Autoimmune diseases are associated with many cancers but there is a lack of population-based studies with different autoimmune diseases that have a long follow-up. This is also true of hepatobiliary cancers, which include hepatocellular cancer (HCC) and rarer entities of gallbladder cancer (GBC), intra- and extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA and eCCA), and ampullary cancer.

Methods

Diagnostic data on 43 autoimmune diseases were collected from the Swedish Inpatient Register from 1987 to 2018, and cancer data were derived from the national cancer registry from 1997 onward. Relative risks were expressed as standardized incidence ratios (SIRs).

Results

In a population of 13.6 million, 1.1 million autoimmune diseases were diagnosed and subsequent hepatobiliary cancer was diagnosed in 3191 patients (17.2% of cancers). SIRs for HCC were 2.73 (men) and 2.86 (women), 3.74/1.96 for iCCA, 2.65/1.37 for GBC, 2.38/1.64 for eCCA, and 1.80/1.85 for ampullary cancer. Significant associations between autoimmune disease and HCC were observed for 13 autoimmune diseases, with the highest risks being for autoimmune hepatitis (48.92/73.53, men/women) and primary biliary cirrhosis (38.03/54.48). GBC was increased after six autoimmune diseases, with high SIRs for ulcerative colitis (12.22/3.24) and men with Crohn disease (9.16). These autoimmune diseases were also associated with a high risk of iCCA, which had seven other associations, and eCCA, which had five other associations. Ampullary cancer occurrence was increased after four autoimmune diseases.

Conclusion

An autoimmune disease is a common precursor condition for hepatobiliary cancers. This calls for careful control of autoimmune disease symptoms in each patient and encouragement to practice a healthy lifestyle.