Homologous self-organising scale-invariant properties characterise long range species spread and cancer invasion

The invariance of some system properties over a range of temporal and/or spatial scales is an attribute of many processes in nature1, often characterised by power law functions and fractal geometry2. In particular, there is growing consensus in that fat-tailed functions like the power law adequately describe long-distance dispersal (LDD) spread of organisms 3,4. Here we show that the spatial spread of individuals governed by a power law dispersal function is represented by a clear and unique signature, characterised by two properties: A fractal geometry of the boundaries of patches generated by dispersal with a fractal dimension D displaying universal features, and a disrupted patch size distribution characterised by two different power laws. Analysing patterns obtained by simulations and real patterns from species dispersal and cell spread in cancer invasion we show that both pattern properties are a direct result of LDD and localised dispersal and recruitment, reflecting population self-organisation

Design of a “clean-label” gluten-free bread to meet consumers demand

The market of gluten-free (GF) products has been steadily increasing in last few years. Due to the technological importance of gluten, the GF food production is still a challenge for the industry. Indeed, large quantities of fat, sugars, structuring agents, and flavor enhancers are added to GF formulations to make textural and sensorial characteristics comparable to conventional products, leading to nutritional and caloric intake imbalances. The formulation of the novel “clean-label” GF bread included a commonly used mixture of maize and rice flour (ratio 1:1) fortified with selected protein-rich flours. Naturally hydrocolloids-containing flours (psyllium, flaxseed, chia) were included in the bread formulation as structuring agents. A type-II sourdough was obtained by using a selected Weissella cibaria P9 and a GF sucrose-containing flour as substrate for fermentation to promote the exo-polysaccharides synthesis by the starter lactic acid bacterium. A two-step protocol for breadmaking was set-up: first, the GF sourdough was fermented (24 h at 30 °C); then, it was mixed with the other ingredients (30% of the final dough) and leavened with baker’s yeast before baking. Overall, the novel GF bread was characterized by good textural properties, high protein content (8.9% of dry matter) and in vitro protein digestibility (76.9%), low sugar (1.0% of dry matter) and fat (3.1% of dry matter) content, and an in vitro predicted glycemic index of 85

Plant-based alternatives to yogurt: State-of-the-art and perspectives of new biotechnological challenges

Due to the increasing demand for milk alternatives, related to both health and ethical needs, plant-based yogurt-like products have been widely explored in recent years. With the main goal to obtain snacks similar to the conventional yogurt in terms of textural and sensory properties and ability to host viable lactic acid bacteria for a long-time storage, several plant-derived ingredients (e.g., cereals, pseudocereals, legumes, and fruits) as well as technological solutions (e.g., enzymatic and thermal treatments) have been investigated. The central role of fermentation in yogurt-like production led to specific selections of lactic acid bacteria strains to be used as starters to guarantee optimal textural (e.g., through the synthesis of exo-polysaccharydes), nutritional (high protein digestibility and low content of anti-nutritional compounds), and functional (synthesis of bioactive compounds) features of the products. This review provides an overview of the novel insights on fermented yogurt-like products. The state-of-the-art on the use of unconventional ingredients, traditional and innovative biotechnological processes, and the effects of fermentation on the textural, nutritional, functional, and sensory features, and the shelf life are described. The supplementation of prebiotics and probiotics and the related health effects are also reviewed

Design of a plant-based yogurt-like product fortified with hemp flour. Formulation and characterization

Plant-based milk alternatives have gained massive popularity among consumers because of their sustainable production compared to bovine milk and because of meeting the nutritional requests of consumers affected by cow milk allergies and lactose intolerance. In this work, hemp flour, in a blend with rice flour, was used to design a novel lactose- and gluten-free yogurt-like (YL) product with suitable nutritional, functional, and sensory features. The growth and the acidification of three different lactic acid bacteria strains were monitored to better set up the biotechnological protocol for making the YL product. Hemp flour conferred the high fiber (circa 2.6 g/100 g), protein (circa 4 g/100 g), and mineral contents of the YL product, while fermentation by selected lactic acid bacteria increased the antioxidant properties (+8%) and the soluble fiber (+0.3 g/100 g), decreasing the predicted glycemic index (−10%). As demonstrated by the sensory analysis, the biotechnological process decreased the earthy flavor (typical of raw hemp flour) and increased the acidic and creamy sensory perceptions. Supplementation with natural clean-label vanilla powder and agave syrup was proposed to further decrease the astringent and bitter flavors. The evaluation of the starter survival and biochemical properties of the product under refrigerated conditions suggests an estimated shelf-life of 30 days. This work demonstrated that hemp flour might be used as a nutritional improver, while fermentation with a selected starter represents a sustainable and effective option for exploiting its potential

Identifying the oncogenic potential of gene fusions exploiting miRNAs

It is estimated that oncogenic gene fusions cause about 20% of human cancer morbidity. Identifying potentially oncogenic gene fusions may improve affected patients’ diagnosis and treatment. Previous approaches to this issue included exploiting specific gene-related information, such as gene function and regulation. Here we propose a model that profits from the previous findings and includes the microRNAs in the oncogenic assessment. We present ChimerDriver, a tool to classify gene fusions as oncogenic or not oncogenic. ChimerDriver is based on a specifically designed neural network and trained on genetic and post-transcriptional information to obtain a reliable classification. The designed neural network integrates information related to transcription factors, gene ontologies, microRNAs and other detailed information related to the functions of the genes involved in the fusion and the gene fusion structure. As a result, the performances on the test set reached 0.83 f1-score and 96% recall. The comparison with state-of-the-art tools returned comparable or higher results. Moreover, ChimerDriver performed well in a real-world case where 21 out of 24 validated gene fusion samples were detected by the gene fusion detection tool Starfusion. ChimerDriver integrates transcriptional and post-transcriptional information in an ad-hoc designed neural network to effectively discriminate oncogenic gene fusions from passenger ones. ChimerDriver source code is freely available at https://github.com/martalovino/ChimerDriver

