AI-driven identification of a novel malate structure from recycled lithium-ion batteries.

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the discovery of new materials offers significant potential for advancing sustainable technologies. This paper presents a novel approach leveraging AI-driven methodologies to identify a new malate structure derived from the treatment of spent lithium-ion batteries. By analysing bibliographic data and incorporating domain-specific knowledge, AI facilitated the identification and structure refinement of a new malate complex containing different metals (Ni, Mn, Co, and Cu).

Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, Kynurenine Pathway, and Lipid-Profiling Alterations as Potential Animal Welfare Indicators in Dairy Cattle.

Complete animal welfare evaluation in intensive farming is challenging. With this study, we investigate new biomarkers for animal physical and mental health by comparing plasma expression of biochemical indicators in dairy cows reared in three different systems: (A) semi-intensive free-stall, (B) non-intensive tie-stall, and (C) intensive free-stall. Additionally, protein levels of mature brain-derived neurotrophic factor (mBDNF) and its precursor form (proBDNF) and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO1) specific activity were evaluated in brain samples collected from 12 cattle culled between 73 and 138 months of age.

Impalement injuries of the shoulder: a case report with literature review.

The management of penetrating skeletal extremity trauma is a clinical challenge even for experienced surgeons. While the treatment of associated vascular injuries should be prioritized, there is still a lack of evidence regarding the management of foreign bodies in case of bone fractures or neurological injuries. Here we present a case of impalement of the right proximal humerus with a construction steel rod.

Delayed diagnosis and treatment of a psoas abscess as a link between spondylodiscitis and septic necrosis of the femoral head: a case report.

Background: Infections of the spine and hip joint are not common and, as described in literature, they are occasionally linked by a psoas abscess. In patients suffering back pain with history of spondylodiscitis, the spine as primary source of infection for a secondary psoas abscess should always be included in differential diagnosis. A delay in diagnosis of the psoas abscess could lead to septic femoral head necrosis.

Facing complications of direct anterior approach in total hip arthroplasty during the learning curve.

Background: This study aims to evaluate complications and early postoperative clinical outcomes of direct anterior approach (DAA) in total hip arthroplasty (THA).

Methods: Ninety-one consecutive patients who underwent primary elective unilateral THA between January 2013 and December 2019 were identified. Collected data included age of patient, BMI, ASA score, EBL (estimated blood loss), LOS (length of stay), operating time, and intra/postoperative complications.

Late bleeding during anterior approach to the hip: case Report.

Vascular injuries represent an uncommon complication of total hip arthroplasty, with an incidence of 0.1-0.3% as reported in the literature.

Antibiotic-Loaded Spacer for Two-Stage Revision of Infected Total Knee Arthroplasty.

Infection of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a challenge in orthopedic surgery. In literature TKA infection is classified according to the time after surgery: acute postoperative; late chronic; acute hematogenous; positive intraoperative microbiological growth. The purpose of this study is to present the results of the use of a preformed antibiotic-loaded spacer in TKA infections, treated by a two-stage revision procedure.

Two cases of failed back surgery syndrome after correction and stabilization surgery for scoliosis with Harrington instrumentation.

We report two cases of adjacent segment degeneration in patients with idiopathic scoliosis who underwent surgical treatment with Harrington instrumentation in young age. Both patients developed a symptomatic degeneration of the disk immediately under the last stabilized level and were treated with decompression and stabilization. Clinical and radiological results are satisfactory at the follow-up.

Sacral nerve stimulation (SNS), posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) or acupuncture for the treatment for fecal incontinence: a clinical commentary.

Sacral nerve stimulation (SNS) has become an established therapy worldwide for the treatment for fecal incontinence. A large number of papers have been published over the years, and SNS is generally considered very effective with improved continence and quality of life for most patients. However, the results are mostly expressed in the semi-quantitative terms, that is, patients' diaries translated into score points.

Comparative assessment of genotoxicity of mineral water packed in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and glass bottles.

The potential migration of genotoxic compounds into mineral water stored in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles was evaluated by an integrated chemical/biological approach using short-term toxicity/genotoxicity tests and chemical analysis. Six commercial brands of still and carbonated mineral water bottled in PET and in glass were stored at 40 degrees C for 10 days in a stove according to the standard EEC total migration test (82/711/EEC), or at room temperature in the dark. After treatment, the samples were analysed using gas-chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) to detect volatile and non-volatile compounds, the Microtox test to evaluate potential toxicity of the samples, and three mutagenicity tests -Tradescantia and Allium cepa micronucleus tests and the Comet assay on human leukocytes - to detect their genotoxic activity.

