Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Current Evidence on the Bioavailability of Food Bioactive Peptides

Food protein-derived bioactive peptides are recognized as valuable ingredients of functional foods and/or nutraceuticals to promote health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. However, although peptides have been demonstrated to exert multiple benefits by biochemical assays, cell culture, and animal models, the ability to translate the new findings into practical or commercial uses remains delayed. This fact is mainly due to the lack of correlation of in vitro findings with in vivo functions of peptides because of their low bioavailability. Once ingested, peptides need to resist the action of digestive enzymes during their transit through the gastrointestinal tract and cross the intestinal epithelial barrier to reach the target organs in an intact and active form to exert their health-promoting properties. Thus, for a better understanding of the in vivo physiological effects of food bioactive peptides, extensive research studies on their gastrointestinal stability and transport are needed. This review summarizes the most current evidence on those factors affecting the digestive and absorptive processes of food bioactive peptides, the recently designed models mimicking the gastrointestinal environment, as well as the novel strategies developed and currently applied to enhance the absorption and bioavailability of peptides.
Relationship Between Peripheral Transport Proteins and Plasma Amyloid-β in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease were Different from Cognitively Normal Controls: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis.

BACKGROUND Transport proteins, soluble LRP1 (sLRP1) and soluble RAGE (sRAGE), play a pivotal role in the peripheral clearance of plasma amyloid-β (Aβ). However, their relationship is seldom discussed, especially in Alzheimer's disease (AD). OBJECTIVE To explore whether their relationship in patients with AD varied from those in cognitively normal (CN) controls. METHODS We initially recruited 70 patients with AD and 725 CN controls, then applied propensity score matching (PSM) analysis to balance the differences between two groups. Plasma levels of sLRP1, sRAGE, and Aβ were measured using commercial ELISA kits and log transformed when skewed distributed. The relationship between sLRP1/sRAGE and plasma Aβ were analyzed using Pearson's correlation analysis followed by multiple linear regression separately in the original population and matched participants. RESULTS After PSM, 70 patients with AD and 140 matched controls were included for further analysis. Log sLRP1 was positively correlated with plasma Aβ40 in matched CN controls (r = 0.222, p = 0.008) but not in patients with AD (r = 0.137, p = 0.260). After multivariable adjustment, Log sLRP1 remained significantly associated with plasma Aβ40 in the CN group (β= 7.347, p = 0.014) but not in the AD group (β= 10.409, p = 0.105). In contrast, Log sLRP1 was not correlated with plasma Aβ42 in patients with AD or CN controls, and Log sRAGE was consistently not associated with plasma Aβ40 or Aβ42 in either group. CONCLUSION The significant correlation between sLRP1 and plasma Aβ40 present in CN controls was not found in patients with AD, suggesting that their relationship was different in AD. However, the specific mechanisms and its influence on cerebral amyloid burden require further validation.
Improved Dynamic Obstacle Mapping (iDOMap)

The goal of this paper is to improve our previous Dynamic Obstacle Mapping (DOMap) system by means of improving the perception stage. The new system must deal with robots and people as dynamic obstacles using LIght Detection And Range (LIDAR) sensor in order to collect the surrounding information. Although robot movement can be easily tracked by an Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), people’s movement is more unpredictable and it might not be correctly linearized by an EKF. Therefore, to deal with a better estimation of both types of dynamic objects in the local map it is recommended to improve our previous work. The DOMap has been extended in three key points: first the LIDAR reflectivity remission is used to make more robust the matching in the optical flow of the detection stage, secondly static and a dynamic occlusion detectors have been proposed, and finally a tracking stage based on Particle Filter (PF) has been used to deal with robots and people as dynamic obstacles. Therefore, our new improved-DOMap (iDOMap) provides maps with information about occupancy and velocities of the surrounding dynamic obstacles (robots, people, etc.) in a more robust way and they are available to improve the following planning stage.
Antimicrobial activities of extracts of Cyperus rotundus L. rhizomes against some bacterial and fungal pathogens of strawberry and tomato

