Machine-learning-based software to group heterogeneous students for online peer assessment activities

Since the academic year 2017/2018, a peer assessment activity was included in the online Genomics laboratory for the master’s degree course in Biological Sciences of the University of Camerino, with the aim of improving learning outcomes and soft skills in students, such as team building and critical thinking. Creating groups in university courses is not easy because of the large number of students, that leads teachers to realize groups totally randomly, a procedure that is not always effective. One of the factors that influences the success of collaborative learning is the creation of heterogeneous groups based on the students’ behaviors. Despite little improvements, the online genomics laboratory highlighted some gaps. Random groups didn’t ensure that each group was composed of heterogeneous students, and it leads some students to have a bad perception of the peer review activity, negatively affecting their engagement and motivation. This work proposes a new Machine Learning Approach and the realization of a specific software, able to create effective heterogeneous groups to be involved in the online peer assessment process, in order to improve learning outcomes and satisfaction in the students. The aim is to check the improvement of the peer assessment effectiveness using heterogeneous groups compared to random groups of students. Two editions of the online laboratory of Genomics were analysed, examining the students’ results and perceptions to verify the impact of the Machine Learning approach designed in this work

Antirheumatic drugs and reproduction in women and men with chronic arthritis.

The impact of rheumatic disease on fertility and reproduction can be remarkable. Many disease-related factors can influence patients' sexual functioning, perturb fertility and limit family planning. Antirheumatic pharmacological treatment can also have a crucial role in this field. Proper counselling, preferably provided by a multidisciplinary team of rheumatologists, obstetricians, gynaecologists and neonatologists, is recommended for patients taking antirheumatic drugs, not only at the beginning, but also during the course of treatment. Paternal exposure to antirheumatic drugs was not found to be specifically associated with congenital malformation and adverse pregnancy outcome, therefore discontinuation of these drugs while planning for conception should be weighed against the risk of disease flare. Drugs in Food and Drug Administration (FDA) category 'X' should be withdrawn in a timely manner in women who desire a pregnancy. Meanwhile, disease control can be achieved with anti-tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α agents, which are not teratogenic drugs. If maternal disease control is permissive, they can be stopped as soon as the pregnancy test turns positive and be resumed during pregnancy in case of a flare

The Effect of Endurance Training on Pulmonary V˙O2 Kinetics in Solid Organs Transplanted Recipients

BACKGROUND: We investigated the effects of single (SL-ET) and double leg (DL-ET) high-intensity interval training on O2 deficit (O2Def) and mean response time (MRT) during square-wave moderate-intensity exercise (DL-MOD), and on the amplitude of V˙O2p slow component (SCamp), during heavy intensity exercise (DL-HVY), on 33 patients (heart transplant = 13, kidney transplanted = 11 and liver transplanted = 9). METHODS: Patients performed DL incremental step exercise to exhaustion, two DL-MOD tests, and a DL-HVY trial before and after 24 sessions of SL-ET (n = 17) or DL-ET (n = 16). RESULTS: After SL-ET, O2Def, MRT and SCamp decreased by 16.4% ± 13.7 (p = 0.008), by 15.6% ± 13.7 (p = 0.004) and by 35% ± 31 (p = 0.002), respectively. After DL-ET, they dropped by 24.9% ± 16.2 (p < 0.0001), by 25.9% ± 13.6 (p < 0.0001) and by 38% ± 52 (p = 0.0003), respectively. The magnitude of improvement of O2Def, MRT, and SCamp was not significantly different between SL-ET and DL-ET after training. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that SL-ET is as effective as DL-ET if we aim to improve V˙O2p kinetics in transplanted patients and suggest that the slower, V˙O2p kinetics is mainly caused by the impairment of peripherals exchanges likely due to the immunosuppressive medications and disuse

Drug design and synthesis of first in class PDZ1 targeting NHERF1 inhibitors as anticancer agents

Targeted approaches aiming at modulating NHERF1 activity, rather than its overall expression, would be preferred to preserve the normal functions of this versatile protein. We focused our attention on the NHERF1/PDZ1 domain that governs its membrane recruitment/displacement through a transient phosphorylation switch. We herein report the design and synthesis of novel NHERF1 PDZ1 domain inhibitors. These compounds have potential therapeutic value when used in combination with antagonists of β-catenin to augment apoptotic death of colorectal cancer cells refractory to currently available Wnt/β-catenin-targeted agents

