Fostering environmental sustainability of leather industry: environmental impact assessment and improvement prospects for leather-tanning technologies.

Because of various negative impacts of chromium intensive manufacturing, the leather-based fashion industry is under pressure to use environmentally friendly tanning technologies. However, there is a lack of scientific research that evaluates the environmental impacts of novel tanning processes. Thus, this study is aimed to quantify and compare the environmental impacts of traditional chromium-based process and a novel metal-free tanning technology.

Canonical and atypical chemokine receptors in the neutrophil life cycle.

Chemokines are mainly studied for their local function in the control of leukocyte extravasation in homeostatic and inflammatory conditions. However, they have additional roles at the systemic level including the regulation of the hematopoietic process and leukocyte differentiation. Due to the redundancy and pleiotropicity of the chemokine system, chemokines have often multiple and complex roles in neutrophil differentiation ranging from retention and control of proliferation of progenitors to the mobilization of mature cells from the bone marrow (BM) to the bloodstream and their further differentiation in tissues.

miR-21 sustains CD28 signalling and low-affinity T-cell responses at the expense of self-tolerance.

Objective: miR-21 is highly expressed in iNKT and activated T cells, but its T-cell autonomous functions are poorly defined. We sought to investigate the role of miR-21 in the development and functions of T and iNKT cells, representing adaptive and innate-like populations, respectively.

Methods: We studied mice with a conditional deletion of miR-21 in all mature T lymphocytes.

Multiple Roles for Chemokines in Neutrophil Biology.

Chemokines are recognized as the most critical mediators for selective neutrophil recruitment during inflammatory conditions. Furthermore, they are considered fundamental regulators of neutrophil mobilization from the bone marrow (BM) to the bloodstream and for their homing back at the end of their life for apoptosis and clearance. However, chemokines are also important mediators of neutrophil effector functions including oxidative burst, degranulation, neutrophil extracellular trap (NET)osis, and production of inflammatory mediators.

The Spectrum of Small Intestinal Lesions in Patients with Unexplained Iron Deficiency Anemia Detected by Video Capsule Endoscopy.

: Video-capsule endoscopy (VCE) has shown a large range (38⁻83%) of diagnostic yield in unexplained iron deficiency anemia (IDA) and obscure-occult bleeding. Therefore, we retrospectively investigated the VCE-detected spectrum and the prevalence of small bowel injuries and associated risk factors in inpatients with both of the above reported conditions. : We selected inpatients with IDA (hemoglobin <12 g/dL in women, <13 g/dL in men) and obscure-occult bleeding.

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Prevalence and Risk Factors.

Background: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is common in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Herein, NAFLD prevalence and risk factors in a large IBD cohort were evaluated and compared to that of a non-IBD sample.

Methods: Crohn's disease/ulcerative colitis outpatients referred to IBD service of our Gastroenterology Unit were enrolled.

Endothelial function and cardiovascular risk in active inflammatory bowel diseases.

Background: Endothelial dysfunction has been already reported in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). However, case series so far examined were rather heterogeneous as for disease severity and subsets investigated.

Objective: We evaluated endothelial dysfunction by brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilatation (FMD), and subclinical atherosclerosis by assessment of common carotid intima-media thickness (CCA-IMT) in a cohort of patients with Crohn's disease (CD) or Ulcerative colitis (UC) in active phase compared to healthy control subjects.

Dietary, endocrine, and metabolic factors in the development of colorectal cancer.

Introduction: Colorectal cancer is the third cause of death in industrialized countries. Genetic susceptibility and diet are determinant of cancer risk and tumor behavior. Variation in cancer incidence among and within populations with similar dietary patterns suggests that an individual response may reflect interactions with genetic factors, which may modify gene, protein, and metabolite expression patterns.