The effects of hyperbaric oxygen therapy were studied in nine patients with non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy, who had been unsatisfactorily treated with corticosteroids. In four ...patients with signs of optic disc atrophy there was no improvement of visual functions after hyperbaric oxygen treatment, whereas in the other five patients, who had no signs of optic disc atrophy, visual acuity and visual field improved. The achieved improvements were maintained at a control examination six months later. Results suggest that hyperbaric oxygen might be a new remedy for the selected cases of non-arteritic ischaemic optic neuropathy and call for a controlled clinical study aiming to accurately assess its efficacy.
Ispitivani su učinci tretmana hiperbaričnim kisikom u devet bolesnika s nearteritičinim oblikom prednje ishemične optikoneuropatije, koji su prethodno liječeni kortikosteroidima bez uspjeha. U četiri ...bolesnika sa znakovima atrofije optičkog diska, nakon tretmana hiperbaričnim kisikom, nije nađeno nikakvo poboljšanje vidnih funkcija, dok je u ostalih pet, bez znakova atrofije optičkog diska, ustanovljeno poboljšanje oštrine vida i vidnog polja. Ova poboljšanja nađena su i na kontrolnom pregledu nakon šest mjeseci. Rezultati ispitivanja sugeriraju hiperbaričnu oksigenaciju kao moguć način liječenja selekcioniranih slučajeva nearteritičnog oblika ishemične optikoneuropatije, kao i kontrolirani klinički pokus, radi egzaktnijeg utvrđivanja efikasnosti hiperbarične oksigenacije u ovih bolesnika.
The aim of the study is to assess the value of function tests of the autonomic nervous system in open-angle glaucoma by testing the cardiovascular reflexes and pupil cycle time. The experimental ...group consisted of 19 glaucoma subjects with controlled intraocular pressure. The control group consisted of 20 healthy volunteers. The Valsalva test has proven to be considerably accurate in the assertion of autonomic dysfunction (p < 0.05). Pupil cycle time was significantly prolonged (p < 0.001). These results confirm the role of autonomic dysfunction in open-angle glaucoma.
Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, recurrent, inflammatory skin disease deriving from the hair follicles. The formation of inflammatory nodules, abscesses, fistulas, and sinus tracts is ...characterized by a large inflow of key pro-inflammatory mediators, such as IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-1, IL-17, and IL-12/23. Adalimumab is currently the only Food and Drug Administration (FDA)- and European Medicines Agency (EMA)-approved biologic therapy for moderate to severe HS in adults and adolescents. However, the long-term effectiveness of this TNF-α inhibitor in HS patients has shown to be highly variable. This review aims to review the evidence for emerging therapies that target the main pro-inflammatory cytokines in HS pathogenesis. A review of the literature was conducted, using the PubMed and Google Scholar repositories, as well as Clinicaltrials.gov. Presently, the most promising biologics in phase III trials are anti-IL-17 antibodies, secukinumab, and bimekizumab. Furthermore, an anti-IL-1 biologic, bermekimab, is currently in phase II trials, and shows encouraging results. Overall, the clinical efficacies of all new targeted therapies published up to this point are limited. More studies need to be performed to clarify the precise molecular pathology, and assess the efficacy of biological therapies for HS.
Posljednjih nekoliko godina svjedočimo uzletu populističke radikalne desnice kako diljem Europe tako i u Hrvatskoj. Na parlamentarnim izborima održanim 2020. populistička radikalna desnica ...ostvarila je najbolji rezultat u samostalnoj Hrvatskoj. Ipak, spomenuta problematika dosad je nedovoljno istražena u hrvatskoj znanstvenoj bibliografiji. Cilj rada je doprinijeti razumijevanju spomenutog fenomena prostornom analizom izbornog rezultata Domovinskog pokreta, najjače stranke populističke radikalne desnice u Hrvatskoj, na parlamentarnim izborima 2020. Istraživanje se temelji na usporedbi četiri statističke metode (OLS, LISA, GWR i MGWR). Rezultati su pokazali ograničenja globalnog modela prilikom objašnjavanja uspjeha Domovinskog pokreta s jedne te prednosti korištenja geografski ponderirane regresije s druge strane. Analiza sugerira da su razina procijepljenosti cjepivom protiv bolesti COVID-19 i religijska opredijeljenost najsnažniji prediktori glasovanja za Domovinski pokret.
In the last few years, we are witnessing a resurgence of populist radical rightwing parties all over Europe as well as in Croatia. In the 2020 parliamentary elections in Croatia, populist radical right parties achieved the best overall result since the Croatian independence. However, in Croatian scientific bibliography there are very few studies regarding that topic. The aim of the paper is to examine the geography of support for the Homeland Movement, the strongest populist radical right party in Croatia. The research is based on the comparison between the results of four statistical methods (OLS, LISA, GWR, MGWR). Results have shown limitations of global models and benefits of employing multiscale and geographically weighted models. Analysis points to COVID-19 vaccination rate followed by religiosity as the most vital factors explaining the voting for the Homeland Movement.
