Seed abscission and fruit dehiscence required for seed dispersal rely on similar genetic networks.

Seed dispersal is an essential trait that enables colonization of new favorable habitats, ensuring species survival. In plants with dehiscent fruits, such as Arabidopsis, seed dispersal depends on two processes: the separation of the fruit valves that protect the seeds (fruit dehiscence) and the detachment of the seeds from the funiculus connecting them to the mother plant (seed abscission). The key factors required to establish a proper lignin pattern for fruit dehiscence are SHATTERPROOF 1 and 2 (SHP1 and SHP2).

Intra and interrater reliability of spinal sagittal curves and mobility using pocket goniometer IncliMed® in healthy subjects.

Background: Radiographic examination is the gold standard to evaluate spine curves, but ionising radiations limit routine use. Non-invasive methods, such as skin-surface goniometer (IncliMed®) should be used instead.

Objective: To evaluate intra- and interrater reliability to assess sagittal curves and mobility of the spine with IncliMed®.

Wound haematoma following defibrillator implantation: incidence and predictors in the Shockless Implant Evaluation (SIMPLE) trial.

Aims: Pocket haematoma is a common complication after defibrillator [implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)] implantation, which is not only painful, but also increases the risk of device-related infection, and possibly embolic events. The present study seeks to evaluate the rate and predictors of clinically significant pocket haematoma.

Methods And Results: This study included 2500 patients receiving an ICD in the SIMPLE trial.

Minimally Invasive Surgical Technique in Periodontal Regeneration: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial Pilot Study.

The purpose of this study was to compare two minimally invasive surgical techniques (MISTs) for the treatment of periodontal defects: (1) guided tissue regeneration (GTR) using resorbable minimembrane and particulate xenograft (DBBM); and (2) inductive periodontal regeneration (IPR) using enamel matrix derivatives and DBBM. A sample of 20 infrabony periodontal defects in 20 patients were randomly assigned to either the GTR or the IPR group. A follow-up was performed at 12 months postoperative.

Efficacy of betamethasone valerate medicated plaster on painful chronic elbow tendinopathy: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

Objective: to investigate the efficacy and safety of a medicated plaster containing betamethasone valerate (BMV) 2.25 mg in patients with chronic elbow tendinopathy.

Methods: randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study with assignment 2:2:1:1 to BMV medicated plaster applied daily for 12 hours, daily for 24 hours or matched placebo.

Extracorporeal shockwaves therapy versus hyaluronic acid injection for the treatment of painful non-calcific rotator cuff tendinopathies: preliminary results.

Background: Rotator cuff tendinopathy is the most common cause of painful shoulder. The treatment is mainly conservative and several therapeutic approaches have been proposed, including NSAIDs, physiotherapy, injections and physical therapies. The aim of the current study was to compare the clinical effectiveness of low molecular weight hyaluronic acid (LMW-HA) injection versus low-energy extracorporeal shock-wave therapy (ESWT) until 3 months of follow-up for the management of painful non-calcific rotator cuff tendinopathies, evaluating also the trend over time between the groups.

Magnetoencephalography in Stroke Recovery and Rehabilitation.

Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is a non-invasive neurophysiological technique used to study the cerebral cortex. Currently, MEG is mainly used clinically to localize epileptic foci and eloquent brain areas in order to avoid damage during neurosurgery. MEG might, however, also be of help in monitoring stroke recovery and rehabilitation.

Characterization of Intra-Type Variants of Oncogenic Human Papillomaviruses by Next-Generation Deep Sequencing of the E6/E7 Region.

Different human papillomavirus (HPV) types are characterized by differences in tissue tropism and ability to promote cell proliferation and transformation. In addition, clinical and experimental studies have shown that some genetic variants/lineages of high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) types are characterized by increased oncogenic activity and probability to induce cancer. In this study, we designed and validated a new method based on multiplex PCR-deep sequencing of the E6/E7 region of HR-HPV types to characterize HPV intra-type variants in clinical specimens.

The Role of Detraining in Tendon Mechanobiology.

Introduction: Several conditions such as training, aging, estrogen deficiency and drugs could affect the biological and anatomo-physiological characteristics of the tendon. Additionally, recent preclinical and clinical studies examined the effect of detraining on tendon, showing alterations in its structure and morphology and in tenocyte mechanobiology. However, few data evaluated the importance that cessation of training might have on tendon.

Sonoelastography in the diagnosis of tendinopathies: an added value.

Background: sonoelastography helps in the detection of abnormalities not yet evident on B-mode exam.

Methods: in this observational study, we report a collection of cases of symptomatic patients without alterations at ultrasound imaging but with evidence of pathological findings at sonoelastography. Patients, with clinical history suggestive for tendinopathies or surgically treated, and negative at the ultrasound exam, were submitted to sonoelastography.

I.S.Mu.L.T - Rotator Cuff Tears Guidelines.

Despite the high level achieved in the field of shoulder surgery, a global consensus on rotator cuff tears management is lacking. This work is divided into two main sessions: in the first, we set questions about hot topics involved in the rotator cuff tears, from the etiopathogenesis to the surgical treatment. In the second, we answered these questions by mentioning Evidence Based Medicine.

