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Many industries, including leather industry, are faced with high expenditure for solid organic waste treatment and disposal.Organic biopolymers represent a source of raw material for agriculture, because the composition of protean wastes provides enough elements to improve composition and rehabilitation of degraded soils.The main target of this scientific paper is investigating the development possibilities for various multicompound systems of biodegradable polymers and studying the effects of these complex products on the structure and chemical and physical characteristics of degraded or contaminated soils (having a poor level of organic matter or submitted to a strong erosion process). All treatments applied to wastes aim at substantially reducing environmental pollution. Complex characteristics of protean wastes from the leather industry are approached by accurately determining waste hide chemical composition and various possibilities of recovery and recycling using biotechnologies The novelty resides in the theoretically-based practical indications regarding the rational application of complex polymeric products - biofertilizers - on various types of soil (sandy, salty, eroded, dumps etc.) depending on the requirements of soil remediation and nutrition specific to agricultural plants. The work presents a new pilot technology for biochemical decay of the tannery protein wastes and use of the resulted products as fertilizers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article present the tax evasion problems in European Union framework, Union that must be equilibrium state among other tow concepts: fiscal harmonisation and fiscal competition. The measures that are justified to be taken in the name of harmonization may be considered as obstacles for the fiscal competition among member state and can conduce to the tax evasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A patient with a natural history of dysembryoblastic neuroepitelial tumor (DNT) with associated with probable sudden unexplained death (SUDEP) is described. This patient had long period of intractable partial complex seizures, neuropsychological abnormalities and normal neurological examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Biological invasions pose an increasing risk to nature, social security and the economy, being ranked amongst the top five threats to biodiversity. Managing alien and invasive species is a priority for the European Union, as outlined in the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Alien plant species are acknowledged to impact the economy and biodiversity; thus, analysing the distribution of such species provides valuable inputs for the management and decision-making processes. The database presented in the current study is the first consolidated checklist of alien plant species that are present in Romania, both of European Union concern and of national interest. This database complements a prior published distribution, based only on records from literature, bringing new information regarding the occurrence of alien plants in Romania, as revealed by a nationwide field survey. We consider this database a valuable instrument for managing biological invasions at both national and regional levels, as it can be utilised in further research studies and in drafting management and action plans, assisting stakeholders in making informed decisions and implementing management actions., New Information: We present the results of the first nationwide survey of alien plant species in Romania, conducted between 2019 and 2022, in the framework of a national project coordinated by the Ministry of Environment, Waters and Forests and the University of Bucharest. The present database complements and updates the database published by Sirbu et. al (2022), which included occurrence records published until 2019. The new database includes 98323 occurrence records for 396 alien plant species in 77 families, with most species belonging to the Asteraceae family. One alien plant species in our database, the black locust Robiniapseudoacacia L., had more than 10,000 occurrence records. The distribution database also includes information on newly-reported invasive alien plant species of European Union concern in Romania (i.e. the floating primrose-willow Ludwigiapeploides (Kunth) P.H.Raven) and documents the presence of plants in 44 additional families compared to Sirbu et al. (2022). Each entry includes information on species taxonomy, location, year, person who recorded and identified the alien plant, geographical coordinates and taxon rank., (Paulina Anastasiu, Iulia V Miu, Athanasios A Gavrilidis, Cristina Preda, Laurentiu Rozylowicz, Culita Sirbu, Adrian Oprea, Mihaela Urziceanu, Petronela Camen-Comanescu, Eugenia Nagoda, Daniyar Memedemin, Marius Barbos, Violeta Boruz, Alina Cislariu, Ioan Don, Marius Fagaras, Jozsef Pal Frink, Ioana Mihaela Georgescu, Ovidiu Ioan Haruta, Bogdan-Iuliu Hurdu, Attila Matis, Sretco Milanovici, Sorana Muncaciu, Alina Georgeta Neacsu, Monica Neblea, Alma Lioara Nicolin, Mariana Niculescu, Silvia Oroian, Oliviu Grigore Pop, Daniel I Radutoiu, Mihaela Samarghitan, Ioana Simion, Liliana Cristina Soare, Corina Steiu, Emilia Stoianov, Daniela Strat, Anna Szabo, Paul Marian Szatmari, Corneliu Tanase, Marian D Mirea, Nicolae Manta, Ioana M Sirbu.)

