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This will be a review of the main physicians who started and promoted surgery in Medellin capital of the department of Antioquia in Colombia. The review will include from the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century. The article will include Antioquia identity, organic intellectuals and civilizing project. It will be mentioned the proceedings of the Medellin Academy of Medicine in reference to the surgical issues discussed during those meetings. In addition to that reference will be made about the main physicians involved such as Manuel Uribe Angel, Ignacio Quevedo Amaya, Andres Posada Arango, Eduardo Zuleta, Julio Restrepo, Francisco Arango y Carlos de Greiff. We will try to recreate the discussions around Pasteur’s theories, homeostasis and antiseptics. To conclude this article, it will be mentioned the opening of the first surgical room in 1903 at the San Juan de Dios Hospital located in Medellin due to the efforts done by Dr. Juan Bautista Montoya y Flórez. The photograph done by Melitón Rodriguez in 1902 of the surgical room will be used to describe the characteristics of such room.

PURPOSE: To describe data on epidemiology, microbiology, clinical characteristics and outcome of adult patients admitted in the intensive care unit (ICU) with secondary peritonitis, with special emphasis on antimicrobial therapy and source control. METHODS: Post hoc analysis of a multicenter observational study (Abdominal Sepsis Study, AbSeS) including 2621 adult ICU patients with intra-abdominal infection in 306 ICUs from 42 countries. Time-till-source control intervention was calculated as from time of diagnosis and classified into 'emergency' (< 2 h), 'urgent' (2-6 h), and 'delayed' (> 6 h). Relationships were assessed by logistic regression analysis and reported as odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: The cohort included 1077 cases of microbiologically confirmed secondary peritonitis. Mortality was 29.7%. The rate of appropriate empiric therapy showed no difference between survivors and non-survivors (66.4% vs. 61.3%, p = 0.1). A stepwise increase in mortality was observed with increasing Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores (19.6% for a value ≤ 4-55.4% for a value > 12, p < 0.001). The highest odds of death were associated with septic shock (OR 3.08 [1.42-7.00]), late-onset hospital-acquired peritonitis (OR 1.71 [1.16-2.52]) and failed source control evidenced by persistent inflammation at day 7 (OR 5.71 [3.99-8.18]). Compared with 'emergency' source control intervention (< 2 h of diagnosis), 'urgent' source control was the only modifiable covariate associated with lower odds of mortality (OR 0.50 [0.34-0.73]). CONCLUSION: 'Urgent' and successful source control was associated with improved odds of survival. Appropriateness of empirical antimicrobial treatment did not significantly affect survival suggesting that source control is more determinative for outcome. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03270345.

The changes of agriculture led to deep transformations of arable plant diversity. The features of arable plant communities are determined by many anthropic, environmental, and geographic drivers. Understanding the relative importance of such drivers is essential for conservation and restoration purposes. In this work, we assessed the effects of agronomic, climatic, geographic, and landscape features on α-diversity, β-diversity, and composition of winter arable plant communities across continental Italy, a European hotspot of arable plant diversity. Using redundancy analysis and variation partitioning, we observe that the selected groups of variables explained a restrained to moderate proportion of the variation in diversity and composition, depending on the response (5.5–23.5%). We confirm previous evidence that climate and geographic location stand out in determining the features of arable plant communities in the country, followed by the type of rural area. The surrounding landscape has a subordinate influence but affects both α and β-diversity. The α-diversity is higher in traditional agricultural areas and in landscapes rich in woody vegetation, while it is lower in warmer areas. Species composition is determined by climate, latitude, and the type of rural area, but not by landscape. Total β-diversity is mainly explained by climate and latitude, and subordinately by the agricultural context and landscape. Its components are explained by latitude and climate (replacement) and agricultural context and climate (richness difference). The local contribution to β-diversity of single sites suggested a good conservation status of the studied communities. We discuss the implications of our findings in the light of conservation and restoration of vanishing arable plant communities.

In this study we assessed the genetic diversity and differentiation, and genealogical relationships in a group of individuals of A. albifrons distributed on the Pacific slope and in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico using mitochondrial DNA markers.Both range regions the species showed a high genetic diversity, suggesting population expansion from a small effective population size. Genealogical relationships revealed the presence of two genetic groups that have gone through different demographic events, one in the Yucatan Peninsula and the other in the Pacific slope. Considering that the individuals of the Yucatan Peninsula formed a genetic group exclusive to the region due to isolation events and a unique evolutionary history, we suggest its recognition as an evolutionarily significant unit (ESU). In addition, considering the presence of unique haplotypes in the localities of Sinaloa and Michoacan, we recommended that conservation plans focus on these regions.

