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Introduction: Biological therapies used for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have shown to be effective and safe, although these results were obtained from studies involving mostly a young population, who are generally included in clinical trials. The aim of our study was to determine the efficacy and safety of the different biological treatments in the elderly population., Methods: Multicenter study was carried out in the GETECCU group. Patients diagnosed with IBD and aged over 65 years at the time of initiating biological therapy (infliximab, adalimumab, golimumab, ustekinumab or vedolizumab) were retrospectively included. Among the patients included, clinical response was assessed after drug induction (12 weeks of treatment) and at 52 weeks. Patients' colonoscopy data in week 52 were assessment, where available. Regarding complications, development of oncological events during follow-up and infectious processes occurring during biological treatment were collected (excluding bowel infection by cytomegalovirus)., Results: A total of 1090 patients were included. After induction, at approximately 12-14 weeks of treatment, 419 patients (39.6%) were in clinical remission, 502 patients (47.4%) had responded without remission and 137 patients (12.9%) had no response. At 52 weeks of treatment 442 patients (57.1%) had achieved clinical remission, 249 patients had responded without remission (32.2%) and 53 patients had no response to the treatment (6.8%). Before 52 weeks, 129 patients (14.8%) had discontinued treatment due to inefficacy, this being significantly higher (p<0.0001) for Golimumab - 9 patients (37.5%) - compared to the other biological treatments analyzed. With respect to tumor development, an oncological event was observed in 74 patients (6.9%): 30 patients (8%) on infliximab, 23 (7.14%) on adalimumab, 3 (11.1%) on golimumab, 10 (6.4%) on ustekinumab, and 8 (3.8%) on vedolizumab. The incidence was significantly lower (p=0.04) for the vedolizumab group compared to other treatments. As regards infections, these occurred in 160 patients during treatment (14.9%), with no differences between the different biologicals used (p=0.61): 61 patients (19.4%) on infliximab, 39 (12.5%) on adalimumab, 5 (17.8%) on golimumab, 22 (14.1%) on ustekinumab, and 34 (16.5%) on vedolizumab., Conclusions: Biological drug therapies have response rates in elderly patients similar to those described in the general population, Golimumab was the drug that was discontinued most frequently due to inefficacy. In our experience, tumor development was more frequent in patients who used anti-TNF therapies compared to other targets, although its incidence was generally low and that this is in line with younger patients based on previous literature., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: This study investigates the biological activities of microencapsulated anthocyanins extracted from two Andean ancestral edible plants, Solanum tuberosum , and Zea mays , with a focus on their potential applications in functional foods and therapeutics. The primary objective was to evaluate their antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic properties alongside structural and functional analyses of the microencapsulation process. Methods: Anthocyanins were extracted and microencapsulated using maltodextrin as a carrier. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were employed to analyze the stability and structure of the microencapsulated particles. The antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic activities of the microencapsulated were assessed through established assays. Results: S. tuberosum exhibited superior antioxidant capacity and potent anticancer activity against HepG2 and THJ29T cell lines, while Z. mays demonstrated significant antimicrobial efficacy against multidrug-resistant bacterial strains and biofilm-forming pathogens. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed the stabilization of anthocyanins within a maltodextrin matrix, enhancing their bioavailability and application potential. Conclusions: These results highlight the versatility of microencapsulated anthocyanins as bioactive agents for industrial and therapeutic applications. Future studies should explore in vivo validation and synergistic formulations to optimize their efficacy and broaden their use in nutraceutical and pharmaceutical fields.

Background: Real-world data on the effectiveness of upadacitinib for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are limited., Aims: To assess upadacitinib persistence, effectiveness, and safety in a real-world scenario., Methods: Retrospective multicentre study of IBD patients who received upadacitinib before 31st December 2022 and at least 12 weeks before the recruitment date. Clinical effectiveness was assessed based on partial Mayo score for ulcerative colitis (UC) and Harvey-Bradshaw index for Crohn's disease (CD)., Results: We included 100 patients (68 with CD, and 32 with UC). Patients had previously received a median of four advanced therapies. Twenty-three discontinued the treatment (median follow-up 7.6 months). CD (vs. UC) (Hazard Ratio[HR] 3.7;95%Confidence Interval (CI):1.04-12.9), and age below 40 years at upadacitinib initiation (HR 2.4;95%CI:1.0-5.8) were associated with treatment discontinuation in multivariable analysis. Clinical remission for IBD was achieved in 59% of patients at week 8, 64% at week 12, and 42% at week 52. The proportion of patients with UC previously exposed to tofacitinib (n=25) who achieved clinical remission was 78% at week 12, and 50% at week 52. Factors associated with clinical remission at week 12 were UC diagnosis (Odds Ratio[OR] 4.6;95%CI:1.3-17), mild or moderate activity at baseline (OR 8;95%CI:1.1-56) and not smoking (OR 4.4;95%CI:1.5-13). Dose escalation recaptured remission in 60% of patients with relapse. Eighty percent of patients with active immune-mediated diseases or extraintestinal manifestations improved with upadacitinib. Forty-three patients reported adverse events, 11 of them serious., Conclusion: Upadacitinib is effective and safe for treating highly refractory IBD patients, even in previously treated with JAK inhibitors., (Copyright © 2024 by The American College of Gastroenterology.)