The endogenous opioid system (EOS) is complex. The line of research contributing to our current body of knowledge about this system is diverse, as are the ways in which endogenous opioids affect human health and behavior. This chapter serves as an introduction to the edited volume. It includes commentary about the current public discourse related to opioids, the rationale for this book, and the unique contributions of each chapter within this volume., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

The function of endogenous opioids spans from initiating behaviors that are critical for survival, to responding to rapidly changing environmental conditions. A network of interconnected systems throughout the body characterizes the endogenous opioid system (EOS). EOS receptors for beta-endorphin, enkephalin, dynorphin, and endomorphin underpin the diverse functions of the EOS across biological systems. This chapter presents a succinct yet comprehensive summary of the structure of the EOS, EOS receptors, and their relationship to other biological systems., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Endogenous opioids and their associated receptors form a system that maintains survival by positively reinforcing behaviors that are vital to life. Cancer and cancer treatment side effects capitalize on this system pathogenically, leading to maladaptive biological responses (e.g., inflammation), as well as cognitive and emotional consequences, most notably depression. Psychologists who treat people with cancer frequently find depression to be a primary target for intervention. However, in people with cancer, the etiology of depression is unique and complex. This complexity necessitates that psycho-oncologists have a fundamental working knowledge of the biological substrates that underlie depression/cancer comorbidity. Building on other chapters in this volume pertaining to cancer and endogenous opioids, this chapter focuses on the clinical applications of basic scientific findings., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

The opioid system involves opioid receptors (OPRs) and endogenous opioid peptides.This chapter will focus on the distribution of OPRs in the cardiovascular system, the expression pattern in the heart, the activation by opioid peptides, and the effects of OPRs activation with potential relevance in cardiovascular performance. In the heart, OPRs are co-expressed with beta adrenergic receptors (β-ARs) in the G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) superfamily, functionally cross-talk with β-Ars and modify catecholamine-induced effects. They are involved in cardiac contractility, energy metabolism, myocyte survival or death, vascular resistance. The effects of the opioid system in the regulation of systemic circulation at both the central and peripheral level are presented. The pathways are discussed under physiological (i.e., aging) and pathological conditions (atherosclerosis, heart failure, essential hypertension, ischemic stress). Stimulation of OPRs not only inhibits cardiac excitation-contraction coupling, but also protects the heart against hypoxic and ischemic injury. An enhanced sensitivity to opioids of endocrine organs and neuronal systems is operative in hypertensive patients. The opioid system can be pharmacologically engaged to selectively mimic these responses via cardiac and nervous signaling. The clinical opportunities for the use of cardioprotective effects of opioids require future investigations to provide more specific details of the impact on cardiac performance and electrophysiological properties., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Metabolomics is an advanced technology, still under development, with multiple research applications, especially in the field of health. Individual metabolic profiles, the functionality of the body, as well as its interaction with the environment, can be established using this technology. The body's response to various external factors, including the food consumed and the nutrients it contains, has increased researchers' interest in nutrimetabolomics. Establishing correlations between diet and the occurrence of various diseases, or even the development of personalized nutrition plans, could contribute to advances in precision medicine. The interdependence between humans, animals, and the environment is of particular importance today, with the dramatic emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases, food, water and soil contamination, and the degradation of resources and habitats. All these events have led to an increase in risk factors for functional diseases, burdening global health. Thus, this study aimed to highlight the importance of metabolomics, and, in particular, nutrimetabolomics, as a technical solution for a holistic, collaborative, and precise approach for the advancement of the One Health strategy.

