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Anthracene, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) from fossil fuel combustion, poses significant environmental threats. This study investigates the role of abscisic acid (ABA) in the anthracene tolerance of the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha using mutants deficient in ABA perception (Mp pyl1 ) or biosynthesis (Mp aba1 ). In this study, we monitored the role of ABA in the anthracene tolerance response by tracking two ABA-controlled traits: plant growth inhibition and gemmae dormancy. We found that the anthracene-induced inhibition of plant growth is dose-dependent, similar to the growth-inhibiting effect of ABA, but independent of ABA pathways. However, gemmae dormancy was differentially affected by anthracene in ABA-deficient mutants. We found that gemmae from anthracene-exposed WT plants exhibited reduced germination compared to those from mock-treated plants. This suggests that the anthracene exposure of mother plants induces a transgenerational effect, resulting in prolonged dormancy in their asexual propagules. While Mp pyl1 gemmae retained a dormancy delay when derived from anthracene-exposed thalli, the ABA biosynthesis mutant Mp aba1 did not display any significant dormancy delay as a consequence of anthracene exposure. These results, together with the strong induction of ABA marker genes upon anthracene treatment, imply that anthracene-induced germination inhibition relies on ABA synthesis in the mother plant, highlighting the critical role of MpABA1 in the tolerance response. These findings reveal a complex interplay between anthracene stress and ABA signaling, where anthracene triggers ABA-mediated responses, influencing reproductive success and highlighting the potential for leveraging genetic and hormonal pathways to enhance plant resilience in contaminated habitats.

Aims: LBBB is rare in healthy young adults, and its long-term prognosis is uncertain., Methods: 56 subjects (aged <50 years), in whom an LBBB was discovered by chance in the absence of clinical and echocardiographic evidence of heart disease, were collected in a multicenter registry., Results: 69% were males. Mean age at the time of discovery of LBBB was 37 ± 11 years. Mean QRS duration was 149 ± 17 m sec and 35% had left axis deviation. All patients had a normal echocardiogram, except for left ventricular dyssynchrony; 37 patients underwent coronary angiography (30) or myocardial scintigraphy during effort Eriksson and Wilhelmsen (2005), and in all cases obstructive coronary artery disease was excluded. In 2/30 patients who underwent coronary angiography, an anomalous origin of the CX artery from the right coronary sinus was found. Thirty patients underwent cardiac magnetic resonance; in 60% it was normal, while in 40% it revealed late enhancement, which in 33% was localized in the basal septum, suggesting fibrosis of the left bundle branch. During follow-up (12+/10 years, median 10 years) no sudden death occurred. At the end of follow-up, all patients were alive, except for one who suffered accidental death. Two patients (3.5%) underwent PM implantation owing to syncope. The echocardiogram at the end of follow-up revealed LV dysfunction in only one patient., Conclusions: In young adults without apparent heart disease, LBBB is a heterogeneous condition. In the vast majority of cases, the prognosis is good and no ventricular dysfunction occurs over time. However, as only 18% of our patients were aged >60 years at the end of follow-up, we cannot establish the prognosis in older age-groups., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that there is no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Pietro Delise et al.)

The long-term outcome of athletes with frequent ventricular premature complexes (VPCs) and apparently normal heart has not been fully clarified. To evaluate the clinical and prognostic significance of VPCs and the influence of continuing sports activity during follow-up, we studied 120 healthy athletes (96 men; median age 16 years) in whom frequent VPCs (>100 VPCs/24 hours) were discovered by chance during preparticipation screening. All athletes were followed up for a median of 84 months. During follow-up, 96 underwent serial 24-hour Holter recording and 62 underwent serial echocardiography. The median number of VPCs/24 hours on basal Holter was 3,760. During follow-up, 81 athletes continued sports activity, whereas 39 did not. No athlete died or developed overt heart disease. The median number of VPCs/24 hours decreased in both athletes who continued sports activity and those who did not (from 3,805 to 1,124, p <0.0001 and from 5,787 to 1,298, p <0.0001, respectively). During follow-up, left ventricular ejection fraction slightly decreased to <55% in 9 of 62 athletes who, in respect to the remaining 53, had more VPCs/24 hours both in the basal state (12,000 vs 3,880) and during follow-up (10,702 vs 1,368), and a longer follow-up (95 vs 36 months). In conclusion, (1) frequent VPCs in athletes without heart disease have a long-term benign prognostic significance, (2) sporting activity does not modify this benign outcome, (3) during follow-up, the burden of VPCs decreases whether or not subjects continue sports activity, and (4) in 14.5% of athletes, ejection fraction slightly decreases over time., (Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

