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Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the validity and reliability and identify determinants of the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) in patients with lower limb lymphedema (LLL). Methods and Results: The study included 28 patients with LLL and 28 healthy subjects. To investigate the convergent validity and determinants of the 6MWT, patients were assessed using the following measurements: circumference measurement for lymphedema severity, hand-held dynamometry for muscle strength, time up and go for functional mobility, five-time sit-to-stand test for functional lower extremity strength, Lower Extremity Functional Scale for lower extremity functionality, Lymphedema Life Impact Scale for quality of life, and International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form for physical activity level. The test–retest reliability of the 6MWT was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). 6MWT, a test–retest reliability analysis was carried out with 28 patients within 3–7 days. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was employed to determine the cut-off point of 6MWT. The test–retest reliability of 6MWT was detected as excellent (ICC [95%] 0.93 [0.87–0.97]). Significant correlations were found between the 6MWT health-related and disease-specific parameters, indicating sufficient convergent validity (r ≥ 0.3). The ROC curve indicated a cut-off point of 504 meters (area under the curve [AUC] 0.712 [95%CI: 0.575–0.849]). Multiple linear regression analysis demonstrated that lymphedema severity, hip abduction muscle strength, and lower limb functionality were the predictors of 6MWT. Conclusions: The 6MWT has been shown to be a reliable and valid tool for assessing the functional capacity of patients with LLL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite efforts to find effective drugs for sepsis-associated acute kidney injury (SA-AKI), mortality rates in patients with SA-AKI have not decreased. Our study evaluated the protective effects of isoflavone osajin (OSJ) on SA-AKI in rats by targeting inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis, which represent the cornerstones in the pathophysiological mechanism of SA-AKI. Polymicrobial sepsis was induced in rats via the cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) technique. Markers of oxidative stress were evaluated in kidney tissues using biochemical methods. The expression of interleukin-33 (IL-33), 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), caspase-3, and kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) was evaluated as indicators of inflammation, DNA damage, apoptosis, and SA-AKI respectively in the kidney tissues using immunohistochemical and immunofluorescent detection methods. The CLP technique significantly (p < 0.001) increased lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels and significantly (p < 0.001) decreased the activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase in kidney tissues. In the renal tissues, strong expression of IL-33, 8-OHdG, caspase-3, and KIM-1 was observed with severe degeneration and necrosis in the tubular epithelium and intense interstitial nephritis. In contrast, the administration of OSJ significantly (p < 0.001) reduced the level of LPO, markedly improved biomarkers of antioxidant status, decreased the levels of serum creatinine and urea, lowered the expression of IL-33, 8-OHdG, caspase-3, and KIM-1 and alleviated changes in renal histopathology. A promising binding score was found via a molecular docking investigation of the OSJ-binding mode with mouse IL-33 (PDB Code: 5VI4). Therefore, OSJ protects against SA-AKI by suppressing the IL-33/LPO/8-OHdG/caspase-3 pathway and improving the antioxidant system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schiff bases have various pharmacological activities due to the azomethine (-C=N-) group. Usnic acid is the most famous lichen metabolite and it contains two carbonyl groups to synthesize the Schiff base derivatives with primary amines. Therefore, in the current study, the known Schiff base derivatives 2-5 of usnic acid (1) were synthesized to explore their antidiabetic, neuroprotective, antioxidant, antidepressant and anti-Parkinson's disease properties. Among the tested compounds, compound 4 exhibited the strongest antidiabetic and antidepressant activities, inhibiting α-glycosidase, a-amylase and MAO-A enzyme activities, respectively. Moreover, all of the tested compounds strongly scavenged the ABTS and DPPH radicals and the ABTS radical scavenging activities of 3 and 4 were found to be higher than the commercial antioxidants BHA and trolox. None of the tested compounds showed any significant anti-Parkinson's disease activity or neuroprotective action. In conclusion, compound 4 can be suggested as a drug candidate molecule for further studies due to its strong antioxidant, antidiabetic and antidepressant properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The knee joint is not only the most important and complex structure to present during anatomy lectures, but also a significant region for radiologists and orthopedicians. The objectives of this paper are: 1) to evaluate the efficacy of plastinated specimens by measuring colorimetric differentiation and 2) to compare the anatomical structures of the images obtained from computed tomography (CT) and silicone plastination cross-sections and perform three-dimensional (3D) reconstructed models of the specimens. A total of 16 knee joints selected from the 10% formalin fixed/dissected group (n=6), non-fixed/dissected group (n=6) and non-dissected whole knee joint group (n=4) were scanned by CT and plastinated by using the S10B silicone technique. The color changes of the structures were quantitatively determined with the colorimeter device. Plastinated whole knee joints were cut transversally with a band saw and compared with CT images. Finally, 3D reconstruction of the knee joints was performed from CT images with the 3D reconstruction program. There were statistically significant differences between the fixed and non-fixed groups in terms of color changes (p