Acid oils and fatty acid distillates are fat by-products of the refining process of edible oils and are characterized by their high proportion of free fatty acids (FFA). While lipids are essential in poultry diets, their chemical structure may interfere with calcium absorption. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of dietary FFA content and the degree of fat saturation on bone metabolism in commercial layers. For 15-wk, a total of 144 laying hens (19-wk-old) were randomly assigned to 8 treatments (6 replicates with 3 birds each), which were obtained by gradually replacing crude soybean oil (rich in unsaturated fatty acids [UFA]) with soybean acid oil (rich in UFA and FFA), or crude palm oil (rich in saturated fatty acids [SFA]) with palm fatty acid distillate (rich in SFA and FFA). Following a 2 × 4 factorial design, 4 UFA-rich and 4 SFA-rich diets were created with varying FFA content: 10, 20, 30, and 45%. Tibiae (6 birds/treatment) were collected at the end of the trial for the assessment of mineral composition, morphological properties, and mechanical characteristics. The data were analyzed using a 2-way ANOVA with the GLM procedure. Orthogonal polynomial contrasts were employed to determine the linear effect of increasing %FFA, with statistical significance set at P < 0.05. The degree of saturation was found to negatively impact on calcium and phosphorus bone content, with higher levels found in soybean-based diets (P < 0.001). A significant interaction was observed for medullary bone mineral content, showing a linear decrease as the dietary %FFA increased (P < 0.05) in palm diets. In contrast, morphological and mechanical bone traits, total ash content, and cortical bone mineral composition remained unaffected (P > 0.05). These results suggest that the degree of fat saturation exerts a greater impact than FFA content on bone mineral metabolism, supporting the commercial use of fat by-products rich in FFA in laying hen diets, at least during the early stages of the laying cycle., Competing Interests: DISCLOSURES The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: Inflammatory pouch disorders exhibit a heterogeneous clinical spectrum and therapeutic requirements have not been properly studied., Methods: This retrospective, multicentre study included ulcerative colitis patients with ileal pouch construction and were later diagnosed with an inflammatory pouch disorder between 1995 and 2020. Classifications, behaviour and therapies applied were recorded and compared in the long-term., Results: Overall, 338 patients were recruited. The most common disorders were pouchitis (n = 258, 76%), Crohn's disease of the pouch (n = 55, 16%) and cuffitis (n = 25, 7%). Pouchitis presented mainly as chronic (65.2%) and recurrent (87%) forms. Crohn's disease manifested as stricturing/penetrating in 53% of cases and perianal disease in 42%. Patients received multiple therapies: 86% antibiotics, 42% steroids, 27% immunosuppressants, 43% biologics and 27% surgery. Compared with pouchitis, Crohn's disease of the pouch was characterised by a later diagnosis (99 vs. 55 months, p < 0.001) and greater needs for immunosuppressants (OR 3.53, 1.79-6.94, p < 0.0001), biologics (OR 5.45, 2.78-10.6, p < 0.0001) and surgeries (OR 2.65, 1.43-4.89, p < 0.001)., Conclusions: Chronic pouchitis is the most common pouch disorder presentation. These entities have diverse therapeutics requirements, particularly for Crohn's disease of the pouch., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest F. Mesonero has served as a speaker for and received consulting fees from MSD, AbbVie, Takeda, Janssen, Pfizer, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Kern Pharma, Dr. Falk Pharma, Galapagos, Chiesi Farmaceutici and Faes Farma. - Y. Zabana has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees, research support and consulting fees from AbbVie, Adacyte Therapeutics, Almirall, Amgen, Dr. Falk Pharma, Faes Farma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, MSD, Otsuka, Pfizer, Shire, Takeda, Galapagos, Boehringer Ingelheim and Tillotts Pharma AG. - A. Fernández-Clotet has served as a speaker for and received educational funding from Dr. Falk Pharma, Janssen, Takeda, Chiesi Farmaceutici and Pfizer. - B. Caballol has served as a speaker for and received consulting fees from MSD, AbbVie, Janssen, Takeda, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Shire Pharmaceuticals and Faes Pharma. - E. Leo-Carnerero has served as a speaker and consultant for and received educational funding from AbbVie, Janssen, Takeda, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Gilead, Pfizer and Dr. Falk Pharma. - M. J. García has received financial support for travel and educational activities from Janssen, Pfizer, AbbVie, Takeda, Kern Pharma, Faes Farma and Ferring Pharmaceuticals. - R. Ferreiro-Iglesias has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees, research support and consulting fees from AbbVie, Adacyte Therapeutics, Dr. Falk Pharma, Faes Farma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, MSD, Kern, Chiesi Farmaceutici, Gebro Pharma, Pfizer, Shire, Takeda and Tillotts Pharma AG. - M. Calafat has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees, research support and consulting fees from AbbVie, Adacyte Therapeutics, Dr. Falk Pharma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, Pfizer, Takeda, Gilead, Chiesi Farmaceutici and Tillotts Pharma AG. - J. Miranda has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees and consulting and advisory fees from AbbVie, Adacyte Therapeutics, Dr. Falk Pharma, Faes Farma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, Pfizer, Takeda and Tillotts Pharma AG. - L. Torrealba has served as a speaker for and received educational funding from AbbVie, Janssen, Takeda, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Gilead, Pfizer, Dr. Falk Pharma and Tillotts Pharma AG. - R. Sáiz-Chumillas has served as a speaker for and received consulting fees from Janssen, Ferring Pharmaceuticals and Faes Farma. - A. López has received support for conference attendance, educational funding and speaker fees from Chiesi Farmaceutici, AbbVie, Janssen, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Takeda, Pfizer and Tillotts Pharma AG. - C. Rubín de Célix has received educational funding from Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Tillotts Pharma AG, AbbVie, Norgine, MSD, Pfizer, Takeda and Janssen and is supported by a grant from the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Río Hortega CM21/00025) and co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) ‘Co-financed by the European Union’. - E. Brunet has served as a speaker and consultant for and received educational funding from Janssen, Takeda, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Kern Pharma, AbbVie and Chiesi Farmaceutici. - A. Hernández has served as a speaker for and received educational funding from AbbVie, Takeda, Kern Pharma, Pfizer, Janssen, Adacyte Therapeutics, Chiesi Farmaceutici, Galapagos and Ferring Pharmaceuticals. - I. González-Partida has received support for conference attendance and speaker fees from AbbVie, Dr. Falk Pharma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, MSD, Kern, Pfizer, Shire, Takeda and Tillotts Pharma AG. - I. Rodríguez-Lago has received financial support for travel and educational activities from or has served as an advisory board member for AbbVie, Adacyte Therapeutics, Celltrion, Chiesi Farmaceutici, Danone, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Faes Farma, Janssen, Galapagos, MSD, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, Pfizer, Roche, Takeda and Tillotts Pharma. I. R.-L. has also received financial support for research from Tillotts Pharma AG and is supported by research grants from Gobierno Vasco – Eusko Jaurlaritza (grant no. 2020111061) and Biobizkaia HRI (grant no. BCB/I/LIB/22/008). - M. C. Rodríguez-Grau has served as a speaker for Takeda, Shire Pharmaceutics and Dr. Falk Pharma and has received education funding from Pfizer, Takeda, Janssen, MSD, Dr. Falk Pharma, Shire Pharmaceutics, Mylan, Norgine, Chiesi Farmaceutici, Faes Farma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals and AbbVie. - A. Elosua has served as a speaker for or has received educational funding from AbbVie, Adacyte Therapeutics, Takeda, Faes Farma, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Janssen and Tillotts Pharma AG. - J. Huguet has received fees for educational activities, research projects, scientific meetings and advisory boards sponsored by MSD, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, AbbVie, Janssen, Biogen, Sandoz, Kern Pharma, Faes Farma and Takeda. - M. Barreiro de Acosta has served as a speaker, consultant and advisory member for and has received research funding from MSD, AbbVie, Janssen, Kern Pharma, Celltrion, Takeda, Gilead, Galapagos, BMS, Celgene, Pfizer, Sandoz, Biogen, Fresenius, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Faes Farma, Dr. Falk Pharma, Chiesi Farmaceutici, Gebro Pharma, Adacyte Therapeutics and Vifor Pharma. Remaining authors declare that they have no known competing financial interest or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Editrice Gastroenterologica Italiana S.r.l. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: This article highlights the formulation of a solid Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-loaded ingestible prepared from pure THC distillate. Methods: A THC-containing ethanol-assisted cannabinoid nanoemulsion (EACNE) was created using a solvent displacement technique. Subsequently, the EACNE was converted to a solid powdery material while still retaining its THC potency, a format uniquely suited for "microdosing" applications. Results: EACNE had an average lipid droplet size of ∼190 nm, with a polydispersity index of 0.15, and an average droplet ζ potential of -49±10 mV. The nanoemulsion (NE) was colloidally stable for at least 6 weeks, with no meaningful change in cannabinoid potency over the experimental period, as determined by high-performance liquid chromatography analysis. The EACNE remained stable when subjected to physical stresses such as heat, freeze/thaw cycles, carbonation, dilution to beverage concentrations, high sucrose concentrations, and a pH range between 5 and 8. The microencapsulated EACNE demonstrated limited free-flowing behavior but was freely redispersible in water without any visible phase separation. Conclusions: We report the design, creation, and characterization of a THC NE generated without the use of specialized equipment, such as a microfluidizer or a high-pressure homogenizer. This emulsion could readily be converted to a water-redispersible powder. This embodiment is particularly suited for THC "microdosing," a practice that might decouple the health benefits of THC from its psychotropic effects.

Parasites impact host fitness and constitute an important selective pressure on the host's life history. According to parasite-mediated sexual selection, ornaments are presumed to honestly indicate immune capacity or resistance against parasites, and the chooser sex (typically females) obtains an advantage by selecting more ornamented, thus more immunocompetent mates. Therefore, signalers mounting an immune response must allocate resources from the sexual signal to the immune system, hence reducing the expression of the ornament and becoming less attractive to the choosing sex. Here, we test this idea in the lizard Psammodromus algirus. We inoculated a subsample of males with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of the cell wall of Escherichia coli, while others served as sham controls. The inoculation of LPS decreased the proportion of ergosterol (pro-vitamin D 2 ) in femoral secretions, and chemosensory tests showed that the scent of LPS-inoculated males was less attractive to females than the scent of control males. Given that ergosterol is a precursor of vitamin D, which has physiological functions as an immune modulator, immunocompromised males likely needed to divert vitamin D to the immune system, reducing the allocation of ergosterol to secretions. In this way, females could detect "sick" males, preferring the apparently healthy males. Overall, our study shows that mounting an immune response is costly in terms of reduced attractiveness. Moreover, we disentangle the underlying mechanism, which involves an honest signal based on vitamin D allocation., (© 2024 International Society of Zoological Sciences, Institute of Zoology/Chinese Academy of Sciences and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.)

A new, versatile, and straightforward vapor phase deposition (VPD) approach was used to prepare continuous stationary phase gradients (cSPGs) on silica thin-layer chromatography (TLC) plates using phenyldimethylchlorosilane (PDCS) as a precursor. A mixture of paraffin oil and PDCS was placed at the bottom of an open-ended rectangular chamber, allowing the reactive silanes to evaporate and freely diffuse under a controlled atmosphere. As the volatile silane diffused across the length of the TLC plate, it reacted with the surface silanol groups thus functionalizing the surface in a gradient fashion. Characterization of the gradient TLC plates was done through UV visualization and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Visualizing the fluorescent gradient plates under UV radiation shows the clear presence of a gradient with the side closest to the vapor source undergoing the most modification. More quantitative characterization of the shape of the gradient was provided by DRS. The DRS showed that the degree of modification and shape of the gradient was dependent on the concentration of silane, VPD time, and relative humidity. To evaluate the chromatographic performance, a mixture of three aromatic compounds (acetaminophen (A), aspirin (As), and 3-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid (3H)) was spotted on the high (GHP) and low phenyl (GLP) ends of the gradient TLC plates and the results compared to the separations carried out on unmodified and uniformly modified plates. The GHP TLC plates showed retention factors (Rf) of 0.060 ± 0.006, 0.391 ± 0.006, and 0.544 ± 0.006, whereas the unmodified plate displayed Rf values of 0.059 ± 0.006, 0.092 ± 0.003, and 0.037 ± 0.002 for the analytes A, As, and 3H, respectively. From the Rf values, it was observed that each modified plate exhibited different selectivity for the analytes. The GHP TLC plates exhibited better separation performance, and improved resolution compared to the GLP, unmodified, and uniformly modified plates. Overall, VPD is a new, cost-effective method for creating a gradient on the stationary phase which has the potential to advance chromatographic separation capabilities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Continuous C8 stationary phase gradients are created on commercial Waters Symmetry Shield RP8 columns by strategically cleaving the C8 moieties in a time-dependent fashion. The method relies on the controlled infusion of a trifluoroacetic acid/water/acetonitrile solution through the column to cleave the organic functionality (e.g., C8) from the siloxane framework. The bond cleavage solution is reactive enough to cleave the functional groups, even with polar groups embedded within the stationary phase to protect the silica. Both the longitudinal and radial heterogeneity were evaluated by extruding the silica powder into polyethylene tubing and evaluating the percent carbon content in the different sections using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). TGA analysis shows the presence of a stationary phase gradient in the longitudinal direction but not in the radial direction. Two different gradient profiles were formed with good reproducibility by modifying the infusion method: one exhibited an 'S'-shaped gradient while the other exhibited a steep exponential-like gradient. The gradients were characterized chromatographically using test mixtures, and the results showed varied retention characteristics and an enhanced ability to resolve nicotine analytes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Genetic differentiation between populations inhabiting ecologically different habitats might appear because of limited dispersal and gene flow, which may lead to patterns of phenotypic divergence and local adaptation. In this study, we use dispersal, genotypic (24 microsatellite loci) and phenotypic (body size and clutch size) data to analyse patterns of genetic structuring and phenotypic divergence in a blue tit ( Cyanistes caeruleus ) population inhabiting a continuous and heterogeneous woodland along a valley. The two slopes of the valley differ in their forest formations and environmental conditions. Findings showed that most blue tits reproduced within their natal slope. Accordingly, microsatellite analyses revealed that populations of blue tits established in the two slopes show subtle genetic differentiation. The two genetic populations diverged in clutch size, exceeding the level of differentiation expected based on genetic drift, hence suggesting divergent selection (or other processes promoting divergence) on this life-history trait. Our findings reveal that restricted dispersal and spatial heterogeneity may lead to genetic differentiation among bird populations at a surprisingly small scale. In this respect, it is worth highlighting that such differentiation occurs for an organism with high dispersal capacity and within a continuous woodland. Moreover, we show that small-scale ecological differences, together with limited gene flow, can result in selection favouring different phenotypes even within the same continuum population., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Background: Infections caused by Stenotrophomonas maltophilia and related species are increasing worldwide. Unfortunately, treatment options are limited, whereas the antimicrobial resistance is increasing., Methods: We included clinical isolates identified as S. maltophilia by VITEK 2 Compact. Ceftazidime/avibactam, meropenem/vaborbactam, imipenem/relebactam, cefiderocol, quinolones, and tetracycline family members were evaluated by broth microdilution method and compared with first-line treatment drugs. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were reported for all antibiotics. We sequenced the Whole Genome of cefiderocol resistant strains (CRSs) and annotated their genes associated with cefiderocol resistance (GACR). Presumptive phylogenetic identification employing the 16S marker was performed., Results: One hundred and one clinical strains were evaluated, sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim, levofloxacin and minocycline showed susceptibilities of 99.01%, 95.04% and 100% respectively. Ceftazidime was the antibiotic with the highest percentage of resistance in all samples (77.22%). Five strains were resistant to cefiderocol exhibiting MIC values ≥ 2 μg/mL (4.95%). The β-lactamase inhibitors meropenem/vaborbactam and imipenem/relebactam, failed to inhibit S. maltophilia, preserving both MIC50 and MIC90 ≥64 μg/mL. Ceftazidime/avibactam restored the activity of ceftazidime decreasing the MIC range. Tigecycline had the lowest MIC range, MIC50 and MIC90. Phylogeny based on 16S rRNA allowed to identify to cefiderocol resistant strains as putative species clustered into Stenotrophomonas maltophilia complex (Smc). In these strains, we detected GARCs such as Mutiple Drug Resistance (MDR) efflux pumps, L1-type β-lactamases, iron transporters and type-1 fimbriae., Conclusion: Antimicrobial resistance to first-line treatment is low. The in vitro activity of new β-lactamase inhibitors against S. maltophilia is poor, but avibactam may be a potential option. Cefiderocol could be considered as a potential new option for multidrug resistant infections. Tetracyclines had the best in vitro activity of all antibiotics evaluated., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Méndez-Sotelo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

