Entering the Empire

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Pharmacological activation of PPARβ/δ preserves mitochondrial respiratory function in ischemia/reperfusion via stimulation of fatty acid oxidation-linked respiration and PGC-1α/NRF-1 signaling

Funding Information: The work was supported by core institutional funds and the Graduate Program “Applications of Biology” of the School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Funding Information: The authors thank Dr Reinis Vilskersts for his assistance during ex vivo experimental procedures and Stanislava Korzh for her assistance during high resolution fluorespirometry procedures. This article is based upon work from COST Action EU-CARDIOPROTECTION CA16225 supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). Publisher Copyright: Copyright © 2022 Papatheodorou, Makrecka-Kuka, Kuka, Liepinsh, Dambrova and Lazou.Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury leads to significant impairment of cardiac function and remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor β/δ (PPARβ/δ) confers cardioprotection via pleiotropic effects including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions; however, the underlying mechanisms are not yet fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of PPARβ/δ activation on myocardial mitochondrial respiratory function and link this effect with cardioprotection after ischemia/reperfusion (I/R). For this purpose, rats were treated with the PPARβ/δ agonist GW0742 and/or antagonist GSK0660 in vivo. Mitochondrial respiration and ROS production rates were determined using high-resolution fluororespirometry. Activation of PPARβ/δ did not alter mitochondrial respiratory function in the healthy heart, however, inhibition of PPARβ/δ reduced fatty acid oxidation (FAO) and complex II-linked mitochondrial respiration and shifted the substrate dependence away from succinate-related energy production and towards NADH. Activation of PPARβ/δ reduced mitochondrial stress during in vitro anoxia/reoxygenation. Furthermore, it preserved FAO-dependent mitochondrial respiration and lowered ROS production at oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS)-dependent state during ex vivo I/R. PPARβ/δ activation was also followed by increased mRNA expression of components of FAO -linked respiration and of transcription factors governing mitochondrial homeostasis (carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1b and 2-CPT-1b and CPT-2, electron transfer flavoprotein dehydrogenase -ETFDH, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1 alpha- PGC-1α and nuclear respiratory factor 1-NRF-1). In conclusion, activation of PPARβ/δ stimulated both FAO-linked respiration and PGC-1α/NRF -1 signaling and preserved mitochondrial respiratory function during I/R. These effects are associated with reduced infarct size.publishersversionPeer reviewe

Carbon Footprint Analysis of Processing Tomato Cultivation in Greece

Agriculture contributes to global warming through the emissions of greenhouse gasses (GHGs). As one of the most important horticultural crops, tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) is of great economic importance.  Approximately 80% of the tomatoes grown around the world are processed into sauces, juices, ketchup, canned tomatoes, and soups. The goal of the present study was to assess the carbon footprint of commercially grown processing tomatoes in Greece. The emissions were calculated by using the Cool Farm Tool software. For data collection, a questionnaire was distributed to processing tomato producers. The questionnaires were completed by 40 producers from the main processing tomato-growing regions of Greece. The estimated total carbon footprint value of tomato cultivation for a mean area of 7.16 ha (producing 94.8 tn of tomatoes per ha) was 1,369,700 kg CO2-eq. Specifically, the estimated carbon footprint values per hectare and kg of fruit were 191,298.88 and 0.20 kg CO2-eq, respectively. In addition, the current study revealed that the highest CO2-eq emissions per tonne of fruit were observed in energy use (fuel consumption) for field operations, corresponding to 40.49% of the total emissions per tonne of product

The science behind soft skills: Do’s and Don’ts for early career researchers and beyond. A review paper from the EU-CardioRNA COST Action CA17129

peer reviewedSoft skills are the elementary management, personal, and interpersonal abilities that are vital for an individual to be efficient at workplace or in their personal life. Each work place requires different set of soft skills. Thus, in addition to scientific/technical skills that are easier to access within a short time frame, several key soft skills are essential for the success of a researcher in today’s international work environment. In this paper, the trainees and trainers of the EU-CardioRNA COST Action CA17129 training school on soft skills present basic and advanced soft skills for early career researchers. Here, we particularly emphasize on the importance of transferable and presentation skills, ethics, literature reading and reviewing, research protocol and grant writing, networking, and career opportunities for researchers. All these skills are vital but are often overlooked by some scholars. We also provide tips to ace in aforementioned skills that are crucial in a day-to-day life of early and late career researchers in academia and industry.</ns4:p

