Search

About three in ten Americans with hypertension do not take medication to control their blood pressure. The risk and protective factors of non-adherence to prescribed anti-hypertensive medication have not been well investigated. Participants who were aware of their hypertension, advised by healthcare professional to take anti-hypertensive medication but were not adhering to treatment recommendations (n=8,416) were retrieved from 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey. A series of 30 related variables were selected and analyzed using bivariate logistic and stepwise multiple logistic regression analysis. The results showed that participants who had a primary health care provider (OR=6.79), had a routine checkup (OR=5.48), had a flu shot or spray (OR=2.85), were unemployed (OR=2.35), not binge drinking (OR=2.09), annual household income $10,000 or higher (OR=1.77), female (OR=1.69), without depression (OR=1.41), and did not do exercise in past 30 days (OR=1.40) significantly predicted adherence to anti-hypertensive medication. The younger a participant was, the lower the likelihood of adherence. Patient education and healthcare services that aims to educate/serve younger males who do not have a primary healthcare provider, a routine checkup, and a flu shot/spray are suggested. Future studies should focus on prevention and management of high-risk populations.

Simple Summary: Phyto-based foods are becoming more and more popular worldwide, and people are consuming phyto-active components for purposes other than traditional health and nutrition. The study aimed to ascertain the impact of tea polyphenols (TPs) on fish. The outcomes showed that cold-water coho salmon exhibit improved growth, feed intake, and immunity. These results are helpful in promoting the development of novel feed additives for the aquaculture industry. To evaluate the impact of nutritional tea polyphenols (TPs) on body composition, growth, biochemical markers, antioxidant capacity, and hemato-immunological levels, a ten-week feeding experiment was carried out on coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch, 180.51 ± 0.15 g). The control group was fed a basal diet; the T1, T2, T3, and T4 groups were fed 0.005%, 0.01%, 0.02%, and 0.04% TPs, respectively. These results demonstrate that adding TPs significantly (p < 0.05) increased the coho salmon fish's weight gain (WG), relative growth rate (RGR), condition factor (CF), feed efficacy (FE), daily growth rate (DGR), and specific growth rate (SGR). There was no discernible difference in the body compositions of the treated TPs and the control group (p > 0.05). In addition, the T3 group showed a significant (p < 0.05) decrease in GPT, LDL, HDL, TC, and CAT. Fish given a 0.02% diet containing TPs had significantly lower levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) in their liver; yet, the TP-treated groups had higher levels of SOD and CAT than the control (p < 0.05). The data analysis shows a significant rise in lysozyme, respiratory burst activity, bactericidal activity, and blood hematological parameters in the 0.01–0.04% TP groups. According to these findings, TPs could be a useful dietary supplement for raising the antioxidant status, growth parameters, haemato-immunological response, and whole-body composition of coho salmon fish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spider silk proteins (spidroins) are particularly attractive due to their excellent biocompatibility. Spider can produce up to seven different types of spidroins, each with unique properties and functions. Spider minor ampullate silk protein (MiSp) might be particularly interesting for biomedical applications, as the constituent silk is mechanically strong and does not super‐contract in water, attributed to its amino acid composition. In this study, we evaluate the potential of recombinant nanoparticles derived from Araneus ventricosus MiSp as a protein delivery carrier. The MiSp‐based nanoparticles were able to serve as an effective delivery system, achieving nearly 100% efficiency in loading the model protein lysozyme, and displayed a sustained release profile at physiological pH. These nanoparticles could significantly improve the delivery efficacy of the model proteins through different administration routes. Furthermore, nanoparticles loaded with model protein antigen lysozyme after subcutaneous or intramuscular administration could enhance antigen‐specific immune responses in mouse models, through a mechanism involving antigen‐depot effects at the injection site, long‐term antigen persistence, and efficient uptake by dendritic cells as well as internalization by lymph nodes. These findings highlight the transnational potential of MiSp‐based nanoparticle system for protein drug and vaccine delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Missing data can significantly influence results of epidemiological studies. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) is a popular epidemiological dataset. We examined recent practices related to the prevalence and the reporting of the amount of missing data, the underlying mechanisms, and the methods used for handling missing data in recent doctoral dissertations and subsequent publications using NHANES data as a case study. We also explored missing data handling coverage in top-selling applied statistical textbooks. Thirty-seven doctoral dissertations (published from 2007 to 2017) and 17 subsequent journal articles were included in the analysis. Overall, 29 (78.4%) dissertations did not explicitly state whether they had missing data. Five (62.5%) dissertations reporting missing data did not report an assumed mechanism of missingness. Only one subsequent journal article reported the missing data percent for key variables. 28 (75.7%) dissertations and 16 (94.1%) journal articles reported the use of NHANES sample weights. Of the top-selling 20 applied statistics/biostatistics textbooks examined, 14 did not mention imputation. This sample reflects poor rigor in analysis, reporting, and handling of missing data found among recent graduates and poor coverage in textbooks. Checklist utilization and improvement in statistical training on missing data handling are needed. for this article are available online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]