Search

Summary: Background: In industrialized countries, the incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) appears stabilized. This study examined the incidence and phenotype of IBD in Northern France over a 30-year period. Methods: Including all IBD patients recorded in the EPIMAD population-based registry from 1988 to 2017 in Northern France, we described the incidence and clinical presentation of IBD according to age, sex and time. Findings: A total of 22,879 incident IBD cases were documented (59% (n = 13,445) of Crohn’s disease (CD), 38% (n = 8803) of ulcerative colitis (UC), 3% (n = 631) of IBD unclassified (IBDU)). Over the study period, incidence of IBD, CD and UC was 12.7, 7.2 and 5.1 per 105 person-years, respectively. The incidence of CD increased from 5.1/105 in 1988–1990 to 7.9/105 in 2015–2017 (annual percent change (APC): +1.9%, p

A significant part of our stone heritage is made of limestone. Researchers are increasingly concerned about the risk of biodeterioration of these important objects. In this article, we present an up-to-date review of the microbial diversity of biodeteriorated limestone cultural heritage (CHL). This is based on an extensive bibliographic search of the literature investigating biodiversity using culture-dependent (CD) and culture-independent (CI) techniques. In the case of the former, only articles in which microorganisms were identified using molecular tools that generate DNA sequences were selected, with the aim of providing traceable identification based on the sequences submitted to public databases. The literature search resulted in the selection of 50 articles published between 2004 and 2023. The biodiversity data obtained from the CHL were organized into the following groups: fungi (626 records), bacteria and cyanobacteria (786 and 103 records, respectively), algae (51 records), and archaea (27 records). Within each group, the microbial diversity studied was compared according to results obtained using CD and CI techniques. Of all the articles selected, 12 used both approaches, demonstrating the growing effort to discover the total microbiome of biodeteriorated cultural heritage assets.

The polyphyletic group of black fungi within the Ascomycota (Arthoniomycetes, Dothideomycetes, and Eurotiomycetes) is ubiquitous in natural and anthropogenic habitats. Partly because of their dark, melanin-based pigmentation, black fungi are resistant to stresses including UV- and ionizing-radiation, heat and desiccation, toxic metals, and organic pollutants. Consequently, they are amongst the most stunning extremophiles and poly-extreme-tolerant organisms on Earth. Even though ca. 60 black fungal genomes have been sequenced to date, [mostly in the family Herpotrichiellaceae (Eurotiomycetes)], the class Dothideomycetes that hosts the largest majority of extremophiles has only been sparsely sampled. By sequencing up to 92 species that will become reference genomes, the "Shed light in The daRk lineagES of the fungal tree of life" (STRES) project will cover a broad collection of black fungal diversity spread throughout the Fungal Tree of Life. Interestingly, the STRES project will focus on mostly unsampled genera that display different ecologies and life-styles (e.g., ant- and lichen-associated fungi, rock-inhabiting fungi, etc.). With a resequencing strategy of 10- to 15-fold depth coverage of up to ~550 strains, numerous new reference genomes will be established. To identify metabolites and functional processes, these new genomic resources will be enriched with metabolomics analyses coupled with transcriptomics experiments on selected species under various stress conditions (salinity, dryness, UV radiation, oligotrophy). The data acquired will serve as a reference and foundation for establishing an encyclopedic database for fungal metagenomics as well as the biology, evolution, and ecology of the fungi in extreme environments.

Historically valuable canvas paintings are often exposed to conditions enabling microbial deterioration. Painting materials, mainly of organic origin, in combination with high humidity and other environmental conditions, favor microbial metabolism and growth. These preconditions are often present during exhibitions or storage in old buildings, such as churches and castles, and also in museum storage depositories. The accumulated dust serves as an inoculum for both indoor and outdoor fungi. In our study, we present the results on cultivable fungi isolated from 24 canvas paintings, mainly exhibited in Slovenian sacral buildings, dating from the 16th to 21st centuries. Fungi were isolated from the front and back of damaged and undamaged surfaces of the paintings using culture media with high- and low-water activity. A total of 465 isolates were identified using current taxonomic DNA markers and assigned to 37 genera and 98 species. The most abundant genus was Aspergillus, represented by 32 species, of which 9 xerophilic species are for the first time mentioned in contaminated paintings. In addition to the most abundant xerophilic A. vitricola, A. destruens, A. tardicrescens, and A. magnivesiculatus, xerophilic Wallemia muriae and W. canadensis, xerotolerant Penicillium chrysogenum, P. brevicompactum, P. corylophilum, and xerotolerant Cladosporium species were most frequent. When machine learning methods were used to predict the relationship between fungal contamination, damage to the painting, and the type of material present, proteins were identified as one of the most important factors and cracked paint was identified as a hotspot for fungal growth. Aspergillus species colonize paintings regardless of materials, while Wallemia spp. can be associated with animal fat. Culture media with low-water activity are suggested in such inventories to isolate and obtain an overview of fungi that are actively contaminating paintings stored indoors at low relative humidity.