Persistent Muscle Fiber Regeneration in Long Term Denervation. Past, Present, Future.

Despite the ravages of long term denervation there is structural and ultrastructural evidence for survival of muscle fibers in mammals, with some fibers surviving at least ten months in rodents and 3-6 years in humans. Further, in rodents there is evidence that muscle fibers may regenerate even after repeated damage in the absence of the nerve, and that this potential is maintained for several months after denervation. While in animal models permanently denervated muscle sooner or later loses the ability to contract, the muscles may maintain their size and ability to function if electrically stimulated soon after denervation.

Effects on mobility training and de-adaptations in subjects with Spinal Cord Injury due to a Wearable Robot: a preliminary report.

Background: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a severe neurological disorder associated not only with ongoing medical complications but also with a significant loss of mobility and participation. The introduction of robotic technologies to recover lower limb function has been greatly employed in the rehabilitative practice. The aim of this preliminary report were to evaluate the efficacy, the feasibility and the changes in the mobility and in the de-adaptations of a new rehabilitative protocol for EKSO™ a robotic exoskeleton device in subjects with SCI disease with an impairment of lower limbs assessed by gait analysis and clinical outcomes.

Prospective study of tricuspid valve regurgitation associated with permanent leads in patients undergoing cardiac rhythm device implantation: Background, rationale, and design.

Given the increasing numbers of cardiac device implantations worldwide, it is important to determine whether permanent endocardial leads across the tricuspid valve can promote tricuspid regurgitation (TR). Virtually all current data is retrospective, and indicates a signal of TR being increased after permanent lead implantation. However, the precise incidence of moderate or greater TR post-procedure, the exact mechanisms (mechanical, traumatic, functional), and the hemodynamic burden and clinical effects of this putative increase in TR, remain uncertain.

"Love Is Strong, and You're so Sweet": JAGGER Is Essential for Persistent Synergid Degeneration and Polytubey Block in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Successful double fertilization and subsequent seed development in flowering plants requires the delivery of two sperm cells, transported by a pollen tube, into the embryo sac of an ovule. The embryo sac cells tightly control synergid cell death, and as a result the polyspermy block. Arabinogalactan proteins are highly glycosylated proteins thought to be involved in several steps of the reproductive process.

Neurophysiological, psychological and behavioural correlates of rTMS treatment in alcohol dependence.

Background: Addiction is associated with dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) dysfunction and altered brain-oscillations. High frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (HFrTMS) over DLPFC reportedly reduces drug craving. Its effects on neuropsychological, behavioural and neurophysiological are unclear.

Favorable effect of rehabilitation on balance in ankylosing spondylitis: a quasi-randomized controlled clinical trial.

Balance impairment is a frequent and undertreated manifestation in ankylosing spondylitis, leading to increased risk of falls and lower quality of life. Our aim was to assess supervised training and home-based rehabilitation efficacy on balance improvement in ankylosing spondylitis subjects on biologic agents. This was a single-blinded, quasi-randomized parallel study in a single outpatient Rehabilitation Clinic of a tertiary referral center.

Early rehabilitation treatment combined with equinovarus foot deformity surgical correction in stroke patients: safety and changes in gait parameters.

Background: Equinovarus foot deformity (EVFD) compromises several prerequisites of walking and increases the risk of falling. Guidelines on rehabilitation following EVFD surgery are missing in current literature.

Aim: The aim of this study was to analyze safety and adherence to an early rehabilitation treatment characterized by immediate weight bearing with an ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) in hemiplegic patients after EVFD surgery and to describe gait changes after EVFD surgical correction combined with early rehabilitation treatment.

Factors Associated with Low Flow in Aortic Valve Stenosis.

Background: Low-flow low-gradient aortic stenosis (AS) is a predictor of worse outcome compared with normal-flow AS. Although depressed left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) is associated with low flow, there is less evidence to support the role of other indices of cardiac structure and function.

Methods: Clinical and echocardiographic data from patients with native AS and valve areas ≤ 1.

Efficacy of eccentric exercise in lower limb tendinopathies in athletes.

Tendinopathies are among the most frequent sport injuries, therefore their correct treatment is a crucial issue in sports medicine practice. In most of the cases, these multifactorial conditions are related to overuse and characterized by activity-induced pain, local tenderness and swelling. Although tendinopathies are common, their treatment is not easy.

Dysphagia in the elderly: focus on rehabilitation strategies.

Prevalence of oropharyngeal dysphagia among the elderly is high, but underestimated and underdiagnosed. It may give raise to relevant complications impacting on morbidity, hospital length of stay and health care costs. Dysphagia evaluation and management is a multidisciplinary task; it includes a detailed history taking, clinical and instrumental exams, and identification of the risk of aspiration.

Self-assembly of Natural and Unnatural Nucleobases at Surfaces and Interfaces.

The self-assembly of small organic molecules interacting via non-covalent forces is a viable approach towards the construction of highly ordered nanostructured materials. Among various molecular components, natural and unnatural nucleobases can undergo non-covalent self-association to form supramolecular architectures with ad hoc structural motifs. Such structures, when decorated with appropriate electrically/optically active units, can be used as scaffolds to locate such units in pre-determined positions in 2D on a surface, thereby paving the way towards a wide range of applications, e.