Association between antibodies to carbamylated proteins and subclinical atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis patients

BACKGROUND: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients carry a high risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The excess of cardiovascular disease cannot be entirely explained by traditional risk factors and the immune system contributes to the development of atherosclerosis. Moreover, post-translational modifications such as citrullination and carbamylation have been linked to inflammation and atherosclerosis. Anti-carbamylated proteins antibodies (anti-CarP) are a new subset of autoantibodies identified in RA patients. This study aimed to investigate a possible association between anti-CarP and subclinical atherosclerosis in RA patients. METHODS: We enrolled RA patients and normal healthy controls (NHS) without known cardiovascular risk factors or heart disease. Cardiovascular risk was assessed using the Modified Systemic Coronary Risk Evaluation (mSCORE). Anti-CarP were investigated by a solid phase "home-made" ELISA. Anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA) and Rheumatoid Factor (RF) were investigated by ELISA assays. Subclinical atherosclerosis was evaluated by brachial artery Flow-Mediated Dilatation (FMD) and Carotid Intima-Media Thickness (c-IMT) while arterial stiffness by Ankle-Brachial Index (ABI) and Cardio-Ankle Vascular Index (CAVI). RESULTS: We enrolled 50 RA patients (34 F and 16 M, mean age 58.4 ± 13.1 years, mean disease duration 127 ± 96.7 months) and 30 age and sex matched NHS. According to the mSCORE, 58% of patients had a low risk, 32% a moderate and 8% a high risk for cardiovascular disease. FMD was significantly lower in RA patients than in NHS (5.6 ± 3.2 vs 10.7 ± 8.1%; p < 0.004) and CAVIs significantly higher in a RA patients compared to NHS (left CAVI 8.9 ± 1.7 vs 8.1 ± 1.5; p < 0.04 for and right CAVI 8.8 ± 1.6 vs 8.0 ± 1.4; p < 0.04 for the). ABI and c-IMT did not differ between the two populations. The multivariate regression analysis showed a significant association of anti-CarP antibodies with FMD, left and right CAVI and both c-IMT (r = 1.6 and p = 0.05; r = 1.7 and p = 0.04; r = 2.9 and p = 0.05; r = 1.5 and p = 0.03; r = 1.1 and p = 0.03 respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms that RA patients, without evidence of cardiovascular disease or traditional risk factors, have an impaired endothelial function. Moreover, we found an association with anti-CarP antibodies suggesting a possible contribution of these autoantibodies to endothelial dysfunction, the earliest stage of atherosclerosis. Besides ultrasound assessment, anti-CarP should be assessed in RA patients and considered an additional cardiovascular risk factor

Is randomized branch sampling suitable to assess wood volume of temperate broadleaved old-growth forests?

Old-growth forests are characterized by the presence of large and very large trees. The estimation of their wood volume and biomass is essential in order to monitor the ecological processes in these stands and their contribution to carbon cycle. However, conventional wood volume estimation techniques based on mensuration of stem diameter at breast height and tree height is most often unfeasible for large and very large trees in old-growth forests because volume models or tables are usually elaborated from trees of smaller size grown up in regularly managed forest stands. Random Branch Sampling (RBS) is often proposed as a possible estimation alternative under such conditions. Starting from the ground level some of the parts of the main trunk and of the branches are sampled and measured to estimate the overall wood volume (or other biophysical variables). The application of RBS in old-growth forests, where tree cutting is usually forbidden or very difficult, requires that the crown of the tree can physically be reached to measure the sampled parts. We argue that under such conditions it is usually preferable to fully measure all the components of the tree crown because RBS estimates are not precise if based on only one sampling path and that, on the other hand, measuring the main trunk and all the branches by tree-climbing consumes the same time as replicating several RBS paths on the same tree. To demonstrate our hypothesis we selected 16 large beech trees located in the old-growth forest of Mount Cimini in Central Italy. Using a modern tree-climbing approach the main trunk and all the branches were measured and recorded in the field. The database was used to simulate RBS paths. Real values from volume census were contrasted with estimates based on RBS. On the whole, RBS estimates based on one single path prove to be highly imprecise. Even for trees characterized by a rather regular form, at least three RBS paths should be repeated on the same tree to maintain the relative standard error under or near 15%. This paper introduces the problem and describes the experimental test. The results are discussed under the perspective of standardized application of the proposed methodology.L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.journals.elsevier.co

The impact of surgical delay on resectability of colorectal cancer: An international prospective cohort study

