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Monilinia laxa is a fungus that causes brown rot in stone fruit. Immature green fruits in the first stage of fruit development (stage I) are generally susceptible. To investigate the relationship between the physical characteristics of immature fruit and susceptibility to M. laxa, we characterized the progeny, derived from a clone of wild peach (Prunus davidiana) crossed with two commercial nectarines (Prunus persica) varieties, through laboratory infection, transpiration monitoring and stomata counting. Two types of fruit infections were observed - ‘classic’ brown rot and ‘clear spot’ symptoms - which have not previously been described in the literature. The number and density of stomata did not explain the observed variability of infection in the progeny. However, surface conductance was positively correlated with infection level. This study provides experimental evidence partially linking physical fruit characteristics to brown rot infection at the immature fruit stage. The role of delayed cuticle deposition in susceptibility to brown rot of immature fruit is discussed.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death worldwide [1]. In China, the prevalence of CHD has kept continually increasing, with the number of patients being approximately 11.39 million, at present [2] and CHD poses a substantial threat to human health. Hypertension and diabetes both are the major risk factors for CHD [2,3] and the risk of CHD in patients with coexisting hypertension and diabetes is higher than that in patients with either of the two diseases [4].

Background: Collagenase is commonly used to isolate the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) or adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ADSCs) from human adipose tissue. Enzymatic breakdowns may be a substantial manipulation according to the classifications of medical regulatory authorities. This study investigates the possible effects of human adipose tissue dissociation with collagenase on in vitro function and behavior of ADSCs.Methods and results: Adipose tissue from nine donors was divided into two equal fractions. SVF was then isolated either mechanically or with collagenase, respectively. The resulting cells were analyzed for their surface markers directly after isolation and at passage five. Proliferation, tri-lineage differentiation, and secretome markers were measured after passage four.Using collagenase compared to mechanical isolation did not alter the expression of typical surface markers of ADSCs. ADSCs isolated with collagenase showed a significantly shorter population doubling time (p < 0.001), a significantly higher mean specific GPDH-activity, a stronger intensity in perilipin staining (p = 0.005), and a significantly higher extracellular calcium deposition (p = 0.006) than mechanically isolated ADSCs. The expression of adipogenic and osteogenic marker genes was not different in mechanically versus enzymatically isolated ADSCs. There were no significant differences in proteoglcyan production (p > 0.05) and the concentration of type 2 collagen. Except for an increased CCL2 concentration in mechanically isolated ASDCs (p = 0.01), there were no significant differences in the concentration of secreted proteins between both isolation methods. Conclusions: The use of collagenase does not substantially impair central in vitro characteristics and functions of human adipose tissue-derived stem cells.

The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) applications increased by 39.3% of individuals with chronic diseases during the pandemic process in Turkey. For this reason, this descriptive study was conducted to determine the use of integrative and integrated medicine practices in hemodialysis patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The population of the study consisted of individuals who were treated in a hemodialysis unit in the city center (n = 235). It was planned to include whole of the population by using the whole number method, but patients, who did not agree to participate in the study and did not meet the inclusion criteria of the study, were excluded from the sample and the study was conducted with 160 patients between 1 June and 1 September 2021. As a data collection tool, a questionnaire consisting of 30 questions including socio-demographic and disease characteristics of the patients was prepared by the researcher upon review of related literature. Considering the distribution of phytotherapy method (herbal treatment) usage frequency of integrative and integrated medicine applications of individuals before the COVID-19 pandemic and during the COVID-19 pandemic period, the most vitamins (21.8%), prebiotics (12.5%), and honey (%) 10.6), their use was found to be high. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of massage (40%), breathing exercises (30.0%) and spiritual therapy (28.7%) applications increased. As a result, it is seen that integrative and integrated applications are considered in the process of dealing with hemodialysis patients. Physicians need to be aware of and ask patients about their use of integrated and integrated health practices.