Antimicrobial activities of rhizome extracts of Cyperus rotundus were investigated on selected plant pathogenic bacteria and fungi. Ethyl acetate and hexane extracts showed antibacterial activity against three isolates of Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis at concentrations of 900 and 1000 μg/ml. However, Gram-negative bacterial pathogens of tomato; Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato and Ralstonia solanacearum were not inhibited from the extracts. Ethyl acetate extracts at 100 μg/ml inhibited mycelial growth and spore germination of the two strawberry isolates of Botrytis cinerea; however, no significant inhibition was found in tomato fungal pathogen, Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicis lycopersici. Minimum inhibitory concentrations were determined as 0.0625 and 0.125 mg/ml against C. michiganensis subsp. michiganensis for ethyl acetate and hexane extracts of rhizomes, respectively. This study shows the potentials of extracts of C. rotundus rhizomes as antimicrobial agents that are effective against the tested plant pathogenic bacteria and fungi.
Impact of random alloy fluctuations on inter-well transport in InGaN/GaN multi-quantum well systems: an atomistic non-equilibrium Green’s function study

Recent experimental studies indicate the presence of ballistic hole transport in InGaN multi quantum well (MQW) structures. Widely used drift–diffusion models cannot give insight into this question, since quantum mechanical effects, such as tunneling, are not included in such semi-classical approaches. Also atomistic effects, e.g. carrier localization effects and built-in field variations due to (random) alloy fluctuations, are often neglected in ballistic transport calculations on InGaN quantum well systems. In this work we use atomistic tight-binding theory in conjunction with a non-equilibrium Green’s function approach to study electron and hole ballistic transport in InGaN MQW systems. Our results show that for electrons the alloy microstructure is of secondary importance for their ballistic transport properties, while for hole transport the situation is different. We observe for narrow barrier widths in an InGaN MQW system that (random) alloy fluctuations give rise to extra hole transmission channels when compared to a virtual crystal description of the same system. We attribute this effect to the situation that in the random alloy case, k ∥-vector conservation is broken/relaxed and therefore the ballistic hole transport is increased. However, for wider barrier width this effect is strongly reduced, which is consistent with experimental studies. Our findings also provide a possible explanation for recent experimental results where alloying the barrier between the wells leads to enhanced ballistic (hole) transport in InGaN MQW systems.
In vitro and in vivo evaluation of quinones from Auxemma oncocalyx Taub. on Leishmania braziliensis

The effect of a quinone fraction (QF) isolated from the heartwood of Auxemma oncocalyx Taub. was investigated in vitro and in vivo on Leishmania braziliensis. Although QF (1-10 μg/mL) showing marked in vitro anti-Leishmania activity (81 to 94%), the oral treatment with the compound did not protect hamsters against progressive L. braziliensis infection. When QF was administered intraperitoneally (20 mg/kg) the lesion size was reduced by 65%; however, it was not able to promote parasite eradication, as evidenced by the high number of parasites in draining lymph nodes. Quinones are highly redox active molecules and with their semiquinones radicals can lead to formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The generation of ROS could probably explain the in vitro leishmanicidal activity of the quinones, since promastigotes are susceptible to H2O2 lethal effect in vitro. In conclusion, although quinones seem to be effective against Leishmania parasites in vitro, they do not demonstrate a therapeutic effect in experimental leishmaniasis. In addition, it can be hypothesized that QF in vivo might possibly be converted into non-active metabolite(s) or be inactivated either by reduction or by interaction with serum proteins, losing its leishmanicidal activity. Key words: Leishmania braziliensis, Auxemma oncocalyx, quinone, hamster, cutaneous leishmaniasis.
Incorporating Mortality in Health Utility Measures

