Eleven-year results on soft and durum wheat crops grown in an organic and in a conventional low input cropping system

Eleven-year results on yields and apparent balances of organic matter and nitrogen (N) are reported for soft and durum wheat crops grown in the BIOSYST long-term experiment for the comparison between an organic and a conventional low-input system in Central Italy. The N supply to organic wheat consisted of 40 kg N ha–1 as poultry manure plus the supposed residual N left by green manures carried out before the preceding summer vegetable, while the N supply to conventional wheat consisted of 80 kg N ha–1 as mineral fertilisers, split in two applications of 40 kg ha–1 each, at tillering and pre-shooting. In every year, above ground biomass and N accumulation of each wheat species, including weeds, and the partitioning between grain yield and crop residues were determined. Apparent dry matter and N balances were calculated at the end of each crop cycle by taking into account the amounts of dry matter and N supplied to the system as fertilisers, and those removed with grain yield. Soft wheat yielded more than durum wheat. For both species, grain yield and protein content were more variable across years and generally lower in the organic than in the conventional system. In both systems, grain yield of both species resulted negatively correlated with fall-winter rainfall, likely for its effect on soil N availability. Both species caused a lower return of biomass and a higher soil N depletion in the organic than in the conventional system. Our experiment confirmed that winter wheat can help exploit the soil N availability and reduce N leaching in fall winter, especially after summer vegetables, but in stockless or stock-limited organic systems it needs to be included in rotations where soil fertility is restored by fall winter green manures to be carried out before summer crops

Consensus based recommendations for diagnosis and medical management of Poland syndrome (sequence)

Background Poland syndrome (OMIM: 173800) is a disorder in which affected individuals are born with missing or underdeveloped muscles on one side of the body, resulting in abnormalities that can affect the chest, breast, shoulder, arm, and hand. The extent and severity of the abnormalities vary among affected individuals. Main body The aim of this work is to provide recommendations for the diagnosis and management of people affected by Poland syndrome based on evidence from literature and experience of health professionals from different medical backgrounds who have followed for several years affected subjects. The literature search was performed in the second half of 2019. Original papers, meta-analyses, reviews, books and guidelines were reviewed and final recommendations were reached by consensus. Conclusion Being Poland syndrome a rare syndrome most recommendations here presented are good clinical practice based on the consensus of the participant experts

Association of kidney disease measures with risk of renal function worsening in patients with type 1 diabetes

Background: Albuminuria has been classically considered a marker of kidney damage progression in diabetic patients and it is routinely assessed to monitor kidney function. However, the role of a mild GFR reduction on the development of stage 653 CKD has been less explored in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) patients. Aim of the present study was to evaluate the prognostic role of kidney disease measures, namely albuminuria and reduced GFR, on the development of stage 653 CKD in a large cohort of patients affected by T1DM. Methods: A total of 4284 patients affected by T1DM followed-up at 76 diabetes centers participating to the Italian Association of Clinical Diabetologists (Associazione Medici Diabetologi, AMD) initiative constitutes the study population. Urinary albumin excretion (ACR) and estimated GFR (eGFR) were retrieved and analyzed. The incidence of stage 653 CKD (eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) or eGFR reduction > 30% from baseline was evaluated. Results: The mean estimated GFR was 98 \ub1 17 mL/min/1.73m2 and the proportion of patients with albuminuria was 15.3% (n = 654) at baseline. About 8% (n = 337) of patients developed one of the two renal endpoints during the 4-year follow-up period. Age, albuminuria (micro or macro) and baseline eGFR < 90 ml/min/m2 were independent risk factors for stage 653 CKD and renal function worsening. When compared to patients with eGFR > 90 ml/min/1.73m2 and normoalbuminuria, those with albuminuria at baseline had a 1.69 greater risk of reaching stage 3 CKD, while patients with mild eGFR reduction (i.e. eGFR between 90 and 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) show a 3.81 greater risk that rose to 8.24 for those patients with albuminuria and mild eGFR reduction at baseline. Conclusions: Albuminuria and eGFR reduction represent independent risk factors for incident stage 653 CKD in T1DM patients. The simultaneous occurrence of reduced eGFR and albuminuria have a synergistic effect on renal function worsening

Eleven-year results on soft and durum wheat crops grown in an organic and in a conventional low input cropping system

