Clipping Effect on the Grain Nitrogen and Protein Fractions of Ancient and Old Wheats Grown in a Mediterranean Environment.

This study is the first to assess the effects of clipping, cultivar, season, and their interactions on the protein composition of six old and ancient wheat cultivars (n = 6). For this, nitrogen content, the proportion of wheat protein fractions, and the molecular weight distribution of the extractable and unextractable glutenin polymers were investigated as a function of cultivar and clipping in two consecutive seasons. The relationships between genotypic variation in grain nitrogen and protein fraction content under clipping and non-clipping conditions were also assessed.

N Partitioning between Gluten Fractions in a Set of Italian Durum Wheat Cultivars: Role of the Grain N Content.

Grain protein content constitutes a key quality trait for durum wheat end-products and may also impact grain protein composition. A total of sixteen durum wheat cultivars were analyzed in a field trial during two seasons at two nitrogen (N) levels to evaluate whether and to what extent the variation in total grain N was associated with variation in the quantity of the various protein fractions and grain quality parameters. Genotypic variation in grain N content correlated with the variation in the content of all three protein fractions, although the strength of the correlation with gliadin and albumin-globulin was higher than that with glutenins.

Is the Technological Quality of Old Durum Wheat Cultivars Superior to That of Modern Ones When Exposed to Moderately High Temperatures during Grain Filling?

The growing interest in old durum wheat cultivars, due to enhanced consumer attention on healthy, traditional products and low-input agricultural systems, partly relies on their different quality characteristics compared to modern cultivars. Nine Italian durum wheat cultivars from different breeding periods were compared in two late-sown (January) field trials in order to subject their grain filling period to high temperatures similar to those expected in the future. Late sowing moved anthesis forward by about 10 days and increased the mean temperature during grain filling by 1.

From seed to bread: variation in quality in a set of old durum wheat cultivars.

Background: Old durum wheat varieties are being appreciated again because of their interesting genetic diversity and low fertilizer needs.

Results: The agronomic and bread-making performances of 14 old Italian durum wheat varieties grown under two low nitrogen (N) inputs (46 and 86 kg ha ) were determined and the relationships among grain, semolina, dough and bread quality parameters were established. The old varieties yielded similarly to the check modern variety Svevo under both N levels.

From ancient to old and modern durum wheat varieties: interaction among cultivar traits, management, and technological quality.

Following the boom in durum wheat breeding, ancient wheat disappeared from the human diet and old durum wheat varieties were replaced by what is believed to be their better versions: higher yielding modern varieties grown in high-input systems. Breeders have worked intensely ever since to improve the quality of durum wheat traits - mainly gluten subunit alleles - to obtain superior technological quality in the main durum wheat end products (first pasta and then bread) but conflicts about predicting their quality still exist. This is because quality is neither governed by one trait alone nor conditioned by a single controllable factor.

Postoperative cognitive dysfunction and short-term neuroprotection from blueberries: a pilot study.

Background: General anesthesia may be a risk factor for post-operative cognitive impairment, which could be counteracted by neuroprotective compounds. The aims of this study were to determine cognitive functions impaired by general anesthesia and to test blueberry juice as a neuroprotective agent against neuropsychological dysfunctions induced by general anesthesia.

Methods: Twenty-six patients undergoing elective major surgery were randomized into two groups, receiving either 500 mL/day of blueberry juice within 14 preoperative days (G1) or to a control group (G0).

Environmental and Genetic Variation for Yield-Related Traits of Durum Wheat as Affected by Development.

Phenology has a profound effect on adaptation and productivity of crops. The impact of phenology on tillering and fertility traits of durum wheat ( L. subsp.

Lung Ultrasound Pattern Is Normal during the Last Gestational Weeks: An Observational Pilot Study.

Background/aims: The normal lung ultrasound (US) pattern during a regular pregnancy has not been evaluated extensively in the current literature. Pregnancy-related changes in the respiratory tract affect maternal predisposition to several respiratory complications; consequently, it is important to differentiate between a physiologic pattern during pregnancy and a pathologic lung pattern, due to respiratory failure. The goal of our study was to assess the normal US lung pattern in women without known comorbidities in the last weeks of pregnancy.

Polymyxin B Direct Hemoperfusion Using Regional Citrate-Calcium Anticoagulation: A Case Report.

Direct hemoperfusion with polymyxin B (PMX-DHP) is an extracorporeal treatment to add to conventional therapy during unresponsive endotoxic septic shock. So far, only heparin has been used as an anticoagulant during polymyxin B therapy. We present a case report of a postsurgical septic patient treated with 2 cycles of PMX-DHP using citrate anticoagulation.

Clinical Performance and Safety of Closed-Loop Systems: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Automated systems can improve the stability of controlled variables and reduce the workload in clinical practice without increasing the risks to patients. We conducted this review and meta-analysis to assess the clinical performance of closed-loop systems compared with manual control. Our primary outcome was the accuracy of closed-loop systems in comparison with manual control to maintain a given variable in a desired target range.

Transversus abdominal plane block for postoperative analgesia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized-controlled trials.

Purpose: The transversus abdominal plane (TAP) block has been described as an effective pain control technique after abdominal surgery. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) to account for the increasing number of TAP block studies appearing in the literature. The primary outcome we examined was the effect of TAP block on the postoperative pain score at six, 12, and 24 hr.

Coupled plasma filtration adsorption improves hemodynamics in septic shock.

Purpose: Septic shock involves a dysregulation of the immune response to an infection. This may lead to hemodynamic dysfunction and multiple-organ failure. The main aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of coupled plasma filtration adsorption (CPFA) on the hemodynamic profile in patients with septic shock.

A novel system for automated propofol sedation: hybrid sedation system (HSS).

