First report of Vibrio anguillarum isolation from diseased big scale sand smelt, Atherina boyeri Risso 1810, in Limnos, Greece

Vibriosis is an important disease of farmed and wild fish, caused by species of the genus Vibrio. During December 2000, high mortalities were observed in a wild population of big scale sand smelt Atherina boyeri in Limnos, Greece. The microbiological analysis of the moribund fish resulted in the isolation of a pure culture of Vibrio anguillarum. The bacterium was identified by bacteriological procedures and slide agglutination reaction. Focal or more extensive necrosis was found in almost all organs, in all fish examined and the retina of the eyes appeared corrugated. The pathogenicity of the strain for sea bass was confirmed by bath challenge causing mortalities up to 97%. Factors contributing to the outbreak of the disease were considered to be the presence of parasites (Platyhelminthes) in the intestinal tract. No simultaneous infection at a fish farm in the vicinity had been reported. However, since there are disease interactions between wild and cultured fish, infected wild fish, can act as a reservoir of the pathogen

Fruit and Vegetable Intake, Food Security, Barriers to Healthy Eating, and Empowerment Among Dietetic Interns and Physician Assistant Interns: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study

Students are required to complete supervised practice hours prior to becoming Registered Dietitians and Physician Assistants. Research suggests that environmental and social factors affect dietetic interns’ diets during their internship, although these factors have not been studied among physician assistant interns. This cross-sectional study utilized an online survey to compare dietetic interns’ (n = 81) and physician assistant interns’ (n = 79) fruit and vegetable intake, food security, barriers to healthy eating, and empowerment for making healthy dietary choices during an internship. Differences were assessed via independent t-tests and chi-square distributions. The significance was set at p \u3c 0.05. Dietetic interns had a higher vegetable intake (p = 0.002) while physician assistant interns had higher rates of food insecurity (p = 0.040). Dietetic interns reported a greater impact on their dietary choices due to mental fatigue (p = 0.006), while physician assistant interns’ dietary choices were more heavily impacted by peer influence, interactions with patients, and interactions with preceptors (p \u3c 0.05). There was not a group difference in overall empowerment (p = 0.157), although both groups rated empowerment for asking for help with food and nutrition challenges the lowest of the empowerment sub-items. Addressing interns’ unique needs may support students’ educational success and wellbeing once they are professionals, promote a diverse workforce, and ensure optimal care for patients

Lignocellulosic-Based Nanoparticles with Photoluminescent Properties for Bioimaging

10 Pág.Natural and renewable resources from plants or animals are an important source of biomaterials due to their biocompatibility and high availability. Lignin is a biopolymer present in the biomass of plants, where it is intertwined and cross-linked with other polymers and macromolecules in the cell walls, generating a lignocellulosic material with potential applications. We have prepared lignocellulosic-based nanoparticles with an average size of 156 nm that exhibit a high photoluminescence signal when excited at 500 nm with emission in the near-infrared (NIR) region at 800 nm. The advantage of these lignocellulosic-based nanoparticles is their natural luminescent properties and their origin from rose biomass waste, which eliminates the need for encapsulation or functionalization of imaging agents. Moreover, the in vitro cell growth inhibition (IC50) of lignocellulosic-based nanoparticles is about 3 mg/mL, and no in vivo toxicity was registered up to 57 mg/kg, which suggests that they are suitable for bioimaging applications. In addition, these nanoparticles can circulate in the blood and are excreted in urine. The combined high luminescence signal in NIR, small size, low in vitro toxicity, low in vivo toxicity, and blood circulation support the potential of lignin-based nanoparticles as a novel bioimaging agent.We would like to thank Yachay Tech University, through the internal grant CHEM19-15, for its support of some facilities to develop this project. Received: ((will be filled in by the editorial staff)) Revised: ((will be filled in by the editorial staff)) Published online: ((will be filled in by the editorial staff)Peer reviewe

The transiting multi-planet system HD3167: a 5.7 MEarth Super-Earth and a 8.3 MEarth mini-Neptune

