Publications by authors named "Marco M"

Lacto-fermented fruits and vegetables (FVs) such as kimchi, sauerkraut, and fermented olives and nonalcoholic juices have a long history as dietary staples. Herein, the production steps and microbial ecology of lacto-fermented FVs are discussed alongside findings from human and laboratory studies investigating the health benefits of these foods. Lacto-fermented FVs are enriched in bioactive compounds, including lactic and acetic acids, phenolic compounds, amino acid derivatives such as indole-3-lactic acid, phenyl-lactic acid, γ-aminobutyric acid, and bacteriocins, and beneficial live microbes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The mountain context represents a suitable setting for promoting health. In view of the Olympic Games, which are expected to take place in the Dolomites area in 2026, the outdoor Alpine environment must continue to meet all the health and safety requirements. Our recent experience, implemented in this area since summer 2024 through the Prevention Department of the Local Health Authority ULSS 1 Dolomiti, aims to encourage multi-sector preventive public health policies, in order to improve the "Shelters" ("rifugi", in Italian) hygiene, to strengthen the safety requirements, and to implement preventive projects.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Functional brain changes such as altered cerebral blood flow occur long before the onset of clinical symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurodegenerative disorders. While cerebral hypoperfusion occurs in established AD, middle-aged carriers of genetic risk factors for AD, including APOE ε4, display regional hyperperfusion due to hypothesised pleiotropic or compensatory effects, representing a possible early biomarker of AD and facilitating earlier AD diagnosis. However, it is not clear whether hyperperfusion already exists even earlier in life.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Non-metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) presents a challenging scenario: the rarity of the disease, the limited number of completed prospective trials, and the shortcomings of comparability across series produce several controversial topics and unanswered questions. Guideline recommendations usually include all the different therapeutic options, de facto transferring to the multidisciplinary team the responsibility on the final decision. This secondary analysis of the GARIBALDI study was aimed to explore the correlation of center type, self-declared volume, and commitment with the overall survival (OS) in patients with non-metastatic PDAC.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The target of rapamycin (TOR) is a central hub kinase that promotes growth and development in all eukaryote cells. TOR induces protein synthesis through the phosphorylation of the S6 kinase (S6K), which, in turn, phosphorylates ribosomal S6 protein (RPS6) increasing this anabolic process. Therefore, S6K and RPS6 phosphorylation are generally used as readouts of TOR activity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The pipeline for new drugs against multidrug-resistant remains limited, highlighting the urgent need for innovative treatments. New strategies, such as membrane-targeting molecules acting as adjuvants, aim to enhance antibiotic effectiveness and combat resistance. RW01, a cyclic peptide with low antimicrobial activity, was selected as an adjuvant to enhance drug efficacy through membrane permeabilization.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is prevalent among elderly patients with cardiovascular issues, yet it often goes unrecognized and untreated.
  • The study enrolled 420 patients aged 65+ with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and moderate to severe OSA to compare the effects of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) treatment against no treatment over an average of 22 months.
  • Results showed that CPAP significantly reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events (MACE) and recurrence of atrial fibrillation in patients when combined with regular medical care.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Carbohydrates serve crucial functions in most living cells, encompassing structural and metabolic roles. Within the realms of plant and algal biology, carbohydrate biosynthesis and partitioning play pivotal roles in growth, development, stress physiology, and various practical applications. These applications span diverse fields, including the food and feed industry, bioenergetics (biofuels), and environmental management.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a genetic condition characterized by high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). The presence of risk modifiers could promote the atherosclerotic injury beyond LDL-C. Our aim was to evaluate metabolic and innate immunity profiles in FH subjects with or without subclinical atherosclerosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) is the most common congenital heart defect in adults, often leading to complications such as thoracic aortic aneurysms and aortic stenosis. While BAV is frequently associated with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background & Aims: Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a chronic cholestatic liver disease with a strong association with inflammatory bowel disease and variable disease progression. We aimed to gain insights into the role of fecal bile acids (BA) on disease progression by determining the relationships between fecal BA, diet, and gut microbes, with markers of disease progression, BA synthesis, and farnesoid X receptor (FXR) activity.