Eleven-year results on yields and apparent balances of organic matter and nitrogen (N) are reported for soft and durum wheat crops grown in the BIOSYST long-term experiment for the comparison between an organic and a conventional low-input system in Central Italy. The N supply to organic wheat consisted of 40 kg N ha–1 as poultry manure plus the supposed residual N left by green manures carried out before the preceding summer vegetable, while the N supply to conventional wheat consisted of 80 kg N ha–1 as mineral fertilisers, split in two applications of 40 kg ha–1 each, at tillering and pre-shooting. In every year, above ground biomass and N accumulation of each wheat species, including weeds, and the partitioning between grain yield and crop residues were determined. Apparent dry matter and N balances were calculated at the end of each crop cycle by taking into account the amounts of dry matter and N supplied to the system as fertilisers, and those removed with grain yield. Soft wheat yielded more than durum wheat. For both species, grain yield and protein content were more variable across years and generally lower in the organic than in the conventional system. In both systems, grain yield of both species resulted negatively correlated with fall-winter rainfall, likely for its effect on soil N availability. Both species caused a lower return of biomass and a higher soil N depletion in the organic than in the conventional system. Our experiment confirmed that winter wheat can help exploit the soil N availability and reduce N leaching in fall winter, especially after summer vegetables, but in stockless or stock-limited organic systems it needs to be included in rotations where soil fertility is restored by fall winter green manures to be carried out before summer crops

Bevacizumab in recurrent high-grade glioma: a single institution retrospective analysis on 92 patients

BACKGROUND: High-grade gliomas are among the most aggressive central nervous system primary tumors, with a high risk of recurrence and a poor prognosis. Re-operation, re-irradiation, chemotherapy are options in this setting. No-best therapy has been established. Bevacizumab was approved on the basis of two Phase 2 trials that evaluated its efficacy in patients with recurrent glioblastoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We have retrospectively review data of patients with high-grade glioma treated at our institution that undergone radiological or histological progression after at least one systemic treatment for recurrent disease. Bevacizumab was administered alone or in combination with chemotherapy until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Bevacizumab regimen was analyzed to assess PFS and OS. Histological, molecular and clinical features of the entire cohort were collected. RESULTS: We reviewed data from 92 patients, treated from April 2009 to November 2019, with histologically confirmed diagnosis of high-grade gliomas and recurrent disease. A PFS of 55.2%, 22.9% and 9.6% was observed at 6, 12 and 24 months, respectively. Performance status, age at diagnosis ( 65 ys.) and use of corticosteroids during bevacizumab therapy were strongly associated with PFS. The OS was 74.9% at 6 months, 31.7% at 12 months, 10.1% at 24 months. In our cohort, 51.1% were long-term responders (PFS > 6 months). Globally, bevacizumab treatment was well tolerated. CONCLUSION: Our analysis confirms the efficacy of bevacizumab in recurrent high-grade glioma patients with an acceptable toxicity profile, in keeping with its known safety in the literature

iPSC-derived neurons profiling reveals GABAergic circuit disruption and acetylated α-tubulin defect which improves after iHDAC6 treatment in Rett syndrome

Mutations in MECP2 gene have been identified in more than 95% of patients with classic Rett syndrome, one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in females. Taking advantage of the breakthrough technology of genetic reprogramming, we investigated transcriptome changes in neurons differentiated from induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs) derived from patients with different mutations. Profiling by RNA-seq in terminally differentiated neurons revealed a prominent GABAergic circuit disruption along with a perturbation of cytoskeleton dynamics. In particular, in mutated neurons we identified a significant decrease of acetylated α-tubulin which can be reverted by treatment with selective inhibitors of HDAC6, the main α-tubulin deacetylase. These findings contribute to shed light on Rett pathogenic mechanisms and provide hints for the treatment of Rett-associated epileptic behavior as well as for the definition of new therapeutic strategies for Rett syndrome

Intra-arterial transplantation of HLA-matched donor mesoangioblasts in Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Intra-arterial transplantation of mesoangioblasts proved safe and partially efficacious in preclinical models of muscular dystrophy. We now report the first-in-human, exploratory, non-randomized open-label phase I-IIa clinical trial of intra-arterial HLA-matched donor cell transplantation in 5 Duchenne patients. We administered escalating doses of donor-derived mesoangioblasts in limb arteries under immunosuppressive therapy (tacrolimus). Four consecutive infusions were performed at 2-month intervals, preceded and followed by clinical, laboratory, and muscular MRI analyses. Two months after the last infusion, a muscle biopsy was performed. Safety was the primary endpoint. The study was relatively safe: One patient developed a thalamic stroke with no clinical consequences and whose correlation with mesoangioblast infusion remained unclear. MRI documented the progression of the disease in 4/5 patients. Functional measures were transiently stabilized in 2/3 ambulant patients, but no functional improvements were observed. Low level of donor DNA was detected in muscle biopsies of 4/5 patients and donor-derived dystrophin in 1. Intra-arterial transplantation of donor mesoangioblasts in human proved to be feasible and relatively safe. Future implementation of the protocol, together with a younger age of patients, will be needed to approach efficacy