Nine archaeological bituminous potsherds from the Neolithic of Maliq and Kamnik (5000–4500 BCE) in Albania were geochemically compared for the first time to four natural asphalts from the famous ...present-day mine of Selenicë. The bitumen on potsherds originates from Selenicë, a unique source in Albania and the southern Balkans. Carbon isotopes on the asphaltene chromatographic fraction confirm that the bitumen on the potsherds came from Selenicë. Carbon and hydrogen isotopes on saturates, aromatics, NSO, and asphaltenes show changes that may be due to biodegradation-oxidation effects and also the occurrence of organic remains from the content of the vessels mixed with bitumens. Steranes, terpanes, and aromatics confirm the increased biodegradation of bitumen on potsherds when compared to natural asphalts references.
Introduction
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Albanian authorities declared mandatory stay-at-home measures, closing businesses, schools and public places.
Objectives
To investigate the impact of ...these immediate changes on the mental wellbeing of the population.
Methods
Respondents (N=1678) from 18 to 60 years old were selected through a convenient sampling method. Questionnaires were administered online reporting time spent daily in the COVID-19 topic and genealities; the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7.
Results
Findings suggest a significant negative correlation between age and anxiety scoring (r
(n=1678)
=-.121, p≤.001) and age and depression scoring (r
(n=1678)
=-.232, p≤.001), shown also on the ANOVA test for age and anxiety (F=6.019, p≤.05) and age and depression (F=20.326, p≤.05). Differences on the level of education resulted in a lower score of anxiety and depression respectively (F=3.524, p≤.05), (F=7.739, p≤.05) on respondents with higher education. Those who were jobless from the pandemic scored higher on anxiety and depression respectively (F=9.760, p≤.05) (M=6.21, ds=4.686) and (F=16.051, p≤.05) (M=8.18, ds=5.791). Significant differences were found related to different amounts of time spent on the COVID-19 topic, respectively for anxiety and depression (F=25.736, p≤.001), (F=5.936, p≤.003), with people who spend less than 1 hour scoring higher on depression (M=7.57, ds= 5.849) and those who spend more than 3 hours scoring higher on anxiety (M=6.76, ds=5.60).
Conclusions
Higher education individuals, having a job and being in a romantic relationship relate to lower levels of depression during Covid-19 quarantine in Albania. Spending more time on the COVID-19 topic daily and being a female relate to higher level of anxiety.
Disclosure
No significant relationships.
Highlights • Large prospective multi-center study of an automatic seizure detection system including 205 patients. • Comparison between two automatic seizure detection systems using the same ...prospectively recorded dataset. • Performance numbers on the publicly available CHB–MIT dataset and on 310 retrospective patients datasets.
Many Mendelian disorders, such as Huntington's disease (HD) and spinocerebellar ataxias, arise from expansions of CAG trinucleotide repeats. Despite the clear genetic causes, additional genetic ...factors may influence the rate of those monogenic disorders. Notably, genome-wide association studies discovered somewhat expected modifiers, particularly mismatch repair genes involved in the CAG repeat instability, impacting age at onset of HD. Strikingly,
, previously unrelated to repeat instability, produced the strongest HD modification signals. Diverse
haplotypes independently modify HD, with rare genetic variants diminishing DNA binding or nuclease activity of the FAN1 protein, hastening HD onset. However, the mechanism behind the frequent and the most significant onset-delaying
haplotype lacking missense variations has remained elusive. Here, we illustrated that a microRNA acting on 3'-UTR (untranslated region) SNP rs3512, rather than transcriptional regulation, is responsible for the significant
expression quantitative trait loci signal and allelic imbalance in
messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), accounting for the most significant and frequent onset-delaying modifier haplotype in HD. Specifically, miR-124-3p selectively targets the reference allele at rs3512, diminishing the stability of
mRNA harboring that allele and consequently reducing its levels. Subsequent validation analyses, including the use of antagomir and 3'-UTR reporter vectors with swapped alleles, confirmed the specificity of miR-124-3p at rs3512. Together, these findings indicate that the alternative allele at rs3512 renders the
mRNA less susceptible to miR-124-3p-mediated posttranscriptional regulation, resulting in increased FAN1 levels and a subsequent delay in HD onset by mitigating CAG repeat instability.
Background and aim: Heart failure (HF) is a major and growing health problem characterized by high mortality, frequent hospitalization, reduced quality of life and a complex therapeutic regimen. Six ...minute walking test (6-MWT) may serve as a reproducible test for assessing exercise capacity in HF patients and can be clinically predicted. The aim of this study was to assess clinical, biochemical and echocardiographical predictors of limited exercise capacity in HF patients.
Methods: The study subjects were 135 consecutive clinically stable HF patients (64±11 years, 66 47% female, classified as NYHA I-III). Echocardiography, including tissue Doppler measurements, was performed in all patients. A six minute walk test (6-MWT) distance was performed in all patients, who were divided into two groups based on the 6-MWT distance (Group I: ≤ 300 m and Group II: >300 m).
