Determination of S-allele combination in an italian apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) germplasm core collection

An S-RNase-based gametophytic self-incompatibility (GSI) system, a mechanism that forces outbreeding by preventing self-fertilization, characterizes the genus Malus. Knowledge of the self-incompatibility (S) genotypes of apple cultivars is crucial for choosing pollen donors for fruit production and breeding. Even though the S-allele of most commercial apple cultivars has already been identified, limited information is available about the S-allele diversity within local germplasm collections. In this study, 67 S-allele combinations of local apple accessions were identified. The allele S3 was the most common among local apple accessions followed by S1 and S7. The main aim of this study is to provide new information on cultivar compatibility, and these results will be used to set up new parent selection in apple breeding programmes as well as pollinator selection for the commercial orchard

The economic sustainability of Italian aquaculture farms: Who has the potential to start the blue transition?

The European policy objectives, aligned with the Green Deal, focus on strengthening the aquaculture sector’s resilience, competitiveness, and sustainability. In this regard, the present work explores whether aquaculture companies are prepared to embrace the blue transition and invest in new practices and technologies. The study examines the case of Italian aquaculture by analyzing the financial performance of various companies through Altman’s Z’ Score, classifying them based on their balance sheets from 2017 to 2021. This study supports the idea that financially stable companies have the economic potential to invest in a more sustainable future. The findings highlight that 80 % of Italian aquaculture companies are currently under financial stress, limiting their capacity to adopt new practices or technologies. These results open the debate for decision-makers about whether the priority should be the blue transition or the companies’ financial stability

Alginate–oligothiophene aerogels as photocatalysts for the degradation of emerging organic contaminants in water

V-shaped oligothiophenes bearing a benzothiophene (BT) core and S-oxide or S,S-dioxide moieties are herein proposed as photocatalysts for the degradation of three selected water emerging contaminants. Photocatalyst molecules were designed in order to minimize aggregation in the solid state (V-shape structure), lower the HOMO–LUMO gap (S,S-dioxide moiety functionalization) with respect to conventional oligothiophenes and enhance the photocatalytic performance. The targeted BT molecules were synthesized by the Stille cross-coupling reaction and their ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) upon blue-light irradiation was demonstrated. For practical exploitation, BTs were embedded into an alginate matrix by ionotropic gelation–freeze drying processes to obtain porous aerogels that were dispersed in water and used for the degradation of emerging contaminants. Degradation performance of up to 99% after 2 h on ofloxacin (antibiotic), rhodamine B (dye) and bisphenol A (plastic additive), was observed. In addition, regenerated photocatalysts showed unchanged performance after five reuse cycles. The relationship between the BT molecular structure and ROS production, investigated by QM calculations, highlighted the role of the S,S-dioxide moiety in ROS generation, with ofloxacin antibiotic degradation performance reaching up to 99% for BTO2-T2. Remarkably, ecotoxicity studies showed no toxicity of the photodegradation products toward the Aliivibrio fischeri bioluminescent bacterium, highlighting the potential of BT molecules for water purification

Barrier-crossing driven by fractional Gaussian noise in the context of reactive flux formalism: An exact result

The problem of barrier-crossing is considered in the case when the surroundings of the barrier maintain some memory, while, at the same time, the heat bath is at equilibrium. The system is modelled by the generalised fractional Langevin equation with the noise term described by fractional Gaussian noise (fGn). The analytical solutions, in the time domain, are given in terms of the multinomial Mittag-Leffler function and the transmission coefficient is expressed in closed form as a function of the friction coefficient, of the barrier height, and of the Hurst exponent. Kramers’ theory rate constant is a special case of the present treatment

Time-Domain NMR: Generating Unique Insights into the Characterization of Heterogeneous Catalysis in Liquid Phase

Time-domain (TD) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) comprises a family of tools for characterizing wetted porosity and surface area, fluid-catalyst surface adsorption energy, liquid distribution in packed beds, and transport of fluids in catalyst materials. These methods are differentiated from NMR spectroscopy in that the data are not analyzed in the frequency domain and often benefit from the use of low magnetic field strength. The increased accessibility of commercial, low-field, benchtop NMR instruments has supported substantial growth in TD NMR research in catalysis. This perspective offers a tutorial on physical phenomena critical to TD NMR methods, a summary of applications in both ex situ and in situ settings, and commentaries on ensuring experimental rigor and opportunities for growth in the field. The unique insights accessible from TD NMR often cover length scales in the tens of nanometers to tens of micrometers and are complementary to other catalyst characterization methods probing molecular structure and identity

Regorafenib for Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Real-World Practice (REFINE): A Prospective, Observational Study

Introduction: In the phase 3 RESORCE trial, regorafenib prolonged overall survival (OS) in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (uHCC) whose disease progressed on prior sorafenib. The prospective, observational REFINE study aimed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of regorafenib in a broader population of patients in real-world clinical practice, including patients with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (ECOG PS) .2, Child- Pugh B liver status, and sorafenib intolerance. Methods: This international, prospective, multicenter study (NCT03289273) enrolled patients with uHCC for whom the decision to treat with regorafenib was made by their physician before enrollment, according to the local health authority-approved label. The primary aim was to evaluate the safety of regorafenib, including the incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) and dose modifications due to TEAEs. Results: Of the 1,028 patients enrolled, 1,005 initiated regorafenib and were eligible for analysis. Median age was 66 years (range 21.94); most patients were male (83%), Child-Pugh A (61%), and had an ECOG PS of 0 or 1 (82%) at study entry. Overall, 47%, 11%, and 40% of patients initiated regorafenib at 160, 120, and 80 mg/day, respectively. Median treatment duration was 3.7 months (range 1 day to 38.9 months). Dose modifications and permanent discontinuation of regorafenib due to TEAEs occurred in 45% and 31% of patients, respectively. The most common drug-related TEAEs were hand-foot skin reaction (31%), diarrhea (26%), and fatigue (15%). Median OS was 13.2 months (95% confidence interval 11.6, 14.8). Conclusion: The results of the real-world REFINE study confirmed the safety and effectiveness of regorafenib in a broad population of patients with uHCC. Of patients who received standard regorafenib dosing in REFINE, safety and efficacy findings were consistent with those reported in the RESORCE trial

