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Topic Review
Marine Glycoconjugates
From 2012 to 2016 a special issue was edited in the journal Marine Drugs dedicated to marine glycoconjugates with the idea that from the end of the decade 1980-1990 increasing advances of analytical techniques boosted the field of glycobiology contributing to its growth with better recognition of structures and roles of complex molecules such as saccharides, glycoproteins, glycan, glycolipids, and proteoglycans (all defined as glycoconjugates). Tremendous impact in biomedical and biotechnological applications of glycoconjugates, like in terrestrial counterparts and the addition of more significance to the current –omic revolution toward a possible marine glycocode, generally based the hope of these studies. 
  • 1.4K
  • 22 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Building the Circular Supply Chain
The circular supply chain involves return processes and the manufacturer intends to capture additional value in the supply chain. In this paper, value chains have been mapped to visualize the links and interactions between the different stages and actors to understand the complexities of these systems and to make informed decisions. It can be concluded that to develop a new relationship capacity will allow for reaching more frequent, closer relationships with more actors. These relationships will be developed within an adapted organizational and logistical framework that is framed in new business model archetypes. However, dimensions related to the business environment such as sectoral, legislative, and fiscal frameworks must be incorporated.
  • 1.4K
  • 11 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Adsorptive Biogas Purification
Siloxanes are among the most technologically troublesome trace compounds present in biogas. As a result of their combustion, hard‐to‐remove sediments are formed, blocking biogas energy processing devices and reducing the efficiency of biogas plants. This entry can help to choose the optimal technology for the adsorptive removal of volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs) from biogas and to identify adsorbents worth further development. Both the already implemented methods of adsorptive VMSs removal from landfill and sewage gases—e.g. using activated carbon and silica gel—and the ones being under development—e.g. using polymer resins—are presented, and their advantages and drawbacks are analyzed. The methods of obtaining adsorbents and the parameters of adsorption processes are discussed, and possible ways of regenerating spent adsorbents are evaluated. Especially promising adsorbents seem to be some zeolites—which can also be used for biogas desulfurization—and adsorbents based on polymer resins, as being particularly active towards VMSs and most amenable to multiple regeneration.
  • 1.4K
  • 27 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Antarctic cryptoendolithic communities
The Antarctic cryptoendolithic communities are self-supporting assemblages of phototrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms, including bacteria, Cyanobacteria, Chlorophyta and both free-living and lichen-forming fungi. These are among the most stress-resistant organisms known to date, constantly living to the edge of their physiological adaptability.
  • 1.4K
  • 27 Oct 2020
Topic Review
COVID-19 Serological Tests Performance
In only a few months after initial discovery in Wuhan, China, SARS-CoV-2 and the associated coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have become a global pandemic causing significant mortality and morbidity and implementation of strict isolation measures. In the absence of vaccines and effective therapeutics, reliable serological testing must be a key element of public health policy to control further spread of the disease and gradually remove quarantine measures. Serological diagnostic tests are being increasingly used to provide a broader understanding of COVID-19 incidence and to assess immunity status in the population. However, there are discrepancies between claimed and actual performance data for serological diagnostic tests on the market. In this study, we conducted a review of independent studies evaluating the performance of SARS-CoV-2 serological tests. We found significant variability in the accuracy of marketed tests and highlight several lab-based and point-of-care rapid serological tests with high levels of performance. The findings of this review highlight the need for ongoing independent evaluations of commercialized COVID-19 diagnostic tests.
  • 1.4K
  • 19 Feb 2021
Topic Review
Antimicrobial Peptides Synergy with Vancomycin
There is an urgent and imminent need to develop new antimicrobials to fight against antibiotic-resistant bacterial and fungal strains. In this study, a checkerboard method was used to evaluate the synergistic effects of the antimicrobial peptide P-113 and its bulky non-nature amino acid substituted derivatives with vancomycin against vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, and wild-type Escherichia coli. Boron-dipyrro-methene (BODIPY) labeled vancomycin was used to characterize the interactions between the peptides, vancomycin, and bacterial strains. Moreover, neutralization of antibiotic-induced releasing of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from E. coli by the peptides was obtained. Among these peptides, Bip-P-113 demonstrated the best minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs), antibiotics synergism, bacterial membrane permeabilization, and supernatant LPS neutralizing activities against the bacteria studied. These results could help in developing antimicrobial peptides that have synergistic activity with large size glycopeptides such as vancomycin in therapeutic applications.
