Fully bio-based and biodegradable active films based on poly(lactic acid) (PLA) blended with poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and incorporating lactic acid oligomers (OLA) as plasticizers and carvacrol ...as active agent were extruded and fully characterized in their functional properties for antimicrobial active packaging. PLA_PHB films showed good barrier to water vapor, while the resistance to oxygen diffusion decreased with the addition of OLA and carvacrol. Their overall migration in aqueous food simulant was determined and no significant changes were observed by the addition of carvacrol and OLA to the PLA_PHB formulations. However, the effect of both additives in fatty food simulant can be considered a positive feature for the potential protection of foodstuff with high fat content. Moreover, the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of the proposed formulations increased by the presence of carvacrol, with enhanced activity against
Staphylococcus aureus
if compared to
Escherichia coli
at short and long incubation times. These results underlined the specific antimicrobial properties of these bio-films suggesting their applicability in active food packaging.
BACKGROUND:Structural alterations of subcutaneous small resistance arteries, as indicated by an increased media-to-lumen ratio, are frequently present in hypertensive and/or diabetic patients, and ...may represent the earliest alteration observed. Furthermore, media-to-lumen ratio of small arteries evaluated by micromyography has a strong prognostic significance; however, its extensive evaluation is limited by the invasivity of the assessment, since a biopsy of subcutaneous fat is needed. Noninvasive measurement of wall-to-lumen of retinal arterioles using scanning laser Doppler flowmetry (SLDF) has recently been introduced. However, this new technique has not yet been compared to micromyographic measurement, generally considered the gold standard approach.
METHODS AND RESULTS:We investigated 40 individuals and patients, 24 of them were hypertensive patients and 16 normotensive individuals. All patients underwent a biopsy of subcutaneous fat during an elective surgical intervention. Subcutaneous small resistance arteries were dissected and mounted on a wire myograph, and media-to-lumen ratio was measured. In addition, an evaluation of wall-to-lumen ratio of retinal arterioles by SLDF was performed (Heidelberg Retina Flowmeter, Heidelberg Engineering). A close correlation was observed between media-to-lumen ratio of subcutaneous small arteries and wall-to-lumen ratio of retinal arterioles (r = 0.76, P < 0.001; P < 0.001, r = 0.57).
CONCLUSION:A noninvasive and easily repeatable procedure (intraobserver and interobserver variation coefficient <13%) such as an evaluation of the arterioles in the fundus oculi by SLDF may provide similar information regarding microvascular morphology compared with an invasive, accurate and prognostically relevant micromyographic measurement of media-to-lumen ratio of subcutaneous small arteries.
Evidence regarding gender-related differences in response to transcatheter aortic valve implantation according to the valve type is lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of gender on the ...treatment effect of Evolut PRO/PRO+ (PRO) or SAPIEN 3 Ultra (ULTRA) devices on clinical outcomes. The Comparative Analysis of Evolut PRO vs SAPIEN 3 Ultra Valves for Transfemoral Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (OPERA-TAVI) is a multicenter, multinational registry including patients who underwent the latest-iteration PRO or ULTRA implantation. Overall, 1,174 of 1,897 patients were matched based on valve type and compared according to gender, whereas 470 men and 630 women were matched and compared according to valve type. The 30-day and 1-year outcomes were evaluated. In the PRO and ULTRA groups, men had a higher co-morbidity burden, whereas women had smaller aortic root. The 30-day (device success DS, early safety outcome, permanent pacemaker implantation, patient-prosthesis mismatch, paravalvular regurgitation, bleedings, vascular complications, and all-cause death) and 1-year outcomes (all-cause death, stroke, and heart failure hospitalization) did not differ according to gender in both valve groups. However, the male gender decreased the likelihood of 30-day DS with ULTRA versus PRO (p for interaction = 0.047). A higher risk of 30-day permanent pacemaker implantation and 1-year stroke and a lower risk of patient-prosthesis mismatch was observed in PRO versus ULTRA, regardless of gender. In conclusion, gender did not modify the treatment effect of PRO versus ULTRA on clinical outcomes, except for 30-day DS, which was decreased in men (vs women) who received ULTRA (vs PRO).