Little-Parks effect in single YBaCuO sub-micron rings

The properties of single submicron high-temperature superconductor (HTS) rings are investigated. The Little-Parks effect is observed and is accompanied by an anomalous behavior of the magnetic dependence of the resistance, which we ascribe to non-uniform vorticity (superfluid angular momentum) within the ring arms. This effect is linked to the peculiar HTS-relationship between the values of the coherence length and the London penetration depth.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figure

PhyliCS: a Python library to explore scCNA data and quantify spatial tumor heterogeneity

Background: Tumors are composed by a number of cancer cell subpopulations (subclones), characterized by a distinguishable set of mutations. This phenomenon, known as intra-tumor heterogeneity (ITH), may be studied using Copy Number Aberrations (CNAs). Nowadays ITH can be assessed at the highest possible resolution using single-cell DNA (scDNA) sequencing technology. Additionally, single-cell CNA (scCNA) profiles from multiple samples of the same tumor can in principle be exploited to study the spatial distribution of subclones within a tumor mass. However, since the technology required to generate large scDNA sequencing datasets is relatively recent, dedicated analytical approaches are still lacking. Results: We present PhyliCS, the first tool which exploits scCNA data from multiple samples from the same tumor to estimate whether the different clones of a tumor are well mixed or spatially separated. Starting from the CNA data produced with third party instruments, it computes a score, the Spatial Heterogeneity score, aimed at distinguishing spatially intermixed cell populations from spatially segregated ones. Additionally, it provides functionalities to facilitate scDNA analysis, such as feature selection and dimensionality reduction methods, visualization tools and a flexible clustering module. Conclusions: PhyliCS represents a valuable instrument to explore the extent of spatial heterogeneity in multi-regional tumour sampling, exploiting the potential of scCNA data

Temporomandibular disorders and fibromyalgia: A narrative review

Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) and fibromyalgia (FM) have some clinical characteristics in common, for instance the chronic evolution, the pathophysiology incompletely understood and a multifactorial genesis. The incidence and the relationship between TMD and FM patients are the aims of this review. A MEDLINE and PubMed search were performed for the key words “temporomandibular disorder” AND “fibromyalgia” from 2000 to present. A total of 19 papers were included in our review, accounting for 5449 patients. Ten studies, reporting a total of 4945 patients with TMD, showed that only 16.5% of these patients had diagnosis of FM, whereas 12 studies, reporting a total of 504 patients with FM, demonstrated that 77.0% of these patients had diagnosis of TMD. A comorbid relationship exists between TMD and FM. The complexity of both diseases shows the importance of a multimodal and interdisciplinary

Is dental amalgam a higher risk factor rather than resin‐based restorations for systemic conditions? A systematic review

Objective: The aim of this study was to confirm the hypothesis that patients with one or more amalgam restorations have an increased risk for systemic diseases rather than patients with resin-based restorations. Data: The data search produced an initial 3568 total number of records. All titles and abstract were reviewed by five independent examiners, and only 36 records were selected for full text in depth examination. Out of these, only nine publications matched the inclusion criteria and were included in this systematic review. Sources: Electronic databases (MEDLINE, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Knowledge) were searched up to June 2019. In addition, a manual search was carried out on journals related to this topic. Study selection: All selected human clinical studies compared patients with dental amalgam restorations to patients with non-amalgam restorations on restorative material related diseases/health conditions with at least 50 patients and a reasonable follow up. The systemic effects of dental restorations were analyzed. As for any systemic effects, there was no difference between amalgam and composite restoration. Conclusions: With the limitations of the few available randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the matter, amalgam restorations, similarly to other modern resin-based materials, were not related to an increased risk of systemic diseases or conditions. Clinical significance: On the basis of the available RCTs, amalgam restorations, if compared with resin-based fillings, do not show an increased risk for systemic diseases. There is still insufficient evidence to exclude or demonstrate any direct influence on general health. The removal of old amalgam restorations and their substitution with more modern adhesive restorations should be performed only when clinically necessary and not just for material concerns. In order to better evaluate the safety of dental amalgam compared to other more modern restorative materials, further RCTs that consider important parameters such as long and uniform follow up periods, number of restorations per patient, and sample populations representative of chronic or degenerative diseases are needed

Fast tunable high Q-factor superconducting microwave resonators

We present fast tunable superconducting microwave resonators fabricated from planar NbN on a sapphire substrate. The $3\lambda/4$ wavelength resonators are tuning fork shaped and tuned by passing a dc current which controls the kinetic inductance of the tuning fork prongs. The $\lambda/4$ section from the open end operates as an integrated impedance converter which creates a nearly perfect short for microwave currents at the dc terminal coupling points, thus preventing microwave energy leakage through the dc lines. We measure an internal quality factor $Q_{\rm int}>10{^{5}}$ over the entire tuning range. We demonstrate a tuning range of $> 3\%$ and tuning response times as short as 20 ns for the maximum achievable detuning. Due to the quasi-fractal design, the resonators are resilient to magnetic fields of up to 0.5 T