HBDI‐like chromophores represent a novel set of biomimetic switches mimicking the fluorophore of the green fluorescent protein that are currently studied with the hope to expand the molecular ...switch/motor toolbox. However, until now members capable of absorbing visible light in their neutral (i. e. non‐anionic) form have not been reported. In this contribution we report the preparation of an HBDI‐like chromophore based on a 3‐phenylbenzofulvene scaffold capable of absorbing blue light and photoisomerizing on the picosecond timescale. More specifically, we show that double‐bond photoisomerization occurs in both the E‐to‐Z and Z‐to‐E directions and that these can be controlled by irradiating with blue and UV light, respectively. Finally, as a preliminary applicative result, we report the incorporation of the chromophore in an amphiphilic molecule and demonstrate the formation of a visible‐light‐sensitive nanoaggregated state in water.
Exploiting the conjugation of the 3‐phenyl benzofulvene scaffold, we prepared a new HBDI‐like chromophore capable of absorbing blue light and photoisomerizing in the picosecond timescale. The PEGylation of this photoswitch lead to a visible light‐sensitive amphiphilic molecule capable of self‐assembly in water to give a spherical nanoaggregated structure.
The dynamic interaction between cations and doped conductive polymer is at the basis of the working principles of organic electrochemical transistor devices. In this letter, we describe a theoretical ...model for the transport of saline ions in an electrolyte under the influence of an external voltage in a dynamic regime. We show how this scheme can be used to derive the time varying response and current generated by a conductive PEDOT:PSS polymer based OECT device interacting with those ions. The simulated output of the system displays a very high sensitivity on the parameters of the process including charge, size and concentration of the ions, and the frequency of operation of the device. The proposed model can be used to analyze the activity of an OECT device to derive the physical characteristics of individual species in a solution.
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•Developed a theoretical model for charge transport in OECT under alternate external voltage in dynamic regime.•Dynamic regime can be used to derive time varying response generated by PEDOT:PSS OECT devices.•Simulated output of the system displays high sensitivity on ions charge, size and concentration, and on device frequency.•Proposed model analyzes the activity of OECT devices to derive physical characteristics of individual species in a solution.
Axonal polyneuropathy is the main feature of hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv). Nerve morphological abnormalities have been reported, but longitudinal changes have never been assessed. We ...performed a prospective widespread nerve ultrasound evaluation and nerve cross-sectional area (CSA) was compared with baseline data in both ATTRv patients and pre-symptomatic carriers. Thirty-eight subjects were evaluated (mean follow-up 17.1 months), among them 21 had polyneuropathy while 17 were pre-symptomatic carriers. CSA significantly increased at brachial plexus in both groups (
p
= 0.008 and
p
= 0.012) pointing to progressive brachial plexus enlargement as a longitudinal biomarker of both disease progression and disease occurrence in pre-symptomatic carriers.
BackgroundLong‐term administration of TDF/ETV in patients with HBV‐related compensated cirrhosis reduces HCC and decompensation events but the effect of this regimen on development/regression of ...oesophageal varices (EV) is currently unknown.AimTo assess the risk of EV development/progression in this population.MethodsA total of 186 Caucasian HBV‐monoinfected compensated cirrhotics were enrolled in a long‐term cohort study from TDF/ETV introduction. Upper GI endoscopies were performed according to Baveno recommendations. Primary endpoint was development/progression of oesophageal/gastric varices over time.ResultsAt TDF/ETV start, median age was 61 years, 80% males, 60% HBV‐DNA undetectable, 63% NUCs previously exposed, 73% normal ALT, 40% platelets <150,000/mmc and 25 (13%) with low‐risk varices (LRV). During 11 years of antiviral therapy and 666 endoscopies performed, 9 patients either developed or had a progression of oesophageal or gastric varices with an 11‐year cumulative probability of 5.1% (95% CI 3–10%); no patient bled. Out of 161 patients without EV at baseline, the 11‐year probably was 4.5% with all varices developing within the first six years of treatment. In 25 patients with LRV at baseline, the 11‐year probability of progression or regression was 9.3% and 58%, respectively. Only baseline platelet count (HR 0.96, p = 0.028) was associated with LRV development at multivariate analysis: platelet ≤90,000/mmc (AUROC 0.70) had 98.1% specificity, 42.9% sensitivity, 50% PPV for LRV onset.ConclusionsIn compensated cirrhotic patients under long‐term effective TDF/ETV treatment, the 11‐year risk of developing/progressing EV is negligible, thus challenging the current endoscopic surveillance recommendations in patients without EV at baseline.
•Chest CT in COVID-19 is a crucial element for patient management.•Radiology reports should convey CT data clearly and comprehensively.•Conventional reports show heterogeneous quality.•Structured ...reports meet the preferences of referring physicians.
To assess clinician satisfaction with structured (SR) and conventional (CR) radiological reports for chest CT exams in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, objectively comparing both reporting strategies.
We retrospectively included 68 CTs (61 patients) with COVID-19. CRs were collected from the digital database while corresponding SRs were written by an expert radiologist, including a sign checklist, severity score index and final impressions. New CRs were prepared for a random subset (n = 10) of cases, to allow comparisons in reporting time and word count. CRs were analyzed to record severity score and final impressions inclusion. A random subset of 40 paired CRs and SRs was evaluated by two clinicians to assess, using a Likert scale, readability, comprehensiveness, comprehensibility, conciseness, clinical impact, and overall quality.
