Mineral composition in mussel and clam from Faro Lake of Messina: risk assessment for human health.

Bivalve are exposed to a wide range of contaminants, some of which may be toxic to human health. The aim of this study was to detect essential and non-essential elements such as Na, Ca, Mg, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Pb, Hg, Be and Co in water, sediments, and and from Faro Lake. It is a lake of marine origin located on the northern coast of Messina (Sicily), where shellfish farming has been practiced for many years.

Advantage of remote workstation and job performance: the impact of worktime autonomy and remote work intensity.

Grounded on the Affective Event Theory and the Quality of Telework Model, this cross-sectional study examined the impact of perceived advantage of remote workstation on remote work performance and if this relationship is mediated through remote work intensity and moderated by worktime autonomy. The perceived advantage of remote workstation was operationalised as the arithmetical difference between perceived home office and in-site office workstation quality. A sample of 349 Italian researchers involved in hybrid work arrangements completed an online questionnaire.

Identifying freshwater invertebrate taxa susceptible to AChE-acting pesticides.

Globally pesticide use has been associated with negative impacts on riverine invertebrate communities, but chronic exposure effects to most specific groups of pesticides are not well understood. In this paper, we sought to identify invertebrate species most vulnerable to effects of AChE-acting pesticides in UK rivers for potential application in environmental monitoring. We did this using a combination of the conservation of molecular target for AChE-acting pesticides (identified using the SeqAPass tool), laboratory-based toxicity data, and both biological traits and life history information.

Safeguarding nurses' mental health: The critical role of psychosocial safety climate in mitigating relational stressors and exhaustion.

Burnout among nurses is a pervasive concern in healthcare, with profound implications for patient care and nurse well-being. While research has highlighted the detrimental effects of burnout on many aspects of nursing, including patient safety and quality of care, the underlying mechanisms driving burnout warrant further investigation. In this cross-sectional study, we surveyed 196 nurses from diverse Italian hospitals using an online questionnaire via Qualtrics.

Development and external validation of a machine learning model for the prediction of persistent acute kidney injury stage 3 in multi-centric, multi-national intensive care cohorts.

Background: The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to develop and validate on multiple international datasets a real-time machine learning model able to accurately predict persistent acute kidney injury (AKI) in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods: We selected adult patients admitted to ICU classified as AKI stage 2 or 3 as defined by the "Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes" criteria. The primary endpoint was the ability to predict AKI stage 3 lasting for at least 72 h while in the ICU.

In vivo strain measurements in the human buttock during sitting using MR-based digital volume correlation.

Advancements in systems for prevention and management of pressure ulcers require a more detailed understanding of the complex response of soft tissues to compressive loads. This study aimed at quantifying the progressive deformation of the buttock based on 3D measurements of soft tissue displacements from MR scans of 10 healthy subjects in a semi-recumbent position. Measurements were obtained using digital volume correlation (DVC) and released as a public dataset.

Occupational safety in homecare organizations: the design and implementation of a train-the-trainer program.

Homecare workers face significant occupational risks, necessitating effective safety training programs. This paper presents a comprehensive Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program developed to enhance occupational safety in homecare organizations. Through an analysis of 229 reported safety events, the frequency and type of incidents, such as injuries during handling, road crashes, slips, trips, and falls, were identified and primarily attributed to human errors and violations.

Assessment of the impacts of GABA and AChE targeting pesticides on freshwater invertebrate family richness in English Rivers.

Globally, riverine system biodiversity is threatened by a range of stressors, spanning pollution, sedimentation, alterations to water flow, and climate change. Pesticides have been associated with population level impacts on freshwater invertebrates for acute high-level exposures, but far less is known about the chronic impact of episodic exposure to specific classes of pesticides or their mixtures. Here we employed the use of the UK Environment Agency's monitoring datasets over 40 years (covering years 1980 to 2019) to assess the impacts of AChE (acetylcholinesterase) and GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) receptor targeting pesticides on invertebrate family richness at English river sites.

Rapid, non-invasive, measurement of tissue mechanical properties using gravitational loading and a nonlinear virtual fields method.

Measuring the mechanical properties of soft tissues is important in biomechanics and for diagnosis and staging of diseases, but challenging because it is difficult to control the boundary conditions. We present a novel, non-invasive method for measuring tissue properties using gravitational loading. MRI images of an organ in different positions are registered to measure tissue displacements due to gravitational forces in different positions.