Graft preservation in heart transplantation: current approaches

Heart transplantation (HTx) represents the current best surgical treatment for patients affected by end-stage heart failure. However, with the improvement of medical and interventional therapies, the population of HTx candidates is increasingly old and at high-risk for mortality and complications. Moreover, the use of “extended donor criteria” to deal with the shortage of donors could increase the risk of worse outcomes after HTx. In this setting, the strategy of donor organ preservation could significantly affect HTx results. The most widely used technique for donor organ preservation is static cold storage in ice. New techniques that are clinically being used for donor heart preservation include static controlled hypothermia and machine perfusion (MP) systems. Controlled hypothermia allows for a monitored cold storage between 4°C and 8°C. This simple technique seems to better preserve the donor heart when compared to ice, probably avoiding tissue injury due to sub-zero °C temperatures. MP platforms are divided in normothermic and hypothermic, and continuously perfuse the donor heart, reducing ischemic time, a well-known independent risk factor for mortality after HTx. Also, normothermic MP permits to evaluate marginal donor grafts, and could represent a safe and effective technique to expand the available donor pool. However, despite the increasing number of donor hearts preserved with these new approaches, whether these techniques could be considered superior to traditional CS still represents a matter of debate. The aim of this review is to summarize and critically assess the available clinical data on donor heart preservation strategies employed for HTx

Subpopulations of anti-β2glycoprotein I antibodies with different pathogenic potential: fine specificity against the domains of β2glycoprotein I

Objective: Anti-β2glycoprotein I antibodies (a-β2GPI) are a laboratory criterion for the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and were demonstrated to be involved in the pathogenesis of APS. However, they can also be detected in asymptomatic subjects. It has been suggested that a-β2GPI against Domain1 (D1) associate with thrombosis, while those recognizing Domain4/5 (D4/5) have been identified in non-thrombotic conditions. We evaluate the specificity of a- β2GPI in different clinical situations. Methods: We studied 39 one-year-old healthy children born to mothers with systemic autoimmune diseases (SAD) (15 (38.4%) were born to mothers who were a-β2GPI positive), 33 children with atopic dermatitis (AD) and 55 patients with APS (50 adults and 5 paediatrics). All subjects were IgG a-β2GPI positive. IgG a-β2GPI were performed by homemade ELISA, while IgG a-β2GPI D1 and D4/5 were tested on research ELISAs containing recombinant β2GPI domains antigens. Results: One-year-old children and AD children displayed preferential reactivity for D4/5; patients with APS recognized preferentially D1. We also found a good correlation between a-β2GPI and D4/5 in one-year-old (r=0.853) and AD children (r=0.879) and between a-β2GPI and D1 in the APS group (r=0.575). No thrombotic events were recorded in both groups of children. Conclusions: A-β2GPI found in non-thrombotic conditions (healthy children born to mothers with SAD and AD children) mostly recognize D4/5, in contrast to the prevalent specificity for D1 in the APS group. The different specificity could at least partially explain the "innocent" profile of a-β2GPI in children

Metabolic Syndrome and Heart Transplantation: An Underestimated Risk Factor?

Metabolic Syndrome (MetS), a multifactorial condition that increases the risk of cardio-vascular events, is frequent in Heart-transplant (HTx) candidates and worsens with immunosuppressive therapy. The aim of the study was to analyze the impact of MetS on long-term outcome of HTx patients. Since 2007, 349 HTx patients were enrolled. MetS was diagnosed if patients met revised NCEP-ATP III criteria before HTx, at 1, 5 and 10 years of follow-up. MetS was present in 35% of patients pre-HTx and 47% at 1 year follow-up. Five-year survival in patients with both pre-HTx (65% vs. 78%, p < 0.01) and 1 year follow-up MetS (78% vs 89%, p < 0.01) was worst. At the univariate analysis, risk factors for mortality were pre-HTx MetS (HR 1.86, p < 0.01), hypertension (HR 2.46, p < 0.01), hypertriglyceridemia (HR 1.50, p=0.03), chronic renal failure (HR 2.95, p < 0.01), MetS and diabetes at 1 year follow-up (HR 2.00, p < 0.01; HR 2.02, p < 0.01, respectively). MetS at 1 year follow-up determined a higher risk to develop Coronary allograft vasculopathy at 5 and 10 year follow-up (25% vs 14% and 44% vs 25%, p < 0.01). MetS is an important risk factor for both mortality and morbidity post-HTx, suggesting the need for a strict monitoring of metabolic disorders with a careful nutritional follow-up in HTx patients