The Parkinson's Disease Activities of Daily Living, Interference, and Dependence Instrument© (PD-AID) is a patient-reported outcome (PRO) instrument, recently developed to assess the clinical benefit of Parkinson's Disease (PD) treatment. The PD-AID consists of morning and evening assessments, administered daily. To benefit from the full set of the repeated observations over time, analytic approaches that account for both within- and between-individual variability are required. The current study aimed to employ the advantages of exploratory Multilevel Factor Analysis (MFA) on data collected from 93 participants with moderate to advanced PD, currently using and responding to Levodopa (L-Dopa), who completed the PD-AID twice daily as part of a prospective, non-intervention, observational study for ~28 days. Average daily completion rates were comparable for the Morning and the Evening PD-AID (78% and 74%, respectively). The intraclass correlation coefficients for the Morning and Evening PD-AID items were in the range of 0.70-0.90, with an average of 0.81 for the Morning PD-AID items and 0.83 for the Evening PD-AID items, suggesting that most variability (81%-83%) in responses was due to between-individual variability. For the Morning PD-AID, one factor (including nine out of 10 Morning PD-AID items) emerged at the between-individual level and four factors (core physical actions, basic self-care activities, feeding, and interference & dependence) at the within-individual level. For the Evening PD-AID, there were four between-individual factors (basic activities of daily living ADLs, life interference, impact on planning, and emotional consequences) and five within-individual factors (basic ADLs, toileting, life interference, medication planning, and emotional impact). The factors had high reliability., Competing Interests: CS, BS, and CM are employees of Cronos Clinical Consulting Services, Inc., the entity responsible for licensing of the PD-AID, including commercial license fees for use in industry-sponsored clinical trials. LD is the lead developer of the PD-AID and an employee of Pfizer, Inc., the funding source for the research. No authors receive any licensing fees from the PD-AID., (Copyright © 2022 Sirbu, Saxby, McNamara and Deal.)

The habanero pepper ( Capsicum chinense ) is an increasingly important spice and vegetable crop worldwide because of its high capsaicin content and pungent flavor. Diets supplemented with the phytochemicals found in habanero peppers might cause shifts in an organism's metabolism and gene expression. Thus, understanding how these interactions occur can reveal the potential health effects associated with such changes. We performed transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses of Drosophila melanogaster adult flies reared on a habanero pepper diet. We found 539 genes/59 metabolites that were differentially expressed/accumulated in flies fed a pepper versus control diet. Transcriptome results indicated that olfactory sensitivity and behavioral responses to the pepper diet were mediated by olfactory and nutrient-related genes including gustatory receptors ( Gr63a , Gr66a , and Gr89a ), odorant receptors ( Or23a , Or59a , Or82a , and Orco ), and odorant-binding proteins ( Obp28a , Obp83a , Obp83b , Obp93a , and Obp99a ). Metabolome analysis revealed that campesterol, sitosterol, and sucrose were highly upregulated and azelaic acid, ethyl phosphoric acid, and citric acid were the major metabolites downregulated in response to the habanero pepper diet. Further investigation by integration analysis between transcriptome and metabolome data at gene pathway levels revealed six unique enriched pathways, including phenylalanine metabolism; insect hormone biosynthesis; pyrimidine metabolism; glyoxylate, and dicarboxylate metabolism; glycine, serine, threonine metabolism; and glycerolipid metabolism. In view of the transcriptome and metabolome findings, our comprehensive analysis of the response to a pepper diet in Drosophila have implications for exploring the molecular mechanism of pepper consumption.

