Search

Abstract Accessing the terahertz (THz) spectral domain through surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is challenging and opens up the study of low-frequency molecular and electronic excitations. Compared to direct THz probing of heterogenous ensembles, the extreme plasmonic confinement of visible light to deep sub-wavelength scales allows the study of hundreds or even single molecules. We show that self-assembled molecular monolayers of a set of simple aromatic thiols confined inside single-particle plasmonic nanocavities can be distinguished by their low-wavenumber spectral peaks below 200 cm−1, after removal of a bosonic inelastic contribution and an exponential background from the spectrum. Developing environment-dependent density-functional-theory simulations of the metal-molecule configuration enables the assignment and classification of their THz vibrations as well as the identification of intermolecular coupling effects and of the influence of the gold surface configuration. Furthermore, we show dramatically narrower THz SERS spectra from individual molecules at picocavities, which indicates the possibility to study intrinsic vibrational properties beyond inhomogeneous broadening, further supporting the key role of local environment.

Abstract Introduction The introduction of biological therapies has revolutionized the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. In particular, ixekizumab, an inhibitor of interleukin-17A, has shown great results in terms of efficacy and safety in both clinical trials and real-world experiences. However, there is a lack of long-term real-world data available for ixekizumab. Methods We conducted a multicenter real-life study to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of ixekizumab in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Psoriasis Area and Severity Index score (PASI) was collected at baseline and after 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 years. The occurrence of any adverse events was recorded at each time point. Results We enrolled 1096 patients treated with ixekizumab for at least 1 year. At week 52, the percentages of PASI 90 and PASI 100 were 85.04% and 69.07%, respectively. After 5 years of treatment with ixekizumab, out of 145 patients, a PASI 90 response was achieved by 86.90% of patients, while complete skin clearance was reached by 68.28% of patients. We did not observe any new significant safety findings throughout the study period. Conclusion This study supports the long-term effectiveness and safety of ixekizumab in a real-world setting.

Background: West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne flavivirus. In humans, 80% of infections are asymptomatic, while approximately 20% experience influenza-like symptoms. Fewer than 1% develop the neuroinvasive form which can lead to encephalitis, meningitis, acute flaccid paralysis, and even death. The global spread of the virus to areas where it was not previously present has become a growing concern. Since the 2000 s, there have been numerous outbreaks affecting local and travelling populations worldwide. Given the lack of a vaccine, preventative measures are primarily focused on surveillance, vector control, and the use of personal protective behaviours (PPBs). The importance of PPBs is central to public health recommendations. However, translating these messages into coherent action by the public can prove challenging, as the uptake of such measures is inevitably influenced by socio-economic factors, awareness, knowledge, and risk perception. Methods: A PRISMA-based systematic research was conducted on EMBASE, PubMed/MEDLINE, and Web of Science databases. PROSPERO registration number CRD42023459714. Quality of studies included in the final stage was evaluated using the Critical Appraisal Checklist for Cross-Sectional Study (CEBMa). Results: 2963 articles were screened, and 17 studies were included in the final round. Out of these, six were deemed of high quality, ten were of medium quality, and one was of low quality. In almost all studies considered, both awareness and knowledge of WNV transmission were above 90%, while concern about WNV ranged from 50% to 80%. Concern about the safety of repellents, either with or without DEET, ranged from 27% to 70%. The percentage of people actually using repellents ranged from 30% to 75%, with the lowest usage reported among individuals over 60 years old (29%) and pregnant women (33%), and the highest among students aged 9–11 (75%). Concern for West Nile Virus (WNV) was consistently linked to an increase in taking preventative measures, including the use of repellents, by two to four times across studies. The school-based intervention was effective in increasing the practice of removing standing water (AOR=4.6; 2.7–8.0) and wearing long clothing (AOR=2.4; 95%CI: 1.3–4.3), but did not have a significant impact on the use of repellents. Conclusions: The present systematic review provides an overview of the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of WNV and their determinants. While concern about West Nile Virus (WNV) and its effects can be a significant motivator, it is important to promote evidence-based personal protective behaviours (PPBs) to counter unwarranted fears. For example, the use of repellents among the most vulnerable age groups. Given the geographical expansion of WNV, it is necessary to target the entire population preventively, including those who are difficult to reach and areas not yet endemic. The findings of this investigation could have significant implications for public health and support well-informed and effective communication strategies and interventions.

