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Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most frequent bacterial diseases in infants and children. Physician adherence to recommendations is notoriously often poor, but no data are available on UTIs management in the emergency setting. In this multicenter national study, we investigated the policies regarding UTIs management in children aged 2 months to 3 years in Italian emergency units. Between April and June 2021, directors of the emergency units were invited to answer an online survey on the following items: diagnostic approach to children with fever without an apparent source, therapeutic approach to UTIs, the use of kidney and urinary tract ultrasound, and the criteria for hospitalization. A total of 121 (89%) out of 139 of invited units participated in the study. Overall, units manage children with a suspected or confirmed UTI according to available recommendations for most of the items. However, in almost 80% (n = 94) of units, a sterile perineal bag is used to collect urine for culture. When urine is collected by cathether, heterogeneity exists on the threshold of bacterial load considered for UTI diagnosis. Conclusions: Available recommendations on UTIs in children are followed by Italian emergency units for most of the items. However, the methods to collect urine specimens for culture, one of the crucial steps of the diagnostic work-up, often do not align with current recommendations and CFU thresholds considered for diagnosis largely vary among centers. Efforts should be addressed to validate and implement new child and family friendly urine collection techniques.What is Known:• Several guidelines are published on the management of children with suspected or confirmed urinary tract infection.• No data are available on the management of pediatric urinary tract infections in the emergency setting.What is New:• Almost 80% of the Italian emergency units employ a sterile perineal bag to collect urine for culture.• Diagnostic

High energy collisions at the High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (LHC) produce a large number of particles along the beam collision axis, outside of the acceptance of existing LHC experiments. The proposed Forward Physics Facility (FPF), to be located several hundred meters from the ATLAS interaction point and shielded by concrete and rock, will host a suite of experiments to probe standard model (SM) processes and search for physics beyond the standard model (BSM). In this report, we review the status of the civil engineering plans and the experiments to explore the diverse physics signals that can be uniquely probed in the forward region. FPF experiments will be sensitive to a broad range of BSM physics through searches for new particle scattering or decay signatures and deviations from SM expectations in high statistics analyses with TeV neutrinos in this low-background environment. High statistics neutrino detection will also provide valuable data for fundamental topics in perturbative and non-perturbative QCD and in weak interactions. Experiments at the FPF will enable synergies between forward particle production at the LHC and astroparticle physics to be exploited. We report here on these physics topics, on infrastructure, detector, and simulation studies, and on future directions to realize the FPF's physics potential.

PURPOSE. To investigate the course of inherited retinal degenerations (IRD) due to mutations in the RPE65 gene. METHODS. This longitudinal multicentric retrospective chart-review study was designed to collect best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), Goldman visual field, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and electroretinography (ERG) measurements. The data, including imaging, were collected using an electronic clinical research form and were reviewed at a single center to improve consistency. RESULTS. From an overall cohort of 60 Italian patients with RPE65-associated IRD, 43 patients (mean age, 27.8 ± 19.7 years) were included and showed a mean BCVA of 2.0 ± 1.0 logMAR. Time-to-event analysis revealed a median age of 33.8 years and 41.4 years to reach low vision and blindness based on BCVA, respectively. ERG (available for 34 patients) showed undetectable responses in most patients (26; 76.5%). OCT (available for 31 patients) revealed epiretinal membranes in five patients (16.1%). Central foveal thickness significantly decreased with age at a mean annual rate of −0.6%/y (P = 0.044). We identified 43 different variants in the RPE65 gene in the entire cohort. Nine variants were novel. Finally, to assess genotype-phenotype correlations, patients were stratified according to the number of RPE65 loss-of-function (LoF) alleles. Patients without LoF variants showed significantly (P < 0.05) better BCVA compared to patients with one or two LoF alleles. CONCLUSIONS. We described the natural course of RPE65-associated IRD in an Italian cohort showing for the first time a specific genotype-phenotype association. Our findings can contribute to a better management of RPE65-associated IRD patients.

So far, most potential applications of genomic prediction in plant improvement have been explored using cross validation approaches. This is the first empirical study to evaluate the accuracy of genomic prediction of the performances of progenies in a typical rice breeding program. Using a cross validation approach, we first analyzed the effects of marker selection and statistical methods on the accuracy of prediction of three different heritability traits in a reference population (RP) of 284 inbred accessions. Next, we investigated the size and the degree of relatedness with the progeny population (PP) of sub-sets of the RP that maximize the accuracy of prediction of phenotype across generations, i.e., for 97 F5–F7 lines derived from biparental crosses between 31 accessions of the RP. The extent of linkage disequilibrium was high (r2 = 0.2 at 0.80 Mb in RP and at 1.1 Mb in PP). Consequently, average marker density above one per 22 kb did not improve the accuracy of predictions in the RP. The accuracy of progeny prediction varied greatly depending on the composition of the training set, the trait, LD and minor allele frequency. The highest accuracy achieved for each trait exceeded 0.50 and was only slightly below the accuracy achieved by cross validation in the RP. Our results thus show that relatively high accuracy (0.41–0.54) can be achieved using only a rather small share of the RP, most related to the PP, as the training set. The practical implications of these results for rice breeding programs are discussed.

