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Evidence indicates that SARS-CoV-2 infection increases the likelihood of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Modifications in the circulatory, pulmonary, hormonal, and immunological pathways induced by pregnancy render pregnant women as a high-risk group. A growing body of research shows that SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy is connected to a number of maternal complications, including pneumonia and intensive care unit (ICU) hospitalization. Miscarriages, stillbirth, preterm labor, as well as pre-eclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction are also among the most often documented fetal implications, particularly among expecting women who have significant COVID-19 symptoms, often affecting the timing and route of delivery. Thus, prevention of infection and pharmacological treatment options should aim to minimize the aforementioned risks and ameliorate maternal, obstetric and fetal/neonatal outcomes.

Hybrid, organic-inorganic, biocidal films exhibiting polishing properties were developed as effective long-lasting antimicrobial surface coatings. The films were prepared using cationically modified chitosan, synthesized by the reaction with 3-bromo-N,N,N-trimethylpropan-1-aminium bromide, to introduce permanent biocidal quaternary ammonium salt (QAS) groups along the polymer backbone and were cross-linked by a novel, pH-cleavable acetal cross-linker, which allowed polishing the hybrid coatings with the solution pH. TiO2 nanoparticles, modified with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets, to narrow their band gap energy value and shift their photocatalytic activity in the visible light regime, were introduced within the polymer film to enhance its antibacterial activity. The hybrid coatings exhibited an effective biocidal activity in the dark (∼2 Log and ∼3 Log reduction for Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, respectively), when only the QAS sites interacted with the bacteria membrane, and an excellent biocidal action upon visible-light irradiation (∼5 Log and ∼6 Log reduction for Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, respectively) due to the synergistic antimicrobial effect of the QAS moieties and the rGO-modified TiO2 nanoparticles. The gradual decrease in the film thickness, upon immersion of the coatings in mildly basic (pH 8), neutral (pH 7), and acidic (pH 6) media, reaching 10, 20, and 70% reduction, respectively, after 60 days of immersion time, confirmed the polishing behavior of the films, whereas their effective antimicrobial action was retained. The biocompatibility of the hybrid films was verified in human cell culture studies. The proposed approach enables the facile development of highly functional coatings, combining biocompatibility and bactericidal action with a "kill and self-clean" mechanism that allows the regeneration of the outer surface of the coating leading to a strong and prolonged antimicrobial action.

The aim of the present study is the development and evaluation of the physicochemical properties of chimeric hydrogenated soya phosphatidylcholine (HSPC) and egg phosphatidylcholine (EggPC) liposomes with incorporated triblock copolymer Poloxamer P407 (P407). The physicochemical assay was held in water HPLC-grade and Foetal Bovine Serum (FBS), in order to determine whether these systems can be used as drug or antigen delivery nanosystems. Dynamic and electrophoretic light scattering (DLS/ELS) techniques were used for the measurement of the hydrodynamic diameter, the polydispersity index, and the ζ-potential of the prepared nanosystems. The incorporation of the P407 resulted in a size reduction of all systems. A decrease in the hydrodynamic diameter and polydispersity index were also found as a result of increasing the storage temperature from 4 °C to 25 °C, attributed to P407. The experiments that were carried out in FBS, showed that the addition of P407 improved systems stealth properties. Concluding, we propose P407 as a promising alternative to PEG in the development of lipid nanoparticles with optimized bio- and shelf-stability. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Sphingomonas paucimobilis represents an aerobic Gram-negative bacillus that is gaining recognition as an important human pathogen. These species are widely distributed in both natural environment and hospitals. They appear as opportunistic pathogen that take advantage of underlying conditions and diseases. Regardless of the clinical significance, pathogenic mechanism varies throughout current bibliography. Aim of our study, reflects presentation of a rare case of an out-patient clinical asymptomatic, with vaginal culture positive for this rare microorganism, S. paucimobilis. Assiduous diagnosis and therapeutic mapping consist necessary conditions of effective treatment.

