Identification of toxigenic fungal species associated with maize ear rot: Calmodulin as single informative gene.

Accurate identification of fungi occurring on agrofood products is the key aspect of any prevention and pest management program, offering valuable information in leading crop health and food safety. Fungal species misidentification can dramatically impact biodiversity assessment, ecological studies, management decisions, and, concerning toxigenic fungi, health risk assessment, since they can produce a wide range of toxic secondary metabolites, referred to as mycotoxins. Since each toxigenic fungal species can have its own mycotoxin profile, a correct species identification, hereby attempted with universal DNA barcoding approach, could have a key role in mycotoxins prevention strategies.

Strategies to minimize soft tissues and septic complications in staged management of high-energy proximal tibia fractures.

Background: Soft tissues (wound dehiscence, skin necrosis) and septic (wound infection, osteomyelitis) complications have been historically recognized as the most frequent complications in surgical treatment of high-energy proximal tibia fractures (PTFs). Staged management with a temporary external fixator is a commonly accepted strategy to prevent these complications. Nonetheless, there is a lack of evidence about when and how definitive external or internal definitive fixation should be chosen, and which variables are more relevant in determining soft tissues and septic complications risk.

Gain and loss of a transcription factor that regulates late trichothecene biosynthetic pathway genes in Fusarium.

Trichothecenes are among the mycotoxins of most concern to food and feed safety and are produced by species in two lineages of Fusarium: the F. incarnatum-equiseti (FIESC) and F. sambucinum (FSAMSC) species complexes.

Neuromuscular Diseases and Bone.

Neuromuscular diseases (NMDs) are inherited or acquired conditions affecting skeletal muscles, motor nerves, or neuromuscular junctions. Most of them are characterized by a progressive damage of muscle fibers with reduced muscle strength, disability, and poor health-related quality of life of affected patients. In this scenario, skeletal health is usually compromised as a consequence of modified bone-muscle cross-talk including biomechanical and bio-humoral issues, resulting in increased risk of bone fragility and fractures.

Coronary Stents Underexpansion Successfully Treated With Shockwave Lithoplasty.

Calcified coronary plaque represents a challenging scenario for interventional cardiology. It is often associated with stent under-expansion during percutaneous coronary intervention. We report two cases of unexpected coronary stent under-expansion due to heavily calcified plaque, successfully treated with shockwave coronary lithoplasty.

Adapted physical activity and therapeutic exercise in late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD): a two-step rehabilitative approach.

Aerobic exercise, training to sustain motor ability, and respiratory rehabilitation may improve general functioning and quality of life (QoL) in neuromuscular disorders. Patients with late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD) typically show progressive muscle weakness, respiratory dysfunction and minor cardiac involvement. Characteristics and modalities of motor and respiratory rehabilitation in LOPD are not well defined and specific guidelines are lacking.

Urate hydroperoxide oxidizes endothelial cell surface protein disulfide isomerase-A1 and impairs adherence.

Background: Extracellular surface protein disulfide isomerase-A1 (PDI) is involved in platelet aggregation, thrombus formation and vascular remodeling. PDI performs redox exchange with client proteins and, hence, its oxidation by extracellular molecules might alter protein function and cell response. In this study, we investigated PDI oxidation by urate hydroperoxide, a newly-described oxidant that is generated through uric acid oxidation by peroxidases, with a putative role in vascular inflammation.

Surgical and orthodontic treatment after incidental radiographic discovery of a severely infraoccluded primary molar.

Dentoalveolar ankylosis, the fusion of a tooth with the alveolar bone, is often associated with primary molars and is the main cause of infraocclusion. This report describes an uncommon case of a severely infraoccluded primary first molar associated with loss of space in the maxilla. After anamnesis and a clinical examination, absence of the primary maxillary left first molar was observed.

Cationic amphiphiles against Gardnerella vaginalis resistant strains and bacterial vaginosis-associated pathogens.

Antibiotic resistance and infection recurrence are critical issues in treating bacterial vaginosis, the most common vaginal disorder in women of reproductive age. Novel alternatives to traditional antibiotics, such as peptidomimetics, have the potential to address this challenge. Previously, two series of cationic amphiphiles (CAms) were developed with both hydrophilic head groups and non-polar domains, giving them the ability to self-assemble into supramolecular nanostructures with membrane-lytic properties.

Concomitant screening of coronary artery disease and lung cancer with a new ultrafast-low-dose Computed Tomography protocol: A pilot randomised trial.

We performed a pilot randomised study to assess the feasibility and radiation exposure of a new computed tomography (CT) protocol that allows screening of both coronary artery disease (CAD) and lung cancer. Current or former heavy smokers at high lung cancer risk with indication to cardiac CT for suspected or known CAD were randomised to undergo concomitant CT evaluation of either cardiac or thoracic area or cardiac CT only. Out of 129 subjects deemed eligible for the study, 110 agreed to participate and were randomised to simultaneous cardiac and lung CT (Gr.