“Manna” is the product obtained from the solidification of the elaborate sap that comes out of the incisions made during the summer season on the stem and on the main branches of some species of the genus Fraxinus (Oleaceae). The cultivation of manna ash trees dates back to ancient times in Sicily and elsewhere ash trees – known as sacred trees, a symbol of abundance and therefore auspicious – was increasingly widespread until the middle of the last century. Subsequently, however, the crop underwent a progressive decline, remaining relegated to restricted areas of Sicily, in particular in the Madonie district (Palermo, Italy). In this brief review, the essential characteristics of the manna and the ash trees from which it is extracted are summarized. The aspects of the current productivity of manna in the Sicilian territory and the implications of a potential recovery and increase of an ancient craft, ash tree cultivation, are also reported in a perspective of sustainable development and green economy for the Mediterranean area and beyond. Finally, the authors remember what has been done to ensure the conservation not only of the active cultivation of manna ash but also of all the relative agro-biodiversity. The conservation of the living germplasm of the ancient cultivars recovered in the Madonie area (Palermo, Sicily) represents one of the most qualifying results.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization [1], it’s possible to conceptualize food security from four dimensions: physical availability of food, economic and physical access to  food, food utilization and stability of the other three dimensions over time. A situation of food security is found in  these four dimensions are fulfilled simultaneously.

Introduction: Allergen immunotherapy is the only targeted therapy that can modify the natural course of allergic diseases. In pediatric patients, SCIT with aeroallergens is an effective treatment and should be considered as a preventive strategy in the treatment of allergic diseases, even though one of the major concerns about it is its safety. The main purposes of this study were to assess the safety of SCIT ultra-rush schedules with polymerized extracts in a pediatric population and to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the safety and time of administration of subcutaneous immunotherapy among pediatric patients.Methods: A retrospective medical records review of patients under 18 years of age undergoing SCIT was made and re-scheduling due to restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic was recorded. Results: A total of 192 pediatric patients were included. Fifty-nine (31%) had local reactions and systemic reactions were not reported. In March 2020, the first case of COVID-19 was diagnosed in Portugal and all non-urgent appointments and procedures were postponed. In our group of pediatric patients, 43 (22%) were referred to primary care, 38 (20%) stopped AIT definitively and 111 (58%) maintained administrations in the hospital. Only 2 (2%) of them had reactions upon reinitiation. Conclusion: In this study, the ultra-rush protocol using polymerized extracts was safe in pediatric patients. Although the effectiveness of AIT may be compromised due to prolonged suspension of the treatment, it is important to note that despite longer interruptions, administrations may continue without compromising safety, maintaining shorter visits and a lower number of injections.

As a vital index of the mitochondrial micro-environment, mitochondrial micro-viscosity plays a fundamental role in cell life activities. Normal mitochondrial viscosity is a necessary condition for the maintenance of normal life activities of mitochondria. Abnormal mitochondrial viscosity can lead to a series of mitochondria-related diseases. Therefore, it is essential to observe mitochondrial viscosity for physiological and pathological processes. Given the conventional viscosity measurement methods (viscometer, etc.) cannot monitor the changes in mitochondrial viscosity, the fluorescence method supplemented with the fluorescent probe is widely used to observe the changes in mitochondrial viscosity. In view of the booming development in this area, this review describes the applications of viscosity-responsive mitochondrial fluorescent probes in biological samples from the cellular and tissue levels. We hope that this review will deepen our understanding of mitochondrial viscosity and related fields, and promote the development of viscosity-sensitive mitochondrial probes and other organelle fluorescence probes.

