Endothelial c-Src Mediates Neovascular Tuft Formation in Oxygen-Induced Retinopathy.

Vascular retinopathy, characterized by abnormal blood vessel growth in the retina, frequently results in vision impairment or loss. Neovascular tufts, a distinctive pathologic feature of this condition, are highly leaky blood vessel structures, exacerbating secondary complications. Despite their clinical significance, the mechanisms underlying tuft development are not fully elucidated, posing challenges for effective management and treatment of vascular retinopathy. This study investigates the role of c-Src in neovascular tuft formation. Although c-Src has been acknowledged as a pivotal regulator in developmental angiogenesis within the retinal vasculature, its specific role in governing pathologic retinal angiogenesis remains to be fully understood. The oxygen-induced retinopathy model was used for neovascular tuft formation in both Cre-mediated vascular-specific c-Src knockout mice and wild-type littermates. High-resolution imaging and analysis of isolated retinas were conducted. c-Src depletion demonstrated a significant reduction in neovascular tufts within the oxygen-induced retinopathy model. This decrease in tuft formation was observed independently of any alterations in cell death, cell proliferation, or cell adhesion, and the absence of c-Src did not impact tuft pericyte coverage and junctional morphology. These findings underline the critical role of c-Src in the pathogenesis of neovascular tufts in vascular retinopathy. Understanding the molecular mechanisms involving c-Src may offer valuable insights for the development of targeted therapies aimed at mitigating vision-threatening complications associated with retinopathy.

Self-Assembly of Chemically Programmed Amphiphiles into Aqueous Nanotubes with a Lipophilic Lumen.

The creation of complex hollow nanostructures with precise control over size and shape represents a great challenge in supramolecular soft materials. Here, we have further developed a bioinspired methodology for the formation of aqueous nanotubes of well-defined dimensions and pore coating through the self-assembly of amphiphiles that are chemically programmed with complementary nucleobases. These nanotubes are endowed with a hydrophobic lumen, whose diameter can be expanded as a function of the monomer length, in which apolar dyes can be efficiently encapsulated.

The activity of early-life gene regulatory elements is hijacked in aging through pervasive AP-1-linked chromatin opening.

A mechanistic connection between aging and development is largely unexplored. Through profiling age-related chromatin and transcriptional changes across 22 murine cell types, analyzed alongside previous mouse and human organismal maturation datasets, we uncovered a transcription factor binding site (TFBS) signature common to both processes. Early-life candidate cis-regulatory elements (cCREs), progressively losing accessibility during maturation and aging, are enriched for cell-type identity TFBSs. Conversely, cCREs gaining accessibility throughout life have a lower abundance of cell identity TFBSs but elevated activator protein 1 (AP-1) levels. We implicate TF redistribution toward these AP-1 TFBS-rich cCREs, in synergy with mild downregulation of cell identity TFs, as driving early-life cCRE accessibility loss and altering developmental and metabolic gene expression. Such remodeling can be triggered by elevating AP-1 or depleting repressive H3K27me3. We propose that AP-1-linked chromatin opening drives organismal maturation by disrupting cell identity TFBS-rich cCREs, thereby reprogramming transcriptome and cell function, a mechanism hijacked in aging through ongoing chromatin opening.

Influence of the Properties of Different Types of Recycled Aggregate on the Service Properties and Leaching of Paving Blocks Manufactured at Industrial Scale.

