Prunus spinosa extract loaded in biomimetic nanoparticles evokes in vitro anti-inflammatory and wound healing activities

Prunus spinosa fruits (PSF) contain different phenolic compounds showing antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Innovative drug delivery systems such as biomimetic nanoparti-cles could improve the activity of PSF extract by promoting (i) the protection of payload into the lipidic bilayer, (ii) increased accumulation to the diseased tissue due to specific targeting properties, (iii) improved biocompatibility, (iv) low toxicity and increased bioavailability. Using membrane proteins extracted from human monocyte cell line THP-1 cells and a mixture of phospholipids, we formulated two types of PSF-extract-loaded biomimetic vesicles differing from each other for the presence of either 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) or 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-(1\u2032-rac-glycerol) (DOPG). The biological activity of free extract (PSF), compared to both types of extract-loaded vesicles (PSF-DOPCs and PSF-DOPGs) and empty vesicles (DOPCs and DOPGs), was evaluated in vitro on HUVEC cells. PSF-DOPCs showed preferential incorporation of the extract. When enriched into the nanovesicles, the extract showed a significantly increased anti-inflammatory activity, and a pronounced wound-healing effect (with PSF-DOPCs more efficient than PSF-DOPG) compared to free PSF. This innovative drug delivery system, combining nutraceuti-cal active ingredients into a biomimetic formulation, represents a possible adjuvant therapy for the treatment of wound healing. This nanoplatform could be useful for the encapsulation/enrichment of other nutraceutical products with short stability and low bioavailability

Effects of accelerated versus standard care surgery on the risk of acute kidney injury in patients with a hip fracture : A substudy protocol of the hip fracture Accelerated surgical TreaTment and Care tracK (HIP ATTACK) international randomised controlled trial

Introduction Inflammation, dehydration, hypotension and bleeding may all contribute to the development of acute kidney injury (AKI). Accelerated surgery after a hip fracture can decrease the exposure time to such contributors and may reduce the risk of AKI. Methods and analysis Hip fracture Accelerated surgical TreaTment And Care tracK (HIP ATTACK) is a multicentre, international, parallel-group randomised controlled trial (RCT). Patients who suffer a hip fracture are randomly allocated to either accelerated medical assessment and surgical repair with a goal of surgery within 6 hours of diagnosis or standard care where a repair typically occurs 24 to 48 hours after diagnosis. The primary outcome of this substudy is the development of AKI within 7 days of randomisation. We anticipate at least 1998 patients will participate in this substudy. Ethics and dissemination We obtained ethics approval for additional serum creatinine recordings in consecutive patients enrolled at 70 participating centres. All patients provide consent before randomisation. We anticipate reporting substudy results by 2021. Trial registration number NCT02027896; Pre-results

Beyond the street: An urban regeneration project for the Porta Milano district in Brescia

The Municipality of Brescia (Italy) is developing an urban regeneration project, co-financed by the National government and with an overall budget of 47 million euros, called “Oltre la Strada (Beyond the Street)”, that interests the area of Porta Milano. This paper explains how the project was built, starting from the Strategic Urban Plan (PGT) of Brescia and then focusing on the urban design, aimed at redeveloping via Milano as a district and not just as a traffic artery. A focus on the infrastructural and sustainable mobility solutions developed within the Oltre la Strada project, which are mostly linked to the “Living and Walking in Cities” conference theme, is also provided

Beyond the street: An urban regeneration project for the Porta Milano district in Brescia

The Municipality of Brescia is developing an urban regeneration project, co-financed by the National government and with an overall budget of 47 million euros, called “Oltre la Strada (Beyond the Street)”, that interests the area of Porta Milano. This paper explains how the project was built, starting from the Strategic Urban Plan (PGT) of Brescia and then focusing on the urban design, aimed at redeveloping via Milano as a district and not just as a traffic artery. A focus on the infrastructural and sustainable mobility solutions developed within the Oltre la Strada project, which are mostly linked to the “Living and Walking in Cities” conference theme, is also provided

A fluorinated analogue of marine bisindole alkaloid 2,2-bis(6-bromo-1h-indol-3-yl)ethanamine as potential anti-biofilm agent and antibiotic adjuvant against staphylococcus aureus

Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections represent a major global healthcare problem. Therapeutic options are often limited by the ability of MRSA strains to grow as biofilms on medical devices, where antibiotic persistence and resistance is positively selected, leading to recurrent and chronic implant-associated infections. One strategy to circumvent these problems is the co-administration of adjuvants, which may prolong the efficacy of antibiotic treatments, by broadening their spectrum and lowering the required dosage. The marine bisindole alkaloid 2,2-bis(6-bromo-1H-indol-3-yl)ethanamine (1) and its fluorinated analogue (2) were tested for their potential use as antibiotic adjuvants and antibiofilm agents against S. aureus CH 10850 (MRSA) and S. aureus ATCC 29213 (MSSA). Both compounds showed antimicrobial activity and bisindole 2 enabled 256-fold reduction (ΣFICs = 0.5) in the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of oxacillin for the clinical MRSA strain. In addition, these molecules inhibited biofilm formation of S. aureus strains, and compound 2 showed greater eradicating activity on preformed biofilm compared to 1. None of the tested molecules exerted a viable but non-culturable cells (VBNC) inducing effect at their MIC values. Moreover, both compounds exhibited no hemolytic activity and a good stability in plasma, indicating a non-toxic profile, hence, in particular compound 2, a potential for in vivo applications to restore antibiotic treatment against MRSA infections

Non-O blood group and outcomes of in vitro fertilization.

PURPOSE Retrospective and cross-sectional studies suggested that non-O blood group may be associated with failures of in vitro fertilization (IVF), but data remain controversial. The aim of this observational cohort study was to prospectively evaluate the effect of non-O blood type on clinical outcomes of IVF. METHODS Women < 40 years who underwent IVF and had ABO blood type recorded as part of the routine workup were eligible. The primary study outcome was live birth. Secondary outcomes included spontaneous abortion, positive pregnancy test, and clinical pregnancy. RESULTS A total of 497 women with a mean age of 34.6 (standard deviation 3.2) years were included. The mean number of embryos transferred was 2.3 (standard deviation 0.6). The most common ABO blood types were O (n = 213, 42.9%) and A (n = 203, 40.8%), while 63 (12.7%) and 18 (3.6%) women had the B and AB blood types, respectively. Differences in live birth (21.8 vs. 24.3%, odds ratio [OR] 1.17; 95% confidence intervals [CI], 0.76 to 1.78), positive pregnancy test (37.9 vs. 36.6%, OR 0.96; 95% CI, 0.66 to 1.38), clinical pregnancy (35.1 vs. 33.8%, OR 0.95; 95% CI, 0.66 to 1.39), and spontaneous abortion (12.3 vs. 9.2%, OR 0.72; 95% CI, 0.41 to 1.29) between women with O and non-O blood type were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS In a prospective cohort study, we confirmed the lack of a significant association between non-O blood type and clinical outcomes of IVF. Further studies are needed to clarify whether non-O blood group has any prognostic relevance in women undergoing IVF