The association of depression and all-cause and cause-specific mortality: an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Background: Depression is a prevalent and disabling mental disorder that frequently co-occurs with a wide range of chronic conditions. Evidence has suggested that depression could be associated with excess all-cause mortality across different settings and populations, although the causality of these associations remains unclear. Methods: We conducted an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses of observational studies. PubMed, PsycINFO, and Embase electronic databases were searched through January 20, 2018. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses that investigated associations of depression and all-cause and cause-specific mortality were selected for the review. The evidence was graded as convincing, highly suggestive, suggestive, or weak based on quantitative criteria that included an assessment of heterogeneity, 95% prediction intervals, small-study effects, and excess significance bias. Results: A total of 26 references providing 2 systematic reviews and data for 17 meta-analytic estimates met inclusion criteria (19 of them on all-cause mortality); data from 246 unique studies (N = 3,825,380) were synthesized. All 17 associations had P < 0.05 per random effects summary effects, but none of them met criteria for convincing evidence. Associations of depression and all-cause mortality in patients after acute myocardial infarction, in individuals with heart failure, in cancer patients as well as in samples from mixed settings met criteria for highly suggestive evidence. However, none of the associations remained supported by highly suggestive evidence in sensitivity analyses that considered studies employing structured diagnostic interviews. In addition, associations of depression and all-cause mortality in cancer and post-acute myocardial infarction samples were supported only by suggestive evidence when studies that tried to adjust for potential confounders were considered. Conclusions: Even though associations between depression and mortality have nominally significant results in all assessed settings and populations, the evidence becomes weaker when focusing on studies that used structured interviews and those that tried to adjust for potential confounders. A causal effect of depression on all-cause and cause-specific mortality remains unproven, and thus interventions targeting depression are not expected to result in lower mortality rates at least based on current evidence from observational studies

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Cardioprotective Effects of PPARβ/δ Activation against Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Rat Heart Are Associated with ALDH2 Upregulation, Amelioration of Oxidative Stress and Preservation of Mitochondrial Energy Production

Accumulating evidence support the cardioprotective properties of the nuclear receptor peroxisome proliferator activated receptor β/δ (PPARβ/δ); however, the underlying mechanisms are not yet fully elucidated. The aim of the study was to further investigate the mechanisms underlying PPARβ/δ-mediated cardioprotection in the setting of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R). For this purpose, rats were treated with PPARβ/δ agonist GW0742 and/or antagonist GSK0660 in vivo and hearts were subjected to ex vivo global ischemia followed by reperfusion. PPARβ/δ activation improved left ventricular developed pressure recovery, reduced infarct size (IS) and incidence of reperfusion-induced ventricular arrhythmias while it also up-regulated superoxide dismutase 2, catalase and uncoupling protein 3 resulting in attenuation of oxidative stress as evidenced by the reduction in 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal protein adducts and protein carbonyl formation. PPARβ/δ activation also increased both mRNA expression and enzymatic activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2); inhibition of ALDH2 abrogated the IS limiting effect of PPARβ/δ activation. Furthermore, upregulation of PGC-1α and isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 mRNA expression, increased citrate synthase activity as well as mitochondrial ATP content indicated improvement in mitochondrial content and energy production. These data provide new mechanistic insight into the cardioprotective properties of PPARβ/δ in I/R pointing to ALDH2 as a direct downstream target and suggesting that PPARβ/δ activation alleviates myocardial I/R injury through coordinated stimulation of the antioxidant defense of the heart and preservation of mitochondrial function

Ανάλυση δεδομένων συγχρονικής μελέτης εμβολιαστικής κάλυψης ιατρονοσηλευτικού προσωπικού με τη χρήση Latent Class Analysis (Ανάλυση Λανθάνουσας Τάξης)

