Targeted therapies and molecular targets in the therapeutic landscape of advanced urothelial carcinoma: state of the art and future perspectives.

Advanced urothelial carcinoma (aUC) has a dismal prognosis, with a 5-year survival rate of approximately 10%. Platinum-based chemotherapy has been the backbone of the first-line treatment of aUC for over 40 years. Only in the last decade, the treatment of aUC has evolved and been enriched with new classes of drugs that demonstrated pivotal improvements in terms of oncological responses and, ultimately, survival.

Baricitinib for the treatment of severe alopecia areata: results from a 52-week multicenter retrospective real-world study.

Baricitinib, a JAK 1/2 inhibitor, is approved for treating severe alopecia areata (AA). This study aimed to evaluate the long-term effectiveness and safety of baricitinib in a real-world setting over 52 weeks. This multicenter retrospective study included 96 adult patients diagnosed with severe AA from 11 Italian Dermatology Units.

The impact of telemedicine on pediatric type 1 diabetes management: benefits, challenges, and future directions.

Telemedicine (TM) has emerged as a valuable tool in managing pediatric type 1 diabetes (T1D), particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic when traditional in-person visits were limited. This narrative review examines the impact of TM on patient-provider relationships, glycemic control, and overall diabetes management in children and adolescents with T1D. Studies consistently demonstrate high levels of patient and provider satisfaction with TM, citing increased consultation frequency, reduced travel burdens, and lower associated costs.

Boosting Gaseous Acetone Detection by Nanoheterojunctions of p-Type MWCNTs/PANI Integrated into 3D Flame-Synthesized n-Type ZnO.

Accurate methods for detecting volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are essential for noninvasive disease diagnosis, with breath analysis providing a simpler, user-friendly alternative to traditional diagnostic tools. However, challenges remain in low-temperature VOC solid-state sensors, especially concerning their selectivity and functionality at room temperature. Herein, we present key insights into optimizing multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)/polyaniline (PANI) and ZnO nanocomposites for efficient, light-free selective acetone sensing.

Synergistic Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue and Ibuprofen Using Co₃O₄-Decorated Hexagonal Boron Nitride (hBN) Composites under Sun-like Irradiation.

In this study, we report the synthesis and photocatalytic performance of Co₃O₄-decorated hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) composites for degrading methylene blue (MB) and ibuprofen (IBF) under sunlight irradiation. Using a dry impregnation method, the composites were prepared with varying Co₃O₄ loadings (0.5%, 1%, 2%).

Costs of Oral Corticosteroid Use in Patients with Severe Asthma With/Without Chronic Rhinosinusitis with Nasal Polyps: Data from the Italian SANI Registry.

Introduction: The burden of severe asthma on patients, especially on those with concomitant chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP), is substantial. Treatment intensification with oral corticosteroids is a common strategy for managing severe asthma exacerbations; however, prolonged exposure to systemic corticosteroids is associated with multisystem toxicity. This study aimed to quantify the association between oral corticosteroid use and annual asthma-related costs in patients with severe asthma with or without CRSwNP.

Electrical impedance myography in healthy adults: Reliability, sex differences, and regional variations in the anterior thigh muscles.

This study investigated the intra-day and inter-day reliability of electrical impedance myography (EIM) components and explored sex and regional differences in healthy adults' anterior thigh muscles. Using a multifrequency device, impedance values across various frequencies, alongside 50-kHz resistance (R), reactance (Xc), and phase angle (PhA) were assessed in both sexes and at whole anterior thigh, proximal and distal regions. Findings revealed excellent reliability (ICC > 0.

Novel antimalarial 3-substituted quinolones isosteres with improved pharmacokinetic properties.

Aryl quinolone derivatives can target the cytochrome bc complex of Plasmodium falciparum, exhibiting excellent in vitro and in vivo antimalarial activity. However, their clinical development has been hindered due to their poor aqueous solubility profiles. In this study, a series of bioisosteres containing saturated heterocycles fused to a 4-pyridone ring were designed to replace the inherently poorly soluble quinolone core in antimalarial quinolones with the aim to reduce π-π stacking interactions in the crystal packing solid state, and a synthetic route was developed to prepare these alternative core derivatives.