Closed-loop systems for propofol have been demonstrated to be safe and reliable for general anesthesia. However, no study has been conducted using a closed-loop system specifically designed for sedation in patients under spinal anesthesia. We developed an automatic anesthesia sedation system that allows for closed-loop delivery of propofol for sedation integrating a decision support system, called the hybrid sedation system (HSS).

Tradeoffs between Maize Silage Yield and Nitrate Leaching in a Mediterranean Nitrate-Vulnerable Zone under Current and Projected Climate Scenarios.

Future climatic changes may have profound impacts on cropping systems and affect the agronomic and environmental sustainability of current N management practices. The objectives of this work were to i) evaluate the ability of the SALUS crop model to reproduce experimental crop yield and soil nitrate dynamics results under different N fertilizer treatments in a farmer's field, ii) use the SALUS model to estimate the impacts of different N fertilizer treatments on NO3- leaching under future climate scenarios generated by twenty nine different global circulation models, and iii) identify the management system that best minimizes NO3- leaching and maximizes yield under projected future climate conditions. A field experiment (maize-triticale rotation) was conducted in a nitrate vulnerable zone on the west coast of Sardinia, Italy to evaluate N management strategies that include urea fertilization (NMIN), conventional fertilization with dairy slurry and urea (CONV), and no fertilization (N0).

Rapid reversal of severe lactic acidosis after thiamine administration in critically ill adults: a report of 3 cases.

Background: Thiamine plays a critical role in energy metabolism. Critically ill patients may have thiamine deficiency and increased mortality due to potentially irreversible consequences. The aim of this study was to show the impact of thiamine deficiency in a series of patients and the rapid response to thiamine replacement, showing the changes in clinical and metabolic conditions over time.

Genetic variation for the duration of pre-anthesis development in durum wheat and its interaction with vernalization treatment and photoperiod.

A recombinant inbred durum wheat population was grown under three contrasting regimes: long days following vernalization (LDV), long days without vernalization (LD), and short days following vernalization (SDV). The length of several pre-anthesis stages and the number of leaves and the phyllochron were measured. Different groups of genes were involved in determining the phenology in the three treatments, as demonstrated by a quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis.

Xenon-related analgesia: a new target for pain treatment.

The noble gas xenon has been known for >50 years in the field of anesthesia with an emerging series of favorable features; several clinical and preclinical studies performed over the last years reveal a renewed interest because they substantially agree on attributing relevant analgesic properties to xenon. The main mechanism of action is the inhibition of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors of glutamate; it involves the blocking of painful stimuli transmissions from peripheral tissues to the brain and it also avoids the development of pain hypersensitivity. Therefore, this mechanism is responsible for the inhibition of pain transmission at spinal and supraspinal levels, as well as the cortical level.

Lung water assessment by lung ultrasonography in intensive care: a pilot study.

Objective: To investigate the accuracy of lung ultrasonography (LUS) in the quantification of lung water in critically ill patients by using quantitative computed tomography (CT) as the gold standard for the determination of lung weight.

Methods: Twenty consecutive patients admitted to an intensive care unit who underwent chest CT as a step in their clinical management were evaluated within 4 h by LUS. Lung weight, lung volume, and physical lung density were calculated from the CT scans using ad hoc software.

[Lung ultrasound imaging of H1N1 influenza].

We describe the case of a 8 year-old child with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) during H1N1 swine flu. Lung ultrasound performed at the time of admission showed a typical ARDS ultrasound pattern, with multiple sonographic signs of interstitial oedema (also known as B-lines or ultrasound lung comets), and diffuse bilateral sub-pleural lung consolidations. After five days of anti-viral therapy, lung ultrasound showed a reduction of the dimension of consolidations, not clearly visible at chest X-ray, helping in the management of the patient.

Evaluation of a preoperative pain score in response to pressure as a marker of postoperative pain and drugs consumption in surgical thyroidectomy.

Introduction: The success and effectiveness of a day surgery model are essentially related to a good postoperative course with a rapid recovery. Adequate management of analgesia during the hospital stay and after discharge becomes mandatory in reducing postoperative patient discomfort, and in facilitating discharge to home.

Background: The aim of this study was to identify the efficacy of preoperative visual analog scale (VAS) score in predicting postoperative pain and analgesic drugs consumption.

Environmental conditions affect semolina quality in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. durum L.) cultivars with different gluten strength and gluten protein composition.

Background: Sowing time may impact semolina and pasta cooking quality by changing the environmental conditions during grain filling. The effect of an optimum and a delayed sowing time on semolina quality was studied by comparing six cultivars under irrigation, in order to isolate temperature from drought effects.

Results: Protein content was higher in the old cultivars and in the late sowings, according to the number of days with temperature between 30 and 40 °C during ripening.

Antioxidant and neuroprotective properties of blueberry polyphenols: a critical review.

Objective: The aim of this work was to highlight the effects and the possible mechanisms of the action of blueberry polyphenols on the central nervous system (CNS).

Methods: An analysis was carried out, in a temporal order, of the most important literature about this topic and the results have been correlated with the beneficial and protective effects, mainly concerning the CNS.

Discussion: Over the last 10 years an increasing scientific interest has developed about polyphenols, which are very abundant in blueberries, as they have been seen to produce favourable effects related to neuroprotection and linked to a possible decrease of age-related cognitive and motor decline, as shown by the improvement of such functions in animal models with a supplemented diet.

Role of thrombolestagrophy in monitoring perioperative coagulation status and effect of thromboprophylaxis in bariatric surgery.

Background: Thromboelastography is a technique that surveys the properties of viscoelastic blood clot. The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the hypercoagulability state and the effect of antithrombotic prophylaxis on thromboelastogram (TEG) results in bariatric surgery.

Methods: Twenty-five patients enrolled received 0.