Successful implantation of cardiac resynchronization therapy in a patient with coronary sinus reducer using proximal coronary sinus branches: a case report.

Background: The coronary sinus reducer (CSR) is a therapeutic option for patients with coronary artery disease who are not eligible for further revascularization and experience refractory angina. Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) improves symptoms and prognosis in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, but the presence of a CSR may complicate left ventricular lead placement. Only four cases have been reported so far in this context.

Magnetic Resonance-Guided Stereotactic Radioablation for Septal Ventricular Tachycardias.

Background: Stereotactic arrhythmia radioablation (STAR) was introduced to treat ventricular tachycardia (VT) refractory to catheter ablation. No data are now available in the septal VT substrate setting, representing a challenge when using conventional techniques.

Objectives: This study sought to evaluate the arrhythmic burden in patients with septal VT treated with magnetic resonance-guided STAR (MRgSTAR).

Implantation of a novel insertable cardiac monitor: preliminary multicenter experience in Europe.

Background: The LUX-Dx™ is a novel insertable cardiac monitor (ICM) introduced into the European market since October 2022.

Purpose: The aim of this investigation was to provide a comprehensive description of the ICM implantation experience in Europe during its initial year of commercial use.

Methods: The system comprises an incision tool and a single-piece insertion tool pre-loaded with the small ICM.

Structural and Comparative Analyses of Insects Suggest the Presence of an Ultra-Conserved Regulatory Element of the Genes Encoding Vacuolar-Type ATPase Subunits and Assembly Factors.

Gene and genome comparison represent an invaluable tool to identify evolutionarily conserved sequences with possible functional significance. In this work, we have analyzed orthologous genes encoding subunits and assembly factors of the V-ATPase complex, an important enzymatic complex of the vacuolar and lysosomal compartments of the eukaryotic cell with storage and recycling functions, respectively, as well as the main pump in the plasma membrane that energizes the epithelial transport in insects. This study involves 70 insect species belonging to eight insect orders.

Performance of a multisensor implantable defibrillator algorithm for heart failure monitoring related to co-morbidities.

Aims: The HeartLogic algorithm combines multiple implantable defibrillator (ICD) sensor data and has proved to be a sensitive and timely predictor of impending heart failure (HF) decompensation in cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT-D) patients. We evaluated the performance of this algorithm in non-CRT ICD patients and in the presence of co-morbidities.

Methods And Results: The HeartLogic feature was activated in 568 ICD patients (410 with CRT-D) from 26 centres.

Experimental sexual selection reveals rapid evolutionary divergence in sex-specific transcriptomes and their interactions following mating.

Post copulatory interactions between the sexes in internally fertilizing species elicits both sexual conflict and sexual selection. Macroevolutionary and comparative studies have linked these processes to rapid transcriptomic evolution in sex-specific tissues and substantial transcriptomic post mating responses in females, patterns of which are altered when mating between reproductively isolated species. Here, we tested multiple predictions arising from sexual selection and conflict theory about the evolution of sex-specific and tissue-specific gene expression and the post mating response at the microevolutionary level.

Incidence and Predictors of Infections and All-Cause Death in Patients with Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices: The Italian Nationwide RI-AIAC Registry.

Background: The incidence of infections associated with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) and patient outcomes are not fully known.

Aim: To provide a contemporary assessment of the risk of CIEDs infection and associated clinical outcomes.

Methods: In Italy, 18 centres enrolled all consecutive patients undergoing a CIED procedure and entered a 12-months follow-up.

Genomic Analysis of European Drosophila melanogaster Populations Reveals Longitudinal Structure, Continent-Wide Selection, and Previously Unknown DNA Viruses.

Genetic variation is the fuel of evolution, with standing genetic variation especially important for short-term evolution and local adaptation. To date, studies of spatiotemporal patterns of genetic variation in natural populations have been challenging, as comprehensive sampling is logistically difficult, and sequencing of entire populations costly. Here, we address these issues using a collaborative approach, sequencing 48 pooled population samples from 32 locations, and perform the first continent-wide genomic analysis of genetic variation in European Drosophila melanogaster.

Chromatin accessibility plays a key role in selective targeting of Hox proteins.

Background: Hox transcription factors specify segmental diversity along the anterior-posterior body axis in metazoans. While the different Hox family members show clear functional specificity in vivo, they all show similar binding specificity in vitro and a satisfactory understanding of in vivo Hox target selectivity is still lacking.

Results: Using transient transfection in Kc167 cells, we systematically analyze the binding of all eight Drosophila Hox proteins.

