Preventing dementia in Italy: Estimations of modifiable risk factors and public health implications.

Background: Dementia is a major global public health challenge, with over 50 million cases in 2020, projected to reach 152 million by 2050. Effective prevention strategies are needed to reduce the impact of modifiable risk factors associated with dementia, particularly in countries with ageing populations like Italy. The Population Attributable Fraction (PAF) and Potential Impact Fraction (PIF) are key metrics for understanding and reducing dementia cases through targeted interventions.

The ADESTE trial: A phase 2 study of enibarcimab, a monoclonal antibody targeting adrenomedullin, in acute heart failure.

Aims: This study aimed to conduct a phase 2 proof-of-concept and safety study to evaluate the effect of ENIBARCIMAB (EN), a non-neutralizing humanized monoclonal antibody targeting the N-terminus of adrenomedullin (ADM), administered immediately after stabilization with standard of care (SoC) treatment, in patients hospitalized for acute heart failure (AHF).

Methods And Results: This prospective, open-label, controlled, interventional, multicenter, dose-escalation study was conducted at two cardiology sites in Indonesia. Patients were divided into two interventional groups sequentially receiving 0.

Understanding patients' emotional well-being, perceptions and concerns during an unprecedented deferment of arthroplasty: an Italian qualitative study.

Objectives: Nearly 40 000 Italian patients had their arthroplasty postponed between March and May 2020 (lockdown period) and experienced a period of several months without knowing when surgeries would resume. The hypothesis was that such conditions caused changes in perceived well-being and quality of life. The study aimed to explore the feelings, perceptions and concerns of orthopaedic patients in Italy during COVID-related arthroplasty rescheduling.

Unlocking the power of empagliflozin: Rescuing inflammation in hyperglycaemia- exposed human cardiomyocytes through comprehensive multi-level analysis.

Aims: Hyperglycaemic conditions increase cardiac stress, a common phenomenon associated with inflammation, aging, and metabolic imbalance. Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors, a class of anti-diabetic drugs, showed to improve cardiovascular functions although their mechanism of action has not yet been fully established. This study investigated the effects of empagliflozin on cardiomyocytes following high glucose exposure, specifically focusing on inflammatory and metabolic responses.

Influenza vaccination hesitancy and related factors among pregnant and breastfeeding women: A cross-sectional study.

Achieving safe influenza vaccination coverage among pregnant and breastfeeding women is a global health goal due to the potential risks of serious influenza for both mother and child. However, vaccine hesitancy remains a significant barrier to vaccination uptake. Since anxiety represents a determinant in vaccine decision-making, this study aimed to assess influenza vaccination hesitancy and anxiety levels in this population and to explore the association between women's characteristics, their reluctance, and anxiety levels.

Permissive strategies in intensive care units (ICUs): actual trends?

Permissive strategies in the intensive care unit (PSICU) intentionally allow certain physiological parameters to deviate from traditionally strict control limits to mitigate the risks associated with overly aggressive interventions. These strategies have emerged in response to evidence that rigid adherence to normal physiological ranges may cause harm to critically ill patients, leading to iatrogenic complications or exacerbation of underlying conditions. This review discusses several permissive strategies, including those related to hypotension, hypercapnia, hypoxemia, and lower urinary output thresholds.

Triple spinal dural arteriovenous fistula.

Spinal dural arteriovenous fistulas (SDAVFs) are the most common type of spinal vascular malformations. Multiple SDAVFs are unusual and can occur either synchronously or metachronously, as reported in the literature. We report on the unusual case of a woman with three separate SDAVFs, which were surgically treated within the same setting; the postoperative course was characterised by unexplained repeated haematoma formation within the surgical sites.

Untargeted Characterization and Biological Activity of Amazonian Aqueous Stem Bark Extracts by Liquid and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry.

Introduction: Aqueous stem bark extracts of Aspidosperma rigidum Rusby, Couroupita guianensis Aubl., Monteverdia laevis (Reissek) Biral, and Protium sagotianum Marchand have been reported as traditional remedies in several countries of the Amazonian region. Despite previous research, further investigation to characterize secondary metabolites and the biological activity of extracts is needed to derive potential applications.

