1,393 research outputs found
Baseline pathological data of the wedge clam Donax trunculus from the Tyrrhenian Sea (Mediterranean Basin)
In recent years, a collapse in Donax trunculus fishing yields has occurred in the Tyrrhenian Sea (Mediterranean Basin). There is little information available on the impact disease may have had on D. trunculus populations. For the first time, a pathological survey was performed on the natural beds of the bivalve on the Campania and Lazio coasts, western Italy. Detected pathogens and related diseases were analysed, and their prevalence and mean intensity values were calculated. Viral particles, Chlamydia-like organisms, ciliates, coccidians, microcells and trematodes were observed. An unknown ciliate was linked to severe inflammatory and necrotic lesions in the digestive gland. Metacercariae of the trematode Postmonorchis sp. were also strongly represented in almost all samples, reaching high levels of infection; however, none of the pathogens described required the World Organisation for Animal Health to be notified. Initial results indicated that further surveys related to environmental data are necessary in order to assess the relevance of these early observations in managing the declining D. trunculus population in the Tyrrhenian Sea.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio
Design thinking for entrepreneurship: An explorative inquiry into its practical contributions
Design thinking (DT) is expanding its horizons across a variety of different domains. One of the early and debated contributions regarding DT addressed its relationship with the entrepreneurial field. Today, there are numerous contributions that design thinking can offer in the creation of new ventures. However, there are few examples in the literature that discuss the concrete impacts and benefits of adopting DT in this field, demonstrating it through entrepreneurial projects. This paper aims to explore practitionersâ experiences with the application of theories from design thinking inside an entrepreneurial context. The impacts of
the learning and the relative application of the main design thinking principles are evaluated via a sample of 50 participants in an international summer academy that offered
education on DT concepts and practices. Through this research, a deep understanding of how design thinking can contribute to entrepreneurship is provided, highlighting which specific DT abilities enable the development of entrepreneurial activity
Imatinib-mesylate for all patients with hypereosinophilic syndrome?
Some recent papers have focused on the activity of imatinib-mesylate, a selective inhibitor of tyrosine kinase, in idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES) [1], [2], [3] and [4]. In this setting, a possible therapeutic target was identified by Cools et al. [2], who described the fusion tyrosine-kinase gene FIP1L1/PDGFRA as the result of an interstitial deletion within chromosome 4 in nine out of sixteen (56%) patients affected by HES. Of interest, although in this study the response to imatinib was strictly correlated with the presence of FIP1L1/PDGFRA rearrangement (all patients with such a molecular lesion treated with imatinib responded), only five out of nine responding patients evidenced the abnormal transcript [2]. Among the possible alternative mechanisms for the activation of the PDGFRA tyrosine-kinase domain, these authors suggested there may be a different fusion gene
Fruit growth stage transitions in two mango cultivars grown in a mediterranean environment
Studying mango (Mangifera indica L.) fruit development represents one of the most important aspects for the precise orchard management under nonânative environmental conditions. In this work, precision fruit gauges were used to investigate important ecoâphysiological aspects of fruit growth in two mango cultivars, Keitt (late ripening) and Tommy Atkins (earlyâmid ripening). Fruit absolute growth rate (AGR, mm dayâ1 ), daily diameter fluctuation (ÎD, mm), and a development index given by their ratio (AGR/ÎD) were monitored to identify the prevalent mechanism (cell division, cell expansion, ripening) involved in fruit development in three (âTommy Atkinsâ) or four (âKeittâ) different periods during growth. In âKeittâ, cell division prevailed over cell expansion from 58 to 64 days after full bloom (DAFB), while the opposite occurred from 74 to 85 DAFB. Starting at 100 DAFB, internal changes prevailed over fruit growth, indicating the beginning of the ripening stage. In Tommy Atkins (an early ripening cultivar), no significant differences in AGR/ÎD was found among monitoring periods, indicating that both cell division and expansion coexisted at gradually decreasing rates until fruit harvest. To evaluate the effect of microclimate on fruit growth the relationship between vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and ÎD was also studied. In âKeittâ, VPD was the main driving force determining fruit diameter fluctuations. In âTommy Atkinsâ, the lack of relationship between VPD and ÎD suggest a hydric isolation of the fruit due to the disruption of xylem and stomatal flows starting at 65 DAFB. Further studies are needed to confirm this hypothesis
Variable phenotype in 17q12 microdeletions: Clinical and molecular characterization of a new case
Microdeletions of 17q12 including the hepatocyte nuclear factor 1 beta (HNF1B) gene, as well as point mutations
of this gene, are associated with the Renal Cysts and Diabetes syndrome (RCAD, OMIM 137920) and genitourinary
alterations. Also, microdeletions encompassing HNF1B were identified as a cause of Mayer\u2013Rokitansky\u2013
K\ufcster\u2013Hauser Syndrome (MRKH, OMIM277000) in females and, recently,were associatedwith intellectual disability,
autistic features, cerebral anomaly and facial dysmorphisms.
