Intrinsic innervation and dopaminergic markers after experimental denervation in rat thymus

The aim of this study was to examine rat thymus innervation using denervation techniques and to explore the related micro-anatomical localization of dopamine, D1, D2 receptors and dopamine membrane transporter (DAT). In the thymus subcapsular region, the parenchymal cholinergic fibers belong exclusively to phrenic nerve branching. No somatic phrenic nerve branching was detected in any other analysed thymus lobule regions. In rats subjected to sympathetic or parasympathetic ablation, it was observed that catecholaminergic and cholinergic nerve fibers respectively contributed to forming plexuses along vessel walls. In the subcapsular and septal region, no parenchymal nerve branching, belonging to sympathetic or parasympathetic nervous system was noted. Instead, in the deep cortical region, cortico-medullary junction (CM-j) and medulla, catecholaminergic and cholinergic nerve fibers were detected along the vessels and parenchyma. Dopamine and dopamine receptors were widely diffused in the lobular cortico-medullary junction region and in the medulla, where the final steps of thymocyte maturation and their trafficking take place. No variation in dopamine and DAT immune reaction was observed following total or partial parasympathectomy or phrenic nerve cutting. After chemical or surgical sympathectomy however, neither dopamine nor DAT immune reaction was noted again. Instead, D1 and D2 dopamine receptor expression was not affected by thymus denervation. In rats subjected to specific denervation, it was observed the direct intraparenchymal branching of the phrenic nerve and sympathetic and parasympathetic fibers into thymus parenchyma along vessels. These findings on the dopaminergic system highlight the importance of neurotransmitter receptor expression in the homeostasis of neuroimmune modulation

Integration of high-temperature electrolysis in an HVO production process using waste vegetable oil

The production of substitutes for liquid fossil fuels is of utmost importance for the decarbonization of the transport sector. This paper assesses the economic feasibility of producing hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) using waste vegetable oils as feedstock. The supply of hydrogen for the upgrading of the oil is obtained through a high-temperature electrolysis process, fed by low-carbon electricity. The use of waste materials eliminates the competition with food crops (e.g. soybean or rapeseed) and promotes the recycle of substances that should be treated for disposal. The results of the study show that the production cost of HVO with the considered plant are around 33% higher than that of fossil diesel. Moreover, the variable that has the strongest impact on the production cost of HVO is the price of the waste vegetable oil, which affects the final results more than the electricity price and the cost of the electrolyser

Cholinergic innervation of human mesenteric lymphatic vessels

Background: The cholinergic neurotransmission within the human mesenteric lymphatic vessels has been poorly studied. Therefore, our aim is to analyse the cholinergic nerve fibres of lymphatic vessels using the traditional enzymatic techniques of staining, plus the biochemical modifications of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity.Materials and methods: Specimens obtained from human mesenteric lymphatic vessels were subjected to the following experimental procedures: 1) drawing, cutting and staining of tissues; 2) staining of total nerve fibres; 3) enzymatic staining of cholinergic nerve fibres; 4) homogenisation of tissues; 5) biochemical amount of proteins; 6) biochemical amount of AChE activity; 6) quantitative analysis of images; 7) statistical analysis of data.Results: The mesenteric lymphatic vessels show many AChE positive nerve fibres around their wall with an almost plexiform distribution. The incubation time was performed at 1 h (partial activity) and 6 h (total activity). Moreover, biochemical dosage of the same enzymatic activity confirms the results obtained with morphological methods.Conclusions: The homogenates of the studied tissues contain strong AChE activity. In our study, the lymphatic vessels appeared to contain few cholinergic nerve fibres. Therefore, it is expected that perivascular nerve stimulation stimulates cholinergic nerves innervating the mesenteric arteries to release the neurotransmitter AChE, which activates muscarinic or nicotinic receptors to modulate adrenergic neurotransmission. These results strongly suggest, that perivascular cholinergic nerves have little or no effect on the adrenergic nerve function in mesenteric arteries. The cholinergic nerves innervating mesenteric arteries do not mediate direct vascular responses.

Variations in the reporting of outcomes used in systematic reviews of treatment effectiveness research in bladder pain syndrome

Abstract not availableSeema A. Tirlapur, Richeal Ni Riordain, Khalid S. Khan on behalf of the EBM-CONNECT Collaboratio

Impact of patients nutritional status on major surgery outcome

Abstract. – OBJECTIVE: Surgery is a major stress factor that activates several inflammatory and catabolic pathways in man. An appropriate nutritional status allows the body to react properly to this stressor and recover in a faster and more efficient manner. On the other hand, malnutrition is related to a worse surgery outcome and to a higher prevalence of comorbidities and mortality. The aims of this study were to evaluate the nutritional status of patients undergoing major surgery and investigate the potential correlation between malnutrition and surgical outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) and global clinical examination (including biochemical parameters and comorbidities existence) were undertaken in 50 consecutive patients undergoing major surgery. Patients’ clinical conditions were re-evaluated at 3 and 6 days after surgery, recording biochemical parameters and systemic and/or wound-related complications. RESULTS: A compromised nutritional status was present in more than half (54%) of patients (malnutrition in 10% and risk of malnutrition in 44% of patients, respectively). Females were slightly more at risk of malnutrition (48% vs. 41%, p=NS, females vs. males) and clearly malnourished (14% vs. 7%, p<0.05, females vs. males). Age was an independent risk factor for malnutrition and within the elders’ group (> 80 years old) 16.70% of patients was diagnosed with malnutrition and 58.3% was at risk of malnutrition. Systemic complications were registered in all patients both at 3 and 6 days after surgery. However, well-nourished and at-risk of malnutrition patients had earlier complications that only partially resolved within six days after the operation. Malnourished patients showed fewer complications at the 3rd post-surgery follow-up day but had a worse outcome six days after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Older age and but not female sex are independent risk factors for malnutrition development in patients undergoing major surgery. More interestingly, more than half of patients with an impaired nutritional status presented a less appropriated stress response to surgery. These data suggest that nutritional status assessment may be important to recognize patients at potential risk of surgical complications and that early nutritional interventions must be promptly arranged