For the first time, this research has developed an efficient and novel approach to high to excellent yields for synthesizing Quinazolinone derivatives. Also, the synthesis of Quinazolinone derivatives has been carried out in the presence of Co3O4@GO/La2O3 nanocomposite as a novel heterogeneous catalyst and a green under solvent-free conditions and in a short time and excellent yields for the first time. Various structural and morphological characteristics of the nanocatalyst were employed for the catalyst characterization, such as FT-IR, XRD, FE-SEM, EDX and VSM analyses. All characterization data were checked with each other so that the structure of the nanocatalyst was exactly characterized. The reactions were carried out in the presence of a low amount of nanocatalyst at 100 °C under solvent-free conditions for a short period of time. The proposed nanocomposite exhibits excellent catalytic activity. One of the most important advantages of this method is easy magnetic nanocatalyst separation, green condition, excellent recoverability and easy workup.

The prostate gland, found only in men, is an extremely important organ of the reproductive system, but it is not taken care of adequately, leading to prostate inflammation and benign hypertrophy or even cancer. Benign prostate enlargement compresses urine flow through the urethra, leading to uncomfortable urinary symptoms. Hyperplasia increases the risk of bladder stones, urinary tract infections, and kidney problems. In India prevalence of Benign Prostrate Hyperplasia (BPH) is around 50% of men by the age of 60 years. Studies suggest that benign prostatic hyperplasia is a result of the disproportion between oestrogen & testosterone. A higher proportion of oestrogen within the prostate boosts the growth of prostate cells. The management of BPH is streamlined in recent times and the majority are on medical treatment.Prostate cancers are one of the cancers showing a significant increase in incidence along with mouth and kidney and lung cancers among the male population. With an estimated population of 1400 million and about 98 million males over 50 years of age in mid-2022 and the average life expectancy increasing 68.4 years, has a bearing on the changing incidence and pattern of prostate cancer in the current decade in India. Based on the five population-based cancer registries in 2009-10, the age-adjusted annual incidence rates per lakh population of prostate cancers were highest in Delhi (10.2) followed by Bengaluru (8.7), Mumbai (7.3), Chennai (7) and Bhopal (6.1). Cancer can co-exist with BPH. Prostate cancer management is still in the development stage with a 5-year life expectancy of around 64%.The prostate is the second leading site of cancer among males in large Indian cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Pune, and Thiruvananthapuram, and the third leading site of cancer in cities like Bangalore and Mumbai. Despite the limitations of diagnosis, the annual cancer incidence rate ranges from 5.0-9.1 per 100,000/year, as compared to the rates in the United States and other developed countries of 110 &180 for whites and blacks respectively.This article is a review of Prostate health in India based on a personal observation of around 183 cases by the author in the last 10 years.Materials & methods: This is an observational study report of three cohorts of men across the country. The sample was of people encountering the author. The sample included i) 69 septuagenarians plus ii) 30 senior citizens aged 60 - 70 years and iii) 84 men in 40 – 60 - year age groups over the last decade. The data source was sharing annual check-up reports or consultation report in person for seeking 2nd opinion. A minimum of 2 consultations, first when diagnosed and the recent between July 2021 to June 2022.

Background: Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFPEF) accounts for more than half of the cases of heart failure.Long regarded as an abnormality of left ventricular diastolic function, recent studies using longitudinal strain (two-dimensional speckle tracking mode) have suggested that left ventricular longitudinal systolic function is altered in HFPEF.Despite these interesting pathophysiological perspectives, the data in the literature on the prognostic value of the alteration of longitudinal strain are controversial. Given these conflicting results, it is difficult to confirm the magnitude and prevalence of impaired LV longitudinal systolic function in patients with HFPEF and its prognostic relevance. Purposes: This work aims to study the prognostic value of Global the left ventricle’s Global Longitudinal Strain (GLS) Algerian cohort of patients with HFPEF. Patients and methods: We conducted a monocentric prospective observational study from April 2018 to April 2020, with a minimum follow-up of 1 year for each recruited patient. We included patients over the age of 18 referred to the echocardiography laboratory for chronic or acute HFpEF, defined according to the criteria of ESC 2016. 153 consecutive patients underwent clinical examination, biological tests, and echocardiography with measurement of GLS at rest, in addition to routine management by the attending physicians.Results: 153 patients were collected. The average age of our patients is 73 +/- 11 years ranging from 42 to 91 years old. The female population is predominant with a rate of 67%. Comorbidities are predominant mainly by arterial hypertension (86%) and diabetes (64%), with a history of atrial fibrillation (46%).63% of patients have impaired GLS (< 16%). Contrary to our hypothesis, GLS was not shown to be a powerful predictor of cardiovascular events in HFPEF patients either in dichotomous analysis (OR = 0.79; p = 0.64) or in continuous analysis (OR = 0.97; p = 0.69).We were able to identify that congestive venous signs, anemia, and pulmonary hypertension, are the main independent prognostic factors in our Algerian population study. Conclusion: We were unable to demonstrate the prognostic role of mpaired GLS in our population of patients with HFPEF.