The literature shows that a circular economy can benefit some sectors such as the construction industry. This sector demands huge amounts of raw materials and produces waste when buildings and structures are demolished. This paper explores the possibility of manufacturing at industrial scale paving blocks using different types of construction and demolition wastes as aggregates, without modifying the commonly used industrial conditions. A total of four different recycled aggregates were used in this research. Both natural and recycled aggregates have been characterized. The dosages were optimized (three different formulations). Prefabricated tests have been carried out on the products manufactured in industrial plants and the evolution of mechanical properties over time has been analysed. The results obtained were analysed statistically by applying the principal component analysis (PCA) method. To ensure the security of the elements manufactured, the ionic leaching of the materials used as recycled aggregate and of the elements produced has been tested. The main implications of this research on the construction industry show that the majority of recycled aggregates used could replace 25% of the natural aggregate in manufactured precast concrete, that the properties of the aggregates should be taken into account in the different standards and that all paving blocks manufactured in this study can be considered environmentally safe (no risk of leaching) according to the Netherland Soil Quality Decree. Therefore, it is evident that it is possible to manufacture on an industrial scale paving blocks with mixed recycled aggregates, concrete and ceramic in nature, both with the fine and coarse fractions that meet the requirements of its reference standard UNE-EN 1338 and the Netherland Soil Quality Decree that evaluates environmental risks due to leaching.

Autophagy is involved in granulosa cell death and follicular atresia in ewe ovaries.

In mammalian ovaries, most follicles do not ovulate and are eliminated by atresia, which primarily depends on granulosa cell (GC) apoptosis. Autophagy is an alternative mechanism involved in follicle depletion in mammals through independent or tandem action with apoptosis. However, follicular autophagy has not yet been investigated in sheep; therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the involvement of autophagy in atresia among a pool of growing antral follicles in ewe ovaries. The abundance of the autophagic marker LC3B-II was determined using western blotting in GCs collected from ewe antral follicles. The antral follicles were classified as healthy or atretic based on morphological criteria and steroid measurements in follicular fluid (FF). Immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy analyses were performed on GCs to evaluate the presence of autophagic proteins and their subcellular localisation. Caspase-3 and DNA fragmentation were assessed using western blotting and TUNEL assays, respectively, in the same GC population to investigate the simultaneous apoptosis. The novel results of this study demonstrated enhanced LC3B-II protein expression in GCs of atretic follicles compared to that of healthy ones (1.3-fold increase; P = 0.0001, ANOVA), indicating a correlation between autophagy enhancement in GCs and antral follicular atresia. Autophagy, either functioning independently or in tandem with apoptosis, may be involved in the atresia of growing antral follicles in ewe ovaries because atretic GCs also showed high levels of apoptotic markers. The findings of this study might have important implication on scientific understanding of ovarian follicle dynamics.

Desarrollo de una escala de intención de uso del comercio móvil y su validación mediante análisis compuesto confirmatorio / Development of a scale of intention to use mobile commerce and its validation through confirmatory composite analysis

Resumen: La intención de comportamiento se ha estudiado desde la teoría de la acción razonada para predecir el comportamiento de los individuos. El objetivo de esta investigación fue desarrollar y validar una escala para medir la intención de uso del comercio móvil, a partir de las variables de la teoría unificada de aceptación y uso de tecnología como impulsores, y las variables riesgo percibido y tradición como inhibidores. El instrumento fue aplicado en línea a 211 consumidores del estado de Baja California, México. Se utilizó el análisis compuesto confirmatorio para verificar la fiabilidad del instrumento, así como la validez convergente, discriminante, nomológica y predictiva. Se obtuvo un instrumento válido y confiable para medir la influencia de las variables expectativa de rendimiento, influencia social, motivación hedónica, riesgo percibido, condiciones facilitadoras y tradición en la intención de uso del comercio móvil. La escala desarrollada satisface los criterios exigibles a un modelo de medición reflectivo.

Abstract: Behavioral intention has been studied from the theory of reasoned action to predict the behavior of individuals. The objective of this research was to develop and validate a scale to measure the intention to use m-commerce, based on the variables of unified theory of acceptance and use of technology as drivers, and the variables of perceived risk and tradition as inhibitors. The instrument was applied on-line to 211 consumers in the state of Baja California, Mexico. Confirmatory composite analysis was used to verify the reliability of the instrument, as well as convergent, discriminant, nomological and predictive validity. A valid and reliable instrument was obtained to measure the influence of the following variables: performance expectancy, social influence, hedonic motivation, perceived risk, facilitating conditions and tradition on the intention to use m-commerce. The developed scale meets the criteria required for a reflective measurement model.

