Socioekonomski uzroci i alohtone vrste slatkovodnih rakova u Evropi

Strane vrste slatkovodnih rakova (NICS) prelaze po brojnosti autohtone u mnogim evropskim zemljama, predstavljajući pretnju biodiverzitetu zbog širenja "kuge" rakova, agresivne invazije i antagonističkog delovanja. Iako je biološka osnova ovog stanja dobro proučena, moguća uloga socijalnih, ekonomskih i demografskih činilaca za ovu situaciju je praktično ignorisana. U pokušaju da se ispitaju takvi odnosi, mi predlažemo da je gustina ljudske populacije i ekonomski rast meren kao rast domaćeg proizvoda (GDP) per capita pozitivno povezan sa povećanim brojem NICS-a u Evropskoj Uniji. Ovo je očigledno u zemljama sa većim ukupnim ekološkim tragom. U gornjem kontekstu hitno su potrebne akcije da se povrate/uravnoteže postojeće i projektovane ekološke promene prouzrokovane prisustvom NICS-a

Mid-term outcomes in the treatment of retroperitoneal sarcomas: a 12-year single-institution experience

Aim To present the experience from collective data regarding patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas that have been operated in and followed up by the University General Hospital of Patras in Rion, Greece, between 2009 and 2020. Methods A retrospective analysis of adult patients treated at our hospital with a diagnosis of primary retroperitoneal sarcoma who underwent tumour resection. Results Data from 29 patients were analysed. The mean age at diagnosis was 56.1 years; 55.2% of patients were male (n=16). Liposarcomas (on histology) were identified in 19 (65.5%) patients, leiomyosarcoma six (20.7%), and other histologic subtypes in four (13.8%) patients. Tumours >5cm were presented in 27 (93.1%) patients. Negative margins were attained in 13 (44.8%) of all patients who underwent surgical resection. Five (17.2%) patients received neoadjuvant radiation, four (13.8%) postoperative radiation, and three (10.3%) patients received both chemotherapy and radiation prior to surgery with the rest of the patients being treated with surgical excision alone. A 3-year follow-up was successful in 21 (72.4%) patients; five (23.8%) patients died. In total, 16 (55.2%) patients were found to have a local recurrence, with no significant difference in patients' age, gender, tumour size, histology, negative surgical margin (Ro) resection, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, or radiation therapy. There was a significant difference in the 3-year survival rate between patients having positive or negative surgical margins (p=0.027). Conclusion The higher 3-year survival rate in patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas when achieving Ro resection warrant further investigation with a larger sample size across different institutions

Weight status and depressive symptoms in 18 year-old Greek adolescents

Depressive symptoms in adolescence have been a subject of considerable controversy in terms of their nature, severity and identification. The aim of the study was to investigate the possible association between weight status and depressive symptoms among 18 year-old Greek adolescents. A cross-sectional study design was used. The study population consisted of 200 students of the University of Athens who fulfilled the following criteria: age 18 years, absence of clinical depression, no history of hospitalization in a mental institution, no history of alcohol abuse. Weight status was assessed by Body Mass Index (BMI) (kg/m2) and calculated from weight and height measurements. Severity of depressive symptoms was assessed by Centre for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D). In univariate analysis, CES-D score was significantly associated with adolescents' gender and BMI. The multivariate analysis showed that CES-D score was negatively related to BMI even after controlling the confounding effect of gender (P=0.018, B=-0.378). Depressive symptoms are related to weight status of adolescents

Do low price fish, have high nutritional value?

The aim of this paper was to compare the nutritional value of some low price fish (Sardina pilchardus, Engraulis encrasicholus, Anguilla anguilla, Salmo trutta, Mugil chepalus) to high price fish with high consumption rate (Sparus aurata, Merluccius merluccius, Dicentrarchus labrax).In general, the commercial values of several fish species in Greece was not always related with the nutritional value (proteins, lipids and polyunsaturated fatty acids). Despite the price differences, total lipid content is higher in eel (Anguilla anguilla) and grey mullet (Mugil chephalus), compared to other species. Moreover, concerning unsaturated fatty acid content, there are significant differences in favour of grey mullet and sardine (Sardina pilchardus). Differences in favour of eel are also reported for cholesterol, as well as differences in energy content in favour of eel and grey mullet. Absorption index for all species was higher than 0.92. In conclusion, fish with very low price seem to have the same or higher nutritional and energy value, compared to highly priced fish.Includes research findings and presentation

Gasification improvement of a poor quality solid recovered fuel (SRF): Effect of using natural minerals and biomass wastes blends

The need to produce energy from poor quality carbonaceous materials has increased, in order to reduce European dependency on imported fuels, diversify the use of new and alternative fuels and to guarantee secure energy production routes. The valorisation of a poor quality solid residual fuel (SRF), with high content of ash and volatile matter, through its conversion into fuel gas was studied. The rise of gasification temperature and equivalent ratio (ER) led to higher gas yields and to lower undesirable gaseous components, though higher ER values led to a gas with lower energetic content. To reduce the negative effect of SRF unfavourable characteristics and to diversify the feedstocks used, SRF blended with three different types of biomass wastes: forestry pine, almond shells and olive bagasse was co-gasified. The use of biomass wastes tested was valuable for SRF gasification, as there was an increase in the overall reactivity and in H2 production and a reduction of about 55% in tar released, without great changes in gas yield and in its HHV. The use of natural minerals mixed with silica sand was also studied with the aim of improving SRF gasification performance and fuel gas quality. The best results were obtained in presence of dolomite, as the lowest tar and H2S contents were obtained, while an increase in gas yield was observed. Co-gasification of this poor quality SRF blended with biomass wastes in presence of dolomite increased gas yield by 25% while tar contents decreased by 55%

