Changes in Cerebrospinal Fluid, Liver and Intima-media-thickness Biomarkers in Patients with HIV-associated Neurocognitive Disorders Randomized to a Less Neurotoxic Treatment Regimen.

The prevalence of neurocognitive impairment in people living with HIV is estimated between 30 and 50%. The pathogenesis of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders is complex and multifactorial. Aim of the study was to measure the change in CSF biomarkers, Fibroscan and IMT measurements in PLWH with HAND randomized to a less neurotoxic regimen, or continuing their treatment.

Cerebrospinal Fluid CXCL13 as Candidate Biomarker of Intrathecal Immune Activation, IgG Synthesis and Neurocognitive Impairment in People with HIV.

Plasma C-X-C-motif chemokine ligand-13 (CXCL13) has been linked to disease progression and mortality in people living with HIV (PLWH) and is a candidate target for immune-based strategies for HIV cure. Its role in central nervous system (CNS) of PLWH has not been detailed. We described CSF CXCL13 levels and its potential associations with neurological outcomes.

Catalytic ammonia reforming: alternative routes to net-zero-carbon hydrogen and fuel.

Ammonia is an energy-dense liquid hydrogen carrier and fuel whose accessible dissociation chemistries offer promising alternatives to hydrogen electrolysis, compression and dispensing at scale. Catalytic ammonia reforming has thus emerged as an area of renewed focus within the ammonia and hydrogen energy research & development communities. However, a majority of studies emphasize the discovery of new catalytic materials and their evaluation under idealized laboratory conditions.

Synthesis of Highly Accessible and Reactive Sites in Gold Nanoparticles Using Bound Bis(Diphenylphosphine) Ligands.

While bound organic ligands provide steric protection against aggregation for metallic nanoparticles in solution, they can block a large fraction of the surface atoms which are needed for binding in catalysis and sensing applications. In this work, highly accessible Au nanoparticles ligated with bis(diphenylphosphine) molecules are synthesized and characterized in solution. Characterization is performed using high angle annular dark field-scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM), ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, and fluorescence chemisorption experiments.

Patterns of Cerebrospinal Fluid Alzheimer's Dementia Biomarkers in People Living with HIV: Cross-Sectional Study on Associated Factors According to Viral Control, Neurological Confounders and Neurocognition.

People living with HIV (PLWH) age with an excess burden of comorbidities that may increase the incidence of age-related complications. There is controversy surrounding the hypothesis that HIV can accelerate neurodegeneration and Alzheimer's dementia (AD). We performed a retrospective study to analyze the distribution of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarkers (beta amyloid 1-42 fragment, tau, and phosphorylated tau) in adult PLWH (on cART with undetectable viremia, = 136, with detectable viremia, = 121, and with central nervous system CNS disorders regardless of viremia, = 72) who underwent a lumbar puncture between 2008 to 2018; HIV-negative controls with AD were included ( = 84).

Two co-inherited hemoglobin variants revealed by capillary electrophoresis during quantification of glycated hemoglobin.

Objectives: The observation of numerous new structural defects in hemoglobin (Hb) has often been linked to the evolution and development of device technologies used for the separation and quantification of hemoglobin components. However, the increased use of preventive tests for hemoglobinopathies and separative methods to quantify glycated hemoglobin (HbA) also contributed to these observations, as demonstrated by the case described here. Our aim is to emphasize that different separative method can provide more useful information in patient management.

Low cerebrospinal fluid Amyloid-βeta 1-42 in patients with tuberculous meningitis.

Background: Tuberculous meningitis (TBM) is an important disease leading to morbidity, disability and mortality that primarily affects children and immune-depressed patients. Specific neuromarkers predicting outcomes, severity and inflammatory response are still lacking. In recent years an increasing number of evidences show a possible role for infective agents in developing neurodegenerative diseases.

Gold nanoparticles with tailored size through ligand modification for catalytic applications.

The active sites of catalysts can be tuned by using appropriate organic moieties. Here, we describe a facile approach to synthesise gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) using various Au(I) precursors. The core size of these AuNPs can be precisely tailored by varying the steric hindrance imposed by bound ligands.

Compensation Effect Exhibited by Gold Bimetallic Nanoparticles during CO Oxidation.

While CO oxidation catalyzed by gold nanoparticles has been practiced academically for several decades, there are still important discoveries to be made. One area of current interest is to pair Au with another alloying metal and observe the catalytic consequences of the presence of the other metal. In this work, TiO-supported bimetallic Au nanoparticles are alloyed with Cu, Co, Ni, Pd, and Ru and used as catalysts for CO oxidation.

Precisely Engineered Supported Gold Clusters as a Stable Catalyst for Propylene Epoxidation.

Designing a stable and selective catalyst with high H utilisation is of pivotal importance for the direct gas-phase epoxidation of propylene. This work describes a facile one-pot methodology to synthesise ligand-stabilised sub-nanometre gold clusters immobilised onto a zeolitic support (TS-1) to engineer a stable Au/TS-1 catalyst. A non-thermal O plasma technique is used for the quick removal of ligands with limited increase in particle size.

Blood-Brain Barrier Impairment in Patients Living with HIV: Predictors and Associated Biomarkers.