Background: Isolated exclusion of the non-coronary sinus (NCS) is an attractive strategy in valve-sparing aortic root surgery, which avoids the mobilisation and re-implantation of coronary ostia. However, the long-term durability of aortic valve repair and the fate of remnant sinuses of Valsalva remain unclear., Method: From January 2006 to December 2013, 29 patients underwent replacement of the ascending aorta extending to the NCS (group NCS) and 56 patients underwent a modified Yacoub procedure (group MY) in our centre by a single surgeon. Significant difference of preoperative parameters was observed between two groups in the presence of bicuspid aortic valve (41.4% vs 12.5%, p=0.002) and the diameter of the sinus of Valsalva (47.3±4.7 mm vs 51.5±4.9 mm, p=0.01)., Results: The group NCS, as compared to the group MY, was associated with significantly shorter cardiopulmonary bypass time (106.6±40.5 min vs 138.4±37.5 min, p=0.001) and aortic cross clamping time (69.0±21.8 min vs 105.4±27.8 min, p<0.01). The mean follow-up was 11.5±2.8 years. No surgical re-intervention was performed for aortopathies of the aortic root; the neo-sinus were not dilated in either groups (38.2±4.2 mm vs 34.0±4.0 mm, p<0.01). The 10-year freedom from aortic valve-related re-operation was estimated to be 96.6±3.4% and 94.5±3.1% (p=0.58), and the cumulative 10-year survival rates were 95.2±4.6% and 85.6±4.7% (p=0.61) in the group NCS and the group MY, respectively., Conclusions: Aortic valve-sparing isolated NCS replacement can be safely performed in selected patients; its early outcomes, overall survival and long-term freedom from aortic valve-related or aortopathy-related re-intervention were comparable to those obtained with the Yacoub procedure., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Introduction: Brain metastases (BM) are associated with dismal prognosis, and there is a dearth of effective systemic therapy. In this study, patients with BM from multiple solid tumors were identified from TriNetX databases, their clinicopathological features were evaluated, and the effects of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy were assessed., Methods: Variables, including median overall survival (OS), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status, primary diagnosis, and date of diagnosis, were retrieved from TriNetX, a real-world database. Kaplan-Meier plots and log-rank tests were applied to assess significance of differences in survival. Hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) values were calculated. All patient data were deidentified., Results: A total of 227,255 patients with BM were identified in the TriNetX database; median OS was 12.3 months from initial cancer diagnosis and 7.1 months from development of BM. OS of BM from nonsmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), melanoma, and renal cell carcinoma (RCC) were 8.7, 14.7, 17.8, and 15.6 months, respectively. After matching patient baseline characteristics, OS of cohorts with or without exposure to ICIs was evaluated. For all types of cancer, median OS durations for the ICI and no-ICI cohorts were 14.0 and 7.9 months, respectively (HR: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.85-0.91). More specifically, OS was remarkably prolonged in patients with NSCLC (14.4 vs . 8.2 months; HR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.82-0.90), TNBC (23.9 vs . 11.6 months; HR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.82-0.92), and melanoma (27.6 vs . 16.8 months; HR: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.73-0.88) if patients had exposure to ICIs. In contrast, there was no significant difference in OS of patients with RCC treated with and without ICIs (16.7 vs . 14.0 months; HR: 0.96; 95% CI: 0.86-1.10)., Conclusions: Overall, BM indicates poor patient outcome. Treatment with ICIs improves survival of patients with NSCLC, TNBC, and melanoma and BM; however, no significant improvement was observed in RCC. Investigations to identify prognostic features, oncogenomic profiles, and predictive biomarkers are warranted., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Du, Sirbu, Lucas, Jubelirer, Khalid and Mei.)