Gene therapy for Lafora disease in the Epm2a-/- mouse model.

Lafora disease is a rare and fatal form of progressive myoclonic epilepsy typically occurring early in adolescence. The disease results from mutations in the EPM2A gene, encoding laforin, or the EPM2B gene, encoding malin. Laforin and malin work together in a complex to control glycogen synthesis and prevent the toxicity produced by misfolded proteins via the ubiquitin-proteasome system. Disruptions in either protein cause alterations in this complex, leading to the formation of Lafora bodies containing abnormal, insoluble, and hyperphosphorylated forms of glycogen. We used the Epm2a-/- knockout mouse model of Lafora disease to apply gene therapy by administering intracerebroventricular injections of a recombinant adeno-associated virus carrying the human EPM2A gene. We evaluated the effects of this treatment through neuropathological studies, behavioral tests, video-electroencephalography, electrophysiological recordings, and proteomic/phosphoproteomic analysis. Gene therapy ameliorated neurological and histopathological alterations, reduced epileptic activity and neuronal hyperexcitability, and decreased the formation of Lafora bodies. Moreover, differential quantitative proteomics and phosphoproteomics revealed beneficial changes in various molecular pathways altered in Lafora disease. Our results represent proof of principle for gene therapy with the coding region of the human EPM2A gene as a treatment for EPM2A-related Lafora disease.

Time of the day and season distribution among stroke code subtypes: differences between ischemic stroke, intracranial hemorrhage, and stroke mimic.

Background: Circadian variations in the timing of the onset of stroke symptoms have been described, showing a morning excess of cardiovascular risk. To date, no differences have been found between stroke subtype and time distribution throughout the day. The present study aims to compare the seasonal and circadian rhythm of symptoms onset in ischemic, hemorrhagic, and stroke mimic patients. Methods: This study was conducted prospectively at a hospital and involved a cohort of stroke alert patients from 2018 to 2021. Stroke subtypes were classified as ischemic stroke, intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), transient ischemic attack (TIA), and stroke mimic. Clinical variables were recorded, and each patient was assigned to a 4-h interval of the day according to the time of onset of symptoms; unwitnessed stroke patients were analyzed separately. Seasonal changes in stroke distribution were analyzed at 3-month intervals. Results: A total of 2,348 patients were included in this analysis (ischemic 67%, ICH 13%, mimic 16%, and TIA 3%). Regardless of stroke subtype, most of the patients were distributed between 08-12 h and 12-16 h. Significant differences were found in the time distribution depending on stroke subtype, with ICH predominating in the 4-8 h period (dawn), most of which were hypertensive, TIA in the 12-16 h period (afternoon), and stroke mimic in the 20 h period (evening). The ischemic stroke was evenly distributed throughout the different periods of the day. There were no differences in the seasonal pattern between different stroke subtypes, with winter being the one that accumulated the most cases. Conclusion: The present study showed different circadian patterns of stroke subtypes, with a predominance of ICH at dawn and stroke mimic in the afternoon. The stroke circadian rhythm resembles previous studies, with a higher incidence in the morning and a second peak in the afternoon.

Changes in EEG Activity and Cognition Related to Physical Activity in Older Adults: A Systematic Review.

Aging is generally associated with a decline in important cognitive functions that can be observed in EEG. Physical activity in older adults should be considered one of the main strategies to promote health and prevent disease in the elderly. The present study aimed to systematically review studies of EEG activity and cognitive function changes associated with physical activity in older adults. Records from PubMed, Scopus, and EBSCO databases were searched and, following the PRISMA guidelines, nine studies were included in the present systematic review. A risk of bias assessment was performed using the National Institute of Health Quality Assessment Tool for Case-control Studies instrument. The studies analyzed used two main strategies to determine the effects of physical activity on cognition and EEG: (1) multiscale entropy and power frequencies; and (2) event-related potentials. In terms of EEG activity, it can be concluded that exercise-induced neuroplasticity underlies improvements in cognitive function in healthy older adults.