Pesticide pollution associations with riverine invertebrate communities in England.

Globally freshwater biodiversity has experienced major decline and chemical pollutants are believed to have played a significant role in this decline, but this has not been well quantified for most riverine invertebrate populations. Here we applied a biogeographically independent trait-based bioindicator, SPEAR across sites across five regions (Northern, Midlands and Western, Anglian, Southeast, and Southwest) in England to investigate for associations specifically between pesticide use/pollution and riverine invertebrate communities over a 55-year period (1965-2019). Both spatially and temporally post-1990, the Anglian and Thames regions consistently showed the lowest SPEAR scores, illustrating the presence of fewer pesticide sensitive species.

Migrants' human rights and health protection during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Mediterranean Sea: what we have learnt from direct inspections in two Italian hotspots.

This study aims to assess the situation of Italian hotspots for migrant reception during the COVID-19 pandemic, and specifically analyzing the situation of two hotspots located in the Sicily Region (Pozzallo harbor and Lampedusa Island), to identify critical issues. At the same time, we hypothesize solutions to guarantee the respect of human rights and suggest an operational protocol to be applied in similar situations, considering that the migration phenomenon is increasing and involving new geographical areas. Based on data obtained through the site inspections, the facilities of Pozzallo and Lampedusa exceeded their capacity to adequately contain the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Fabrication of a positional brain shift phantom through the utilization of the frozen intermediate hydrogel state.

Synthetic models (phantoms) of the brain-skull system are useful tools for the study of surgical events that are otherwise difficult to study directly in humans. To date, very few studies can be found which replicate the full anatomical brain-skull system. Such models are required to study the more global mechanical events that can occur in neurosurgery, such as positional brain shift.

Working Remotely During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Work-Related Psychosocial Factors, Work Satisfaction, and Job Performance Among Russian Employees.

Background: The spread of COVID-19 has forced organizations to quickly offer remote work arrangements to employees.

Objective: The study focuses on remote work during the first wave of the pandemic and describes how Russian employees experienced remote work. The research has three main objectives: (1) to investigate the influence of gender and age on employees' perceptions of remote work; (2) to investigate the relationship between remote work and psychosocial variables, such as remote work stress, remote work engagement, and family-work conflict; (3) to examine whether and how much such psychosocial factors are related to remote work satisfaction and job performance.

measurement of human brain material properties under quasi-static loading.

Computational modelling of the brain requires accurate representation of the tissues concerned. Mechanical testing has numerous challenges, in particular for low strain rates, like neurosurgery, where redistribution of fluid is biomechanically important. A finite-element (FE) model was generated in FEBio, incorporating a spring element/fluid-structure interaction representation of the pia-arachnoid complex (PAC).

Workload and Mental Well-Being of Homeworkers: The Mediating Effects of Work-Family Conflict, Sleeping Problems, and Work Engagement.

Objective: Based on the Conservation of Resources theory, this cross-sectional study investigates the relationship between workload experienced by employees when working at home and their mental well-being. Work-family conflict, sleeping problems, and work engagement are proposed as mediators.

Methods: A sample of 11,501 homeworkers was drawn from the sixth wave of the European Working Condition Survey data set.

Atmospheric pollution, soil nutrients and climate effects on Mucoromycota arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

Fine root endophyte mycorrhizal fungi in the Endogonales (Mucoromycota arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, M-AMF) are now recognized as at least as important globally as Glomeromycota AMF (G-AMF), yet little is known about the environmental factors which influence M-AMF diversity and colonization, partly because they typically only co-colonize plants with G-AMF. Wild populations of Lycopodiella inundata predominantly form mycorrhizas with M-AMF and therefore allow focussed study of M-AMF environmental drivers. Using microscopic examination and DNA sequencing we measured M-AMF colonization and diversity over three consecutive seasons and modelled interactions between these response variables and environmental data.

Current Approaches, Typologies and Predictors of Deviant Work Behaviors: A Scoping Review of Reviews.

This study provides a scoping review of the recent conceptual developments about the deviant work behavior and counterproductive work behavior constructs. It also examines the specific types of deviant work behavior that have been more consistently investigated in the last decade, and whether they cover the interpersonal or organizational type of deviant behavior. In addition, individual, group, and organizational predictors of deviant work behaviors are examined.

