MicroRNA Implications across Neurodevelopment and Neuropathology

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have rapidly emerged as biologically important mediators of posttranscriptional and epigenetic regulation in both plants and animals. miRNAs function through a variety of mechanisms including mRNA degradation and translational repression; additionally, miRNAs may guide gene expression by serving as transcription factors. miRNAs are highly expressed in human brain. Tissue and cell type-specific enrichments of certain miRNAs within the nervous system argue for a biological significance during neurodevelopmental stages. On the other hand, a large number of studies have reported links between alterations of miRNA homeostasis and pathologic conditions such as cancer, heart diseases, and neurodegeneration. Thus, profiles of distinct or aberrant miRNA signatures have most recently surged as one of the most fascinating interests in current biology. Here, the most recent insights into the involvement of miRNAs in the biology of the nervous system and the occurrence of neuropathological disorders are reviewed and discussed

The role of organic and inorganic indoor pollutants in museum environments in the degradation of dammar varnish

This paper investigates the effects of inorganic (NO2 and O3) and volatile organic acid (acetic acid) pollutants on the degradation of dammar varnish in museum environments. Model paint varnish samples based on dammar resin were investigated by Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Dammar is a natural triterpenoid resin, commonly used as a paint varnish. Samples were subjected to accelerated ageing by different levels of pollutants (NO2 and O3 and acetic acid) over a range of relative humidities (RH) and then analysed. The results revealed that as the dose of the pollutant was increased, so did the degree of oxidation and cross-linking of the resin. Most interestingly, it was shown for the first time that exposure to acetic acid vapour resulted in the production of an oxidised and cross-linked resin, comparable to the resin obtained under exposure to NO2 and O3. These conclusions were supported by the analyses of model varnishes exposed for about two years in selected museum environments, where the levels of pollutants had been previously measured. Exposures were performed both within and outside the selected microclimate frames for paintings. Results showed that varnishes placed within the microclimate frames were not always better preserved than those exposed outside the frames. For some sites, the results highlighted the protective effects of the frames from outdoor generated pollutants, such as NO2 and O3. For other sites, the results showed that the microclimate frames acted as traps for the volatile organic acids emitted by the wooden components of the mc-frames, which damaged the varnish

Development of a New Tool for 3D Modeling for Regenerative Medicine

The effectiveness of therapeutic treatment based on regenerative medicine for degenerative diseases (i.e., neurodegenerative or cardiac diseases) requires tools allowing the visualization and analysis of the three-dimensional (3D) distribution of target drugs within the tissue. Here, we present a new computational procedure able to overcome the limitations of visual analysis emerging by the examination of a molecular signal within images of serial tissue/organ sections by using the conventional techniques. Together with the 3D anatomical reconstitution of the tissue/organ, our framework allows the detection of signals of different origins (e.g., marked generic molecules, colorimetric, or fluorimetric substrates for enzymes; microRNA; recombinant protein). Remarkably, the application does not require the employment of specific tracking reagents for the imaging analysis. We report two different representative applications: the first shows the reconstruction of a 3D model of mouse brain with the analysis of the distribution of the β-Galactosidase, the second shows the reconstruction of a 3D mouse heart with the measurement of the cardiac volume

Low in‑hospital mortality rate in patients with COVID‑19 receiving thromboprophylaxis: data from the multicentre observational START‑COVID Register

Abstract COVID-19 infection causes respiratory pathology with severe interstitial pneumonia and extra-pulmonary complications; in particular, it may predispose to thromboembolic disease. The current guidelines recommend the use of thromboprophylaxis in patients with COVID-19, however, the optimal heparin dosage treatment is not well-established. We conducted a multicentre, Italian, retrospective, observational study on COVID-19 patients admitted to ordinary wards, to describe clinical characteristic of patients at admission, bleeding and thrombotic events occurring during hospital stay. The strategies used for thromboprophylaxis and its role on patient outcome were, also, described. 1091 patients hospitalized were included in the START-COVID-19 Register. During hospital stay, 769 (70.7%) patients were treated with antithrombotic drugs: low molecular weight heparin (the great majority enoxaparin), fondaparinux, or unfractioned heparin. These patients were more frequently affected by comorbidities, such as hypertension, atrial fibrillation, previous thromboembolism, neurological disease,and cancer with respect to patients who did not receive thromboprophylaxis. During hospital stay, 1.2% patients had a major bleeding event. All patients were treated with antithrombotic drugs; 5.4%, had venous thromboembolism [30.5% deep vein thrombosis (DVT), 66.1% pulmonary embolism (PE), and 3.4% patients had DVT + PE]. In our cohort the mortality rate was 18.3%. Heparin use was independently associated with survival in patients aged ≥ 59 years at multivariable analysis. We confirmed the high mortality rate of COVID-19 in hospitalized patients in ordinary wards. Treatment with antithrombotic drugs is significantly associated with a reduction of mortality rates especially in patients older than 59 years

Colorectal Cancer Stage at Diagnosis Before vs During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