Monitoring Cr toxicity and remediation processes - combining a whole-cell bioreporter and Cr isotope techniques.

Bioremediation is a sustainable and cost-effective means of contaminant detoxification. Although Cr(VI) is toxic at high concentrations, various microbes can utilise it as an electron accepter in the bioremediation process, and reduce it to the less toxic form Cr(III). During remediation, it is important to monitor the level of toxicity and effectiveness of Cr(VI) reduction in order to optimize the conditions.

Using stable isotope fractionation factors to identify Cr(VI) reduction pathways: Metal-mineral-microbe interactions.

Microbes interact with metals and minerals in the environment altering their physical and chemical states, whilst in turn metals and minerals impact on microbial growth, activity and survival. The interactions between bacteria and dissolved chromium in the presence of iron minerals, and their impact on Cr isotope variations, were investigated. Cr(VI) reduction experiments were conducted with two bacteria, Pseudomonas fluorescens LB 300 and Shewanella oneidensis MR-1, in the presence of two iron oxide minerals, goethite and hematite.

Characterization of Drosophila ATPsynC mutants as a new model of mitochondrial ATP synthase disorders.

Mitochondrial disorders associated with genetic defects of the ATP synthase are among the most deleterious diseases of the neuromuscular system that primarily manifest in newborns. Nevertheless, the number of established animal models for the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms behind such pathologies is limited. In this paper, we target the Drosophila melanogaster gene encoding for the ATP synthase subunit c, ATPsynC, in order to create a fruit fly model for investigating defects in mitochondrial bioenergetics and to better understand the comprehensive pathological spectrum associated with mitochondrial ATP synthase dysfunctions.

Chronic Apical and Nonapical Right Ventricular Pacing in Patients with High-Grade Atrioventricular Block: Results of the Right Pace Study.

Objective: The aim of the study was to compare the two approaches to chronic right ventricular pacing currently adopted in clinical practice: right ventricular apical (RVA) and non-RVA pacing.

Background: Chronic RVA pacing is associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation, morbidity, and even mortality. Non-RVA pacing may yield more physiologic ventricular activation and provide potential long-term benefits and has recently been adopted as standard procedure at many implanting centers.

Uranium isotope evidence for two episodes of deoxygenation during Oceanic Anoxic Event 2.

Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (OAE 2), occurring ∼94 million years ago, was one of the most extreme carbon cycle and climatic perturbations of the Phanerozoic Eon. It was typified by a rapid rise in atmospheric CO, global warming, and marine anoxia, leading to the widespread devastation of marine ecosystems. However, the precise timing and extent to which oceanic anoxic conditions expanded during OAE 2 remains unresolved.

Coastal ocean and shelf-sea biogeochemical cycling of trace elements and isotopes: lessons learned from GEOTRACES.

Continental shelves and shelf seas play a central role in the global carbon cycle. However, their importance with respect to trace element and isotope (TEI) inputs to ocean basins is less well understood. Here, we present major findings on shelf TEI biogeochemistry from the GEOTRACES programme as well as a proof of concept for a new method to estimate shelf TEI fluxes.

Local adaptation of reproductive performance during thermal stress.

Considerable evidence exists for local adaptation of critical thermal limits in ectotherms following adult temperature stress, but fewer studies have tested for local adaptation of sublethal heat stress effects across life-history stages. In organisms with complex life cycles, such as holometabolous insects, heat stress during juvenile stages may severely impact gametogenesis, having downstream consequences on reproductive performance that may be mediated by local adaptation, although this is rarely studied. Here, we tested how exposure to either benign or heat stress temperature during juvenile and adult stages, either independently or combined, influences egg-to-adult viability, adult sperm motility and fertility in high- and low-latitude populations of Drosophila subobscura.

Gene expression clines reveal local adaptation and associated trade-offs at a continental scale.

Local adaptation, where fitness in one environment comes at a cost in another, should lead to spatial variation in trade-offs between life history traits and may be critical for population persistence. Recent studies have sought genomic signals of local adaptation, but often have been limited to laboratory populations representing two environmentally different locations of a species' distribution. We measured gene expression, as a proxy for fitness, in males of Drosophila subobscura, occupying a 20° latitudinal and 11 °C thermal range.

Comparative study of chemical and physical methods for distinguishing between passive and metabolically active mechanisms of water contaminant removal by biofilms.

