showing 36 of ~574560 from 574555 documents
Spatial trade-offs between ecological and economical sustainability in the boreal production forest
2022
Economically-oriented forestry aims to sustain timber harvest revenues, while ecologically-oriented management supplies suitable habitat for species using deadwood as primary habitat. As these objectives are conflicting, planning for economic and ecological sustainability involves compromise and trade-offs. We analyze the spatial trade-offs between the economic value from timber harvesting and the volume of deadwood in the boreal forest. We assess these trade-offs from three perspectives: (1) landscape characteristics, affected by conservation strategies; (2) forest management promoting either economic or ecological values; (3) uncertainty in inventory errors undermining the estimate of the…
Habitat area and local habitat conditions outweigh fragmentation effects on insect communities in vineyards
2022
Fragmentation of habitat, for example by intensive agricultural practices, can be detrimental to local biodiversity. However, it often remains unclear whether such biodiversity declines are caused by loss of habitat area or increased fragmentation, and how habitat quality factors into it. In our study system, vegetated vineyards are typically small, and isolated from one another, potentially limiting the distribution and dispersal of organisms. In a full-factorial experiment of a priori selected vegetated vineyard patches of differing size and fragmentation, we aimed to disentangle the effects of habitat area (area of vegetated vineyards), habitat fragmentation (number of vegetated vineyard…
Hesitant versus confident family language policy: a case of two single-parent families in Finland
2022
Abstract During the past decade, the field of family language policy has broadened its scope and turned its attention to diverse family configurations in versatile sociolinguistic contexts. The current study contributes to this endeavor by focusing on two single-parent families who live in Finland and who strive to support Russian as a family language. Applying nexus analysis as an epistemological stance and as an analytical lens, the study takes an emic perspective on family language policy. Furthermore, it examines how family language policy is manifested and negotiated during mother–child play and what discourses shape it. The findings reveal two contrasting ways in which family language…
Gender differences in recollections of economic socialization, financial self-efficacy, and financial literacy
2022
The OECD/INFE international surveys of adult financial literacy (OECD/INFE 2016, 2020) show gender differences in financial literacy in developed countries in Europe. In this study, we examine whether these differences can be explained by gender differences in parental economic socialization using the Dutch 2018 DHS household survey. We investigate whether respondents' recollection of economic socialization when young predict their adult economic behavior and self-assessed financial knowledge. The results from ordinal logit and logistic regressions and for nonlinear equations decompositions reveal gender differences in the recollection of economic socialization and in how socialization prac…
Adverse reactions to the injection of face and neck aesthetic filling materials: a systematic review
2022
Adverse reactions, caused during the inflammation and healing process, or even later, can be induced by the injection of dermal filler and can present a variety of clinical and histological characteristics. In this study we aimed to review the adverse reactions associated with the injection of aesthetic filling materials in the face and neck. The review was reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses checklist. Studies published that mentioned adverse reactions in patients with aesthetic filling materials in the face or neck were included. Risk of bias was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute appraisal tool. After a 2-step selection pro…
Inflammatory Biomarkers in Elite Cross-Country Skiers After a Competition Season : A Case-Control Study
2022
Abstract Purpose Whether elite athletes, who have been exposed to vigorous-intensity exercise combined with other stressors, have elevated systemic low-grade inflammation, remains largely unclear. To address this question, we studied the levels of six inflammatory cytokines as potential biomarkers of a low-grade inflammatory state in elite athletes after an 11-month training and competition season. Methods We collected sera from 27 Finnish elite cross-country skiers and 27 gender- and age-matched, moderately-exercising controls. The serum concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin 6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), glycoprotein acetyls (GlycA), interleukin 10 (IL-10…
Nuclear DFT electromagnetic moments in heavy deformed open-shell odd nuclei
2022
