Ticagrelor is a powerful P2Y
inhibitor with pleiotropic effects in the cardiovascular system. Consistently, we have reported that in patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) and concomitant ...chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), 1-month treatment with ticagrelor was superior in improving biological markers of endothelial function, compared with clopidogrel. The objective of this study was to investigate the mechanisms underlying these beneficial effects of ticagrelor by conducting molecular analyses of RNA isolated from peripheral blood cells of these patients. We determined mRNAs levels of markers of inflammation and oxidative stress, such as
(T helper 17 cells marker),
(regulatory T cells marker),
,
,
, Notch ligands
and
and
, a Notch target gene. We found that 1-month treatment with ticagrelor, but not clopidogrel, led to increased levels of
and
mRNAs. In patients treated with ticagrelor or clopidogrel, we observed a negative correlation among changes in both
and
mRNA and serum levels of Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF), a marker of endothelial dysfunction found to be reduced by ticagrelor treatment in our previous study. In conclusion, we report that in stable CAD/COPD patients ticagrelor positively regulates
and
, two genes playing a protective role in the context of inflammation and oxidative stress. Our observations confirm and expand previous studies showing that the beneficial effects of ticagrelor in stable CAD/COPD patients may be, at least in part, mediated by its capacity to reduce systemic inflammation and oxidative stress.
The value of biomarkers in aiding early diagnosis of disease and predicting response to pharmacologic interventions is well known. The idea that biomarkers may also be used to identify and quantify ...pain has been investigated in preclinical and clinical studies. Findings from a preclinical study show that inflammatory pain and neuropathic pain have different biomarkers. Further investigations provided mixed results, on the one hand, cystatin C levels in cerebrospinal fluid appear to be a predictive marker for postherpetic neuralgia in patients with varicella-zoster virus, and a pain marker in women experiencing labour pain, but is not correlated with pain duration or intensity. Investigations into potential biomarkers for chest pain showed that cardiac markers used to aid in diagnosis and prognosis of cardiac disease correlate with tissue damage rather than with pain. Further studies are needed to gain insights into biomarkers for pain to enhance pain management practices.
Background
To investigate the relationship between 1-year outcome and diastolic dysfunction (DD) and frailty and/or physical performance (PP) in older adults admitted to hospital for acute coronary ...syndrome (ACS).
Methods and results
Older (age ≥ 70 years) hospitalized for ACS and receiving coronary artery angiography ± percutaneous coronary intervention were included. Before discharge a complete transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) was performed with the assessment of DD, following the 2016 American Society of Echocardiography/European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging algorithm. Seven different scales of frailty and PP were assessed. The relationship between DD and tests of frailty and PP was investigated, as well as the association with the 1-year occurrence of all-cause death or re-hospitalization. Overall, 329 patients were included in the analysis. Patients were stratified in two groups: DD grade 0–1 versus 2–3. Those with undetermined degree of DD have been excluded by the analysis (n = 106). Mean age of the groups was 77 ± 5 vs 79 ± 6 years, respectively. Scales of frailty and/or PP were significantly poor in patients with DD grade 2–3 compared to the others. After multivariate Cox regression (considering age, female sex, haemoglobin, albumin, clinical presentation, LVEF and SPPB) DD (degree 2–3 vs. 0–1) emerged as an independent predictor of the composite endpoint (HR 1.69, 95%CI 1.04–2.75, p = 0.033). This was mainly driven by 1-year re-hospitalization (HR 2.01, 95%CI 1.22–3.27, p < 0.001).
Conclusions
In older ACS patients the assessment of DD is related to parameters of frailty and PP and it is an independent predictor of 1-year outcome.
•In 2016 a new algorithm for the grading of diastolic disfunction (DD) was released by the ASE/EACVI.•In older patients with ACS from FRASER program, DD is related to frailty and poor physical performance.•DD is an independent predictor of 1-year composite outcome of all-cause death or re-hospitalization.