During pregnancy, women undergo several metabolic changes to guarantee an adequate supply of glucose to the foetus. These metabolic modifications develop what is known as physiological insulin resistance. When this process is altered, however, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) occurs. GDM is a multifactorial disease, and genetic and environmental factors play a crucial role in its aetiopathogenesis. GDM has been linked to both macroscopic and molecular alterations in placental tissues that affect placental physiology. This review summarizes the role of the placenta in the development of GDM from a molecular perspective, including hormonal and pro-inflammatory changes. Inflammation and hormonal imbalance, the characteristics dominating the GDM microenvironment, are responsible for placental changes in size and vascularity, leading to dysregulation in maternal and foetal circulations and to complications in the newborn. In conclusion, since the hormonal mechanisms operating in GDM have not been fully elucidated, more research should be done to improve the quality of life of patients with GDM and their future children., Competing Interests: Disclosures: Valmore Bermúdez, María José Calvo, Heliana Parra, Raquel Santeliz, Jordan Bautista, Eliana Luzardo, Nelson Villasmil, María Sofía Martínez, Maricamen Chacín, Clímaco Cano, Ana Checa-Ros and Luis D'Marco have no financial or nonfinancial relationships or activities to declare in relation to this article., (© Touch Medical Media 2023.)

Background: The usefulness of thiopurines has been poorly explored in pouchitis and other pouch disorders., Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of azathioprine as maintenance therapy in inflammatory pouch disorders., Design: This was a retrospective and multicentre study., Methods: We included patients diagnosed with inflammatory pouch disorders treated with azathioprine in monotherapy. Effectiveness was evaluated at 1 year and in the long term based on normalization of stool frequency, absence of pain, faecal urgency or fistula discharge (clinical remission), or any improvement in these symptoms (clinical response). Endoscopic response was evaluated using the Pouchitis Disease Activity Index (PDAI)., Results: In all, 63 patients were included [54% males; median age, 49 (28-77) years]. The therapy was used to treat pouchitis ( n  = 37) or Crohn's disease of the pouch ( n  = 26). The rate of clinical response, remission and non-response at 12 months were 52%, 30% and 18%, respectively. After a median follow-up of 23 months (interquartile range 11-55), 19 patients (30%) were in clinical remission, and 45 (66%) stopped therapy. Endoscopic changes were evaluated in 19 cases. PDAI score decreased from 3 (range 2-4) to 1 (range 0-3). In all, 21 patients (33%) presented adverse events and 16 (25%) needed to stop therapy., Conclusion: Azathioprine may be effective in the long term for the treatment of inflammatory pouch disorders and could be included as a therapeutic option., Competing Interests: Francisco Mesonero has served as a speaker for and received consulting fees from MSD, AbbVie, Takeda, Janssen, Pfizer, Ferring, Kern-Pharma, Dr. Falk Pharma, Galapagos, Chiesi and Faes Farma. Yamile Zabana has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees, research support and consulting fees from AbbVie, Adacyte, Almirall, Amgen, Dr. Falk Pharma, FAES Pharma, Ferring, Janssen, MSD, Otsuka, Pfizer, Shire, Takeda, Galapagos, Boehringer Ingelheim and Tillots. Agnés Fernández-Clotet has served as a speaker for and received educational funding from Dr. Falk Pharma, Janssen, Takeda, Chiesi and Pfizer. Eduardo Leo-Carnerero has served as a speaker and consultant for and received educational funding from AbbVie, Janssen, Takeda, Ferring, Gilead, Pfizer and Dr. Falk Pharma. Andrea Núñez-Ortiz has received educational funding from Janssen, Takeda, Ferring and Pfizer. Berta Caballol has served as a speaker for and received consulting fees from MSD, AbbVie, Janssen, Takeda, Ferring, Shire Pharmaceuticals and Faes Pharma. Rocío Ferreiro-Iglesias has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees, research support and consulting fees from AbbVie, Adacyte, Dr. Falk Pharma, FAES Pharma, Ferring, Janssen, MSD, Kern, Chiesi, Gebro Pharma, Pfizer, Shire, Takeda and Tillots. José Miranda-Bautista has received support for conference attendance, speaker fees, and consulting and advisory fees from AbbVie, Adacyte, Dr. Falk Pharma, FAES Pharma, Ferring, Janssen, Pfizer, Takeda and Tillots. Leyanira Torrealba has served as a speaker for and received educational funding from AbbVie, Janssen, Takeda, Ferring, Gilead, Pfizer, Dr. Falk Pharma and Tillotts Pharma. Rosa María Sáiz-Chumillas has served as a speaker for and received consulting fees from Janssen, Ferring and Faes Farma. Alicia López-García has received support for conference attendance, educational funding and speaker fees from Chiesi, AbbVie, Janssen, Ferring, Takeda, Pfizer and Tillots. Cristina Rubín de Célix has received educational funding from Ferring, Tillotts Pharma, AbbVie, Norgine, MSD, Pfizer, Takeda and Janssen and is supported by a grant from the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Rio Hortega CM21/00025) and co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) ‘Co-financed by the European Union’. Eduard Brunet has served as a speaker and consultant for and received educational funding from Janssen, Takeda, Ferring, Kern-Pharma, AbbVie and Chiesi. Alejandro Hernández-Camba has served as a speaker for and received educational funding from AbbVie, Takeda, Kern Pharma, Pfizer, Janssen, Adacyte Therapeutics, Chiesi, Galapagus and Ferring. Iago Rodríguez-Lago has received financial support for travelling and educational activities from or has served as an advisory board member for AbbVie, Adacyte, Celltrion, Chiesi, Danone, Dr. Falk Pharma, Ferring, Faes Farma, Janssen, Galapagos, MSD, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, Pfizer, Roche, Takeda and Tillotts Pharma. Iago Rodríguez-Lago has also received financial support for research from Tillotts Pharma and is supported by a research grant from Gobierno Vasco – Eusko Jaurlaritza [Grant No. 2020222004]. Alfonso Elosua has served as a speaker for and has received educational funding from AbbVie, Adacyte, Takeda, FAES Farma, Ferring, Janssen and Tillots Pharma. José María Huguet has received fees for educational activities, research projects, scientific meetings and advisory boards sponsored by MSD, Ferring, AbbVie, Janssen, Biogen, Sandoz, Kern Pharma, Faes Farma and Takeda. Manuel Barreiro-de Acosta has served as a speaker, consultant and advisory member for and has received research funding from MSD, AbbVie, Janssen, Kern Pharma, Celltrion, Takeda, Gilead, Celgene, Pfizer, Sandoz, Biogen, Fresenius, Ferring, Faes Farma, Dr. Falk Pharma, Chiesi, Gebro Pharma, Adacyte and Vifor Pharma., (© The Author(s), 2024.)