Effect of intracerebroventricular administration of alglucosidase alfa in two mouse models of Lafora disease: Relevance for clinical practice.

Lafora disease is a rare and fatal form of progressive myoclonic epilepsy with onset during early adolescence. The disease is caused by mutations in EPM2A, encoding laforin, or EPM2B, encoding malin. Both proteins have functions that affect glycogen metabolism, including glycogen dephosphorylation by laforin and ubiquitination of enzymes involved in glycogen metabolism by malin. Lack of function of laforin or malin results in the accumulation of polyglucosan that forms Lafora bodies in the central nervous system and other tissues. Enzyme replacement therapy through intravenous administration of alglucosidase alfa (Myozyme®) has shown beneficial effects removing polyglucosan aggregates in Pompe disease. We evaluated the effectiveness of intracerebroventricular administration of alglucosidase alfa in the Epm2a-/- knock-out and Epm2aR240X knock-in mouse models of Lafora disease. Seven days after a single intracerebroventricular injection of alglucosidase alfa in 12-month-old Epm2a-/- and Epm2aR240X mice, the number of Lafora bodies was not reduced. Additionally, a prolonged infusion of alglucosidase alfa for 2 or 4 weeks in 6- and 9-month-old Epm2a-/- mice did not result in a reduction in the number of LBs or the amount of glycogen in the brain. These findings hold particular significance in guiding a rational approach to the utilization of novel therapies in Lafora disease.

Wnt dose escalation during the exit from pluripotency identifies tranilast as a regulator of cardiac mesoderm.

Wnt signaling is a critical determinant of cell lineage development. This study used Wnt dose-dependent induction programs to gain insights into molecular regulation of stem cell differentiation. We performed single-cell RNA sequencing of hiPSCs responding to a dose escalation protocol with Wnt agonist CHIR-99021 during the exit from pluripotency to identify cell types and genetic activity driven by Wnt stimulation. Results of activated gene sets and cell types were used to build a multiple regression model that predicts the efficiency of cardiomyocyte differentiation. Cross-referencing Wnt-associated gene expression profiles to the Connectivity Map database, we identified the small-molecule drug, tranilast. We found that tranilast synergistically activates Wnt signaling to promote cardiac lineage differentiation, which we validate by in vitro analysis of hiPSC differentiation and in vivo analysis of developing quail embryos. Our study provides an integrated workflow that links experimental datasets, prediction models, and small-molecule databases to identify drug-like compounds that control cell differentiation.

Implementation of a retinal stroke-code protocol results in visual recovery in patients receiving reperfusion therapies.

INTRODUCTION: Reperfusion therapies represent promising treatments for patients with Central Retinal Artery Occlusion (CRAO), but access is limited due to low incidence and lack of protocols. We aimed to describe the benefit of implementing a Retinal Stroke-Code protocol regarding access to reperfusion, visual acuity and aetiological assessment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Prospective cohort study performed at a Comprehensive Stroke Centre. Criteria for activation were sudden monocular, painless vision loss within 6 h from onset. Eligible patients received IAT when immediately available and IVT otherwise. All patients were followed by ophthalmologists to assess best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and visual complications, and by neurologists for aetiological workup. Visual amelioration was defined as improvement of at least one Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) letter from baseline to 1 week. RESULTS: Of 49 patients with CRAO, 15 (30.6%) received reperfusion therapies (12 IVT, 3 IAT). Presentation beyond 6 h was the main contraindication. Patients receiving reperfusion therapies had better rates of visual improvement (33.3% vs 5.9%, p = 0.022). There were no complications related to reperfusion therapies. Rates of neovascular glaucoma were non-significantly lower in patients receiving reperfusion therapies (13.3% vs 20.6%, p = 0.701). Similar rates of atherosclerotic, cardioembolic and undetermined aetiologies were observed, leading to 10 new diagnosed atrial fibrillation and five carotid revascularizations. CONCLUSION: A comprehensive acute management of CRAO is feasible despite low incidence. In our study, reperfusion therapies were safe and associated with higher rates of visual recovery. A similar etiological workup than ischemic stroke led to of high proportion of underlying aetiologies.