Canada, Uruguay, and 18 states in the U.S. have legalized the use of nonmedical (recreational) cannabis for adults, yet the impact of legalization on adolescent cannabis use remains unclear. This study examined whether cannabis legalization for adults predicted changes in the probability of cannabis use among adolescents aged 13-18 years.Data were drawn from 3 longitudinal studies of youth (spanning 1999-2020) centered in 3 U.S. states: Oregon, New York, and Washington. During this time, Oregon (2015) and Washington (2012) passed cannabis legalization; New York did not. In each study, youth average age was 15 years (total N=940; 49%-56% female, 11%-81% Black/African American and/or Latinx). Multilevel modeling (in 2021) of repeated measures tested whether legalization predicted within- or between-person change in past-year cannabis use or use frequency over time.Change in legalization status across adolescence was not significantly related to within-person change in the probability or frequency of self-reported past-year cannabis use. At the between-person level, youth who spent more of their adolescence under legalization were no more or less likely to have used cannabis at age 15 years than adolescents who spent little or no time under legalization.This study addresses several limitations of repeated cross-sectional studies of the impact of cannabis legalization on adolescent cannabis use. Findings are not consistent with changes in the prevalence or frequency of adolescent cannabis use after legalization. Ongoing surveillance and analyses of subpopulations are recommended.

New Italian data on the distribution of the Annex I Habitats are reported in this contribution. Specifically, 8 new occurrences in Natura 2000 sites are presented and 49 new cells are added in the EEA 10 km × 10 km reference grid. The new data refer to the Italian administrative regions of Campania, Calabria, Marche, Piedmont, Sardinia, Sicily, Tuscany and Umbria. Relevés and figures are provided as Supplementary material respectively 1 and 2.

This retrospective study aims to evaluate the impact of interrupted services for peripheral arterial disease (PAD) patients and especially women in a single north-eastern Italian center over a period of 3 months prior to the pandemic, during the first (2020) and the second (2021) wave of contagion in northern Italy.Patients with PAD at Rutherford stages 3 to 6 that required revascularization between March 2019 and March 2021 were classified into 3 groups, according to the period of treatment: the prepandemic period, the pandemic-20 period, and the pandemic-21 period.Twenty-eight patients were treated in the prepandemic period, 21 in the pandemic-20 period, and 39 in the pandemic-21 period. It was observed that in the both pandemic periods patients presented with more severe stages of limb ischemia, Rutherford 5 and 6 stages. During pandemic-20, patients underwent mostly open surgery, followed by hybrid procedures. No differences were observed between the 3 groups in major amputations, length of hospital stay, type of discharge, limb salvage and mortality. During long-term follow-up, limb salvage appeared to be significantly better in the pandemic-21 group. The gender analysis revealed a significantly reduced female proportion of overall treated patients in 2020 and 2021 compared to the prepandemic period. In the pandemic-20 this difference appears even more evident since treatments on females represented 19% of the total while in the same period of the previous year the male/female percentage was comparable (54% vs. 46%). The women admitted presented higher stages of disease and tended to have a longer hospital stay than men. At 12-month follow-up, limb salvage was similar between the 2 genders but was slightly worse in women.An efficient reorganization of the vascular surgery services during the pandemic period guaranteed the quality and standard of treatment offered in the preceding periods. Among patients suffering from PAD the impact of the pandemic was greater for the female gender. It is therefore important that in addition to a reorganization of hospital services to provide adequate care for patients with ACOP in the pandemic period, greater information and awareness of women.