Aim: Abrocitinib is a JAK-1 inhibitor approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD). We conducted a 16-week multicenter retrospective study to assess the short-term effectiveness and safety of abrocitinib in patients with moderate-to-severe AD.Our retrospective study included 85 adult patients from 14 Italian Dermatology Units affected by moderate-to-severe AD treated with abrocitinib 100/200 mg.Methods: Effectiveness of abrocitinib at weeks 4 and 16 was assessed by using the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI), the Investigator Global Assessment (IGA), the peak pruritus and sleep- Numerical Rating Scale (PP-NRS and S-NRS, respectively).Results: At week 16, improvement of at least 90% in EASI (EASI90) and IGA 0/1 was observed in 49.4% and 61.2% of patients, respectively. A reduction of at least 4 points in PP-NRS and S-NRS compared with baseline was achieved by 70.6% of patients for both endpoints. No significant safety reports were observed during the study period. Naïve patients had better rates of EASI 90 compared to patients who previously failed dupilumab.Conclusion: Our data confirm the effectiveness of abrocitinib in a real-world setting with better clinical responses at weeks 4 and 16, compared with Phase-III clinical trials. Longer analyses are required to further establish the safety profile of abrocitinib.

AbstractPurpose Tildrakizumab is a selective inhibitor of IL-23 approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in two dosages. We conducted a 16-week multicenter retrospective study to compare the effectiveness and safety of tildrakizumab 200 mg versus tildrakizumab 100 mg in patients with a high disease burden or high body weight.Materials and methods Our retrospective study included 134 patients treated with tildrakizumab 200 mg and 364 patients treated with tildrakizumab 100 mg from 28 Italian Dermatology Units affected by moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. The patients had a body weight above 90 kg or a high disease burden (Psoriasis Area and Severity Index [PASI] ≥ 16 or the involvement of difficult-to-treat areas). We evaluated the effectiveness of tildrakizumab at the week-16 visit in terms of PASI90, PASI100 and absolute PASI ≤ 2.Results After 16 weeks of treatment with tildrakizumab 200 mg, PASI90 was reached by 57.5% of patients and PASI100 by 39.6% of patients. At the same time point, 34.3% and 24.2% of patients treated with tildrakizumab 100 mg achieved PASI90 and PASI100, respectively.Conclusions Our data suggest that tildrakizumab 200 mg has better effectiveness than tildrakizumab 100 mg in patients with a body weight ≥ 90 kg and a high disease burden.

INTRODUCCIÓN: El Código Internacional de Comercialización de Sucedáneos de la Leche Materna de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) contribuye a proteger y promover la lactancia humana, para evitar que la comercialización aliente la utilización de sucedáneos. El objetivo fue evaluar el cumplimiento de las disposiciones del Código de la OMS respecto del etiquetado de fórmulas de inicio, fórmulas especiales, fórmulas de seguimiento y leches de crecimiento en la ciudad de Buenos Aires durante julio, agosto y septiembre de 2019. MÉTODOS: Se realizó un estudio observacional de tipo descriptivo, corte transversal y enfoque cualitativo en 93 etiquetas. Se aplicó la metodología propuesta por el Fondo de las Naciones Unidas para la Infancia (UNICEF), la International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) y el International Code Documentation Centre (ICDC) en el documento Herramienta Monitoreo del Código (2015). RESULTADOS: El 90,32% incumple al menos un requisito definido en el Art. 9 del Código de la OMS. El 88,17% de las etiquetas analizadas incumple por la presencia de textos e imágenes que desalientan la lactancia materna. DISCUSIÓN: Las etiquetas cumplen parcialmente los lineamientos del Código de la OMS según la herramienta de investigación utilizada. Por lo tanto, se sugiere garantizar la protección del derecho a la alimentación adecuada durante la primera infancia mediante el monitoreo, control y fiscalización del Código por parte de las autoridades sanitarias

The project aims to present the 3D reconstruction of the Roman Theater of Amman, the ancient Philadelphia of the Palestinian Decapolis, through rigorous representative models. The outcomes will be part of a future exhibition providing site-specific installations and user experience artifacts based on digital interaction and tactile models. The paper illustrates the multidisciplinary approach associated with using 3D virtual reconstruction and game engine tools to reflect on the practice of representing ancient monuments and digital museology. Travelers of the 18th and 19th centuries drafted the fascination of discovery as an experience in their notebooks. At the same time, their written records could address contemporary visitors to an extensive cultural knowledge of places and buildings, the historia of Philadelphia. Investigations are shifting scientific models towards a dynamic cultural experience representative of cultural heritage, including intangible heritage, stories, and new technological paradigms, increasingly rapidly making it possible to duplicate art and heritage. This shift is pinpointing the role of representation for cultural studies and humanities, experimenting with practices and tools to drill methodologies, and producing models for interaction design, socialization, gaming, and museum experience.DOI: https://doi.org/10.20365/disegnarecon.31.2023.15

