We present a long-term assessment of precipitation trends in Southwestern Europe (1850-2018) using data from multiple sources, including observations, gridded datasets and global climate model ...experiments. Contrary to previous investigations based on shorter records, we demonstrate, using new long-term, quality controlled precipitation series, the lack of statistically significant long-term decreasing trends in precipitation for the region. Rather, significant trends were mostly found for shorter periods, highlighting the prevalence of interdecadal and interannual variability at these time-scales. Global climate model outputs from three CMIP experiments are evaluated for periods concurrent with observations. Both the CMIP3 and CMIP5 ensembles show precipitation decline, with only CMIP6 showing agreement with long term trends in observations. However, for both CMIP3 and CMIP5 large interannual and internal variability among ensemble members makes it difficult to identify a trend that is statistically different from observations. Across both observations and models, our results make it difficult to associate any declining trends in precipitation in Southwestern Europe to anthropogenic forcing at this stage.
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•High-intensity ultrasound (HIU) before freezing produced intense and bright yellow-orange tones.•The post-freezing application of HIU produced pale red tones with little ...brightness.•HIU before freezing accelerates rigor mortis resolution.•HIU before freezing improve the tenderness of rabbit meat.•HIU after freezing decreased the WHC and yield (weigh loss) of the meat.
High intensity ultrasound (HIU) is a technique with the potential to improve meat quality, however, more research is needed on its application within the chain of cold storage and freezing. This study evaluates the effect of HIU (40 kHz, 9.6 W/cm2, 20 and 40 min) and post-mortem development on the yield and physicochemical quality of rabbit meat in samples treated with HIU pre- and post-storage in a freezer (120 h at −20 °C). Twenty rabbit carcasses were vacuum packed 12 h post-mortem, placed in a fridge at 4 °C for 24 h, and divided in two groups (HIU application before or after freezing), before assigning the treatments. The results show that HIU before freezing produced intense and bright orange-yellow colours, whereas its application after freezing resulted in pale red tones. HIU application accelerates rigor mortis resolution when it is applied before freezing and causes a significant decrease in pH immediately following the HIU treatment. Post-freezing application of HIU is not recommended because it considerably increased weight loss and toughening of the meat when long exposure times were used (40 min). In contrast, a short treatment duration with HIU mitigated the effects of freezing and produced significant increases in water-holding capacity (WHC) after cold storage. The yield (weight loss) of the rabbit meat was not affected when HIU was applied pre-freezing. The application of HIU pre-freezing constitutes a promising technology because it increased the tenderness and the WHC of rabbit meat. However, more research is needed to improve the appearance before scaling up to industrial levels.
The most frequent phenotypes of dysferlin myopathy are limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2B (LGMD2B) and Miyoshi myopathy (MM). Our objective was to find clinical or MRI markers to differentiate ...phenotypes of dysferlin myopathy regardless of initial symptoms.
This retrospective study included 29 patients with confirmed mutations in the DYSF gene (14 MM, 12 LGMD2B, 1 asymptomatic hyperCKemia, and 2 symptomatic carriers). All underwent an annual clinical examination (Medical Research Council scale), functional status assessment, and creatine kinase, pulmonary, and cardiac testing. For research purposes, we performed lower limb MRI studies in all 29 patients to identify the pattern of muscle impairment and to quantify involvement. Statistical correlations between MRI findings and phenotype, disease duration, and functional status were determined.
The mean clinical follow-up was 6.4 +/- 5.7 years. No significant differences were found in the rate of progression, functional prognosis, or mutations between patients with MM and patients with LGMD2B. The MRI pattern of muscle involvement was the same for patients with MM and patients with LGMD2B. The adductor magnus and gastrocnemius medialis were the first to be impaired in both phenotypes. The progression of muscle involvement correlated with clinical status.
Splitting dysferlin myopathy into separate phenotypes does not reveal significant differences in terms of rate of progression, prognosis, genotype, or MRI pattern. The finding that proximal and distal muscles are already impaired in the MRI at onset in both MM and LGMD2B favors grouping all phenotypes under the term dysferlin myopathy.
Dietary intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) may have a protective effect on the development of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, depression and cancer, while a high intake of n-6 PUFA ...was often reported to be associated with inflammation-related traits. The effect of PUFAs on health outcomes might be mediated by DNA methylation (DNAm). The aim of our study is to identify the impact of PUFA intake on DNAm in the Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (KORA) FF4 cohort and the Leiden Longevity Study (LLS).