Studies on antiquities trafficking have often been overshadowed by research looking at the trafficking of human beings, drugs, and weapons, a fact partly motivated by the arguably higher relevance and greater security implications involved in these other forms of illicit trade. However, the past decade of conflicts in the Middle East has revived an interest in the study of antiquities trafficking networks.1 The association between the growing size of the illicit antiquities market and conflicts in the region did not go unnoticed by crime scientists and criminologists looking deeper at the relation between the trafficking of antiquities and transnational organized crime.2

Importance: Agitation is common in mechanically ventilated ICU patients, but little is known about physician attitudes regarding agitation in this setting. Objectives: To characterize physician attitudes regarding agitation in mechanically ventilated ICU patients. Design, Setting, and Participants: We surveyed critical care physicians within a multicenter health system in Western Pennsylvania, assessing attitudes regarding agitation during mechanical ventilation and use of and confidence in agitation management options. We used quantitative clinical vignettes to determine whether agitation influences confidence regarding readiness for extubation. We sent our survey to 332 critical care physicians, of whom 80 (24%) responded and 69 were eligible (had cared for a mechanically ventilated patient in the preceding three months). Main Outcomes and Measures: Respondent confidence in patient readiness for extubation (0–100%, continuous) and frequency of use and confidence in management options (1–5, Likert). Results: Of 69 eligible responders, 61 (88%) agreed agitation is common and 49 (71%) agreed agitation is a barrier to extubation, but only 27 (39%) agreed their approach to agitation is evidence-based. Attitudes regarding agitation did not differ much by practice setting or physician demographics, though respondents working in medical ICUs were more likely ( P = .04) and respondents trained in surgery or emergency medicine were less likely ( P = .03) than others to indicate that agitation is an extubation barrier. Fifty-three (77%) respondents reported they frequently use non-pharmacologic measures to treat agitation, and 42 (70%) of those who reported they used non-pharmacologic measures during the prior 3 months indicated confidence in their effectiveness. In responses to clinical vignettes, confidence in patient's readiness for extubation was significantly lower if the patient was agitated ( P

To date, our knowledge of the effects of exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) on children's functioning via parenting have relied on individual approaches, effectively placing parents outside of a relationship context, and greatly neglecting to incorporate fathers. The present study addresses these gaps by utilizing a dyadic model to assess how mothers' and fathers' psychological and physical IPV perpetration in early childhood (age 5 years) predicts both their own and each other's parenting in midchildhood (age 7 years) and, in turn, children's social and scholastic competence in late childhood (ages 11-12 years). Such models reflect the current consensus that bidirectional IPV is the most common pattern among couples. The present study involved 175 children (87 females) of 105 mothers and 102 fathers who were originally in the Oregon Youth Study (OYS, N = 206). Simple mediation results suggest maternal involvement in parenting is an important mediational mechanism for the relation between maternal IPV as a perpetrator and victim and childhood competencies. Similarly, father's involvement with parenting served as a mediational mechanism for social competence but only for his own IPV perpetration. Dyadic actor-partner models with maternal and paternal parenting yielded few significant mediational pathways, which is likely partially due to strong shared variance across partners in both IPV and parenting, leaving little unique variance. Overall, results indicated that father's IPV perpetration adds valuable information in explaining child adjustment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

La telemedicina es producto de los constantes avances tecnológicos en la medicina, por ello la presente investigación aborda este tema de importancia en el campo de la Salud. En la Parroquia Chonta Punta existe población vulnerable, la cual se limita al acceso a la salud como derecho, en especial las madres en estado de gestación. Considerando que la salud es un derecho fundamental, el objetivo del presente trabajo es realizar un análisis para determinar la prefactibilidad para la implementación de la prestación de salud mediante la telemedicina, a gestantes que no pueden ser partícipes de este derecho. El tipo de investigación que se empleó en este estudio fue no experimental y aplicada, con un enfoque cualitativo y cuantitativo. El sistema de telemedicina está diseñado para ser implementado en el centro de salud Chonta Punta de tipo A, específicamente, para el área de obstetricia. Se concluye que, la idea del proyecto social es viable y se puede convertir en una realidad para mejorar la accesibilidad de los Servicios de Salud para las gestantes, con base en la localización geográfica, accesibilidad a servicios de salud, provisión de servicios de salud en las comunidades, factores socioculturales y económicos, mediante un estudio con cobertura de servicios de salud especializados, para los establecimientos de salud de primer nivel de atención en la ribera del río Napo, parroquia Chonta Punta.

