Microsatellite diversity of the Nordic type of goats in relation to breed conservation: how relevant is pure ancestry?

In the last decades, several endangered breeds of livestock species have been re-established effectively. However, the successful revival of the Dutch and Danish Landrace goats involved crossing with exotic breeds and the ancestry of the current populations is therefore not clear. We have generated genotypes for 27 FAO-recommended microsatellites of these landraces and three phenotypically similar Nordic-type landraces and compared these breeds with central European, Mediterranean and south-west Asian goats. We found decreasing levels of genetic diversity with increasing distance from the south-west Asian domestication site with a south-east-to-north-west cline that is clearly steeper than the Mediterranean east-to-west cline. In terms of genetic diversity, the Dutch Landrace comes next to the isolated Icelandic breed, which has an extremely low diversity. The Norwegian coastal goat and the Finnish and Icelandic landraces are clearly related. It appears that by a combination of mixed origin and a population bottleneck, the Dutch and Danish Land-races are separated from the other breeds. However, the current Dutch and Danish populations with the multicoloured and long-horned appearance effectively substitute for the original breed, illustrating that for conservation of cultural heritage, the phenotype of a breed is more relevant than pure ancestry and the genetic diversity of the original breed. More in general, we propose that for conservation, the retention of genetic diversity of an original breed and of the visual phenotype by which the breed is recognized and defined needs to be considered separately

Colorectal Cancer Stage at Diagnosis Before vs During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

IMPORTANCE Delays in screening programs and the reluctance of patients to seek medical attention because of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 could be associated with the risk of more advanced colorectal cancers at diagnosis. OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was associated with more advanced oncologic stage and change in clinical presentation for patients with colorectal cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This retrospective, multicenter cohort study included all 17 938 adult patients who underwent surgery for colorectal cancer from March 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021 (pandemic period), and from January 1, 2018, to February 29, 2020 (prepandemic period), in 81 participating centers in Italy, including tertiary centers and community hospitals. Follow-up was 30 days from surgery. EXPOSURES Any type of surgical procedure for colorectal cancer, including explorative surgery, palliative procedures, and atypical or segmental resections. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was advanced stage of colorectal cancer at diagnosis. Secondary outcomes were distant metastasis, T4 stage, aggressive biology (defined as cancer with at least 1 of the following characteristics: signet ring cells, mucinous tumor, budding, lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and lymphangitis), stenotic lesion, emergency surgery, and palliative surgery. The independent association between the pandemic period and the outcomes was assessed using multivariate random-effects logistic regression, with hospital as the cluster variable. RESULTS A total of 17 938 patients (10 007 men [55.8%]; mean [SD] age, 70.6 [12.2] years) underwent surgery for colorectal cancer: 7796 (43.5%) during the pandemic period and 10 142 (56.5%) during the prepandemic period. Logistic regression indicated that the pandemic period was significantly associated with an increased rate of advanced-stage colorectal cancer (odds ratio [OR], 1.07; 95%CI, 1.01-1.13; P = .03), aggressive biology (OR, 1.32; 95%CI, 1.15-1.53; P < .001), and stenotic lesions (OR, 1.15; 95%CI, 1.01-1.31; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE This cohort study suggests a significant association between the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the risk of a more advanced oncologic stage at diagnosis among patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer and might indicate a potential reduction of survival for these patients

Appendectomy during the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy: a multicenter ambispective cohort study by the Italian Society of Endoscopic Surgery and new technologies (the CRAC study)

Major surgical societies advised using non-operative management of appendicitis and suggested against laparoscopy during the COVID-19 pandemic. The hypothesis is that a significant reduction in the number of emergent appendectomies was observed during the pandemic, restricted to complex cases. The study aimed to analyse emergent surgical appendectomies during pandemic on a national basis and compare it to the same period of the previous year. This is a multicentre, retrospective, observational study investigating the outcomes of patients undergoing emergent appendectomy in March-April 2019 vs March-April 2020. The primary outcome was the number of appendectomies performed, classified according to the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) score. Secondary outcomes were the type of surgical technique employed (laparoscopic vs open) and the complication rates. One thousand five hundred forty one patients with acute appendicitis underwent surgery during the two study periods. 1337 (86.8%) patients met the inclusion criteria: 546 (40.8%) patients underwent surgery for acute appendicitis in 2020 and 791 (59.2%) in 2019. According to AAST, patients with complicated appendicitis operated in 2019 were 30.3% vs 39.9% in 2020 (p = 0.001). We observed an increase in the number of post-operative complications in 2020 (15.9%) compared to 2019 (9.6%) (p < 0.001). The following determinants increased the likelihood of complication occurrence: undergoing surgery during 2020 (+ 67%), the increase of a unit in the AAST score (+ 26%), surgery performed > 24 h after admission (+ 58%), open surgery (+ 112%) and conversion to open surgery (+ 166%). In Italian hospitals, in March and April 2020, the number of appendectomies has drastically dropped. During the first pandemic wave, patients undergoing surgery were more frequently affected by more severe appendicitis than the previous year's timeframe and experienced a higher number of complications. Trial registration number and date: Research Registry ID 5789, May 7th, 202