The creation of multiattribute health utility systems requires design choices that have profound effects on the utility model, many of which have been documented and studied in the literature. Here we describe one design choice that has, to the best of our knowledge, been unrecognized and therefore ignored. It can emerge in any multiattribute decision analysis in which one or more essential outcomes cannot be described in terms of the multiattribute space. In health applications, the state of being dead is such an outcome. When the remaining health is conceptualized as a multidimensional space, determining the utility of the state of being dead requires using the interval-scale properties of cardinal utility, combined with elicited utilities for the state of being dead and the all-worst state, to produce a utility function in which the state of being dead has a utility of 0 and full health has a utility of 1 (i.e., the quality-adjusted life-year scale). Although previously unrecognized, there are two approaches to accomplish that step, and they produce different results in almost all cases. As a corollary, the choice of approach determines the proportion of states rated as worse than dead by the system. For example, in the Health Utility Index 3 (HUI3), the method used classifies 78% of the 972,000 unique health states in the classification system as worse than dead, and that proportion increases to 85% when the HUI3 is recalculated using the alternative approach. Studies of populations with significant morbidity are the most likely to be sensitive to the design choice. Those who design utility measures should be aware that they are using a researcher degree of freedom when they decide how to scale the state of being dead.
Effect of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on the Metabolic Products and Activity of Antioxidant System in Wheat Plants Subjected to Short-term Water Stress, Followed by Recovery at Different Growth Stages

The effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi on the metabolic changes and t he activity of antioxidant syste m on wheat ( Triticum aestivum L cv. Sakha 93) plants w as i nvestigated in po t culture under well-watered (ww) and w ater stress (ws) conditions. The water stress treatment was applied by increasing t he i rrigation i nterval from one week to two weeks at three growth s tages (tillering, heading and grain-filling). After each stress period, the p lants were watered and grown to maturity without subsequent water s tress (recovery periods). Results showed that at water s tress and rewatering, the mycorrhizal inoculation significantly increased the contents of some metabolites (proline; free amino acids; total soluble and crude proteins; total carbohydrate; total soluble and insoluble sugars) in wheat plants and enhanced t he activities of some a ntioxidant enzymes such as peroxidase ( POX) and cat alase ( CAT) as compared with stressed control, especially at heading stage o f plant growth. T he overall results, suggest that m ycorrhizal co lonization could improve the osmotic adjustment re sponse of wh eat p lants, enhance its defence system, and alleviate oxidative damage of cell viability. The cumulative effects increased the plant tolerance to drought.
Targeting immunometabolism in host defence against Mycobacterium tuberculosis

In the face of ineffective vaccines, increasing antibiotic resistance and the decline in new antibacterial drugs in the pipeline, tuberculosis (TB) still remains pandemic. Exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), which causes TB, results in either direct elimination of the pathogen, most likely by the innate immune system, or infection and containment that requires both innate and adaptive immunity to form the granuloma. Host defence strategies against infectious diseases are comprised of both host resistance, which is the ability of the host to prevent invasion or to eliminate the pathogen, and disease tolerance, which is defined by limiting the collateral tissue damage. In this review, we aim to examine the metabolic demands of the immune cells involved in both host resistance and disease tolerance, chiefly the macrophage and T‐lymphocyte. We will further discuss how baseline metabolic heterogeneity and inflammation‐driven metabolic reprogramming during infection are linked to their key immune functions containing mycobacterial growth and instructing protective immunity. Targeting key players in immune cellular metabolism may provide a novel opportunity for treatments at different stages of TB disease.
Liquid biopsy for ALK-positive early non-small-cell lung cancer predicts disease relapse.

Background: We aimed to determine whether circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and cell-free DNA (cfDNA) aids in prognosis of relapse-free survival (RFS). Methods: Non-small cell lung cancer patients with ALK mutations were recruited prospectively. CTCs and cfDNA were quantified at different time points. RFS was estimated and correlated. Results: Baseline median CTCs and cfDNA were 16 cells and 57 ng/mL and declined to nine cells and 30 ng/mL, respectively, postsurgery in 150 patients. Interestingly, patients without detectable CTCs postsurgery fared better for RFS. cfDNA monitoring showed deviations within 7 months of surgery that were significant predictors for RFS. Conclusion: Short-term monitoring of CTCs and cfDNA variations shows promise for early risk detection and may aid in better disease control.
First Evidence of Kv3.1b Potassium Channel Subtype Expression during Neuronal Serotonergic 1C11 Cell Line Development