In this study, physical and chemical approaches were employed to distinguish between passive and active mechanisms in biofilms removing contaminants in waste waters and their relative merits were assessed. Respiration, post-exposure recovery and scanning electron microscopic analysis demonstrated that both ultraviolet (UV) treatment (300 mJ/cm(2)) and sodium azide (10 mM) completely inhibited metabolic activity at 5 and 24 h exposure, respectively, whilst not damaging the integrity of the biofilms. Amongst the commonly used chemical inhibitors, only sodium azide showed complete inhibition after 24 h incubation with only about 10% (±4%) of biofilm carbon released into the bulk solution, compared to 33-41% (±8%) when exposed to 5 mM and 10 mM 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) and 69-80% (±5%) when exposed to 2% and 5% w/v formalin, respectively.

Advanced Residuals Analysis for Determining the Number of PARAFAC Components in Dissolved Organic Matter.

Parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) has facilitated an explosion in research connecting the fluorescence properties of dissolved organic matter (DOM) to its functions and biogeochemical cycling in natural and engineered systems. However, the validation of robust PARAFAC models using split-half analysis requires an oft unrealistically large number (hundreds to thousands) of excitation-emission matrices (EEMs), and models with too few components may not adequately describe differences between DOM. This study used self-organizing maps (SOM) and comparing changes in residuals with the effects of adding components to estimate the number of PARAFAC components in DOM from two data sets: MS (110 EEMs from nine leaf leachates and headwaters) and LR (64 EEMs from the Lena River).

The environmental genomics of metazoan thermal adaptation.

Continued and accelerating change in the thermal environment places an ever-greater priority on understanding how organisms are going to respond. The paradigm of 'move, adapt or die', regarding ways in which organisms can respond to environmental stressors, stimulates intense efforts to predict the future of biodiversity. Assuming that extinction is an unpalatable outcome, researchers have focussed attention on how organisms can shift in their distribution to stay in the same thermal conditions or can stay in the same place by adapting to a changing thermal environment.

Epicardial ganglionated plexus stimulation decreases postoperative inflammatory response in humans.

Background: Surgical cardiac revascularization produces a high degree of systemic inflammation and the secretion of several cytokines. Intensive postoperative inflammation may increase the incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation and favor organ dysfunctions. No data documenting the anti-inflammatory properties of epicardial vagal ganglionated plexus stimulation are available.

Determination of Nd isotopes in water: a chemical separation technique for extracting Nd from seawater using a chelating resin.

A new preconcentration technique for the determination of the concentration and isotopic composition of neodymium in aqueous samples is presented. The method uses a resin, Nobias PA1 from Hitachi High-Technologies, which has a hydrophilic methacrylate polymer backbone where the functional groups ethylenediaminetriacetic and iminodiacetic acids are immobilized. The function of the resin has been tested by preconcentrating 110-350 pmol of Nd from test solutions as well as from natural brackish water and seawater samples with different salinities and Nd concentrations.

Endocardial vagal atrioventricular node stimulation in humans: reproducibility on 18-month follow-up.

Aims: Control of atrioventricular (AV) node conduction by means of high-frequency stimulation (HFS) of efferent AV node vagal stimulation (AVNS) fibres enables the ventricular rate (VR) to be modulated during atrial fibrillation (AF). The aims of this study were to verify, on 18-month follow-up, the reproducibility of the dromotropic effect obtained on implantation and the long-term reliability of the system in patients who received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) with a standard atrial lead positioned at a location suitable for AVNS.

Methods And Results: We enrolled 12 patients with paroxysmal or persistent AF who were candidates for ICD.

Genetic, functional and evolutionary characterization of scox, the Drosophila melanogaster ortholog of the human SCO1 gene.

SCO proteins are copper-donor chaperones involved in the assembly of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase (COX). Mutations in the two human SCO-encoding genes, SCO1 and SCO2, produce tissue-specific COX deficiencies associated with distinct clinical phenotypes. Here, we report the identification and characterization of scox, the single Drosophila melanogaster SCO-encoding gene.

Vagal tone augmentation to the atrioventricular node in humans: efficacy and safety of burst endocardial stimulation.

Background: Control of atrioventricular (AV) nodal conduction by endocardial stimulation of efferent AV nodal vagal fibers [atrioventricular nodal vagal stimulation (AVNS)] is a promising approach for long-term device-based modulation of ventricular rate during atrial fibrillation (AF). However, few data on the efficacy of AVNS delivered as high-frequency stimulus packages (burst AVNS) in humans are available.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether burst AVNS can to modulate AV nodal conduction during AF and whether burst AVNS delivered during sinus rhythm (SR) in the effective atrial refractory period allows safe implantation of a permanent lead in a position suitable for AVNS.