Structural breaks in the variance of the european market during the Covid-19 pandemic: a sectoral approach

This project aims to test for the presence of structural breaks in the volatility of the European markets during the covid-19 pandemic. A dataset composed by 19 sectoral indexes, and the methodology proposed by Kokoszka and Leipus are used. The results show that all the analyzed sectors besides two are going through multiple breaks. The breaks are more frequent during the beginning of the pandemic, and also the volatility is significantly higher during this period

Rheumatic heart disease predisposing to embolic myocardial infarction: a multimodality imaging approach

We report a clinical case of a 45-year-old male with a diagnosis of inferior myocardial infarction and previous history of rheumatic fever during his childhood. Coronary angiography demonstrated normal coronary arteries. Transthoracic echocardiogram showed hypokinetic left ventricular inferolateral wall and mitral stenosis; furthermore, speckle tracking analysis revealed reduction of global longitudinal strain involving the inferior wall. A three-dimensional transesophaegeal echocardiography, performed to better characterize the anatomy of the valve and to find possible source of embolic infarct in an enlarged left atrium, showed rheumatic valvular involvement. Cardiac magnetic resonance confirmed the ischemic damage and also provided prognostic information. A multimodality imaging approach should be mandatory in patients with acute myocardial infarction and normal coronary angiography, to define possible sources of embolic infarction and to quantify myocardial damage

Complexities of 5'splice site definition: Implications in clinical analyses

In higher eukaryotes, the 5' splice site (5'ss) is initially recognized through an RNA-RNA interaction by U1 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (U1 snRNP). This event represents one of the key steps in initial spliceosomal assembly and many disease-associated mutations in humans often disrupt this process. Beside base pair complementarity, 5'ss recognition can also be modified by additional factors such as RNA secondary structures or the specific binding of other nuclear proteins. In this work, we have focused on investigating a few examples of changes detected within the 5'ss in patients, that would not be immediately considered "disease causing mutations". We show that the splicing outcome of very similar mutations can be very different due to variations in trans-acting factor(s) interactions and specific context influences. Using several NF1 donor sites and SELEX approaches as experimental models, we have examined the binding properties of particular sequence motifs such as GGGU found in donor sites, and how the sequence context can change their interaction with hnRNPs such as H/F and A1/A2. Our results clearly show that even minor differences in local nucleotide context can differentially affect the binding ability of these factors to the GGGU core. Finally, using a previously identified mutation in KCNH2 that resulted in intron retention we show how very similar 5'ss mutations found in patients can have a very different splicing outcome due to the neighbouring sequence context, thus highlighting the general need to approach splicing problems with suitable experimental approaches

EnergyTest: A tool for assessing building energy sustainability

There is a growing interest in the development of (nearly) zero-energy buildings (ZEBs), i.e., buildings that deliver (nearly) the same amount of energy to the supply grid as it is drawn from it on a yearly basis. This paper investigates the ability of such ZEBs to performing in a truly self-sustainable fashion, i.e., minimising the frequency of energy exchange with the outer grid, through appropriate charging/discharging actions of a storage system. A realistic simulation environment called EnergyTest is developed on purpose to simulate the electrical load consumption in an aggregate of houses, in order to perform the sustainability assessment

TDP-43 affects splicing profiles and isoform production of genes involved in the apoptotic and mitotic cellular pathways

In recent times, high-throughput screening analyses have broadly defined the RNA cellular targets of TDP-43, a nuclear factor involved in neurodegeneration. A common outcome of all these studies is that changing the expression levels of this protein can alter the expression of several hundred RNAs within cells. What still remains to be clarified is which changes represent direct cellular targets of TDP-43 or just secondary variations due to the general role played by this protein in RNA metabolism. Using an HTS-based splicing junction analysis we identified at least six bona fide splicing events that are consistent with being controlled by TDP-43. Validation of the data, both in neuronal and non-neuronal cell lines demonstrated that TDP-43 substantially alters the levels of isoform expression in four genes potentially important for neuropathology: MADD/IG20, STAG2, FNIP1 and BRD8. For MADD/IG20 and STAG2, these changes could also be confirmed at the protein level. These alterations were also observed in a cellular model that successfully mimics TDP-43 loss of function effects following its aggregation. Most importantly, our study demonstrates that cell cycle alterations induced by TDP-43 knockdown can be recovered by restoring the STAG2, an important component of the cohesin complex, normal splicing profile