El presente estudio analiza los factores y casos para una gestión pública efectiva en las entidades públicas del Ecuador. El proceso de investigación tiene un enfoque cuantitativo y un alcance exploratorio, descriptivo y correlacional. Se consideró una población estadística finita de 2.104 objetos de investigación. El muestreo aplicado fue no probabilístico por conveniencia a 102 entidades públicas del país, se usó un cuestionario validado por juicio de expertos, con un 0,980 de Alpha de Cronbach. Se identificó que los registros administrativos, la gestión de la calidad y capacidad tecnológica, están fuertemente correlacionadas con la gestión pública efectiva. De los resultados se obtiene que de los entes públicos que disponen de registros administrativos, el 41% de encuestados indica que frecuentemente usan las variables cronológicas para conocer el momento de ocurrencia de un evento, el 36% considera importante la certificación de calidad, el 34% está de acuerdo con la capacidad tecnológica que usan para la recolección de datos y el 42% está de acuerdo que existen aspectos que mejorar para facilitar la interoperabilidad en las entidades públicas. Se concluye que los registros administrativos, la gestión de la calidad, y la capacidad tecnológica son factores que tienen una correlación estadísticamente significativa con la gestión pública efectiva, por lo que las entidades públicas pueden orientar sus estrategias de inversión para fortalecer estos aspectos que permitirá mejorar sus procesos, productos y servicios.

A brief report on baseline and needs of selected SMEs.

Introduction: Treat-to-target strategies are used in several chronic diseases to improve outcomes. Treatment goals have also been suggested for psoriasis, but there is currently no consensus on targets, and guidance is needed to implement this strategy in clinical practice. The project ‘Treat to Target Italia’ was launched by a scientific board (SB) of 10 psoriasis experts to generate expert consensus recommendations. Methods: On the basis of the published literature, their clinical experience, and the results of a survey among Italian dermatologists, the SB identified four relevant topics: (1) clinical remission; (2) quality of life; (3) abrogation of systemic inflammation; (4) safety. They drafted 20 statements addressing these four topics and submitted them to a panel of 28 dermatologists, in a Delphi process, to achieve consensus (greater than 80% agreement). Results: Consensus was reached on all statements. Treatment goals defining clinical remission should include a 90% improvement from baseline in the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI90 response) or an absolute PASI score of less than or equal to 3. Patient’s quality of life and satisfaction are important targets. If PASI targets are achieved, there should be no or very low impact of psoriasis on quality of life [Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) score less than or equal to 3]. If PASI or DLQI goals are not achieved within 3–4months, treatment should be changed. Abrogation of systemic inflammation may be crucial for preventing or delaying inflammatory comorbidities. Safety is an equally important target as efficacy. Conclusion: These 20 consensus statements define the parameters of a treat-to-target strategy for psoriasis in Italy. It is hoped that use of these in the management of patients with psoriasis will improve treatment outcomes and patient health-related quality of life.

To study the safety and efficacy of AngioVac for left-sided transcatheter vacuum-assisted mass extraction (TVME).The AngioVac system is approved for right-sided TVME and has emerged as an effective and safe alternative for open surgical treatment. The use of the AngioVac device for aspiration of left-sided TVME has been limited.Consecutive patients from two Michigan centers who underwent left-sided TVME were included. Data on patient demographics, procedural information, in-hospital and follow-up events were collected through electronic medical records review. Technical success was defined as aspirating of 70%-100% of the material.Ten patients (mean age 58.3 [±17.3] years, 50% male) were included. Indications for TMVE were in large for recurrent embolic events. All patients underwent bilateral cerebro-embolic protection using the Sentinel device. The total mean procedure time was 192.5 (±47.5) min of which the meantime for active aspiration (bypass time) was 9.3 (±4.2) min. The circuit configuration was: arteriovenous (AV) in four cases and arterioarterial (AA) in six cases. Successful aspiration was achieved in 80% of cases. No complications were reported (range follow-up 1-16 months).Our small case series demonstrates the feasibility and safety of the AngioVac system in left-sided mass extraction. Larger trials are needed to further demonstrate its effectiveness and safety and potentially apply for on-label use.

