Comparison of Pre- and Post-Remediation Stream Water Chemistry in the Arsenic-Contaminated Baccu Locci Mine Watershed (Italy): Preliminary Data

AbstractEnvironmental issues related to past mining activities have become the subject of public interest only in the last 20-25 years. Consequently, experience related to the mitigation and control of environmental pollution in mining areas is a recent development. The existing methods of remediation are often partially ineffective, especially when applied without an in-depth geochemical and mineralogical study of the site. This paper reports on preliminary data concerning the effect of remediation actions in an arsenic-contaminated mine watershed (Baccu Locci mine – Italy) a few months from its completion. The persistence of the pre-remediation conditions raises some doubt on the effectiveness of the undertaken remediation actions, even if more time is certainly needed to reach a new environmental steady state. Much remains to be learned about mistakes and successes of mine site remediation, and the monitoring of the Baccu Locci area represents an opportunity to acquire new fundamental knowledge on this issue

Geochemical and mineralogical datasets on waters and stream precipitates from an abandoned mining site: Montevecchio-Ingurtosu district, Rio Irvi (SW Sardinia)

Geochemical modelling data and Powder X-Ray Diffraction data on samples collected along Rio Irvi (Montevecchio-Ingurtosu mining district, SW Sardinia, Italy) are reported in this paper. The data show the results of data processing to calculate water chemical speciation of ions and saturation indices of relevant mineral phases. These data are related with the research article: De Giudici G. et al (2018), Application of hydrologic-tracer techniques to the Casargiu adit and Rio Irvi (SW-Sardinia, Italy): Using enhanced natural attenuation to reduce extreme metal loads, Applied Geochemistry, vol.96, 42–54. The comparison of the calculated saturation indices of relevant Fe-bearing phases with the PXRD data of samples collected along the stream confirm the quality of the SI dataset and the good correlation between the calculations and the observed data. The comparison of this dataset with others can help to deeper understand and quantify the impact of past and current mining activity on water bodies, contributing to implement the scientific background for the application of remediation actions

CyTest – An Innovative Open-source Platform for Training and Testing in Cythopathology

Abstract This paper describes an e-learning platform developed in the context of the European Project CyTest (2014-1-IT01-KA202-002607), dedicated to Cytological Training at European Standard through Telepathology. The main, and novel, feature of our system is the deep integration between virtual microscopy and the training system: images are not simply there to be seen but they are active parts of testing, supporting quantitative measurement of image comprehension, for instance by evaluating the identification of relevant cellular structures by the position of markers put by the student on the image. The solution we developed offers a complete tool for easy creation and interactive access to questions related to images and fully integrates the components of virtual microscopy and teaching, based on state-of-the-art instruments for digital pathology images management, as OMERO, and for training course distribution, as Moodle. The system can be easily extended to support histopathological diagnosis. The software is distributed as Open Source and available on GitHub

Mechanical and Metabolic Injury to the Skin Barrier Leads to Increased Expression of Murine β-Defensin-1, -3, and -14

Protection of the skin against microbiological infection is provided by the permeability barrier and by antimicrobial proteins. We asked whether the expression of murine β-defensins (mBDs)-1, -3, and -14—orthologs of human β-defensins hBD-1, -2, and -3, respectively—is stimulated by mechanically/physicochemically (tape stripping or acetone treatment) or metabolically (essential fatty acid–deficient (EFAD) diet) induced skin barrier dysfunction. Both methods led to a moderate induction of mBD-1 and mBD-14 and a pronounced induction of mBD-3 mRNA. Protein expression of the mBDs was increased as shown by immunohistology and by western blotting. Artificial barrier repair by occlusion significantly reduced the increased expression of mBD-14 after mechanical injury and of all three mBDs in EFAD mice, supporting an interrelationship between permeability and the antimicrobial barrier. mBD-3 expression was stimulated in vitro by tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and a neutralizing anti-TNF-α antibody significantly reduced increased mBD-3 expression after barrier injury in mouse skin, indicating that induction of mBD-3 expression is mediated by cytokines. The expression of mBD-14 was stimulated by transforming growth factor-α and not by TNF-α. In summary, we demonstrated upregulation of mBD1, -3, and -14 after mechanically and metabolically induced skin barrier disruption, which may be an attempt to increase defense in the case of permeability barrier dysfunction

