The Application of Barocaloric Solid-State Cooling in the Cold Food Chain for Carbon Footprint Reduction

In this paper, the application of solid-state cooling based on the barocaloric effect in the cold food supply chain is investigated. Barocaloric solid-state technology is applied to the final links of the cold food supply chain regarding the steps of retail and domestic conservation. In this context, effective barocaloric cooling entails the refrigeration of food at 5 °C (273 K) and as such is a promising cooling technology due to its energy efficiency and environmental friendliness. The categories of food involved in this investigation are meat and fresh food products like soft cheese, yogurt, and milk. The energy performance of the barocaloric system is analyzed and compared with a commercial vapor compression refrigerator of a similar size, both operating using R600a under the same working conditions. Based on the results of this comparison, it is concluded that barocaloric cooling is a favorable technology for application in the final links of the cold food supply chain if the system operates in an ABR cycle at frequencies between 1.25 and 1.50 Hz with a regenerator comprising acetoxy silicone rubber as the solid-state refrigerant and a 50%EG–50% water mixture as the heat transfer fluid flowing at an optimal velocity of 0.15 m s−1. Thus, an appropriate tradeoff between the temperature span, cooling power, and coefficient of performance is guaranteed. Under these conditions, the barocaloric system outperforms the domestic vapor compression cooler operating using R600a

Different waters for different performances: Can we imagine sport-related natural mineral spring waters?

Preserving the hydration status means to balance daily fluids and salt losses with gains, where the losses depend on several physiological and environmental factors. Especially for athletes, these losses could be relevant and negatively influence the performance: therefore, their hydro-saline status must be preserved with personalized pre-and rehydration plans all along the performance period. Scientific literature in this field is mainly dedicated to artificial sport drinks. Different territories in most world areas are rich in drinking natural mineral spring waters with saline compositions that reflect their geological origin and that are used for human health (often under medical prescription). However, scarce scientific attention has been dedicated to the use of these waters for athletes. We therefore reviewed the existing literature from the innovative viewpoint of matching spring water mineral compositions with different athletic performances and their hydro-saline requirements

Buffering Adaptive Immunity by Hydrogen Sulfide

Abstract: T cell-mediated adaptive immunity is designed to respond to non-self antigens and pathogens through the activation and proliferation of various T cell populations. T helper 1 (Th1), Th2, Th17 and Treg cells finely orchestrate cellular responses through a plethora of paracrine and autocrine stimuli that include cytokines, autacoids, and hormones. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is one of these mediators able to induce/inhibit immunological responses, playing a role in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, neurological disorders, asthma, acute pancreatitis, and sepsis. Both endogenous and exogenous H2S modulate numerous important cell signaling pathways. In monocytes, polymorphonuclear, and T cells H2S impacts on activation, survival, proliferation, polarization, adhesion pathways, and modulates cytokine production and sensitivity to chemokines. Here, we offer a comprehensive review on the role of H2S as a natural buffer able to maintain over time a functional balance between Th1, Th2, Th17 and Treg immunological responses

Physical activity and redox balance in the elderly: Signal transduction mechanisms

Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) are molecules naturally produced by cells. If their levels are too high, the cellular antioxidant machinery intervenes to bring back their quantity to physiological conditions. Since aging often induces malfunctioning in this machinery, ROS are considered an effective cause of age-associated diseases. Exercise stimulates ROS production on one side, and the antioxidant systems on the other side. The effects of exercise on oxidative stress markers have been shown in blood, vascular tissue, brain, cardiac and skeletal muscle, both in young and aged people. However, the intensity and volume of exercise and the individual subject characteristics are important to envisage future strategies to adequately personalize the balance of the oxidant/antioxidant environment. Here, we reviewed the literature that deals with the effects of physical activity on redox balance in young and aged people, with insights into the molecular mechanisms involved. Although many molecular pathways are involved, we are still far from a comprehensive view of the mechanisms that stand behind the effects of physical activity during aging. Although we believe that future precision medicine will be able to transform exercise administration from wellness to targeted prevention, as yet we admit that the topic is still in its infancy

Hydrogen sulfide inhibits tmprss2 in human airway epithelial cells: Implications for sars‐cov‐2 infection