Il uexillifer Fabio, martire a Cesarea di Mauretania durante la tetrarchia, è noto esclusivamente attraverso fonti letterarie: la Passio, pervenutaci in sei manoscritti; la notizia dei martirologi ...dell'Anonimo lionese, di Floro, di Adone; successivamente confluita nelle Legendae de Sanctis di Pietro Calò e nel Catalogus Sanctorum di Pietro de Natalibus. Non si possiede alcuna testimonianza epigrafica o archeologica del culto reso a questo santo né a Cesarea, dove è stato martirizzato, né a Cartenna, città nella quale sarebbe stato sepolto il suo corpo straziato e trasportato dalle correnti marine.L'edizione qui sottoposta ad analisi critica si basa sulla collazione autoptica del manoscritto E, mai utilizzato precedentemente, e su copie fotografiche e microfilmati degli altri. L'apporto dei codici E e S ha permesso di individuale la presenza di un imoprtante ramo all'interno della seconda famiglia. Della prima edizione nollandiana la presente edizione conserva la punteggiatura e la divisione in capitoli del testo, perché l'indicazione fornita dai condici non è uniforme.
Healthcare contexts are witnessing a growing use of applications to support clinical processes and to communicate between peers and with patients. An increasing number of hospital professionals use ...instant-messaging applications such as WhatsApp in their daily work. Previous research has mainly focused on the advantages and risks of WhatsApp usage in different clinical settings, but limited evidence is available about whether and how individual and organizational determinants can influence the use of WhatsApp in hospitals. Moreover, instruments to explore this phenomenon are lacking. A theoretical four-factor model based on the 'Technology Acceptance Model' and the Institutional Theory, guided the development of a new measure of the individual and institutional determinants of WhatsApp usage in hospitals.
To develop and psychometrically test the questionnaire 'Digital Innovation Adoption in Hospitals'.
A panel of researchers and clinical experts generated an initial pool of 35 items by identifying and adapting items from existing measures. These items were assessed for content and face validity by fourteen experts. The final 28-item 'Digital Innovation Adoption in Hospitals' questionnaire comprising four sections (Perceived risks, Perceived usefulness, Regulative factors and Normative factors) was administered online to nurses and physicians. Construct validity was tested through confirmatory factor analysis.
The sample included 326 hospital nurses and physicians. The theoretical four-factors model was confirmed and the confirmatory factor analysis yielded acceptable fit indexes. The correlations between the factors were significant and ranged from -0.284 to 0.543 (p < .01). Reliability in terms of internal consistency was satisfactory with Cronbach's alpha coefficient ranging from 0.918-0.973.
This study is the first to provide a validated tool to evaluate the use of WhatsApp in hospitals. The new instrument shows reasonable psychometric properties and is a promising and widely applicable measure of factors that influence the use of WhatsApp in hospitals.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Multi-species fish products are a growing market segment driven by several inputs, including urbanization, modern lifestyles and the availability of new technologies. These products are characterized ...by the absence of species-related morphological traits, as well as by the use of discards or fish waste as ingredients, that cannot be traced using a classical molecular approach. This historic inability to identify ingredients, coupled with a rather lean list of mandatory information required by current legislation, make these products the perfect target for substitution fraud. New molecular tools are now available to overcome this gap, such as the metabarcoding approach which can be used to trace species from complex food matrices. In this study, we used such an approach to sequence a fragment of 16S rRNA mitochondrial gene from 20 multispecies processed seafood products, sold on the Italian market and including breaded, burger and surimi, in order to evaluate mislabelling rates and formulate hypotheses regarding the potential drivers of fraudulent activities. Our results highlighted the presence of 120 marine taxa with an overall mislabelling rate of 45%, including some low-abundance taxa not included in the current Italian legislation, found mainly in the surimi samples. The presence of Tetraodontidae and swine DNA raise concerns regarding consumer safety and protection with regard to ethical or religious issues, as well the inclusion of undeclared molluscs potentially causing allergies. The high number of low-frequency taxa confirms the inclusion of discards and fish waste, doubtless positive for sustainable fisheries, but also boosting profits for the fish industry. Such practice, however, without an adequate labelling and traceability system, is a source of risk for consumers and marine ecosystems. In this context, a revision of national and international food safety legislation is needed; indeed, metabarcoding assessments can provide useful information to stakeholders and act as the future operational tool for inspective monitoring.
•NGS metabarcoding is powerful tool for multi-species fish products authentication.•High number of taxa are contained as ingredients in multi-species fish products.•Tetraodontidae and swine presence poses implications for the consumer protection.•In absence of control, the use of discards and fish waste can include risks.•A revision of food safety legislation for these products is needed.
