The International Dimension of "The Death of the Lion"

This essay reconsiders some critically established ‘germs’ for Henry James’s “The Death of the Lion” (1894), traced back to the 1893 demise of Guy de Maupassant and to the latter’s only visit to England in the summer of 1886. On this latter occasion, Maupassant was ‘chaperoned’ by his American friend Blanche Roosevelt, a well-known literary journalist in the London and Paris circles. The unexplored connection with Roosevelt invites a new reading which gives prominence to the American woman character in the tale (Fanny Hurter) and unveils an international subtheme within. In light of such a reading, as well as of authoritative studies which have analyzed “The Death of the Lion” against the rise of modern literary journalism, I will also re-examine the role of the first-person narrator, an unnamed ‘repented’ literary journalist, in thwarting the possible relation between Neil Paraday and his American admirer

"Daudet, James, and the Revision of the Nineteenth-Century Wifely Adultery Plot"

Although it is widely known that Henry James took inspiration from Alphonse Daudet’s L’Evangéliste (1883) for The Bostonians, and from Numa Roumestan (1881) for “The Liar,” the influence of the French novelist on James’s late fiction is still far from being fully grasped or acknowledged. In this essay I will read Daudet’s La petite paroisse. Moeurs conjugales (1895) together with James’s The Golden Bowl (1904) and discuss the similar ways in which these two works revised the nineteenth-century form of the “wifely adultery novel” (Overton 2002) within their respective literary and cultural contexts. My argument is that they challenged both the social stigmatization attached to the adulteress and what were taken to be ‘natural’ relations between husband and wife, and within the family circle

Management of exercise-induced glycaemic imbalances in type 1 diabetes

Regular moderate-intensity exercise is strongly recommended for its beneficial effects in all people. In patients with type 1 diabetes, however, the exercise-associated glycemic imbalances remain an unresolved clinical challenge. Current guidelines require an in-depth understanding of the glycemic responses to exercise and each patient has to discover, by trial-and-error, his/her own strategy, several attempts being usually required to gain sufficient experience. Consequently, fear of hypoglycemia remains the strongest barrier to physical activity. This paper explores the potential strategies that may be employed to minimize the risk of exercise related glycemic imbalances. Moreover, a newly developed algorithm (ECRES, Exercise Carbohydrate Requirement Estimating Software) is described, which estimates on a patient-and situation-specific basis the glucose supplement required by the patient to maintain safe blood glucose levels. The algorithm was tested on 27 patients who performed three 1-hr constant intensity walks (each starting at a different time interval following insulin injection). Results showed that in 70.4% of the trials, independent of the time of day, the algorithm provided a satisfactory estimate of the carbohydrates needed by patients to complete the exercise with a glucose level within safe thresholds (i.e. 3.9 - 10 mmol\ub7L -1). Despite the algorithm requires further experimental testing to be applied by the majority of patients, these results indicate its potential usefulness as a tool for preventing immediate exercise-induced glycemic imbalances (i.e. during exercise) in type 1 diabetic patients, in particular for spontaneous activities not planned in advance, thus allowing all insulin-dependent patients to safely enjoy the benefits of exercise