So far, most potential applications of genomic prediction in plant improvement have been explored using cross validation approaches. This is the first empirical study to evaluate the accuracy of genomic prediction of the performances of progenies in a typical rice breeding program. Using a cross validation approach, we first analyzed the effects of marker selection and statistical methods on the accuracy of prediction of three different heritability traits in a reference population (RP) of 284 inbred accessions. Next, we investigated the size and the degree of relatedness with the progeny population (PP) of sub-sets of the RP that maximize the accuracy of prediction of phenotype across generations, i.e., for 97 F5–F7 lines derived from biparental crosses between 31 accessions of the RP. The extent of linkage disequilibrium was high (r2 = 0.2 at 0.80 Mb in RP and at 1.1 Mb in PP). Consequently, average marker density above one per 22 kb did not improve the accuracy of predictions in the RP. The accuracy of progeny prediction varied greatly depending on the composition of the training set, the trait, LD and minor allele frequency. The highest accuracy achieved for each trait exceeded 0.50 and was only slightly below the accuracy achieved by cross validation in the RP. Our results thus show that relatively high accuracy (0.41–0.54) can be achieved using only a rather small share of the RP, most related to the PP, as the training set. The practical implications of these results for rice breeding programs are discussed.

Conjunction of high-throughput marker technologies and new statistical methods has recently given birth to a new breeding strategy called genomic selection (GS). The method use genome-wide dense marker genotyping for the prediction of genetic values (GEBV) with enough accuracy to allow selection based on GEBV alone. We present here GS for water use efficiency in rice, in the framework of a pedigree breeding scheme. The training population (TP) was composed of 284 accessions belonging to temperate and tropical japonica rice groups. The candidate population (CP) was composed of 99 F5-F7 lines derived from 36 crosses involving 32 accessions of TP. The two populations were genotyped with an average marker density of 4.8 per kb, with MAF 2.5%. Phenotypic traits considered included flowering time (FL), grain yield (GY) and nitrogen balance index (NI) under conventional irrigation (CI) and aerobic system (AS). Phenotypes were modeled using two statistical regression methods: genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) and reproducing kernel Hilbert Space (RKHS). The models were tested with three incidence matrixes corresponding to densities of 4.8, 9.5 and 13.8 marker per kb, and to linkage disequilibrium (LD) thresholds of r2≤1, r²<0.98 and r²<0.81 to investigate effect of the method and level of LD. Results of interpopulation prediction in rice breeding provided accuracies of GEBV prediction reasonably high for GY (0.41; Sd=0.03) and for NI (0.36; Sd=0.04), low for FL (0.26; Sd = 0.07), that need to be optimized by exploring potential effect of population structure within both TP and CP. (Texte integral)

Conjunction of high-throughput marker technologies and new statistical methods has recently given birth to a new breeding strategy called genomic selection (GS). The method use genome-wide dense marker genotyping for the prediction of genetic values (GEBV) with enough accuracy to allow selection based on GEBV alone. We present here GS for water use efficiency in rice, in the framework of a pedigree breeding scheme. The training population (TP) was composed of 284 accessions belonging to temperate and tropical japonica rice groups. The candidate population (CP) was composed of 99 F5-F7 lines derived from 36 crosses involving 32 accessions of TP. The two populations were genotyped with an average marker density of 4.8 per kb, with MAF 2.5%. Phenotypic traits considered included flowering time (FL), grain yield (GY) and nitrogen balance index (NI) under conventional irrigation (CI) and aerobic system (AS). Phenotypes were modeled using two statistical regression methods: genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) and reproducing kernel Hilbert Space (RKHS). The models were tested with three incidence matrixes corresponding to densities of 4.8, 9.5 and 13.8 marker per kb, and to linkage disequilibrium (LD) thresholds of r2≤1, r²<0.98 and r²<0.81 to investigate effect of the method and level of LD. Results of interpopulation prediction in rice breeding provided accuracies of GEBV prediction reasonably high for GY (0.41; Sd=0.03) and for NI (0.36; Sd=0.04), low for FL (0.26; Sd = 0.07), that need to be optimized by exploring potential effect of population structure within both TP and CP. (Texte integral)

