Global overview of the management of acute cholecystitis during the COVID-19 pandemic (CHOLECOVID study)

Background: This study provides a global overview of the management of patients with acute cholecystitis during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: CHOLECOVID is an international, multicentre, observational comparative study of patients admitted to hospital with acute cholecystitis during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data on management were collected for a 2-month study interval coincident with the WHO declaration of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and compared with an equivalent pre-pandemic time interval. Mediation analysis examined the influence of SARS-COV-2 infection on 30-day mortality. Results: This study collected data on 9783 patients with acute cholecystitis admitted to 247 hospitals across the world. The pandemic was associated with reduced availability of surgical workforce and operating facilities globally, a significant shift to worse severity of disease, and increased use of conservative management. There was a reduction (both absolute and proportionate) in the number of patients undergoing cholecystectomy from 3095 patients (56.2 per cent) pre-pandemic to 1998 patients (46.2 per cent) during the pandemic but there was no difference in 30-day all-cause mortality after cholecystectomy comparing the pre-pandemic interval with the pandemic (13 patients (0.4 per cent) pre-pandemic to 13 patients (0.6 per cent) pandemic; P = 0.355). In mediation analysis, an admission with acute cholecystitis during the pandemic was associated with a non-significant increased risk of death (OR 1.29, 95 per cent c.i. 0.93 to 1.79, P = 0.121). Conclusion: CHOLECOVID provides a unique overview of the treatment of patients with cholecystitis across the globe during the first months of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The study highlights the need for system resilience in retention of elective surgical activity. Cholecystectomy was associated with a low risk of mortality and deferral of treatment results in an increase in avoidable morbidity that represents the non-COVID cost of this pandemic

A pan-European epidemiological study reveals honey bee colony survival depends on beekeeper education and disease control

Reports of honey bee population decline has spurred many national efforts to understand the extent of the problem and to identify causative or associated factors. However, our collective understanding of the factors has been hampered by a lack of joined up trans-national effort. Moreover, the impacts of beekeeper knowledge and beekeeping management practices have often been overlooked, despite honey bees being a managed pollinator. Here, we established a standardised active monitoring network for 5 798 apiaries over two consecutive years to quantify honey bee colony mortality across 17 European countries. Our data demonstrate that overwinter losses ranged between 2% and 32%, and that high summer losses were likely to follow high winter losses. Multivariate Poisson regression models revealed that hobbyist beekeepers with small apiaries and little experience in beekeeping had double the winter mortality rate when compared to professional beekeepers. Furthermore, honey bees kept by professional beekeepers never showed signs of disease, unlike apiaries from hobbyist beekeepers that had symptoms of bacterial infection and heavy Varroa infestation. Our data highlight beekeeper background and apicultural practices as major drivers of honey bee colony losses. The benefits of conducting trans-national monitoring schemes and improving beekeeper training are discussed

Effect of winemaking techniques on polysaccharide composition of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Monastrell red wines

Background and Aims: Several authors have demonstrated the interesting properties of wine polysaccharides. These compounds act as protective colloids and are able to interact with tannins and anthocyanins in wines, reducing their reactivity and increasing colour stability. Little, however, is known about the release of polysaccharides by winemaking technologies. We examine the effect of several winemaking techniques - cold prefermentative maceration, dry ice addition and grape skin freezing, and addition of two maceration enzymes - on the quantity and composition of polysaccharides extracted from the three red wine cultivars - Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Monastrell. Methods and Results: The molecular mass distribution and composition of polysaccharides were determined, respectively, by high-performance size-exclusion chromatography and by gas chromatography. The amount of some polysaccharide fractions extracted depended on the grape cultivar. The addition of commercial pectic enzyme preparations released a greater quantity of polysaccharides in all three cultivars studied and altered the polysaccharide composition of the Cabernet Sauvignon wine. The effect of the other treatments on the amount of polysaccharides depended on the cultivar. Conclusion: This study confirms that grape cultivar and winemaking technique have a significant impact on the quantity and composition of polysaccharides extracted from grapes into wine. The concentration of polysaccharides rich in arabinose and galactose, and in rhamnogalacturonan II was greater in the Syrah wine than that in the Cabernet Sauvignon and Monastrell wines. Both enzymatic treatments and also dry ice addition had a significant influence on the polysaccharide concentration and composition of the wines made from a given cultivar, whereas cold prefermentative maceration or grape skin freezing had no effect. Significance of the Study: This is the first report that shows that the polysaccharide composition of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Monastrell wines is affected by winemaking technique