Background: Worldwide, studies show negative attitudes among medical students toward psychiatry and mental illness. The knowledge of the attitude and awareness of the undergraduate medical students toward mental health and psychiatric disorders are most important as they are going to be involved in the care of these patients either directly or indirectly during the years of their careers.Aim: To explore, the knowledge, attitude, and behavior of undergraduate medical students towards mentally ill Patients before their planned psychiatry rotation in the fourth year of undergraduate medical study, faculty of medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt.Objectives: To assess mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and intended behavior of undergraduate medical students towards mentally ill patients.Subjects and methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study, conducted on 120 fourth-year undergraduate medical students affiliated with the faculty of medicine-Suez Canal University. A comprehensive sample was used to include all of the students in the fourth year of undergraduate medical study, and the study group participants completed a semi-structured questionnaire including four parts to assess their knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral responses towards individuals with mental illnesses. The data of the study was collected in September-October 2019.Results: Based on the participants’ scores, the cut-off points estimated to dichotomize the responses as poor or good, for mental health-related knowledge, belief towards mental illness and intended behavior were, 17, 55 and 8.5 respectively. This study showed that the study participants had marginally poor mental health-related knowledge with a median score of 17, poor beliefs about mental illness with a median score of 49.5 and poor intended behavior towards the mentally ill with a median score of 7. Conclusion: In this study, undergraduate medical students showed marginally poor mental health-related knowledge, poor stigmatizing beliefs, and behavior towards mentally ill patients. More controlled studies are needed to eliminate the inherent response biases in survey studies and to measure the outcomes of anti-stigma educational and curricular interventions. 

Background: More than 1 million intravenous chemotherapy infusions are given worldwide each day which leads to extravasation. Health professionals must know the drugs that cause tissue injury and take the necessary measures to prevent extravasation.Objectives: The study aimed to assess the knowledge regarding the management of extravasation of chemotherapeutic drugs before and after the implementation of a structured teaching program among staff nurses.Method: The pre-experimental group pre-test and post-test designs were adopted for the study. The convenience sampling technique was used to obtain 30 staff nurses of Ramaiah Medical College Hospital, India. Both Pre-test and Post-test were performed using the same structured knowledge questionnaire followed by 45 minutes of the structured teaching program. Data were processed through Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20 and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.Results: More than half of the subjects were female (66.7%) and 36.7% of the subject had more than 10 years of professional experience. Most of the subjects (70%) had inadequate knowledge during the pretest. The mean knowledge score was 15.33 ± 4.003 and 24.67 ± 5.384 in pre-test and post-test respectively. There was a significant difference in pre-test and post-test knowledge scores regarding the management of extravasation of chemotherapeutic drugs. Conclusion: The Study concluded that the structured teaching program was significantly effective in improving the knowledge regarding the management of extravasation of chemotherapeutic drugs among nurses.

It is utterly important to ensure the safety of stem cell donors and limit the incidence of long-term adverse events. Additionally, the willingness to donate the potentially life-saving stem cells, depends among other reasons, on the donor’s trust in the safety of the procedure as our case highlights. Here we present the case of a 35-year-old patient who developed macrohematuria and proteinuria following peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation. 4 years later he was diagnosed with IgA-nephropathy (IgAN) and the disorder was causally attributed to the PBSC donation. He discouraged his family and friends from registering as donors because of this. In the current case report, we review the literature on the relationship between IgAN and PBSC donation and suggest under which conditions stem cell donation can still be performed even with a prior diagnosis of IgAN.