Enhanced expression of natural cytotoxicity receptors on cytokine-induced memory-like natural killer cells correlates with effector function.

Introduction: Natural killer (NK) cells are a key component of the innate immune system, involved in defending the host against virus-infected cells and tumor immunosurveillance. Under in vitro culture conditions, IL-12/15/18 can induce a memory-like phenotype in NK cells. These cytokine-induced memory-like (CIML) NK cells possess desirable characteristics for immunotherapies, including a longer lifespan and increased cytotoxicity. Methods: In this study, NK cells were isolated from peripheral blood of healthy donors and stimulated with IL-12/15/18 to induce a memory-like phenotype or with IL-15 alone as a control. After seven days of culture, multiparametric flow cytometry analysis was performed to evaluate the phenotypic and functional profiles of CIML and control NK cells. Results: Our results showed a significantly higher expression of CD25, CD69, NKG2D, NKp30, NKp44, NKp46, TACTILE, and Granzyme B in CIML NK cells compared to control NK cells. In contrast, KIR2D expression was significantly lower in CIML NK cells than in control NK cells. Moreover, functional experiments demonstrated that CIML NK cells displayed enhanced degranulation capacity and increased intracellular IFN-γ production against the target cell line K562. Interestingly, the degranulation capacity of CIML NK cells was positively correlated with the expression of the activating receptors NKp46 and NKp30, as well as with the inhibitory receptor TACTILE. Discussion: In conclusion, this study provides a deep phenotypic characterization of in vitro-expanded CIML NK cells. Moreover, the correlations found between NK cell receptors and degranulation capacity of CIML NK cells allowed the identification of several biomarkers that could be useful in clinical settings.

Pay-for-Performance incentives for specialised services in England: a mixed methods evaluation.

BACKGROUND: A Pay-for-Performance (P4P) programme, known as Prescribed Specialised Services Commissioning for Quality and Innovation (PSS CQUIN), was introduced for specialised services in the English NHS in 2013/2014. These services treat patients with rare and complex conditions. We evaluate the implementation of PSS CQUIN contracts between 2016/2017 and 2018/2019. METHODS: We used a mixed methods evaluative approach. In the quantitative analysis, we used a difference-in-differences design to evaluate the effectiveness of ten PSS CQUIN schemes across a range of targeted outcomes. Potential selection bias was addressed using propensity score matching. We also estimated impacts on costs by scheme and financial year. In the qualitative analysis, we conducted semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions to gain insights into the complexities of contract design and programme implementation. Qualitative data analysis was based on the constant comparative method, inductively generating themes. RESULTS: The ten PSS CQUIN schemes had limited impact on the targeted outcomes. A statistically significant improvement was found for only one scheme: in the clinical area of trauma, the incentive scheme increased the probability of being discharged from Adult Critical Care within four hours of being clinically ready by 7%. The limited impact may be due to the size of the incentive payments, the complexity of the schemes' design, and issues around ownership, contracting and flexibility. CONCLUSION: The PSS CQUIN schemes had little or no impact on quality improvements in specialised services. Future P4P programmes in healthcare could benefit from lessons learnt from this study on incentive design and programme implementation.

Impact of cardiac surgery associated acute kidney injury on 1-year major adverse kidney events.