Cancer rate of Bethesda category II thyroid nodules

Aim Thyroid nodules are very common and may be found in more than 50% of the population. Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) of thyroid nodules is a very useful diagnostic tool with high sensitivity and predictive value for diagnosis. The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology (BSRTC) uses six categories for thyroid cytology reporting (I-nondiagnostic, IIbenign, III-atypia of undetermined significance (AUS)/ follicular lesion of undetermined significance (FLUS), IV-follicular neoplasm/suspicious for follicular neoplasm (SFN), V-suspicious for malignancy, and VI-malignant. Our objective was to determine the malignancy rate in Bethesda II nodules. Methods From June 2010 to May 2020 a retrospective analysis was performed among 1166 patients who underwent thyroid surgery for benign thyroid diseases in our institution. Thyroid cytopathological slides and Ultrasound (US) reports were reviewed and classified according to the BSRTC. Data collected included age, gender, cytological features, and histological type of thyroid cancer. Results During the study period, 44.77% (522/1166) of patients with an FNA categorized as Bethesda II underwent thyroid surgery. Incidental malignancy was found in 1.53% (8/522) cases of Bethesda II. The most common malignant tumour type was papillary thyroid carcinoma. Conclusion The current study demonstrates that incidental thyroid carcinoma can be diagnosed after thyroidectomy even in patients with an FNA categorized as Bethesda II

The role of soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) in patients with cancer: a review of the current literature

Aim Several biomarkers are currently used as diagnostic and prognostic tools in patients with cancer. Soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is elevated in acute and chronic inflammatory procedures and several observational studies during the last 20 years have investigated its role in oncology. The purpose of this article was to review the current literature regarding suPAR’s role in clinical practice. Methods A systematic literature search of PubMed, Scopus, OpenGrey and Cochrane Library databases through September 2021 was conducted using the following search terms: “supar”or “soluble urokinase plasminogen receptor” and “cancer” or “malignancy”. Original articles reporting on suPAR’s role in the diagnosis, prognosis and prediction of therapeutic outcomes in patients with confirmed or suspected cancer were included. Results Among 45 found articles, the most were observational cohort studies. The included studies were further categorized by cancer site. SuPAR level was higher in patients with cancer compared to healthy controls, but its diagnostic and prognostic accuracy differs depending on the site of cancer. Conclusion SuPAR has promising aspects in the field of oncology and public health and future research should further investigate its use in clinical practice. As it is elevated in different types of cancer, it could potentially serve as an adjunctive tool for the mass screening of patients with non-specific signs of cancer, but larger cohort studies that support these findings must be conducted

New Mediterranean Biodiversity Records (December 2019)

This paper is a collection of novel distributional records of 20 species belonging to 8 phyla (Chlorophyta, Rhodophyta, Cnidaria, Ctenophora, Annelida, Mollusca, Arthropoda and Chordata) from 11 Mediterranean countries, namely, Spain: an additional record of the Canary dentex Dentex canariensis is reported from Spain (Valencia), this is the northernmost record of this species in the Mediterranean; Algeria: the first documented record of Caulerpa chemnitzia is reported from the Algerian coast; France: the first record of the Spotted sea hare Aplysia dactylomela is reported from the eastern coast of Corsica; Italy: the first records of the Lessepsian polychaete Dorvillea similis and the alien bivalve Isognomon legumen are reported from Italian waters while additional records of Mnemiopsis leidyi in the south Adriatic are provided;  Libya: the first record of an alien mollusc Crepidula fornicata is reported from Libyan waters; Malta: multiple sightings of gelatinous species Apolemia uvaria, Phacellophora camtschatica and Physophora hydrostatica are reported for the first time from Maltese waters, as well as the first tentative record of the Orange-spotted grouper Epinephelus cfr. coioides; Greece: an occurrence of a rare Bigeye thresher shark Alopias superciliosus is reported from Hellenic Ionian waters, while the first records of the alien Mertens’ prawn-goby Vanderhorstia mertensi, the recently described cyclopoid copepod Oithona davisae and the alien red seaweed Asparagopsis armata are reported from the Aegean Sea. The presence of the micromollusc Euthymella colzumensis is confirmed for Greece; Cyprus: the first record of the red cornetfish Fistularia petimba is reported from Cyprus; Turkey: the first record of the alien jellyfish Marivagia stellata is reported from south-eastern Turkey; Israel: the first records of the sea nettle Chrysaora sp. in the Levant are reported

A pan-European epidemiological study reveals honey bee colony survival depends on beekeeper education and disease control

Reports of honey bee population decline has spurred many national efforts to understand the extent of the problem and to identify causative or associated factors. However, our collective understanding of the factors has been hampered by a lack of joined up trans-national effort. Moreover, the impacts of beekeeper knowledge and beekeeping management practices have often been overlooked, despite honey bees being a managed pollinator. Here, we established a standardised active monitoring network for 5 798 apiaries over two consecutive years to quantify honey bee colony mortality across 17 European countries. Our data demonstrate that overwinter losses ranged between 2% and 32%, and that high summer losses were likely to follow high winter losses. Multivariate Poisson regression models revealed that hobbyist beekeepers with small apiaries and little experience in beekeeping had double the winter mortality rate when compared to professional beekeepers. Furthermore, honey bees kept by professional beekeepers never showed signs of disease, unlike apiaries from hobbyist beekeepers that had symptoms of bacterial infection and heavy Varroa infestation. Our data highlight beekeeper background and apicultural practices as major drivers of honey bee colony losses. The benefits of conducting trans-national monitoring schemes and improving beekeeper training are discussed