  • 1.4K
  • 29 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Avian Influenza Virus in Bangladesh
Highly pathogenic H5N1 and low pathogenic H9N2 avian influenza viruses are circulating in Bangladesh since 2007 causing serious economic losses to the country. Multiple virus introductions of different clades of HPAIV H5N1, reassorted genotypes, and on-going diversification of LPAIV H9N2 create a highly volatile virological environment which potentially implicates increased virulence, adaptation to new host species, and subsequent zoonotic transmission.
  • 1.4K
  • 22 Jul 2020
Topic Review
Latin-American Genes in Rheumatoid Arthritis
The successful implementation of personalized medicine will rely on the integration of information obtained at the level of populations with the specific biological, genetic, and clinical characteristics of an individual. However, because genome-wide association studies tend to focus on populations of European descent, there is a wide gap to bridge between Caucasian and non-Caucasian populations before personalized medicine can be fully implemented, and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is not an exception. In this review, we discuss advances in our understanding of genetic determinants of RA risk among global populations, with a focus on the Latin American population. Geographically restricted genetic diversity may have important implications for health and disease that will remain unknown until genetic association studies have been extended to include Latin American and other currently under-represented ancestries. The next few years will witness many breakthroughs in personalized medicine, including applications for common diseases and risk stratification instruments for targeted prevention/intervention strategies. Not all of these applications may be extrapolated from the Caucasian experience to Latin American or other under-represented populations.
  • 1.4K
  • 04 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Optical Detection of Pathogenic Bacteria
The optical detection of pathogenic bacteria is a growing area of ongoing research for clinically-focused applications. Different modalities, like vibrational spectroscopy, fluorescence, scattering- and polarization-based systems, have the potential to provide information about the biomolecular and morphological characteristics of a species for sample identification and differentiation. Additionally, growth pattern recognition, single-cell versus biofilm formations, cell motility and viability, cell mutation, and antibiotic resistance status can be studied with various optical modalities, providing great potential for rapid characterization of disease-causing pathogens.
  • 1.4K
  • 03 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Dicer-Type Ribonucleases
Ribonuclease Dicer belongs to the family of RNase III endoribonucleases, the enzymes that specifically hydrolyze phosphodiester bonds found in double-stranded regions of RNAs. Dicer enzymes are mostly known for their essential role in the biogenesis of small regulatory RNAs. A typical Dicer-type RNase consists of a helicase domain, a domain of unknown function (DUF283), a PAZ (Piwi-Argonaute-Zwille) domain, two RNase III domains, and a double-stranded RNA binding domain; however, the domain composition of Dicers varies among species. Dicer and its homologues developed only in eukaryotes; nevertheless, the two enzymatic domains of Dicer, helicase and RNase III, display high sequence similarity to their prokaryotic orthologs. Evolutionary studies indicate that a combination of the helicase and RNase III domains in a single protein is a eukaryotic signature and is supposed to be one of the critical events that triggered the consolidation of the eukaryotic RNA interference.
  • 1.4K
  • 22 Feb 2021
Topic Review
EPIC Cohort Study
In the Greek segment of the EPIC cohort study (EPIC-Greece), the changes in dietary habits of 23,505 participants regarding several food items/groups (vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts, dairy, cereal, meat, fish/seafood, olive oil) were recorded repeatedly over time and compared to the baseline assessment (1994–1997), using a short, qualitative, follow-up questionnaire.
  • 1.4K
  • 30 Mar 2021
Topic Review
Metabolic-(Dysfunction) Associated Fatty Liver Disease
Metabolic- (dysfunction) associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) represents the predominant hepatopathy and one of the most important systemic, metabolic-related disorders all over the world associated with severe medical and socio-economic repercussions due to its growing prevalence, clinical course (steatohepatitis and/or hepatocellular-carcinoma), and related extra-hepatic comorbidities. 
  • 1.4K
  • 01 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Water Hammer Modelling
Water Hammer is a physical phenomenon that occurs due to sudden stopping of flow in a pipeline system which causes a sudden large pressure rise mimicking the hammering effect. It is considered one of the worst nightmare for hydraulic engineers due to its potential of causing widespread damage to property and lives. Therefore, numerical estimation of water hammer pressure is crucial for the design, operation, and risk analysis of pipeline systems. Generally, the traditional Method of Characteristics (MOC) is preferred by modellers worldwide due to its simplicity and usability. However, due to high shock generation during large water hammer event in pipeline, Finite Volume Method (FVM) has a clear advantage because of its desirable attribute of conserving mass, momentum compared to traditional MOC Schemes. Further, modelling of the water hammer phenomenon for dynamic characteristics within a turbine is impossible using the classical 1D MOC or 1D FVM schemes, and such applications require more extensive 3D grids and turbulence models. Several commercial pieces of software for turbulence modelling available today can be effectively used for this type of study. Some well-known and well-applied turbulence models currently in use are FLUENT and CFX (https://www.ansys.com(accessed on 1 June 2021)).