AIM: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has provided a unique opportunity to explore the impact of surgical delays on cancer resectability. This study aimed to compare resectability for colorectal cancer patients undergoing delayed versus non-delayed surgery. METHODS: This was an international prospective cohort study of consecutive colorectal cancer patients with a decision for curative surgery (January-April 2020). Surgical delay was defined as an operation taking place more than 4 weeks after treatment decision, in a patient who did not receive neoadjuvant therapy. A subgroup analysis explored the effects of delay in elective patients only. The impact of longer delays was explored in a sensitivity analysis. The primary outcome was complete resection, defined as curative resection with an R0 margin. RESULTS: Overall, 5453 patients from 304 hospitals in 47 countries were included, of whom 6.6% (358/5453) did not receive their planned operation. Of the 4304 operated patients without neoadjuvant therapy, 40.5% (1744/4304) were delayed beyond 4 weeks. Delayed patients were more likely to be older, men, more comorbid, have higher body mass index and have rectal cancer and early stage disease. Delayed patients had higher unadjusted rates of complete resection (93.7% vs. 91.9%, P = 0.032) and lower rates of emergency surgery (4.5% vs. 22.5%, P < 0.001). After adjustment, delay was not associated with a lower rate of complete resection (OR 1.18, 95% CI 0.90-1.55, P = 0.224), which was consistent in elective patients only (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.69-1.27, P = 0.672). Longer delays were not associated with poorer outcomes. CONCLUSION: One in 15 colorectal cancer patients did not receive their planned operation during the first wave of COVID-19. Surgical delay did not appear to compromise resectability, raising the hypothesis that any reduction in long-term survival attributable to delays is likely to be due to micro-metastatic disease

Encapsulation of bioactive compounds in nanoemulsion-based delivery systems

Encapsulation into nanoemulsion-based delivery systems of bioactive compounds characterized by low solubility in aqueous phase, represents an effective approach to improve the dispersion of the bioactives into food products, to protect them against degradation or interaction with other ingredients, to reduce the impact on organoleptic properties of the food and to improve their bioavailability. The aim of the present work is the fabrication of nanoemulsions, based on natural food ingredients, to be used as delivery systems of two different bioactive compounds, resveratrol and curcumin, with the ultimate goal of improving the antioxidant and/or antimicrobial activities of the encapsulated compounds. A preliminary screening study of the optimal emulsion ingredients was carried out through the construction of a pseudo-ternary phase diagram of kinetic stability. The formation of very fine emulsions in the nanometric range (< 200 nm) was achieved by high pressure homogenization treatment, choosing those formulations containing small amounts of emulsifier, in order to minimize the impact on the organoleptic properties. Resveratrol (0.01% wt) was encapsulated in peanuts oil-based nanoemulsions, using different emulsifiers, such as soy lecithin and sugar esters. Curcumin was encapsulated in stable solid fat nanoemulsions, using stearic acid as lipid phase, up to 0.1% wt concentration. The nanoemulsions were characterized in terms of physical stability of the mean droplet size (dynamic light scattering) and chemical stability of the encapsulated bioactive compounds (HPLC and UV-Vis spectra analysis) upon accelerated ageing conditions. The effectiveness of the delivery systems was evaluated in terms of antioxidant activity of the encapsulated compounds

Impatto delle Tecnologie Innovative sulla qualità di un succo di mela modello: PEF, HPH e HHP a confronto

The aim is to compare the effectiveness of three innovative technologies, the pulsed electric fields (PEF), the high pressure homogenization (HPH) and the high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) processes, for the stabilization of the Annurca apple juice by preserving the nutritional, functional and sensory properties. The juice, inoculated with a known concentration of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells, has been subjected to PEF, HPH and HHP treatment cycles able to reduce the microbial load of 3 log-cycles at least. The experimental results show that the PEF technology preserves the total content of polyphenols, the HPH technology the natural color of the juice and the HHP technology improves the bioavailability of the vitamins. By evaluating an overall quality score, dependent on six parameters (antioxidant activity, total polyphenol content, vitamin A, vitamin C, color change, polyphenol oxidase inactivation), the HHPtreatment proves to be the technique suitable to preserve the juice overall quality

Mesoporous acidic catalysts synthesis from dual-stage and rising co-current gasification char: application for FAME production from waste cooking oil

The main purpose of this work is to investigate the application options of the char produced from gasification plants. Two promising mesoporous acidic catalysts were synthesized using char as a support material. Two char samples were collected from either a dual-stage or a rising co-current biomass gasification plant. The catalysts produced from both gasification char samples were characterized for their physiochemical and morphological properties using N2 physorption measurement, total acidity evaluation through TPD-NH3, functional groups analysis by FT-IR, and morphology determination via FESEM. Results revealed that the dual-stage char-derived mesoporous catalyst (DSC-SO4) with higher specific surface area and acidic properties provided higher catalytic activity for fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) production from waste cooking oil (WCO) than the mesoporous catalyst obtained from char produced by rising co-current gasification (RCC-SO4). Furthermore, the effects of methanol/oil molar ratio (3:1–15:1), catalyst concentration (1–5 wt.% of oil), and reaction time (30–150 min) were studied while keeping the transesterification temperature constant at 65 °C. The optimal reaction conditions for the transesterification of WCO were 4 wt.% catalyst concentration, 12:1 methanol/oil molar ratio, and 90 min operating time. The optimized reaction conditions resulted in FAME conversions of 97% and 83% over DSC-SO4 and RCC-SO4 catalysts, respectively. The char-based catalysts show excellent reusability, since they could be reused six times without any modification