The limited availability of phosphate, nitrogen and silicon in the growth media affects the growth, cellular processes, and metabolism of diatoms. Silicon deficiency primarily affects diatom ...morphology, while phosphate deficiency reduces the production of nucleic acids and phospholipids. Differences in pigment and protein composition are mainly due to nitrogen deficiency. In this study, Chaetoceros socialis and Chaetoceros costatus were cultured under phosphate, nitrogen, and silicon deprivation conditions. The diatom biomass was collected during the stationary growth phase and extracted with 70% ethanol under ultrasonication. The chemical profiles of the extracts were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry with electrospray ionisation (UHPLC-ESI-HRMS), while the antioxidant capacity was determined by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assays. Pigments, fatty acids, sterols, and derivatives were detected in both species. The total phenolic content in the extracts ranged from 46.25 ± 1.08 to 89.38 ± 6.21 mg of gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/L and from 29.58 ± 1.08 to 54.17 ± 1.18 mg GAE/L. for C. costatus and C. socialis, respectively. Antioxidant activity was higher in C. costatus extracts, especially those obtained from nitrogen-deprived media. The results of this study contribute to the existing knowledge and the ongoing efforts to overcome application and commercialization barriers of microalgae for wide-ranging potential in different industries.
, the golden chanterelle, is the second most-collected wild edible mushroom in Europe and very frequently harvested in Croatia. Wild mushrooms have been considered a healthy food since ancient times ...and are today highly valued for their beneficial nutritional as well as medicinal properties. Since golden chanterelle is added to different food products to improve their nutritive value, we studied the chemical profile of aqueous extracts of golden chanterelle (at 25 °C and 70 °C) and their antioxidant and cytotoxic activities. Malic acid, pyrogallol and oleic acid were some of the main compounds identified by GC-MS from derivatized extract.
-Hydroxybenzoic acid, protocatechuic acid and gallic acid were the most abundant phenolics quantitatively determined by HPLC, with somewhat higher amounts for samples extracted at 70 °C. Antioxidant activity was determined by ferric reducing antioxidant power assay and oxygen radical absorption method, and the highest results were recorded for golden chanterelle extracted at 70 °C, being 41.54 ± 1.54 and 38.72 ± 2.47 µM TE/L, respectively. Aqueous extract at 25 °C showed the better response against human breast adenocarcinoma MDA-MB-231 (IC
= 375µg/mL). Our results confirm the beneficial effect of golden chanterelle even under aqueous extraction conditions and highlight its significance as a dietary supplement and in the development of new beverage products.
The total antioxidant potential of a sample cannot be predicted from the antioxidant activity of its compounds; thus, scientists usually explain the overall activity through their combined effects ...(synergistic, antagonistic, or additive). Phenolic compounds are one of the most powerful and widely investigated antioxidants, but there is a lack of information about their molecular interactions. This study aimed to investigate the individual and combined antioxidant activity of equimolar mixtures (binary, ternary, quaternary, and quinary) of 10 phenolic acids (protocatechuic, gentisic, gallic, vanillic, syringic, p-coumaric, caffeic, ferulic, sinapic, and rosmarinic acid) at different concentrations using ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assays. Gallic acid showed the highest antioxidant activity, determined using the FRAP assay (494–5033 µM Fe2+) and rosmarinic acid with the ORAC assay (50–92 µM Trolox Equivalents (TE)), while the lowest antioxidant potential was observed for p-coumaric acid (FRAP 24–113 µM Fe2+ and ORAC 20–33 µM TE). The synergistic effect (by FRAP) in the equimolar mixtures of hydroxybenzoic acids was confirmed for a large number of tested mixtures, especially at low concentrations. All mixtures containing gentisic acid showed a synergistic effect (28–89% difference). Using the ORAC method, only two mixtures of hydroxybenzoic acids showed an antagonistic effect, namely a mixture of gentisic + syringic acids (−24% difference) and gallic + vanillic acids (−30% difference), while all other mixtures showed a synergistic effect in a range of 26–236% difference. Among mixtures of hydroxycinnamic acids, the highest synergistic effect was observed for the mixtures of p-coumaric + ferulic acids and caffeic + sinapic acids with differences of 311% and 211%, respectively. The overall antioxidant activity of phenolic acids could be explained by the number or position of hydroxyl and/or methoxy functional groups as well as the compound concentration, but the influence of other parameters such as dissociation, intramolecular hydrogen bonds, and electron donating or withdrawing effect should not be neglected.
Over the last few decades, isolations and chemical characterizations of secondary metabolites with proved biological activities have been of interest for numerous research groups across the world. ...Phenolics, as one of the largest and most widely distributed group of phytochemicals, have gained special attention due to their pharmacological activity and array of health-promoting benefits. Reports on phenolic potentials of marine algae, especially brown algae (Pheophyceae) that are characterized by the presence of phlorotannins, are still scarce. The aim of this review paper is to provide an overview of current knowledge about phenolic potential of different brown algae species (74 species from 7 different orders). Studies on brown algae phenolics usually involve few species, thus the focus of this review is to provide information about the phenolic potential of reported algae species and to get an insight into some issues related to the applied extraction procedures and determination/quantification methods to facilitate the comparison of results from different studies. The information provided through this review should be useful for the design and interpretation of studies investigating the brown algae as a source of valuable phytochemicals.
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