Abstract Innervation of the hypothalamic median eminence by Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone (GnRH) neurons is vital to ensure puberty onset and successful reproduction. However, the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying median eminence development and pubertal timing are incompletely understood. Here we show that Semaphorin-6A is strongly expressed by median eminence-resident oligodendrocytes positioned adjacent to GnRH neuron projections and fenestrated capillaries, and that Semaphorin-6A is required for GnRH neuron innervation and puberty onset. In vitro and in vivo experiments reveal an unexpected function for Semaphorin-6A, via its receptor Plexin-A2, in the control of median eminence vascular permeability to maintain neuroendocrine homeostasis. To support the significance of these findings in humans, we identify patients with delayed puberty carrying a novel pathogenic variant of SEMA6A. In all, our data reveal a role for Semaphorin-6A in regulating GnRH neuron patterning by tuning the median eminence vascular barrier and thereby controlling puberty onset.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic posed significant challenges worldwide, with SARS-CoV-2 vaccines critical in reducing morbidity and mortality. This study evaluates the immunogenicity and antibody persistence of the BNT162b2 vaccine in people living with HIV (PLWH). Methods: We monitored anti-SARS-CoV-2 Spike IgG concentration in a cohort of PLWH at five time points (T0–T4) using chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassays (CMIAs) at the baselined both during and after vaccination. In severely immunocompromised individuals, a boosting dose was recommended, and participants and IgG concentration were measured in the two subgroups (boosted and not boosted). Results: In total, 165 PLWH were included, and 83% were male with a median age of 55 years (IQR: 47–62). At T1, 161 participants (97.6%) showed seroconversion with a median of IgG values of 468.8 AU/mL (IQR: 200.4–774.3 AU/mL). By T2, all subjects maintained a positive result, with the median anti-SARS-CoV-2 Spike IgG concentration increasing to 6191.6 AU/mL (IQR: 3666.7–10,800.8 AU/mL). At T3, all participants kept their antibody levels above the positivity threshold with a median of 1694.3 AU/mL (IQR: 926.3–2966.4 AU/mL). At T4, those without a booster dose exhibited a marked decrease to a median of 649.1 AU/mL (IQR: 425.5–1299.8 AU/mL), whereas those with a booster experienced a significant increase to a median of 13,105.2 AU/mL (IQR: 9187.5–18,552.1 AU/mL). The immune response was negatively influenced by the presence of dyslipidaemia at T1 (aOR 4.75, 95% CI: 1.39–16.20) and diabetes at T3 (aOR 7.11, 95% CI: 1.10–46.1), while the use of protease inhibitors (aORs 0.06, 95% CI: 0.01–0.91) and being female (aOR 0.02, 95% CI: 0.01–0.32) at T3 were protective factors. Conclusions: The immunogenicity of the BNT162b2 vaccine in PLWH has been confirmed, with booster doses necessary to maintain high levels of anti-SARS-CoV-2 Spike IgG antibodies, especially in patients with comorbidities. These findings underline the importance of a personalized vaccination strategy in this population.

Background and Aims: Low back pain is a prevalent condition affecting 60–85% of individuals during their lifetime. Despite various proposed mechanisms, the etiology of low back pain remains unclear. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of combining ultrasound-guided infiltrations with early rehabilitation in reducing pain and improving functional limitations in patients with chronic nonspecific low back pain. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted, reviewing data from January to April 2024 involving 40 patients with chronic nonspecific low back pain. Each patient received two cycles of ultrasound-guided lidocaine and corticosteroid infiltrations at the level of the posterior lower iliac spine, followed by 10 rehabilitation sessions. Patients were assessed at baseline (T0), after the first treatment cycle (T1), and after the second cycle (T2) using the Oswestry Disability Index, Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale, Roland Disability Questionnaire, and Numeric Rating Scale. Results: Significant improvements were observed across all assessment scales. The ODI scores decreased from 33.5 at baseline to 3.5 after treatment (p < 0.001). Similar reductions were noted in the QBPDS (from 61.5 to 10.3), RDQ (from 18 to 3.4), and NRS (from 7.4 to 1.3). The combination of ultrasound-guided infiltrations and early rehabilitation resulted in a significant reduction in pain and disability, with the most notable improvements occurring after the second treatment cycle. Conclusions: The integration of ultrasound-guided infiltrations with early rehabilitation is highly effective in managing chronic nonspecific low back pain, significantly reducing both pain and functional limitations.

Abstract The spatiotemporal relationship between geophysical, environmental, and geochemical responses during volcanic unrest is essentially unknown, making their joint use and interpretation for eruption forecasting challenging. Here, Empirical Orthogonal Functions analysis applied to GPS data allows the separation of the dominant deep‐sourced inflation from environmentally controlled signals associated with extension at Campi Flegrei caldera. This separation bridges the gap between deformation, seismic and geochemical responses, clarifying the processes underlying the ongoing volcanic unrest. Persistent meteoric forcing during the 2017–2018 hydrological year changed the decadal trend of seismic energy and secondary deformation components, pairing their spatial patterns. The result was a block in the carbon dioxide released in 2018 at Solfatara, the primary stress‐release valve at the caldera. The subsequent overpressure weakened the fractured eastern caldera, opening pathways for deep, hot materials to reach the surface. Our results give insight into how environmental forcing can favor volcanic unrest in pressurized calderas.