The aim of the present study is the development and evaluation of the physicochemical properties of chimeric hydrogenated soya phosphatidylcholine (HSPC) and egg phosphatidylcholine (EggPC) liposomes with incorporated triblock copolymer Poloxamer P407 (P407). The physicochemical assay was held in water HPLC-grade and Foetal Bovine Serum (FBS), in order to determine whether these systems can be used as drug or antigen delivery nanosystems. Dynamic and electrophoretic light scattering (DLS/ELS) techniques were used for the measurement of the hydrodynamic diameter, the polydispersity index, and the ζ-potential of the prepared nanosystems. The incorporation of the P407 resulted in a size reduction of all systems. A decrease in the hydrodynamic diameter and polydispersity index were also found as a result of increasing the storage temperature from 4 °C to 25 °C, attributed to P407. The experiments that were carried out in FBS, showed that the addition of P407 improved systems stealth properties. Concluding, we propose P407 as a promising alternative to PEG in the development of lipid nanoparticles with optimized bio- and shelf-stability.

NEANIAS develops thematic services for EOSC communities on the field of Underwater, Atmospheric and Space research. The project will integrate the thematic services into the EOSC ecosystem after they reach the maturity required by EOSC. This deliverable collects and introduces the integration approaches, procedures, relevant services discovered as part of the EOSC landscape. Based on this information the document then proposes an integration strategy and roadmap.

Background/aim Cigarette smoke (CS) is a major environmental health threat. The oxidative stress induced by CS on keratinocytes and the possible protective effect of nicotine, its receptor inhibitors, and Pinus halepensis bark extract in relation to known antioxidants were investigated. Materials and methods Primary mouse keratinocytes were exposed to cigarette smoke in the presence and absence of Pinus halepensis bark extract (1 μg/ml), rutin (50 μM) and ascorbic acid (250 μM), nicotine (1 μM) with or without mecamylamine (5 μM) and α-bungarotoxin (0.1 μM). Keratinocyte viability and oxidative stress were evaluated by MTT and fluorescence assays. Results Pinus halepensis bark extract decreased the oxidative stress and increased the viability of keratinocytes, and moreover, these effects were more pronounced compared to the mixture of rutin and L-ascorbic acid. Nicotine significantly enhanced the viability potentiation of the beneficial effect induced by Pinus halepensis bark extract. Mecamylamine and α-bungarotoxin showed no specific effect. Conclusion Pinus halepensis bark extract in combination with nicotine may successfully reverse skin damage induced by cigarette smoke.

The objective of deliverable D6.1 is to report on architecture, specifications and software development plan of the Core Services that will be developed in WP6. This document reports on the general design principles, the overall system architecture and fundamental resources. Then it presents the foreseen core services related to manage Open Science lifecycle (C1), EOSC integration (C2), Artificial Intelligence processing (C3) and, finally, Visualization (C4).

Contemporary society leaves little space to dream and allows only for a reduced political engagement, with few shared beliefs. We criticise, but we do not act. We protest in mass, but we are individualistic. We advocate for freedom of thought, but we are prisoners of social media and their images: images, images, images popping out everywhere, overwhelming us, suffocating us. However, representations since antiquity have always had an impact on society, as mirrors and amplifiers of the everyday. They were created to question, describe and re-imagine faiths and situations: wandering tools able to tell a common story, through individual ones. They were not “images for images”, but rather parts of a larger narration expressed through different rituals, inviting a connection with the other. The goal was to see reality with other eyes and to recognise the sur-meaning in it. On the contrary, today we are faced by a different context: the fantastic - the imaginative, dreamy or creative potential of every object or being - is either rejected or fully embraced as a substitute of the surrounding reality. Therefore, the aim of this text is to investigate how to re-create a balanced connection between reality and the fantastic, architecture and ritual, representation and myth. If performance, seen as a key tool for the expression of collectivity, will be the linking thread of the discourse, montage, thanks to its relationship to time, will be the visual, acoustic and temporal vehicle, transporting us through this α-chronic incomplete voyage., piano b. Arti e culture visive, Vol 4, No 2 (2019): Collage di carta, collage digitale: concetti di architettura a confronto

Background/Aim: Cigarette smoke (CS) is a major environmental health threat. The oxidative stress induced by CS on keratinocytes and the possible protective effect of nicotine, its receptor inhibitors, and Pinus halepensis bark extract in relation to known antioxidants were investigated. Materials and Methods: Primary mouse keratinocytes were exposed to cigarette smoke in the presence and absence of Pinus halepensis bark extract (1 μg/ml), rutin (50 μΜ) and ascorbic acid (250 μΜ), nicotine (1 μM) with or without mecamylamine (5 μM) and α-bungarotoxin (0.1 μΜ). Keratinocyte viability and oxidative stress were evaluated by MTT and fluorescence assays. Results: Pinus halepensis bark extract decreased the oxidative stress and increased the viability of keratinocytes, and moreover, these effects were more pronounced compared to the mixture of rutin and Lascorbic acid. Nicotine significantly enhanced the viability potentiation of the beneficial effect induced by Pinus halepensis bark extract. Mecamylamine and α-bungarotoxin showed no specific effect. Conclusion: Pinus halepensis bark extract in combination with nicotine may successfully reverse skin damage induced by cigarette smoke. © 2020 International Institute of Anticancer Research. All rights reserved.

