A Scoping Review with Bibliometric Analysis of Para-Rowing: State of the Art and Future Directions.

Para-rowing is a format of rowing practiced by people with different types of disabilities, thanks to adapted equipment set-ups and regulations. Para-rowing made its debut recently at the 2008 Paralympic Games. According to the mandate of the "International Paralympic Committee", para-rowers should be enabled to pursue sporting excellence.

Generation of a Triadin KnockOut Syndrome Zebrafish Model.

Different forms of sudden cardiac death have been described, including a recently identified form of genetic arrhythmogenic disorder, named "Triadin KnockOut Syndrome" (TKOS). TKOS is associated with recessive mutations in the gene, encoding for TRIADIN, but the pathogenic mechanism underlying the malignant phenotype has yet to be completely defined. Moreover, patients with TKOS are often refractory to conventional treatment, substantiating the need to identify new therapeutic strategies in order to prevent or treat cardiac events.

The Arabidopsis thaliana LysM-containing Receptor-Like Kinase 2 is required for elicitor-induced resistance to pathogens.

In Arabidopsis thaliana, perception of chitin from fungal cell walls is mediated by three LysM-containing Receptor-Like Kinases (LYKs): CERK1, which is absolutely required for chitin perception, and LYK4 and LYK5, which act redundantly. The role in plant innate immunity of a fourth LYK protein, LYK2, is currently not known. Here we show that CERK1, LYK2 and LYK5 are dispensable for basal susceptibility to B.

Phase angle is associated with length of hospital stay, readmissions, mortality, and falls in patients hospitalized in internal-medicine wards: A retrospective cohort study.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive value of bioimpedance phase angle (PA) on selected clinical outcomes in patients hospitalized in internal-medicine wards.

Methods: This was a retrospective observational study of 168 patients admitted to the internalmedicine service (52.9% women, 47.

Expression of a Hyperthermophilic Cellobiohydrolase in Transgenic by Protein Storage Vacuole Targeting.

Plant expression of microbial Cell Wall Degrading Enzymes (CWDEs) is a valuable strategy to produce industrial enzymes at affordable cost. Unfortunately, the constitutive expression of CWDEs may affect plant fitness to variable extents, including developmental alterations, sterility and even lethality. In order to explore novel strategies for expressing CWDEs in crops, the cellobiohydrolase CBM3GH5, from the hyperthermophilic bacterium , was constitutively expressed in by targeting the enzyme both to the apoplast and to the protein storage vacuole.

Cell Synchronization Enhances Nuclear Transformation and Genome Editing Cas9 Enabling Homologous Recombination in .

In , the model organism for eukaryotic green algae and plants, the processes of nuclear transformation and genome editing in particular are still marked by a low level of efficiency, and so intensive work is required in order to create and identify mutants for the investigation of basic physiological processes, as well as the implementation of biotechnological applications. In this work, we show that cell synchronization during the stages of the cell cycle, obtained from long-term cultivation under specific growth conditions, greatly enhances the efficiency of transformation and allows the identification of DNA repair mechanisms that occur preferentially at different stages of the cell cycle. We demonstrate that the transformation of synchronized cells at different times was differentially associated with nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ) and/or homologous recombination (HR), and makes it possible to knock-in specific foreign DNA at the genomic nuclear location desired by exploiting HR.

Design of a highly thermostable hemicellulose-degrading blend from Thermotoga neapolitana for the treatment of lignocellulosic biomass.

The biological conversion of lignocellulose into fermentable sugars is a key process for the sustainable production of biofuels from plant biomass. Polysaccharides in plant feedstock can be valorized using thermostable mixtures of enzymes that degrade the cell walls, thus avoiding harmful and expensive pre-treatments. (Hyper)thermophilic bacteria of the phylum Thermotogae provide a rich source of enzymes for such industrial applications.

Biomass from microalgae: the potential of domestication towards sustainable biofactories.

Interest in bulk biomass from microalgae, for the extraction of high-value nutraceuticals, bio-products, animal feed and as a source of renewable fuels, is high. Advantages of microalgal vs. plant biomass production include higher yield, use of non-arable land, recovery of nutrients from wastewater, efficient carbon capture and faster development of new domesticated strains.

Comparison of on-site field measured inorganic arsenic in rice with laboratory measurements using a field deployable method: Method validation.

A commercial arsenic field kit designed to measure inorganic arsenic (iAs) in water was modified into a field deployable method (FDM) to measure iAs in rice. While the method has been validated to give precise and accurate results in the laboratory, its on-site field performance has not been evaluated. This study was designed to test the method on-site in Malawi in order to evaluate its accuracy and precision in determination of iAs on-site by comparing with a validated reference method and giving original data on inorganic arsenic in Malawian rice and rice-based products.

Long-term results of the AIEOP MH'96 childhood Hodgkin's lymphoma trial and focus on significance of response to chemotherapy and its implication in low risk patients to avoid radiotherapy.

Identify a subset of early-stage HL children (GR1) curable with limited chemotherapy+/-radiotherapy; improve outcome of intermediate (GR2) and high-risk (GR3) patients; establish impact of response to chemotherapy evaluated with conventional imaging (CI). One hundred and sixty GR1-patients received 3ABVD + involved-field (IF) low-dose (LD) (20 Gy) irradiation if mediastinal mass or partial response (PR) after chemotherapy. Eighty-five GR2- and 315 GR3-patients received 4 and 6 COPP/ABV + IFRT, respectively.

Determinants of the cost of capital for privately financed hospital projects in the UK.

Many governments make use of private finance contracts to deliver healthcare infrastructure. Previous work has shown that the rate of return to investors in these markets often exceeds the efficient level. Our focus is on the factors that influence that return.

