4 ± 13.7 vs. 88.0 ± 19.6, 
  = 0.052), and Maximum Expiratory Flow at 25% of the Forced Vital Capacity (79.0.1 ± 20.7 vs. 55.7 ± 30.1, 
  = 0.078).
 
  Stone-crushers were more heavily exposed to mineral dust and various trace elements than taxi-drivers, and they had a fourfold increased risk of reporting wheezing, but they did not have evidence of more respiratory impairment than taxi-drivers.
 Stone-crushers were more heavily exposed to mineral dust and various trace elements than taxi-drivers, and they had a fourfold increased risk of reporting wheezing, but they did not have evidence of more respiratory impairment than taxi-drivers.Heather honey was tested for its effect on the formation of biofilms by Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterococcus faecalis, Salmonella Enteriditis and Acinetobacter baumanii in comparison with Manuka honey. At 0.25 mg/mL, Heather honey inhibited biofilm formation in S. aureus, A. baumanii, E.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/GDC-0449.html  coli, S. Enteriditis and P. aeruginosa, but promoted the growth of E. faecalis and K. pneumoniae biofilms. Manuka honey inhibited biofilm formation in K. pneumoniae, E. faecalis, and S. Enteriditis, A. baumanii, E. coli and P. aeruginosa, but promoted S. aureus biofilm formation. Molecular docking with Autodock Vina was performed to calculate the predictive binding affinities and ligand efficiencies of Manuka and Heather honey constituents for PaDsbA1, the main enzyme controlling the correct folding of virulence proteins in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. A number of constituents, including benzoic acid and methylglyoxal, present in Heather and/or Manuka honey, revealed high ligand efficiencies for the target enzyme. This helps support, to some extent, the decrease in P. aeruginosa biofilm formation observed for such honeys.Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the world. The role of germline genetic variability in ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters in cancer chemoresistance and prognosis still needs to be elucidated. We used next-generation sequencing to assess associations of germline variants in coding and regulatory sequences of all human ABC genes with response of the patients to the neoadjuvant cytotoxic chemotherapy and disease-free survival (n = 105). A total of 43 prioritized variants associating with response or survival in the above testing phase were then analyzed by allelic discrimination in the large validation set (n = 802). Variants in ABCA4, ABCA9, ABCA12, ABCB5, ABCC5, ABCC8, ABCC11, and ABCD4 associated with response and variants in ABCA7, ABCA13, ABCC4, and ABCG8 with survival of the patients. No association passed a false discovery rate test, however, the rs17822931 (Gly180Arg) in ABCC11, associating with response, and the synonymous rs17548783 in ABCA13 (survival) have a strong support in the literature and are, thus, interesting for further research. Although replicated associations have not reached robust statistical significance, the role of ABC transporters in breast cancer should not be ruled out. Future research and careful validation of findings will be essential for assessment of genetic variation which was not in the focus of this study, e.g., non-coding sequences, copy numbers, and structural variations together with somatic mutations.With the increasing number of people with disabilities caused by an aging global population, the need for long-term care is gradually increasing. Nursing assistants (NAs) are the primary providers of direct care services to older adults with disabilities, whose knowledge, skills, and beliefs affect the quality of care provided. This study aimed to investigate the influential factors affecting NAs' current competences. A total of 255 NAs' valid questionnaires were collected from 20 long-term care institutions in Taiwan through convenience sampling. The questionnaire comprised dimensions of demographics and care competence. The study results indicated that NAs had the greatest care competence in the domain of recognition of patient rights (4.64 ± 0.54 points). The multiple regression indicated that age, religion, job category, disability care experience, the receiving of performance bonuses, and the receiving of year-end bonuses significantly affected the level of care competence (p less then 0.05). With the aforementioned findings, the results of this study serve as references for the government in employing long-term care NAs and developing management policies. Training programs for NAs should be developed to improve the quality of care provided to older adults with disabilities.Understanding the mechanisms underlying cancer genome evolution has been a major goal for decades. A recent study combining live cell imaging and single-cell genome sequencing suggested that interwoven chromosome breakage-fusion-bridge cycles, micronucleation events and chromothripsis episodes drive cancer genome evolution. Here, I discuss the "interphase breakage model," suggested from prior fluorescent in situ hybridization data that led to a similar conclusion. In this model, the rapid genome evolution observed at early stages of gene amplification was proposed to result from the interweaving of an amplification mechanism (breakage-fusion-bridge cycles) and of a deletion mechanism (micronucleation and stitching of DNA fragments retained in the nucleus).Previous work utilizing proteomic and immunohistochemical analyses has identified that high levels of acid ceramidase (AC) expression confers a poorer response to neoadjuvant treatment in locally advanced rectal cancer. We aimed to assess the radiosensitising effect of biological and pharmacological manipulation of AC and elucidate the underlying mechanism. AC manipulation in three colorectal cancer cell lines (HT29, HCT116 and LIM1215) was achieved using siRNA and plasmid overexpression. Carmofur and a novel small molecular inhibitor (LCL521) were used as pharmacological AC inhibitors. Using clonogenic assays, we demonstrate that an siRNA knockdown of AC enhanced X-ray radiosensitivity across all colorectal cancer cell lines compared to a non-targeting control siRNA, and conversely, AC protein overexpression increased radioresistance. Using CRISPR gene editing, we also generated AC knockout HCT116 cells that were significantly more radiosensitive compared to AC-expressing cells. Similarly, two patient-derived organoid models containing relatively low AC expression were found to be comparatively more radiosensitive than three other models containing higher levels of AC.