Within the nuclear DFT approach, we determined the magnetic dipole and electric quadrupole moments for paired nuclear states corresponding to the proton (neutron) quasiparticles blocked in the p11/2- (n13/2+) intruder configurations. We performed calculations for all deformed open-shell odd nuclei with 63<=Z<=82 and 82<=N<=126. Time-reversal symmetry was broken in the intrinsic reference frame and self-consistent shape and spin core polarizations were established. We determined spectroscopic moments of angular-momentum-projected wave functions and compared them with available experimental data. We obtained good agreement with data without using effective g-factors or effective c…
Effects of Sulfamethoxazole on Fertilization and Embryo Development in the Arbacia lixula Sea Urchin
2022
To date, drugs released into the aquatic environment are a real problem, and among antibiotics, sulfamethoxazole is the one most widely found in wastewater; thus, the evaluation of its toxicity on marine organisms is very important. This study, for the first time, investigates the in vitro effects of 4 concentrations of sulfamethoxazole (0.05 mg/L, 0.5 mg/L, 5 mg/L, 50 mg/L) on the fertilization and development of the sea urchin Arbacia lixula. The gametes were exposed to drugs in three different stages: simultaneously with, prior to, and post-fertilization. The results show a significant reduction in the percentage of fertilized oocytes at the highest drug concentrations. Moreover, an incr…
Association between Conflict and Cholera in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
2022
Cholera outbreaks significantly contribute to disease mortality and morbidity in low- and middle-income countries. Cholera outbreaks have several social and environmental risk factors and extreme conditions can act as catalysts. A social extreme with known links to infectious disease outbreaks is conflict, causing disruption to services, loss of income and displacement. Here, we used the self-controlled case series method in a novel application and found that conflict increased the risk of cholera in Nigeria by 3.6 times and 19.7% of cholera outbreaks were attributable to conflict. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), conflict increased the risk of cholera by 2.6 times and 12.3% of ch…
Effects of Oral Supplementation with Myo-Inositol and D-Chiro-Inositol on Ovarian Functions in Female Long-Term Survivors of Lymphoma: Results from a…
2022
The progressive improvement of lymphoma treatment has led to an important prolongation of patient survival and life expectancy. The principal international scientific societies of oncology now therefore recommend that long-term survivors of lymphoma join fertility programs. Specifically, fertile-age patients should be assisted by a multidisciplinary team, including specialists dedicated to fertility preservation in oncology, in order to support the completion of their reproductive project. In the general population, the use of Myo-Inositol and D-Chiro-Inositol (MI/DCI) has been demonstrated to be an effective choice to treat ovarian dysfunctions, with a consequent improvement in reproductiv…
Multicultural Palermo between gentrification and real estate market crisis in the historical centre
2022
Multiculturalism is a characteristic of the post industrial city which will challenge planning through new paradigms, in fact the increasing of transnational flow of migrants reshapes the physical urban space and the socio-cultural relations, expressing new housing needs often neglected by planning and public policies. The essay discusses the experimental analysis conducted in an area of the historical centre of Palermo, where there is a high concentration of migrants in order to assess their potential involvement in the processes of residential gentrification, within the controversial panorama of urban regeneration policies, economic crisis and real estate market. The demographic dynamic, …
T-shaped Uterus, Other Studies are Needed But What Can We Do in The Meantime?
2022
Dysmorphic uterus is a condition that can affect fertility differently depending on the type of malformation. The most common uterine malformation is the septum but other uterine malformations can affect fertility, as t-shaped uterus
U-Pb age constraints on Carboniferous-Permian French continental basins - implications for their depositional history and correlations with European …
2022
International audience; Late Carboniferous to Permian basins of western Europe (~Gzhelian to Artinskian), developed during thelate stages of the Variscan orogeny in equatorial paleolatitudes. The stratigraphic context of most of thesebasins remains poorly constrained, because mainly based on “continental stages” (e.g., Stephanian, Autunian,Saxonian and Thuringian) that are diachronous. Therefore, correlating these basins together and withinternationally recognized stratigraphic marine stages requires precise radiochronologic ages.To the south of the Paris Basin (France), volcanic ash-fall layers (i.e., tonsteins) are interbedded in theCarboniferous-Permian sedimentary successions of the Aum…
Impact Of Chronic Foot Pain Related Quality Of Life : A Retrospective Case-Control Study
2022
