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Clinical Features and Dental Pathologies in Maxillary Sinus Fungal Balls and Odontogenic Sinusitis
No full textObjectives
While maxillary sinus fungal balls (MSFB) can be associated with odontogenic conditions (MSFBO), MSFBO clinical and dental features have not been compared to odontogenic sinusitis (ODS). This multicenter study aimed to compare characteristics of MSFB, MSFBO, and ODS.
Methods
A multicenter international retrospective cohort study was conducted on adults with MSFBs and ODS who underwent sinus surgery. First in MSFBs, it was determined whether different dental conditions were more likely in FB versus non-FB sides. Second, clinical features and dental pathologies were compared between MSFBO and ODS. For analyses, dental conditions were considered individually and as two groups: infectious pathologies and dental/oral procedures with indwelling metallic materials.
Results
After exclusions, there were 203 MSFBs and 163 ODS. Among MSFBs, 141 were MSFBOs. FB sides were associated with sinus protrusion of root canal treatment (RCT) materials (p = 0.040) and dental implants (p = 0.040). Compared to MSFBO, ODS patients were younger, more likely to have MS purulence (OR = 40.9, p < 0.010), more likely associated with apical periodontitis (OR = 2.59, p = 0.010) and oroantral fistulas (OR = 6.94, p = 0.020), and less likely associated with extruded RCT materials (OR = 0.01, p = 0.010) and protruded midface screws (OR < 0.01, p = 0.010). Comparing purulent MSFBO and ODS, ODS was more associated with infectious dental pathologies (p < 0.009).
Conclusion
Compared to MSFBs, MSFBOs were associated with RCT extrusion and implant protrusion. Compared to MSFBOs, ODS was more likely purulent and associated with infectious dental pathologies. While ODS is often distinct from MSFBO, the two conditions can coexist, and surgeons must determine whether patients have infectious dental pathology requiring treatment with both conditions.
Level of Evidence
4
exoALMA. XIX. Confirmation of Non-thermal Line Broadening in the DM Tau Protoplanetary Disk
No full textTurbulence is expected to transport angular momentum and drive mass accretion in protoplanetary disks. One way to directly measure turbulent motion in disks is through molecular line broadening. DM Tau is one of only a few disks with claimed detection of nonthermal line broadening of 0.25cs-0.33cs, where cs is the sound speed. Using the radiative transfer code mcfost within a Bayesian inference framework that evaluates over five million disk models to efficiently sample the parameter space, we fit high-resolution ( 0.'' 15 , 28 m s-1) 12CO J = 3-2 observations of DM Tau from the exoALMA Large Program. This approach enables us to simultaneously constrain the disk structure and kinematics, revealing a significant nonthermal contribution to the line width of similar to 0.4cs, inconsistent with purely thermal motions. Using the CO-based disk structure as a starting point, we reproduce the CS J = 7-6 emission well, demonstrating that the CS (which is more sensitive to nonthermal motions than CO) agrees with the turbulence inferred from the CO fit. Establishing a well-constrained background disk model further allows us to identify residual structures in the moment maps that deviate from the expected emission, revealing localized perturbations that may trace forming planets. This framework provides a powerful general approach for extracting disk structure and nonthermal broadening directly from molecular line data and can be applied to other disks with high-quality observations
Representative secondary PET micro and nanoplastics via ethylene glycol fragmentation (EGF): Physicochemical and immuno-toxicological properties
No full textPolyethylene terephthalate (PET) micro and nanoplastics (MNPs) are widely dispersed pollutants with significant
environmental and health implications. Current preparation methods of representative secondary PET MNPs are
limited. In this study, we developed a scalable, standardized ethylene glycol fragmentation (EGF)-based method
to generate PET MNPs from three distinct plastic sources (commercial pellets, bottle-grade, and film-grade). PET
samples were depolymerized using ethylene glycol and sodium carbonate under controlled thermal conditions.
Two fractions (Ea and Eb) were collected and analyzed, fraction Ea consisted of covalently fragmented BHET-
oligomer-based nanoplastics (~200–375 nm), while fraction Eb comprised non-covalent BHET-based larger
microplastic aggregates (~1.2–1.9 μm). EGF method turned out to be more efficient than published trifluoro-
acetic acid (TFA) method giving mainly BHET-oligomer-based nanoplastics with higher yields and improved
MNPs size control. MNPs generated by EGF showed a size range between 200 and 375 nm with good colloidal
stability. In vitro assays showed that both type (covalent and non-covalent) of PET nanoplastics reduced THP-1
macrophage viability in a dose-dependent manner which was associated with IL-1β release, and triggered an M1-
polarizing cytokine profile, thus indicating potential toxicity and proinflammatory activity. Our EGF-based
synthesis platform enables controlled production of PET MNPs with source-dependent characteristics and bio-
logically relevant behavior. These standardized MNPs and the THP-1 macrophages biosensor model provide
useful tools for environmental toxicology research
MORTE E PIANTO VIRTUALE. LAMENTO E RITORNO DEL MORTO DAL RITUALE AL DIGITALE
No full textThis dissertation investigates the funeral lament as a long-lasting cultural practice, from the ritual and iconographic forms studied by Ernesto de Martino and Aby Warburg to its contemporary rearticulations in digital environments. The central hypothesis is that lament is not to be understood as an archaic relic, but rather as a transhistorical and transmedial dispositif that survives through continual transformation. The dissertation is structured in two parts: the first reconstructs the historical and theoretical genealogy of lament, while the second explores its forms and reinventions in the digital present.