Recent studies on boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) have focused on investigating the appropriate neutron sources based on accelerators for neutron production, such as 7Li(p,n)7 Be. The therapeutic abilities of BNCT have been studied for the possible treatment of lung cancer using thermal and epithermal neutron beams. For neutron transport, the Monte Carlo N-particle transport code was used, and doses in the organs of different Oak Ridge National Laboratory phantoms were evaluated. The right lung was meshed with voxels to obtain depth-dose distributions using 1 eV, 10 eV, 100 eV, 1 keV, 5 keV, 8 keV and 10 keV energy sources. These results suggest that BNCT with an epithermal neutron beam can be used to treat lung cancer. By evaluating the biological dose rate and dose-depth distribution curves in healthy tissues and tumors by simulating a lung phantom, the quantities in the phantom were also evaluated. Our calculations show that with increasing boron concentration applied to the tumor, the dose is increased and the 100 eV energy source has the greatest effect on the tumor dose.

Objectives: The sural nerve is the most tested sensory nerve in the lower extremities in the electrodiagnostic assessment of peripheral neuropathies. This study presents the reference values of the sural nerve conduction study (NCS) from a significant sample of the Algerian population. Methods: This is a prospective study of right sural NCS in healthy subjects based on the later recommendations of AANEM-NDTF. The nature of the distribution of each electrophysiological parameter was therefore determined. The lower and upper limits were calculated by using the 5th and 95th percentiles respectively and a logarithmic transformation was performed for Sensory Nerve Action Potential (SNAP) amplitude distribution. Results: 115 subjects aged between 20 and 60 years were selected, including 58 women and 57 men. Unlike Sensory Nerve Conduction Velocity (SNCV), the distribution of SNAP amplitude is not Gaussian. The lower limit of SNAP amplitude was 7.70 µV when using the 5th percentile and 6.80 µV by using the Standard Deviation (SD) method after log transformation. Similarly, the lower limit of SNCV was 43 m/s. The SNAP amplitude was greater in women and decreased with age, height and BMI. Conclusion: The values found in this study are comparable to those published in the literature. It may be more appropriate to determine the reference values using percentiles as recently recommended by several authors.

In general, nanotechnology can be understood as a technology of design, fabrication and applications of nanostructures and nanomaterials, as well as a fundamental understanding of the physical properties and phenomena of nanomaterials and nanostructures. In recent years the development of industries like textile, leather, paint, food, plastics, and cosmetics is enlarged and these industries are connected with the discarding of a vast number of organic pollutants which are harmful to microbes, aquatic systems, and human health by influencing the different parameters. So the fabrication of those nanomaterials (coupled or doped) to form heterojunctions provides an effective way to better harvest solar energy and facilitate charge separation and transfer, thus enhancing the photocatalytic activity and stability. We expect this review to provide a guideline for readers to gain a clear picture of the fabrication and application of different types of heterostructured photocatalysts. In this review, starting from the photocatalytic reaction mechanism and the preparation of the photocatalyst, we review the classification of current photocatalysts, preparation methods, a factor that affects photocatalytic reaction, characterization of photocatalysts, and the methods for improving photocatalytic performance. This review also aims to provide basic and comprehensive information on the industrialization of photocatalysis technology.

Hepatic Actinomycosis (HA) is a very rare abdominal actinomycosis that can be confused with hepatic involvement due to a tumor. Liver involvement can occur from an abdominal focus or by blood dissemination from another focus. This disease is much more common in men between 50 - 70 years and in a situation of immunosuppression. Symptoms are nonspecific and diagnosis includes histopathology, cultures, and imaging test. Treatment includes prolonged antibiotic therapy with antibiotics such as penicillin and drainage of abscesses.We present a case of a 54-year-old man patient with a record of three years of chronic pancreatitis of probably alcoholic origin, who developed hepatic actinomycosis, requiring drainage of liver abscesses and directed antibiotic treatment.