Interpregnancy interval and perinatal outcomes across Latin America from 1990 to 2009: a large multi-country study

UNDP/UNFPA/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction, Department of Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization Evidence‐Based Medicine COllaboratioN: NEtwork for systematic reviews and guideline development researCh and dissemination (EBM‐CONNECT) Collaboration through its Seventh Framework Programme, Marie Curie Actions, International Staff Exchange Scheme. Grant Numbers: 101377, 24761

Shared decision making in breast cancer treatment guidelines: Development of a quality assessment tool and a systematic review

Background: It is not clear whether clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) and consensus statements (CSs) are adequately promoting shared decision making (SDM). Objective: To evaluate the recommendations about SDM in CPGs and CSs concerning breast cancer (BC) treatment. Search strategy: Following protocol registration (Prospero no.: CRD42018106643), CPGs and CSs on BC treatment were identified, without language restrictions, through systematic search of bibliographic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, Scopus, CDSR) and online sources (12 guideline databases and 51 professional society websites) from January 2010 to December 2019. Inclusion criteria: CPGs and CSs on BC treatment were selected whether published in a journal or in an online document. Data extraction and synthesis: A 31-item SDM quality assessment tool was developed and used to extract data in duplicate. Main results: There were 167 relevant CPGs (139) and CSs (28); SDM was reported in only 40% of the studies. SDM was reported more often in recent publications after 2015 (42/101 (41.6 %) vs 46/66 (69.7 %), P = .0003) but less often in medical journal publications (44/101 (43.5 %) vs 17/66 (25.7 %), P = .009). In CPGs and CSs with SDM, only 8/66 (12%) met one-fifth (6 of 31) of the quality items; only 14/66 (8%) provided clear and precise SDM recommendations. Discussion and conclusions: SDM descriptions and recommendations in CPGs and CSs concerning BC treatment need improvement. SDM was more frequently reported in CPGs and CSs in recent years, but surprisingly it was less often covered in medical journals, a feature that needs attention

Release of sICAM-1 in Oocytes and In Vitro Fertilized Human Embryos

Background: During the last years, several studies have reported the significant relationship between the production of soluble HLA-G molecules (sHLA-G) by 48–72 hours early embryos and an increased implantation rate in IVF protocols. As consequence, the detection of HLA-G modulation was suggested as a marker to identify the best embryos to be transferred. On the opposite, no suitable markers are available for the oocyte selection. Methodology/Principal Findings: The major finding of the present paper is that the release of ICAM-1 might be predictive of oocyte maturation. The results obtained are confirmed using three independent methodologies, such as ELISA, Bio-Plex assay and Western blotting. The sICAM-1 release is very high in immature oocytes, decrease in mature oocytes and become even lower in in vitro fertilized embryos. No significant differences were observed in the levels of sICAM-1 release between immature oocytes with different morphological characteristics. On the contrary, when the mature oocytes were subdivided accordingly to morphological criteria, the mean sICAM-I levels in grade 1 oocytes were significantly decreased when compared to grade 2 and 3 oocytes. Conclusions/Significance: The reduction of the number of fertilized oocytes and transferred embryos represents the main target of assisted reproductive medicine. We propose sICAM-1 as a biochemical marker for oocyte maturation and grading

Improving Bioscience Research Reporting: The ARRIVE Guidelines for Reporting Animal Research

In the last decade the number of bioscience journals has increased enormously, with many filling specialised niches reflecting new disciplines and technologies. The emergence of open-access journals has revolutionised the publication process, maximising the availability of research data. Nevertheless, a wealth of evidence shows that across many areas, the reporting of biomedical research is often inadequate, leading to the view that even if the science is sound, in many cases the publications themselves are not "fit for purpose", meaning that incomplete reporting of relevant information effectively renders many publications of limited value as instruments to inform policy or clinical and scientific practice [1-21]. A recent review of clinical research showed that there is considerable cumulative waste of financial resources at all stages of the research process, including as a result of publications that are unusable due to poor reporting [22]. It is unlikely that this issue is confined to clinical research [2-14,16-20]. © 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Publication Bias in Reports of Animal Stroke Studies Leads to Major Overstatement of Efficacy

Publication bias confounds attempts to use systematic reviews to assess the efficacy of various interventions tested in experiments modelling acute ischaemic stroke, leading to a 30% overstatement of efficacy of interventions tested in animals