The Genetic Makeup of Myeloproliferative Neoplasms: Role of Germline Variants in Defining Disease Risk, Phenotypic Diversity and Outcome

Myeloproliferative neoplasms are hematologic malignancies typified by a substantial heritable component. Germline variants may affect the risk of developing a MPN, as documented by GWAS studies on large patient cohorts. In addition, once the MPN occurred, inherited host genetic factors can be responsible for tuning the disease phenotypic presentation, outcome, and response to therapy. This review covered the polymorphisms that have been variably associated to MPNs, discussing them in the functional perspective of the biological pathways involved. Finally, we reviewed host genetic determinants of clonal hematopoiesis, a pre-malignant state that may anticipate overt hematologic neoplasms including MPNs

Synthesis and incorporation of rod-like nano-hydroxyapatite into type I collagen matrix: A hybrid formulation for 3D printing of bone scaffolds

Abstract Over the recent years, nanometric hydroxyapatite (HA) has gained interest as constituent of hybrid systems for bone scaffold fabrication, due to its biomimicry and biocompatibility. In this study, rod-like nano-HA particles were introduced in a type I collagen matrix to create a composite mimicking the bone composition. HA nano-rods (40−60 nm × 20 nm) were synthesised by hydrothermal method involving the use of an ammonium-based dispersing agent (Darvan 821-A) and fully characterised. The homogeneous dispersion of HA nanoparticles throughout the final hybrid formulation was achieved through their suspension in a collagen solution in presence of Darvan 821-A. The resulting homogeneous collagen/nano-HA suspension proved to be suitable for extrusion printing applications, showing shear thinning and sol-gel transition upon simil-physiological conditions. Furthermore, mesh-like structures were printed in a gelatine-supporting bath by means of a commercial bioprinter further demonstrating the potential of the designed hybrid system for the fabrication of 3D bone-like scaffolds

Novel multifunctional strontium-copper co-substituted mesoporous bioactive particles

Abstract Sr-Cu co-substituted mesoporous bioactive glasses were synthesized by two different sol-gel approaches: an ultrasound-assisted base-catalyzed sol-gel procedure and an aerosol-assisted spray-drying method. The produced spherical shaped particles showed high specific surface area values and tunable pore size. The two different routes allowed obtaining samples with different morphology and size, characterized by the ability to induce hydroxyapatite deposition, to incorporate a specific amount of therapeutic ions (strontium with the aim to improve bone formation and copper for its antibacterial and pro-angiogenic properties) and to release them. The obtained multifunctional biomaterials synergistically combine the ability to promote bone formation and angiogenesis and to impart an antibacterial effect

Aerated Buffalo Slurry Improves Spinach Plant Growth and Mitigates CO2 and N2O Emissions from Soil

Manure management is the main strategy for mitigating gas emissions from livestock farming. In this study, a laboratory-scale experiment was set up to identify suitable conditions to be applied in a farm-scale experiment. The liquid fraction (LF) of slurry was aerobically treated and greenhouse gas emissions from soil were evaluated. Furthermore, the value of treated LF as a fertilizer on spinach plants was also tested. The aeration of LF determined an increase in mean alkalinity due to ammonia loss. The mass fraction of heavy metals also decreased, likely due to the reduction in solubility. After being applied on soil, aerated LF determined lower CO2 and N2O emissions compared to untreated LF due to a reduced nitrogen load. Spinach plants fertilized with treated LF showed a lush growth and exhibited a lower heavy metal mass fraction as well as a higher content of antioxidants compared to plants fertilized with untreated slurry. Our results show that aeration might be an effective alternative for slurry management as it is able to produce an eco-friendly final product with a high fertilizing value

Različit, ali isti: uz pomoć DNA identifikacije otkrivena iznenađujuća obojenost primjeraka Sredozemnog morskog puža stražnjoškržnjaka (Mollusca: Nudibranchia)

A peculiar eolid nudibranch showing an unknown chromatic array was found in a rocky bottom of Santa Maria al Bagno, in the Salento peninsula, Ionian Sea (Central Mediterranean Sea). This specimen, initially identified as Piseinotecus sp., was observed in situ and photographed while feeding and laying eggs close to individuals belonging to the Mediterranean Piseinotecus soussi. To assess the identity of this unexpected Piseinotecus ‘white morph’, a DNA identification approach was carried out using mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), as it is the molecular marker mostly used to distinguish nudibranchs species. The molecular analysis unambiguously identified this specimen as Piseinotecus soussi and helped to shed lights on the striking intraspecific colour variability characterizing this rare species.Neobični primjerak eolidnog morskog puža stražnjoškržnjaka s dosad nezabilježenim obojenjem pronađen je na stjenovitom dnu lokaliteta Santa Maria al Bagno na poluotoku Salentu u Jonskom moru (središnje Sredozemno more). Ovaj primjerak, prvobitno identificiran kao Piseinotecus sp., promatran je i fotografiran dok se hranio i polagao jaja u blizini jedinki koje pripadaju sredozemnoj vrsti Piseinotecus soussi. Kako bi se otkrio identitet ovog neobičnog „bijelog oblika“ Piseinotecus sp. primjerka, provedena je identifikacija DNA pomoću mitohondrijske podjedinice citokrom c oksidaze I (COI), budući da je to molekularni marker koji se uglavnom koristi za razlikovanje vrsta stražnjoškržnjaka. Molekularna analiza nedvojbeno je identificirala ovaj primjerak kao Piseinotecus soussi i pomogla da se rasvijetli upečatljiva intraspecifična varijabilnost obojenja koja karakterizira ovu rijetku vrstu

