Effect of production system and geographic location on milk quality parameters

A main reason for the rapid increase in organic food consumption is the perception that organic foods have a superior nutritional composition and/or convey health benefits. However, there is currently limited scientific knowledge about the effect of production systems on food composition. The study reported here compared fatty acid profiles and levels of fat soluble antioxidants in milk from organic and conventional production systems in 5 geographic regions in Europe (Wales, England, Denmark, Sweden and Italy). Levels of nutritionally desirable mono- and poly-unsaturated fatty acids (vaccenic acid, CLA, α-linolenic acid) and/or a range of fat soluble antioxidants were found to be significantly higher in organic milk

Deterministic spin models with a glassy phase transition

We consider the infinite-range deterministic spin models with Hamiltonian $H=\sum_{i,j=1}^N J_{i,j}\sigma_i\sigma_j$, where $J$ is the quantization of a chaotic map of the torus. The mean field (TAP) equations are derived by summing the high temperature expansion. They predict a glassy phase transition at the critical temperature $T\sim 0.8$.Comment: 8 pages, no figures, RevTex forma

Grey-Blue Regression in Melanoma In Situ—Evaluation on 111 Cases

As fibrosis and melanosis are often seen in malignant melanoma, the presence of dermoscopic signs of regression may represent a clue for the diagnosis of malignancy. Our aim was to assess the frequency and extent of 11 dermoscopic features of regression evaluating dermoscopic images of 111 melanomas in situ (MIS). Regression structures (grey-blue areas, white areas, peppering, and/or blue-whitish veil) were present in 80.1% of the lesions. Approximately 80% of the lesions showed regression of dermoscopic structures and light brown areas. Most lesions showed the presence of grey-blue areas (74.7%), whereas peppering was observable in 30.6% of MIS. Areas of fibrosis were mainly observable as structureless areas with a pinkish hue (50.4%). Based on our data, the reticular pattern of blue regression and light brown areas can be considered a significant discriminator and a reliable predictor of MIS

Hydrogen Peroxide Induces Heme Degradation and Protein Aggregation in Human Neuroglobin: Roles of the Disulfide Bridge and the H-bonding in the Distal Heme Cavity

In this study, human neuroglobin (hNgb) was found to undergo H2O2-induced breakdown of the heme center at a much slower rate than other globins, namely in the timescale of hours against minutes. We studied how the rate of the process is affected by the Cys46/Cys55 disulfide bond and the network of noncovalent interactions in the distal heme side involving Tyr44, Lys67, the His64 heme iron axial ligand and the heme propionate-7. The rate is increased by the Tyr44 to Ala and Phe mutations, however the rate is lowered by Lys67 to Ala swapping. The absence of the disulfide bridge slows down the reaction further. Therefore, the disulfide bond-controlled accessibility of the heme site and the residues at position 44 and 67 affect the activation barrier of the reaction. Wild-type and mutated species form -amyloid aggregates in the presence of H2O2 producing globular structures. Furthermore, the C46A/C55A, Y44A, Y44F and Y44F/C46A/C55A variants yield potentially harmful fibrils. Finally, the nucleation and growth kinetics for the aggregation of the amyloid structures can be successfully described by the Finke-Watzky model

Autologous micro-fragmented adipose tissue for the treatment of diabetic foot minor amputations: A randomized controlled single-center clinical trial (MiFrAADiF)

Background: The diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is one of the most prevalent complications of diabetes mellitus and often develops severe effects that can lead to amputation. A non-healing "minor" amputation often precedes a major amputation resulting in a negative impact on the function and quality of life of the patients. Stem cell-based therapies have emerged as a promising option to improve healing, and the adipose tissue is an abundant and easy to access source. The injection of autologous micro-fragmented adipose tissue at the amputation stump of a diabetic population undergoing a lower limb minor amputation was evaluated and compared with the standard care. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial with two arms (parallel assignment) and no masking, 114 patients undergoing a lower limb minor amputation were randomized to standard of care or to micro-fragmented adipose tissue injection prepared using a minimal manipulation technique (Lipogems®) in a closed system. Clinical outcomes were determined monthly up to 6 months. Primary endpoint of the study was the evaluation of the healing rate and time after the minor amputation. Secondary endpoints included the assessment of safety, feasibility, technical success, relapse rate, skin tropism, and intensity of pain. Results: At 6 months, 80% of the micro-fragmented adipose tissue-treated feet healed and 20% failed as compared with the control group where 46% healed and 54% failed (p = 0.0064). No treatment-related adverse events nor relapses were documented, and technical success was achieved in all cases. The skin tropism was improved in the treatment group, and the pain scale did not differ between the two groups. Conclusion: The results of this randomized controlled trial suggest that the local injection of autologous micro-fragmented adipose tissue is a safe and valid therapeutic option able to improve healing rate following minor amputations of irreversible DFU. The technique overcomes several stem cell therapy-related criticisms and its potential in wound care should be better evaluated and the therapeutic indications could be expanded. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov number: NCT03276312. Date of registration: September 8, 2017 (retrospectively registered)