Introduction: Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is presently being used off-label or within a clinical trial., Objectives: We investigated a multinational database of patients with COVID-19 with real-world data containing outcomes and their relationship to HCQ use. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality within 30 days of follow-up., Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients receiving HCQ within 48 hours of hospital admission. Medications, preexisting conditions, clinical measures on admission, and outcomes were recorded., Results: Among patients with a diagnosis of COVID-19 in our propensity-matched cohort, the mean ages ± SD were 62.3 ± 15.9 years (53.7% male) and 61.9 ± 16.0 years (53.0% male) in the HCQ and no-HCQ groups, respectively. There was no difference in overall 30-day mortality between the HCQ and no-HCQ groups (HCQ 13.1%, n=367; no HCQ 13.6%, n=367; odds ratio 0.95, 95% confidence interval 0.62-1.46) after propensity matching. Although statistically insignificant, the HCQ-azithromycin (AZ) group had an overall mortality rate of 14.6% (n=199) compared with propensity-matched no-HCQ-AZ cohort's rate of 12.1% (n=199, OR 1.24, 95% CI 0.70-2.22). Importantly, however, there was no trend in this cohort's overall mortality/arrhythmogenesis outcome (HCQ-AZ 17.1%, no HCQ-no AZ 17.1%; OR 1.0, 95% CI 0.6-1.7)., Conclusions: We report from a large retrospective multinational database analysis of COVID-19 outcomes with HCQ and overall mortality in hospitalized patients. There was no statistically significant increase in mortality and mortality-arrhythmia with HCQ or HCQ-AZ., (© 2020 Pharmacotherapy Publications, Inc.)

One of the greatest impacts on the gastrointestinal microbiome is diet because the host and microbiome share the same food source. In addition, the effect of diet can diverge depending on the host genotype. Diets supplemented with phytochemicals found in peppers might cause shifts in the microbiome. Thus, understanding how these interactions occur can reveal potential health implications associated with such changes. This study aims to explore the gut microbiome of different Drosophila genetic backgrounds and the effects of dietary pepper treatments on its composition and structure. We analyzed the gut microbiomes of three Drosophila melanogaster genetic backgrounds (Canton-S, Oregon-RC, and Berlin-K) reared on control and pepper-containing diets (bell, serrano, and habanero peppers). Results of 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that the variability of Drosophila gut microbiome can be driven mainly by genetic factors. When the abundance of these communities is considered, pepper-containing diets also appear to have an effect. The most relevant change in microbial composition was the increment of Lactobacillaceae and Acetobacteraceae abundance in the pepper-containing diets in comparison with the controls in Oregon-RC and Berlin-K. Regression analysis demonstrated that this enhancement was associated with the content of phenolic compounds and carotenoids of the peppers utilized in this study; specifically, to the concentration of β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, myricetin, quercetin, and apigenin.

Chili peppers are an important constituent of many foods and contain medicinally valuable compounds, such as capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin. As various dietary botanicals have anticancer properties, this study was aimed to examine the effect of Ghost pepper (Bhut Jolokia), one of the hottest chili peppers in the world, on cell proliferation, apoptosis, senescence and the global proteomic profile in human renal cell adenocarcinoma in vitro. 769-P human renal adenocarcinoma cells were cultured on RPMI-1640 media supplemented with fetal bovine serum (10%) and antibiotic-antimycotic solution (1%). Treatment stock solutions were prepared in ethanol. Cell proliferation was tested with phenol red-free media with capsaicin (0-400 μM), dihydrocapsaicin (0-400 μM), capsaicin + dihydrocapsaicin (5:1), and dry Ghost peppers (0-3 g L-1) for 24, 48 and 72 h. Polycaspase and senescence associated-beta-galactosidase (SA-beta-gal) activities were tested with capsaicin (400 μM), dihydrocapsaicin (400 μM), capsaicin (400 μM) + dihydrocapsaicin (80 μM), and ghost pepper (3 g L-1) treatments. Global proteomic profile of cells in control and ghost pepper treatment (3 g L-1) was analyzed after 6 h by a shotgun proteomic approach using tandem mass spectrometry. At 24 h after treatment (24 HAT), relative to control, cell proportion with capsaicin (400 μM), dihydrocapsaicin (400 μM), capsaicin (400 μM) + dihydrocapsaicin (80 μM), and ghost pepper (3 g L-1) treatments was reduced to 36%, 18%, 33% and 20%, respectively, and further reduced at 48 and 72 HAT. All treatments triggered an early polycaspase response. SA-beta-gal activity was normal or suppressed with all treatments. About 68,220 protein isoforms were identified by shotgun proteomic approach. Among these, about 8.2% were significantly affected by ghost pepper. Ghost pepper regulated various proteins involved in intrinsic and extrinsic apoptotic pathways, Ras, Rb/E2F, p53, TGF-beta, WNT-beta catenin, and calcium induced cell death pathways. Ghost pepper also induced changes in proteins related to methylation, acetylation, genome stability, cell cycle check points, carbohydrate, protein and other metabolism and cellular mechanisms. Ghost pepper exhibited antiproliferation activity by inducing apoptosis through a complex network of proteins in human renal cell adenocarcinoma in vitro., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Objectives: The study aim was to determine how peripheral trigeminal nerve injury affects mitochondrial respiration and to test efficacy of combined treatment with 2 Federal Drug Administration approved drugs with potential for improving mitochondrial bioenergetics, pain and anxiety-related behaviors in a chronic orofacial neuropathic pain mouse model., Methods: Efficacy of (R)-(+)-4-amino-3-isoxazolidinone (D-cycloserine, DCS), an N-Methyl-D-aspartate antagonist/agonist, and Pioglitazone (PIO), a selective agonist of nuclear receptor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma was investigate in the trigeminal inflammatory compression (TIC) neuropathic nerve injury mouse model. Combined low doses of these drugs (80 mg/kg DCS and 100 mg/kg PIO) were given as a single bolus or daily for 7 days post-TIC to test ability to attenuate neuropathic nociceptive and associated cognitive dependent anxiety behaviors. In addition, beneficial effects of the DCS/PIO drug combination were explored ex vivo in isolated cortex/brainstem mitochondria at 28 weeks post-TIC., Results: The DCS/PIO combination not only attenuated orofacial neuropathic pain and anxiety-related behaviors associated with trigeminal nerve injury, but it also improved mitochondrial bioenergetics., Discussion: The DCS/PIO combination uncoupled mitochondrial respiration in the TIC model to improve cortical mitochondrial dysfunction, as well as reduced nociceptive and anxiety behaviors present in mice with centralized chronic neuropathic nerve injury. Combining these drugs could be a beneficial treatment for patients with depression, anxiety, or other psychological conditions due to their chronic pain status.

The symbiotic nitrogen fixing legumes play an essential role in sustainable agriculture. White clover (Trifolium repens L.) is one of the most valuable perennial legumes in pastures and meadows of temperate regions. Despite its great agriculture and economic importance, there is no detailed available information on phylogenetic assignation and characterization of rhizobia associated with native white clover plants in South-Eastern Europe. In the present work, the diversity of indigenous white clover rhizobia originating in 11 different natural ecosystems in North-Eastern Romania were assessed by a polyphasic approach. Initial grouping showed that, 73 rhizobial isolates, representing seven distinct phenons were distributed into 12 genotypes, indicating a wide phenotypic and genotypic diversity among the isolates. To clarify their phylogeny, 44 representative strains were used in sequence analysis of 16S rRNA gene and IGS fragments, three housekeeping genes (atpD, glnII and recA) and two symbiosis-related genes (nodA and nifH). Multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) phylogeny based on concatenated housekeeping genes delineated the clover isolates into five putative genospecies. Despite their diverse chromosomal backgrounds, test strains shared highly similar symbiotic genes closely related to Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar trifolii. Phylogenies inferred from housekeeping genes were incongruent with those of symbiotic genes, probably due to occurrence of lateral transfer events among native strains. This is the first polyphasic taxonomic study to report on the MLSA-based phylogenetic diversity of indigenous rhizobia nodulating white clover plants grown in various soil types in South-Eastern Europe. Our results provide valuable taxonomic data on native clover rhizobia and may increase the pool of genetic material to be used as biofertilizers.