IMPORTANCE Delays in screening programs and the reluctance of patients to seek medical attention because of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 could be associated with the risk of more advanced colorectal cancers at diagnosis. OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was associated with more advanced oncologic stage and change in clinical presentation for patients with colorectal cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This retrospective, multicenter cohort study included all 17 938 adult patients who underwent surgery for colorectal cancer from March 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021 (pandemic period), and from January 1, 2018, to February 29, 2020 (prepandemic period), in 81 participating centers in Italy, including tertiary centers and community hospitals. Follow-up was 30 days from surgery. EXPOSURES Any type of surgical procedure for colorectal cancer, including explorative surgery, palliative procedures, and atypical or segmental resections. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was advanced stage of colorectal cancer at diagnosis. Secondary outcomes were distant metastasis, T4 stage, aggressive biology (defined as cancer with at least 1 of the following characteristics: signet ring cells, mucinous tumor, budding, lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and lymphangitis), stenotic lesion, emergency surgery, and palliative surgery. The independent association between the pandemic period and the outcomes was assessed using multivariate random-effects logistic regression, with hospital as the cluster variable. RESULTS A total of 17 938 patients (10 007 men [55.8%]; mean [SD] age, 70.6 [12.2] years) underwent surgery for colorectal cancer: 7796 (43.5%) during the pandemic period and 10 142 (56.5%) during the prepandemic period. Logistic regression indicated that the pandemic period was significantly associated with an increased rate of advanced-stage colorectal cancer (odds ratio [OR], 1.07; 95%CI, 1.01-1.13; P = .03), aggressive biology (OR, 1.32; 95%CI, 1.15-1.53; P < .001), and stenotic lesions (OR, 1.15; 95%CI, 1.01-1.31; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE This cohort study suggests a significant association between the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the risk of a more advanced oncologic stage at diagnosis among patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer and might indicate a potential reduction of survival for these patients

Search for gravitational-lensing signatures in the full third observing run of the LIGO-Virgo network

Gravitational lensing by massive objects along the line of sight to the source causes distortions of gravitational wave-signals; such distortions may reveal information about fundamental physics, cosmology and astrophysics. In this work, we have extended the search for lensing signatures to all binary black hole events from the third observing run of the LIGO--Virgo network. We search for repeated signals from strong lensing by 1) performing targeted searches for subthreshold signals, 2) calculating the degree of overlap amongst the intrinsic parameters and sky location of pairs of signals, 3) comparing the similarities of the spectrograms amongst pairs of signals, and 4) performing dual-signal Bayesian analysis that takes into account selection effects and astrophysical knowledge. We also search for distortions to the gravitational waveform caused by 1) frequency-independent phase shifts in strongly lensed images, and 2) frequency-dependent modulation of the amplitude and phase due to point masses. None of these searches yields significant evidence for lensing. Finally, we use the non-detection of gravitational-wave lensing to constrain the lensing rate based on the latest merger-rate estimates and the fraction of dark matter composed of compact objects

Search for eccentric black hole coalescences during the third observing run of LIGO and Virgo

Despite the growing number of confident binary black hole coalescences observed through gravitational waves so far, the astrophysical origin of these binaries remains uncertain. Orbital eccentricity is one of the clearest tracers of binary formation channels. Identifying binary eccentricity, however, remains challenging due to the limited availability of gravitational waveforms that include effects of eccentricity. Here, we present observational results for a waveform-independent search sensitive to eccentric black hole coalescences, covering the third observing run (O3) of the LIGO and Virgo detectors. We identified no new high-significance candidates beyond those that were already identified with searches focusing on quasi-circular binaries. We determine the sensitivity of our search to high-mass (total mass M>70 M⊙) binaries covering eccentricities up to 0.3 at 15 Hz orbital frequency, and use this to compare model predictions to search results. Assuming all detections are indeed quasi-circular, for our fiducial population model, we place an upper limit for the merger rate density of high-mass binaries with eccentricities 0<e≤0.3 at 0.33 Gpc−3 yr−1 at 90\% confidence level

Ultralight vector dark matter search using data from the KAGRA O3GK run

Among the various candidates for dark matter (DM), ultralight vector DM can be probed by laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors through the measurement of oscillating length changes in the arm cavities. In this context, KAGRA has a unique feature due to differing compositions of its mirrors, enhancing the signal of vector DM in the length change in the auxiliary channels. Here we present the result of a search for U(1)B−L gauge boson DM using the KAGRA data from auxiliary length channels during the first joint observation run together with GEO600. By applying our search pipeline, which takes into account the stochastic nature of ultralight DM, upper bounds on the coupling strength between the U(1)B−L gauge boson and ordinary matter are obtained for a range of DM masses. While our constraints are less stringent than those derived from previous experiments, this study demonstrates the applicability of our method to the lower-mass vector DM search, which is made difficult in this measurement by the short observation time compared to the auto-correlation time scale of DM

“Perché non sia un conto alla rovescia…” : un progetto di ricerca-azione sugli studenti collaboratori “a 150 ore” presso la Biblioteca di Ateneo dell’Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca

This paper presents the results of the action-research project on students employed for 150 hours, carried out between July and December 2003 in the Milano Bicocca University Library. The project was born from the desire to develop these human resources often "under-used", listening to their perceptions both as consumers and as employees of the library. It was decided therefore to adopt a qualitative and autobiographical approach to gather opinions and experiences of 53 aide students, employees in three library locations. Individual or small group interviews have revealed improvement areas about initial training, internal communication and organizational climate. The sharing of research findings within the staff was used to create different actions that have improved aide students' perceptions. The action-research on aide students continues..