Water pollution in developing countries continues to be a major health problem due to various anthropological activities that contribute to the spread of many parasitic diseases, including those caused by helminths. The aim of this study is to explore the ability of ozone and peroxone to disinfect drinking water contaminated samples with Toxocara canis eggs. The oxidants used were ozone and ozone-hydrogen peroxide combination. The treatment of Toxocara canis eggs was carried out in a 50 ml reactor with an operating volume of 10 ml. The pH conditions (5, 7 and 10) were varied for each treatment. The treatment effect was calculated by counting eggs and examining the condition of the larvae larval condition (whole, broken and hatched larvae) using an optical microscope. The experiment was carried out by exposing the eggs for 60 and 120 minutes to ozone and peroxone. The best results were obtained for helminths treated with the ozone/hydrogen peroxide combination at pH 10, with an inactivation of 79.2%. The synergistic effect of ozone combined with hydrogen peroxide allows higher helminth egg inactivation rates, demonstrating that advanced oxidation processes are a real alternative to apply in the inactivation of Toxocara canis eggs. The results obtained in this study show that the ozone and peroxone treatment could be a useful disinfection process to destroy or inactivate Toxocara canis eggs in processes commonly applied in water treatment.

Male-killing bacteria are found in a broad range of arthropods. Arsenophonus nasoniae is a male-killing bacterium, causing a 80% reduction of the male progeny in infected Nasonia vitripennis wasps. Although the discovery of A. nasoniae dates from the early 80's, knowledge about the biology and ecology of this endosymbiont is still scarce. One of these poorly studied features is the ecological factors underlying A. nasoniae incidence on its Nasonia spp. hosts in different geographical locations. Here, we studied the prevalence of A. nasoniae in Iberian wild populations of its host N. vitripennis. This wasp species is a common parasitoid of the blowfly Protocalliphora azurea pupae, which in turn is a parasite of hole-nesting birds, such as the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). We also examined the effects of bird rearing conditions on the prevalence of A. nasoniae through a brood size manipulation experiment (creating enlarged, control and reduced broods). Both the wasp and bacterium presence were tested through PCR assays in blowfly pupae. We found A. nasoniae in almost half (47%) of nests containing blowflies parasitized by N. vitripennis. The prevalence of A. nasoniae was similar in the two geographical areas examined (central Portugal and southeastern Spain) and the probability of infection by A. nasoniae was independent of the number of blowfly pupae in the nest. Experimental manipulation of brood size did not affect the prevalence of A. nasoniae nor the prevalence of its host, N. vitripennis. These results suggest that the incidence of A. nasoniae in natural populations of N. vitripennis is high in the Iberian Peninsula, and the infestation frequency of nests by N. vitripennis carrying A. nasoniae is spatially stable in this geographical region independently of bird rearing conditions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) sequence forms part of the vast majority of current diagnostic protocols for brain MRI. This sequence enables the suppression of the signal from cerebrospinal fluid, facilitating the detection of disease involving the subarachnoid space. The causes of hyperintensity in the arachnoid space in this sequence can be divided into two main categories: hyperintensity due to disease and hyperintensity due to artifacts. Hyperintensity due to tumors, inflammation, vascular disease, or hypercellularity of the cerebrospinal fluid or hematic contents is well known. However, numerous other non-pathological conditions, mainly due to artifacts, that are also associated with this finding are a potential source of diagnostic errors., (Copyright © 2022 SERAM. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, with heart failure being a complex condition that affects millions of individuals. Single-nucleus RNA sequencing has recently emerged as a powerful tool for unraveling the molecular mechanisms behind cardiovascular diseases. This cutting-edge technology enables the identification of molecular signatures, intracellular networks, and spatial relationships among cardiac cells, including cardiomyocytes, mast cells, lymphocytes, macrophages, lymphatic endothelial cells, endocardial cells, endothelial cells, epicardial cells, adipocytes, fibroblasts, neuronal cells, pericytes, and vascular smooth muscle cells. Despite these advancements, the discovery of essential therapeutic targets and drugs for precision cardiology remains a challenge. To bridge this gap, we conducted comprehensive in silico analyses of single-nucleus RNA sequencing data, functional enrichment, protein interactome network, and identification of the shortest pathways to physiological phenotypes. This integrated multi-omics analysis generated CardiOmics signatures, which allowed us to pinpoint three therapeutically actionable targets (ADRA1A1, PPARG, and ROCK2) and 15 effective drugs, including adrenergic receptor agonists, adrenergic receptor antagonists, norepinephrine precursors, PPAR receptor agonists, and Rho-associated kinase inhibitors, involved in late-stage cardiovascular disease clinical trials., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

The entorhinal cortex (EC, A28) is linked through reciprocal pathways with nearby perirhinal and visual, auditory, and multimodal association cortices in the temporal lobe, in pathways associated with the flow of information for memory processing. The density and laminar organization of these pathways is not well understood in primates. We studied interconnections within the ventral temporal lobe in young adult rhesus monkeys of both sexes with the aid of neural tracers injected in temporal areas (Ts1, Ts2, TE1, area 36, temporal polar area TPro, and area 28) to determine the density and laminar distribution of projection neurons within the temporal lobe. These temporal areas can be categorized into three different cortical types based on their laminar architecture: the sensory association areas Ts1, Ts2, and TE1 have six layers (eulaminate); the perirhinal limbic areas TPro and area 36 have an incipient layer IV (dysgranular); and area 28 lacks layer IV (agranular). We found that (1) temporal areas that are similar in laminar architecture by cortical type are strongly interconnected, and (2) the laminar pattern of connections is dependent on the difference in cortical laminar structure between linked areas. Thus, agranular A28 is more strongly connected with other agranular/dysgranular areas than with eulaminate cortices. Further, A28 predominantly projected via feedback-like pathways that originated in the deep layers, and received feedforward-like projections from areas of greater laminar differentiation, which emanated from the upper layers. Our results are consistent with the Structural Model, which relates the density and laminar distribution of connections to the relationship of the laminar structure between the linked areas. These connections were viewed in the context of the inhibitory microenvironment of A28, which is the key recipient of pathways from the cortex and of the output of hippocampus. Our findings revealed a higher population of calretinin (CR)-expressing neurons in EC, with a significantly higher density in its lateral division. Medial EC had a higher density of CR neurons in the deep layers, particularly in layer Va. In contrast, parvalbumin (PV) neurons were more densely distributed in the deep layers of the lateral subdivisions of rostral EC, especially in layer Va, whereas the densities of calbindin (CB) neurons in the medial and lateral EC were comparable in all layers, except for layer IIIa, in which medial EC had a higher CB population than the lateral. The pattern of connections in the inhibitory microenvironment of EC, which sends and receives input from the hippocampus, may shed light on signal propagation in this network associated with diverse aspects of memory, and disruptions in neurologic and psychiatric diseases that affect this region., (© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Treatment modalities for breast cancer, including cyclophosphamide chemotherapy, have been associated with the development of cognitive decline (CRCD), which is characterized by impairments in memory, concentration, attention, and executive functions. We and others have identified a link between inflammation and decreased cognitive performance in patients with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy. In order to better understand the inflammation-associated molecular changes within the brain related to tumor alone or in combination with chemotherapy, we orthotopically implanted mouse mammary tumors (E0771) into female C57BL/6 mice and administered clinically relevant doses of cyclophosphamide and doxorubicin intravenously at weekly intervals for four weeks. We measured serum cytokines and markers of neuroinflammation at 48 h and up to one month post-treatment and tested memory using a reward-based delayed spatial alternation paradigm. We found that breast tumors and chemotherapy altered systemic inflammation and neuroinflammation. We further found that the presence of tumor and chemotherapy led to a decline in memory over time at the longest delay, when memory was the most taxed, compared to shorter delay times. These findings in a clinically relevant mouse model shed light on possible biomarkers for CRCD and add to the growing evidence that anti-inflammatory strategies have the potential to mitigate cancer- or treatment-related side effects., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

