Endothelial dysfunction and renal fibrosis in endotoxemia-induced oliguric kidney injury: possible role of LPS binding protein

The pathophysiology of endotoxemia-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) is characterized by an intense activation of the host immune system and renal resident cells by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and derived proinflammatory products. However, the occurrence of renal fibrosis in this setting has been poorly investigated. The aim of the present study was to investigate the possible association between endothelial dysfunction and acute development of tissue fibrosis in a swine model of LPS-induced AKI. Moreover, we studied the possible effects of coupled plasma filtration adsorption (CPFA) in this setting

The physics of dynamical atomic charges: the case of ABO3 compounds

Based on recent first-principles computations in perovskite compounds, especially BaTiO3, we examine the significance of the Born effective charge concept and contrast it with other atomic charge definitions, either static (Mulliken, Bader...) or dynamical (Callen, Szigeti...). It is shown that static and dynamical charges are not driven by the same underlying parameters. A unified treatment of dynamical charges in periodic solids and large clusters is proposed. The origin of the difference between static and dynamical charges is discussed in terms of local polarizability and delocalized transfers of charge: local models succeed in reproducing anomalous effective charges thanks to large atomic polarizabilities but, in ABO3 compounds, ab initio calculations favor the physical picture based upon transfer of charges. Various results concerning barium and strontium titanates are presented. The origin of anomalous Born effective charges is discussed thanks to a band-by-band decomposition which allows to identify the displacement of the Wannier center of separated bands induced by an atomic displacement. The sensitivity of the Born effective charges to microscopic and macroscopic strains is examined. Finally, we estimate the spontaneous polarization in the four phases of barium titanate.Comment: 25 pages, 6 Figures, 10 Tables, LaTe

Point prevalence survey of antibiotic use and healthcare-associated infections in acute care hospitals: a comprehensive report from the Marche Region of Italy

Background: Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs) and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) are serious health challenges. Point prevalence surveys (PPS) are valuable tools for monitoring HAIs and AMR. Aim: To describe results of the ECDC-PPS 2022 dealing with the prevalence of HAIs, antimicrobial consumption, and associated factors, in acute care hospitals. Methods: The present point-prevalence have been carried out survey in November 2022 in fourteen hospitals according to the protocol proposed by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Multilevel logistic regression was performed using geographical area/hospital type as cluster variable to evaluate the factors independently associated with HAIs and antibiotics. Results: The point prevalence of HAIs was 7.43%. Patients hospitalized for longer periods were more likely to have an HAI as well as those aged 15-44, with a rapidly fatal disease, intubated and with 1 or 2 devices. Antibiotics prevalence was 47.30%. Males, unknown McCabe scores, minimally invasive/non-NHSN surgery, patients with HAIs, hospitals with a higher alcohol hand rub consumption, hospitals with a higher amount of IPC personnel, geriatric wards and hospital with 300-600 beds were more likely to be under antimicrobial therapy. Conclusion: This point prevalence survey provided valuable information on the prevalence of HAIs and antimicrobial consumption and variables associated. The high prevalence of HAIs highlights the need for improved infection control measure

Micromechanical Properties of Injection-Molded Starch–Wood Particle Composites

The micromechanical properties of injection molded starch–wood particle composites were investigated as a function of particle content and humidity conditions. The composite materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction methods. The microhardness of the composites was shown to increase notably with the concentration of the wood particles. In addition,creep behavior under the indenter and temperature dependence were evaluated in terms of the independent contribution of the starch matrix and the wood microparticles to the hardness value. The influence of drying time on the density and weight uptake of the injection-molded composites was highlighted. The results revealed the role of the mechanism of water evaporation, showing that the dependence of water uptake and temperature was greater for the starch–wood composites than for the pure starch sample. Experiments performed during the drying process at 70°C indicated that the wood in the starch composites did not prevent water loss from the samples.Peer reviewe

Étude des effets résiduels dans les noyaux 84Rb, 85Sr, 87,86,85Y au cours de la désexcitation du noyau composé

Analysis of 84Rb, 87,86,85Y, isomer ratios induced in 85Rb with alpha particles [1] lead us to extend the analysis to others systems particle-target giving the same nuclei in the same way as for 85Sr. Experimental results for (γ, n) (p, xn), (p, pxn), (n, 2 n), (d, xn), (α, xn) and (α, αn) have been compared with the shifted Fermi gas. Dependence of the spin cut-off parameter with residual energy and nuclear structure is discussed.L'étude des rapports isomériques des noyaux 84Rb, 87,86,85 Y produits par les particules alpha sur le rubidium [1], nous a conduit à étendre l'analyse à d'autres systèmes particule-cible produisant ces mêmes noyaux ainsi qu'au noyau 85Sr. La comparaison des résultats expérimentaux obtenus par réaction (γ, n) (p, xn), (p, pxn), (n, 2 n), (d, xn), (α, xn) et (α, αn) avec les valeurs calculées nous permet une étude du paramètre de distribution de spins en fonction de l'énergie d'excitation et de la structure du noyau

Prenatal diagnosis of thalassaemia major resulting from Lepore/ beta-thalassaemia genotype.

Antenatal diagnosis was carried out in a pregnancy at risk for beta-thalassaemia major/intermedia, resulting from the Lepore/ beta-thalassaemia genotype, by globin chain synthesis analysis on fetal blood obtained by placentocentesis at 19 weeks' gestation. As there was no radioactive incorporation in the beta-region, the fetus was considered to be a Lepore/ beta-thalassaemia genetic compound and aborted on parental request. After abortion, cord blood analysis confirmed the absence of beta-chain radioactivity