Kv3.1 channel is abundantly expressed in neurons and its dysfunction causes sleep loss, neurodegenerative diseases and depression. Fluoxetine, a serotonin selective reuptake inhibitor commonly used to treat depression, acts also on Kv3.1. To define the relationship between Kv3.1 and serotonin receptors (SR) pharmacological modulation, we showed that 1C11, a serotonergic cell line, expresses different voltage gated potassium (VGK) channels subtypes in the presence (differentiated cells (1C11D)) or absence (not differentiated cells (1C11ND)) of induction. Only Kv1.2 and Kv3.1 transcripts increase even if the level of Kv3.1b transcripts is highest in 1C11D and, after fluoxetine, in 1C11ND but decreases in 1C11D. The Kv3.1 channel protein is expressed in 1C11ND and 1C11D but is enhanced by fluoxetine only in 1C11D. Whole cell measurements confirm that 1C11 cells express (VGK) currents, increasing sequentially as a function of cell development. Moreover, SR 5HT1b is highly expressed in 1C11D but fluoxetine increases the level of transcript in 1C11ND and significantly decreases it in 1C11D. Serotonin dosage shows that fluoxetine at 10 nM blocks serotonin reuptake in 1C11ND but slows down its release when cells are differentiated through a decrease of 5HT1b receptors density. We provide the first experimental evidence that 1C11 expresses Kv3.1b, which confirms its major role during differentiation. Cells respond to the fluoxetine effect by upregulating Kv3.1b expression. On the other hand, the possible relationship between the fluoxetine effect on the kinetics of 5HT1b differentiation and Kv3.1bexpression, would suggest the Kv3.1b channel as a target of an antidepressant drug as well as it was suggested for 5HT1b.
Bayesian Analysis of Three Methods for Diagnosis of Cystic Echinococcosis in Sheep

Diagnosis of cystic echinococcosis (CE) in sheep is essentially based on necropsy findings. Clinical symptoms can be easily overlooked, while the use of immunological tests is still not recommended for an intra vitam diagnosis. This study assessed the performances of three post-mortem laboratory methods in the diagnosis of ovine CE. In the absence of a single and accurate test as a gold standard, the results of multiple analytical tests can be combined to estimate diagnostic performance based on a Bayesian statistical approach. For this purpose, livers (n = 77), and lungs (n = 79) were sampled from adult sheep and examined using gross pathology, histopathology and molecular analyses. Data from the three diagnostic methods were analyzed using a Bayesian latent class analysis model to evaluate their diagnostic accuracy in terms of sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV). The gross pathology examination revealed excellent diagnostic capabilities in diagnosing ovine CE with an Se of 99.7 (96.7–99.8), Sp of 97.5 (90.3–99.8), PPV of 97.6 (90.5–100), and NPV of 99.7 (96.5–100). The experimental design used in this work could be implemented as a validation protocol in a quality assurance system.
Erysipelotrichales ord. nov

E.ry. si.pe. lo.tri'cha.les. N.L. fem. n. Erysipelothrix type genus of the order; suff. -ales ending to denote an order; N.L. fem. pl. n. Erysipelotrichales the Erysipelothrix order. Firmicutes / Erysipelotrichia / Erysipelotrichales Keywords: Erysipelotrichales ord. nov; Erysipelothrix; Erysipelotrichia class. nov.
AI in the Intensive Care Unit: Up-to-Date Review

AI is the latest technologic trend that likely will have a huge impact in medicine. AI’s potential lies in its ability to process large volumes of data and perform complex pattern analyses. The ICU is an area of medicine that is particularly conducive to AI applications. Much AI ICU research currently is focused on improving high volumes of data on high-risk patients and making clinical workflow more efficient. Emerging topics of AI medicine in the ICU include AI sensors, sepsis prediction, AI in the NICU or SICU, and the legal role of AI in medicine. This review will cover the current applications of AI medicine in the ICU, potential pitfalls, and other AI medicine-related topics relevant for the ICU.
Validation of the Italian Version of the Educational Needs Assessment Tool in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients and Factors Associated with Educational Needs