The COVID‐19 pandemic has now affected around 190 million people worldwide, accounting for more than 4 million confirmed deaths. Besides ongoing global vaccination, finding protective and therapeutic strategies is an urgent clinical need. SARS‐CoV‐2 mostly infects the host organism via the respiratory system, requiring angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) to enter target cells. Therefore, these surface proteins are considered potential druggable targets. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a gasotransmitter produced by several cell types and is also part of natural compounds, such as sulfurous waters that are often inhaled as low‐intensity therapy and prevention in different respiratory conditions. H2S is a potent biological mediator, with anti‐oxidant, anti‐inflammatory, and, as more recently shown, also antiviral activities. Considering that respiratory epithelial cells can be directly exposed to H2S by inhalation, here we tested the in vitro effects of H2S‐donors on TMPRSS2 and ACE2 expression in human upper and lower airway epithelial cells. We showed that H2S significantly reduces the expression of TMPRSS2 without modifying ACE2 expression both in respiratory cell lines and primary human upper and lower airway epithelial cells. Results suggest that inhalational exposure of respiratory epithelial cells to natural H2S sources may hinder SARS‐CoV‐2 entry into airway epithelial cells and, consequently, potentially prevent the virus from spreading into the lower respiratory tract and the lung

Impact of the rs1024611 polymorphism of ccl2 on the pathophysiology and outcome of primary myelofibrosis

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can modify the individual pro-inflammatory background and may therefore have relevant implications in the MPN setting, typified by aberrant cytokine production. In a cohort of 773 primary myelofibrosis (PMF), we determined the contribution of the rs1024611 SNP of CCL2—one of the most potent immunomodulatory chemokines—to the clinical and biological characteristics of the disease, demonstrating that male subjects carrying the homozygous genotype G/G had an increased risk of PMF and that, among PMF patients, the G/G genotype is an independent prognostic factor for reduced overall survival. Functional characterization of the SNP and the CCL2-CCR2 axis in PMF showed that i) homozygous PMF cells are the highest chemokine producers as compared to the other genotypes; ii) PMF CD34+ cells are a selective target of CCL2, since they uniquely express CCR2 (CCL2 receptor); iii) activation of the CCL2-CCR2 axis boosts pro-survival signals induced by driver mutations via Akt phosphorylation; iv) ruxolitinib effectively counteracts CCL2 production and down-regulates CCR2 expression in PMF cells. In conclusion, the identification of the role of the CCL2/CCR2 chemokine system in PMF adds a novel element to the pathophysiological picture of the disease, with clinical and therapeutic implications

MR and CT techniques

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) are routinely used in female pelvis imaging. MRI is primarily useful for locoregional characterization of benign and malignant diseases. CT is less accurate in locoregional evaluation, but remains useful in the follow-up of treated gynecological malignancies, as well as in the setting of emergency and in the guidance of biopsies. Although transabdominal and transvaginal ultrasonography (US) is not under the scope of this chapter, it remains the first-line imaging method for most gynecological conditions.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Doctors of chiropractic working with or within integrated healthcare delivery systems: a scoping review protocol

Introduction Back and neck pain are the leading causes of disability worldwide. Doctors of chiropractic (DCs) are trained to manage these common conditions and can provide non-pharmacological treatment aligned with international clinical practice guidelines. Although DCs practice in over 90 countries, chiropractic care is rarely available within integrated healthcare delivery systems. A lack of DCs in private practice, particularly in low-income communities, may also limit access to chiropractic care. Improving collaboration between medical providers and community-based DCs, or embedding DCs in medical settings such as hospitals or community health centres, will improve access to evidence-based care for musculoskeletal conditions. Methods and analyses This scoping review will map studies of DCs working with or within integrated healthcare delivery systems. We will use the recommended six-step approach for scoping reviews. We will search three electronic data bases including Medline, Embase and Web of Science. Two investigators will independently review all titles and abstracts to identify relevant records, screen the full-text articles of potentially admissible records, and systematically extract data from selected articles. We will include studies published in English from 1998 to 2020 describing medical settings that have established formal relationships with community-based DCs (eg, shared medical record) or where DCs practice in medical settings. Data extraction and reporting will be guided by the Proctor Conceptual Model for Implementation Research, which has three domains: clinical intervention, implementation strategies and outcome measurement. Stakeholders from diverse clinical fields will offer feedback on the implications of our findings via a web-based survey. Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval will not be obtained for this review of published and publicly accessible data, but will be obtained for the web-based survey. Our results will be disseminated through conference presentations and a peer-reviewed publication. Our findings will inform implementation strategies that support the adoption of chiropractic care within integrated healthcare delivery systems.