Heparin binding induced supramolecular chirality into the self-assembly of perylenediimide bolaamphiphile.

Chirality is one of the hallmarks of biomolecules. Herein, we utilize heparin, a chiral biomolecule and potent drug, to induce chiral organization into the assembly of an achiral molecule. Polyanionic heparin binds with a dicationic perylenediimide derivative to induce supramolecular helical organization in aqueous medium as well as in a highly competitive cell culture medium.

Evaluating the long term effectiveness of a Mediterranean marine protected area to tackle the effects of invasive and range expanding herbivorous fish on rocky reefs.

Here we provide evidence, along an 8-year period time-series based on multifaceted data from a Mediterranean marine protected area (MPA), whether protection can tackle invasive and range expanding herbivore fishes, and their effects on the algal resource availability, taking into account the population trends of predatory fishes, fisheries catches of herbivore fishes and sea surface temperature (SST) through time. Our findings pointed out that an ineffective in restoring top-down control process MPA may facilitate, rather than alleviate, the sudden and enduring population burst of invasive and range-expanding herbivorous fishes at tipping points of abrupt change. This subsequently results in the deterioration of rocky reef habitats and the depletion of algal resources, with the tipping points of abrupt change for algal and herbivore fish species not overlapping chronologically.

Intense scuba diving does not alter activity patterns of predatory reef fish: Evidence from a protected tourism hotspot.

The rise of nature-based tourism has provided a new avenue for disturbing animal behaviour, especially in protected areas. One of the most important tourism sectors in aquatic environments is scuba diving, an activity considered sustainable given its non-extractive nature and capability of bringing relevant socio-economic benefits to local communities. However, knowledge about its impact on the activity patterns of aquatic animals is still scarce.

The role of mesotherapy in the management of spinal pain. A randomized controlled study.

Background: Mesotherapy is a technique through which active ingredients are administered into the thickness of the skin in order to increase the local analgesic effect.

Methods: 141 patients with spinal pain not responding to systemic therapy with NSAIDs were randomized to receive one or more intra-cutaneous drugs on a weekly basis.

Results: All patients achieved a pain reduction of at least 50% compared to baseline, and all tolerated the therapy without having to resort to systemic drug dose increases.

The influence of interradicular anatomy on the predictability of periodontal regenerative therapy of furcation defects: a retrospective, multicenter clinical study.

Background: The relationship between the anatomy of the interradicular space and success in regenerative therapy of furcation defects is discussed in this paper. The goal of this retrospective, multicenter clinical study is to clinically evaluate the relationship between the interradicular conformation and regenerative therapy success with the use of a novel measurement method.

Methods: One hundred thirty-eight radiographs of mandibular molars with furcation defects that had been treated with regenerative therapy were collected from six clinical centers.

Radiographic ratios for classifying furcation anatomy: proposal of a new evaluation method and an intra-rater and inter-rater operator reliability study.

Objectives: Even if it seems to be an important anatomical parameter for tissue regeneration, few studies in literature evaluate the "mean measure" of root divergence. Most of them are linear measurements, which hardly describe the dental furcation conformation in its entirety. It is left to the subjectivity of the operator deciding whether a furcation is convergent or divergent.

Caught in Action: Visualizing Dynamic Nanostructures Within Supramolecular Systems Chemistry.

Supramolecular systems chemistry has been an area of active research to develop nanomaterials with life-like functions. Progress in systems chemistry relies on our ability to probe the nanostructure formation in solution. Often visualizing the dynamics of nanostructures which transform over time is a formidable challenge.

Positive predictive values and outcomes for uninformative cell-free DNA tests: An Italian multicentric Cytogenetic and cytogenomic Audit of diagnOstic testing (ICARO study).

Objectives: To establish the positive predictive values (PPV) of cfDNA testing based on data from a nationwide survey of independent clinical cytogenetics laboratories.

Methods: Prenatal diagnostic test results obtained by Italian laboratories between 2013 and March 2020 were compiled for women with positive non-invasive prenatal tests (NIPT), without an NIPT result, and cases where there was sex discordancy between the NIPT and ultrasound. PPV and other summary data were reviewed.

Small-scale fisheries catch more threatened elasmobranchs inside partially protected areas than in unprotected areas.

Elasmobranchs are heavily impacted by fishing. Catch statistics are grossly underestimated due to missing data from various fishery sectors such as small-scale fisheries. Marine Protected Areas are proposed as a tool to protect elasmobranchs and counter their ongoing depletion.

Erratum to "Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) in a 6-year-old child with nephrotic syndrome" [Radiology Case Reports 16 (2021) 140-144].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.radcr.

Reprogrammed Schwann Cells Organize into Dynamic Tracks that Promote Pancreatic Cancer Invasion.

