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EALYS pectin films showed a good prebiotic activity as evaluated by determination of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) levels following microbial fermentation, with a low but significant increase of the effects produced by the pectins themselves. Overall, these results highlight pectin films loaded with EALYS salt as a promising formulation to improve administration and controlled release of the compound.Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is characterised by insulin resistance and eventual pancreatic β-cell dysfunction, resulting in persistent high blood glucose levels. Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) such as bisphenol A (BPA) are currently under scrutiny as they are implicated in the development of metabolic diseases, including T2DM. BPA is a pervasive EDC, being the main constituent of polycarbonate plastics. It can enter the human body by ingestion, through the skin, and cross from mother to offspring via the placenta or breast milk. BPA is a xenoestrogen that alters various aspects of beta cell metabolism via the modulation of oestrogen receptor signalling. In vivo and in vitro models reveal that varying concentrations of BPA disrupt glucose homeostasis and pancreatic β-cell function by altering gene expression and mitochondrial morphology. BPA also plays a role in the development of insulin resistance and has been linked to long-term adverse metabolic effects following foetal and perinatal exposure. Several epidemiological studies reveal a significant association between BPA and the development of insulin resistance and impaired glucose homeostasis, although conflicting findings driven by multiple confounding factors have been reported. In this review, the main findings of epidemiological and functional studies are summarised and compared, and their respective strengths and limitations are discussed. Further research is essential for understanding the exact mechanism of BPA action in various tissues and the extent of its effects on humans at environmentally relevant doses.Emotional intelligence (EI) is related to better performance in sports. To measure this construct, many tools have been developed and validated in the sports context. However, these tools are based on an individual's ability to manage their own emotions, but do not consider the emotions of the rest of the team (teammates, coaches, etc.). In this regard, the Workgroup Emotional Intelligence Profile short version (WEIP-S) is a self-reported measure designed to measure the EI of individuals who are part of a team. The aim of this study was to validate the WEIP-S structure to measure EI in the sports context, and to analyze the psychometric properties of this tool in the sample in terms of validity and reliability. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 273 athletes to examine the reliability, factor structure, and evidence of validity (convergent, discriminant, nomological, and concurrent) of the WEIP-S. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the original four-factor structure is the most appropriate for the sports context. Composite reliability was adequate for all factors except management of one's own emotions, which also showed poor convergent validity. Evidence of convergent, discriminant, and nomological validity are discussed. This study represents an advance in the use of specific scales to measure EI in the sports context.Reliable p-doped hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) could enable wide bandgap optoelectronic devices such as deep ultra-violet light emitting diodes (UV LEDs), solar blind photodiodes and neutron detectors. We report the study of Mg in h-BN layers as well as Mg h-BN/AlGaN heterostructures. Mg incorporation in h-BN was studied under different biscyclopentadienyl-magnesium (Cp2Mg) molar flow rates. 2θ-ω x-ray diffraction scans clearly evidence a single peak, corresponding to the (002) reflection plane of h-BN with a full-width half maximum increasing with Mg incorporation in h-BN. For a large range of Cp2Mg molar flow rates, the surface of Mg doped h-BN layers exhibited characteristic pleats, confirming that Mg doped h-BN remains layered. Secondary ion mass spectrometry analysis showed Mg incorporation, up to 4 × 1018 /cm3 in h-BN. Electrical conductivity of Mg h-BN increased with increased Mg-doping. Heterostructures of Mg h-BN grown on n-type Al rich AlGaN (58% Al content) were made with the intent of forming a p-n heterojunction. The I-V characteristics revealed rectifying behavior for temperatures from 123 to 423 K. Under ultraviolet illumination, photocurrent was generated, as is typical for p-n diodes. C-V measurements evidence a built-in potential of 3.89 V. These encouraging results can indicate p-type behavior, opening a pathway for a new class of wide bandgap p-type layers.The effects of green processes in hybrid polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membranes on CO2 separation have received little attention to date. The effective CO2 separation of the membranes is believed to be controlled by the reaction and curing process. In this study, hybrid PDMS membranes were fabricated on ceramic substrates using the water-in-emulsion method and evaluated for their gas transport properties. The effects of the tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) concentration and curing temperature on the morphology and CO2 separation performance were investigated. The viscosity measurement showed that, at specific reaction times, it is benefit beneficial to fabricate the symmetric hybrid PDMS membranes with a uniform and dense selective layer on the substrate. Moreover, the a high TEOS concentration can decrease the reaction time and obtain create the a fully crosslinked structure, allowing more efficient CO2/N2 separation. The separation performance was furtherly improved with in the membrane prepared at a high curing temperature of 120 °C. The developed membrane shows excellent CO2/N2 separation with a CO2 permeance of 27.7 ± 1.3 GPU and a CO2/N2 selectivity of 10.3 ± 0.3. Moreover, the membrane shows a stable gas separation performance of up to 5 bar of pressure.Shiga toxin (Stx)-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strain B2F1 produces Stx type 2d, a toxin that becomes more toxic towards Vero cells in the presence of intestinal mucus. STEC that make Stx2d are more pathogenic to streptomycin (Str)-treated mice than most STEC that produce Stx2a or Stx2c. However, purified Stx2d is only 2- or 7-fold more toxic by the intraperitoneal route than Stx2a or Stx2c, respectively. selleck chemicals We hypothesized, therefore, that the toxicity differences among Stx2a, Stx2c, and Stx2d occur at the level of delivery from the intestine. To evaluate that hypothesis, we altered the toxin type produced by stx2d+ mouse virulent O91H21 clinical isolate B2F1 to Stx2a or Stx2c. Because B2F1 encodes two copies of stx2d, we did these studies in a derivative of B2F1 in which stx2d1 was deleted. Although the strains were equivalently virulent to the Str-treated mice at the 1010 dose, the B2F1 strain that produced Stx2a was attenuated relative to the ones that produced Stx2d or Stx2c when administered at 103 CFU/mouse.