Clinical trial [Abstract] Background: Chronic foot pain (CFP) is a widespread condition worldwide; however, few studies that relate CFP and foot health-related quality of life have been reported. Objective: The aim of this study was to describe the impact of foot health and health in general in a sample of adult people with CFP compared with a control group. Study design: This study was designed as a retrospective case-control study. Setting: Podiatric section of a care center. Methods: Two hundred adults were included in the study. Patients were divided into CFP patient (n = 100) and control groups (n = 100). All of them regularly attended a private podiatric clinic to take care of their f…
Guanine inhibits the growth of human glioma and melanoma cell lines by interacting with GPR23
2022
Guanine-based purines (GBPs) exert numerous biological effects at the central nervous system through putative membrane receptors, the existence of which is still elusive. To shed light on this question, we screened orphan and poorly characterized G protein-coupled receptors (GPRs), selecting those that showed a high purinoreceptor similarity and were expressed in glioma cells, where GBPs exerted a powerful antiproliferative effect. Of the GPRs chosen, only the silencing of GPR23, also known as lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) 4 receptor, counteracted GBP-induced growth inhibition in U87 cells. Guanine (GUA) was the most potent compound behind the GPR23-mediated effect, acting as the endpoint eff…
Composite Coatings of Chitosan and Silver Nanoparticles Obtained by Galvanic Deposition for Orthopedic Implants
2022
In this work, composite coatings of chitosan and silver nanoparticles were presented as an antibacterial coating for orthopedic implants. Coatings were deposited on AISI 304L using the galvanic deposition method. In galvanic deposition, the difference of the electrochemical redox potential between two metals (the substrate and a sacrificial anode) has the pivotal role in the process. In the coupling of these two metals a spontaneous redox reaction occurs and thus no external power supply is necessary. Using this process, a uniform deposition on the exposed area and a good adherence of the composite coating on the metallic substrate were achieved. Physical-chemical characterizations were car…
Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) complications: what diagnostic radiologists should know
2022
Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) is an effective therapy for portal hypertension complications and can successfully treat variceal bleeding and refractory ascites. Although TIPS is relatively safe, procedural- or shunt-related morbidity can reach 20%, and procedural complications have a fatality rate of 2%. Delayed recognition and treatment of TIPS complications can lead to life-threatening clinical scenarios. Complications can vary from stent migration or malpositioning to nontarget organ injury, TIPS dysfunction, encephalopathy, or liver failure. This review aims to outline the role of diagnostic radiology in assessing post-TIPS complications.[GRAPHICS].
Methodology for Structured Data-Path Implementation in VLSI Physical Design: A Case Study
2022
State-of-the-art modern microprocessor and domain-specific accelerator designs are dominated by data-paths composed of regular structures, also known as bit-slices. Random logic placement and routing techniques may not result in an optimal layout for these data-path-dominated designs. As a result, implementation tools such as Cadence’s Innovus include a Structured Data-Path (SDP) feature that allows data-path placement to be completely customized by constraining the placement engine. A relative placement file is used to provide these constraints to the tool. However, the tool neither extracts nor automatically places the regular data-path structures. In other words, the relative placement f…
Association between sarcopenia and quality of life among adults aged ≥ 65 years from low- and middle-income countries
2022
Background Sarcopenia has been associated with a lower quality of life (QoL). However, studies on this association from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are scarce. Aims To examine the association between sarcopenia and QoL, in a large nationally representative sample of older adults from six LMICs. Methods Cross-sectional, community-based data from the WHO study on global ageing and adult health (SAGE) were analysed. Non-severe sarcopenia was defined as having low skeletal muscle mass (SMM) and weak handgrip strength but no slow gait speed, while severe sarcopenia was defined as having low SMM, weak handgrip strength, and slow gait speed. QoL was assessed with the 8-item WHO QoL in…
Master-Slave Control of Battery/Supercapacitor Based Hybrid Energy Storage System for E-Vehicle Application
2022
In this paper, management and control problem of hybrid energy storage system (HESS) has been solved by master-slave control strategy. Heuristic fuzzy rules based algorithm is developed for optimal power sharing between different power sources. The master control is followed by a slave level controller, designed by using terminal synergetic control method for tracking. Moreover, the stability analysis of closed-loop system has been carried out by using lyapunov theory. Finally, the proposed method has been tested in MATLAB/Simulink environment under Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP).