High temperature thermal gradient interaction chromatography (HT-TGIC) has been widely used to measure chemical composition distribution due to its applicability to separate crystalline and non-crystalline amorphous polyolefin materials. The compatibility of HT-TGIC with various detectors (infrared (IR), light scattering (LS), and viscometer) has also allowed a comprehensive analysis of molecular architecture of polyolefin and recycled plastics. The introduction of an easy-to-fabricate graphene coated onto non-porous silica particles as HT-TGIC column in 2020 showed a superior chromatographic performance over the traditional graphite column. A reduction in peak broadness (∼47 %) under identical experimental conditions was demonstrated in that research. This paper similarly uses a graphene column but with the focus on optimization of experimental parameters (concentration, and thermal cooling and heating rates etc.). Equivalent chemical composition distribution (CCD) data to that obtained by the incumbent graphite column over a wide range of polyolefins products was achieved, in addition to a shortened analysis time from 120 min down to 88 min per sample. The materials studied included semicrystalline linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), elastomers, terpolymers, model blends to mimic recycled plastics. The results also suggest that the elimination of substrate pores enable a better HT-TGIC separation. Coupling the ease and reproducibility of the graphene column fabrication process enables long term chromatographic robustness. This not only results in equivalent CCD data compared to the traditional graphite column but also a 27 % reduction in analysis time. These results demonstrate a substantial advancement of technology in the high throughput industrial laboratory setting where fast testing turnaround time is critical. In addition, simple fabrication with commercially available silica particles and graphene nanopowder provides a cost-effective approach to make HT-TGIC columns reproducibly., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Pregnancy requires a high demand of energy, which leads to an increase of oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to assess the oxidative status in 200 couples of pregnant women-newborns at the time of delivery, for the first time, who gave birth in two University Hospitals from the province of Seville. Recruited women filled an epidemiological questionnaire with their demographic characteristics and dietary habits during pregnancy. At the time of delivery, both maternal and cord blood samples were collected. Protein oxidation, superoxide dismutase, and catalase levels were measured to assess the oxidative status of these women, together with the levels of vitamins D, B12, Zn, Se, and Cu. Our results showed a tendency for all biomarkers measured to be higher in cord blood than in maternal blood. For the correlations established between the OS markers and sociodemographic characteristics, only significant differences for carbonyl groups values were found on both maternal and cord blood, relating these higher values to the use of insecticides in the women's homes. For newborns, only a significant correlation was detected between antioxidant enzymes and the newborn's weight, specifically for superoxide dismutase activity. Additionally, the higher values obtained in cord blood might suggest metabolization, while a higher production of ROS and antioxidant enzymes might be required to maintain the balance. Measured levels for Se were similar in both maternal and cord blood, unlike Cu and Zn, where higher levels were found for maternal blood than cord blood, indicating a correlation between maternal Se values and SOD as OS biomarker. Furthermore, vitamin D levels were around the optimum values established, finding a relationship between vitamin D and new-born's height, unlike for vitamin B12 values, where a correlation with maternal food consumption characteristics was established. Overall values were inside normal ranges and consistent for our population., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Healthy eating is vital to well-being and during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was especially important for boosting immunity and protecting against viral infections. Yet, by many accounts, keeping a nutritious diet was a casualty of the pandemic rather than a means to fight it. Young adults experienced disproportionate pandemic-related disruptions during a formative stage of development while little is still known about dietary outcomes., Methods: We employed a cross-sectional design to examine dietary disparities targeting young adults (ages 18-28) during the COVID-19 lockdown period. Participants (N = 254) responded to a 15-20-min online survey with questions related to food composition and sources of food, perceptions of healthy eating, weight change, physical activity, and food insecurity. Comparisons were made by household income and gender. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to investigate factors that predicted perceptions of healthy eating behaviors while controlling for other sociodemographic factors., Results: A clear overall trend toward unhealthy behaviors was found while positive changes were also identified. Consumption of junk food significantly increased (+ 3%), 40% gained weight, a third were less active, and 5-8% were food insecure on a regular basis. Meanwhile, eating food from restaurants declined and, for some, home-based cooking increased. Lower income participants were overly represented in unhealthy changes and higher income participants were disproportionately represented in healthy changes. Males reported more changes in dietary composition while females reported more fluctuation in weight. Reduced activity, weight gain, and food insecurity predicted unhealthy eating behaviors. Living with friend(s)/roommate(s) predicted healthier eating, but only among lower income participants., Conclusions: It is recommended that pandemic minded public health interventions account for negative dietary trends with particular attention to low-income young adults. Solutions should be geared toward reshaping fiscal, social and physical environments, rather than relying solely on behavioral interventions., (© 2023. BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

Objective: To evaluate the effect of pharmacological modulation of HIF-1 on the expression of IL-33 and IL-17 in a murine model of allergic pulmonary inflam- mation (API) with different degrees of severity., Methods: 5 mice/group received ovalbumin (OVA) 1(mild), 2(moderate) or 3(severe) challenges via i.t. prior to allergen sensitization, in addition to the HIF-1 induction or inhibition groups, received EDHB (OVA+EDHB) i.p. or 2ME (OVA+2ME) i.t. respectively. Control groups received saline solution (SS) in the same way. HE (inflammatory infiltrate), PAS (mucus production) and immunohistochemical staining for HIF-1a, IL-33, IL-17 were performed, quantitatively analyzing by digital pathology., Results: We obtained different degrees of severity with a greater number of challenges, increasing the expression of HIF-1, correlating with the expression of IL-33/IL-17. Increasing or decreasing, respectively by pharmacological modulation., Conclusions: The above suggests that the high expression of HIF-1 favors the production of IL-33 and IL-17 contributing to the damage in lung tissue and the severity of the disease and these can be regulated through the modulation of HIF- 1., (Este obra está bajo una licencia de Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial 4.0 Internacional.)

Selenium (Se) is an essential element and antioxidant that catalyzes the destruction of hydrogen peroxide formed during cellular oxidative metabolism. Doses of Se as selenomethionine (SeMe) by oral route are 0.1-0.3 mgSe/kg DM, while the dose by parenteral route with sodium selenite (Na 2 SeO 3 ) is 0.1 mgSe/BW. The effects of supranutritional Se supplementation on normal kids have rarely been studied. The objective of the study was to evaluate both Se sources on growth performance, Se in tissues, histopathological findings, and meat characteristics. Forty-five kids of the Pastoreña breed with 25-day age were distributed (4.7 ± 1.13 kg) in three treatments: a) control group, C: consumption with goat milk (GM: containing 0.135 mgSe/g); b) NaSe: GM plus Na 2 SeO 3 injectable, 0.25 mgSe/kg BW; c) SeMe: GM plus oral dosage, 0.3 mgSe as SeMe daily. Fifteen animals per treatment were slaughtered at 7, 14, and 21 days. Feed conversion improved (P < 0.05) with Se supplement (P < 0.05) at 7 and 14 days. SeMe had higher protein and fat meat content (P < 0.05). SeMe increased Se liver at 14 and 21 days. NaSe and SeMe had higher (P < 0.05) levels of Se kidney. SeMe-21d showed 42% mononuclear and periportal cell infiltration lesions. In conclusion, Se administered through milk in goat kids was insufficient to prevent nutritional muscular dystrophy. The supranutritional dose of 0.25 mg/kg as NaSe was sufficient to maintain the Se level in tissues. SeMe increased Se liver and kidney efficiently. Both Se sources improved the bioavailability of the mineral in kids., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is often accompanied with metabolic disturbances attributed to androgen excess and obesity, but the contribution of each has not been defined, and the occurrence of metabolic disturbances is usually not investigated. Ninety-nine women with PCOS and forty-one without PCOS were evaluated. The clinical biomarkers of alterations related to glucose (glucose, insulin, and clamp-derived glucose disposal - M ), liver (aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and gamma-glutamyl transferase), and endothelium (arginine, asymmetric dymethylarginine, carotid intima-media thickness, and flow-mediated dilation) metabolism were measured; participants were categorized into four groups according to their obesity (OB) and hyperandrogenemia (HA) status as follows: Healthy (no-HA, lean), HA (HA, lean), OB (no-HA, OB), and HAOB (HA, OB). Metabolic disturbances were very frequent in women with PCOS (≈70%). BMI correlated with all biomarkers, whereas free testosterone (FT) correlated with only glucose- and liver-related indicators. Although insulin sensitivity and liver enzymes were associated with FT, women with obesity showed lower M (coef = 8.56 - 0.080(FT) - 3.71(Ob); p < 0.001) and higher aspartate aminotransferase (coef = 26.27 + 0.532 (FT) + 8.08 (Ob); p = 0.015) than lean women with the same level of FT. Women with obesity showed a higher risk of metabolic disorders than lean women, independent of hyperandrogenemia. Clinicians are compelled to look for metabolic alterations in women with PCOS. Obesity should be treated in all cases, but hyperandrogenemia should also be monitored in those with glucose-or liver-related disturbances.

Nosocomial infections caused by Escherichia coli pose significant therapeutic challenges due to the high expression of genes encoding antimicrobial drug resistance. In this study, we investigated the conformation of the beta-lactam resistome responsible for the specific pattern of resistance against beta-lactam antibiotics. A total of 218 Escherichia coli strains were isolated from in-hospital patients diagnosed with nosocomial infections, obtained from various sources such as urine ( n = 49, 22.48%), vaginal discharge ( n = 46, 21.10%), catheter tips ( n = 14, 6.42%), blood ( n = 13, 5.96%), feces ( n = 12, 5.50%), sputum ( n = 11, 5.05%), biopsies ( n = 8, 3.67%), cerebrospinal fluid ( n = 2, 0.92%) and other unspecified discharges ( n = 63, 28.90%). To characterize the beta-lactam resistome, all strains were subjected to antibiotic dilution tests and grown in beta-lactam antibiotics supplemented with Luria culture medium. Subsequently, multiplex PCR and next-generation sequencing were conducted. The results show a multi-drug-resistance phenotype, particularly against beta-lactam drugs. The primary determinant of this resistance was the expression of the blaTEM gene family, with 209 positive strains (95.87%) expressing it as a single gene ( n = 47, 21.6%) or in combination with other genes. Common combinations included bla TEM + bla CTX ( n = 42, 19.3%), bla TEM + bla CTX + bla SHV ( n = 13, 6%) and bla TEM + bla CTX + bla BIL ( n = 12, 5.5%), among others. The beta-lactam resistome of nosocomial Escherichia coli strains isolated from inpatients at the "October first" Regional Hospital of ISSSTE was predominantly composed of members of the blaTEM gene family, expressed in various configurations along with different members of other beta-lactamase gene families.