  • 1.4K
  • 24 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Drought and Salinity in Citriculture
Among the various abiotic stresses, drought is the major factor limiting crop productivity worldwide. Citrus has been recognized as a fruit tree crop group of great importance to the global agricultural sector since there are 140 citrus-producing countries worldwide. The majority of citrus-producing areas are subjected to dry and hot summer weather, limited availability of water resources with parallel low-quality irrigation water due to increased salinity regimes. Citrus trees are generally classified as “salt-intolerant” with high water needs, especially during summer. Water scarcity negatively affects plant growth and impairs cell metabolism, affecting the overall tree growth and the quality of produced fruit. Key factors that overall attempt to sustain and withstand the negative effect of salinity and drought stress are the extensive use of rootstocks in citriculture as well as the appropriate agronomical and irrigation practices applied.
  • 1.4K
  • 29 Jun 2021
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Dnase1 Family in Autoimmunity
The deoxyribonuclease 1 (Dnase1) family is a key family of endonucleases that degrades DNA. Loss of Dnase1 family function causes several diseases where the host’s immune system targets the host, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, hypocomplementemic urticarial vasculitis syndrome. 
  • 1.4K
  • 18 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Social Image of Nursing
Nursing is a discipline on which stereotypes have persisted throughout its history, considering itself a feminine profession and subordinated to the medical figure, without its own field of competence. All this leads to an image of the Nursing Profession that moves away from reality, constituting a real, relevant and high-impact problem that prevents professional expansion, and that has a direct impact on social trust, the allocation of resources and quality of care, as well as wages and professional satisfaction.
  • 1.4K
  • 05 Aug 2021
Topic Review
PFAS in the Environment
The current article reviews the state of art of the perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) compounds and provides an overview of PFASs occurrence in the environment, wildlife, and humans. This study reviews the issues concerning PFASs exposure and potential risks generated with a focus on PFAS occurrence and transformation in various media, discusses their physicochemical characterization and treatment technologies, before discussing the potential human exposure routes. The various toxicological impacts to human health are also discussed. The article pays particular attention to the complexity and challenging issue of regulating PFAS compounds due to the arising uncertainty and lack of epidemiological evidence encountered. The variation in PFAS regulatory values across the globe can be easily addressed due to the influence of multiple scientific, technical, and social factors. The varied toxicology and the insufficient definition of PFAS exposure rate are among the main factors contributing to this discrepancy. The lack of proven standard approaches for examining PFAS in surface water, groundwater, wastewater, or solids adds more technical complexity. Although it is agreed that PFASs pose potential health risks in various media, the link between the extent of PFAS exposure and the significance of PFAS risk remain among the evolving research areas. There is a growing need to address the correlation between the frequency and the likelihood of human exposure to PFAS and the possible health risks encountered.  The current entry highlighted the significance of the future research required to fill in the knowledge gap in PFAS toxicology and to better understand this through real field data and long-term monitoring programs.
  • 1.4K
  • 19 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Deep eutectic solvents in pharmaceutical synthesis
DES are mixtures of two or more compounds, able to form liquids upon mixing, with lower freezing points when compared to the individual constituents (eutectic mixtures). DES have been utilized in organic synthesis as green media thanks to the high potential to replace the classical solvents. In fact, since the DES are characterized by a network of hydrogen bonds, they have the possibility to dissolve solutes that can form hydrogen bonds and stabilize transition states. Furthermore, during the purification procedures, the addition of water to a DES (very soluble in water) causes the precipitation of organic products, facilitating the workup and avoiding the use of solvents for the extraction. 
  • 1.4K
  • 04 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Early Motor Signs in Autism Spectrum Disorder
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a clinical condition characterized by social communication and interaction deficits, as well as by restricted interests and repetitive behaviors. A growing number of literature data suggest the presence of early impairments in the motor development of children with autism spectrum disorder, which could be often recognized even before the appearance of the classical social communication deficits of autism. 
  • 1.4K
  • 16 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Pain Management for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Up to 60% of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients experience abdominal pain in their lifetime regardless of disease activity. Pain negatively affects different areas of daily life and particularly impacts the quality of life of IBD patients. Despite the optimal management of intestinal inflammation, chronic abdominal pain can persist, and pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches are necessary. Integrating psychological support in care models in IBD could decrease disease burden and health care costs. Consequently, a multidisciplinary approach similar to that used for other chronic pain conditions should be recommended. 
  • 1.4K
  • 05 Aug 2022
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