Background: The incidence of acute kidney injury following cardiac surgery (CSA-AKI) is up to 30%, and the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been found to be higher in these patients compared to the AKI-free population. The aim of our study was to assess the risk of major adverse kidney events (MAKE) [25% or greater decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), new hemodialysis, and death] after cardiac surgery in a Spanish cohort and to evaluate the utility of the score developed by Legouis D et al. (CSA-CKD score) in predicting the occurrence of MAKE. Methods: This was a single-center retrospective study of patients who required cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) during 2015, with a 1-year follow-up after the intervention. The inclusion criteria were patients over 18 years old who had undergone cardiac surgery [i.e., valve substitution (VS), coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), or a combination of both procedures]. Results: The number of patients with CKD (eGFR < 60 mL/min) increased from 74 (18.3%) to 97 (24%) within 1 year after surgery. The median eGFR declined from 85 to 82 mL/min in the non-CSA-AKI patient group and from 73 to 65 mL/min in those with CSA-AKI (p = 0.024). Fifty-eight patients (1.4%) presented with MAKE at the 1-year follow-up. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the only variable associated with MAKE was CSA-AKI [odds ratio (OR) 2.386 (1.31-4.35), p = 0.004]. The median CSA-CKD score was higher in the MAKE cohort [3 (2-4) vs. 2 (1-3), p < 0.001], but discrimination was poor, with a receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) value of 0.682 (0.611-0.754). Conclusion: Any-stage CSA-AKI is associated with a risk of MAKE after 1 year. Further research into new measures that identify at-risk patients is needed so that appropriate patient follow-up can be carried out.

Effect of Bypassing the Closest Stroke Center in Patients with Intracerebral Hemorrhage: A Secondary Analysis of the RACECAT Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Prehospital transfer protocols are based on rapid access to reperfusion therapies for patients with ischemic stroke. The effect of different protocols among patients receiving a final diagnosis of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is unknown. Objective: To determine the effect of direct transport to an endovascular treatment (EVT)-capable stroke center vs transport to the nearest local stroke center. Design, Setting, and Participants: This was a prespecified secondary analysis of RACECAT, a multicenter, population-based, cluster-randomized clinical trial conducted from March 2017 to June 2020 in Catalonia, Spain. Patients were evaluated by a blinded end point assessment. All consecutive patients suspected of experiencing a large vessel occlusion stroke (Rapid Arterial Occlusion Evaluation Scale [RACE] score in the field >4 on a scale of 0 to 9, with lower to higher stroke severity) with final diagnosis of ICH were included. A total of 1401 patients were enrolled in RACECAT with suspicion of large vessel occlusion stroke. The current analysis was conducted in October 2022. Intervention: Direct transport to an EVT-capable stroke center (n = 137) or to the closest local stroke center (n = 165). Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was tested using cumulative ordinal logistic regression to estimate the common odds ratio (OR) and 95% CI of the shift analysis of disability at 90 days as assessed by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score (range, 0 [no symptoms] to 6 [death]) in the intention-to-treat population. Secondary outcomes, included 90-day mortality, death or severe functional dependency, early neurological deterioration, early mortality, ICH volume and enlargement, rate of neurosurgical treatment, rate of clinical complications during initial transport, and rate of adverse events until day 5. Results: Of 1401 patients enrolled, 1099 were excluded from this analysis (32 rejected informed consent, 920 had ischemic stroke, 29 had transient ischemic attack, 12 had subarachnoid hemorrhage, and 106 had stroke mimic). Thus, 302 patients were included (204 [67.5%] men; mean [SD] age 71.7 [12.8] years; and median [IQR] RACE score, 7 [6-8]). For the primary outcome, direct transfer to an EVT-capable stroke center (mean [SD] mRS score, 4.93 [1.38]) resulted in worse functional outcome at 90 days compared with transfer to the nearest local stroke center (mean [SD] mRS score, 4.66 [1.39]; adjusted common OR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.41-0.96). Direct transfer to an EVT-capable stroke center also suggested potentially higher 90-day mortality compared with transfer to the nearest local stroke center (67 of 137 [48.9%] vs 62 of 165 [37.6%]; adjusted hazard ratio, 1.40; 95% CI, 0.99-1.99). The rates of medical complications during the initial transfer (30 of 137 [22.6%] vs 9 of 165 patients [5.6%]; adjusted OR, 5.29; 95% CI, 2.38-11.73) and in-hospital pneumonia (49 of 137 patients [35.8%] vs 29 of 165 patients [17.6%]; OR, 2.61; 95% CI, 1.53-4.44) were higher in the EVT-capable stroke center group. Conclusions and Relevance: In this secondary analysis of the RACECAT randomized clinical trial, bypassing the closest stroke center resulted in reduced chances of functional independence at 90 days for patients who received a final diagnosis of ICH. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02795962.