Background: Chagas disease is a public health challenge in Colombia, where only an estimated 1.2% of people at risk have accessed diagnosis, while less than 0.5% of affected people have obtained treatment. The development of simplified diagnostic algorithms would enable progress in access to diagnosis; however, the current diagnostic algorithm relies on at least two laboratory-based tests that require qualified personnel, processing equipment, and infrastructure, which are still generally lacking at the primary care level. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for Chagas disease could simplify diagnosis, but their performance in the epidemiological context of Colombia is not well known., Methodology: A retrospective analytical observational study of RDTs was performed to estimate the operational characteristics of 11 commercially available RDTs designed for in vitro detection of anti-T. cruzi IgG antibodies. The study was performed under controlled laboratory conditions using human serum samples., Principal Findings: Eleven RDTs were assessed, ten using 585 serum samples and one using 551 serum samples. Employing the current national diagnostic algorithm as a reference standard for serological diagnosis of chronic infection, the sensitivity of the assessed RDTs ranged from 75.5% to 99.0% (95% CI 70.5-100), while specificity ranged from 70.9% to 100% (95% CI 65.3-100). Most tests (7/11, 63.6%) had sensitivity above 90%, and almost all (10/11, 90.9%) had specificity above 90%. Five RDTs had both sensitivity and specificity above 90%., Conclusions/significance: The evaluation of these 11 commercially available RDTs under controlled laboratory conditions is a first step in the assessment of the diagnostic performance of RDTs in Colombia. As a next step, field studies will be conducted on available RDTs with sensitivity and specificity greater than 90% in this study, to evaluate performance in real world conditions, with the final goal to allow simplified diagnostic algorithms., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Marchiol et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Portal hypertension may have major consequences on the pulmonary vasculature due to the complex pathophysiological interactions between the liver and lungs. Portopulmonary hypertension (PoPH), a subset of group 1 pulmonary hypertension (PH), is a serious pulmonary vascular disease secondary to portal hypertension, and is the fourth most common subtype of pulmonary arterial hypertension. It is most commonly observed in cirrhotic patients; however, patients with noncirrhotic portal hypertension can also develop it. On suspicion of PoPH, the initial evaluation is by a transthoracic echocardiogram in which, if elevated pulmonary pressures are shown, patients should undergo right heart catheterization to confirm the diagnosis. The prognosis is extremely poor in untreated patients; therefore, management includes pulmonary arterial hypertension therapies with the aim of improving pulmonary hemodynamics and moving patients to orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). In this article, we review in detail the epidemiology, pathophysiology, process for diagnosis, and most current treatments including OLT and prognosis in patients with PoPH. In addition, we present a diagnostic algorithm that includes the current criteria to properly select patients with PoPH who are candidates for OLT., Competing Interests: The authors declare no funding or conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Transplantation Direct. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Nickel antimonate (NiSb 2 O 6 ) powders were synthesized using a wet chemistry process assisted by microwave radiation and calcination from 600 to 700 °C to evaluate their photocatalytic and gas-sensing properties. The crystalline phase obtained at 800 °C of trirutile-type nickel antimonate was confirmed with powder X-ray diffraction. The morphology and size of the nanostructures were analyzed employing electron microscopy (SEM and TEM), identifying irregular particles and microrods (~277 nm, made up of polyhedral shapes of size ~65 nm), nanorods with an average length of ~77 nm, and nanostructures of polyhedral type of different sizes. UV-vis analysis determined that the bandgap of the powders obtained at 800 °C was ~3.2 eV. The gas sensing tests obtained a maximum response of ~5 for CO (300 ppm) at 300 °C and ~10 for C 3 H 8 (500 ppm) at 300 °C. According to these results, we consider that NiSb 2 O 6 can be applied as a gas sensor. On the other hand, the photocatalytic properties of the antimonate were examined by monitoring the discoloration of malachite green (MG) at five ppm. MG concentration monitoring was carried out using UV-visible spectroscopy, and 85% discoloration was achieved after 200 min of photocatalytic reaction.

Heritable microbes that exhibit reproductive parasitism are common in insects. One class of these are the male-killing bacteria, which are found in a broad range of insect hosts. Commonly, our knowledge of the incidence of these microbes is based on one or a few sampling sites, and the degree and causes of spatial variation are unclear. In this paper, we examine the incidence of the son-killer microbe Arsenophonus nasoniae across European populations of its wasp host, Nasonia vitripennis. In preliminary work, we noticed two female N. vitripennis producing highly female biased sex ratios in a field study from the Netherlands and Germany. When tested, the brood from Germany was revealed to be infected with A. nasoniae. We then completed a broad survey in 2012, in which fly pupal hosts of N. vitripennis were collected from vacated birds' nests from four European populations, N. vitripennis wasps allowed to emerge and then tested for A. nasoniae presence through PCR assay. We then developed a new screening methodology based on direct PCR assays of fly pupae and applied this to ethanol-preserved material collected from great tit (Parus major) nests in Portugal. These data show A. nasoniae is found widely in European N. vitripennis, being present in Germany, the UK, Finland, Switzerland and Portugal. Samples varied in the frequency with which they carry A. nasoniae, from being rare to being present in 50% of the pupae parasitised by N. vitripennis. Direct screening of ethanol-preserved fly pupae was an effective method for revealing both wasp and A. nasoniae infection, and will facilitate sample transport across national boundaries. Future research should examine the causes of variation in frequency, in particular testing the hypothesis that N. vitripennis superparasitism rates drive the variation in A. nasoniae frequency through providing opportunities for infectious transmission., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Gregory Hurst reports financial support was provided by Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. Gregory Hurst reports financial support was provided by Natural Environment Research Council. Eeva Tapio reports financial support was provided by Academy of Finland. Indirikis Krams reports financial support was provided by Latvian Council of Sciences. Ana Norte reports financial support was provided by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia. Gregorio Moreno-Rueda reports financial support was provided by Spanish Ministry of Education., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

We define a journal club as a group of people who meet to critically read and discuss scientific articles. In medicine, journal clubs are a very important part of training during residency programs. In 2013, the Spanish Society of Medical Radiology's (SERAM) journal club was established with the aim of promoting the acquisition of non-interpretative skills and training in scientific journalism during residency. After nearly 10 years, more than 137 reviewers at 54 hospitals have formed part of the SERAM's journal club. In this time period, the number of reviewers, publications, and visits to our website have increased progressively. The SERAM's journal club currently employs a structured workflow that is organized into quarterly groups and supported by a peer-review system. In the future, the SERAM's journal club aims to internationalize its content beyond the Spanish-speaking community, increase its presence in social networks, and incorporate audiovisual content., (Copyright © 2023 SERAM. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

One of the biggest challenges in developing effective therapies against glioblastoma is overcoming the strong immune suppression within the tumor microenvironment. Immunotherapy has emerged as an effective strategy to turn the immune system response against tumor cells. Glioma-associated macrophages and microglia (GAMs) are major drivers of such anti-inflammatory scenarios. Therefore, enhancing the anti-cancerous response in GAMs may represent a potential co-adjuvant therapy to treat glioblastoma patients. In that vein, fungal β-glucan molecules have long been known as potent immune modulators. Their ability to stimulate the innate immune activity and improve treatment response has been described. Those modulating features are partly attributed to their ability to bind to pattern recognition receptors, which, interestingly, are greatly expressed in GAMs. Thus, this work is focused on the isolation, purification, and subsequent use of fungal β-glucans to enhance the tumoricidal response of microglia against glioblastoma cells. The mouse glioblastoma (GL261) and microglia (BV-2) cell lines are used to test the immunomodulatory properties of four different fungal β-glucans extracted from mushrooms heavily used in the current biopharmaceutical industry: Pleurotus ostreatus, Pleurotus djamor, Hericium erinaceus, and Ganoderma lucidum. To test these compounds, co-stimulation assays were performed to measure the effect of a pre-activated microglia-conditioned medium on the proliferation and apoptosis activation in glioblastoma cells.

Clenbuterol (Clb) (4-amino-α-[(tert-butylamine) methyl]-3,5-dichlorobenzyl alcohol) is a sympathomimetic agent that exhibits β2-agonist activity. It is applied as a bronchodilatory, tocolytic, and mucolytic agent and is authorized for clinical management in both human and veterinary therapeutics as a racemic mixture. However, its use is strictly prohibited in animals destined for food production in countries in the European Union and in the United States and Mexico, among many others. The R-(-) enantiomer in clenbuterol stimulates β2-receptors, whereas the S-(+) enantiomer blocks the effect of β1-receptors. The aims of this study were to develop a method for detecting and quantifying Clb and its enantiomeric distribution in several bovine tissues. The UHPLC-MS/MS method developed to quantify the target compound at trace levels in these tissues combines high sensitivity with good selectivity and short chromatographic run time. The tissue samples tested were found to contain racemic Clb in concentrations of 5-447 pg g -1 . The enantiomeric analysis of Clb showed that R-(-)-Clb is present at higher concentrations in some tissues, whereas S-(+)-Clb was detected in a ratio of 55/45 in the liver and heart tissues., (© 2023 The Authors. Drug Testing and Analysis published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: The objective is to compare the clinical and laboratory characteristics of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with and without lupus enteritis (LE) and to identify the factors associated with the occurrence of LE., Methods: We performed a retrospective, case-control study in hospitalized patients with SLE who were admitted to our tertiary hospital between January 2012 and December 2021. Sixteen LE patients (cases) were matched (1:3 ratio) for sex and birth year with 48 non-LE patients (controls). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify the variables associated with LE., Results: Of 2,479 SLE patients who were admitted to our hospital as inpatients, 16 (0.65%) were diagnosed as having LE. All patients, cases and controls, were of Mestizo ethnicity. SLE was diagnosed simultaneously with the first episode of LE in 10 (62.5%) patients. The median time from SLE diagnosis to the first episode of LE was 7 (IQR 0-78) months. LE patients had a shorter median disease duration [7 (0-78) vs 34 (9.5-79) months], and a significantly longer hospital stay (28.3 ± 15.8 vs 6.5 ± 7.9 days, p < 0.001) than non-LE patients. Most LE patients (93.8%) had concomitant lupus nephritis. LE patients had higher SLEDAI-2K scores than those without LE (20.5 ± 9.4 vs 9.8 ± 10.4, p < 0.001). By multivariable analysis, a higher SLEDAI-2K score (OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.02-1.18; p = 0.015) was independently associated with LE occurrence after adjusting for cutaneous involvement, lymphocyte count, serum creatinine, and serum complement C4. Recurrence was observed in two patients (12.5%), both with a bowel wall thickening > 8 mm. The two patients with large intestine-dominant LE developed intestinal pseudo-obstruction. No patient had life-threatening complications (intestinal hemorrhage, infarction, or perforation), and there were no deaths induced directly by LE itself., Conclusion: In patients of Mestizo ethnicity, LE occurs during the early course of SLE, frequently is one of the presenting manifestations of SLE, and in most cases, it presents with concomitant lupus nephritis. Higher levels of disease activity at diagnosis were independently associated with LE occurrence and when recurrences occur, they do so in the context of severe wall thickness.