Preclinical Tests for Cerebral Stroke

Stroke is the second single highest cause of death in Europe. The low reliability of animal models in replicating the human disease is one of the most serious problems in the field of medical and pharmaceutical research about stroke. The standard models for the study of ischemic stroke are often poorly predictive as they simulate only partially the human disease. This work aims at investigating animal models with diseases typically associated with the onset of stroke in human patients. We have designed and realised a knowledge base for collecting, elaborating, and extracting analytical results of genomic, proteomic, biochemical, morphological investigations from animal models of cerebral stroke. Data analysis techniques are tailored to make the data available for processing and correlation, in order to increase the predictive value of the preclinical data, to perform biosimulation studies, and to support both academic and industrial research in the area of cerebral stroke therapy. A first statistical analysis of the retrieved information leads to the validation of our animal models and suggests a predictive and translational value for parameters related to a specific model. In particular, concerning gene expression data, we have applied a data analysis pipeline that initially takes into account an initial set of 64,000 genes and brings down the focus on a few tens of them

Laparoscopic treatment of ventral hernias: the Italian national guidelines

Primary and incisional ventral hernias are significant public health issues for their prevalence, variability of professional practices, and high costs associated with the treatment In 2019, the Board of Directors of the Italian Society for Endoscopic Surgery (SICE) promoted the development of new guidelines on the laparoscopic treatment of ventral hernias, according to the new national regulation. In 2022, the guideline was accepted by the government agency, and it was published, in Italian, on the SNLG website. Here, we report the adopted methodology and the guideline's recommendations, as established in its diffusion policy. This guideline is produced according to the methodology indicated by the SNGL and applying the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations (GRADE) methodology. Fifteen recommendations were produced as a result of 4 PICO questions. The level of recommendation was conditional for 12 of them and conditional to moderate for one. This guideline's strengths include relying on an extensive systematic review of the literature and applying a rigorous GRADE method. It also has several limitations. The literature on the topic is continuously and rapidly evolving; our results are based on findings that need constant re-appraisal. It is focused only on minimally invasive techniques and cannot consider broader issues (e.g., diagnostics, indication for surgery, pre-habilitation)

Brain complexity in stroke recovery after bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation in mice

Stroke is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. There are many different rehabilitation approaches aimed at improving clinical outcomes for stroke survivors. One of the latest therapeutic techniques is the non-invasive brain stimulation. Among non-invasive brain stimulation, transcranial direct current stimulation has shown promising results in enhancing motor and cognitive recovery both in animal models of stroke and stroke survivors. In this framework, one of the most innovative methods is the bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation that simultaneously increases excitability in one hemisphere and decreases excitability in the contralateral one. As bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation can create a more balanced modulation of brain activity, this approach may be particularly useful in counteracting imbalanced brain activity, such as in stroke. Given these premises, the aim of the current study has been to explore the recovery after stroke in mice that underwent a bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation treatment, by recording their electric brain activity with local field potential and by measuring behavioural outcomes of Grip Strength test. An innovative parameter that explores the complexity of signals, namely the Entropy, recently adopted to describe brain activity in physiopathological states, was evaluated to analyse local field potential data. Results showed that stroke mice had higher values of Entropy compared to healthy mice, indicating an increase in brain complexity and signal disorder due to the stroke. Additionally, the bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation reduced Entropy in both healthy and stroke mice compared to sham stimulated mice, with a greater effect in stroke mice. Moreover, correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between Entropy and Grip Strength values, indicating that higher Entropy values resulted in lower Grip Strength engagement. Concluding, the current evidence suggests that the Entropy index of brain complexity characterizes stroke pathology and recovery. Together with this, bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation can modulate brain rhythms in animal models of stroke, providing potentially new avenues for rehabilitation in humans.Miraglia et al. demonstrated-in a stroke mouse model-that brain activity changes, measured by Entropy index, correlate with stroke. They also demonstrated that transcranial direct current stimulation ameliorates post-stroke deficits and Entropy correlates with functional recovery. The authors concluded that Entropy could characterize stroke pathology and predict stroke outcomes.Graphical Abstrac

Unbalanced rearrangement der(9;18)(p10;q10) and JAK2 V617F mutation in a patient with AML following post-polycythemic myelofibrosis

Polycythemia Vera (PV) is a clonal myeloproliferative disorder characterized by excessive erythrocyte production, which may evolve into myelofibrosis and acute myeloid leukemia. Transformation to myelofibrosis occurs in 15-20% of cases and leukemic transformation in 5-10% of patients. The median survival time is 8-11 years and the median age at diagnosis is over 60 years. Normal karyotype is present at diagnosis in the majority of patients, while during transformation several acquired chromosome anomalies are present as trisomy 9 and gains in 9p