Stacked or Folded? Impact of Chelate Cooperativity on the Self-Assembly Pathway to Helical Nanotubes from Dinucleobase Monomers.

Self-assembled nanotubes exhibit impressive biological functions that have always inspired supramolecular scientists in their efforts to develop strategies to build such structures from small molecules through a bottom-up approach. One of these strategies employs molecules endowed with self-recognizing motifs at the edges, which can undergo either cyclization-stacking or folding-polymerization processes that lead to tubular architectures. Which of these self-assembly pathways is ultimately selected by these molecules is, however, often difficult to predict and even to evaluate experimentally. We show here a unique example of two structurally related molecules substituted with complementary nucleobases at the edges (i.e., G:C and A:U) for which the supramolecular pathway taken is determined by chelate cooperativity, that is, by their propensity to assemble in specific cyclic structures through Watson-Crick pairing. Because of chelate cooperativities that differ in several orders of magnitude, these molecules exhibit distinct supramolecular scenarios prior to their polymerization that generate self-assembled nanotubes with different internal monomer arrangements, either stacked or coiled, which lead at the same time to opposite helicities and chiroptical properties.

Psychosocial interventions reduce cortisol in breast cancer patients: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Cancer initiation, progression and recurrence are intricate mechanisms that depend on various components: genetic, psychophysiological, or environmental. Exposure to chronic stress includes fear of recurrence that can affect biological processes that regulate immune and endocrine systems, increase cancer risk, and influence the survival rate. Previous studies show that psychological interventions might influence the level of cortisol that has been extensively used as a biomarker for measuring hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis functioning and body's immunity response. This meta-analysis aimed to provide a quantitative scrutiny of the effect of certain types of psychosocial interventions on cortisol as a neuroendocrine biomarker in saliva or blood and might predict breast cancer (BC) progression. Methods: A literature search was performed in the following databases: PubMed, The Cohrane Library, Scopus, WOS, PsychInfo, Google Scholar, Ovid Science Direct. After methodical selection of originally generated 2.021 studies, the search yielded eight articles that met inclusion criteria. All these studies explored effects of psychosocial interventions that measured cortisol in total of 366 participants with BC, stages 0-IV, in randomized control trial or quasi experimental study design setting. We applied random effects model to conduct meta-analyses on the parameters of salivary and plasma cortisol and used PRISMA Guidelines as validated methodology of investigation to report the results. Results: Eight studies selected for meta-analysis have shown the reduction of cortisol level due to applied psychosocial intervention. The random effects model showed that interventions produced large effect sizes in reductions of cortisol in blood (Cohen's d = -1.82, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): -3.03, -0.60) and slightly less in saliva (d = -1.73, 95%CI: -2.68, -0.78) with an overall effect of d = -1.76 (95%CI: -2.46, -1.07). Conclusion: Our study concluded that certain types of psychosocial interventions reduce cortisol (indicator of chronic stress) in patients with BC. Application of specific psychosocial support as adjuvant non-invasive therapy for affected females with BC at all phases of treatment could contribute to more cost-effective health care.