The first part of the thesis traces a dual intellectual legacy. On the one hand, de Martino interprets the lament as a ritual technique for orienting mourning and mediating the return of the dead ‒ a recurrent cultural motif in the history of lament. On the other hand, Warburg, through the notions of Pathosformeln and Nachleben, illuminates the figurative survival of gestures and images of pathos, capable of migrating across distant epochs and contexts. From this perspective, lament emerges as a cultural technique of memory: not a mere deposit, but a living form that persists as embodied gesture and latent image, anchoring individual expression within a collective dimension.
The second part addresses the revival of lament in the digital present, with particular attention to the vernacular forms of mourning that characterize TikTok’s sociocultural environment. Here, lament appears simultaneously as an audiovisual practice and a quotidian gesture: memory is translated into replicable formulas, memes, and formats that provide continuity yet allow for variation and experimentation, thereby reactivating its dual function ‒ at once an expression of mourning and a mediation of the relationship with the dead. In this context, the digital afterlife signifies both the digital return of the deceased and the «digital beyond» of lament ‒ its survival beyond the modern diagnosis of disappearance. Generative artificial intelligence appears within this framework as the latest mnemotechnics: a latent archive that preserves and reassembles posthumous presences, gestures, and images, producing anachronistic and uncanny reemergences.
The analysis indicates that lament is not simply a folkloric residue nor a definitively extinguished practice but rather can be understood as a complex critical-political dispositif that persists through continual reinvention. Situated between ritual and spectacle, between loss and revival, it emerges as a valuable lens for examining contemporary forms of memory, presence, and mourning
Bilateral Coordination is Improved at 10-km Race Speed in Trained Runners
No full textIn the last decades, gait variability (GV) has provided new insight into motor control. No study, though, quantified the GV together with bilateral symmetry at different running intensities in runners. For this aim, 16 male runners (35±6 y), after a simulated 10-km time trial (average speed, TT), performed randomly three 15-minute running bouts at TT running speed, 10% slower, and 10% faster than TT. Metabolic, perceptive, and spatiotemporal parameters with phase coordination index (PCI) were collected across all trials. The TT was 14.16±1.65 km·h -1, rating of perceived exertion of 8.94±0.36 a.u. and 95.25±5.83% of the maximum heart rate. The PCI was lower at TT speed than at other speeds (p =0.002). The energy cost of running was higher at slower speeds in comparison to TT speed and higher speed conditions (p =0.029 and p =0.017, respectively). The ratings of perceived exertion, heart rate, oxygen consumption, flight time, and stride length increased according to the speed (p <0.05). The finding that the PCI is better at 10-km race speed suggests that improved ability to modulate the right-left stepping control is related to an energetic optimization process impacting positively the talent development and performance in trained runners. Although the metabolic cost estimates are grounded in a robust theoretical framework, these findings necessitate further empirical verification
Implementation strategies for rehabilitation services in health systems: an overview of systematic reviews
No full textBackground: Cochrane Rehabilitation and the World Health Organization (WHO) Rehabilitation Programme have collaborated to produce four Cochrane overviews of systematic reviews that synthesize current available evidence from health policy and systems research (HPSR) in rehabilitation. Each overview focuses on one of the four pillars of HPSR as identified by the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) taxonomy: delivery arrangements, financial arrangements, governance arrangements, and implementation strategies. This overview examined implementation strategies, defined by EPOC as interventions designed to bring about changes in healthcare organizations, the behavior of healthcare professionals, or the use of health services by healthcare recipients. Objectives: This overview aimed to synthesize current evidence on implementation strategies in rehabilitation from a health policy and systems research (HPSR) perspective. Our series of four overviews have the following overarching objectives. • To offer a broad synthesis of the existing evidence on health policy and systems interventions' effects. • To direct end-users, including policymakers, towards systematic reviews that may address their health policy questions. • To identify current research gaps and set priorities for future primary HPSR. • To pinpoint the needs and priorities for new evidence syntheses where no reliable, up-to-date systematic reviews currently exist. Methods: We searched the Epistemonikos database, the Health Systems Evidence database, and EPOC Group systematic reviews to identify reviews published between 1 January 2015 and 17 November 2024. We applied no language limitations. We included Cochrane and non-Cochrane systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized studies of interventions (NRSIs) that evaluated the effectiveness of health policy and systems interventions for rehabilitation in health systems, specifically related to implementation