Background and Hypothesis: The existing developmental bond between fingerprint generation and growth of the central nervous system points to a potential use of fingerprints as risk markers in schizophrenia. However, the high complexity of fingerprints geometrical patterns may require flexible algorithms capable of characterizing such complexity., Study Design: Based on an initial sample of scanned fingerprints from 612 patients with a diagnosis of non-affective psychosis and 844 healthy subjects, we have built deep learning classification algorithms based on convolutional neural networks. Previously, the general architecture of the network was chosen from exploratory fittings carried out with an independent fingerprint dataset from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The network architecture was then applied for building classification algorithms (patients vs controls) based on single fingers and multi-input models. Unbiased estimates of classification accuracy were obtained by applying a 5-fold cross-validation scheme., Study Results: The highest level of accuracy from networks based on single fingers was achieved by the right thumb network (weighted validation accuracy = 68%), while the highest accuracy from the multi-input models was attained by the model that simultaneously used images from the left thumb, index and middle fingers (weighted validation accuracy = 70%)., Conclusion: Although fitted models were based on data from patients with a well established diagnosis, since fingerprints remain lifelong stable after birth, our results imply that fingerprints may be applied as early predictors of psychosis. Specially, if they are used in high prevalence subpopulations such as those of individuals at high risk for psychosis., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center.)

Background: Antimicrobial resistance threatens the ability to successfully prevent and treat infections. While hospital benchmarks regarding antimicrobial use (AMU) have been well documented among adult populations, there is less information from among paediatric inpatients. This study presents benchmark rates of antimicrobial use (AMU) for paediatric inpatients in nine Canadian acute-care hospitals., Methods: Acute-care hospitals participating in the Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program submitted annual AMU data from paediatric inpatients from 2017 and 2018. All systemic antimicrobials were included. Data were available for neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), pediatric ICUs (PICUs), and non-ICU wards. Data were analyzed using days of therapy (DOT) per 1000 patient days (DOT/1000pd)., Results: Nine hospitals provided paediatric AMU data. Data from seven NICU and PICU wards were included. Overall AMU was 481 (95% CI 409-554) DOT/1000pd. There was high variability in AMU between hospitals. AMU was higher on PICU wards (784 DOT/1000pd) than on non-ICU (494 DOT/1000pd) or NICU wards (333 DOT/1000pd). On non-ICU wards, the antimicrobials with the highest use were cefazolin (66 DOT/1000pd), ceftriaxone (59 DOT/1000pd) and piperacillin-tazobactam (48 DOT/1000pd). On PICU wards, the antimicrobials with the highest use were ceftriaxone (115 DOT/1000pd), piperacillin-tazobactam (115 DOT/1000pd), and cefazolin (111 DOT/1000pd). On NICU wards, the antimicrobials with the highest use were ampicillin (102 DOT/1000pd), gentamicin/tobramycin (78 DOT/1000pd), and cefotaxime (38 DOT/1000pd)., Conclusions: This study represents the largest collection of antimicrobial use data among hospitalized paediatric inpatients in Canada to date. In 2017/2018, overall AMU was 481 DOT/1000pd. National surveillance of AMU among paediatric inpatients is necessary for establishing benchmarks and informing antimicrobial stewardship efforts., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: Increasing rates of mental health diagnoses in college students signal the need for new opportunities to support the mental health of this population. With many mental health apps being efficacious, they may be a promising resource for college campuses to provide support to their students. However, it is important to understand why (or why not) students might want to use apps and their desired features., Objective: Information on students' interest in mental health apps may inform which apps are to be provided and how campuses can support their use. This study aimed to understand the interest and hesitation in app use and the relationship between mental health needs, as defined by depression, anxiety, and positive mental health, and app use., Methods: The web-based Healthy Minds Study collected information on mental health needs, perceptions, and service use across colleges and universities. We used a sample of 989 participants who completed the survey between 2018 and 2020 and an elective module on digital mental health. We analyzed the elective module responses using a mixed methods approach, including both descriptive and inferential statistics, along with thematic coding for open text responses., Results: The Results from this study revealed that anxiety (b=-0.07; P<.001), but not depression (b=0.03; P=.12) and positive mental health (b=-0.02; P=.17), was a significant predictor of app adoption. Prominent qualitative findings indicated that the most desired app features included tips and advice, access to resources and information, and on-demand support that involves interaction throughout the day. The participants also suggested an overall desire for human interaction to be integrated into an app. As predicted, hesitancy was encountered, and the qualitative results suggested that there was a lack of interest in the adoption of mental health app and preference., Conclusions: The findings from this study underscore that simply providing digital mental health apps as tools may be insufficient to support their use in college campuses. Although many students were open to using a mental health app, hesitation and uncertainty were common in the participant responses. Working with colleges and universities to increase digital literacy and provide resources that allow students to gauge when app use is appropriate may be helpful when implementing mental health apps as resources in college campuses., (©Justine Bautista, Stephen M Schueller. Originally published in JMIR Mental Health (https://mental.jmir.org), 22.03.2023.)

PRES (posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome) is a neurological condition characterised by epileptic seizures, altered consciousness, visual disturbances and/or headache with typical neuroimaging showing reversible subcortical vasogenic oedema mainly in parieto-occipital regions. The pathophysiological mechanism is not fully understood. We present a clinical case in the field of liver transplantation where tacrolimus neurotoxicity may play a relevant role in the development of this syndrome.

The heart and brain have bi-directional influences on each other, including autonomic regulation and hemodynamic connections. Heart rate variability (HRV) measures variation in beat-to-beat intervals. New findings about disorganized sinus rhythm (erratic rhythm, quantified as heart rate fragmentation, HRF) are discussed and suggest overestimation of autonomic activities in HRV changes, especially during aging or cardiovascular events. When excluding HRF, HRV is regulated via the central autonomic network (CAN). HRV acts as a proxy of autonomic activity and is associated with executive functions, decision-making, and emotional regulation in our health and wellbeing. Abnormal changes of HRV (e.g., decreased vagal functioning) are observed in various neurological conditions including mild cognitive impairments, dementia, mild traumatic brain injury, migraine, COVID-19, stroke, epilepsy, and psychological conditions (e.g., anxiety, stress, and schizophrenia). Efforts are needed to improve the dynamic and intriguing heart-brain interactions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Arakaki, Arechavala, Choy, Bautista, Bliss, Molloy, Wu, Shimojo, Jiang, Kleinman and Kloner.)

Background: Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) negatively affects survivors' walking, engagement in physical activity (PA), and quality of life (QoL). Yoga is an effective therapy for treating CRF; however, evidence from large clinical trials regarding how reducing CRF through yoga influences CRF's interference with survivors' walking, engagement in PA, and QoL is not available. We examined the effects of yoga and the mediational influence of CRF on CRF's interference with walking, PA, and QoL among cancer survivors in a multicenter phase III randomized controlled trial., Patients and Methods: Cancer survivors (n=410) with insomnia 2 to 24 months posttreatment were randomized to a 4-week yoga intervention-Yoga for Cancer Survivors (YOCAS)-or standard care. A symptom inventory was used to assess how much CRF interfered with survivors' walking, PA, and QoL. The Multidimensional Fatigue Symptom Inventory-Short Form was used to assess CRF. Two-tailed t tests and analyses of covariance were used to examine within-group and between-group differences. Path analysis was used to evaluate mediational relationships between CRF and changes in CRF's interference with walking, PA, and QoL among survivors., Results: Compared with standard care controls, YOCAS participants reported significant improvements in CRF's interference with walking, PA, and QoL at postintervention (all effect size = -0.33; all P≤.05). Improvements in CRF resulting from yoga accounted for significant proportions of the improvements in walking (44%), PA (53%), and QoL (45%; all P≤.05)., Conclusions: A significant proportion (44%-53%) of the YOCAS effect on CRF's interference with walking, PA, and QoL was due to improvements in CRF among cancer survivors. Yoga should be introduced and included as a treatment option for survivors experiencing fatigue. By reducing fatigue, survivors further improve their walking, engagement in PA, and QoL.

Background: Dysbiosis and mucin depletion are related with intestinal barrier dysfunction and seems to be an early pathophysiological event in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The objective of this work is to study these parameters in the natural history of colitis in IL-10 deficient mice (IL-10 -/- )., Methods: Wild type (WT) and IL-10 -/- . mice were followed until sacrifice at 3, 5, 10, 20, 57, and 70 weeks. Body weight, colonic weight/length ratio and in vivo intestinal permeability were registered. Expression of inflammatory and adhesion molecules in the colon was explored by qPCR as Mucin-2 ( MUC-2 ) and molecules involved in goblet cell maturation Interleukin-18 (IL-18) and WAP Four-Disulfide Core Domain 2 (WFDC2) , the endoplasmic reticulum stress markers X-box-binding protein (Xbp-1) and Reticulon-4B (RTN-4B) . Bacterial composition in feces and colonic mucosa was determined by massive sequencing of the V3-V4 regions of 16S rDNA gene., Results: IL-10 -/- mice showed histological inflammation at weeks 20 and 57, but most notably the intestinal permeability was significantly higher from week 10. Concordantly, the number of goblet cells and expression of MUC-2, IL-18, WFDC2 and Xbp-1 were significantly lower in KO from week 10. Nevertheless, no significant differences were found in the mRNA expression of MUC-2 or Xbp-1 between both groups-derived colon organoids. Significant bacterial differences began at week 5, being the Akkermansia deficiency in KO the most relevant result., Conclusion: Gut microbiota alterations and mucin depletion are associated with early intestinal barrier dysfunction and precede overt gut inflammation in this animal model of IBD., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 López-Cauce, Puerto, García, Ponce-Alonso, Becerra-Aparicio, del Campo, Peligros, Fernández-Aceñero, Gómez-Navarro, Lara, Miranda-Bautista, Marín-Jiménez, Bañares and Menchén.)