Methods: BA levels in serum and stool, dietary intake, and markers of BA synthesis, and FXR activity were measured in 26 patients with early stage, large duct PSC.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Economic stability is a core social determinant of health and a necessary condition for maintaining food security, housing stability, and both physical and mental health. Using a qualitative approach, we identified barriers, facilitators, and participant perceptions about utilizing these relief measures. This study aimed to understand experiences with COVID-19 economic relief measures among low-wage worker households with children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Semaglutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, has emerged as a pivotal therapeutic agent in the management of the cardio-renal-metabolic continuum. Initially developed for glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus, its benefits extend far beyond glucose regulation. Clinical trials have demonstrated semaglutide's potential to reduce major adverse cardiovascular events, particularly in overweight/obese patients with high cardiovascular risk, as well as improving functional capacity in patients suffering from heart failure with preserved left ventricular function.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diet is a major determinant of the gastrointestinal microbiome composition and function, yet our understanding of how it impacts the efficacy of prebiotics and probiotics is limited. Here we examine current evidence of dietary influence on prebiotic and probiotic efficacy in human studies, including potential mechanisms. We propose that habitual diet be included as a variable in prebiotic and probiotic intervention studies.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Acute bronchiolitis is a major cause of lower respiratory infections and hospitalizations in children under one year old, prompting a study at the Teaching Hospital in Siena, Italy.
  • A retrospective study analyzed 36,031 pediatric ED visits from September 2018 to April 2023, identifying 383 cases of bronchiolitis, which were more frequent in younger children and associated with higher admission rates based on severity.
  • The findings suggest implementing better collaboration between hospital services and community care to ensure timely diagnoses and reduce unnecessary ED visits for mild cases of bronchiolitis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Population-based Health Risk Assessment (HRA) tools are strategic for the implementation of integrated care. Various HRA algorithms have been developed in the last decades worldwide. Their full adoption being limited by technical, functional, and economical factors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This analysis from the GARIBALDI study was aimed to address the role of center self-declared expertise, type and commitment on the overall survival (OS) of patients with metastatic Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (mPDAC). Treatment-naïve patients ≥18-year with pathological diagnosis of mPDAC were enrolled. OS was defined as the time from chemotherapy start to death from any cause.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study provides evidence about the relationship between Target of Rapamycin (TOR) kinase and the signal molecule nitric oxide (NO) in plants. We showed that sucrose (SUC)-mediated TOR activation of root apical meristem (RAM) requires NO and that NO, in turn, participates in the regulation of TOR signaling. Nitric oxide (NO) constitutes a signal molecule that regulates important target proteins related to growth and development and also contributes to metabolic reprogramming that occurs under adverse conditions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A breadth of preclinical studies now support the rationale of pluripotent stem cell-derived cell replacement therapies to alleviate motor symptoms in Parkinsonian patients. Replacement of the primary dysfunctional cell population in the disease, i.e.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study investigates volatile organic compound (VOC) profiles in the exhaled breath of normal subjects under different oxygenation conditions-normoxia (FiO2 21%), hypoxia (FiO2 11%), and hyperoxia (FiO2 35%)-using an electronic nose (e-nose). We aim to identify significant differences in VOC profiles among the three conditions utilizing principal component analysis (PCA) and canonical discriminant analysis (CDA). Our results indicate distinct VOC patterns corresponding to each oxygenation state, demonstrating the potential of e-nose technology in detecting physiological changes in breath composition (cross-validated accuracy values: FiO2 21% vs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Parkinson's disease (PD) patients are impaired in word production when the word has to be selected among competing alternatives requiring higher attentional resources. In PD, word selection processes are correlated with the structural integrity of the inferior frontal gyrus, which is critical for response selection, and the uncinate fasciculus, which is necessary for processing lexical information. In early PD, we investigated the role of the main cognitive large-scale networks, namely the salience network (SN), the central executive networks (CENs), and the default mode network (DMN), in word selection.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Aim: The current study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PB-MNCs) therapy for patients with ischaemic diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) treated through indirect revascularization.

Methods: The study is a prospective non-controlled observational study including patients with neuro-ischaemic DFUs who received indirect peripheral revascularization and showed a persistence of wound ischaemia defined by the absence of angiographic collateral vessels and TcPO2 values < 30 mmHg in the wound angiosome area. All patients received 3 cycles of PB-MNCs therapy administered along the wound related artery based on the angiosome theory.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Abnormalities in cellular metabolism are seen early in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Astrocyte support for neuronal function has a high metabolic demand, and astrocyte glucose metabolism plays a key role in encoding memory. This indicates that astrocyte metabolic dysfunction might be an early event in the development of AD.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF