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Nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL) is a rare entity whose neoplastic cells retain a B-cell phenotype with expression of CD20. Radiotherapy is recommended for favorable stage IA disease while for other stages guidelines suggest therapeutic strategies similar to those used for classic HL. The role of rituximab, although quite widespread, is not completely elucidated. We retrospectively analyzed baseline characteristics of 308 consecutive patients with NLPHL diagnosed in 19 Italian centers from 2000 to 2018. With a median follow-up of 8.4 years (interquartile range: 4.5–12.4) for treated patients, median overall survival (OS) was not reached and estimated 5-year OS was 97.8% and 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 84.5%. Five-year cumulative incidence of histological transformation was 1.4%, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.5%-3.8%. After adjusting for lymphocyte count, splenic involvement, bulky disease and B symptoms (fever, drenching night sweats, unintentional loss >10% of body weight within the preceding 6 months), patients with stage II or more showed superior PFS with immunochemotherapy in comparison to chemotherapy alone (hazard ratio = 0.4, 95% CI, 0.2-0.8; P = 0.015). Our data suggest an advantage of the use of rituximab combined with chemotherapy ± radiotherapy in the treatment of stage II–III–IV NLPHL.

In the setting of follicular lymphoma (FL), frontline therapy with rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and prednisone (R-CHOP) has represented for many years the standard of care for patients with symptomatic advanced disease. More recently, the combination of bendamustine plus rituximab (R-B) has emerged as an alternative therapeutic option. We present a retrospective, multicenter, observational study aimed at comparing outcomes and toxicities observed in 145 patients diagnosed with grade 3A FL treated with a first line therapy in 15 Italian Fondazione Italiana Linfomi centers between the 1st of January 2014 and the 30th of May 2018. Seventy patients were treated with R-B and 75 with R-CHOP. In the R-B group, the median age at the time of diagnosis was 67 years compared with 59 years in the R-CHOP group. Patients in R-B group achieved a similar overall response rate (96% vs. 99%) and a better complete remission rate (87% vs. 80%, p=0.035) compared with patients in R-CHOP group. Progression free survival (PFS) was similar between individual treated with R-CHOP and R-B (48- month PFS 77.7% vs. 76.6% respectively, p=0.745). The overall survival was significantly longer with R-CHOP treatment (HR=0.16; 95% IC, 0.04-0.74; p=0.007); however, no statistical significant difference was observed after adjustment for age. With the limitations of the study design, our results suggest that both R-B and R-CHOP seem to be valid first-line treatment options in FL3A.

Along with the fact that classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) in older adults is frequently considered biologically different from cHL in younger patients, its most distinctive feature is its dismal clinical outcome due to the decreased effectiveness and greater toxicity of therapies. Although strategies to mitigate specific toxicities (e.g., cardiological and pulmonary) have obtained some results, in general, reduced-intensity schemes, proposed as an alternative to ABVD, have proved to be less effective. The addition of brentuximab vedotin (BV) to AVD, especially in a sequential scheme, has demonstrated good efficacy. However, the problem of toxicity persists even with this new therapeutic combination, with comorbidities remaining an important prognostic factor. The adequate stratification of functional status is necessary to distinguish between those patients who will benefit from full treatment and those who will benefit from alternative strategies. A simplified geriatric assessment based on the determination of ADL (activity of daily living), IADL (instrumental ADL), and CIRS-G (Cumulative Illness Rating Scale—Geriatric) scores is an easy-to-use tool that permits adequate patient stratification. Other factors of considerable impact on functional status such as sarcopenia and immunosenescence are currently being studied. A fitness-based treatment choice would also be very useful for relapsed or refractory patients, a more frequent and challenging situation than that is found in young cHL patients.

This study evaluated the health benefits of carrots (Daucus carota) subjected to post-harvest wounding stress, emphasizing their anti-obesogenic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Carrots were shredded and stored at 15 ± 2 °C for 48 h to induce wounding stress, leading to a significant increase in chlorogenic acid content, by over 112.5 % compared to control. The study utilized 3T3-L1 cell differentiation assays to evaluate the anti-obesogenic potential, monitoring changes in lipid accumulation and adipogenesis-related gene expression. The anti-inflammatory activity was determined in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages by measuring nitrite production, while the antioxidant capacity was assessed using the DCFH-DA assay in Caco-2 cells. Key findings include a notable reduction in lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells with stressed carrot extracts, particularly at 166 μg/mL concentration, showing an 18 % decrease compared to the control. Furthermore, there was a significant alteration in the expression of adipogenesis-related genes, with a 73 % decrease in FAS expression and a 160 % increase in ATGL expression. The stressed carrot extracts at 125 μg/mL also exhibited enhanced anti-inflammatory activity, inhibiting nitrite production by 44.60 %, a 153.26 % increase over the lower concentration. Additionally, antioxidant activity in stressed carrot extracts increased by 77.15 % at 125 μg/mL. These results indicate that wounding stress significantly boosts the health-promoting properties of carrots, suggesting their potential as functional foods for combating obesity and metabolic syndrome-related diseases. The study highlights the value of post-harvest treatments in enhancing the nutraceutical quality of vegetables.

There is a severe need to develop a sustainable, affordable, and nutritious food supply system. Broccoli microgreens have attracted attention due to their rich nutritional content and abundant bioactive compounds, constituting an important opportunity to feed the ever-increasing population and fight global health problems. This study aimed to measure the impact of the combined application of biofertilizers and zinc and iron nanofertilizers on plant growth and the biofortification of glucosinolates (GLSs) and micronutrients in broccoli microgreens. Biofertilizers were based on plant growth-promoting (PGP) bacterial consortia previously isolated and characterized for multiple PGP traits. Nanofertilizers consisted of ZnO (77 nm) and γ-Fe2O3 (68 nm) nanoparticles synthesized with the coprecipitation method and functionalized with a Pseudomonas species preparation. Treatments were evaluated under seedbed conditions. Plant growth parameters of plant height (37.0–59.8%), leaf diameter (57.6–81.1%) and fresh weight (112.1–178.0%), as well as zinc (122.19–363.41%) and iron contents (55.19–161.57%), were mainly increased by nanoparticles subjected to the functionalization process with Pseudomonas species and uncapped NPs applied together with the biofertilizer treatment. Regarding GLSs, eight compounds were detected as being most positively influenced by these treatments. This work demonstrated the synergistic interactions of applying ZnO and γ-Fe2O3 nanofertilizers combined with biofertilizers to enhance plant growth and biofortify micronutrients and glucosinolates in broccoli microgreens.

Glucosinolates and their enzyme-degraded metabolites, such as isothiocyanates, have shown great potential to prevent and treat chronic-degenerative diseases. Broccoli sprouts (Brassica oleracea L., var. italica) are an excellent source of glucosinolates. The objective of this study was to evaluate different process conditions (temperature, solvent concentration, and sample:solvent ratio) for the extraction of glucosinolates present in broccoli sprouts. The study evaluated different combinations of temperature (15–64 °C), ethanol concentration (0–100%), and sample:solvent ratio (1:15–1:35 w/v). The treatment with 40 °C, 50% ethanol/water (v/v), 1:35 (w/v) generated the highest extraction of total glucosinolates (100,094 ± 9016 mg/kg DW). The ethanol percentage was the factor that exerted the greatest impact on glucosinolate extraction (p < 0.05). In addition, the amount of glucoraphanin in the extract was determined, obtaining a final concentration of 14,986 ± 1862 mg/kg DW of sprouts processed under the optimal extraction conditions studied. The data presented herein demonstrate the relevance of the ethanol concentration during the extraction and the importance of applying high temperature in solid-liquid phase extraction. Under optimal conditions, it was possible to obtain extracts rich in glucosinolates to prepare food supplements, nutraceuticals, and even pharmaceuticals with application in the prevention and treatment of chronic-degenerative diseases.

La implementación del Aprendizaje Colaborativo (AC) ha aumentado notablemente en los últimos años, ya que permite la construcción del pensamiento, crear clases más dinámicas y el desarrollo de habilidades sociales y comunicativas de los estudiantes. Estas últimas son primordiales para el desempeño profesional en áreas sanitarias donde el trabajo colaborativo es fundamental. Nuestro estudio descriptivo de corte transversal evaluó el efecto de la implementación del AC en dos entornos de aprendizaje distintos, tradicional y digital, en el módulo de Técnicas de Ayuda Odontológica/Estomatológica. La población de estudio (n=25) fue dividida aleatoriamente en 8 grupos de 3 o 4 estudiantes. Como herramientas digitales se utilizaron Stormboard y Socrative para realizar la lluvia de ideas y cuestionarios de repaso, respectivamente. Después de la impartición de 6 sesiones teóricas y familiarización con el uso de las plataformas digitales, se realizaron 2 actividades colaborativas (instrumental y caso clínico) de manera tradicional y digital. Al término de cada actividad, se lanzaron cuestionarios gamificados Space Race individuales para valorar los conocimientos adquiridos. Finalmente, se aplicó un examen teórico final y una encuesta anónima para valorar la metodología aplicada. Nuestros resultados reflejan que la adquisición de contenidos en un entorno colaborativo tradicional y virtual es bastante similar. Además, un alto porcentaje del alumnado consideró que el empleo de las herramientas digitales les ayudó a ampliar conocimientos sobre el tema estudiado y en su proceso de aprendizaje. En conjunto, Stormboard es una herramienta digital colaborativa innovadora que se podría aplicar a otros Ciclos Formativos o niveles educativos superiores como el universitario, con las adaptaciones y mejoras pertinentes.

Moral behavior has been a key topic of debate for philosophy and psychology for a long time. In recent years, thanks to the development of novel methodologies in cognitive sciences, the question of how we make moral choices has expanded to the study of neurobiological correlates that subtend the mental processes involved in moral behavior. For instance, in vivo brain imaging studies have shown that distinct patterns of brain neural activity, associated with emotional response and cognitive processes, are involved in moral judgment. Moreover, while it is well-known that responses to the same moral dilemmas differ across individuals, to what extent this variability may be rooted in genetics still remains to be understood. As dopamine is a key modulator of neural processes underlying executive functions, we questioned whether genetic polymorphisms associated with decision-making and dopaminergic neurotransmission modulation would contribute to the observed variability in moral judgment. To this aim, we genotyped five genetic variants of the dopaminergic pathway [rs1800955 in the dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) gene, DRD4 48 bp variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR), solute carrier family 6 member 3 (SLC6A3) 40 bp VNTR, rs4680 in the catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT) gene, and rs1800497 in the ankyrin repeat and kinase domain containing 1 (ANKK1) gene] in 200 subjects, who were requested to answer 56 moral dilemmas. As these variants are all located in genes belonging to the dopaminergic pathway, they were combined in multilocus genetic profiles for the association analysis. While no individual variant showed any significant effects on moral dilemma responses, the multilocus genetic profile analysis revealed a significant gender-specific influence on human moral acceptability. Specifically, those genotype combinations that improve dopaminergic signaling selectively increased moral acceptability in females, by making their responses to moral dilemmas more similar to those provided by males. As females usually give more emotionally-based answers and engage the “emotional brain” more than males, our results, though preliminary and therefore in need of replication in independent samples, suggest that this increase in dopamine availability enhances the cognitive and reduces the emotional components of moral decision-making in females, thus favoring a more rationally-driven decision process.

3-Iodothyronamine (T1AM) is an endogenous biogenic amine, structurally related to thyroid hormone, which is regarded as a novel chemical messenger. The molecular mechanisms underlying T1AM effects are not known, but it is possible to envisage changes in gene expression, since delayed and long-lasting phenotypic effects have been reported, particularly with regard to the modulation of lipid metabolism and body weight. To test this hypothesis we analysed gene expression profiles in adipose tissue and liver of eight rats chronically treated with T1AM (10 mg/Kg twice a day for five days) as compared with eight untreated rats. In vivo T1AM administration produced significant transcriptional effects, since 378 genes were differentially expressed in adipose tissue, and 114 in liver. The reported changes in gene expression are expected to stimulate lipolysis and beta-oxidation, while inhibiting adipogenesis. T1AM also influenced the expression of several genes linked to lipoprotein metabolism suggesting that it may play an important role in the regulation of cholesterol homeostasis. No effect on the expression of genes linked to toxicity was observed. The assay of tissue T1AM showed that in treated animals its endogenous concentration increased by about one order of magnitude, without significant changes in tissue thyroid hormone concentration. Therefore, the effects that we observed might have physiological or pathophysiological importance. Our results provide the basis for the reported effectiveness of T1AM as a lipolytic agent and gain importance in view of a possible clinical use of T1AM in obesity and/or dyslipidaemia.