Fecal incontinence treated with acupuncture--a pilot study.

Objectives: Acupuncture has been used successfully for the treatment of urinary bladder dysfunction. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate if manual acupuncture might also affect fecal incontinence favorably.

Methods: The study comprises 15 female patients, median age 60 years (39 -75).

A comparison of three diagnostic techniques for malaria: a rapid diagnostic test (NOW Malaria), PCR and microscopy.

Malaria is a common, life-threatening infection in endemic tropical areas and one that presents a diagnostic challenge to laboratories in most non-endemic countries. A rapid and accurate diagnosis is a prerequisite for effective treatment, especially for the potentially fatal cases of Plasmodium falciparum infection. In the present, multi-centre study, the performances of a rapid diagnostic test (NOW) Malaria) and several, commercial, PCR-based assays (AMS61, AMS42, AMS43, AMS4 and AMS45) were compared against the results of microscopical examination of bloodsmears (the current 'gold standard').

The ileoanal pouch procedure in the long-term perspective: a critical review.

An ileo-pouch anal anastomosis (IPAA) has become the gold standard procedure for ulcerative colitis and familial adenomatous polyposis. Clinical results on the pelvic pouch procedure have often been encouraging; when confronted with the different surgical options, the majority of patients select IPAA as the best operation. However, even if IPAA is a great innovation, it is by no means the first choice for all patients.

Is an ileal pouch an alternative for patients requiring surgery for Crohn's proctocolitis?

Background: Most surgeons consider Crohn's colitis to be an absolute contraindication for a continent ileostomy, due to high complication and failure rates. This opinion may, however, be erroneous. The results may appear poor when compared with those after pouch surgery in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), but the matter may well appear in a different light if the pouch patients are compared with Crohn's colitis patients who have had a proctocolectomy and a conventional ileostomy.

Diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis: the sensitivities and specificities of traditional methods and a nested PCR assay.

In the present study, 67 patients suspected to be cases of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) were each checked for leishmanial infection by the microscopical evaluation of various biological specimens, in-vitro culture, serology and an assay based on nested PCR. Most (35) of the subjects were immunocompetent (IC) but 32 were immunodeficient (ID) as the result of HIV infection (18 cases), treatment to prevent transplanted organs being rejected (six) or haematological malignancies (eight). Forty-one (61.

Amebic infections due to the Entamoeba histolytica-Entamoeba dispar complex: a study of the incidence in a remote rural area of Ecuador.

An epidemiologic field study was conducted in the village of Borbòn in Esmeraldas province in northern Ecuador to compare different parasitologic methods in the diagnosis of infection with the Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar complex. The results of two stool antigen detection assays (the Prospect Entamoeba histolytica microplate assay and the E. histolytica II assay) were compared with isoenzyme characterization of the amebic isolates.

[Pathogenic protozoans in man: differential characterization of Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar complex, Acanthamoeba spp., Microsporidia].

The review summarizes the results in the main parasitological topics of our Lab: amoebic infections due to Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar complex and to Acanthamoeba spp. respectively, and human infections caused by microsporidia. Different rapid and advanced techniques have been included in the standardized diagnostic protocols for each topic, and a critical comparison among them was made, in order to define the gold standard diagnostic method: a) E.

Disseminated microsporidiosis caused by Encephalitozoon cuniculi III (dog type) in an Italian AIDS patient: a retrospective study.

We report a case of disseminated microsporidiosis in an Italian woman with AIDS. This study was done retrospectively using formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue specimens obtained at autopsy. Microsporidia spores were found in the necrotic lesions of the liver, kidney, and adrenal gland and in ovary, brain, heart, spleen, lung, and lymph nodes.

Multicentre study, in patients with imported malaria, on the sensitivity and specificity of a dipstick test (ICT Malaria P.f./P.v.) compared with expert microscopy.

A prospective, multicentre study was carried out in Italy to assess the sensitivity and specificity of a rapid dipstick test (ICT Malaria P.f./P.

Asymptomatic amoebic infection: Entamoeba histolytica or Entamoeba dispar? That is the question.

Two cases of amoebic infection were diagnosed in a heterosexual couple. The cases, a Frenchman with previous trips to various African countries and his sexual partner, a Cameroonese woman immigrant living outside the community, were both asymptomatic; the infection had been diagnosed by chance in the man at the time of his employment in a hospital kitchen. Based on what is known of the epidemiology of amoebic infection, it may be acquired and then transmitted within a couple via the indirect faecal-oral route or, in greater likelihood, by sexual practices.