The fiber characteristics and basic density of Acacia melanoxylon were investigated for its potential as a raw material for pulp and paper production. Six trees from the even-aged stand and similar diameter class were selected randomly from the Chencha district of Ethiopia. Wood disks were systematically cross-cut from a log along tree height levels, at the bottom (10%), middle (50%) and top (90%) of the merchantable height and blocks of wood (2 cm x 2 cm x 2 cm)were taken from pith to periphery at near pith (10%), middle (50%) and near bark (90%) of disk radius. Fiber maceration and basic density were determined, by 50% nitric acid solution and water displacement method respectively. All the data were analyzed using a two-way analysis of variance at α = 0.05. The fiber characteristics of the selected trees; the fiber length, fiber diameter, lumen diameter and cell wall thickness were measured while the-slenderness ratio, Runkel ratio, flexibility coefficient and wall coverage ratio of the fibers were derived from the measured fiber dimensions. The result showed that- the overall mean were, 1.04 mm, 21.60 µm, 15.36 µm, 3.75 µm, 0.48, 48.05%, 71.10%, 0.34 and 0.56 g/ml, for fiber length, fiber width, lumen diameter, cell wall thickness, Runkle ratio, slenderness ratio, flexibility ratio, wall coverage ratio and basic density, respectively. Generally, Acacia melanoxylon wood is suitable for pulp-and-paper-production, to due-to-its adequate-fiber dimension, derived fiber value and basic density. Therefore, attention should be given to tree growers, government and non-governmental organizations on the plantation expansion of Acacia melanoxylon.

Aim of the study: Conduct long-term monitoring of recovered patients with pulmonary TB and study the frequency of relapses of pulmonary TB and factors contributing to their development in the Republic of Tajikistan.Material and research methods: Of the total number of patients with pulmonary TB, 820 people in 2010-2011 after successful treatment, were transferred for further dispensary observation to PHC facilities, whose health status we monitored for 10 years (including 2020). Of the 820 patients, we were able to track the health status for 10 years in 622 patients (320 men and 302 women, age groups 19-44 years old - 330 people and 45-69 years old - 292 people). The rest - for various reasons were lost from further dispensary observation. All patients in PHC facilities annually during the period of dispensary observation underwent clinical, instrumental, laboratory, and X-ray examinations to exclude the recurrence of TB. Data for each patient were tracked using the National TB Registry OpenMRS data.Research results: The elimination of preventive anti-relapse measures in people with residual post-tuberculosis changes in the lungs led to an increase in the number of relapses of the disease. The analysis of the conducted studies shows that the incidence of relapses of pulmonary TB does not depend on the regions and the severity of TB burden, they often develop with insufficient follow-up after the end of treatment and inadequate preventive measures in dispensaries patients.The study of the reasons for the development of relapses makes it possible to timely identify a group of patients who need anti-relapse measures and prolongation of dispensary observation.Conclusion: Thus, the results of this observation revealed the occurrence of relapses within 10 years in 19.3% of cases. A retrospective analysis of the initial forms of the disease showed that relapses of pulmonary tuberculosis occurred more often in patients who had had fibrous-cavernous pulmonary tuberculosis, than in patients who had disseminated pulmonary TB, and less often after suffering infiltrative pulmonary TB. Relapses of the disease occurred more often in men aged 19-44 years. The results obtained indicate the development of relapses of pulmonary tuberculosis has a statistically significant dependence on the form of the initial disease, the presence of RPTCL, comorbid diseases such as HIV, diabetes mellitus, COPD, and the regularity of taking anti-TB drugs. At the same time, it turned out that the social status of all patients with relapses corresponds to the level of poverty, which should also be taken into account.