HD3167 is a bright (V=8.9 mag) K0V star observed by the NASA's K2 space mission during its Campaign 8. It has been recently found to host two small transiting planets, namely, HD3167b, an ultra short period (0.96 d) super-Earth, and HD3167c, a mini-Neptune on a relatively long-period orbit (29.85 d). Here we present an intensive radial velocity follow-up of HD3167 performed with the FIES@NOT, [email protected], and HARPS-N@TNG spectrographs. We revise the system parameters and determine radii, masses, and densities of the two transiting planets by combining the K2 photometry with our spectroscopic data. With a mass of 5.69+/-0.44 MEarth, radius of 1.574+/-0.054 REarth, and mean density of 8.00(+1.0)(-0.98) g/cm^3, HD3167b joins the small group of ultra-short period planets known to have a rocky terrestrial composition. HD3167c has a mass of 8.33 (+1.79)(-1.85) MEarth and a radius of 2.740(+0.106)(-0.100) REarth, yielding a mean density of 2.21(+0.56)(-0.53) g/cm^3, indicative of a planet with a composition comprising a solid core surrounded by a thick atmospheric envelope. The rather large pressure scale height (about 350 km) and the brightness of the host star make HD3167c an ideal target for atmospheric characterization via transmission spectroscopy across a broad range of wavelengths. We found evidence of additional signals in the radial velocity measurements but the currently available data set does not allow us to draw any firm conclusion on the origin of the observed variation.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures, 5 table

Outcome Prediction in Cerebral Venous Thrombosis: The IN-REvASC Score.

BACKGROUND We identified risk factors, derived and validated a prognostic score for poor neurological outcome and death for use in cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT). METHODS We performed an international multicenter retrospective study including consecutive patients with CVT from January 2015 to December 2020. Demographic, clinical, and radiographic characteristics were collected. Univariable and multivariable logistic regressions were conducted to determine risk factors for poor outcome, mRS 3-6. A prognostic score was derived and validated. RESULTS A total of 1,025 patients were analyzed with median 375 days (interquartile range [IQR], 180 to 747) of follow-up. The median age was 44 (IQR, 32 to 58) and 62.7% were female. Multivariable analysis revealed the following factors were associated with poor outcome at 90- day follow-up: active cancer (odds ratio [OR], 11.20; 95% confidence interval [CI], 4.62 to 27.14; P<0.001), age (OR, 1.02 per year; 95% CI, 1.00 to 1.04; P=0.039), Black race (OR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.10 to 4.27; P=0.025), encephalopathy or coma on presentation (OR, 2.71; 95% CI, 1.39 to 5.30; P=0.004), decreased hemoglobin (OR, 1.16 per g/dL; 95% CI, 1.03 to 1.31; P=0.014), higher NIHSS on presentation (OR, 1.07 per point; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.11; P=0.002), and substance use (OR, 2.34; 95% CI, 1.16 to 4.71; P=0.017). The derived IN-REvASC score outperformed ISCVT-RS for the prediction of poor outcome at 90-day follow-up (area under the curve [AUC], 0.84 [95% CI, 0.79 to 0.87] vs. AUC, 0.71 [95% CI, 0.66 to 0.76], χ2 P<0.001) and mortality (AUC, 0.84 [95% CI, 0.78 to 0.90] vs. AUC, 0.72 [95% CI, 0.66 to 0.79], χ2 P=0.03). CONCLUSIONS Seven factors were associated with poor neurological outcome following CVT. The INREvASC score increased prognostic accuracy compared to ISCVT-RS. Determining patients at highest risk of poor outcome in CVT could help in clinical decision making and identify patients for targeted therapy in future clinical trials