Edible insects and legumes exert an antioxidant effect on human colon mucosal cells stressed with 2,2'-azobis (2-amidinopropane)-dihydrochloride.

Introduction: Edible insects have been recognized as a more sustainable source of nutrients and bio-active compounds than animal-based products, in line with classical vegetable sources such as legumes. In this study, we assessed the antioxidant properties of four edible insects (silkworms, grasshoppers, mealworms and giant worms) and four legume seeds (lentils, chickpeas, Roveja peas and grass peas). Methods: After the aqueous extraction or in vitro simulated digestion process, selected products were assessed for: (i) in vitro antioxidant capacity through Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) assay; (ii) the ability to reduce free radicals production induced by a pro-oxidant agent in cells of human colonic mucosa. Results: All the aqueous extracts and digesta of edible insects displayed significantly higher in vitro antioxidant activity than legumes. Moreover, edible insects at all tested concentrations were able to exert an antioxidant effect in the cellular model, while legumes were effective mainly at high concentrations. Discussion: Despite human trials are need to confirm and define these results in a physiological situation, here we suggest a role for edible insects in oxidative stress prevention. Since oxidative stress is strongly correlated with several intestinal pathologies, the results obtained could be interesting for the prevention and relief of the negative symptoms, offering new advantages to their already known ecological and nutritional properties.

Micrococcal nuclease sequencing of porcine sperm suggests enriched co-location between retained histones and genomic regions related to semen quality and early embryo development.

The mammalian spermatozoon has a unique chromatin structure in which the majority of histones are replaced by protamines during spermatogenesis and a small fraction of nucleosomes are retained at specific locations of the genome. The sperm's chromatin structure remains unresolved in most animal species, including the pig. However, mapping the genomic locations of retained nucleosomes in sperm could help understanding the molecular basis of both sperm development and function as well as embryo development. This information could then be useful to identify molecular markers for sperm quality and fertility traits. Here, micrococcal nuclease digestion coupled with high throughput sequencing was performed on pig sperm to map the genomic location of mono- and sub-nucleosomal chromatin fractions in relation to a set of diverse functional elements of the genome, some of which were related to semen quality and early embryogenesis. In particular, the investigated elements were promoters, the different sections of the gene body, coding and non-coding RNAs present in the pig sperm, potential transcription factor binding sites, genomic regions associated to semen quality traits and repeat elements. The analysis yielded 25,293 and 4,239 peaks in the mono- and sub-nucleosomal fractions, covering 0.3% and 0.02% of the porcine genome, respectively. A cross-species comparison revealed positional conservation of the nucleosome retention in sperm between the pig data and a human dataset that found nucleosome enrichment in genomic regions of importance in development. Both gene ontology analysis of the genes mapping nearby the mono-nucleosomal peaks and the identification of putative transcription factor binding motifs within the mono- and the sub- nucleosomal peaks showed enrichment for processes related to sperm function and embryo development. There was significant motif enrichment for Znf263, which in humans was suggested to be a key regulator of genes with paternal preferential expression during early embryogenesis. Moreover, enriched positional intersection was found in the genome between the mono-nucleosomal peaks and both the RNAs present in pig sperm and the RNAs related to sperm quality. There was no co-location between GWAS hits for semen quality in swine and the nucleosomal sites. Finally, the data evidenced depletion of mono-nucleosomes in long interspersed nuclear elements and enrichment of sub-nucleosomes in short interspersed repeat elements.These results suggest that retained nucleosomes in sperm could both mark regulatory elements or genes expressed during spermatogenesis linked to semen quality and fertility and act as transcriptional guides during early embryogenesis. The results of this study support the undertaking of ambitious research using a larger number of samples to robustly assess the positional relationship between histone retention in sperm and the reproductive ability of boars.