Ultra-low-dose CT with model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR): detection of ground-glass nodules in an anthropomorphic phantom study.

Purpose: The authors sought to evaluate the effect of model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) on the sensitivity of ground-glass nodule (GGN) detection at different dose levels.

Materials And Methods: Fifty-four artificial GGN were randomly divided into three sets, each positioned in an anthropomorphic phantom. The three sets were evaluated on standard-dose (SD, 350 mA), low-dose (LD, 35 mA) and ultra-low-dose (ULD, 10 mA) CT scans (100 kV, 64 × 0.

Low-dose chest computed tomography for quantitative and visual anatomical analysis in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Purpose: Chest computed tomography (CT) is a fundamental tool for the characterization of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Its frequent use is, however, hindered by the associated radiation exposure. The aim of the present study was to evaluate, in patients with ARDS, the accuracy of quantitative and visual anatomical lung analysis performed on low-dose CT.

Extracorporeal gas exchange and spontaneous breathing for the treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome: an alternative to mechanical ventilation?*.

Objectives: Venovenous extracorporeal gas exchange is increasingly used in awake, spontaneously breathing patients as a bridge to lung transplantation. Limited data are available on a similar use of extracorporeal gas exchange in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of extracorporeal gas exchange in awake, spontaneously breathing sheep with healthy lungs and with acute respiratory distress syndrome and describe the interactions between the native lung (healthy and diseased) and the artificial lung (extracorporeal gas exchange) in this setting.

Low-dose CT for quantitative analysis in acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Introduction: The clinical use of serial quantitative computed tomography (CT) to characterize lung disease and guide the optimization of mechanical ventilation in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is limited by the risk of cumulative radiation exposure and by the difficulties and risks related to transferring patients to the CT room. We evaluated the effects of tube current-time product (mAs) variations on quantitative results in healthy lungs and in experimental ARDS in order to support the use of low-dose CT for quantitative analysis.

Methods: In 14 sheep chest CT was performed at baseline and after the induction of ARDS via intravenous oleic acid injection.

Does the private sector receive an excessive return from investments in health care infrastructure projects? Evidence from the UK.

This paper is concerned with the cost-efficiency of Private Finance Initiatives (PFIs) in the delivery of hospital facilities in the UK. We outline a methodology for identifying the "fair" return on equity, based on the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) of each investor. We apply this method to assess the expected returns on a sample of 77 contracts signed between 1997 and 2011 by health care provider organisations in the UK.

Pressure-guided positioning of bicaval dual-lumen catheters for venovenous extracorporeal gas exchange.

Purpose: Bicaval dual-lumen catheters allow for single-site cannulation venovenous extracorporeal gas exchange and facilitate early mobilization of patients. Using these catheters blood is drained from the superior and inferior venae cavae, pumped through a respiratory membrane, and returned into the right atrium. The insertion of these catheters is challenging as their correct positioning is fundamental to reduce recirculation and avoid severe complications.

Efficacy of propranolol treatment in thyroid dysfunction associated with severe infantile hepatic hemangioma.

Infantile hepatic hemangioma can be associated to consumptive hypothyroidism due to overexpression of type 3 deiodinase in the endothelium of vascular tumor, which catalyzes the conversion of T4 to reverse T3 (rT3) and of T3 to T2, both of which are biologically inactive. Here, we report an infant with a massive biopsy-proven infantile hepatic hemangioma who developed thyroid dysfunction without a typical biochemical profile consistent with severe consumptive hypothyroidism, despite the large tumor burden. Our patient was treated with propranolol that rapidly resolved both hepatic hemangioma and thyroid dysfunction.

Meta-Review of Metanalytic Studies with Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) for the Treatment of Major Depression.

Background: Major Depression (MD) and treatment-resistant depression (TRD) are worldwide leading causes of disability and therapeutic strategies for these impairing and prevalent conditions include pharmacological augmentation strategies and brain stimulation techniques. In this perspective, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique with a favorable profile of tolerability which, despite being recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of patients with medication-refractory unipolar depression, still raises some doubts about most effective parameters of stimulation.

Methods: A literature search was performed using PubMed for the years 2001 through February 2011 in order to review meta-analytic studies assessing efficacy and safety issues for rTMS in depressive disorders.

Patterns of Axis I comorbidity in relation to age in patients with Bipolar Disorder: a cross-sectional analysis.

Background: Several data indicate that the clinical course and treatment response of Bipolar Disorder (BD) is influenced by comorbidity. However, whether differences in comorbidity patterns exist in relation to classes of age remains debated. The present study was aimed to evaluate differences in terms of cross-sectional Axis I comorbidity among young (≤30 years), adult (>30 and ≤45 years) and older adult patients with BD (>45 years).

Transcranial direct current stimulation improves word retrieval in healthy and nonfluent aphasic subjects.

A number of studies have shown that modulating cortical activity by means of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) affects performances of both healthy and brain-damaged subjects. In this study, we investigated the potential of tDCS to enhance associative verbal learning in 10 healthy individuals and to improve word retrieval deficits in three patients with stroke-induced aphasia. In healthy individuals, tDCS (20 min, 1 mA) was applied over Wernicke's area (position CP5 of the International 10-20 EEG System) while they learned 20 new "words" (legal nonwords arbitrarily assigned to 20 different pictures).

Asymptomatic Leishmania infantum/chagasi infection in blood donors of western Sicily.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the risk of transfusion-transmitted visceral leishmaniasis was present in an area of western Sicily where the incidence of the disease is higher than the regional average. From May to December 2005, 1449 blood donors from Agrigento district (Sicily, Italy) were screened for the presence of anti-Leishmania antibodies by an indirect immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT). Blood samples from IFAT-positive donors were examined by PCR to detect Leishmania DNA.