Unlabelled: Nerves are a component of the tumor microenvironment contributing to cancer progression, but the role of cells from nerves in facilitating cancer invasion remains poorly understood. Here we show that Schwann cells (SC) activated by cancer cells collectively function as tumor-activated Schwann cell tracks (TAST) that promote cancer cell migration and invasion. Nonmyelinating SCs form TASTs and have cell gene expression signatures that correlate with diminished survival in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

12q21 Interstitial Deletions: Seven New Syndromic Cases Detected by Array-CGH and Review of the Literature.

Interstitial deletions of the long arm of chromosome 12 are rare, with a dozen patients carrying a deletion in 12q21 being reported. Recently a critical region (CR) has been delimited and could be responsible for the more commonly described clinical features, such as developmental delay/intellectual disability, congenital genitourinary and brain malformations. Other, less frequent, clinical signs do not seem to be correlated to the proposed CR.

Study of Inter- and Intra-varietal Genetic Variability in Grapevine Cultivars.

includes a large number of cultivars that are further distinguished in biotypes and clones, and it is actually hard to differentiate them, even through complex molecular techniques. In this work, the plant materials of 56 putative Sangiovese and 14 putative Montepulciano biotypes, two of the most widespread black-berried Italian cultivars, were collected in different wine-growing areas of Italy distributed in 13 regions, from north to south. Firstly, the samples were analyzed using SSR markers to have proper varietal identification.

Supramolecular systems chemistry through advanced analytical techniques.

Supramolecular chemistry is the quintessential backbone of all biological processes. It encompasses a wide range from the metabolic network to the self-assembled cytoskeletal network. Combining the chemical diversity with the plethora of functional depth that biological systems possess is a daunting task for synthetic chemists to emulate.

An integrated assessment of the Good Environmental Status of Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas.

Local, regional and global targets have been set to halt marine biodiversity loss. Europe has set its own policy targets to achieve Good Environmental Status (GES) of marine ecosystems by implementing the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) across member states. We combined an extensive dataset across five Mediterranean ecoregions including 26 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), their reference unprotected areas, and a no-trawl case study.

Quotas regulation is necessary but not sufficient to mitigate the impact of SCUBA diving in a highly visited marine protected area.

When effectively managed, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) can produce wide ecosystem benefits that can foster, directly and indirectly, local economies. Tourism is one of the sectors mainly benefited by the effect of conservation. SCUBA diving represents an important tourism activity, especially in the context of MPAs, where it is one of the few activities often fostered rather than limited, for its capacity to integrate environmental and socio-economic sustainability.

Nanoscale Wetting of Single Viruses.

The epidemic spread of many viral infections is mediated by the environmental conditions and influenced by the ambient humidity. Single virus particles have been mainly visualized by atomic force microscopy (AFM) in liquid conditions, where the effect of the relative humidity on virus topography and surface cannot be systematically assessed. In this work, we employed multi-frequency AFM, simultaneously with standard topography imaging, to study the nanoscale wetting of individual Tobacco Mosaic virions (TMV) from ambient relative humidity to water condensation (RH > 100%).

Cytotoxic lymphocytes target characteristic biophysical vulnerabilities in cancer.

Immune cells identify and destroy tumors by recognizing cellular traits indicative of oncogenic transformation. In this study, we found that myocardin-related transcription factors (MRTFs), which promote migration and metastatic invasion, also sensitize cancer cells to the immune system. Melanoma and breast cancer cells with high MRTF expression were selectively eliminated by cytotoxic lymphocytes in mouse models of metastasis.

Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) in a 6-year-old child with nephrotic syndrome.

Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is a variable etiology clinical syndrome with similar neuroimaging results and clinical symptoms. PRES can develop in both adults and children and is characterized by headaches, disorders of consciousness, seizures and especially focal visual disturbances, often associated with hypertensive state. In most cases, symptoms resolve without neurological consequences.

Environmental DNA effectively captures functional diversity of coastal fish communities.

Robust assessments of taxonomic and functional diversity are essential components of research programmes aimed at understanding current biodiversity patterns and forecasting trajectories of ecological changes. Yet, evaluating marine biodiversity along its dimensions is challenging and dependent on the power and accuracy of the available data collection methods. Here we combine three traditional survey methodologies (underwater visual census strip transects [UVCt], baited underwater videos [BUV] and small-scale fishery catches [SSFc]), and one novel molecular technique (environmental DNA metabarcoding [eDNA]-12S rRNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 [COI]) to investigate their efficiency and complementarity in assessing fish diversity.

Spatial mapping of the collagen distribution in human and mouse tissues by force volume atomic force microscopy.

Changes in the elastic properties of living tissues during normal development and in pathological processes are often due to modifications of the collagen component of the extracellular matrix at various length scales. Force volume AFM can precisely capture the mechanical properties of biological samples with force sensitivity and spatial resolution. The integration of AFM data with data of the molecular composition contributes to understanding the interplay between tissue biochemistry, organization and function.