High pressure treatment and green tea extract synergistically control enteric virus contamination in beverages
2022
Consumers are driving food production toward the use of natural preservatives and minimal processing technologies. Green tea extract (GTE) at low concentration could be combined with high pressure processing (HPP) for reduced treatment times and quality impact on foods in a hurdle concept for synergistic effects on foodborne viral pathogens, specifically human norovirus and hepatitis A virus (HAV). Viral inactivation by HPP (at 300, 400, and 500 MPa for 5 min) combined with 3.3 mg/mL aged-GTE was initially evaluated in buffer (PBS) against murine norovirus (MNV), a culturable human norovirus surrogate, and HAV. Furthermore, human norovirus inactivation was evaluated by the novel human intes…
A mid-IR Plasmonic Graphene Nanorectenna-based Energy Harvester to Power IoT Sensors
2022
In this paper, the design of a graphene arrow- bowtie nanoantenna mid-IR energy-harvester to power IOT wireless sensor is presented. For the first time, a sensitivity analysis of the mid-IR nanoantenna resonant frequencies in terms of different graphene number of sheets and chemical potential (μCP) without substrate and on a two-layer substrate composed of SiO2 and Si, is carried out. The obtained simulation results by 3D CST 2020 are useful to design an efficient infrared nanorectenna, composed of the nanoantenna and a rectifying MIM diode inside the gap. The analysis of the complete energy-harvester (EH), composed of an NxM nanorectenna array, a low-pass filter, and a DC-DC converter, is …
The World of George Grosz’s Pictures and the World Depicted in The Novel Pokora by Szczepan Twardoch
2022
“My drawings expressed my despair, hate and disillusionment […] I drew soldiers without noses; war cripples with crustacean-like steel arms” – so stated George Grosz in a refl ection on his art. This quotation expresses the essence of “The New Objectivity” (Neue Sachlichkeit) – a movement in German art in the time of Weimar Republic. The cover of Szczepan Twardoch’s novel Pokora (2020) is designed on the basis of Grosz’s painting Panorama. Down with Liebknecht (1919). The aim of the article is to explore how the literary text relates to its paratext and epitext, and which verbal pictures in the novel share motifs with Grosz’s visual art. This case study, conducted in the framework of Gérard…
Elementary school principals’ work from the ecological systems perspective: Evidence from Finland
2022
The present study aimed to investigate elementary school principals’ work from the ecological systems perspective and which elements of their work are experienced as demands or resources. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 principals. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the data. The results show that the way principals experience their work is individual and influenced by several internal and external factors. Some of the most extensive demands appear to be related to interaction with different stakeholders in situations where principals have the role of mediator in solving conflicting situations. Challenges also seem to arise in dealing with elements or issues…
Heterometallic palladium-iron metal-organic framework as a highly active catalyst for cross-coupling reactions.
2022
Palladium-based metal-organic frameworks (Pd-MOFs) are an emerging class of heterogeneous catalysts extremely challenging to achieve due to the facile leaching of palladium and its tendency to be reduced. Herein, Pd(II) was successfully incorporated in the framework of a MOF denoted as MUV-22 using a solvent assisted reaction. This stable MOF, with square-octahedron (soc) topology as MIL-127, and a porosity of 710 m2 g−1, is highly active, selective, and recyclable for the Suzuki-Miyaura allylation of aryl and alkyl boronates as exemplified with the coupling between cinnamyl bromide and Me-Bpin, a typically reluctant reagent in cross-coupling reactions.
The Role of Spatial Plans Adopted at the Local Level in the Spatial Planning Systems of Central and Eastern European Countries
2022
The article deals with the issue of spatial plans at the local level. The aims of this paper are (1) extracting the characteristics of local spatial plans that can be compared more broadly (2) identifying, on this basis, the role of spatial plans at the local level in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). In achieving these aims, the authors have critically examined spatial plans and their performance, as well as the planning systems they belong to. Hence, they have investigated the types of local plans in each country, their legal features, and the layout of their content. This examination has revealed a host of problems in the workings of the CEE planning systems. The article…
Feeding Dairy Ewes with Fresh or Dehydrated Sulla (Sulla coronarium L.) Forage. 2. Effects on Cheese Enrichment in Bioactive Molecules
2022
Sulla is a tanniferous legume species largely used as fresh or preserved forage in the ruminants’ diets. Due to its content in polyphenols with antioxidant activity, especially condensed tannins (CT), fresh sulla forage (FSF), when eaten by ruminants, is able to enrich animal products with antioxidant molecules and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that are beneficial for consumers’ health. Dehydration represents a valid alternative to haymaking to preserve these properties also in periods when FSF is unavailable. In this research, the effects of ewes’ diets based on sulla hay (SH), pelleted dehydrated sulla forage (DSF) or FSF were evaluated on cheese physico-chemical tr…
Chromatin epigenetics and nuclear lamina keep the nucleus in shape: Examples from natural and accelerated aging.