Abstract Wearable technologies are becoming important for the fields of information technology and healthcare, driven mainly by societal issues such as the aging society and the current pandemic. Recently developed flexible/stretchable wearable devices have demonstrated their ability for long‐term healthcare monitoring with improved signal integrity and multimodality. However, the adherence of wearers to such wearable devices cannot be determined only by the function. Here “comfort‐of‐wear” is identified as one of the most critical parameters for future wearables, similar to how clothes are chosen based on how comfortable they are. “Comfort‐of‐wear” is defined as the device's ability to not to disturb the wearers’ daily life. Several engineering approaches are introduced to improve the comfort‐of‐wear of devices—via strategies that include improving flexibility by utilizing a combination of structures, materials, and systems. Finally, the future of wearables enabled by cutting‐edge advanced electronic technologies is proposed.

Development of Soft shape-memory materials is often limited to the synthesis of two-dimensional specimens and rely on bending mechanisms and scaffolding topology to perform three-dimensional morphing. Here, the authors demonstrate a shape-memory composite material made from main-chain liquid crystal elastomer microparticles dispersed in a silicone polymer matrix which enables molding into full-volume objects of any shape or size.

Natural weathering test at two different European climatic zones were conducted to investigate simultaneously both, the fungal colonisation and weathering process of Scots pine wood (Pinus sylvestris L.). The hypothesis was that the wood performing differently in various climate conditions might affect fungal infestation. The colour changes, wettability, and glossiness were measured as indicators of weathering progress of wood together with an assessment of fungal diversity. Different intensities in weathering, occupancy, and colonisation of fungi on wooden surface were detected. A higher number of fungal species was found on wood exposed to the warm temperate climates compared to subarctic or boreal climates. The dominant fungal species in both locations were from the genera Cladosporium and Aureobasidium.

In this work thermomechanical properties of main-chain liquid crystal elastomers (MC-LCEs) with different degrees of crosslinking were investigated, and gradual loss of thermomechanical response was observed on repetitive measurements. Specifically, six samples of MC-LCEs were prepared, with crosslinker-to-mesogen relative concentration ranging from 5% to 10% in steps of 1%. The obtained results were then compared to thermomechanical response of side-chain liquid crystal elastomers (SC-LCEs). Additionally, thermomechanical response of polymer dispersed main-chain liquid crystal elastomers (MC-PDLCEs) was investigated. Results indicate that in MC-LCEs the concentration of crosslinker defines thermomechanical response and affects stability of the system. The loss of thermomechanical response is negligible in the case of crosslinker to mesogen ratio being the smallest, namely in 5% sample, and it is unaffected by glasslike to nematic phase transition. SC-LCEs do not show any sign of such behaviour and remain stable after several cycles of thermomechanical measurements.

Fungi are important contaminants of historic canvas paintings worldwide. They can grow on both sides of the canvas and decompose various components of the paintings. They excrete pigments and acids that change the visual appearance of the paintings and weaken their structure, leading to flaking and cracking. With the aim of recognizing the most dangerous fungal species to the integrity and stability of paintings, we studied 55 recently isolated and identified strains from historic paintings or depositories, including 46 species from 16 genera. The fungi were categorized as xero/halotolerant or xero/halophilic based on their preference for solutes (glycerol or NaCl) that lower the water activity (aw) of the medium. Accordingly, the aw value of all further test media had to be adjusted to allow the growth of xero/halophilic species. The isolates were tested for growth at 15, 24 °C and 37 °C. The biodeterioration potential of the fungi was evaluated by screening their acidification properties, their ability to excrete pigments and their enzymatic activities, which were selected based on the available nutrients in paintings on canvas. A DNase test was performed to determine whether the selected fungi could utilize DNA of dead microbial cells that may be covering surfaces of the painting. The sequestration of Fe, which is made available through the production of siderophores, was also tested. The ability to degrade aromatic and aliphatic substrates was investigated to consider the potential degradation of synthetic restoration materials. Xerotolerant and moderately xerophilic species showed a broader spectrum of enzymatic activities than obligate xerophilic species: urease, β-glucosidase, and esterase predominated, while obligate xerophiles mostly exhibited β-glucosidase, DNase, and urease activity. Xerotolerant and moderately xerophilic species with the highest degradation potential belong to the genus Penicillium, while Aspergillus penicillioides and A. salinicola represent obligately xerophilic species with the most diverse degradation potential in low aw environments.

BackgroundThe black yeast Hortaea werneckii (Dothideomycetes, Ascomycota) is one of the most extremely halotolerant fungi, capable of growth at NaCl concentrations close to saturation. Although dothideomycetous fungi are typically haploid, the reference H. werneckii strain has a diploid genome consisting of two subgenomes with a high level of heterozygosity.ResultsIn order to explain the origin of the H. werneckii diploid genome we here report the genome sequencing of eleven strains isolated from different habitats and geographic locations. Comparison of nine diploid and two haploid strains showed that the reference genome was likely formed by hybridization between two haploids and not by endoreduplication as suggested previously. Results also support additional hybridization events in the evolutionary history of investigated strains, however exchange of genetic material in the species otherwise appears to be rare. Possible links between such unusual reproduction and the extremotolerance of H. werneckii remain to be investigated.ConclusionsH. werneckii appears to be able to form persistent haploid as well as diploid strains, is capable of occasional hybridization between relatively heterozygous haploids, but is otherwise limited to clonal reproduction. The reported data and the first identification of haploid H. werneckii strains establish this species as a good model for studying the effects of ploidy and hybridization in an extremotolerant system unperturbed by frequent genetic recombination.

This paper deals with the characterisation of cementitious materials from selected cultural heritage structures in Slovenia. The mineralogical–petrographic compositions of an aggregate, a type of binder and secondary minerals were studied via electron microscopy and X-ray powder diffraction. The porosity and pore network were determined using a mercury porosimeter. The results show that the aggregate of the samples was highly diverse, ranging from limestone, dolomite, quartz, feldspar and mica. The binder of the investigated samples was cementitious; either ordinary Portland cement was used, or ordinary Portland cement blended with ground granulated blast furnace slag was used. Some samples consisted of cement–lime binders. The investigated examples entailing cement materials for their construction contribute to a better understanding of the technology used to prepare historical cementitious and cement–lime mixtures.

The treated sewage sludge under consideration is a hygienized biodegradable waste in the form of pellets. It can be used as a fertilizer, but only for spreading on non-agricultural land. Regarding “waste to energy” philosophy, the specification of pellets as an alternative solid fuel according to EN 15359 resulted in “NCV4; Cl1; Hg3-4” class. The major problem regarding the final pellets utilization is the lack of facilities for energy and material recovery from this type of waste in Slovenia. According to the newest legislation regarding the waste management, a product status for residues generated in combustion and pyrolysis of pellets on a laboratory and semi-pilot scale was not achieved. The holistic approach to final pellets utilization was studied and regarding the full-scale level of self-sufficient sewage sludge management in Slovenia, some legislative provisions become significant obstacles.

Abstract This study introduces a novel geotechnical composite material comprising two types of fill material sourced from the paper industry—deinking paper sludge ash (DPSA) and deinking paper sludge (DPS). Five composites with different DPSA and DPS contents were investigated. Two composites were selected for further analyses. The technology and procedure for composite installation were implemented in field tests. The composites with 80% and 70% DPSA exhibited the elasticity required to withstand minor landslide slip deformations, in addition to achieving sufficiently high values of uniaxial compressive strength. The composites had a low maximum dry density value, which led to fewer settlements in the entire support structure. The enhanced shear characteristics can enable the construction of a thinner retaining wall. The delay between preparation and installation of the composites was further investigated. The field tests confirmed that the composites with 80% and 70% DPSA can be installed on the construction site 4 h and even 24 h after mixing. In 2018, a retaining wall structure with 70% DPSA and 30% DPS was successfully implemented near a railway line using conventional technology as followed-up research to the herein presented study. Results have been derived from work performed in the scope of the H2020 Paperchain project in which novel circular economy models centered on the valorization of the waste streams generated by the pulp and paper industry as secondary raw material for several resource-intensive sectors, including the construction sector, have been developed. Environmental benefits are savings in natural raw materials, reduction of landfill disposal as well as CO2 emission reduction.