Effect of enzyme additions on the oligosaccharide composition of Monastrell red wines from four different wine-growing origins in Spain

Food Chem.ISI Document Delivery No.: AE6WITimes Cited: 0Cited Reference Count: 38Apolinar-Valiente, Rafael Williams, Pascale Mazerolles, Gerard Romero-Cascales, Inmaculada Gomez-Plaza, Encarna Maria Lopez-Roca, Jose Maria Ros-Garcia, Jose Doco, ThierryMinisterio de Ciencia e Innovacion of Spain [AGL2006-11019-C02-01/ALI]; Government of SpainThis work was made possible by financial assistance of the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion of Spain, Project AGL2006-11019-C02-01/ALI. Author R. Apolinar-Valiente is the holder of a FPI fellowship from the Government of Spain.Elsevier sci ltdOxfordThe release of oligosaccharides during winemaking depends on the grape skin cell wall degradation, which can be facilitated by the use of enzymes. Oligosaccharide quantities and composition in wine could be influenced by the "terroir" effect. Monastrell wine was elaborated from grapes from four different "terroirs" (Canada Judio, Albatana, Chaparral-Bullas and Montealegre). Monastrell wines were also treated with beta-galactosidase enzyme addition and commercial enzyme addition. The results showed significant differences in the Monastrell wine oligosaccharide fractions, according to the geographical origin of grapes. A higher quantity of oligosaccharides was found for three out of four terroirs studied when commercial enzymes were added. The use of commercial enzyme modified the Arabinose/Galactose and the Rhamnose/Galacturonic acid ratios in Canada Judio and Albatana terroirs wines, and it modified the (Arabinose + Galactose)/Rhamnose ratio in Canada Judio, Albatana and Chaparral-Bullas terroirs wines. Therefore, the "terroir" impacts the effect of commercial enzyme treatment on wine oligosaccharide composition

Impact of Pneumococcal Vaccination in the Nasopharyngeal Carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Healthy Children of the Murcia Region in Spain.

An epidemiological study of Streptococcus pneumoniae nasopharyngeal carriage in healthy children was carried out five years after the introduction of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13). Study the impact of pediatric vaccination with PCV13, and other associated epidemiological factors on the status of nasopharyngeal carriage, the circulating pneumococcal serotypes, and the antibiotic susceptibility to more frequently used antibiotics. A multi-center study was carried out in Primary Health Care, which included 1821 healthy children aged 1 to 4 years old. All isolates were sent to the Spanish Pneumococcal Reference Laboratory for serotyping and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. At least one dose of PCV13 had been received by 71.9% of children and carriage pneumococcal prevalence was 19.7%. The proportion of PCV13 serotypes was low (14.4%), with an observed predominance of non-vaccine serotypes, 23B, 11A, 10A, 35B/F, and 23A were the five most frequent. A high rate of resistance to penicillin, erythromycin, and trimethoprim sulfamethoxazole was found. A low proportion of PCV13 serotypes were detected, confirming the impact of pediatric vaccination for reducing the serotypes vaccine carriage. High resistance rates to clinically important antibiotics were observed.This work was supported by Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (MINECO)[grant SAF2017-83388].S

Influence of wine-grape skin hardness on the kinetics of anthocyanin extraction

The main aim of this work was to study in a model, hydroalcoholic solution containing 12% of ethanol and with a pH of 3.20, the kinetics of anthocyanin extraction from Vitis vinifera L. cv. Nebbiolo berries of different skin hardness. This mechanical property was evaluated as the breaking skin force measured by Texture Analysis, a rapid and low-cost analytical technique. Using a TAxT2i Texture Analyzer, a puncture test was carried out on two groups of berries separated according to their density by flotation in order to obtain more homogenous samples and minimize the effect of different stages of ripening of the berries. Among the berries containing 242 \ub1 8 g/L of reducing sugars in the pulp juice, two groups of berries with different skin hardness were selected: soft (0.26 \ub1 0.04 N) and hard (0.47 \ub1 0.05 N). In our experimental conditions, at the end of maceration, the extracts from the higher skin hardness group showed the higher contents of total anthocyanin: +25 mg/L (+9.4%). The anthocyanin profile of extracts, obtained at different extraction times, showed no significant differences among the distribution of different anthocyanins. Only in the early phases of dissolution, did the extracts reveal a dissimilar anthocyanin profile and in the extracts of hard skins higher percentages of cyanidin and peonidin derivatives were present. Additionally, the evolution of skin mechanical properties from veraison to overripe and the influences of biotype on these parameters at harvest are reported in this work