Opportunities for Web-Based Indicators in Environmental Sciences

This paper proposes a set of web-based indicators for quantifying and ranking the relevance of terms related to key-issues in Ecology and Sustainability Science. Search engines that operate in different contexts (e.g. global, social, scientific) are considered as web information carriers (WICs) and are able to analyse; (i) relevance on different levels: global web, individual/personal sphere, on-line news, and culture/science; (ii) time trends of relevance; (iii) relevance of keywords for environmental governance. For the purposes of this study, several indicators and specific indices (relational indices and dynamic indices) were applied to a test-set of 24 keywords. Outputs consistently show that traditional study topics in environmental sciences such as water and air have remained the most quantitatively relevant keywords, while interest in systemic issues (i.e. ecosystem and landscape) has grown over the last 20 years. Nowadays, the relevance of new concepts such as resilience and ecosystem services is increasing, but the actual ability of these concepts to influence environmental governance needs to be further studied and understood. The proposed approach, which is based on intuitive and easily replicable procedures, can support the decision-making processes related to environmental governance

Marinas may act as hubs for the spread of the pseudo-indigenous bryozoan <em>Amathia verticillata</em> (Delle Chiaje, 1822) and its associates

The spaghetti bryozoan Amathia verticillata, formerly known as Zoobotryon verticillatum, was first described in 1822 from Naples, Italy, although this species was already present in 1807 at Cadiz, Spain. This ctenostome has long been considered a native species in the Mediterranean Sea but it has recently been suggested to be of Caribbean origin. It is most likely to have been introduced by vessels as hull fouling. This pseudo-indigenous species, i.e. a non-indigenous species (NIS) having been perceived to be native, has been found in several marinas and harbours within the Mediterranean Sea. In November 2014, this bryozoan species was abundant in the La Grande Motte marina on the south coast of France. Several thousand colonies were estimated to be present within this marina attached to the floating pontoon units that supported a floating boardwalk. Of the berthed craft examined, 31% were fouled with this species, and it was occasionally a prominent fouling species. Several macroinvertebrate species were associated with A. verticillata colonies, including some NIS, Paracerceis sculpta, Paranthura japonica and Caprella scaura, that are recorded for the first time from the Mediterranean coast of France. A. verticillata might support their transfer elsewhere by providing a habitat and substrate when attached to vessel hulls

COVID-19 and Youth Psychopathological Distress in Umbria, Central Italy: A 2-Year Observational Study in a Real-World Setting

IntroductionAdolescents and young adults represent a vulnerable population in the context of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The present retrospective study aims to investigate the pandemic's psychological impact on adolescents and young adults by analyzing data from an outpatient mental health service dedicated to youths in Umbria, central Italy. Materials and MethodsThe clinical charts of subjects aged 14-24 who first accessed the service in the timeframe between March 1st, 2019, and February 28th, 2021, were reviewed. Subjects were divided into two subgroups according to the period of time when they accessed the service (pre-COVID-19 vs. during- COVID-19 outbreak). Bivariate analyses were performed using the Chi-square test and the Welch's t-test. A secondary analysis was performed considering only subjects suffering from psychiatric disorders. Furthermore, data concerning individuals who were already followed by the service before the pandemic were analyzed by the McNemar's test and the t-paired test to assess changes in treatment features. ResultsThe number of new accesses during the pandemic period remained stable. After the emergency onset, youths accessing the service showed a higher prevalence of anxiety disorders (p = 0.022). During the COVID-19 period, services were more frequently delivered by using a digital mental health approach (p = 0.001). Psychopharmacological treatment was more frequently prescribed among subjects that were referred to the service after the pandemic onset (p = 0.033). As for substance use, a highly significant reduction in opioid use was observed (p = 0.003). Family therapy was delivered less frequently in the during-COVID-19 subgroup, especially in the subpopulation of subjects suffering from psychiatric disorders (p = 0.013). When considering subjects referred to the service in the pre-COVID-19 period, the number of interventions provided to this population increased after the pandemic outbreak (p = 0.038). ConclusionIn the context of the COVID-19-related public health crisis, youths represent an at-risk population for which pathways to care should be reinforced, and targeted interventions, including psychosocial treatments, should be implemented