2022
As the repository of genetic information, the cell nucleus must protect DNA integrity from mechanical stresses. The nuclear lamina, which resides within the nuclear envelope (NE), is made up of lamins, intermediate filaments bound to DNA. The nuclear lamina provides the nucleus with the ability to deal with inward as well as outward mechanical stimuli. Chromatin, in turn, through its degrees of compaction, shares this role with the nuclear lamina, thus, ensuring the plasticity of the nucleus. Perturbation of chromatin condensation or the nuclear lamina has been linked to a plethora of biological conditions, that range from cancer and genetic diseases (laminopathies) to aging, both natural a…
Virtual Synchronous Generator: An application to Microgrid Stability
2022
The objective of this paper is to illustrate an alternative control algorithm for power converters which have the task of introducing the energy generated by systems based on the use of renewable sources such as photovoltaic or wind power, into small-sized networks, microgrids. Virtual Synchronous Generator can operate both in parallel to the main network as well as in isolated and autonomous conditions (islanding-mode). The contribute of this work is to drive a consolidated approach, made in the time domain, in a more flexible and less time-consuming approach based on Park transformation
CTLA4-Linked Autoimmunity in the Pathogenesis of Endometriosis and Related Infertility: A Systematic Review
2022
Several studies, although with conflicting results, have sought to determine the concentration of soluble CTLA4 antigens in peripheral blood plasma and peritoneal fluid in patients with endometriosis-related infertility. A systematic review was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) through a search of the following databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Global Health, The Cochrane Library, Health Technology Assessment Database and Web of Science, and Clinical Trials research register. We included observational or prospective human and animal studies with any features related to endometriosis and/or infertility studies involving CTLA4-rel…
Chronic Endometritis in Infertile Women: Impact of Untreated Disease, Plasma Cell Count and Antibiotic Therapy on IVF Outcome—A Systematic Review and…
2022
This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to evaluate the impact of chronic endometritis (CE) and its therapy on in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcome. Additionally, we aim to investigate whether various degrees of CE severity may exert a different effect on IVF outcome. Ongoing-pregnancy rate/live-birth-rate (OPR/LBR), clinical-pregnancy rate (CPR), and miscarriage rate (MR) were calculated. A total number of 4145 patients (from ten studies) were included. Women with CE had lower OPR/LBR (OR 1.97, p = 0.02) and CPR (OR 2.28, p = 0.002) compared to those without CE. CE cure increased OPR/LBR (OR 5.33, p < 0.0001) and CPR (OR 3.64, p = 0.0001). IVF outcome was comparable between women …
Diagnostic performance of 2D-shear wave elastography in the diagnosis of breast cancer: a clinical appraisal of cutoff values
2022
Purpose To assess the role of 2D-shear wave elastography (2D-SWE) in differentiating benign from malignant focal breast lesions (FBLs), providing new vendor-specific cutoff values. Methods 158 FBLs (size: 3.5-50 mm) detected in 151 women (age: 21-87 years) were prospectively evaluated by means 2D-SWE. For each lesion, an expert radiologist assessed US BI-RADS category and calculated the following four 2D-SWE parameters: (1) elasticity maximum (E-max); (2) mean elasticity (E-mean); (3) minimum elasticity (E-min); (4) elasticity ratio (E-ratio). US-guided core-biopsy was considered as standard of reference for all the FBLs classified as BI-RADS 4 or 5. For each 2D-SWE parameter, the optimal c…
Monkeypox proctitis treated with doxycycline in an HIV MSM returning to Italy from France
2022
No abstract available
In Silico Conformational Features of Botulinum Toxins A1 and E1 According to Intraluminal Acidification
2022
International audience; Although botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs) are among the most toxic compounds found in nature, their molecular mechanism of action is far from being elucidated. A key event is the conformational transition due to acidification of the interior of synaptic vesicles, leading to translocation of the BoNT catalytic domain into the neuronal cytosol. To investigate these conformational variations, homology modeling and atomistic simulations are combined to explore the internal dynamics of the sub-types BoNT/A1 (the most-used sub-type in medical applications) and BoNT/E1 (the most kinetically efficient sub-type). This first simulation study of di-chain BoNTs in closed and open s…
Gamma rays induced synthesis of graphene oxide/gold nanoparticle composites: structural and photothermal study
2022
Gamma irradiation provides an alternative pathway to conventional gold nanoparticle synthesis because it is simple, fast, and economical. Here, we employed gamma irradiation at low doses (1–20 kGy) to obtain gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) anchored onto graphene oxide (GO) sheets. GO was selected as a suitable platform for the nucleation and growth of Au NPs because of its large surface area and good dispersibility in water due to the presence of polar oxygen-containing functional groups in its structure. Gamma irradiation at all the applied doses led to the reduction of chloroauric acid and the formation of evenly distributed Au NPs at the GO surface, simultaneously causing the reduction of GO…
Impact of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection on Human B Cell Compartment and Antibody Responses
2022
Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the most important health challenges worldwide. Control of the TB epidemic has not yet been achieved because of the lack of an effective vaccine and rapid and sensitive diagnostic approaches, as well as the emergence of drug-resistant forms of M. tuberculosis. Cellular immunity has a pivotal role against M. tuberculosis infection, but the role of humoral immunity is still controversial. We analyzed the frequency, absolute counts, and phenotypic and functional subsets of B lymphocytes in the peripheral blood of patients with active TB and subjects with latent infection compared to healthy donors. Moreover, we analyzed serum levels of total Ig and their IgA, I…