Η πολυμεταβλητή στατιστική ανάλυση αποτελεί ένα πολύτιμο εργαλείο σε πολλές επιστήμες. Οι μέθοδοι της αξιοποιούνται σε διαδικασίες και μεθοδολογίες για την στατιστική συμπερασματολογία με τη χρήση πολλών μεταβλητών. Οι μέθοδοι αυτοί είναι ιδιαίτερα χρήσιμες, γιατί βοηθούν στην εξαγωγή συμπερασμάτων από μεγάλο αριθμό δεδομένων και στον περιορισμό της αβεβαιότητας, καθώς και στην εύρεση και ερμηνεία συσχετίσεων μεταξύ των μεταβλητών. Η παρούσα διπλωματική εργασία αφορά την εφαρμογή μεθόδων της πολυμεταβλητής στατιστικής ανάλυσης σε δεδομένα από μια συγχρονική μελέτη του πανεπιστημίου Θεσσαλίας που αφορά την εμβολιαστική κάλυψη του ιατρονοσηλευτικού προσωπικού ως προς την γρίπη και την ηπατίτιδα Β. Στόχος της έρευνας είναι η μελέτη και ανάλυση της στάσης των επαγγελματιών υγείας ως προς τον εμβολιασμό έναντι των δύο αυτών των ασθενειών και η διερεύνηση των πιθανών παραγόντων που σχετίζονται με την αποφυγή διενέργειας των αντίστοιχων εμβολίων. Για το σκοπό αυτό βάσει πληροφορίας που συλλέχτηκε από ένα ερωτηματολόγιο, παρουσιάζονται περιγραφικά μέτρα για τις ερωτήσεις, μονομεταβλητή ανάλυση των βασικών ερωτήσεων σχετικά με τους δύο εμβολιασμούς σε σχέση με τα δημογραφικά χαρακτηριστικά, και επίσης, ανάλυση λογιστικής παλινδρόμησης και ανάλυση λανθάνουσας τάξης με σκοπό την ανεύρεση χαρακτηριστικών που σχετίζονται με τον εμβολιασμό έναντι των δύο ασθενειών που μελετώνται. Τα συμπεράσματα που προκύπτουν από κάθε μια μέθοδο, προσθέτουν νέες πληροφορίες για τους παράγοντες που επηρεάζουν την πραγματοποίηση των συγκεκριμένων εμβολιασμών από το ιατρονοσηλευτικό προσωπικ Συγκεκριμένα προκύπτει ότι: (α) η γενική άποψη του προσωπικού ως προς τους εμβολιασμούς (β) η εκπαίδευση του προσωπικού και (γ) το κατά πόσον το προσωπικό θεωρεί σημαντικούς τους εμβολιασμούς, αποτελούν σημαντικούς παράγοντες για την απόφαση εμβολιασμού του. Ειδικότερα, το (α) προκύπτει από όλες τις μεθόδους που χρησιμοποιήθηκαν (μονομεταβλητή ανάλυση, λογιστική παλινδρόμηση και ανάλυση λανθάνουσας τάξης), το (β) προκύπτει από τη λογιστική παλινδρόμηση και την μονομεταβλητή ανάλυση, ενώ το (γ) προκύπτει από την μονομεταβλητή ανάλυση.Multivariable statistical analysis is a valuable tool in many sciences. Multivariable methods are exploited for deriving statistical summaries using simultaneously a number of different variables. These methods are particularly useful in order to draw conclusions from large numbers of data, to reduce uncertainty, as well as to identify and interpret associations between variables. The aim of this thesis is the application of multivariable statistical analysis to a dataset from a synchronic study at the University of Thessaly concerning the vaccination coverage of medical nurses for influenza type A (H1N1) and hepatitis B. The research aims to study and analyze the attitudes of health professionals towards vaccination against these two diseases and to investigate the possible factors associated with the avoidance of the respective vaccines. To this end, descriptive measures for the questionnaire items, univariate analysis of the main questions about the two vaccinations in relation to demographic characteristics, as well as logistic regression analysis and latent class analysis are presented, to identify characteristics associated with the vaccination against the two diseases under study. Each of the deployed method adds new information on the factors that affect vaccinations by medical and nursing staff. In particular, it is induced that: (a) the general attitude of the staff regarding vaccinations (b) the training of the staff and (c) the opinion of the staff regarding the importance of vaccinations, are significant factors for their vaccination decision. In particular, (a) results from all the utilized methods (univariate analysis, logistic regression and latent class analysis), (b) results from logistic regression and from two-by-two analysis, while (c) results from univariate analysis