Alliance predicts patients' outcome beyond in-treatment change in symptoms.

The authors examined the relations among therapeutic alliance, outcome, and early-in-treatment symptomatic improvement in a group of 86 patients with generalized anxiety disorders, chronic depression, or avoidant or obsessive–compulsive personality disorder who received supportive–expressive dynamic psychotherapy. Although alliance at Sessions 5 and 10, but not at Session 2, was associated with prior change in depression, alliance at all sessions significantly predicted subsequent change in depression when prior change in depression was partialed out. The results are discussed in terms of the causal role of the alliance in therapeutic outcome. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Blackcurrants (Ribes nigrum): A Review on Chemistry,Processing, and Health Benefits

Blackcurrants (BC; Ribes nigrum) are relatively new to the U.S. market; however, they are well known and popular in Europe and Asia. The use of BC has been trending worldwide, particularly in the United States. We believe that demand for BC will grow as consumers become aware of the several potential health benefits these berries offer. The objectives of this review were to provide an up‐to‐date summary of information on BC based on articles published within the last decade; furthermore, to provide the food industry insights into possibilities for the utilization of BC. The chemistry, processing methods, and health benefits have been highlighted in addition to how the environment and variety impact the chemical constituents of BC. A search for journal publications on BC was conducted, which included keywords such as chemical characterization, health benefits, processing, technologies, anthocyanins (ANC), and proanthocyanidins. This review provides up‐to‐date information available on the subject. In conclusion, BC and their products have industrial uses from which extractions can be made to produce natural pigments to be used as food additives. BC contain flavonoids, specifically ANC, which provide the fruits with their purple color. BC are a rich source of phytochemicals with potent antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti‐inflammatory properties. Also, BC have the potential to improve overall human health particularly with diseases associated with inflammation and regulation of blood glucose.     

Alphabetic order of authors in scholarly publications: a bibliometric study for 27 scientific fields

Scientometrics - Paper authorship and author placement have significant consequences for accountability and assignment of credit. Moreover, authors in different scientific fields tend to follow...     

Effects of a cognitive stimulation software on attention,memory, and activities of daily living in Mexican older adults

Universal Access in the Information Society - The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of a cognitive stimulation software on attention, memory, reasoning, planning, and frequency of...     

Characterization of polyhydroxybutyrate production from Halomonas titanicae KHS3 and manufacturing of electrosprayed nanoparticles

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are biopolymers accumulated by a diversity of bacterial strains as carbon and energy reserve when grown under unbalanced nutritional conditions. Among the wide spectrum of applications for these biopolymers, the generation of nano and microparticles has drawn huge attention. PHA nanoparticles showed a high surface-to-volume ratio that makes them interesting for pharmaceutical uses. Bacteria from the Halomonas genus became interesting tools for biopolymer production in the last years, due to its metabolic plasticity that allows them to grow in a wide spectrum of compounds and salt concentrations. Halomonas titanicae KHS3 was previously isolated based on their ability to grow using aromatic hydrocarbons as the sole carbon source. In this work, the novelty lies in the evaluation of PHA accumulation by H. titanicae KHS3. Accumulation was successfully observed and thoroughly characterized on various carbon sources. Irrespective of the carbon source employed for growth, our experimental conditions consistently yielded PHB as the sole material identified. The truly intriguing aspect of this study is that PHB solutions in glacial acetic acid demonstrated exceptional suitability for electrospraying processing. This groundbreaking development led to the creation of nanoparticles with unique characteristics that hold immense promise for a wide range of applications.     

Evaluation of the Antibacterial Activity of Piperaceae Extracts and Nisin on Alicyclobacillus Acidoterrestris

Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris is a gram‐positive aerobic bacterium. This bacterium resists pasteurization temperatures and low pH and is usually involved in the spoilage of juices and acidic drinks. The objective of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial activities of nisin and the species Piper (Piperaceae) on A. acidoterrestris. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) were determined by the broth microdilution method. The species Piper aduncum had the lowest MIC and an MBC of 15.6 μg/mL and was selected for fractionation. Six fractions were obtained, and the dichloromethane fraction (F.3) had the lowest MIC/MBC (7.81 μg/mL). The dichloromethane fraction was again fractionized, and a spectral analysis revealed that the compound was prenylated chromene (F.3.7). The checkerboard method demonstrated that the crude extract (CE) of P. aduncum plus nisin had a synergistic interaction (fractional inhibitory concentration [FIC] = 0.24). The bactericidal activity of (F.3.7) was confirmed by the time–kill curve. P. aduncum, nisin, and prenylated chromene exhibited strong antibacterial activity against the spores and vegetative cells of A. acidoterrestris. The results of this study suggest that extracts of the genus Piper may provide an alternative to the use of thermal processing for controlling A. spoilage.     

Analysis of the Airflow in a Prototype of a Solar Chimney Dryer

The development of alternative energy sources is increasingly becoming a necessity. In this context, solar energy stands out because it is a renewable and low pollutant source of energy. The solar chimney uses solar energy to generate hot airflow that can be used to dry agricultural products or generate electric power. This paper presents an experimental study of the airflow inside a solar chimney. The tests were performed in a prototype built on the campus of Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, with appropriate dimensions to dry agricultural products. The values of temperature, velocity, solar radiation, and humidity inside and outside the device were monitored over a nine month period, allowing the characterization of the airflow and the determination of the optical properties of the materials used.     

Mortality risk in hemodialysis patients according to anemia control and erythropoietin dosing

There is no consensus about the toxicity of erythropoiesis‐stimulating agents among hemodialysis patients. We aimed to calculate the risk of death according to anemia control and erythropoietin (EPO) dosing among end‐stage renal disease patients undergoing hemodialysis. We retrospectively studied 156 end‐stage renal disease patients on hemodialysis from a single renal unit during 12 months. Participants were classified according to anemia control into four groups: excellent (A), good (B), moderate (C) and bad (D) control. They were also classified according to EPO dosing into two groups: usual and high EPO dosing. The Cox proportional hazards regression model, adjusted for the difference in age, sex, time on dialysis, comorbidity, albumin, and Kt/V index, was performed to calculate the risk of death according to anemia control and EPO dosing profiles. Multivariate analysis by backward stepwise logistic regression was used to calculate the risk of death according to the variables that differed in the comparison between survivors and nonsurvivors. The hazard ratio of death was not significant according to anemia control profile C/D vs. A/B, but hazard ratio was 2.967 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.132–7.777; P = 0.027) for high EPO dosing profile patients. The multivariate analysis showed comorbidity (odds ratio [OR] = 8.958; 95% CI = 2.843–26.223; P < 0.001], high EPO dosing profile (OR = 5.172; 95% CI = 1.663–16,081; P = 0.005), age (OR = 1.056; 95% CI = 1.020–1.094; P = 0.002), and mean hemoglobin (OR = 0.435; 95% CI = 0.267–0.709; P = 0.001) to be predictive of death. Even though we cannot conclude that mortality risk is due to EPO toxicity, hemodialysis patients using high EPO dosing must be seen as at risk.