Despite the substantial changes resulting from the introduction of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), the prevalence of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) remains substantial. Blood-brain barrier impairment (BBBi) is a frequent feature in people living with HIV (PLWH) and it may persist despite effective antiretroviral treatment. A cross-sectional study was performed in PLWH who underwent lumbar puncture for clinical reasons or research protocols and several cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers were studied.

Updates on conservative management of endometrial cancer in patients younger than 45 years.

Endometrial cancer is the most common gynecologic malignancy in developed country. Women under the age of 40 represent 5% of all endometrial cancer and the majority are nulliparous at the time of diagnosis. The aim of this review was to compare oncologic and fertility outcomes among different fertility-preserving therapies in patients under 45 years of age with grade 1 or 2 endometrial cancer.

Plasmonic Photocatalytic Enhancement of L-Cysteine Self-Assembled Gold Nanoparticle Clusters for Fenton Reaction Catalysis.

Plasmon-enhanced photocatalysis has the potential to reduce activation energies and decrease temperature requirements, which increases catalyst stability and lowers process operating costs. The near-field enhancement that occurs at junctions between plasmonic nanoparticle clusters (i.e.

Risk for SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Healthcare Workers, Turin, Italy.

We measured severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 spike protein subunits S1/S2 antibodies by using capillary electrophoresis and a chemiluminescence immunoassay for 5,444 active healthcare workers in Italy. Seroprevalence was 6.9% and higher among participants having contact with patients.

Dual antiretroviral therapies are effective and safe regimens in the central nervous system of neurologically symptomatic people living with HIV.

Objective: Aim of this study was to compare cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) virological control, biomarkers and neurocognition of neurologically symptomatic patients on dual antiretroviral therapies (dual therapy) vs. 2 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors-based three-drug regimens (triple therapy).

Design: Retrospective monocentric cross-sectional study.

Optimization of mesoporous titanosilicate catalysts for cyclohexene epoxidation via statistically guided synthesis.

An efficient approach to improve the catalytic activity of titanosilicates is introduced. The Doehlert matrix (DM) statistical model was utilized to probe the synthetic parameters of mesoporous titanosilicate microspheres (MTSM), in order to increase their catalytic activity with a minimal number of experiments. Synthesis optimization was carried out by varying two parameters simultaneously: homogenizing temperature and surfactant weight.

Mesostructure of Mesoporous Silica/Anodic Alumina Hierarchical Membranes Tuned with Ethanol.

Hierarchically structured membranes composed of mesoporous silica embedded inside the channels of anodic alumina (MS-AAM) were synthesized using the aspiration method. Ethanol is shown to have a significant effect on the type and organization of the mesoporous silica phase. Detailed textural analysis revealed that the pore size distribution of the mesoporous silica narrows and the degree of ordering increases with decreasing ethanol concentration used in the synthesis mixture.

Chaperonin-Inspired pH Protection by Mesoporous Silica SBA-15 on Myoglobin and Lysozyme.

While enzymes are valuable tools in many fields of biotechnology, they are fragile and must be protected against denaturing conditions such as unfavorable solution pH. Within living organisms, chaperonins help enzymes fold into their native shape and protect them from damage. Inspired by this natural solution, mesoporous silica SBA-15 with different pore diameters is synthesized as a support material for immobilizing and protecting enzymes.

Is It Possible to Differentiate Chronic Kidney Disease and Preeclampsia by means of New and Old Biomarkers? A Prospective Study.

Objective: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and preeclampsia (PE) may both present with hypertension and proteinuria in pregnancy. Our objective is to test the possibility of distinguishing CKD from PE by means of uteroplacental flows and maternal circulating sFlt-1/PlGF ratio.

Design: Prospective analysis.

Accessible gold clusters using calix[4]arene N-heterocyclic carbene and phosphine ligands.

We investigate the synthesis of accessible calix[4]arene-bound gold clusters consisting of open "coordinatively unsaturated" active sites, using a comparative approach that relies on calix[4]arene ligands with various upper- and lower-rim substituents. In contrast with a reported Au(I)-tert-butyl-calixarene phosphine complex, which exhibits a single cone conformer in solution, the H upper-rim analog exhibits multiple conformers in solution. This contrasts with observations of the tert-butyl upper-rim analog, which exhibits a single cone conformer in solution under similar conditions.

Fe2o3 shell growth on Pt nanoparticles.

Fe2O3 shells have been synthesized around Pt cores to create Pt@Fe2O3 core-shell nanoparticles. The synthesis conditions allow control of the shell shape and allow the preparation of both hexagonal shells and spherical shells. 2D cross-sectional TEM images show that the cores are not positioned at the centers of the shells.

Delamination of layered zeolite precursors under mild conditions: synthesis of UCB-1 via fluoride/chloride anion-promoted exfoliation.

New material UCB-1 is synthesized via the delamination of zeolite precursor MCM-22 (P) at pH 9 using an aqueous solution of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, tetrabutylammonium fluoride, and tetrabutylammonium chloride at 353 K. Characterization by powder X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and nitrogen physisorption at 77 K indicates the same degree of delamination in UCB-1 as previously reported for delaminated zeolite precursors, which require a pH of greater than 13.5 and sonication in order to achieve exfoliation.