Transcriptome Analysis of Reticulated Platelets Reveals a Prothrombotic Profile.

Reticulated platelets (RPs) are larger, hyperreactive platelets that contain significantly more ribonucleic acid (RNA) compared with mature platelets (MPs). High levels of RPs in peripheral blood are predictors of an insufficient response to dual antiplatelet therapy in cardiovascular patients and of adverse cardiovascular events. However, the mechanisms underlying these correlations remain widely unknown and the biology of RPs has not been investigated yet.

Ultra-Deep Guide Catheter Intubation for Direct Thromboaspiration in Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Thrombus burden remains an important mortality risk factor during primary percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), especially when associated with distal embolization of atheromatous debris (Sharma et al., 2016; Ibanez et al., 2018 [1,2]).

Bone alterations in inflammatory bowel diseases.

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are characterized by a multifactorial partially unknown etiology that involves genetic, immunological and environmental factors. Up to 50% of IBD patients experience at least one extraintestinal manifestation; among them is the involvement of bone density which is referred to as metabolic bone disease (MBD), including osteopenia and osteoporosis. Bone alterations in IBDs population appear to have a multifactorial etiology: Decreased physical activity, inflammation-related bone resorption, multiple intestinal resections, dietary malabsorption of minerals and vitamin D deficiency, genetic factors, gut-bone immune signaling interaction, steroid treatment, microbiota and pathogenic micro-organisms interaction, and dietary malabsorption of minerals, that, all together or individually, may contribute to the alteration of bone mineral density.

Neoadjuvant eribulin mesylate following anthracycline and taxane in triple negative breast cancer: Results from the HOPE study.

Background: Eribulin mesylate (E) is indicated for metastatic breast cancer patients previously treated with anthracycline and taxane. We argued that E could also benefit patients eligible for neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

Methods: Patients with primary triple negative breast cancer ≥2 cm received doxorubicin 60 mg/m2 and paclitaxel 200 mg/m2 x 4 cycles (AT) followed by E 1.

Anthropometric characteristics of newborns with Prader-Willi syndrome.

This is a retrospective multicenter nationwide Italian study collecting neonatal anthropometric data of Caucasian subjects with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) born from 1988 to 2018. The aim of the study is to provide percentile charts for weight and length of singletons with PWS born between 36 and 42 gestational weeks. We collected the birth weight and birth length of 252 male and 244 female singleton live born infants with both parents of Italian origin and PWS genetically confirmed.

MicroRNA Expression Profiles in External Cervical Resorption.

Introduction: External cervical resorption (ECR) has been challenging for its diagnosis, prevention, and treatment. Its etiology and pathogenesis are largely unknown. This study characterized microRNA (miRNA) expression patterns of human tissues from ECR lesions and identified potential messenger RNA targets and pathways.

Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species complex associated with Brazilian rice: Phylogeny, morphology and toxigenic potential.

Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species complex (FIESC) is commonly detected in Brazilian rice, but knowledge of the species limits and their toxigenic potential is lacking. Seventy strains morphologically identified as FIESC-like, isolated from the major rice-growing regions of Brazil, were subjected to sequencing of EF-1α gene. Among them, 18 strains were selected and analyzed for their RPB2 gene sequences.

Subcutaneous Immunoglobulin in Infantile Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy: A Case Report.

Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is a chronically progressive or relapsing sensorimotor disorder presumably due to antibody-mediated reactions. It is a rare condition in children, with estimated prevalence as 0.48 per 100,000 among patients younger than 20 years of age.

2018 update of the EULAR recommendations for the role of the nurse in the management of chronic inflammatory arthritis.

To update the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) recommendations for the role of the nurse in the management of chronic inflammatory arthritis (CIA) using the most up to date evidence. The EULAR standardised operating procedures were followed. A task force of rheumatologists, health professionals and patients, representing 17 European countries updated the recommendations, based on a systematic literature review and expert consensus.

Knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of patients regarding interdental deplaquing devices: A mixed-methods study.

Objectives: This mixed-methods study assessed patients' oral health literacy, motivation level and barriers regarding interdental plaque control.

Methods: Participants (n = 49) from a study comparing the use of Glide® Pro-Health Floss Original (F) or GUM® Curved Soft-Picks® Advance (SP) completed daily diaries and questionnaires regarding motivation, tiredness, confidence and satisfaction for their deplaquing method. The Mantel-Haenszel chi-square test was utilized.

Isolation, Molecular Identification and Mycotoxin Profile of Fusarium Species Isolated from Maize Kernels in Iran.

species are among the most important fungal pathogens of maize, where they cause severe reduction of yield and accumulation of a wide range of harmful mycotoxins in the kernels. In order to identify the species and their mycotoxin profiles associated to maize ear rot and kernel contamination in Iran, a wide sampling was carried out from field in ten major maize-producing provinces in Iran, during 2015 and 2016. From 182 samples of maize kernels, 551 strains were isolated and identified as belonging to genus.