Light Spectral Composition Influences Structural and Eco-Physiological Traits of Solanum lycopersicum L. cv. ‘Microtom’ in Response to High-LET Ionizing Radiation

This study evaluated if specific light quality (LQ) regimes (white fluorescent, FL; full- spectrum, FS; red-blue, RB) during plant growth modified morphological and photosynthetic traits of Solanum lycopersicum L. ‘Microtom’ plants irradiated at the dry seed stage with 25 Gy 48Ca ions (IR). The irradiation reduced plant size while it increased leaf dry matter content (LDMC) and relative water content (RWC) compared to the control. FS and RB light regimes determined a decrease of plant height and a rise of RWC compared to FL plants. The irradiation under FS and RB regimes favoured the development of dwarf plants and improved the leaf water status. Under the FL regime, irradiated plants showed reduced photosynthesis and stomatal conductance. The opposite behavior was observed in RB irradiated plants in which gas exchanges were significantly stimulated. RB regime enhanced Rubisco expression in irradiated plants also inducing anatomical and functional adjustments (i.e., increase of leaf thickness and incidence of intercellular spaces). Finally, 48Ca ions did not prevent fruit ripening and the achievement of the ‘seed-to seed’ cycle, irrespective of the LQ regime. Overall, the present study evidenced that RB light regime was the most effective in optimising growth and photosynthetic efficiency of ‘Microtom’ irradiated plants. These outcomes may help to develop proper cultivation protocols for the growth of dwarf tomato in Controlled Ecological Life Support Systems (CELSS)

Moving towards happiness? Understanding travel moods through twitter data in Turin

The paper will address the following questions: does urban mobility matter for health, and mental health in particular? How does each transport mode relate to our level of stress/happiness? A previous study conducted on Turin (Melis et al. 2015) showed that among indicators related to urban structure and social composition, ‘accessibility by public transport’ seems to be the one with strongest relation with mental health (depression) outcomes. Starting from this results, we decided to further explore this association through the use of data from social media. Recent trends in the use of social networks have opened up new opportunities in the field of urban and transport studies: the great amount of data coming from Twitter is an example, providing easily available, often geo-referenced, marginally costly, datasets offering new insights on individual and collective life. The accuracy and reliability, as well as representativeness of the results coming from the use of this new source of data in the mobility and planning field is undoubtedly growing. The project uses Twitter data collected for the metropolitan area of Turin (IT) and analyses it using a Semantic Analysis algorithm to show spatiotemporal levels of happiness (valence) of users, related to the transport mode they have been using. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and spatial analysis techniques are then used to visualize spatial patterns and associations among happiness levels and contextual variables, such as land-use. From a methodological point of view, results can be compared to research conducted on US cities by Flint University (Rybarczyk and Banerjee 2015), as the method used is the same. The purpose of the study is exploratory, in order to understand which use can be done of such a rich data source as social media information. Therefore, the results may be used to promote the use of social media data by transportation planners and public health officials for developing more effective transportation plans and policies, as well as to understand the degree of satisfaction/stress linked to different transport modes

Imaging techniques for the assessment of the bone osteoporosis-induced variations with particular focus on micro-ct potential

For long time, osteoporosis (OP) was exclusively associated with an overall bone mass reduction, leading to lower bone strength and to a higher fracture risk. For this reason, the measurement of bone mineral density through dual X-ray absorptiometry was considered the gold standard method for its diagnosis. However, recent findings suggest that OP causes a more complex set of bone alterations, involving both its microstructure and composition. This review aims to provide an overview of the most evident osteoporosis-induced alterations of bone quality and a résumé of the most common imaging techniques used for their assessment, at both the clinical and the laboratory scale. A particular focus is dedicated to the micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) due to its superior image resolution, allowing the execution of more accurate morphometric analyses, better highlighting the architectural alterations of the osteoporotic bone. In addition, micro-CT has the potential to perform densitometric measurements and finite element method analyses at the microscale, representing potential tools for OP diagnosis and for fracture risk prediction. Unfortunately, technological improvements are still necessary to reduce the radiation dose and the scanning duration, parameters that currently limit the application of micro-CT in clinics for OP diagnosis, despite its revolutionary potential

Bioactive glass-ceramic foam scaffolds from "inorganic gel casting" and sinter-crystallization

Highly porous bioactive glass-ceramic scaffolds were effectively fabricated by an inorganic gel casting technique, based on alkali activation and gelification, followed by viscous flow sintering. Glass powders, already known to yield a bioactive sintered glass-ceramic (CEL2) were dispersed in an alkaline solution, with partial dissolution of glass powders. The obtained glass suspensions underwent progressive hardening, by curing at low temperature (40 °C), owing to the formation of a C–S–H (calcium silicate hydrate) gel. As successful direct foaming was achieved by vigorous mechanical stirring of gelified suspensions, comprising also a surfactant. The developed cellular structures were later heat-treated at 900–1000 C, to form CEL2 glass-ceramic foams, featuring an abundant total porosity (from 60% to 80%) and well-interconnected macro- and micro-sized cells. The developed foams possessed a compressive strength from 2.5 to 5 MPa, which is in the range of human trabecular bone strength. Therefore, CEL2 glass-ceramics can be proposed for bone substitutions