This 2-year pilot study aimed to investigate the effects of a job coaching application (i.e., Job Coaching on Demand) on the knowledge and competencies of teachers and job coaches that work with young adults with developmental disabilities. Due to the global pandemic, this research was conducted virtually over a 2-year period. During the first year, a one-group formative pretest/posttest design with key informants was used to pilot the app with three teachers and five job coaches. The anecdotal findings from this pilot year were then used to further develop the application. The intent of the application was to provide professional development support to teachers and job coaches across the categories of (a) exploring careers, (b) ready for work, (c) part of the team, and (d) advocacy. In Year 2, a total of 31 teachers and job coaches were recruited, and a pretest/posttest was conducted to compare the differences in gained competencies between the two groups. The results show that those in the treatment group showed a larger increase in gains compared to the control group. The overall results of the 2 years of data, the current application development, and practical implications of the technology are further discussed.

El fenómeno de convergencia tecnológica ha sido objeto de análisis en un número creciente de estudios y se puede presenciar en una variedad de entornos de alta tecnología diferentes, siendo uno de ellos el sistema financiero. El propósito de esta investigación es realizar una revisión de literatura para identificar los hallazgos en todo el mundo sobre la convergencia tecnológica, específicamente en el ámbito relacionado al sistema financiero. El estudio se centra en el período 2017 hasta el 2021. Se realizó una búsqueda especializada de artículos sobre convergencia tecnológica y sistema financiero publicados en las principales revistas dentro de la base de datos de Science Direct. Se seleccionaron 47 artículos publicados en los journals Q1, Q2 y Q3 según Scimago. El estudio resume cómo la literatura ha definido el significado de la convergencia tecnológica, los impulsores, el sistema financiero digital y la tecnología financiera. El artículo concluye que la convergencia tecnológica impulsa las finanzas digitales, consolidando su desarrollo.

In a study of conflict recovery and adolescent dating aggression, 14- to 18-year-old couples (N = 209 dyads) participated in a 1-hr observational assessment. Negative behavior was observed during conflict-evoking "hot" tasks and in a "cooldown" task. Physical and psychological dating aggression were assessed via questionnaires. Negative behavior measured in the cooldown task was not associated with dating aggression after controlling for carryover effects of negativity from the hot to cooldown tasks. Moreover, cooldown negativity moderated the associations of hot task negativity and dating aggression. Actor and partner effects were disentangled via dyadic data analyses. Given the paucity of observational studies of dating aggression, our findings are an important contribution to the literature and in need of replication and extension.

This research proposes a public management model that improves the work performance of the executives of the initial education organizations of the UGEL Bagua. Being explanatory in nature with a quantitative approach, with a non-experimental cross-sectional design. The questionnaire with a Likert scale was used on a sample of 40 managers. Pointing out that according to the dimension of management of conditions for the improvement of learning (47.5%) and the dimension of the orientation of the pedagogical processes for the improvement of learning (57.5%) they were found at a good level. A conclusion is that it is important to apply the public administrative model to optimize work performance, with uniform, democratic criteria that are agreed upon for the performance of management and academic activities in all educational organizations at the initial level, thus allowing the improvement of work performance. Keywords: Public management, educational institutions, work performance, pedagogical processes.

Objectives: Alpha-1-Antitrypsin (AAT) is one of the major plasmatic protease inhibitors. In the last decade, an association between Alpha-1-Antitrypsin Deficiency (AATD) and Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms (AAA) has been hypothesized. Multiple factors may be involved in AAA's etiopathogenesis, and an underlying structural defect of the extracellular matrix (ECM) is always present. AATD could be a reasonable risk factor for AAA because it is related to protease/antiprotease imbalance and enhanced ECM degradation of the vessel wall. Methods: We performed genotyping of 138 patients hospitalized in the Vascular Surgery Division of the ASST-Spedali Civili di Brescia, Italy, for non-traumatic rupture of AAA. The second purpose was to observe the distribution of main non-genetic risk factors for AAA between patients with and without AATD. Results: Out of 138 patients, 22 were found with AATD: 16 MS, 1 SS, 3 MZ, and 2 with a new rare AAT variant. When compared to the general Italian population, our cohort's frequency of deficient S allele was significantly higher (7.8 vs 2.2% respectively, P0.05). Although we found no differences in age, gender, hypertension, diabetes, and smoke habits between AAA patients with and without AATD, hyperlipidemia was significantly less frequent in patients with AATD (46.4 vs 12.5% respectively, P