In this report, we describe a boywith a deletion in 17q12 region detected by SNP array, encompassing the HNF1B
gene, that showed dysmorphic features, intellectual disability (ID), serious speech delay and autistic features. In
addition, obesity was observed. In order to study the parental origin of the rearrangement, we analyzed selected
SNPs in the deleted area in the patient and his parents, showing Mendelian incompatibilities suggesting a de
novo deletion on the chromosome of maternal origin.
Our case confirms the incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity of this deletion, its complex clinical variability,
and strengthens the evidence that ID and stereotyped behaviors may be part of the phenotypic spectrum
characterizing the affected patients. Also, it is useful to further delineate the phenotypes associated to the deletion
being the first case in which obesity has been documented. We present a genotype\u2013phenotype correlation
discussing the possible role of some genes, encompassed by the deletion, in the etiology of the observed
phenotypes
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Estimating sea surface temperature measurement methods using characteristic differences in the diurnal cycle
Lack of reliable observational metadata represents a key barrier to understanding sea surface temperature (SST) measurement biases, a large contributor to uncertainty in the global surface record. We present a method to identify SST measurement practice by comparing the observed SST diurnal cycle from individual ships with a reference from drifting buoys under similar conditions of wind and solar radiation. Compared to existing estimates, we found a larger number of engine room-intake (ERI) reports post War World II and in the period 1960 â 1980. Differences in the inferred mixture of observations lead to a systematic warmer shift of the bias adjusted SST anomalies from 1980 compared to previous estimates, while reducing the ensemble spread. Changes in mean field differences between bucket and ERI SST anomalies in the Northern Hemisphere over the period 1955 â 1995 could be as large as 0.5 °C and are not well reproduced by current bias adjustment models
Cytotoxicity of an innovative pressurised cyclic solidâliquid (Pcsl) extract from artemisia annua
Therapeutic treatments with Artemisia annua have a long-established tradition in various diseases due to its antibacterial, antioxidant, antiviral, anti-malaria and anti-cancer effects. However, in relation to the latter, virtually all reports focused on toxic effects of A. annua extracts were obtained mostly through conventional maceration methods. In the present study, an innovative extraction procedure from A. annua, based on pressurised cyclic solidâliquid (PCSL) extraction, resulted in the production of a new phytocomplex with enhanced anti-cancer properties. This extraction procedure generated a pressure gradient due to compressions and following decompressions, allowing to directly perform the extraction without any maceration. The toxic effects of A. annua PCSL extract were tested on different cells, including three cancer cell lines. The results of this study clearly indicate that the exposure of human, murine and canine cancer cells to serial dilutions of PCSL extract resulted in higher toxicity and stronger propensity to induce apoptosis than that detected by subjecting the same cells to Artemisia extracts obtained through canonical extraction by maceration. Collected data suggest that PCSL extract of A. annua could be a promising and economic new therapeutic tool to treat human and animal tumours
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