Targeting PDZ domains as potential treatment for viral infections, neurodegeneration and cancer

The interaction between proteins is a fundamental event for cellular life that is generally mediated by specialized protein domains or modules. PDZ domains are the largest class of protein–protein interaction modules, involved in several cellular pathways such as signal transduction, cell–cell junctions, cell polarity and adhesion, and protein trafficking. Because of that, dysregulation of PDZ domain function often causes the onset of pathologies, thus making this family of domains an interesting pharmaceutical target. In this review article we provide an overview of the structural and functional features of PDZ domains and their involvement in the cellular and molecular pathways at the basis of different human pathologies. We also discuss some of the strategies that have been developed with the final goal to hijack or inhibit the interaction of PDZ domains with their ligands. Because of the generally low binding selectivity of PDZ domain and the scarce efficiency of small molecules in inhibiting PDZ binding, this task resulted particularly difficult to pursue and still demands increasing experimental efforts in order to become completely feasible and successful in vivo

POS0702 PREGNANCY IN SLE PATIENTS TREATED WITH BELIMUMAB: EXPERIENCE FROM 3 ITALIAN CENTERS

Background:Belimumab (BEL) is a monoclonal antibody approved for SLE treatment but few data are available about its use before or during pregnancy.Objectives:Our study aims to describe pregnancies in SLE patients who have discontinued BEL before conception, at positive pregnancy test or during pregnancy.Methods:Data from prospectively-followed pregnancies (2014-2020) in SLE patients treated with BEL in 3 Italian centers where retrospectively collected, focusing on maternal disease activity, obstetric and neonatal outcome. Continuous data are expressed as median [min-max].Results:Thirteen SLE pregnancies were analyzed (median age at conception 32 [24-41] years; 77% spontaneous, 69% primigravidae). All patients had positive ANA and anti-dsDNA antibodies; 4 had anti-Ro antibodies (31%); 4 had anti-phospholipid antibodies (aPL; 1 single, 2 double and 1 triple positivity). Seven patients (54%) had a history of lupus nephritis (LN); 2 patients (15%) had a concomitant diagnosis of antiphospholipid syndrome (1 thrombotic-APS and 1 thrombotic+obstetric-APS).Ten (77%) pregnancies were planned and the use of BEL with regard to pregnancy was agreed with the patient during preconception counseling. At preconception visit, 8 patients were in remission while 5 had active disease (median SLEDAI 3 [0-8]).BEL (11 intravenous, 2 subcutaneous) was stopped in 2 cases before conception, in 7 at positive pregnancy test and in 4 during pregnancy (2 at 11th week, 1 at 22nd, 1 at 24th); median duration of treatment at discontinuation was 29 [4-68] months. Other treatments during pregnancy were: oral prednisone in 12 cases (92%); intravenous methylprednisolone in 1 (8%); hydroxychloroquine in 10 (77%); chloroquine in 1 (8%); azathioprine in 5 (39%); calcineurin inhibitors in 5 (39%); low-dose acetylsalicylic acid in 10 (77%); low molecular weight heparin in 9 (69%).Three flares occurred during the 3rd trimester in patients who stopped BEL at positive pregnancy test.Live-births occurred in 92% of the pregnancies. A patient with thrombotic+obstetric-APS and LN, underwent assisted reproductive technology (embryo donation) and developed eclampsia (25thweek), an urgent cesarean section was performed and the newborn died after 3 days. One pre-eclampsia occurred in a patient with history of LN, double aPL positivity and active disease. One miscarriage at 11th week occurred; no early miscarriages (10thweek)1/2 (50%)0/70/4Perinatal death0/20/71/4* (25%)IUGR: IntraUterine Growth Restriction; PROM: Premature Rupture of Membrane; pPROM: pretermPROM; *in the same patient (history of thrombotic and obstetric-APS and lupus nephritis) who underwent Assisted Reproductive Technologies (embryo donation).No malformations were recorded. Two newborns were transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (1 for milk protein intolerance and 1 for desaturation).Eight newborns received vaccinations according to national schedule (missing data for 3). Five newborns were breastfed, 1 received formula milk and 5 mixed-feeding. BEL was resumed in 7/13 patients after pregnancy (in 4 cases for flare), after a median period of 5 [4-22] months.Conclusion:While more data are needed, this small series suggests that BEL might be a therapeutic option for SLE patients during pregnancy planning, similarly to other biological drugs used in chronic forms of arthritis.Disclosure of Interests:None declare