Ground states for a class of deterministic spin models with glassy behaviour

We consider the deterministic model with glassy behaviour, recently introduced by Marinari, Parisi and Ritort, with \ha\ $H=\sum_{i,j=1}^N J_{i,j}\sigma_i\sigma_j$, where $J$ is the discrete sine Fourier transform. The ground state found by these authors for $N$ odd and $2N+1$ prime is shown to become asymptotically dege\-ne\-ra\-te when $2N+1$ is a product of odd primes, and to disappear for $N$ even. This last result is based on the explicit construction of a set of eigenvectors for $J$, obtained through its formal identity with the imaginary part of the propagator of the quantized unit symplectic matrix over the $2$-torus.Comment: 15 pages, plain LaTe

Efficacy and Safety of Systemic Treatments for Psoriasis in Elderly Patients

0.12, 0.32, 1.4 and 0.5 per patient-year in the methotrexate, acitretin, cyclosporine and PUVA groups and 0.11, 0.35, 0.19, 0.3 and 0.26 in the etanercept, adalimumab, infliximab, efalizumab and ustekinumab groups. Traditional drugs were less effective than biologics in our e

Phosphorylated cofilin-2 is more prone to oxidative modifications on Cys39 and favors amyloid fibril formation

Cofilins are small protein of the actin depolymerizing family. Actin polymerization/depolymerization is central to a number of critical cellular physiological tasks making cofilin a key protein for several physiological functions of the cell. Cofilin activity is mainly regulated by phosphorylation on serine residue 3 making this post-translational modification key to the regulation of myofilament integrity. In fact, in this form, the protein segregates in myocardial aggregates in human idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. Since myofilament network is an early target of oxidative stress we investigated the molecular changes induced by oxidation on cofilin isoforms and their interplay with the protein phosphorylation state to get insight on whether/how those changes may predispose to early protein aggregation. Using different and complementary approaches we characterized the aggregation properties of cofilin-2 and its phosphomimetic variant (S3D) in response to oxidative stress in silico, in vitro and on isolated cardiomyocytes. We found that the phosphorylated (inactive) form of cofilin-2 is mechanistically linked to the formation of an extended network of fibrillar structures induced by oxidative stress via the formation of a disulfide bond between Cys39 and Cys80. Such phosphorylation-dependent effect is likely controlled by changes in the hydrogen bonding network involving Cys39. We found that the sulfide ion inhibits the formation of such structures. This might represent the mechanism for the protective effect of the therapeutic agent Na2S on ischemic injury

Interlayer-confined Cu(II) complex as an efficient and long-lasting catalyst for oxidation of H2s on montmorillonite

Removal of highly toxic H2S for pollution control and operational safety is a pressing need. For this purpose, a montmorillonite intercalated with Cu(II)-phenanthroline complex [Cu[(Phen)(H2O)2]2+ (Mt-CuPhen) was prepared to capture gaseous H2S under mild conditions. This hybrid material was simple to obtain and demonstrated an outstanding ability to entrap H2S at room temperature, retaining high efficiency for a very long time (up to 36.8 g of S/100 g Mt-CuPhen after 3 months of exposure). Sorbent and H2S uptake were investigated by elemental analysis, X-ray powder diffraction measurements, diffuse reflectance (DR) UV\u2013Vis and infrared spectroscopy, thermal analysis and evolved gas mass spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The H2S capture was studied over time and a mechanism of action was proposed. The entrapping involves a catalytic mechanism in which [Cu[(Phen)(H2O)2]2+ acts as catalyst for H2S oxidation to S0 by atmospheric oxygen. The low cost and the long-lasting performance for H2S removal render Mt-CuPhen an extremely appealing trap for H2S removal and a promising material for many technological applications