Implications of TP53 allelic state for genome stability, clinical presentation and outcomes in myelodysplastic syndromes

Tumor protein p53 (TP53) is the most frequently mutated gene in cancer1,2. In patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), TP53 mutations are associated with high-risk disease3,4, rapid transformation to acute myeloid leukemia (AML)5, resistance to conventional therapies6–8 and dismal outcomes9. Consistent with the tumor-suppressive role of TP53, patients harbor both mono- and biallelic mutations10. However, the biological and clinical implications of TP53 allelic state have not been fully investigated in MDS or any other cancer type. We analyzed 3,324 patients with MDS for TP53 mutations and allelic imbalances and delineated two subsets of patients with distinct phenotypes and outcomes. One-third of TP53-mutated patients had monoallelic mutations whereas two-thirds had multiple hits (multi-hit) consistent with biallelic targeting. Established associations with complex karyotype, few co-occurring mutations, high-risk presentation and poor outcomes were specific to multi-hit patients only. TP53 multi-hit state predicted risk of death and leukemic transformation independently of the Revised International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS-R)11. Surprisingly, monoallelic patients did not differ from TP53 wild-type patients in outcomes and response to therapy. This study shows that consideration of TP53 allelic state is critical for diagnostic and prognostic precision in MDS as well as in future correlative studies of treatment response

Priorities in Bioeconomy Strategies: A Systematic Literature Review

Bioeconomy is an emerging concept and no commonly accepted definition has been given so far. Bioeconomy strategies attempt to cover every aspect of this emerging concept from a different perspective, depending on the country, region, or organisation issuing them. For these reasons, each strategy has its own priority fields depending on the economic, geomorphological, social, ecological, and technological conditions of each country. In this review, an attempt is made to study the priority fields of bioeconomy strategies through a systematic review of the literature. PRISMA analysis was used to review the literature on the priority fields of bioeconomy strategies. The review examined the issue in the rich academic literature of two databases, Scopus and AgEcon. Using a repeatable search process to identify relevant studies in the literature, only 68 publications met the eligibility criteria that were included in the review. The results show that there are trends in the priority fields of bioeconomy strategies in the years 2013–2022. Moreover, the economic and technological development of the respective countries foreshadows their priorities. A successful transition to a bioeconomic model requires the participation of society as a whole, because a sustainable society as a whole requires sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions. The study concludes that governance with global coordination and stakeholder training is needed for successful implementation of bioeconomy strategies

Integrated system for the complete segmentation of the common carotid artery bifurcation in ultrasound images

Originally published with the title: IFIP International Federation for Information ProcessingThe complete segmentation of the common carotid artery (CCA) bifurcation in ultrasound images is important for the evaluation of atherosclerosis disease and the quantification of the risk of stroke. This requires the extraction of the intima-media complex (IMC), the delineation of the lumen the atherosclerotic carotid plaque and measurement of the artery stenosis. The current research proposes an automated segmentation system for the complete segmentation of the CCA bifurcation in ultrasound images, which is based on snakes. The algorithm was evaluated on 20 longitudinal ultrasound images of the CCA bifurcation with manual segmentations available from a neurovascular expert. The manual mean±SD measurements were for the IMT: (0.96±0.22) mm, lumen diameter: (5.59±0.84) mm and ICA origin stenosis (48.1±11.52) %, while the automated measurements were for the IMT: (0.93±0.22) mm, lumen diameter: (5.77±0.99) mm and ICA stenosis (51.05±14.51) % respectively. We found no significant differences between all manual and the automated segmentation measurements

Risk, Vulnerability, and Resilience in Agriculture and Their Impact on Sustainable Rural Economy Development: A Case Study of Greece

Promoting rural development is essential for the general economic transformation of people, hence requiring great attention from different government systems. This study assessed the risk, vulnerability, and resilience of agriculture, as well as its impact on sustainable rural economy development, using Greece as the case study. The study employed a quantitative research approach based on a cross-sectional survey design. A survey questionnaire was used to gather data from 304 Greek farmers. The results show that, although farmers are no longer at risk of being short of food and clothing in Greece, they still face different challenges associated with climate change or low productivity, and this can greatly affect yields if not given great attention. The study showed that increasing farmers’ resilience and the efficacy of risk response are both essential tactics to use in order to effectively combat threats to the residential environment. However, the results show that vulnerability in agriculture has a significant negative influence on rural development. This research demonstrates how the development of a new, beautiful nation must involve improvements to and a guarantee of the safety of farmers’ rural living environments, in order to reduce the impacts of risk and vulnerability, as well as strengthen the nation’s resilience. The results show that, in rural governance, the general preservation of living conditions is not only one of farmers’ top priorities, but is also a crucial factor in enhancing their ability to deal with risks, and is the only route to real rural development. Governments should design their social protection programs to enhance agricultural production, safeguard the lives of the most vulnerable populations, strengthen their resilience, and achieve the broadest possible rural transformation