Mild acute biliary pancreatitis: still a surgical disease. A post-hoc analysis of the MANCTRA-1 international study

BACKGROUND: The current standard of care for mild acute biliary pancreatitis (MABP) involves early laparoscopic cholecystectomy (ELC) to reduce the risk of recurrence. The MANCTRA-1 project revealed a knowledge-to-action gap and higher recurrence rates in patients admitted to medical wards, attributable to fewer ELCs being performed. The project estimated a 35% to 70% probability of narrowing this gap by 2025. This study evaluates the safety of suboptimal ELC implementation and identifies risk factors for recurrent acute biliary pancreatitis (RAP) in patients not undergoing ELC after an MABP episode. METHODS: We conducted a post-hoc analysis of the MANCTRA-1 registry, including MABP patients who did not undergo ELC during the index hospitalization, excluding those with related complications. The primary outcome was the 30-day hospital readmission rate due to RAP. We performed multivariable logistic regression to find risk factors associated with the primary outcome. RESULTS: Between January 2019 and December 2020, 1920, MABP patients from 150 centers were included in the study. The 30-day readmission rate due to RAP was 6%. Multivariable logistic regression found the admission to a medical ward (internal medicine or gastroenterology) (OR = 1.95, p = 0.001) and a positive COVID-19 test (OR = 3.08, p = 0.029) as independent risk factors for RAP. CONCLUSION: Our analysis offers valuable insights into the management of MABP, particularly in centers where ELC cannot be fully implemented due to logistical and clinical constraints, worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Regardless of the admitting ward, prompt access to surgical care is crucial in reducing the risk of early recurrence, highlighting the need to implement surgical consultation pathways within MABP care bundles

Penile urethral anastomosis to the vesico-urethral junction, after transabdominal wall passage of the penis, as treatment for intrapelvic stent-related urethral obstruction in a dog

Objective: The objective of the present study was to report the outcome of anovel technique of urethral intra-abdominal anastomosis after transabdominalwall passage of the penis in a dog with stent-related urethral obstruction.Study design: Case report.Animal: A seven-year-old neutered male Cocker Spaniel.Methods: The dog was evaluated for urinary retention and overflow inconti-nence of approximately 1-year duration. The dog had a urethral self-expandingmetallic stent placed 6 years prior as treatment for pelvic urethral stricture,secondary to severe pelvic trauma. Stent fracture and stent-related tissuehyperplasia were diagnosed leading to intrapelvic urethral obstruction andconcomitant atonic bladder complicated by cystolithiasis and urinary tractinfection. An intra-abdominal urethral anastomosis was performed to restoreurethral patency, after passing the penis through the abdominal wall, into theinguinal area; the surgery was successful in bypassing the urethral obstruction.Results: No contrast leakage was noted on positive contrast cystourethrogra-phy 10 days postoperatively. The urinary bladder was easily emptied by man-ual expression and bethanechol was started. At 6-months follow-up, theurinary bladder remained atonic but was easily emptied by manual expression,with mild urinary incontinence remaining. No signs of recurrent urinary tractinfections were noted. Nine months after surgery the dog was euthanized forreasons unrelated to the surgery. Conclusion: The transabdominal wall urethral anastomosis, after penileabdominal tunnelization resulted in bypassing the urethral obstruction in thisdog, restoring urethral patency. The technique reported could be a viable sur-gical option for restoring urethral patency in dogs with severe pelvic urethraldamage or obstructive lesions

Assessing ChatGPT responses to common patient questions regarding total ankle arthroplasty

Purpose: Artificial Intelligence is becoming increasingly integrated into healthcare, making it essential to assess its potential as a reliable information source for patient queries in the ambit of orthopaedic surgery. In literature, it is being employed in foot and ankle surgery and total hip arthroplasty. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the ability of Chat Generative Pretrained Transformer (ChatGPT) version 3.5 to give accurate, complete and comprehensive responses to the most common questions which are usually asked by the patient to the surgeon regarding total ankle arthroplasty. Methods: Ten most common questions were selected by two ankle surgeons and then ChatGPT was used to answer these questions. The responses were analyzed using an accuracy score and the modified DISCERN score to assess clarity. WordCalc software package (educational-level indices) was used to assess the readability of the responses. Results: Most of ChatGPT's responses were considered excellent not requiring clarification or satisfactory requiring minimal clarification. Indeed, the accuracy score was 2, suggesting that the overall responses were satisfactory requiring minimal clarification, and DISCERN score mean was 51, which is considered good-fair. Conclusions: ChatGPT demonstrates potential as a tool for responding to common patient questions related to total ankle arthroplasty, offering clear and mostly accurate information. While its current performance is based on the available literature, ongoing advancements in artificial intelligence may further enhance its utility in healthcare communication. However, further studies are required to evaluate its role more precisely in patient information and clinical settings. Levels of Evidence: Not applicable