Posterior left atrial wall isolation for treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation during first-time catheter ablation: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Although catheter ablation (CA) by mean of pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) is nowadays the mainstay treatment for atrial fibrillation (AF), its success-rate in persistent AF remains suboptimal. Results from studies evaluating whether adding posterior wall isolation (PWI) to PVI can increase the success-rate of CA in persistent AF have yielded conflicting data. The aim of this meta-analysis was to assess whether PWI plus PVI might be beneficial in patients with persistent AF.

Occlusal acuity and bite force in young adults.

Occlusal tactile acuity (OTA) and bite force are essential components of the sensorimotor control of oral behaviors. While these variables have been studied independently, it has not yet been revealed whether compressive force impacts the occlusal perception mediated by the mechanoreceptive afferents in the periodontal ligament. The present study examined the effect of repetition and maximum bite force on OTA by testing nine aluminum foils of different thicknesses together with a sham test with no foil, three times each, in randomized order in 36 healthy individuals.

Molecular ecology of novel amdoparvoviruses and old protoparvoviruses in Spanish wild carnivorans.

Wild carnivorans are key hosts of parvoviruses of relevance for animal health and wildlife conservation. However, the distribution and diversity of parvoviruses among wild carnivorans are under-investigated, particularly in Southern Europe. We evaluated the presence, spread, and diversity of multi-host protoparvoviruses (canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2), feline panleukopenia virus (FPV)), and amdoparvoviruses in 12 carnivoran species from Northern Spain to explore viral ecology.

Prilling of crystallizable water-in-oil emulsions: Towards co-encapsulation of hydrophilic and lipophilic active ingredients within lipid microparticles.

Multiparticulate drug delivery systems offer advantages in controlled release, dose flexibility, and personalized medicine. Fusion prilling, a process that produces spherical lipid-based microparticles through vibrating nozzles, is gaining interest in the field. This study aims to explore the use of fusion prilling to encapsulate crystallizable water-in-oil emulsions, enabling the incorporation of hydrophilic active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) within lipid matrices.

Mitochondrial chaperonin DNAJC15 promotes vulnerability to ferroptosis of chemoresistant ovarian cancer cells.

DNAJC15 is a mitochondrial TIMM23-related co-chaperonin known for its role in regulating oxidative phosphorylation efficiency, oxidative stress response and lipid metabolism. Recently, it has been proposed that the loss of DNAJC15 correlates with cisplatin (CDDP)-resistance onset in ovarian cancer (OC), suggesting this protein as a potential prognostic factor during OC progression. However, the molecular mechanisms through which DNAJC15 contributes to CDDP response remains poorly investigated.

Neuronal mechanisms of nociceptive-evoked gamma-band oscillations in rodents.

Gamma-band oscillations (GBOs) in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1) play key roles in nociceptive processing. Yet, one crucial question remains unaddressed: what neuronal mechanisms underlie nociceptive-evoked GBOs? Here, we addressed this question using a range of somatosensory stimuli (nociceptive and non-nociceptive), neural recording techniques (electroencephalography in humans and silicon probes and calcium imaging in rodents), and optogenetics (alone or simultaneously with electrophysiology in mice). We found that (1) GBOs encoded pain intensity independent of stimulus intensity in humans, (2) GBOs in S1 encoded pain intensity and were triggered by spiking of S1 interneurons, (3) parvalbumin (PV)-positive interneurons preferentially tracked pain intensity, and critically, (4) PV S1 interneurons causally modulated GBOs and pain-related behaviors for both thermal and mechanical pain.

Cigarette Smoking Impairs Cardiorespiratory and Metabolic Response at Peak Incremental Exercise and during Recovery in Young, Physically Active Adults.

Purpose: Cigarette smoking (CS) induces systemic changes that impair cardiorespiratory and muscular function both at rest and during exercise. Although these abnormalities are reported in sedentary, middle-aged smokers (SM) with pulmonary disease, few and controversial studies focused on young, physically active SM at the early stage of smoking history. This study aimed at assessing the impact CS on cardiorespiratory and metabolic response during an incremental test and the subsequent recovery in young, physically active SM without known lung or cardiovascular disease.

Effect of fezolinetant on patient-reported quality-of-life outcomes: Data from a phase 3b study (DAYLIGHT) of the treatment of moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms associated with menopause in women considered unsuitable for hormone therapy.

Objective: To report patient-reported quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes in the DAYLIGHT study.