Recently, the conjunction of high-throughput marker technologies and new statistical methods has given birth to a new breeding strategy called genomic selection(GS).It refers to methods that use genome-wide dense marker genotyping for the prediction of genetic values with enough accuracy to allow selection based on that prediction alone. It consists of two steps: estimation of SNP effects within a training population (TP), and prediction of genomic estimated breeding values (GEBV) in the candidate population(CP)based on SNP genotypes. We present here GS for water use efficiency in rice, in the framework of a pedigree breeding scheme. The TP was composed of 284 accessions belonging to the temperate japonica and tropical japonica rice groups. The CP was composed of 99 F5-F7 lines derived from 36crosses involving 32 accessions of TP. The two populations were genotyped with an average marker density of 4.8perkb, with minimum minor allele frequency of 2.5.Phenotypic traits considered included flowering time (FL), grain yield (GY) and nitrogen balance index (NI)under conventional irrigation (CI) and aerobicsystem (AS).Phenotypes were modeled using two statistical regression methods: genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) and reproducing kernel Hilbert Space (RKHS).The models were tested with three incidence matrixes corresponding to densities of 4.8, 9.5 and 13.8marker per kb, and to linkage disequilibrium (LD)thresholds of r²≤1, r²<0.98 and r²<0.81.For each combination of phenotypic trait, incidence matrix and prediction method, accuracy of GEBV was investigated with 100 replicates using 100 random drawings of 2/3 of accessions of TP to train the prediction model. The accuracies of GEBV prediction were reasonably high for GY (0.41; Sd=0.03) and for NI (0.36; Sd=0.04), low for FL (0.26; Sd = 0.07). They were not significantly different under CI and AS. Likewise, the accuracies of prediction were not significantly different between GBLUP and RKHS methods. The size

Recently, the conjunction of high-throughput marker technologies and new statistical methods has given birth to a new breeding strategy called genomic selection(GS).It refers to methods that use genome-wide dense marker genotyping for the prediction of genetic values with enough accuracy to allow selection based on that prediction alone. It consists of two steps: estimation of SNP effects within a training population (TP), and prediction of genomic estimated breeding values (GEBV) in the candidate population(CP)based on SNP genotypes. We present here GS for water use efficiency in rice, in the framework of a pedigree breeding scheme. The TP was composed of 284 accessions belonging to the temperate japonica and tropical japonica rice groups. The CP was composed of 99 F5-F7 lines derived from 36crosses involving 32 accessions of TP. The two populations were genotyped with an average marker density of 4.8perkb, with minimum minor allele frequency of 2.5.Phenotypic traits considered included flowering time (FL), grain yield (GY) and nitrogen balance index (NI)under conventional irrigation (CI) and aerobicsystem (AS).Phenotypes were modeled using two statistical regression methods: genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) and reproducing kernel Hilbert Space (RKHS).The models were tested with three incidence matrixes corresponding to densities of 4.8, 9.5 and 13.8marker per kb, and to linkage disequilibrium (LD)thresholds of r²≤1, r²<0.98 and r²<0.81.For each combination of phenotypic trait, incidence matrix and prediction method, accuracy of GEBV was investigated with 100 replicates using 100 random drawings of 2/3 of accessions of TP to train the prediction model. The accuracies of GEBV prediction were reasonably high for GY (0.41; Sd=0.03) and for NI (0.36; Sd=0.04), low for FL (0.26; Sd = 0.07). They were not significantly different under CI and AS. Likewise, the accuracies of prediction were not significantly different between GBLUP and RKHS methods. The size

The "Viagra phenomenon" is the most visible expression of a global process of construction of masculinity through medicalized practices, led by an alliance of specialized physicians' expert discourses and multinational pharmaceutical companies' marketing strategies. In Italy, since direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs is not allowed, insistent awareness campaigns have been promoted, reproducing a cultural script in which sex is recast as a core element of a healthy lifestyle: these campaigns depict male underperformances as an emerging social epidemic and invite all men to self-monitor their sexual health, living up to medically defined standards, and to ask for medical advice if they feel inadequate. The analysis of documentary material and in-depth interviews with medical experts shows how medical discourses, setting male sexual health as a new public issue, construct both the masculinity to be fixed and the new forms of medical expertise legitimized to treat it. Treatments for male sexual dysfunctions work at transmitting cultural scripts which reinforce normatively gendered expressions of sex. However, some interviewees step aside the hegemonic narrative and criticize what they consider an improper and risky overuse of quick-fix diagnostic and therapeutic solutions, bringing psychological, relational and socio-contextual dimensions back into the picture.

The report concerns the study of optical hazards (illusions) during visual approaches. The study was conducted primarily to develop criteria which would help to minimize the probability of accidents at certain problem airports due to illusory factors. The investigation included the psychological factors leading to the misinterpretation of visual stimuli as well as the physical conditions which constitute a proper environment for optical illusions. The topographical features, ambient lighting, visibility restrictions, manmade structures/objects, and airport/runway characteristics were assigned weighted indexes for the mathematical modeling in order to determine sites which may possess visual approach hazards. The description of the human visual system and psychology of perception are contained in the appendix, and the mathematical modeling for probability of visual hazards (illusions) is described in the main body of the report. (Author)