Background: Epigallocatechin 3 Gallate (EGCG) appears to act in appetite control through hormonal modulation. However, there is a lack of elucidation of EGCG’s action mechanisms, especially in humans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of acute EGCG supplementation on gastric emptying and its relation to blood hormones, glucose and appetite perceptions in healthy women. Methods: 22 healthy adult women were included in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study. On two separate occasions, 1 week apart from each other, we offered 800 mg of corn starch (placebo) or 752 mg of EGCG. Appetite was assessed through gastric emptying; perceptions of hunger, desire to eat and satiation; and plasma insulin, adiponectin, leptin and glucose concentrations. The evaluations were carried out in fasting, 30, 90 and 150 min after supplementation. Results: EGCG supplementation induced higher relative gastric volume at 30 and 90 min. Satiation at 90 min was higher in the EGCG group. Adiponectin concentrations at 150 min were higher with EGCG, but no difference was found for glucose, insulin and leptin concentrations. Conclusions: Acute EGCG supplementation is able to delay gastric emptying in healthy women to a small, but statistically significant extent. This study was registered at the Brazilian Registry of Clinical Trials (ReBEC) as RBR-9svwrv.

Background: COVID-19 is an infectious disease characterized by a severe catabolic and inflammatory state, leading to loss of muscle mass. The assessment of muscle mass can be useful to identify nutritional risk and assist in early management, especially in older adults who have high nutritional risks. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of calf circumference (CC) with clinical and biochemical markers and mortality in older adults with COVID-19 admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in a public hospital. CC was adjusted for body mass index (BMI), reducing 3, 7, or 12 cm for a BMI of 25–29.9, 30–39.9, and ≥40 kg/m², respectively, and classified as reduced when <33 cm for women and <34 cm for men. Pearson’s correlation between BMI and CC was performed to assess the association between variables. Regression analysis was adjusted for sex, age, and BMI variables. Cox regression was used to assess survival related to CC. Results: A total of 208 older adults diagnosed with COVID-19 admitted to ICU were included, of which 84% (n = 176) were classified as having reduced CC. These patients were older, with lower BMI, higher nutritional risk, malnourished, and higher concentration of urea and urea–creatinine ratio (UCR) compared with the group with normal CC. There was an association between edematous patients at nutritional risk and malnourished with reduced CC in the Cox regression, either adjusted or not for confounding. Conclusions: CC was not associated with severity, biochemical markers, or mortality in older adults with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU, but it was associated with moderately malnourished patients assessed by subjective global assessment (SGA).

A destinação final inadequada de resíduos sólidos tem resultado num cenário de inúmeros danos ao meio ambiente, tais como: contaminação do solo, de águas superficiais e subterrâneas, através do lixiviado; consequências do processo de decomposição dos resíduos. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar as características químicas de alguns pontos do solo e do lixiviado (chorume) do aterro controlado de Hidrolândia, GO, em dezembro de 2014, com o intuito de verificar possíveis tendências a contaminação da área por metais pesados. Foram realizados os seguintes levantamentos: levantamento fotográfico, localização da área e dos pontos de amostragem do solo para avaliação dos parâmetros físico-químico e presença de metais pesados e amostragem do líquido percolado (lixiviado) para análise dos metais pesados. Os resultados obtidos foram comparados com os valores orientadores da Companhia Ambiental do Estado de São Paulo (CETESB). Através do estudo químico do solo e lixiviado foram detectados os metais cádmio (Cd), chumbo (Pb), cobre (Cu), cromo (Cr), ferro (Fe), mercúrio (Hg), níquel (Ni) e zinco (Zn), onde os mesmos apresentaram valores abaixo dos limites estabelecidos pela CETESB. Na amostra de solo o elemento ferro (Fe) foi detectado com teor mais elevado (311,41 mg.L-1). Na análise do líquido percolado (chorume), apenas o elemento ferro (Fe) foi detectado, com uma concentração de 33,00 mg.L-1. É importante destacar que a CETESB não possui valor de referência de qualidade para este elemento. Apesar da grande diversidade e volubilidade dos resíduos depositados, não há indícios suficientes que comprovem a contaminação do solo na área de estudo pelos metais pesados analisados.

BackgroundA decrease in insulin sensitivity (SI) is a key feature of critical illness, with changes occurring dynamically across metabolic phases. However, assessing SI in real time at the bedside remains challenging. Metrics derived from continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) may offer a pragmatic alternative, but their ability to evaluate SI is unclear. This study aimed to evaluate CGM-derived indices against SI measured by the reference method (intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT)) and other indices (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and SI derived from the intensive control insulin-nutrition-glucose (ICING) model (SIICING)).MethodsIt was a prospective, single-centre, exploratory study, including patients with stress hyperglycaemia within 48 hours of admission. CGM (Dexcom G7) was initiated and IVGTT was performed on days 2 and 4. SIIVGTT was estimated using the minimal model. CGM-derived indices, including glucose disappearance rate (CGM-KG), HOMA-IR and SIICING, were compared with SIIVGTT.ResultsTwenty patients were included (mean age: 61 years; range:52.9–71.1; SAPS II:35.5[range:27–51.5]). No significant correlation was observed between CGM-KG and SIIVGTT on day 2 (ρ=0.07, p=0.76). On day 4, however, moderate associations emerged (ρ=0.59, p=0.016, FDR-adjusted p=0.069). CGM indices were more relevant in patients without insulin therapy (ρ=0.45, p=0.04). In contrast, SIIVGTT showed the strongest association with SIICING on day 4 (ρ=0.64, p<0.001, FDR-adjusted p=0.048) and demonstrated good discriminatory ability (AUC=0.87). HOMA-IR was not informative.ConclusionsCGM-derived metrics do not reliably reflect SI in ICU patients, particularly those receiving insulin therapy. Real-time determination of SI by ICING provides a more accurate assessment.