Impact of APOE and MAPT genetic profile on the cognitive functions among Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Tunisian patients.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis(ALS) has traditionally been managed as a neuromuscular disorder. However, recent evidence suggests involvement of non-motor domains. This study aims to evaluate the impact of APOE and MAPT genotypes on the cognitive features of ALS.

Radiolabeled HER2-targeted molecular probes in breast cancer imaging: current knowledge and future prospective.

Breast cancer is the most frequent non-dermatologic malignancy in women. Breast cancer is characterized by the expression of the human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 (HER2), and the presence or lack of estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) expression. HER2 overexpression is reported in about 20 to 25% of breast cancer patients, which is usually linked to cancer progression, metastases, and poor survival.

Global, regional, and national burden of primary liver cancer attributable to metabolic risks: an analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 1990-2021.

Background: The global burden of metabolic diseases is increasing, but estimates of their impact on primary liver cancer are uncertain. We aimed to assess the global burden of primary liver cancer attributable to metabolic risk factors, including high body mass index (BMI) and high fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels, between 1990 and 2021.

Methods: The total number and age-standardized rates of deaths and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) from primary liver cancer attributable to each metabolic risk factor were extracted from the Global Burden of Disease Study 1990-2021.

A multi-omics approach to unravel the interaction between heat and drought stress in the holobiont.

The impact of combined heat and drought stress was investigated in and compared to individual stresses to reveal additive effects and interactions. A combination of plant metabolomics and root and rhizosphere bacterial metabarcoding were used to unravel effects at the plant holobiont level. Hierarchical cluster analysis of metabolomics signatures pointed out two main clusters, one including heat and combined heat and drought, and the second cluster that included the control and drought treatments.

Bifunctional Pd-Pt Supported Nanoparticles for the Mild Hydrodeoxygenation and Oxidation of Biomass-Derived Compounds.

The conversion of bio-based molecules into valuable chemicals is essential for advancing sustainable processes and addressing global resource challenges. However, conventional catalytic methods often demand harsh conditions and struggle with low product selectivity. This study introduces a series of bifunctional PdxPty catalysts supported on TiO2, designed for achieving selective and mild-temperature catalysis in biomass conversion.

Bowel preparation for small bowel capsule endoscopy: standard regimen with 2 L polyethylene glycol versus 1 L polyethylene glycol plus ascorbate.

Background/aims: Optimization of bowel preparation for small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE) is debated. Guidelines recommend 2 L of iso-osmolar polyethylene glycol (PEG) to improve SBCE visibility. We compared the efficacy of the standard 2 L PEG solution with a 1 L PEG plus ascorbate (PEG-ASC) preparation, which has already been established for large-bowel preparation.

Reliability of an electronic uterine diagram to standardize intrauterine adhesion scoring.

Study Objective: To study the inter-rater reliability of an electronic complementary uterine diagram (eAFS) in comparison to the conventional American Fertility Society intrauterine adhesions (IUA) scoring system (cAFS). As a secondary aim we wanted to assess the intra-rater reliability of these tools.

Design: This was an observational cross over study with a nested test re-test design.

Brain-like hardware, do we need it?

The brain's ability to perform efficient and fault-tolerant data processing is strongly related to its peculiar interconnected adaptive architecture, based on redundant neural circuits interacting at different scales. By emulating the brain's processing and learning mechanisms, computing technologies strive to achieve higher levels of energy efficiency and computational performance. Although efforts to address neuromorphic solutions through hardware based on top-down CMOS-based technologies have obtained interesting results in terms of energetic efficiency improvement, the replication of brain's self-assembled and redundant architectures is not considered in the roadmaps of data processing electronics.

Evolution of SARS-CoV-2 spike trimers towards optimized heparan sulfate cross-linking and inter-chain mobility.