The Zionist project, like other settler colonial projects across the world, is characterised by a zero-sum territorial logic. Moved by desire for territorial acquisition through frontier expansion and a parallel determination to incorporate as few natives as possible, settler colonial movements produce what PatrickWolfe termed a‘logic of elimination’.

The pandemic lockdown of the year 2020 has been generally accompanied by an improvement in the air quality. Here, we report data on the effects of lockdown limitations on the air quality in the metropolitan area of Naples (Italy) by following the evolution of main atmospheric pollutants over a five-year period and comparing their concentrations in the pandemic year 2020 with the previous (2018 and 2019) and following (2021 and 2022) two years. In particular, NO2 and PM10 concentrations registered by representative air quality sampling station network and the columnar features of the aerosol characterized by a sun-photometer are considered. To avoid the possible influence of Saharan dust transport, which generally affects the observational area, the analysis has been limited to the days free from such events. Our findings evidence a tendency towards pre-pandemic conditions, notwithstanding some differences related to partial and temporary restrictions imposed even in the year 2021. For both near-surface NO2 and PM, the observations confirm a significant reduction induced by the lockdown in 2020, besides the seasonal changes, and a gradual tendency towards more typical values in the following years. Also, the columnar aerosol data clearly highlight a gradual recovery of typical conditions in 2021 and 2022, confirming a peculiar effect of the pandemic lockdown of the year 2020 on the atmospheric aerosol characteristics that evidences a striking predominance of the fine component.

The Windows registry contains a plethora of information in a hierarchical database. It includes system-wide settings, user preferences, installed programs, and recently accessed files and maintains timestamps that can be used to construct a detailed timeline of user activities. However, these data are unencrypted and thus vulnerable to exploitation by malicious actors who gain access to this repository. To address this security and privacy concern, we propose a novel approach that efficiently encrypts and decrypts sensitive registry data in real time. Our developed proof-of-concept program intercepts interactions between the registry’s application programming interfaces (APIs) and other Windows applications using an advanced hooking technique. This enables the proposed system to be transparent to users without requiring any changes to the operating system or installed software. Our approach also implements the data protection API (DPAPI) developed by Microsoft to securely manage each user’s encryption key. Ultimately, our research provides an enhanced security and privacy framework for the Windows registry, effectively fortifying the registry against security and privacy threats while maintaining its accessibility to legitimate users and applications.

According to the national development plans, the Jordanian tourism sector needs to be updated in order to meet international qualitative standards. To achieve this goal, one of the expected actions to be undertaken is the definition and the implementation of innovative professional profiles that should be integrated within the whole supply chain, and the updating of the related study plans. In order to address this demand, the research aimed to produce a skills gap analysis of the Jordanian tourism, hospitality, and heritage education system, which should highlight sets of innovative and underdeveloped skills for the tackled sectors, and the relative academic paths. The research also aimed to understand the actual offering of the Jordanian education system and to compare it with the requirements of the labor market. Although different plans have been developed, their implementation is still not fully exploited to achieve the desired transformation of the reference sector. By exploiting mixed research techniques, both quantitative and qualitative, it has been possible to understand the actual offeri ng of the Jordanian education system and to compare it with the requirements of the labor market: these activities represent the needed basis to produce the demanded skills gap analysis, which is also part of this contribution.

The research addresses the valorisation of Jordanian intangible cultural heritage (ICH), developing the concept of a Digital Library of Living Traditions, a web-based tool to document the Jordanian cultural landscape through its handicraft production. The research aim is to extend the understanding of the collections exhibited at the Folklore and Popular Traditions Museums, part of the Roman theatre archaeological site. This work reports on creating a research and dissemination tool, the DL, to include in the valorisation process of the living culture and folklore of Jordan about objects, places, and techniques beyond the physical collections displayed at the museums. The first part of the paper envisions the role of storytelling and audiovisual archives in the realm of design for ICH, ideating, producing, and representing digital memories with and on digital media, including different genres and formats. The second part describes the DL, which is a multimedia archive that will make accessible a digital repository in which curators and scholars can get visual documentation and information about techniques, raw materials, and fabrication tools for the leading traditional Jordanian handicrafts. The contents will be partially accessible within the museums, enhancing the on-site experience and creating interactive touchpoints for a broad audience. The project also promotes workshop activities and capacity building on digital heritage and multimedia communication strategy.