Nowadays there is an increasing concern about exposition during prenatal stage to environmental pollutants such as metals, that make pregnant women a vulnerable group of population. Numerous studies have shown associations between the prenatal exposition to some metals and an impact on cognitive, motor and intellectual development of the child. Metals and metalloid are ubiquitous in the environment and pregnant women are exposed to them though their diet, lifestyle factors or occupational and environmental sources. One hundred of maternal and one hundred of cord blood samples were obtained at delivery from pregnant women after signing of the informed consent to determine simultaneously levels of Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se and Zn by ICP-MS. Among these metals, essential ones (Cu, Mn, Se and Zn) can have health beneficial effects at low levels, however, in high concentration are potentially toxic. On the other hand, elements such as Al, As, Cd, Hg, Pb are classified as toxic metals, no matter what its concentration was. The aim of this study was to find the potential relationships between these metals and metalloid levels, newborn's parameters, pregnancy details and the epidemiologic information obtained using a questionnaire data from the participant pregnant women from Seville (Spain). A n = 100 of participants have been enrolled, 15.6 % of the women from Virgen del Rocio Hospital were smokers during pregnancy but only 11.1 % from Virgen de Valme had the habit. Dietary habits of all participants from both hospital were quite similar in average rice, fish and canned food consumption. The characteristics of newborns were also quite similar for both hospitals. A positive correlation between maternal and cord blood was found between all metals except for Cr and Cu. The strongest correlation was found for Hg (r = 0.779, p < 0.005). Positive but weaker correlations between maternal blood and lifestyle habits were also established., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Trypanosomatids are among the most critical parasites for public health due to their impact on human, animal, and plant health. Diseases associated with these pathogens manifest mainly in poor and vulnerable populations, where social, environmental, and biological factors modulate the case incidence and geographical distribution., Methods: We used Sanger and amplicon-based next-generation sequencing (NGS) in samples from different mammals to identify trypanosomatid infections in several departments in Colombia. A total of 174 DNA samples (18 humans, 83 dogs, and 73 wild mammals) were analyzed by conventional PCR using a fragment of the heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) gene and Sanger sequenced the positive samples. Twenty-seven samples were sent for amplicon-based NGS using the same gene fragment. Data obtained were used to perform diversity analyses., Results: One hundred and thirteen samples were positive for PCR by Hsp70 fragment; these corresponded to 22.1% Leishmania spp., 18.6% L. amazonensis, 9.7% L. braziliensis, 14.2% L. infantum, 8% L. panamensis, and 27.4% Trypanosoma cruzi. Comparison of the identified species by the two sequencing technologies used resulted in 97% concordance. Alpha and beta diversity indices were significant, mainly for dogs; there was an interesting index of coinfection events in the analyzed samples: different Leishmania species and the simultaneous presence of T. cruzi and even T. rangeli in one of the samples analyzed. Moreover, a low presence of L. braziliensis was observed in samples from wild mammals. Interestingly, to our knowledge, this is the first report of Leishmania detection in Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris (capybara) in Colombia., Conclusions: The Hsp70 fragment used in this study is an optimal molecular marker for trypanosomatid identification in many hosts and allows the identification of different species in the same sample when amplicon-based sequencing is used. However, the use of this fragment for molecular diagnosis through conventional PCR should be carefully interpreted because of this same capacity to identify several parasites. This point is of pivotal importance in highly endemic countries across South America because of the co-circulation of different genera from the Trypanosomatidae family. The findings show an interesting starting point for One Health approaches in which coevolution and vector-host interactions can be studied., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

The objective of this study is to describe the frequency and the clinical, paraclinical, and treatment profile of patients with lupus psychosis in a Colombian cohort of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This retrospective cohort study evaluated epidemiological and clinical characteristics, results of neuroimaging, analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid, treatment, and disease evolution in patients with lupus psychosis. Among 2,479 patients with SLE, six female patients aged between 20 and 50 years with a diagnosis of lupus psychosis were identified. In two patients, psychosis was present at disease onset and in the other four, SLE was already present, although the majority of them were diagnosed less than two years prior to the onset of psychosis. The entire cohort had high disease activity as measured by SLEDAI-2K. We found concomitant cutaneous, joint, and hematological alterations. Cerebrospinal fluid data were obtained in half of the patients and were normal. We performed brain tomography on most of our patients, which was almost always described as normal. In 5 out of 6 patients, the induction therapy to treat psychosis was based on steroids, and in the majority of them, a resolution of psychiatric symptoms was observed after initiating treatment. Lupus psychosis is a rare event that usually occurs early in the course of the disease and is associated with other manifestations of SLE. This investigation mainly found concomitant cutaneous, joint, and hematological manifestations, with a favorable outcome after treatment, as described in the literature.

Background: Medication adherence is suboptimal in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and impacts outcomes. DMARD-free remission (DFR) is a sustainable and achievable outcome in a minority of RA patients. Different factors have been associated with DFR, although persistence in therapy (PT), a component of the adherence construct, has never been examined. The study's primary aim was to investigate the impact of PT's characteristics on DFR in a cohort of Hispanic patients with recent-onset RA., Methods: A single data abstractor reviewed the charts from 209 early (symptoms duration ≤ 1 year) RA patients. All the patients had prospective assessments of disease activity and PT and at least 1 year of follow-up, which was required for the DFR definition. DFR was defined when patients achieved ≥ 1 year of continuous Disease Activity Score-28 joints evaluated ≤ 2.6, without DMARDs and corticosteroids. PT was defined based on pre-specified criteria and recorded through an interview from 2004 to 2008 and thereafter through a questionnaire. Cases (patients who achieved ≥ 1 DFR status) were paired with controls (patients who never achieved DFR during their entire follow-up) according to ten relevant variables (1:2). Cox regression analysis estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for DFR according to two characteristics of PT: the % of the patient follow-up PT and early PT (first 2 years of patients' follow-up)., Results: In March 2022, the population had 112 (55-181) patient/years follow-up. There were 23 patients (11%) with DFR after 74 months (44-122) of follow-up, and the DFR status was maintained during 48 months (18-82). Early PT was associated with DFR, while the % of the patient follow-up PT was not: HR = 3.84 [1.13-13.07] when the model was adjusted for cumulative N of DMARDs/patient and 3.16 [1.14-8.77] when also adjusted for baseline SF-36 physical component score. A lower N of cumulative DMARDs/patient was also retained in the models. Receiving operating curve to define the best cutoff of patient follow-up being PT to predict DFR was 21 months: sensitivity of 0.739, specificity of 0.717, and area under the curve of 0.682 (0.544-0.821)., Conclusions: DFR status might be added to the benefits of adhering to prescribed treatment., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Pressure ulcers are a common adverse event in healthcare. To date, no flowmetry studies have been conducted to compare hyperoxygenated fatty acids (HFA) vs. extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) in alleviating this condition., Aims: To determine and evaluate the effect of the application of HFA vs. EVOO on tissue oxygenation and perfusion in heels under pressure, in healthy persons and in hospitalised patients., Design: Two-phase experimental study., Methods: Phase 1 will be conducted with healthy subjects, using a randomised, open study design, evaluating an intrasubject control group. Phase 2 will focus on hospitalised subjects, with a randomised, open study group vs. a control group., Discussion: This Project is undertaken to identify the mechanisms that intervene in the genesis of pressure ulcers and to determine whether there are differences in outcomes between the application of HFA vs. EVOO as a preventive measure The results of this study are of economic importance (due to the price difference between the products used) and will also impact on usual clinical practice for patients with impaired mobility and liable to suffer from pressure ulcers, by considering an alternative to established preventive measures., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Patients with mitochondrial diseases can develop cardiomyopathy but with variable expressivity and penetrance. Our prospective study enrolled and evaluated a cohort of 53 patients diagnosed with chronic progressive ophthalmoplegia (CPEO, n = 34), Kearns-Sayre syndrome (KSS, n = 3), neuropathy ataxia and retinitis pigmentosa (NARP, n = 1), myoclonic epilepsy with ragged red fibers (MERRF, n = 1), Harel-Yoon Syndrome (HYS, n = 1) and 13 patients with undefined mitochondrial diseases, presenting primarily with neurological symptoms. Over a 4-year period, six patients in our study cohort were diagnosed with heart disease (11.3%), with only three patients having defined cardiomyopathy (5.7%). Cardiomyopathy was present in a 21-year-old patient with HYS and two CPEO patients having mild cardiomyopathy at an older age. Two CPEO patients had congenital heart disease, and a third CPEO had LV hypertrophy secondary to hypertension. In three patients, traditional risk factors for heart disease, including dyslipidemia, hypertension, and respiratory disease, were present. The majority of our adult cohort of patients have normal cardiac investigations with a median left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction of 59.0%, indexed LV mass of 67.0 g/m 2 , and normal diastolic and valvular function at baseline. A 12-lead electrocardiogram showed normal cardiac conduction across the study cohort. Importantly, follow-up assessments showed consistent cardiac structure and function. Our study shows a low prevalence of cardiomyopathy and highlights the breadth of phenotypic variability in patients with mitochondrial disorders. The presence of cardiovascular risk factors and aging are important comorbidities in our cohort.