Purpose. Complications of surgical incision include pathological scars with functional, cosmetic or psychological consequences. Postsurgical scar assessment is fundamental for a complete functional ...evaluation and as an outcome measure. Scar assessment scales are here reviewed and discussed from a clinical and psychometric point of view, with a clear definition of different scar parameters.
Method. An extensive review of the English-language literature was conducted using the Medline database.
Results. Four scales that satisfy psychometrical criteria were identified: Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS), Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS), Manchester Scar Scale (MSS) and Stony Brook Scar Evaluation Scale (SBSES). Conclusions. To date, VSS is the most widely used rating scale for scars but POSAS appears the most comprehensive, taking into account the important aspect of patient's perspective. The MSS has been never used for research, while SBSES has only been very recently proposed.
► Sucrose synthase is the dominating enzyme for sucrose cleavage in growing kiwifruit. ► Sucrose synthase activity correlates non linearly with the fruit growth rate. ► Sucrose synthase activity ...correlate linearly with the activities of fructokinase and UDP glucose PPiase.
Changes in fruit growth rate, carbohydrate content (glucose, fructose, sucrose and starch) and enzyme activity (sucrose synthase, UDPglucose pyrophosphorylase, fructokinase, glucokinase, sucrose phosphate synthase, ADPglucose pyrophosphorylase and invertases), in the external pericarp of kiwifruit, were measured throughout the growing season. Sucrose synthase showed the highest activity among the sucrose cleaving enzymes during large part of the growing season. The activity of invertases were much lower than that of sucrose synthase until ripening started. Sucrose synthase showed a tight although not linear relationship with the fruit RGR. Furthermore, sucrose synthase showed linear and significant correlations with the activities of both fructokinase and UDPglucose pyrophosphorylase indicating a strong co-regulation of the activities of these three enzymes involved in sucrose cleavage and sink strength, in kiwifruit. Sucrose synthase is suggested to be the dominating enzyme in the cleavage of imported carbon in kiwifruit, in tight coordination with fructokinase and UDPglucose pyrophosphorylase.
The superiority of microdissection testicular sperm extraction (mTESE) over conventional TESE (cTESE) for men with non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) is debated. We aimed to compare the sperm ...retrieval rate (SRR) of mTESE to cTESE and to identify candidates who would most benefit from mTESE in a cohort of Caucasian-European men with primary couple's infertility.
Data from 49 mTESE and 96 cTESE patients were analysed. We collected demographic and clinical data, serum levels of LH, FSH and total testosterone. Patients with abnormal karyotyping were excluded from analysis. Age was categorized according to the median value of 35 years. FSH values were dichotomized according to multiples of the normal range (N) (N and 1.5 N: 1-18 mIU/mL, and > 18 mIU/mL). Testicular histology was recorded for each patient. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analyses tested the impact of potential predictors on positive SRR in both groups.
No differences were found between groups in terms of clinical and hormonal parameters with the exception of FSH values that were higher in mTESE patients (p = 0.004). SRR were comparable between mTESE and cTESE (49.0% vs. 41.7%, p = 0.40). SRRs were significantly higher after mTESE in patients with Sertoli cell-only syndrome (SCOS) (p = 0.038), in those older than 35 years (p = 0.03) and with FSH >1.5N (p < 0.001), as compared to men submitted to cTESE. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that mTESE was independent predictor of positive SR in patients older than 35 years (p = 0.002) and with FSH > 1.5N (p = 0.018). Moreover, increased FSH levels (p = 0.03) and both SCOS (p = 0.01) and MA histology (p = 0.04) were independent predictors of SRR failure.
Microdissection and cTESE showed comparable success rates in our cohort of patients with NOA. mTESE seems beneficial for patients older than 35 years, with high FSH values, or when SCOS can be predicted. Given the high costs associated with the mTESE approach, the identification of candidates most likely to benefit from this procedure is a major clinical need.