Comparison between balloon angioplasty and additional coronary stent implantation for the treatment of drug-eluting stent restenosis: 18-month clinical outcomes

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the long-term outcomes after different modalities of treatment of drug-eluting stent (DES) in-stent restenosis (ISR) in a 'real world' setting. METHODS: Actually, few and conflicting data are available about the management of in-stent restenosis (ISR) after DES implantation. In our 'real world' registry 1082 consecutive patients who received a DES implantation were included. At 9-month angiographic follow-up, 93 patients presented a DES ISR that was treated with 'homo-DES' (HMD) (N = 27), 'hetero-DES' (HTD) (N = 19) and conventional balloon angioplasty (POBA) (N = 47). We evaluated the clinical outcomes in terms of major adverse cardiac event (MACE) (death, myocardial infarction and target vessel revascularization) at 18 months. RESULTS: There was no difference for clinical and angiographic characteristics between the three groups, except for the presence of silent ischaemia as clinical presentation (7.7 HMD vs. 2.2% POBA; P = 0.0001). No late stent thrombosis was found. At 18-month clinical follow-up patients treated with HMD, HTD and POBA presented a rate of MACE of 10.2, 0 and 8.7%, respectively (P = NS). Kaplan-Meier survival probability showed that HTD and POBA treatment tended to have more favourable outcomes at 18 months than the HMD treatment. CONCLUSION: In our registry, POBA seems to be as effective as other DES implantations in cases of DES ISR, especially in cases of focal type (Mehran classification IA, IC), in terms of long-term outcomes

Open-aqueduct LOVA, LIAS, iNPH: a comparative clinical-radiological study exploring the "grey zone" between different forms of chronic adulthood hydrocephalus

The definition of chronic adult hydrocephalus encompasses different pathological entities with overlapping characteristics, including long-standing overt ventriculomegaly in adults (LOVA), late-onset idiopathic aqueductal stenosis (LIAS) and idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH). The aim of our study was to identify preoperative clinical and radiological features peculiar of these diseases providing some pathophysiology inferences on these forms of hydrocephalus

COVID‐19 disease in professional football players: symptoms and impact on pulmonary function and metabolic power during matches

This study aimed at: (1) Reporting COVID-19 symptoms and duration in professional football players; (2) comparing players' pulmonary function before and after COVID-19; (3) comparing players' metabolic power (Pmet ) before and after COVID-19. Thirteen male players (Age: 23.9 ± 4.0 years, V̇O2peak : 49.7 ± 4.0 mL/kg/min) underwent a medical screening and performed a running incremental step test and a spirometry test after COVID-19. Spirometric data were compared with the ones collected at the beginning of the same season. Players' mean Pmet of the 10 matches played before COVID-19 was compared with mean Pmet of the 10 matches played after COVID-19. Players completed a questionnaire on COVID-19 symptoms and duration 6 months following the disease. COVID-19 positivity lasted on average 15 ± 5 days. "General fatigue" and "muscle fatigue" symptoms were reported by all players during COVID-19 and persisted for 77% (general fatigue) and 54% (muscle fatigue) of the players for 37 ± 28 and 38 ± 29 days after the disease, respectively. No significant changes in spirometric measurements were found after COVID-19, even though some impairments at the individual level were observed. Conversely, a linear mixed-effects model analysis showed a significant reduction of Pmet (-4.1 ± 3.5%) following COVID-19 (t = -2.686, p < 0.05). "General fatigue" and "muscle fatigue" symptoms may persist for several weeks following COVID-19 in professional football players and should be considered for a safer return to sport. Players' capacity to compete at high intensities might be compromised after COVID-19