Study Design: DAYLIGHT was a phase 3b, randomized, double-blind, 24-week, placebo-controlled study. Participants were women aged ≥40 to ≤65 years with moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms (VMS) considered unsuitable for hormone therapy (HT) (contraindications, caution, stoppers, or averse) randomized 1:1 to placebo or fezolinetant 45 mg once daily.

Analysis of the haemodynamic changes caused by surgical and transcatheter aortic valve replacements by means fluid-structure interaction simulations.

Aortic valve replacements, both surgical and transcatheter, are nowadays widely employed treatments. Although clinically effective, these procedures are correlated with potentially severe clinical complications which can be associated with the non-physiological haemodynamics that they establish. In this work, the fluid dynamics changes produced by surgical and transcatheter aortic valve replacements are analysed and compared with an ideal healthy native valve configuration, employing advanced fluid-structure interaction (FSI) simulations.

To be aware or not to be aware of the prognosis in the terminal stage of cancer? A systematic review of the associations between prognostic awareness with anxiety, depression, and quality of life according to cancer stage.

Prognostic awareness (PA) has an important role in promoting informed care planning in cancer patients. However, studies in the literature showed discordant results regarding the impact of PA on psychological and quality of life outcomes. The present systematic review aimed to investigate the associations between PA with anxiety, depression, and quality of life in oncological patients according to early, advanced, and terminal cancer stages.

Alpha Atlas: Mapping global production of α-emitting radionuclides for targeted alpha therapy.

Targeted Alpha Therapy has shown great promise in cancer treatment, sparking significant interest over recent decades. However, its broad adoption has been impeded by the scarcity of alpha-emitters and the complexities related to their use. The availability of these radionuclides is often constrained by the intricate production processes and purification, as well as regulatory and logistical challenges.

Non-culprit plaque healing on serial OCT imaging and future outcome in patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Background And Aims: Histologic studies indicated that healed plaque, characterized by a multilayered pattern, is indicative of prior atherothrombosis and subsequent healing. However, longitudinal in vivo data on healed plaque formation in non-culprit plaques are limited. This study aimed to investigate serial changes and clinical significance of new layered pattern formation in non-culprit plaques in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) using serial optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging.

Integrative phenotypic and genomic analysis of extended-spectrum Beta-lactamase (ESBL) and carbapenemase genes in Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonaceae strains isolated from animals in a Spanish Veterinary Teaching Hospital.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global health threat, exacerbated by globalization which facilitates the spread of resistant bacteria. Addressing this issue requires a One Health perspective, involving humans, animals, and the environment. This study aims to compare the phenotypic resistance profiles of 69 clinical bacterial isolates (Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonaceae) from a Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Spain with their genotypic resistance profiles based on the presence of Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamases (ESBLs), AmpC and carbapenemases -enconding genes.

Hemispheric asymmetries in the auditory cortex reflect discriminative responses to temporal details or summary statistics of stationary sounds.

The processing of stationary sounds relies on both local features and compact representations. As local information is compressed into summary statistics, abstract representations emerge. Whether the brain is endowed with distinct neural architectures predisposed to such computations is unknown.

Phytosterol-enriched Camellia oleifera Abel seed oil obtained by subcritical butane extraction: Physicochemical properties and oxidative stability.

Tea (Camellia oleifera Abel) seed oil (TSO) has antioxidant and pharmacological properties. In this study, TSO was obtained from tea seeds by subcritical n-butane extraction (SBE), which is an environmentally friendly method. The oil yield, quality characteristics, and chemical composition of the extracted TSO were compared with those of oils obtained by supercritical carbon dioxide extraction (SCDE) and conventional cold pressing (CP).

Levels and oxidative toxicity of microplastics and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in different tissues of sea cucumber (Holothuria tubulosa).

Nowadays, marine pollution is a global problem which finds in microplastics (MPs) and emerging pollutants, such as perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), two of the main culprits. Sea cucumbers are a group of marine benthic invertebrates that show ecological, economic and social relevance. As deposit/suspension feeders, sea cucumbers show high susceptibility to bioaccumulate marine pollutants, including PFASs and MPs.

Sustainability for ship operations in seaport areas: Technical solutions and environmental assessment.

The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) has prohibited ships using of HFO in ports. For this reason, during in port operations, different strategies must be adopted, based on the use of cleaner fuels or on the transition towards marine electrical technologies. In this context, the purpose of the present research is to analyze and compare, from an environmental and economic points of view, different technical solutions for in port operations.