In imatinib-treated patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), BCR-ABL mutations are the most common mechanism of resistance. Here we report the first multicenter Argentinean study investigating mutations in those patients with CML who fail or lose response to imatinib, with or without previous interferon treatment. Point mutations were detected in 36 of 154 patients by direct sequencing. In our series, the single most common mutations were G250E, E255K/V, and M351T. The presence of mutations correlated significantly with accelerated phase, lack of molecular response, and lower cytogenetic and hematological responses. While overall survival did not differ between patients with or without mutations, the probability of progression was higher in patients with mutations. Cases with non-P-loop mutations showed a significantly better overall survival from diagnosis. Multivariate analysis showed that the most significant variables related to the development of mutations were accelerated phase, duration of imatinib treatment, and time delay to starting imatinib. Our results demonstrated that mutation frequency increased with the progression of disease, and suggest that imatinib treatment should be started early.

Objective: Frequent ventricular premature beats (VPBs) may be discovered during preparticipation screening in asymptomatic apparently healthy athletes. Some authors hypothesize that they may be a manifestation of 'athlete's heart' and suggest a deconditioning period, which should document a regression of arrhythmias, to exclude a concealed disease., Methods: To test this hypothesis, we analysed 87 asymptomatic healthy athletes with frequent VPB (>100/24 h). Of these, 44 (group D) underwent at least 3 months' detraining, whereas 43 (group C) continued sporting activity. Athletes underwent 24-h Holter monitoring at the baseline after 5.2 ± 4 (group D) and 7.2 ± 5 (group C) months., Results: Basal characteristics were similar in both groups. Comparison of the basal and follow-up Holter results revealed no significant difference in the mean number of VPB/24 h in either group. In group D, the number of VPB/24 h declined from 8126 ± 8129 to 7998 ± 10 976 (P = 0.48), whereas in group C it rose from 6027 ± 6374 to 6600 ± 8590 (P = 0.51). VPB either disappeared or were markedly reduced (<100 VPB/24 h) in 2/44 (4.5%) group D and 4/43 (9%) group C athletes.In neither group did the number of couplets or nonsustained ventricular tachycardia change significantly., Conclusion: In healthy athletes, frequent VPBs discovered by chance during preparticipation screening may not be a manifestation of 'athlete's heart', but may depend on other causes; in the latter case screening may simply reveal a pre-existing asymptomatic phenomenon; the usefulness of detraining in ascertaining eligibility for sport should be further investigated.

Since 1971, in Italy every citizen engaged in competitive sports activity must periodically undergo preventive medical examinations to ascertain eligibility for sports participation. The medical examination includes rest and effort ECG. The Italian model has a very good sensitivity in identifying most pathologies at risk of sudden death particularly in the young (hypertrophic cadiomyopathy, arrhythmogenic right ventricular disease, chanelopathies). In this model, the ECG is very important, being able to disclose cardiac anomalies in most cases. The application of the Italian screening model has progressively reduced the incidence of sudden death in athletes.

The purpose of this work is to study the physicochemical properties of Pirocarbotrat to explain its radiopharmacological behavior. We also studied a mixture of charcoal plus chromic [32P]phosphate and charcoal plus sodium [32P]orthophosphate only for comparative purposes. The results show that the mean diameter of the Pirocarbotrat particles was 2.5 microm with an homogeneous distribution, while the other products show an heterogeneous distribution of the particle sizes, with a mean size diameter between 0.5 and 0.9 microm. Hydrolysis studies with a solution of 0.1 N HCl and with sulfochromic mixture revealed that in Pirocarbotrat the 32P is strongly bound to the charcoal particles. Bioelimination studies of Pirocarbotrat show that the total eliminated activity was 12.70 +/- 3.90%, with a higher amount in urine (8.30 +/- 1.80%) than in feces (4.40 +/- 3.50%). When biodistribution studies of Pirocarbotrat were carried out, we found that the 84.50 +/- 2.60% of the activity remained in the tumor with almost null irradiation of the other organs under study. When therapeutic action was evaluated, we observed that the percentage of tumor regression was 78.3% for the tumors injected with Pirocarbotrat. The other dispersions under study showed different behaviors with high activity percentages distributed throughout the organism. These studies demonstrate that Pirocarbotrat has the best radiopharmacological properties to ensure irradiation of the tumor with the least concomitant irradiation of surroundings or other organs or tissues.