DNA methylation levels were measured in whole blood from the population-based KORA FF4 study (N = 1354) and LLS (N = 448), using the Illumina MethylationEPIC BeadChip and Illumina HumanMethylation450 array, respectively. We assessed associations between DNAm and intake of eight and four PUFAs in KORA and LLS, respectively. Where possible, results were meta-analyzed. Below the Bonferroni correction threshold (p < 7.17 × 10
), we identified two differentially methylated positions (DMPs) associated with PUFA intake in the KORA study. The DMP cg19937480, annotated to gene PRDX1, was positively associated with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in model 1 (beta: 2.00 × 10
, 95%CI: 1.28 × 10
-2.73 × 10
, P value: 6.98 × 10
), while cg05041783, annotated to gene MARK2, was positively associated with docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) in our fully adjusted model (beta: 9.80 × 10
, 95%CI: 6.25 × 10
-1.33 × 10
, P value: 6.75 × 10
). In the meta-analysis, we identified the CpG site (cg15951061), annotated to gene CDCA7L below Bonferroni correction (1.23 × 10
) associated with eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) intake in model 1 (beta: 2.00 × 10
, 95% CI: 1.27 × 10
-2.73 × 10
, P value = 5.99 × 10
) and we confirmed the association of cg19937480 with DHA in both models 1 and 2 (beta: 2.07 × 10
, 95% CI: 1.31 × 10
-2.83 × 10
, P value = 1.00 × 10
and beta: 2.19 × 10
, 95% CI: 1.41 × 10
-2.97 × 10
, P value = 5.91 × 10
respectively).
Our study identified three CpG sites associated with PUFA intake. The mechanisms of these sites remain largely unexplored, highlighting the novelty of our findings. Further research is essential to understand the links between CpG site methylation and PUFA outcomes.
According to WHO statistics, breast cancer (BC) disease represents about 2.3 million diagnosed and 685,000 deaths globally. Regarding histological classification of BC, the Estrogen (ER) and ...Progesterone (PR) receptors negative-expression cancer, named Triple-Negative BC (TNBC), represents the most aggressive type of this disease, making it a challenge for drug discovery. In this context, our research group, applying a well-established Virtual Screening (VS) protocol, in addition to docking and molecular dynamics simulations studies, yielded two ligands identified as 6 and 37 which were chemically synthesized and evaluated on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cancer cell lines. Strikingly, 37 assayed on MDA-MB-231 (a TNBC cell model) depicted an outstanding value of 18.66 μM much lower than 65.67 μM yielded by Gossypol Bcl-2 inhibitor whose main disadvantage is to produce multiple toxic effects. Highlighted above, enforce the premise of the computational tools to find new therapeutic options against the most aggressive forms of breast cancer, as the results herein showed.
Objectives. To determine the outcome predictors of in-hospital mortality in acute total occlusion of the left main coronary artery (ATOLMA) patients referred to emergent angioplasty and to describe ...the clinical presentation and the long-term outcome of these patients. Background. ATOLMA is an uncommon angiographic finding that usually leads to a catastrophic presentation. Limited and inconsistent data have been previously reported regarding true ATOLMA, yet comprehensive knowledge remains scarce. Methods. This is a multicenter retrospective cohort that includes patients presenting with myocardial infarction due to a confirmed ATOLMA who underwent emergency percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Results. In the period of the study, 7930 emergent PCI were performed in the five participating centers, and 46 of them had a true ATOLMA (0.58%). At admission, cardiogenic shock was present in 89% of patients, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation was required in 67.4%. All the patients had right dominance. Angiographic success was achieved in 80.4% of the procedures, 13 patients (28.2%) died during the catheterization, and the in-hospital mortality rate was 58.6% (27/46). At one-year and at the final follow-up, 18 patients (39%) were alive, including four cases successfully transplanted. Multivariate analysis showed that postprocedural TIMI flow was the only independent predictor of in-hospital mortality (OR 0.23, (95% CI 0.1–0.36), p<0.001). Conclusions. Our study confirms that the clinical presentation of ATOLMA is catastrophic, presenting a high in-hospital mortality rate; nevertheless, primary angioplasty in this setting is feasible. Postprocedural TIMI flow resulted as the only independent predictor of in-hospital mortality. In-hospital survivors presented an encouraging outcome. ATOLMA and left dominance could be incompatible with life.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The biodegradation of organic compounds present in water at trace concentration has become a critical environmental problem. In particular, enzymatic oxidation by fungal laccases offers a promising ...alternative for efficient and sustainable removal of organic pollutants in water. In this work, the biocatalytic ability of laccases from the