ETS2 repressor factor (ERF) is a ubiquitous transcriptional repressor regulated by Extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) phosphorylation. Homozygous deletion of Erf in mice blocks chorionic trophoblast differentiation, resulting in the failure of chorioallantoic fusion and subsequent embryo death. Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling is important for proper trophoblast stem cell (TSC) differentiation and development of the hemochorial placenta. Lack of Fgf2 promotes TSC differentiation, while FGF4 or FGF2 is required for murine TSC maintenance. Here, we show that low in vivo Fgf2 mRNA abundance occurs in patches of placental chorion cells and ex vivo in TSCs. This expression is repressed via direct interaction of ERF with the Fgf2 transcription unit is increased in the absence of ERF, and is decreased in the presence of an ERF mutant resistant to ERK phosphorylation. Thus, FGF2 inhibition by ERF appears to be necessary for proper chorionic TSC differentiation, and may account for the block of chorionic trophoblast differentiation in Erf-knockout animals. The differentiation of ERF-overexpressing TSC lines also suggests that ERF may have an FGF2-independent effect during the commitment towards syncytiotrophoblasts.

Background/Aim: Cigarette smoke (CS) is a major environmental health threat. The oxidative stress induced by CS on keratinocytes and the possible protective effect of nicotine, its receptor inhibitors, and Pinus halepensis bark extract in relation to known antioxidants were investigated. Materials and Methods: Primary mouse keratinocytes were exposed to cigarette smoke in the presence and absence of Pinus halepensis bark extract (1 μg/ml), rutin (50 μΜ) and ascorbic acid (250 μΜ), nicotine (1 μM) with or without mecamylamine (5 μM) and α-bungarotoxin (0.1 μΜ). Keratinocyte viability and oxidative stress were evaluated by MTT and fluorescence assays. Results: Pinus halepensis bark extract decreased the oxidative stress and increased the viability of keratinocytes, and moreover, these effects were more pronounced compared to the mixture of rutin and L-ascorbic acid. Nicotine significantly enhanced the viability potentiation of the beneficial effect induced by Pinus halepensis bark extract. Mecamylamine and α-bungarotoxin showed no specific effect. Conclusion: Pinus halepensis bark extract in combination with nicotine may successfully reverse skin damage induced by cigarette smoke.

Soundless chemical demolition agents (SCDAs) have been used during the last decades in the demolition of boulders and concrete structures as well as in open-surface and sub-surface rock excavation, as an alternative to the use of explosives posing safety risks. However, the knowledge of the governing fracture mechanisms in brittle materials is rather limited. In the present work, we thoroughly investigate the use of the acoustic emission technique to study the SCDA-induced fracture process in concrete blocks. Energy-related features and waveform parameters of the recorded AE activity are correlated to the fracture mode of the concrete where a quasi-static behavior is observed. Monitoring of the progressive fracture is also achieved by the 3D localization of the AE sources. The distribution of the inter-event times of the recorded hits is further analyzed in the context of non-extensive statistical physics. © 2019, Gruppo Italiano Frattura. All rights reserved.

Water is one of the resources used to fracture the host formation and retrieve the trapped gas during the process of shale-gas extraction. A portion of the injected water, which is known as flow-back water, is recovered during the initial extraction of the gas. The main characteristic of flow-back water is the very high concentrations of dissolved solids (e.g. calcium, sodium, and chloride), which renders its treatment highly challenging for most existing treatment methods. An alternative for onsite treatment (or pre-treatment) and recycling of the flow-back water is electrodialysis. The method is based on an electrically assisted membrane process for separation of salts from the solution. In this study, the efficiency of the electrodialysis for desalination of flow-back water was investigated at the laboratory scale using samples of flow-back water from the Marcellus shale-gas formation.