The heparan sulfate (HS)-rich extracellular matrix (ECM) serves as an initial interaction site for the homotrimeric spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2 to facilitate subsequent docking to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors and cellular infection. More recent variants, notably Omicron, have evolved by swapping several amino acids to positively charged residues to enhance the interaction of the S-protein trimer with the negatively charged HS. However, these enhanced interactions may reduce Omicron's ability to move through the HS-rich ECM to effectively find ACE2 receptors and infect cells, raising the question of how to mechanistically explain HS-associated viral movement.

Life expectancy in rare histological prostate cancer subtypes.

Survival differences in rare histological prostate cancer (PCa) subtypes relative to age-matched population-based controls are unknown. Within Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (2004-2020), newly diagnosed (2004-2015) PCa patients were identified. Relying on the Social Security Administration Life Tables (2004-2020) with 5 years of follow-up, age-matched population-based controls (Monte Carlo simulation) were simulated for each patient.

Education moderates the association between motor involvement and executive status in ALS.

Background: This study aimed to determine whether educational attainment-a common proxy of cognitive reserve (CR)-influences the association between motor and cognitive/behavioural outcomes in a large cohort of ALS patients without dementia.

Methods: N = 726 ALS patients without FTD were assessed for motor (ALSFRS-R), cognitive (Edinburgh Cognitive and Behavioural ALS Screen, ECAS) and behavioural outcomes (ECAS-Carer Interview, ECAS-CI). CR was operationalized via educational attainment (in years).

Estimation of Ligand Binding Free Energy Using Multi-eGO.

The computational study of ligand binding to a target protein provides mechanistic insight into the molecular determinants of this process and can improve the success rate of drug design. All-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations can be used to evaluate the binding free energy, typically by thermodynamic integration, and to probe binding mechanisms, including the description of protein conformational dynamics. The advantages of MD come at a high computational cost, which limits its use.

Unraveling the protein kinase C/NDRG1 signaling network in breast cancer.

N-myc downstream-regulated gene 1 (NDRG1) is a member of the NDRG family of intracellular proteins and plays a central role in a wide range of biological processes including stress response, differentiation, and metabolism. The overexpression of NDRG1 is an indicator of poor prognosis in various types of cancer. Here, we found that NDRG1 is an independent prognostic marker of poor outcome in breast cancer (BC).

Polygenic Score: A Tool for Evaluating the Genetic Background of Sporadic Hidradenitis Suppurativa.

Sporadic Hidradenitis Suppurativa (spHS) is a multifactorial disease in which genetic predisposition is intertwined with environmental factors. Due to the still to date limited knowledge of spHS genetics, we calculated Polygenic scores (PGS) to study the genetic underpinnings that contribute to spHS within European demographic. 256 spHS patients and 1686 healthy controls were analyzed across 6 European clinical centers.

Drug-Drug Interactions Between DAAs and Anticoagulants or Antiplatelets: A Position Paper of the Italian Anticoagulation Clinics.

The natural history of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has changed after the introduction of direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs). Screening programs have been ongoing to reach the World Health Organisation's goal of HCV elimination by 2030, and most infected people are eligible for treatment. Given the increased cardiovascular risk in people with HCV infection and the metabolic pathways of DAAs, it is not uncommon to face the issue of drug-drug interactions (DDIs) with antiplatelet or anticoagulant drugs.

Radiocarpal Fracture Dislocation: Minimally Invasive Treatment Assisted by Arthoscopic - Case Report.

To measure the life quality, clinical-functional outcomes of a patient who had undergone acute reconstruction of radio scapho capitate (RSC), radio lunate (RLL) ligaments, using brachiorradialis tendon in treatment of radiocarpal fracture dislocation. 21-years-old, man with radiocarpal fracture dislocation in his left wrist, after motorcycle accident. Percutaneous screw fixation of the distal radius and acute reconstruction of the RSC and RLL was performed, assisted by arthroscopy.