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Exercise is an important tool against the deleterious effects of aging. Among the possibilities of exercise, bodyweight training (BWT) has been highlighted in the last years as a safe option to improve the health of older people. We compared the effects of 24 weeks of BWT and combined training (CT) on low-grade systematic inflammation and functional fitness in postmenopausal women. For this, 40 women were allocated and submitted to CT (n = 20, 64.43 ± 3.13 years, 29.56 ± 4.80 kg/m²) and BWT (n = 20, 65.10 ± 4.86 years, 28.76 ± 4.26 kg/m²). We measured inflammation by the interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-10 (IL-10), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) assessments. For functional fitness, we used tests similar to activities of daily living. At the end of the 16 weeks, data from 24 women were analyzed, CT (n = 14) and BT (n = 10). Both groups reduced TNF-α and IL-6 levels, without differences in IL-10. Regarding functional fitness, both groups demonstrated improvements in all tests after 24 weeks, except for rise from prone position and the 400-meter walk test for CT. In summary, CT and BWT are effective in reducing the plasma concentration of pro-inflammatory cytokines and improving functional fitness in postmenopausal women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reference 1 Diniz F.R., Maia R.C.A.P., Rannier Andrade L., Andrade L.N., Vinicius Chaud M., da Silva C.F., Corrêa C.B., de Albuquerque Junior R.L.C., Pereira da Costa L., Shin S.R. Silver Nanoparticles-Composing Alginate/Gelatine Hydrogel Improves Wound Healing In Vivo. Figure Graph: Figure 6 Non-splinted model showing the percentage of non-epithelialized surface of the wound of the groups: GCTR (control group), GH (group with hydrogel sodium alginate/gelatin (80:20), and GHP (group with hydrogel with AgNP 4 mM AgNO3). Silver Nanoparticles-Composing Alginate/Gelatine Hydrogel Improves Wound Healing In Vivo. [Extracted from the article]

Polymer hydrogels have been suggested as dressing materials for the treatment of cutaneous wounds and tissue revitalization. In this work, we report the development of a hydrogel composed of natural polymers (sodium alginate and gelatin) and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) with recognized antimicrobial activity for healing cutaneous lesions. For the development of the hydrogel, different ratios of sodium alginate and gelatin have been tested, while different concentrations of AgNO3 precursor (1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 mM) were assayed for the production of AgNPs. The obtained AgNPs exhibited a characteristic peak between 430–450 nm in the ultraviolet-visible (UV–Vis) spectrum suggesting a spheroidal form, which was confirmed by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). Fourier Transform Infra-red (FT–IR) analysis suggested the formation of strong intermolecular interactions as hydrogen bonds and electrostatic attractions between polymers, showing bands at 2920, 2852, 1500, and 1640 cm−1. Significant bactericidal activity was observed for the hydrogel, with a Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of 0.50 µg/mL against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and 53.0 µg/mL against Staphylococcus aureus. AgNPs were shown to be non-cytotoxic against fibroblast cells. The in vivo studies in female Wister rats confirmed the capacity of the AgNP-loaded hydrogels to reduce the wound size compared to uncoated injuries promoting histological changes in the healing tissue over the time course of wound healing, as in earlier development and maturation of granulation tissue. The developed hydrogel with AgNPs has healing potential for clinical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]