strategies as defined in the EPOC taxonomy. All four overview teams collaborated to screen reviews and extract data. We used AMSTAR 2 to critically appraise the quality of the reviews. Results were analyzed descriptively and are based on reviews with ratings of high-to-moderate confidence, with low-confidence reviews reported separately. Main results: We identified 7882 systematic reviews, of which 15 met our inclusion criteria. Three reviews overlapped substantially with other reviews, and eight received low- or critically low-confidence ratings. Ultimately, four moderate- to high-confidence reviews contributed to the synthesis; two were Cochrane systematic reviews. Most primary studies were from high-income countries; none were from low-income countries. Most strategies targeting healthcare professionals (e.g. guideline dissemination, interactive workshops, opinion leaders, audit and feedback) or healthcare recipients (e.g. structured monitoring, telehealth support, counseling, motivational interviewing) included more than one component. Strategies targeting healthcare recipients' use of health services in cardiac rehabilitation may show small benefits in terms of participation (enrollment, adherence, completion), but effects on other outcomes are uncertain. The effects of strategies targeting older healthcare recipients via telehealth are uncertain. Strategies targeting healthcare professionals may have little to no effect on professional or patient and carer outcomes in stroke rehabilitation. For musculoskeletal conditions, there were no evidence-certainty ratings, so intervention effects are unclear. We found no reviews of strategies targeting health service organizations or specific types of rehabilitation practice. The evidence certainty was generally low; evidence of adverse events was missing or uncertain; and reporting on organizational, implementation, economic, and equity outcomes was scarce. Authors' conclusions: Current evidence on implementation strategies in rehabilitation is limited, mostly of low certainty, and derived from high-income countries. Multicomponent, patient-targeted strategies may modestly improve cardiac rehabilitation participation, but effects in other areas remain uncertain. Further high-quality research using well-defined frameworks is needed, especially in low- and middle-income countries, to identify effective strategies and evaluate organizational, implementation, and equity outcomes. Future Cochrane overviews of reviews in HPSR should consider including a broader range of study designs, such as observational, qualitative, and mixed-methods evidence, to better capture evidence on implementation strategies in rehabilitation. Funding: This Cochrane review was funded by the Italian Ministry of Health (Ricerca Corrente). The funder played no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Registration: The protocol was first published in the European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine online on 27 January 2025. The manuscript was received on 11 November 2024 and was accepted on 26 November 2024. Protocol: DOI 10.23736/S1973-9087.24.08833-6
MAcro Plant Projection Imaging (MAPPI): An open, scalable platform for whole-plant fluorescence real-time imaging
No full textUnderstanding how plants perceive and respond to environmental and developmental cues requires tools capable of monitoring molecular signals in vivo, across whole tissues, and in real time. Genetically encoded fluorescent indicators, coupled with fluorescence microscopy, have transformed plant biology, but their application remains largely confined to small model organisms and specialized microscopy instrumentation. Here, we present MAcro Plant Projection Imaging (MAPPI), an open-source, low-cost, and modular fluorescence imaging platform for soil-grown plants beyond the model organism or seedling stage. MAPPI enables wide field-of-view, dual-projection imaging of fluorescent reporters, supporting real-time visualization of systemic signals under near-physiological conditions. We validate MAPPI by tracking calcium and l-glutamate dynamics in adult Nicotiana benthamiana plants, revealing developmentally regulated long-distance calcium waves triggered by wounding, burning, or submergence, including bidirectional shoot-to-root and root-to-shoot signaling. By democratizing access to whole-plant functional imaging, MAPPI provides a scalable tool for dissecting signal propagation, stress adaptation, and systemic communication in both model and nonmodel species
Alessandria d'Egitto : Storia di una capitale del mondo antico
No full textAlessandria ha mille volti. Fondata su una striscia di terra fra un lago e il mare, divenne capitale di un Egitto che, al tramonto dei faraoni, si preparava a essere il cuore del Mediterraneo. Una dinastia di re vi creò il più grande centro di cultura dell’antichità, sotto la luce del Faro, una delle sette meraviglie del mondo. Al suo nome sono legate la tragedia di amore e morte di Cleopatra e Antonio e la vicenda della filosofa Ipazia. Ad Alessandria la chioma di una regina venne portata fra le stelle, fu calcolata la circonferenza terrestre e qualcuno osò dire che è il Sole a occupare il centro dell’Universo. Dopo duemila anni, Alessandria è rimasta un crocevia di popoli, poeti e letterati di culture diverse ma figli della stessa città, come Ungaretti e Kavafis. Il racconto avvincente di una metropoli millenaria che mescola nei suoi quartieri le sue anime egizia, greca, romana, bizantina, araba, turca ed europea, e che non ha mai smesso di produrre violenza e bellezza