Seafood fraud involves mislabeling and false claims. To avoid this deceptive practice, authentication techniques, including DNA-based methods, have been developed. These techniques detect fraud, ...ensure accurate labeling, and maintain product integrity, aiding in species identification, verifying origins, and promoting industry transparency.
This review aims to provide a detailed list of approaches for the authenticity of mackerel species due to the prevalence of mislabeling and substitution. Utilizing techniques like DNA, we can identify Scomber species by analyzing specific genetic markers. This work advances the evaluation of existing molecular markers through in silico simulations, while also purposing novel primers designed for a more accurate authentication of processed mackerel products.
With advances in techniques, we are seeing significant advances in food authentication methods. DNA barcoding has seen substantial evolution, thanks to improvements in databases and NGS sequencing technologies. The advent of DNA metabarcoding is also revolutionizing species identification in highly processed seafoods. Using more comprehensive primers in Metabarcoding can enhance the assessment of scombrid products. In recent times, SNP-based approaches with microfluidic enrichment, DNA-based biosensors and microbiome sequencing techniques have emerged as key tools for assessing the authenticity and identifying the origins of seafood products.
•Global mackerel seafood labelling discrepancies affect consumer transparency•Molecular techniques refine Scomber species identification•NGS advancements enhance seafood mackerel authentication for fraud detection•DNA barcoding is crucial for fraud detection and ensures mackerel authenticity•In silico evaluation: DNA metabarcoding for Scomber species
The market for canned mackerel is growing due to their competitive price and to the excellent properties of the meat. However, the weak rules of current legislation, coupled with the loss of ...discrimination power due to being obliged to use short barcode regions, open up new challenges for traceability in processed products. In this study, for the first time, we applied a two-step mini-barcoding approach to identify canned mackerel sold in Italian markets and make assumptions on the potential drivers of mislabelling. Preliminary identification was performed using mini-barcode universal primers targeting a COI-fragment; then, in order to discriminate within the complex Scomber colias/S. japonicus/S. australasicus, we applied a second step, using new specific primers designed in the mitochondrial control region (D-loop). Comparison between labels and molecular identifications highlighted that the chance of mislabelling could be either 45% or 0%, depending on the interpretation of the generic terms used on the labels. Therefore, the study revealed that the ambiguous use, in the ingredient list, of ‘umbrella’ terms for naming fish species, such as ‘sgombro’ could be related to geographic origin of products and creates opportunities for fraudulent activities, but also misleads consumers. In light of this pattern, an urgent update of European legislation is needed to face current and future challenges for full chain traceability.
Comprehensive studies of the biodiversity of the microbial epilithic community on monuments may provide critical insights for clarifying factors involved in the colonization processes. We carried out ...a high-throughput investigation of the communities colonizing the medieval church of San Leonardo di Siponto (Italy) by Illumina-based deep sequencing. The metagenomic analysis of sequences revealed the presence of Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya. Bacteria were
Actinobacteria
,
Proteobacteria
,
Bacteroidetes
,
Cyanobacteria
,
Chloroflexi
,
Firmicutes
and
Candidatus Saccharibacteria.
The predominant phylum was
Actinobacteria
, with the orders
Actynomycetales
and
Rubrobacteriales
, represented by the genera
Pseudokineococcus
,
Sporichthya
,
Blastococcus
,
Arthrobacter
,
Geodermatophilus
,
Friedmanniella
,
Modestobacter
, and
Rubrobacter
, respectively
.
Cyanobacteria sequences showing strong similarity with an uncultured bacterium sequence were identified. The presence of the green algae
Oocystaceae
and
Trebuxiaceae
was revealed
.
The microbial diversity was explored at qualitative and quantitative levels, evaluating the richness (the number of operational taxonomic units (OTUs)) and the abundance of reads associated with each OTU. The rarefaction curves approached saturation, suggesting that the majority of OTUs were recovered. The results highlighted a structured community, showing low diversity, made up of extremophile organisms adapted to desiccation and UV radiation. Notably, the microbiome appeared to be composed not only of microorganisms possibly involved in biodeterioration but also of carbonatogenic bacteria, such as those belonging to the genus
Arthrobacter
, which could be useful in bioconservation. Our investigation demonstrated that molecular tools, and in particular the easy-to-run next-generation sequencing, are powerful to perform a microbiological diagnosis in order to plan restoration and protection strategies.
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