Integrated system for the complete segmentation of the common carotid artery bifurcation in ultrasound images

Originally published with the title: IFIP International Federation for Information ProcessingThe complete segmentation of the common carotid artery (CCA) bifurcation in ultrasound images is important for the evaluation of atherosclerosis disease and the quantification of the risk of stroke. This requires the extraction of the intima-media complex (IMC), the delineation of the lumen the atherosclerotic carotid plaque and measurement of the artery stenosis. The current research proposes an automated segmentation system for the complete segmentation of the CCA bifurcation in ultrasound images, which is based on snakes. The algorithm was evaluated on 20 longitudinal ultrasound images of the CCA bifurcation with manual segmentations available from a neurovascular expert. The manual mean±SD measurements were for the IMT: (0.96±0.22) mm, lumen diameter: (5.59±0.84) mm and ICA origin stenosis (48.1±11.52) %, while the automated measurements were for the IMT: (0.93±0.22) mm, lumen diameter: (5.77±0.99) mm and ICA stenosis (51.05±14.51) % respectively. We found no significant differences between all manual and the automated segmentation measurements

Full-automated Medical Imaging System for Segmentation and Detection of Carotid Plaque and Carotid Artery lumen From Ultrasound Images

The full segmentation and detection of the common carotid artery (CCA) in ultrasound images is important for the evaluation of the intima media thickness (IMT) and for the measurement of the artery stenosis. The IMT as well as the stenosis are considered to be the significant markers for the clinical evaluation of the risk of stroke. The current research proposes full-automated medical imaging system for the segmentation and detection of the CCA and the common artery lumen (CAL), which is based on an adaptive snake-contour segmentation algorithm. The CCA is segmented by the proposed algorithm into different distinct regions, namely the IMT, intima-media (IL), media-layer (ML), carotid plaque and lumen

What Makes Farmers Aware in Adopting Circular Bioeconomy Practices? Evidence from a Greek Rural Region

Action 2 of the European Union’s Updated Bioeconomy Strategy, i.e., “Deploy local bioeconomies rapidly across Europe”, promotes education and training in all member states. It is a fact that Greece has not yet adopted a national bioeconomy strategy, so stakeholders and farmers cannot benefit from its potential. The adoption of bioeconomy practices is now a prerequisite for receiving funding under the Common Agricultural Policy 2023–2027. Farmers unknowingly use some bioeconomy practices on their farms, and in this study, an attempt was made to investigate how farmers in the region of Western Macedonia would like to be trained in respect of the bioeconomy, knowing the opportunities it offers. The research was conducted through a structured questionnaire answered by 412 farmers from the region. The findings from the subsequent k-means cluster analysis show that farmers can be classified into three clusters: engaged, restricted, and partially engaged. The perceptions that predominate in each cluster are influenced by age, income, and the regional unit in which the farmers reside. In addition, the decarbonization of the Western Macedonia region influences their views and how they would like to be informed about opportunities arising from the bioeconomy. Limitations in this study include the fact that the sample consists only of farmers living and operating in a particular region. In addition, there is an urgent need for political will to establish a national strategy for the bioeconomy. The importance of the present study lies in the fact that few studies have addressed the training of farmers on bioeconomy issues either in Greece or internationally

Malnutrition in Hospitalised Children—An Evaluation of the Efficacy of Two Nutritional Screening Tools

Nutritional risk screening (NRS) is not yet established in many clinical settings. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of two NRS tools; the Paediatric Yorkhill Malnutrition Score (PYMS) and the Screening Tool for the Assessment of Malnutrition in Paediatrics (STAMP), compared to the global dietitians’ clinical judgment. The goal of this study was also to estimate the prevalence of nutritional risk in Greek paediatric patients. Overall, 1506 children, 1–16 years, from paediatric and surgical wards of two Greek hospitals were included. NRS was performed using PYMS and STAMP based either on World Health Organization (WHOGC) or Hellenic growth charts (HGC). The first 907 children were also referred to dietitians who categorized children in low, medium and high nutritional risk according to their global clinical judgment. PYMS, either based on WHOGC or HGC, showed better agreement with dietitians’ feedback (kPYMS_WHO = 0.47; 95%CI: 0.41–0.52, kPYMS_HGC = 0.48; 95%CI: 0.43–0.53) compared to STAMP (kSTAMP_WHO = 0.28; 95%CI: 0.23–0.33, kSTAMP_HGC = 0.26; 95%CI: 0.21–0.32). PYMS also showed the best diagnostic accuracy compared to STAMP in paediatrics and surgical wards separately. Moreover, the PYMS showed similar sensitivity to the STAMP (WHOGC: 82% vs. 84.4%), but a higher positive predictive value (WHOGC: 58.2 vs. 38.7). Using PYMS, high and medium malnutrition risk was observed at 14.9%, and 13.1% of children, respectively. Almost 28% of hospitalised children were at nutritional risk. Children in hospitals should be screened with effective and feasible NRS tools such as PYMS