Proteus anguinus is a neotenic cave salamander, endemic to the Dinaric Karst and a symbol of world natural heritage. It is classified as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is one of the EU priority species in need of strict protection. Due to inaccessibility of their natural underground habitat, scientific studies of the olm have been conducted mainly in captivity, where the amphibians are particularly susceptible to opportunistic microbial infections. In this report, we focused on the diversity of cultivable commensal fungi isolated from the skin of asymptomatic and symptomatic animals obtained from nature (20 specimens) and captivity (22 specimens), as well as from underground water of two karstic caves by direct water filtration and by exposure of keratin-based microbial baits and subsequent isolation from them. In total 244 fungal isolates were recovered from the animals and additional 153 isolates were obtained from water samples. Together, these isolates represented 87 genera and 166 species. Symptomatic animals were colonized by a variety of fungal species, most of them represented by a single isolate, including genera known for their involvement in chromomycosis, phaeohyphomycosis and zygomycosis in amphibians: Acremonium, Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Exophiala, Fusarium, Mucor, Ochroconis, Phialophora and Penicillium. One symptomatic specimen sampled from nature was infected by the oomycete Saprolegnia parasitica, the known causative agent of saprolegniosis. This is the first comprehensive report on cultivable skin mycobiome of this unique amphibian in nature and in captivity, with an emphasis on potentially pathogenic fungi and oomycetes.

Autorica razmatra konstrukcije identiteta glavnih likova u dva američka književna serijala i jednome hrvatskome, koji njeguju povezanost i isprepletenost ilustracije sa tekstom, a namijenjeni su suvremenome čitatelju. Polazeći od definiranja pojma identiteta kao višeslojnog, polifoničnog fenomena na osnovi razmatranja teoretičarke A. Kos Lajtman, a isto tako i polifoničnih književnih struktura odabranih knjiga iz serijala Timi Promašaj, Gregovi dnevnici i serijalu o Mirku, autorica obrazlaže polazišta i karakteristike tri autorska modusa izgradnje identiteta glavnih likova. Pri tome je posebno zanimaju načini kako Jeff Kinney, Stephan Pastis, te dvojac Melita Rundek i Martin Zalar poniru u psihologiju djeteta i uključuju ilustraciju u pripovijedanje. Promišljanja B. Majhuta, Š. Batinić i S. Narančić Kovač o odnosu teksta i ilustracije u knjigama za djecu, S. McClouda o stripu i H. Bergsona o smiješnome bila su početna točka za taj dio rada. Polifoničnost književnoga teksta razmatra se kao supostojanje različitih diskurzivnih modela i strategija oblikovanja identiteta likova kao što su stilsko/značenjski sraz diskursa, prikaz necjelovite perspektive tinejdžera, pružanje više mogućnosti i razina za recepciju teksta u čitatelja različitih dobi i dr. Sva tri serijala pružaju vizualnost obilno i na mnoštvo načina. Polifoničnost, pak, likovnoga izraza u oblikovanju identiteta likova razmatra se na razinama šifriranog” koda pripovijedanja (ironija, mašta, formalna raznolikost ilustracije, rahlost teksta), anegdotalnih izleta iz priče (vizualizacije fraza, doslikavanje, hiperbola i kontrastiranje, intertekstualnost), fenomena vizualne samosvijesti karakterističnog za karikaturalnu ilustraciju (lančana naizmjeničnost teksta i slike). Humor objedinjuje poetike svih autora, a obilnost teksta i dalje drži serijale čvrsto u području žanra romana. Ipak, odnos između riječi i crteža vrlo je dinamičan i živ, pa se roman bliži stripu, čak i slikovnici, iskazujući time svoje hibridne mogućnosti.

Background and purpose: The demographic structure of the countryside shows that the number of people aged 65 or more is increasing; however, they are still active and motivated for work and help the younger generation. The research aims at studying the influence of the elderly on the organisation of tourist farms; particularly the factors which affect the organisation of operation and modernisation thereof, such as the factors of inheritance, intergenerational organisational relationships and cooperation, the frequency of further training, inclusion of the elderly in tourist farms and the effect of the perceived changes in the organisation of subsidiary tourist activities on farms on the perception of modernisation.

p16/Ki-67 dual immunocytochemical staining (DS) is considered easy to interpret if evaluators are properly trained, however, there is no consensus on what constitutes proper training. In the present study we evaluated a protocol for teaching DS evaluation on students inexperienced in cervical cytology.