An Efficient and Scalable Synthesis of Fexofenadine Hydrochloride

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is an important allergic inflammatory disease, affecting 30-60 million people annually in the USA. The most important class of drug used in the treatment of AR is second-generation H1-antihistamines (highly selective and nonsedating drugs) like levocetirizine, desloratadine and fexofenadine. Different synthetic strategies are reported for the preparation of fexofenadine hydrochloride, but these approaches involve the formation of byproducts, either toxic or difficult to remove. The aim of this work is to find a new, efficient and scalable synthetic approach for the preparation of fexofenadine hydrochloride. The final product was assembled from methyl 2-(4-bromophenyl)-2-methylpropanoate, 3-butyn-1-ol and azacyclonol, cheap and commercially available raw materials. A key step allows to build the central oxygenated-C4-moiety through a key 5-membered intermediate, avoiding toxic or expensive reagents and catalysts. The 8-step synthesis is competitive with existing protocols, leading to fexofenadine hydrochloride in 59% overall yield

A concise and efficient synthesis of vildagliptin

An original synthesis of vildagliptin ((S)-1-[2-(3-hydroxyadamantan-1-ylamino)acetyl]pyrrolidine-2-carbonitrile), a powerful DPP-4 inhibitor, was developed. Vildagliptin was assembled from 3-amino-1-adamantanol, glyoxylic acid and L-prolinamide in a 4-step reaction sequence with the isolation of only two intermediates. The procedure is competitive with existing protocols, leading to vildagliptin in 63% overall yield

Fluorescence studies on 2-(het)aryl perimidine derivatives

8nononePerimidines are extensively studied for their different therapeutic properties, including antiulcer, antifungal, antimicrobial, immunosuppressive and anticancer activities. Moreover, their heterocyclic structure embodies the naphthalene moiety, exploited in bio-imaging and biomolecules staining due to its high fluorescence. In this work we present the spectroscopic characterization of a family of perimidine derivatives, in order to obtain information potentially useful for the design of compounds combining biological activity and detectable fluorescence in physiological environment.Giani, Arianna Maria; Lamperti, Marco; Maspero, Angelo; Cimino, Alessandro; Negri, Roberto; Giovenzana, Giovanni Battista; Palmisano, Giovanni; Nardo, LucaGiani, Arianna Maria; Lamperti, Marco; Maspero, Angelo; Cimino, Alessandro; Negri, Roberto; Giovenzana, Giovanni Battista; Palmisano, Giovanni; Nardo, Luc

The endoscopic overtube is a safe device for removing a fistulizing esophageal metal stent: A literature review

INTRODUCTION: Self-expandable metal stents are the gold standard for palliation of malignant dysphagia. Stent-associated esophagealrespiratory fistulas developed in 4% of patients causing a potentially life threatening emergency. When a fistula occurs, stent removal can be very challenging and related to increased risk for further complications. The aim of this paper was to perform a literature review on previous overtube-assisted reports for difficult esophageal stent removal. We also describe a safe method to remove a fully covered self-expandable metal stent prolapsing into the tracheal lumen by using a new type of overtube to reduce the risk of major injury. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: All relevant articles were extracted up to December 2017 based on the results of searches in PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: A total of 6 case reports and 2 case series were included, for a total of 14 patients. The most frequent indications to stent placement were malignant strictures due to esophageal cancer or cardiac gastric cancer. The complications for which it was necessary to remove the stent were: occlusion, migration, strangulation, tissue overgrowth or ingrowth, embeeding, and epidural abscess and diskitis. In all cases at the time of stent removal no procedure related complications occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Using an overtube during removal of the stent increased patients safety during the procedure, reducing the risk of trauma and protecting the oesophageal wall