BACKGROUND Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a metabolic and growth regulator. AIM To investigate the role of FGF21 during growth in infancy. METHODS Blood samples for FGF21, leptin, insulin and glucose were collected from cord blood obtained from 95 preterm and term newborns (cross-sectional group), and at 6 and 12 months of life in 80 preterm and term infants (longitudinal group). Le...

OBJECTIVE To determine the effects of birth weight and early childhood stunting on body mass index (BMI), body fat and fat distribution at ages 7 and 11 years, and the change from 7 to 11 years. DESIGN Prospective cohort study SETTING Kingston, Jamaica. SUBJECTS One hundred and sixteen stunted children (height-for-age below two standard deviations (<-2SD) of the National Center for Health...

Provenance-specific growth responses to experimentally applied drought and air warming were studied in saplings of three European oak species: Quercus robur, Quercus petraea and Quercus pubescens. Four provenances of each species were grown in large open-top chambers and subjected to four climates: control, periodic drought, air warming or their combination in 3 subsequent years. Overall growth...

BACKGROUND Multiple micronutrient deficiencies during pregnancy in Vietnam may contribute to poor fetal growth and stunting, which are major determinants of the health and development offuture generations. OBJECTIVE We assessed the effects of prenatal multiple micronutrient supplementation on maternal weight gain during pregnancy, infant birthweight, and height of the child at around 2 years ...

Silver and gold nanoparticles display unique physical and biological properties that have been extensively studied for biological and medical applications. Typically, gold and silver nanoparticles are prepared by chemical reductants that utilize excess toxic reactants, which need to be removed for biological purposes. We utilized a clean method involving a single synthetic step to prepare metal...

BACKGROUND While some studies suggest that poor fetal growth rate, as indicated by lower birth weight, is associated with poor respiratory function in childhood, findings among adults remain inconsistent. A study was undertaken to determine the association between early growth and adult respiratory function. METHODS A longitudinal birth cohort study was performed of 5390 men and women born fu...

regional odontodysplasia (ro) is a rare developmental dental anomaly with an unknown etiology. it is more often seen in girls than boys. treatment of ro depends on the individual case. the aims of treatment should include aiding mastication and speech, improving aesthetics, reducing the psychological impact of the anomaly, allowing normal jaw growth and development, and if possible protection o...

crude glycerol (cg) is an abundantly available and cheap by-product from biodiesel production. value-added applications for cg are highly wanted by industry and several processes such as the use of cg for enhanced oil recovery have been proposed. the aim of this study was to evaluate the sulfide production of sulfate-reducing bacteria (srb) indigenous to oil reservoirs using cg as substrate. th...

background: the approaches chosen for control of outbreaks of infectious diseases in aquatic farming industry include improvement of environmental conditions, stocking of specific pathogen free (spf) brood stockings, and application of vaccines and immunostimulants. despite numerous studies on the effects of ergosan on immune system of aquatic animals, there is no data available on antioxidant ...

The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of drought stress on the kinetics of leaf elongation in relationship to the variation of sugar concentrations and their net deposition rates along the elongation zone of leaf 4 of durum wheat plants. Plants were grown in soil in a naturally illuminated greenhouse, and water...