With the increased environmental awareness, the search for environmentally friendlier heat-management techniques has been the topic of many scientific studies. The caloric materials with large caloric effects, such as the electrocaloric (EC) and elastocaloric (eC) effects, have increased interest due to their potential to realize new solid-state refrigeration devices. Recently, caloric properties of soft materials, such as liquid crystals (LCs) and LC elastomers (LCEs), are getting more in the focus of caloric materials investigations, stimulated by large caloric effects observed in these materials. Here, an overview of recent direct measurements of large caloric effects in smectic LC 14CB and main-chain LCEs is given. Specifically, high-resolution thermometric measurements revealed a large EC response in 14CB LC exceeding 8 K. Such a large effect was obtained at a relatively moderate electric field of 30 kV cm ^−1 compared to solid EC materials. We demonstrate that such a small field can induce the isotropic to smectic A phase transition in 14CB, releasing or absorbing relatively large latent heat that enhances the EC response. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that in main-chain LCEs, the character of the nematic to isotropic transition can be tuned from the supercritical towards the first-order regime by decreasing the crosslinkers’ density. Such tuning results in a sharper phase transition and latent heat that enhance the eC response, exceeding 2 K and with the eC responsivity of 24 K MPa ^−1 , about three orders of magnitude larger than the average eC responsivity found in the best shape memory alloys. Significant caloric effects in soft LC-based materials, observed at much smaller fields than in solid caloric materials, demonstrate their ability to play an important role as new cooling elements, thermal diodes, and caloric-active regeneration material in new heat-management devices.

Side-chain liquid crystal elastomers (SC-LCEs) have been designed by using a new smectic crosslinker. Two types of monodomain films were prepared based on polysiloxane chains, with a different relative concentration of both crosslinker and mesogenic comonomers. The mesomorphic behavior of the two SC-LCE systems was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and polarized optical microscopy showing a different mesomorphic behavior: in one case, we obtained a nematic SC-LCE film, in the other case, a Smectic A SC-LCE film. In both systems, the mesophases were stable in a wide temperature range. Moreover, the SC-LCE films possess a relatively high orientation at room temperature. The physical-chemical properties, such as the local orientational ordering, structural organization, and dynamics of SC-LCEs’ constituents were studied by means of static and dynamic 2H NMR experiments, small-angle X-ray, and wide-angle X-ray diffractions. The relevant physical properties, such as the thermo-elastic and thermo-mechanic behaviors, are reported and discussed in view of the practical applications.

Thermomechanically active shape-programmable elastomer microparticles are very promising for development of particulate composites with unique operational properties, which could be attractive for various applications, e.g., in 3D printing. Liquid crystal elastomers are one of the suitable candidate materials due to their remarkable spontaneous shape change response. Performed rheological and thermomechanical tests demonstrate that shear stress can be used to efficiently manipulate the nematic order-driven morphology of liquid crystal elastomer microparticles (μLCEs). Specifically, by exploiting the soft-elasticity character of the material through manipulation of shear amplitude time profile, the nematic director can be oriented along the flow, which results in alignment of microparticles. Using this method, a suspension of well-aligned, thermomechanically elongated monodomain μLCEs can be created by shear stress-assisted cooling. Although the alignment can be lost in absence of persistent flow, it is restored instantaneously on re-application of the flow. The reason for this is the preservation of particle elongation at room temperature in zero flow. This shape memory can be erased by heating the system to the isotropic phase. Our work represents an important step forward in the development of a new generation of shape-programmable materials, which are potentially suitable for additive manufacturing of artefacts with anisotropic physical properties.

Pomegranate fruit is an ancient fruit that is used not only because of its deep-red color and tasty arils but also due to the health benefits of its extracts. Pomegranate is a valuable source of bioactive compounds, including colorful anthocyanins and other polyphenols. The main objective of the present study was to gain comprehensive knowledge of the phenolic composition and antioxidative activity of a new pomegranate cultivar, grown in Northwest Istria, a part of the North Adriatic coastal area. Various parts of the pomegranate fruit parts were extracted in 70% ethanol or water. Total phenolic content and antioxidative capacity were respectively determined with Folin–Ciocalteu reagent and ABTS radical. Phenolics were examined and analyzed with TLC, LC-MS, and HPLC. Pomegranate juice was prepared from red arils and after thermal treatment, the stability of anthocyanins was monitored for several months to understand the effect of storage. The highest total phenolics were determined in ethanol pomegranate peel extracts (30.5 ± 0.6 mg GAE/g DM), and water peel extracts exhibited the highest antioxidative activity (128 ± 2 µg TE/g DM). After five months of storage of thermally treated pomegranate juice, 50–60 percentage points increase in anthocyanin degradation was observed. Pomegranate peel was further tested as a sustainable inedible food source for papermaking. Due to the low content of cellulose and the high percentage of extractives, as well as a distinguished texture and appearance, the paper made from pomegranate peel is best suited for the production of specialty papers, making it particularly interesting for bioactives recovery, followed by material restructuring.