The educational needs assessment tool (ENAT) is a seven-domain questionnaire assessing the educational needs (EN) of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of this study was to validate the Italian version of the ENAT and to identify factors associated with EN in people with RA. The original English ENAT version was translated into Italian according to Beaton’s method and subjected to Rasch analysis for validity testing. Socio-demographic and clinical variables were tested for associations with the ENAT domain scores using a multivariable linear regression model. The ENAT translated well into Italian and retained its construct validity. Some adjustments were needed when pooling the Italian and English datasets. The overall score of the ENAT had a high median: 82.8 (interquartile range (IQR): 57.5 to 100) i.e., 72.4% of the maximum score. The highest score was observed in the domain “Arthritis process” and the lowest was in “Support systems”. Only gender was independently associated with EN (females having higher EN than males). The Italian ENAT is feasible for the use in the clinical setting and may help the health care practitioners to tailor educational interventions for RA patients. The characteristics of the patients, particularly female gender, may be associated with higher EN.
Human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2) is a potential therapeutic target in extramammary Paget’s disease of the vulva

Background Invasive vulvar Paget’s disease with over-expression of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) protein is potentially suitable for targeted therapy, especially in a metastatic setting where no effective treatments are available. Methods Four consecutive patients with HER2 positive advanced vulvar Paget’s disease, treated with weekly trastuzumab (loading dose 4 mg/kg, then 2 mg/kg) and paclitaxel (80 mg/m2) followed by 3-weekly trastuzumab maintenance (6 mg/kg), are reported. Results Median age and follow-up of patients were 62.5 years (45–74) and 16 months (6-54), respectively. Complete or partial responses were observed in all patients. Median time to response was 3 months (range 2–4), while median duration of response was 10 months (range 2–34). Case 1 presented with pulmonary and lymph nodes involvement. She experienced a radiological complete response after 24 treatment administrations, and a progression-free survival of 36 months. At disease progression, treatment re-challenge achieved partial response. She is currently receiving treatment with trastuzumab–emtansine. Case 2 was a 74-year-old woman who developed pulmonary metastasis after first-line cisplatin treatment. She had a partial response and a progression-free survival of 10 months. Case 3 had inguinal and para-aortic lymphadenopathy in complete response after 18 treatment administrations. She developed brain metastasis while receiving trastuzumab maintenance. Case 4 was treated for locally advanced disease and experienced a subjective benefit with relief in perineal pain and itching. No unexpected treatment-related side effects were reported. Conclusions Advanced vulvar Paget’s disease is a rare disorder and no standard treatment is available. In the sub-group of HER2 positive disease, weekly paclitaxel–trastuzumab appears to be active and safe, and may be considered a therapeutic option in these patients.
Benefits of Multiple-Intervention Pulmonary Rehabilitation to Older Adults with High-Risk Multimorbidity after Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting

Objective: Multimorbidity in elderly patients increases complications and retards the recovery of pulmonary function after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery. We aimed to evaluate the impact of multiple-intervention pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) on respiratory muscle strength and dyspnea scores after CABG in adult patients aged ≥65 years who had multimorbidity. Methods: A cohort study was retrospectively conducted with 95 adults aged ≥65 years who underwent CABG surgery and completed a multiple-intervention PR program. Results: Patients in the non-multimorbidity (n = 56) and multimorbidity groups (n = 39) were evaluated on the basis of their muscle strength, degree of dyspnea, and pulmonary function. Postoperative complications were compared after the completion of PR. Between extubation days 1 and 14, the multimorbidity group showed significant improvements in maximal inspiratory pressure (16.91 vs. 24.95 cmH2O, P < 0.001), Borg Scale score (0.99 vs. 2.3, P < 0.001), and the ratio of forced expiratory volume in 1 s to forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC ratio) of 7.02% vs. 13.4% (P = 0.01). The incidence rates of pulmonary complications were similar between the two groups. Conclusions: Multi-interventional PR program significantly improved the maximal inspiratory pressure, Borg scale score, and FEV1/FVC ratio in the adult patients aged ≥65 years who had multimorbidity after undergoing CABG surgery.