To evaluate the effectiveness of a single intratumoral dose of Pirocarbotrat, a gelatin-protected charcoal suspension labeled with chromic [32P]pyrophosphate, studies of bioelimination, biodistribution and therapeutic action were carried out in rats, and the results obtained were compared with those of other 32P dispersions. We found that 78.3% of the treated tumors reduced size after 32 days of treatment. At that time, the total eliminated activity was 12.70 +/- 3.90% distributed in urine (8.30 +/- 1.80%) and feces (4.40 +/- 3.50%). Biodistribution studies demonstrate that 84.50 +/- 2.60% of the injected activity remained in the tumor, with no significant concentration in the rest of the organism. We conclude that Pirocarbotrat can be used as a safe agent for brachytherapy of solid tumors with beta particles.

With the purpose of studying the effectivity of an intratumoral single dose of chromic [32P] phosphate (Phosphocol) for the treatment of solid tumors, studies of bioelimination, biodistribution and therapeutic action were carried out in rats with experimental induced tumors. The results show that the percentage of total elimination is equal to 29.76 +/- 9.60% with a higher percentage in faeces 23.28 +/- 8.81% than in urine 6.48 +/- 2.11%. Biodistribution studies show that, 51.61 +/- 5.82% of the injected activity is found in the tumor while in organs with reticuloendothelial cells, the percentage of activity was 13.09 +/- 5.15% in liver and 2.88 +/- 1.23% in lung. On the other hand, when therapeutic action was evaluated, we found that the percentage of tumor regression (P.T.R) was 61.0% for the injected tumors. It is important to point out that 4 of the treated animals show bioelimination patterns in which the elimination rises suddenly at some time of the study. These results demonstrate that the use of this kind of colloids is not to be recommended for the treatment of solid tumors with moderated degree of vascularization, since its mobilization from the injection point may result in the consequent irradiation of different organs that are not under treatment.

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of an intratumorally single dose of chromic [32P] phosphate for the treatment of solid tumors, studies of bioelimination, biodistribution, and therapeutic action were carried out. Only for comparative purposes were similar studies undertaken using a solution of sodium [32P] orthophosphate-gelatin. Results show that when sodium [32P] orthophosphate-gelatin was intratumorally injected, the percentage of total elimination, after 32 days of treatment, was equal to 85.90 +/- 8.70%, with a higher percentage in urine (64.50 +/- 13.70%) than in feces (21.40 +/- 4.50%). In biodistribution studies, the greater percentage was found in bone (15.54 +/- 2.21%), whereas only 2.51 +/- 0.39% remained in the tumor. When chromic [32P] phosphate was intratumorally injected, we found that the total elimination was equal to 51.70 +/- 6.90%, with a higher amount in feces (32.70 +/- 4.80%) than in urine (19.00 +/- 3.60%). Biodistribution studies demonstrated that 28.93 +/- 1.30% was still in the tumor and 19.01 +/- 1.30% of the injected activity was found in the liver. On the other hand, when therapeutic action was evaluated, no tumoral regression was observed. These results demonstrate that the colloid of chromic [32P] phosphate cannot be used in the treatment of solid tumors as it mobilizes from the injection point, delivering a high dose to the entire organism.

With the purpose of studying the effectivity of an intratumoral single dose of chromic [32P] phosphate with great particles for the treatment of solid tumors, studies of bioelimination, biodistribution and therapeutic action were carried out. Only for comparative purposes, similar studies were undertaken using a solution of sodium -32P- orthophosphate-gelatine. The results show that when sodium [32P] orthophosphate-gelatine is used, the percentage of total elimination is (85.90 +/- 8.70)% with a higher percentage in urine (64.50 +/- 13.70)% than in faeces (21.40 +/- 4.50)%. In biodistribution studies, the greater percentage is found in bone (15.54 +/- 2.21)% while only a (2.51 +/- 0.39)% remains in the tumor. When great particles chromic [32P]phosphate was intratumorally injected, we determined that the total elimination is equal (36.28 +/- 6.27)%, finding a higher amount in faeces (29.44 +/- 5.26)% than in urine (6.84 +/- 2.21)%. Biodistribution studies demonstrated that (49.82 +/- 5.41)% remains in the tumor and (9.63 +/- 4.89)% of the injected activity is found in the liver. On the other hand, when therapeutic action was evaluated, we observed that the percentage of tumor regression (P.T.R.) is 52.0% for the tumors injected with chromic [32P]phosphate and 0.0% for those injected with sodium [32P]orthophosphate-gelatine. These results show that the great particles colloid of chromic [32P]phosphate is not safe enough for the treatment of solid tumors, since it is mobilized from the injection point, delivering a high dose to the whole organism.