Introduction: Tildrakizumab is a monoclonal antibody that targets the p19 subunit of IL-23, a crucial cytokine for Th17 cells. Tildrakizumab has been assessed in several Phase I, II, and III clinical trials and is approved for treatment of adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis who are indicated for systemic therapy. Areas covered: The available evidence on the efficacy, safety, and use of tildrakizumab in special populations was evaluated by 14 experts who critically reviewed the current literature. Expert opinion: Tildrakizumab has good efficacy that lasts for at least 5years in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis, and appears to be safe and well tolerated in the long-term with no apparent dose-related differences in adverse events, a low incidence of discontinuation due to adverse events, and no evidence of increased risk of malignancies. The safety and the efficacy of tildrakizumab has also been confirmed in special populations such as those with inflammatory bowel disease, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and advanced age. Early intervention with IL-23-inhibitors, such as tildrakizumab, may help to control symptoms and change the long-term course of the disease in patients affected by plaque psoriasis, while improving the quality of life and potentially minimizing the risk of developing comorbidities.

Recent years have seen increased media attention paid to crimes committed against women by partners or former partners has grown. Crime, especially violent crime, dominates the news and the mass media. In this sense, criminology” impacts publicly the collective representation of crime. The study was motivated by the interest to understand what representations are conveyed by television broadcasts and how closely related they are to criminological theories and literature on the subject. The objective of the proposed qualitative research is to examine the media representations proposed in thematic television broadcasts, as well as the narrative profiles relating to the victims, perpetrators of the crimes and their relationships, as described in the news and by a multiplicity of roles associated with them based on kinship, friendship or professional role.

Esta investigación se planteó el objetivo de analizar los programas académicos de las Escuelas de Posgrado de las universidades latinoamericanas. Metodología. La investigación presentó un diseño cualitativo-interpretativo, de tipo documental; se han seleccionado 57 documentos, realizados en el periodo 2017 – 2022, incluyendo: artículos científicos, artículos de revisión e información de sitios web de organizaciones reconocidas. Las palabras claves utilizadas en las búsquedas fueron: Escuela de Posgrado, Latinoamérica, universidad. Resultados. Las Escuelas de Posgrado de las universidades latinoamericanas están enfrentando los desafíos de la pandemia, mejorando sus procesos de investigación, internacionalización, pertinencia curricular y oferta académica, política institucional, acreditación, docencia y posicionamiento en los rankings regionales e internacionales. Conclusiones. La universidad latinoamericana mejor posicionada es la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. La Escuela de Negocios Latinoamericana es la mejor posicionada en la EGADE Business School de México. Además, las universidades latinoamericanas tienen muchos retos pendientes por superar, entre ellos: formar profesionales innovadores y comprometidos en la búsqueda de soluciones a la compleja realidad latinoamericana, lograr su acreditación internacional y priorizar la internacionalización del posgrado. Durante la pandemia se incrementaron las ofertas académicas en modalidad online.

Las nanopartículas de TiO2 en el tratamiento final de las aguas residuales municipales es de gran importancia por considerarse un material para la desinfección de coliformes totales debido a su propiedad antibacterial con respecto a su tamaño de partícula. En el presente trabajo se ha estudiado la influencia de la temperatura y el tiempo de calcinación durante el proceso de síntesis de nanopartículas de óxido de titanio. Los resultados indican que para temperaturas de calcinación entre 300 y 700 °C se obtienen nanopartículas de TiO2 de diámetros hidrodinámicos que varían de 12 a 60 nm los cuales fueron hallados con un tiempo de calcinación de 1 hora y 30 minutos. Estos resultados indicarían que para tamaños de nanopartículas de TiO2 inferiores a 60 nm se lograría una disminución de la población bacteriana presente en las aguas residuales municipales tratadas y con lo cual se facilitaría el reuso de estas aguas por la aplicación de una nueva tecnología.