The Impact of Lifestyle Interventions in High-Risk Early Breast Cancer Patients: A Modeling Approach from a Single Institution Experience

none21noA healthy lifestyle plays a strategic role in the prevention of BC. The aim of our prospective study is to evaluate the effects of a lifestyle interventions program based on special exercise and nutrition education on weight, psycho-physical well-being, blood lipid and hormonal profile among BC patients who underwent primary surgery. From January 2014 to March 2017, a multidisciplinary group of oncologists, dieticians, physiatrists and an exercise specialist evaluated 98 adult BC female patients at baseline and at different time points. The patients had at least one of the following risk factors: BMI ≥ 25 Kg/m2, high testosterone levels, high serum insulin levels or diagnosis of MS. Statistically significant differences are shown in terms of BMI variation with the lifestyle interventions program, as well as in waist circumference and blood glucose, insulin and testosterone levels. Moreover, a statistically significant difference was reported in variations of total Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) score, in the anxiety HADS score and improvement in joint pain. Our results suggested that promoting a healthy lifestyle in clinical practice reduces risk factors involved in BC recurrence and ensures psycho-physical well-being.openMirco Pistelli, Valentina Natalucci, Laura Scortichini, Veronica Agostinelli, Edoardo Lenci, Sonia Crocetti, Filippo Merloni, Lucia Bastianelli, Marina Taus, Daniele Fumelli, Gloria Giulietti, Claudia Cola, Marianna Capecci, Roberta Serrani, Maria Gabriella Ceravolo, Maurizio Ricci, Albano Nicolai, Elena Barbieri, Giulia Nicolai, Zelmira Ballatore, Agnese Savini and Rossana BerardiPistelli, Mirco; Natalucci, Valentina; Scortichini, Laura; Agostinelli, Veronica; Lenci, Edoardo; Crocetti, Sonia; Merloni, Filippo; Bastianelli, Lucia; Taus, Marina; Fumelli, Daniele; Giulietti, Gloria; Cola, Claudia; Capecci, Marianna; Serrani, Roberta; Gabriella Ceravolo, Maria; Ricci, Maurizio; Nicolai, Albano; Barbieri, Elena; Nicolai, Giulia; Ballatore, Zelmira; Savini and Rossana Berardi, Agnes

Gastro-entero-pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors: Is now time for a new approach?

Gastro-entero-pancreatic tumors (GEP-NETs) are rare neoplasms often characterized by an overexpression of somatostatin receptors. Thus, radiolabeled somatostatin analogues have showed an increasing relevance both in diagnosis and treatment, especially in low- And intermediate- differentiated GEP-NETs. These evidences have led to a growing development of new functional imaging techniques as 68Ga-DOTATATE positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (PET/CT) proved useful in the management of these neoplasms. However these tumors have a heterogeneous behavior also modifying their aggressiveness through time. Therefore sometimes 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT appears to be more appropriate to obtain a better assessment of the disease. According to these considerations, the combination of different functional imaging techniques should be considered in the management of GEP-NETs patients allowing clinicians to choose the tailored therapeutic approach among available options

Type of dynamic index (<i>DI</i>) and relative WICs.

<p>See <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0042128#pone-0042128-t002" target="_blank">Table 2</a> for labels. Different interpretations of the “recent times” and “former times” concepts offer an evaluation of emerging trends and stabilised trends of keywords occurrences.</p

Results of data collection from selected WICs for the scientific web, global web, social web and web news contexts (see Table 2 for WIC labels).

<p>Raw data were transformed into percentage of occurrences of a given keyword over the total number of occurrences obtained from all the 24 keywords. Bold character style indicates the most popular keywords for each WIC; underlined style indicates the least popular keywords.</p