Not All Remote Workers Are Similar: Technology Acceptance, Remote Work Beliefs, and Wellbeing of Remote Workers during the Second Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Although a large part of the world's workforce engaged in mandatory Work from Home during the COVID-19 pandemic, the experience was not the same for everyone. This study explores whether different groups of employees, based on their work and organizational characteristics (i.e.

Reverse transcriptase loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) as a user-friendly system to detect SARS-CoV-2 infection: a multicentric study.

Although reverse transcriptase quantitative PCR remains the gold standard to perform viral detection, reverse transcriptase loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) is already used to perform diagnosis of various infections. This work reports the results of a multicentric study performed in Sicily to evaluate the diagnostic power of an RT-LAMP kit for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection on a total of 551 samples collected in January and February 2021, revealing sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive and negative predictive values ≥95%. Our results suggest the potential employment of this kit as a screening test to be used where fast and reliable results are demanded without the need for expensive instruments and highly-skilled personnel.

The Implementation of a Remote Work Program in an Italian Municipality before COVID-19: Suggestions to HR Officers for the Post-COVID-19 Era.

This case study describes the implementation stages and some outcomes of a remote work program that was adopted in an Italian municipality before the COVID-19 pandemic. This research used a qualitative case study approach, proposing a semi-structured interview with 14 staff members (six remote-worker employees, their respective managers, and two intermediate-level managers) about the experience with the remote work program. In addition, two researchers attended two preparatory program meetings.

Full-field MRI measurements of in-vivo positional brain shift reveal the significance of intra-cranial geometry and head orientation for stereotactic surgery.

Positional brain shift (PBS), the sagging of the brain under the effect of gravity, is comparable in magnitude to the margin of error for the success of stereotactic interventions ([Formula: see text] 1 mm). This non-uniform shift due to slight differences in head orientation can lead to a significant discrepancy between the planned and the actual location of surgical targets. Accurate in-vivo measurements of this complex deformation are critical for the design and validation of an appropriate compensation to integrate into neuronavigational systems.

Individual Patient Data Meta-analysis of Discrimination of the Four Kallikrein Panel Associated With the Inclusion of Prostate Volume.

Objective: To assess whether adding prostate volume to the kallikrein panel improves discrimination for ISUP Grade Group 2 or higher (GG2+) disease, as some men may have volume measurements available at the time of blood draw. While prostate volume predicts biopsy outcome, it requires an imaging procedure for measurement. The four kallikrein panel - commercially available as the 4Kscore - predicts risk of GG2+ disease and requires only a blood draw.

Work From Home During the COVID-19 Outbreak: The Impact on Employees' Remote Work Productivity, Engagement, and Stress.

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic made working from home (WFH) the new way of working. This study investigates the impact that family-work conflict, social isolation, distracting environment, job autonomy, and self-leadership have on employees' productivity, work engagement, and stress experienced when WFH during the pandemic.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data collected through an online questionnaire completed by 209 employees WFH during the pandemic.

Personal Initiative, Passive-Avoidant Leadership and Support for Innovation as Antecedents of Nurses' Idea Generation and Idea Implementation.

Purpose: This study aims to explore the role of individual (work engagement, personal initiative), group (transformational, transactional, passive-avoidant leadership) and organisational factors (support for innovation climate) in fostering the two components of nurses' innovative behaviours, idea generation and idea implementation.

Design And Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted in an Italian public hospital, in two departments that had been created by merging other departments. A self-report questionnaire was completed by 118 nurses.

A 4Kscore Cut-off of 7.5% for Prostate Biopsy Decisions Provides High Sensitivity and Negative Predictive Value for Significant Prostate Cancer.

Objective: To evaluate the 4Kscore test's low risk cut-off of 7.5% as the indication to proceed with a prostate biopsy by combining data from 2 independent prospective multicentre trials in the United States which have validated the 4Kscore test as a continuous score to predict clinically significant prostate cancer.

Materials And Methods: We analyzed the data from 2 prospective multicenter trials in the United states to determine the number of men who could safely avoid a prostate biopsy and the presence of clinically significant cancers detected, at a 4Kscore cut-off of 7.