Timing and Predictors of Recanalization After Anticoagulation in Cerebral Venous Thrombosis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Vessel recanalization after cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is associated with favorable outcomes and lower mortality. Several studies examined the timing and predictors of recanalization after CVT with mixed results. We aimed to investigate predictors and timing of recanalization after CVT. METHODS We used data from the multicenter, international AntiCoagulaTION in the Treatment of Cerebral Venous Thrombosis (ACTION-CVT) study of consecutive patients with CVT from January 2015 to December 2020. Our analysis included patients that had undergone repeat venous neuroimaging more than 30 days after initiation of anticoagulation treatment. Prespecified variables were included in univariate and multivariable analyses to identify independent predictors of failure to recanalize. RESULTS Among the 551 patients (mean age, 44.4±16.2 years, 66.2% women) that met inclusion criteria, 486 (88.2%) had complete or partial, and 65 (11.8%) had no recanalization. The median time to first follow-up imaging study was 110 days (interquartile range, 60-187). In multivariable analysis, older age (odds ratio [OR], 1.05; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-1.07), male sex (OR, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.24-0.80), and lack of parenchymal changes on baseline imaging (OR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.29-0.96) were associated with no recanalization. The majority of improvement in recanalization (71.1%) occurred before 3 months from initial diagnosis. A high percentage of complete recanalization (59.0%) took place within the first 3 months after CVT diagnosis. CONCLUSION Older age, male sex, and lack of parenchymal changes were associated with no recanalization after CVT. The majority recanalization occurred early in the disease course suggesting limited further recanalization with anticoagulation beyond 3 months. Large prospective studies are needed to confirm our findings

Study protocol: differential effects of diet and physical activity based interventions in pregnancy on maternal and fetal outcomes--individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis and health economic evaluation.

© 2014 Ruifrok et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.BACKGROUND: Pregnant women who gain excess weight are at risk of complications during pregnancy and in the long term. Interventions based on diet and physical activity minimise gestational weight gain with varied effect on clinical outcomes. The effect of interventions on varied groups of women based on body mass index, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, parity, and underlying medical conditions is not clear. Our individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis of randomised trials will assess the differential effect of diet- and physical activity-based interventions on maternal weight gain and pregnancy outcomes in clinically relevant subgroups of women. METHODS/DESIGN: Randomised trials on diet and physical activity in pregnancy will be identified by searching the following databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, BIOSIS, LILACS, Pascal, Science Citation Index, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, and Health Technology Assessment Database. Primary researchers of the identified trials are invited to join the International Weight Management in Pregnancy Collaborative Network and share their individual patient data. We will reanalyse each study separately and confirm the findings with the original authors. Then, for each intervention type and outcome, we will perform as appropriate either a one-step or a two-step IPD meta-analysis to obtain summary estimates of effects and 95% confidence intervals, for all women combined and for each subgroup of interest. The primary outcomes are gestational weight gain and composite adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. The difference in effects between subgroups will be estimated and between-study heterogeneity suitably quantified and explored. The potential for publication bias and availability bias in the IPD obtained will be investigated. We will conduct a model-based economic evaluation to assess the cost effectiveness of the interventions to manage weight gain in pregnancy and undertake a value of information analysis to inform future research. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO 2013: CRD42013003804.This study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) HTA (Health Technology Assessment) UK programme 12/01

A human mitochondrial poly(A) polymerase mutation reveals the complexities of post-transcriptional mitochondrial gene expression

The p.N478D missense mutation in human mitochondrial poly(A) polymerase (mtPAP) has previously been implicated in a form of spastic ataxia with optic atrophy. In this study, we have investigated fibroblast cell lines established from family members. The homozygous mutation resulted in the loss of polyadenylation of all mitochondrial transcripts assessed; however, oligoadenylation was retained. Interestingly, this had differential effects on transcript stability that were dependent on the particular species of transcript. These changes were accompanied by a severe loss of oxidative phosphorylation complexes I and IV, and perturbation of de novo mitochondrial protein synthesis. Decreases in transcript polyadenylation and in respiratory chain complexes were effectively rescued by overexpression of wild-type mtPAP. Both mutated and wild-type mtPAP localized to the mitochondrial RNA-processing granules thereby eliminating mislocalization as a cause of defective polyadenylation. In vitro polyadenylation assays revealed severely compromised activity by the mutated protein, which generated only short oligo(A) extensions on RNA substrates, irrespective of RNA secondary structure. The addition of LRPPRC/SLIRP, a mitochondrial RNA-binding complex, enhanced activity of the wild-type mtPAP resulting in increased overall tail length. The LRPPRC/SLIRP effect although present was less marked with mutated mtPAP, independent of RNA secondary structure. We conclude that (i) the polymerase activity of mtPAP can be modulated by the presence of LRPPRC/SLIRP, (ii) N478D mtPAP mutation decreases polymerase activity and (iii) the alteration in poly(A) length is sufficient to cause dysregulation of post-transcriptional expression and the pathogenic lack of respiratory chain complexe