Overall, 19/68 (28 %) and 9/68 (13 %) of CRs included final impressions and severity score, respectively. SR writing required significantly (p < 0.001) less time (mean = 308 s; SD ± 60 s) compared to CRs (mean = 458 s; SD ± 72 s). On the other hand, word count was not significantly different (p = 0.059, median = 100 and 106, range = 106–139 and 88–131 for SRs and CRs, respectively). Both clinicians expressed significantly (all p < 0.01) higher scores for SRs compared to CRs in all categories.
Our study supports the use of chest CT SRs in COVID-19 patients to improve referring physician satisfaction, optimizing reporting time and provide a greater amount and quality of information within the report.
We provide here normative values of yearly percentage brain volume change (PBVC/y) as obtained with Structural Imaging Evaluation, using Normalization, of Atrophy, a widely used open-source software, ...developing a PBVC/y calculator for assessing the deviation from the expected PBVC/y in patients with neurological disorders. We assessed multicenter (34 centers, 11 acquisition protocols) magnetic resonance imaging data of 720 healthy participants covering the whole adult lifespan (16–90 years). Data of 421 participants with a follow-up > 6 months were used to obtain the normative values for PBVC/y and data of 392 participants with a follow-up <1 month were selected to assess the intrasubject variability of the brain volume measurement. A mixed model evaluated PBVC/y dependence on age, sex, and magnetic resonance imaging parameters (scan vendor and magnetic field strength). PBVC/y was associated with age (p < 0.001), with 60- to 70-year-old participants showing twice more volume decrease than participants aged 30–40 years. PBVC/y was also associated with magnetic field strength, with higher decreases when measured by 1.5T than 3T scanners (p < 0.001). The variability of PBVC/y normative percentiles was narrower as the interscan interval was longer (e.g., 80th normative percentile was 50% smaller for participants with 2-year than with 1-year follow-up). The use of these normative data, eased by the freely available calculator, might help in better discriminating pathological from physiological conditions in the clinical setting.
•Normative values of brain volume changes over the lifespan are produced.•Yearly percentage of brain volume changes in old subjects was twice as higher than in young subjects.•Yearly percentage of brain volume changes depends on the magnetic field strength.•Normative percentiles are narrower as the interscan interval is longer.•Online freely available calculator for normative brain volume changes is provided.
ObjectiveTo explore the impact of antithrombotic therapy discontinuation in the postacute phase of cervical artery dissection (CeAD) on the mid-term outcome of these patients.MethodsIn a cohort of ...consecutive patients with first-ever CeAD, enrolled in the setting of the multicentre Italian Project on Stroke in Young Adults Cervical Artery Dissection, we compared postacute (beyond 6 months since the index CeAD) outcomes between patients who discontinued antithrombotic therapy and patients who continued taking antithrombotic agents during follow-up. Primary outcome was a composite of ischaemic stroke and transient ischaemic attack. Secondary outcomes were (1) Brain ischaemia ipsilateral to the dissected vessel and (2) Recurrent CeAD. Associations with the outcome of interest were assessed by the propensity score (PS) method.ResultsOf the 1390 patients whose data were available for the outcome analysis (median follow-up time in patients who did not experience outcome events, 36.0 months (25th–75th percentile, 62.0)), 201 (14.4%) discontinued antithrombotic treatment. Primary outcome occurred in 48 patients in the postacute phase of CeAD. In PS-matched samples (201 vs 201), the incidence of primary outcomes among patients taking antithrombotics was comparable with that among patients who discontinued antithrombotics during follow-up (5.0% vs 4.5%; p(log rank test)=0.526), and so was the incidence of the secondary outcomes ipsilateral brain ischaemia (4.5% vs 2.5%; p(log rank test)=0.132) and recurrent CeAD (1.0% vs 1.5%; p(log rank test)=0.798).ConclusionsDiscontinuation of antithrombotic therapy in the postacute phase of CeAD does not appear to increase the risk of brain ischaemia during follow-up.
Highlights • 13% of all patients affected by MS may be potential candidates for ITB therapy. • ITB has demonstrated benefit for patients at all stage of MS. • Few studies to date have analyzed ITB ...long-term outcomes in MS patients. • Long-term ITB therapy represent a significant asset in MS patient’s management.
V122I is one of more than 130 mutations in transthyretin gene associated with hereditary TTR (ATTRv) amyloidosis. Main clinical expression is an infiltrative pseudohypertrophic cardiomyopathy with ...mild or no neurological symptoms. It is particularly common among African‐Americans (prevalence: 3%‐4%). We report 12 subjects from seven unrelated Caucasian families hailing from Sicily and carrying the V122I mutation. One patient was homozygous for V122I and in another family two subjects also carried the E89Q variant in compound heterozygosity. All the subjects underwent neurologic/neurophysiologic evaluation and cardiologic baseline tests; in five of them, cardiac magnetic resonance and/or (99 m) Tc‐DPD scintigraphy were performed. Three of 12 subjects were asymptomatic carriers. Of the remaining nine subjects, in four of nine patients, the nerve conduction studies revealed a polyneuropathy; in one of them, this represents the only sign of disease after 5 years of follow‐up. In eight of nine subjects, we found a hypertrophic restrictive cardiomyopathy and cardiac failure, associated with a carpal tunnel syndrome. Although in non‐Afro‐American individuals V122I prevalence is low, subjects carrying this mutation have been identified in the United Kingdom, Italy, and France. Our report describes a large cohort of V122I Caucasian patients from a non‐endemic area, confirming the possible underestimation of this mutation in the non‐African population. Moreover, it highlights the heterogeneity in the genotype‐phenotype correlation of ATTRv mutations, suggesting that the presence of a polyneuropathy has to be identified as soon as possible, since available treatments are, in Europe, so far authorized only for ATTRv amyloid peripheral neuropathy.
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