Background
The Italian Research Group for Gastric Cancer supports the practice of follow-up after radical surgery for gastric cancer.
Methods
This multicenter, retrospective study (1998–2009) ...included patients with T1-4N0-3M0 gastric cancer who had undergone D2 gastrectomy and lymphadenectomy, with at least 15 lymph nodes examined, and who had developed recurrent disease. Timing and site of recurrence were correlated to the actual scheduled follow-up timing and modalities.
Results
From eight centers, 814 patients with recurrent cancer and over 1,754 (46.4 %) patients undergoing gastrectomy were investigated (median follow-up 31 months). The most frequent sites of recurrence were local/regional lymph nodes (35.4 %), liver (24.3 %), peritoneum (30.3 %), lung (10.4 %) and intraluminal (7.5 %). Ninety-four percent of the recurrences were diagnosed within 2 years and 98 % within 3 years. Thoracoabdominal computed tomography (CT) scan and (18)F-fluoro-2-deoxy-
d
-glucose positron emission tomography (18-FDG-PET) detected more than 90 % of recurrences, abdominal ultrasound detected 70 % and tumor markers detected 40 %, while <10 % were identified by physical examination, chest X-ray, and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Twenty-six percent of patients with recurrence were treated, but only 3.2 % were treated with potentially radical intent.
Conclusion
Oncological follow-up after radical surgery for gastric cancer should be focused in the first 3 years, and based mainly on thoracoabdominal CT scan and 18-FDG-PET.
Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors are prototypical G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), members of a large family of 7 transmembrane receptors mediating a wide variety of extracellular signals. We ...show here, in cultured cells and in a murine model, that the carboxyl terminal fragment of the muscarinic M2 receptor, comprising the transmembrane regions 6 and 7 (M2tail), is expressed by virtue of an internal ribosome entry site localized in the third intracellular loop. Single-cell imaging and import in isolated yeast mitochondria reveals that M2tail, whose expression is up-regulated in cells undergoing integrated stress response, does not follow the normal route to the plasma membrane, but is almost exclusively sorted to the mitochondria inner membrane: here, it controls oxygen consumption, cell proliferation, and the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by reducing oxidative phosphorylation. Crispr/Cas9 editing of the key methionine where cap-independent translation begins in human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), reveals the physiological role of this process in influencing cell proliferation and oxygen consumption at the endogenous level. The expression of the C-terminal domain of a GPCR, capable of regulating mitochondrial function, constitutes a hitherto unknown mechanism notably unrelated to its canonical signaling function as a GPCR at the plasma membrane. This work thus highlights a potential novel mechanism that cells may use for controlling their metabolism under variable environmental conditions, notably as a negative regulator of cell respiration.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Low-quality ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) due to recurring artifacts may limit its clinical value. We evaluated the features and impact on BP control and patient management of ABPMs ...performed in Italian community pharmacies, according to their quality.
Twenty-four-hour ABPMs were obtained by a clinically validated, automated upper arm device and uploaded on a certified web-based telemedicine platform (www.tholomeus.net). The system automatically evaluated the quality of the recording according to current guidelines. In case of poor ABPM quality, the pharmacist was prompted to repeat the test. All the ABPMs were labeled as valid or invalid. Demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients and BP control were compared between the two groups.
A total of 45 232 ABPMs were obtained in as many patients through 812 pharmacies (87.7% recordings were valid). Factors significantly associated with a better ABPM quality were younger age, use of antihypertensive medications, presence of at least one cardiovascular risk factor, concomitant disease or treatment, a test performed in the coldest months, and residence in the cooler northern regions of the country. The 24-h and daytime ambulatory BP level and the prevalence of ambulatory hypertension and white-coat hypertension were higher, and the prevalence of masked hypertension lower in patients with valid recordings. High odds of obtaining a valid recording were observed in patients repeating the ABPM.
Ambulatory BP telemonitoring is feasible in community pharmacies as long as potential predictors of unsuccessful outcomes are taken into account and adequately managed.
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