Pycnoporus sanguineus
CS43 fungus was evaluated. A filtered culture supernatant (laccase cocktail) evidenced an enhanced biotransformation capability to remove common endocrine-disruptor compounds (EDCs), such as bisphenol A, 4-nonylphenol, 17-α-ethynylestradiol and triclosan. A biodegradation of around 89–100 % was achieved for all EDCs using synthetic samples (10 mg L
−1
) and after the enzymatic treatment with 100 U L
−1
(50.3 U mg
−1
). The biodegradation rates obtained were fitted to a first order reaction. Furthermore, enzymatic biocatalytic activity was also evaluated in groundwater samples coming from northwestern Mexico, reaching biotransformation percentages between 55 and 93 % for all tested compounds. As far as we know this is the first study on real groundwater samples in which the enzymatic degradation of target EDCs by a laccase cocktail from any strain of
Pycnoporus sanguineus
was evaluated. In comparison with purified laccases, the use of cocktail offers operational advantages since additional purification steps can be avoided.
Bioactive compounds from medicinal plants have applications in the development of functional foods. However, since they are unstable, encapsulation is used as a conservation alternative. This work ...aimed to assess the bioactive properties (antioxidant and hypoglycemic) of different extracts, including the infusion, as well as their spray-dried microencapsulates from
leaves. A factorial design was proposed to determine the best extraction conditions, based on ABTS and DPPH inhibition. Maltodextrin (MD), arabic gum (AG), and a 1:1 blend (MD:AG) were used as encapsulating agents. Moreover, characterization through physicochemical properties, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the best two powders based on the bioactive properties were analyzed. The results showed that the combination of stirring, water, and 5 min provided the highest inhibition to ABTS and DPPH (35.64 ± 1.25 mg Trolox/g d.s. and 2.77 ± 0.01 g Trolox/g d.s., respectively). Spray drying decreased the antioxidant activity of the extract while preserving it in the infusion. The encapsulated infusion with MD:AG had the highest hypoglycemic activity as it presented the lowest glycemic index (GI = 47). According to the results, the microencapsulates could potentially be added in foods to enhance nutritional quality and prevent/treat ailments.
Abstract Objectives and background Patients with aortic stenosis (AS) may have impaired coronary flow reserve (CFR) despite angiographically normal coronary arteries. This is the first report of ...invasive thermodilution-derived CFR and IMR in patients with AS and their associations with echocardiographic parameters for AS assessment. Methods Thirty-six consecutive severe AS patients and ten patients without AS underwent prospectively cardiac catheterization and coronary physiological parameters were determined in the left anterior descending (LAD). Mean transit time (Tmn), a surrogate of absolute coronary flow, was obtained from the coronary thermodilution curve. Results In AS patients we found a high LAD flow at rest (Tmnrest 0.55 ± 0.3 vs 0.99 ± 0.4, p = 0.01) and a low flow at hyperemia (Tmnhyp 0.44 ± 0.2 vs 27.7 ± 0.1, p = 0.02) and consequently a severe CFR impairment (1.4 ± 0.4 vs 3.8 ± 1.4, p < 0.001) compared with controls. An elevated index of microvascular resistance (IMR) (32.7 ± 16 vs 17.8 ± 6.5, p = 0.01) and a low baseline microvascular coronary resistance (48.1 ± 29 vs 84 ± 34, p = 0.02) were also found. In AS patients there were significant correlations between CFR and left ventricular mass index (r = − 0.32; p = 0.02), and the ratio of acceleration time to ejection time (AT/ET) (r = − 0.4; p = 0.01) a non-flow dependent echocardiographic parameter for AS assessment. Multiple linear stepwise regression analysis showed that AT/ET (β = − 0.441, p = 0.019) was the only independently variable associated with CFR Conclusions In severe AS, invasive CFR shows a progressive decrease with AS severity and a good correlation with echocardiographic parameters of AS, especially with flow-independent ones.
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