Objectives and background Convalescent plasma (CP) has been used worldwide to contrast SARS-CoV-2 infection. Since April 2020, it has also been used in the treatment of patients with COVID-19 in the Veneto region (Italy), along with all the other available drugs and therapeutic tools. Here we report data analysis and clinical results in 1,517 COVID-19 inpatients treated with CP containing high-titre neutralizing anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies (CCP). Mortality after 30 days of hospitalization has been considered primary outcome, by comparing patients treated with CCP vs all COVID-19 patients admitted to hospitals of the Veneto region in a one-year period (from April 2020 to April 2021). Patients and methods Adult inpatients with a severe form of COVID-19 have been enrolled, with at least one of the following inclusion criteria: 1) tachypnea with respiratory rate (RR) ≥ 30 breaths/min; 2) oxygen saturation (SpO2) ≤ 93% at rest and in room air; 3) partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2)/fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) ≤ 200 mmHg, 4) radiological picture and/or chest CT scan showing signs of interstitial disease and/or rapid progression of lung involvement. Patients received a maximum of three therapeutic fractions (TFs) of CCP with a neutralizing antibody titre of ≥ 1:160, administered over a period of 3–5 days. If TFs of CCP with titre ≥ 1:160 were unavailable, 2 with antibody titre of ≥ 1:80 have been administered. Results Of the 1,517 patients treated with CCP, 209 deceased at the 30-day follow-up (14%). Death was significantly associated with an older age (p30 (p

In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of vascular flora alien to Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions for Italy or for Italian administrative regions. Nomenclatural and distribution updates, published elsewhere, and corrections are provided as Suppl. material 1.

This study was carried out in three quarry sites at Mount Korok, also known as Jebel Kujur area, which is located within Juba Town Council in Central Equatoria State, South Sudan. The main aim was to assess the impact of quarrying activities on the local ground cover vegetation, mainly grasses and low-lying non-woody herbaceous plants. The methods used included, besides direct observations, iron frame quadrats of 1 × 1 m2 in size, for random sampling of attributes and community characteristics of the plants in three different sites. The first site was an old, abandoned stone-quarrying site; the second was where quarrying work was actively going on at the time of the study; and the third was an area never before exposed to stone quarrying (hence, acting as a control). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency distribution, density measures, diversity indices, and correlations. The research was carried out during the wet season when most plants were green and at different stages of flowering and/or fruiting from July through September, 2020. The results revealed that over 44 species of ground cover plants were identified, some of which were more abundant and had the widest distribution and frequency in the three study sites, including Cynodon lemfuensis, Cyperus rotundus, Bracharia ramose, Merremia pinata, Cyanodon dactylon, and Digitaria fernatad, whereas others were limited to one site or the other. Results also indicated that though stone-quarrying activities have impacts on ground cover plants, however, they are not the only factor affecting ground cover plants. More than 80% of the impacts on ground cover plants are caused by factors other than stone quarrying but were not identified during this study. It was therefore recommended that future studies in the area on the same theme should isolate the effects of stone quarrying on ground cover plants from these other operating factors through discriminant functional analysis.

A survey was done to estimate margay abundance and activity in the context of high forest loss rates from avocado plantations for the temperate forest region of Michoacán state. Camera trap surveys were conducted from November 2015 to April 2020, recording 21 Margay detections of seven individuals. The capture rate ranged from 0.09 to 0.83 records/100 trap nights. The mean temporal density was 0.12 ind./km2, with an activity peak between 04:00 and 05:00 h. The Margay could serve as indicator species for restoration and forest conservation initiatives.

In riparian forests, clear-cutting causes long-lasting changes in both riparian and aquatic biota. In this work, we examined if past clear-cutting events occurred at different times have imprints on riparian forests in a Mediterranean river in central Italy. We carried out a randomized, plot-based vegetation survey of riparian forests in systematically sampled 500 m-long sectors along the whole river, dividing the riparian zone into two internal and two external strips. From historical aerial photos, past clear-cutting events within plots were detected and classified in age classes: i) cut in the past 8 years (recent); ii) cut between 8 and 19 years ago (intermediate); iii) no signs of clear-cutting in the last 19 years (distant). We analyzed the responses of vegetation to clear-cutting and strip position. Alien species richness increased and woody species richness decreased in recently clear-cut areas compared to those with a distant clear-cutting event. Moreover, recently cut woods showed an increase in alien and synanthropic species. Intermediate clear-cut areas had higher levels of invasion by alien species compared to areas with distant cut. Riparian forests of internal strips are impacted by clear-cutting, but seem to recover in 8-19 years thanks to their natural resilience. Conversely, recent or intermediate clear-cutting events did not affect any of the investigated vegetation attributes in the external strips since such forests were already invaded by Robinia pseudoacacia after human disturbance. Our results confirm that clear-cutting events can have long-lasting effects on Mediterranean riparian forests, confirming the vulnerability of river ecosystems to clear-cutting and suggesting the need for more caution in management practices to improve the conservation status of riparian forests.