Synthesis of platinum (II) N-heterocyclic carbenes based on adenosine

Funding Information: This research was funded by national funds through FCT?Funda??o para a Ci?ncia e a Tecnologia, I.P., Project MOSTMICRO-ITQB (refs. UIDB/04612/2020 and UIDP/04612/2020), and IF/00109/2014/CP1244/CT0007. This work was also supported by FCT fellowships number PD/BD/135483/2018 (M.I.P.S.L.) and SFRH/BD/1444412019 (G.F.). Clara S. B. Gomes acknowledges the Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry?LAQV and the Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit?UCIBIO, which are financed by national funds from Funda??o para a Ci?ncia e a Tecnologia (UIDB/50006/2020, UIDP/50006/2020, UIDB/04378/2020, UIDP/04378/2020, respectively).The NMR spectra were acquired at CERMAX?ITQB, integrated in the National NMR Network and are partially supported by Infrastructure Project No. 022161 (co-financed by FEDER through COMPETE 2020, POCI, PORL and FCT through PIDDAC). Mass spectroscopy measurements were obtained by the UniMass Laboratory at ITQB-NOVA, Portugal. Clara S. B. Gomes acknowledges the XTAL?Macromolecular Crystallography group for granting access to the X-ray diffractometer. X-ray infrastructure financed by FCT-MCTES through project RECI/BBB-BEP/0124/2012. Funding Information: Funding: This research was funded by national funds through FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., Project MOSTMICRO-ITQB (refs. UIDB/04612/2020 and UIDP/04612/2020), and IF/00109/2014/CP1244/CT0007. This work was also supported by FCT fellowships number PD/BD/135483/2018 (M.I.P.S.L.) and SFRH/BD/1444412019 (G.F.). Clara S. B. Gomes acknowledges the Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry—LAQV and the Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit—UCIBIO, which are financed by national funds from Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (UIDB/50006/2020, UIDP/50006/2020, UIDB/04378/2020, UIDP/04378/2020, respectively). Funding Information: Acknowledgments: The NMR spectra were acquired at CERMAX—ITQB, integrated in the National NMR Network and are partially supported by Infrastructure Project No. 022161 (co-financed by FEDER through COMPETE 2020, POCI, PORL and FCT through PIDDAC). Mass spectroscopy measurements were obtained by the UniMass Laboratory at ITQB-NOVA, Portugal. Clara S. B. Gomes acknowledges the XTAL—Macromolecular Crystallography group for granting access to the X-ray diffractometer. X-ray infrastructure financed by FCT-MCTES through project RECI/BBB-BEP/0124/2012. Publisher Copyright: © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Organometallic derivatization of nucleosides is a highly promising strategy for the im-provement of the therapeutic profile of nucleosides. Herein, a methodology for the synthesis of metalated adenosine with a deprotected ribose moiety is described. Platinum (II) N-heterocyclic carbene complexes based on adenosine were synthesized, namely N-heterocyclic carbenes bearing a protected and unprotected ribose ring. Reaction of the 8-bromo-2′,3′,5′-tri-O-acetyladenosine with Pt (PPh3)4 by C8−Br oxidative addition yielded complex 1, with a PtII centre bonded to C-8 and an unprotonated N7. Complex 1 reacted at N7 with HBF4 or methyl iodide, yielding protic carbene 2 or methyl carbene 3, respectively. Deprotection of 1 to yield 4 was achieved with NH4OH. Deprotected compound 4 reacted at N7 with HCl solutions to yield protic NHC 5 or with methyl iodide yielding methyl carbene 6. Protic N-heterocyclic carbene 5 is not stable in DMSO solutions leading to the formation of compound 7, in which a bromide was replaced by chloride. The cis-influence of complexes 1–7 was examined by31P{1H} and195Pt NMR. Complexes 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 induce a decrease of1 JPt,P of more than 300 Hz, as result of the higher cis-influence of the N-heterocyclic carbene when compared to the azolato ligand in 1 and 4.publishersversionpublishe

Whole-body glucose oxidation rate during prolonged exercise in type 1 diabetic patients under usual life conditions

Objective Fuel oxidation during exercise was studied in type 1 insulin-dependent (T1DM) patients mainly under quite constant insulin and glycemia; these protocols, however, likely do not reflect patients' usual metabolic conditions. The glucose oxidation rate (GLUox) in T1DM patients under usual life conditions was thus investigated during prolonged exercise (3-h) and its behavior was described mathematically. Materials/Methods Whole-body GLUox was determined in eight T1DM patients (4/8 M; aged 35-59 years) and eight well-matched healthy subjects. Venous blood was drawn prior to and every 30 min until the end of exercise; glycemia, insulin, cortisol, and growth hormone concentrations were determined. Oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, and ventilation were measured at rest and thereafter every 30 min of the exercise. To prevent hypoglycemia, patients were given fruit fudge (93% sucrose) prior to / during exercise. Results Insulin concentration and glycemia were significantly higher in patients across the entire exercise period (group effect, p < 0.001 for both). GLUox decreased significantly with increasing exercise duration (time effect, p < 0.001), but no significant difference was detected between the two groups (group effect, p = NS). GLUox, expressed as the percentage of the starting value, was described by an exponential function showing a time constant of 90 min (n = 96; mean corrected R2 = 0.666). Conclusions GLUox in T1DM patients was not significantly different from the rate observed in the control subjects. The function describing the time course of GLUox may be useful to correct an estimated GLUox for the duration of exercise and help T1DM patients avoiding exercise-induced glycemic imbalances

Oxidative Stress Is Increased in Combined Oral Contraceptives Users and Is Positively Associated with High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein

Information concerning the mechanisms underlying oxidative stress and low-grade inflammation in young healthy women predisposing eventually to future diseases is scarce. We investigated the relationship of oxidative stress and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) in fertile-age women by oral combined contraceptive (OC) use. Caucasian Italian healthy non-obese women (n = 290; 100 OC-users; 190 non-OC-users; mean age 23.2 \ub1 4.7 years) were analyzed. Blood hydroperoxides, as oxidative stress biomarkers, were assessed by Free Oxygen Radical Test (FORT). Serum hsCRP was determined by an ultra-sensitive method (hsCRP). Markedly elevated oxidative stress ( 65400 FORT Units) was found in 77.0% of OC-users and 1.6% of non-OC-users, odds ratio (OR) = 209, 95% CI = 60.9-715.4, p < 0.001. Elevated hsCRP levels 65 2.0 mg/L, considered risky for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), were found in 41.0% of OC-users and 9.5% of non-OC-users, OR = 6.6, 95%CI 3.5-12.4, p < 0.001. Hydroperoxides were strongly positively correlated to hsCRP in all women (rs = 0.622, p < 0.001), in OC-users (rs = 0.442, p < 0.001), and in non-OC-users (rs = 0.426, p < 0.001). Women with hydroperoxides 65 400 FORT Units were eight times as likely to have hsCRP 65 2 mg/L. In non-OC-users only, hydroperoxides values were positively correlated with weight and body mass index, but negatively correlated with red meat, fish and chocolate consumption. Our research is the first finding a strong positive correlation of serum hydroperoxides with hsCRP, a marker of low-grade chronic inflammation, in young healthy women. Further research is needed to elucidate the potential role of these two biomarkers in OC-use associated side-effects, like thromboembolism and other CVDs

Diffraction from carbon nanofiber arrays

We fabricate a square planar photonic crystal (PC) from carbon nanofibres (CNFs) using e-beam lithography and chemical vapour deposition and investigate the optical properties of this system. The system exhibit diffraction that is well described by diffraction theory. We measure the intensity of the (-1,0) and (-1,-1) diffraction spots as functions of angle of incidence. The radiation diagram obtained can be explained by interference between different diffraction beams. We observe a polarisation dependence of the intensity. In conclusion we suggest future applications of these structures

Effects of Bariatric Surgery on COVID-19: a Multicentric Study from a High Incidence Area

Introduction: The favorable effects of bariatric surgery (BS) on overall pulmonary function and obesity-related comorbidities could influence SARS-CoV-2 clinical expression. This has been investigated comparing COVID-19 incidence and clinical course between a cohort of patients submitted to BS and a cohort of candidates for BS during the spring outbreak in Italy. Materials and Methods: From April to August 2020, 594 patients from 6 major bariatric centers in Emilia-Romagna were administered an 87-item telephonic questionnaire. Demographics, COVID-19 incidence, suggestive symptoms, and clinical outcome parameters of operated patients and candidates to BS were compared. The incidence of symptomatic COVID-19 was assessed including the clinical definition of probable case, according to World Health Organization criteria. Results: Three hundred fifty-three operated patients (Op) and 169 candidates for BS (C) were finally included in the statistical analysis. While COVID-19 incidence confirmed by laboratory tests was similar in the two groups (5.7% vs 5.9%), lower incidence of most of COVID-19-related symptoms, such as anosmia (p: 0.046), dysgeusia (p: 0.049), fever with rapid onset (p: 0.046) were recorded among Op patients, resulting in a lower rate of probable cases (14.4% vs 23.7%; p: 0.009). Hospitalization was more frequent in C patients (2.4% vs 0.3%, p: 0.02). One death in each group was reported (0.3% vs 0.6%). Previous pneumonia and malignancies resulted to be associated with symptomatic COVID-19 at univariate and multivariate analysis. Conclusion: Patients submitted to BS seem to develop less severe SARS-CoV-2 infection than subjects suffering from obesity

CD56, HLA-DR, and CD45 recognize a subtype of childhood AML harboring CBFA2T3-GLIS2 fusion transcript

The presence of CBFA2T3‐GLIS2 fusion gene has been identified in childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). In view of the genomic studies indicating a distinct gene expression profile, we evaluated the role of immunophenotyping in characterizing a rare subtype of AML‐CBFA2T3‐GLIS2 rearranged. Immunophenotypic data were obtained by studying a cohort of 20 pediatric CBFA2T3‐GLIS2‐AML and 77 AML patients not carrying the fusion transcript. Enrolled cases were included in the Associazione Italiana di Ematologia Oncologia Pediatrica (AIEOP) AML trials and immunophenotypes were compared using different statistical approaches. By multiple computational procedures, we identified two main core antigens responsible for the identification of the CBFA2T3‐GLIS2‐AML. CD56 showed the highest performance in single marker evaluation (AUC = 0.89) and granted the most accurate prediction when used in combination with HLA‐DR (AUC = 0.97) displaying a 93% sensitivity and 99% specificity. We also observed a weak‐to‐negative CD45 expression, being exceptional in AML. We here provide evidence that the combination of HLA‐DR negativity and intense bright CD56 expression detects a rare and aggressive pediatric AML genetic lesion improving the diagnosis performance