Estimation of biological parameters for germination of Abutilon theophrasti Medik.

Background and Purpose: Velvetleaf seed longevity and prolonged emergence complicate assessing appropriate time for its control. Estimating biological parameters (base temperature and base water potential) is a first step towards development of emergence predictive model for this weed species in summer crops. Since, development of new model is time consuming, the aim of the research was to provide the data set of biological thresholds for Croatian ecotype and then to compare it with Italian velvetleaf thresholds to assess the implementation of AlertInf predictive weed emergence model from Italy to Croatia. Materials and methods: Laboratory experiments were conducted with 100 seeds per three replicates at seven constant temperatures (4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28°C) to estimate base temperature (Tb) and at seven water stress levels (0.00, -0.05, -0.10, -0.25, -0.38, -0.50, -0.80, -1.00 MPa) to estimate base water potential (Ψb). Results: The highest germination occurred at temperature > 20°C with 3.6 days and at water stress level >- 0.25 MPa with 4.9 days to complete 50% of germination (t50). The slowest t50 occurred at 4°C (41.9 days) and < -0.38 MPa (10.1 days). Estimated Croatian velvetleaf biological parameters are: 4.5°C (Tb) and – 0.67 MPa (Ψb) with no significant difference compared to Italian ecotype, according to 95% confidence intervals overlapping. Conclusion: The results indicate that it could be possible to implement AlertInf model from Italy to Croatia for this weed species without additional adjustment. Nevertheless, next step of this implementation should include validation of estimated results in the field conditions.    Key words: invasive weed species, velvetleaf, germination modelling, integrated weed management, base temperature, base water potentia

Estimation of biological parameters for germination of Abutilon theophrasti Medik.

Background and Purpose: Velvetleaf seed longevity and prolonged emergence complicate assessing appropriate time for its control. Estimating biological parameters (base temperature and base water potential) is a first step towards development of emergence predictive model for this weed species in summer crops. Since, development of new model is time consuming, the aim of the research was to provide the data set of biological thresholds for Croatian ecotype and then to compare it with Italian velvetleaf thresholds to assess the implementation of AlertInf predictive weed emergence model from Italy to Croatia. Materials and methods: Laboratory experiments were conducted with 100 seeds per three replicates at seven constant temperatures (4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28°C) to estimate base temperature (Tb) and at seven water stress levels (0.00, -0.05, -0.10, -0.25, -0.38, -0.50, -0.80, -1.00 MPa) to estimate base water potential (Ψb). Results: The highest germination occurred at temperature > 20°C with 3.6 days and at water stress level >- 0.25 MPa with 4.9 days to complete 50% of germination (t50). The slowest t50 occurred at 4°C (41.9 days) and b) and – 0.67 MPa (Ψb) with no significant difference compared to Italian ecotype, according to 95% confidence intervals overlapping. Conclusion: The results indicate that it could be possible to implement AlertInf model from Italy to Croatia for this weed species without additional adjustment. Nevertheless, next step of this implementation should include validation of estimated results in the field conditions.    Key words: invasive weed species, velvetleaf, germination modelling, integrated weed management, base temperature, base water potential</p

A PLENA-like gene of peach is involved in carpel formation and subsequent transformation into a fleshy fruit

MADS-box genes have been shown to play a role in the formation of fruits, both in Arabidopsis and in tomato. In peach, two C-class MADS-box genes have been isolated. Both of them are expressed during flower and mesocarp development. Here a detailed analysis of a gene that belongs to the PLENA subfamily of MADS-box genes is shown. The expression of this PLENA-like gene (PpPLENA) increases during fruit ripening, and its ectopic expression in tomato plants causes the transformation of sepals into carpel-like structures that become fleshy and ripen like real fruits. Interestingly, the transgenic berries constitutively expressing the PpPLENA gene show an accelerated ripening, as judged by the expression of genes that are important for tomato fruit ripening. It is suggested that PpPLENA might interfere with the endogenous activity of TAGL1, thereby activating the fruit ripening pathway earlier compared with wild-type tomato plants

ECMO for COVID-19 patients in Europe and Israel

Since March 15th, 2020, 177 centres from Europe and Israel have joined the study, routinely reporting on the ECMO support they provide to COVID-19 patients. The mean annual number of cases treated with ECMO in the participating centres before the pandemic (2019) was 55. The number of COVID-19 patients has increased rapidly each week reaching 1531 treated patients as of September 14th. The greatest number of cases has been reported from France (n = 385), UK (n = 193), Germany (n = 176), Spain (n = 166), and Italy (n = 136) .The mean age of treated patients was 52.6 years (range 16–80), 79% were male. The ECMO configuration used was VV in 91% of cases, VA in 5% and other in 4%. The mean PaO2 before ECMO implantation was 65 mmHg. The mean duration of ECMO support thus far has been 18 days and the mean ICU length of stay of these patients was 33 days. As of the 14th September, overall 841 patients have been weaned from ECMO support, 601 died during ECMO support, 71 died after withdrawal of ECMO, 79 are still receiving ECMO support and for 10 patients status n.a. . Our preliminary data suggest that patients placed on ECMO with severe refractory respiratory or cardiac failure secondary to COVID-19 have a reasonable (55%) chance of survival. Further extensive data analysis is expected to provide invaluable information on the demographics, severity of illness, indications and different ECMO management strategies in these patients

Type 1 diabetes: translating mechanistic observations into effective clinical outcomes

Type 1 diabetes remains an important health problem, particularly in Western countries where the incidence has been increasing in younger children(1). In 1986, Eisenbarth described Type 1 diabetes as a chronic autoimmune disease. Work over the past 3 ½ decades has identified many of the genetic, immunologic, and environmental factors that are involved in the disease and have led to hypotheses concerning its pathogenesis. Based on these findings, clinical trials have been conducted to test these hypotheses but have had mixed results. In this review, we discuss the findings that have led to current concepts of the disease mechanisms, how this understanding has prompted clinical studies, and the results of these studies. The findings from preclinical and clinical studies support the original proposed model for how type 1 diabetes develops, but have also suggested that this disease is more complex than originally thought and will require broader treatment approaches

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

A cell wall-oriented genomic approach reveals a new and unexpected complexity of the softening in peaches

During ripening, fleshy fruits undergo textural changes that lead to loss of tissue firmness and consequent softening. It is a common idea that this process is the consequence of cell wall dismantling carried out by different and orderly expressed enzymes. For this purpose, by using a single enzyme family approach many enzymes and related genes have been characterized in different fruits. In this work, the softening of the climacteric peach fruits (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch.) has been studied by using a genomic approach, and the results obtained are novel and partly unexpected. The genes analysed encode proteins involved in the main metabolic aspects of a primary cell wall: degradation, synthesis, structure. In addition, some genes encoding cell-wall-related proteins with an unknown function have been studied. The gene expression profiles show that the softening actually begins well before the climacteric rise and continues thereafter. Genes whose expression starts before the climacteric rise are mostly down-regulated by ethylene, while genes with a ripening-specific expression are mostly upregulated by the hormone. A few other genes are apparently insensitive to ethylene. Besides the expected parietal degradation, the softening that results from this study also comprises some repairing of the cell wall performed by enzymes involved in the synthesis of parietal polysaccharides and, especially, by proteins with structural functions. The newly synthesized polysaccharides and the structural proteins would thus help to hold together the fruit cell wall while not preventing the softening