Results: Patients with limited exercise performance (≤ 300 m) were older (p<001), more frequent female (p=0.007) and diabetics (p=0.003), had lower level of hemoglobin (p=0.02), larger left atrium (LA, p=0.003), higher basal heart rate (p=0.009), higher E/e’ ratio (p=0.01) and lower septal systolic myocardial velocity (p=0.03) compared with good performance patients. Enlarged LA 2.856 (1.439-5.666), p=0.003, older age 1.110 (1.036-1.188), p=0.003, increased basal heart rate 1.055 (1.012-1.099), p=0.012 and the presence of diabetes 3.321 (1.022-10.796), p=0.046 independently predicted poor 6-MWT performance.
Conclusions: In patients with HF, the limited exercise capacity assessed by 6-MWT, is related mostly to the enlarged left atrium as e reflection of longstanding increased left ventricular filling pressure, increased basal heart rate, in addition to the older age and the presence of diabetes. These findings highlights the need of the optimal medical treatment of HF patients towards the decreasing LV filling pressure and heart rate.
Background and Aim: Quality of life is as important as survival in heart failure (HF) patients. Controversies exist with regards to echocardiographic predictors of exercise capacity in HF, ...particularly in patients with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). The aim of this study was to prospectively examine echocardiographic parameters that correlate and predict functional exercise capacity assessed by 6 min walk test (6-MWT) in patients with HFpEF.
Methods: In 111 HF patients (mean age 63± 10 years, 47% female), an echo-Doppler study and a 6-MWT were performed in the same day. Patients were divided into two groups based on the 6-MWT distance (Group I: ≤ 300 m and Group II: >300 m).
Results: Group I were older (p=0.008), had higher prevalence of diabetes (p=0.027), higher baseline heart rate (p=0.004), larger left atrium - LA (p=0.001), longer LV filling time - FT (p=0.019), shorter isovolumic relaxation time (p=0.037), shorter pulmonary acceleration time - PAAT (p=0.006), lower left atrial lateral wall myocardial velocity (a’) (p=0.018) and lower septal systolic myocardial velocity (s’) (p=0.023), compared with Group II. Patients with HF and reduced EF (HFrEF) had lower hemoglobin (p=0.007), higher baseline heart rate (p=0.005), higher NT-ProBNP (p=0.001), larger LA (p=0.004), lower septal s’, e’, a’ waves, and septal MAPSE, shorter PAAT (p < 0.001 for all), lower lateral MAPSE, higher E/A & E/e’, and shorter LVFT (p=0.001 for all), lower lateral e’ (p=0.009), s’ (p=0.006), RV e’ and LA emptying fraction (p=0.012 for both), compared with HFpEF patients. In multivariate analysis, only LA diameter 2.676 (1.242-5.766), p=0.012, and diabetes 0.274 (0.084 - 0.898), p=0.033 independently predicted poor 6-MWT performance in the group as a whole. In HFrEF, age 1.073 (1.012 - 1.137), p=0.018 and LA diameter 3.685 (1.348 - 10.071), p=0.011, but in HFpEF, lateral s’ 0.295 (0.099 - 0.882), p=0.029, and hemoglobin level 0.497 (0.248-0.998), p=0.049 independently predicted poor 6-MWT performance.
Conclusion: In HF patients predictors of exercise capacity differ according to severity of overall LV systolic function, with left atrial enlargement in HFrEF and longitudinal systolic shortening in HFpEF as the the main predictors.
Summary
The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of diastolic dysfunction of the left ventricle (LV) and of the right ventricle in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) without clinically ...evident cardiovascular manifestations and to estimate whether there is a correlation between the duration of RA and the degree of LV diastolic dysfunction.
The study included 81 patients (61 females and 20 males) with RA without clinically evident heart disease (group 1) and 40 healthy subjects (29 females and 11 males) who served as a control group (group 2). Both groups were matched for age and sex. Echocardiographic and Doppler studies were conducted in all patients with RA and control subjects.
There were significant differences between patients with RA vs. control group with regard to early diastolic flow velocity (E), atrial flow velocity (A) and the E/A ratio (0.68 ± 0.19 m/s vs. 0.84 ± 0.14 m/s, p < 0.001; 0.73 ± 0.15 m/s vs. 0.66 ± 0.13 cm/s, p = 0.01; and 0.97 ± 0.3 vs. 1.32 ± 0.37, p < 0.001, respectively). There was significant difference between groups regarding the right ventricular early diastolic (Er)/atrial (Ar) flow velocities (Er/Ar ratio) (1.07 ± 0.3 vs. 1.26 ± 0.3, p = 0.002). There was a weak correlation between transmitral E/A ratio and the duration of RA (r = − 0.22, p = 0.001). Myocardial performance index (MPI) appeared to differ little in patients with RA as compared with control group (0.51 ± 0.1 vs. 0.52 ± 0.2, p = NS).
In patients with RA without clinically evident cardiovascular disease, the left ventricular diastolic function and the right ventricular diastolic function are reduced. Left ventricular wall thickness, dimensions, systolic function and MPI were found to be normal. LV diastolic function had a weak correlation with the duration of RA.
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