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The main objective of this study was to determine the relative value of four cognitive-behavioral competencies that have been shown in empirical studies to be associated with effective stress management. Based on a review of relevant psychological literature, we named the competencies as follows: Manages or Reduces Sources of Stress, Manages Thoughts, Plans and Prevents, and Practices Relaxation Techniques. We measured their relative value by examining data obtained from a diverse convenience sample of 18,895 English-speaking participants in 125 countries (65.0% from the U.S. and Canada) who completed a new inventory of stress-management competencies. We assessed their relative value by employing a concurrent study design, which also allowed us to assess the validity of the new instrument. Regression analyses were used to rank order the four competencies according to how well they predicted desirable outcomes. Both regression and factor analyses pointed to the importance of proactive stress-management practices over reactive methods, but we note that the correlational design of our study has no implications for the possible causal effects of these methods. Questionnaire scores were strongly associated with self-reported happiness and also significantly associated with personal success, professional success, and general level of stress. Data were collected between 2007 and 2022, but we found no effect for time. The study supports the value of stress-management training, and it also suggests that moderate levels of stress may not be as beneficial as previously thought., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Osteoporosis is a chronic disease that affects millions of patients worldwide and is characterized by low bone mineral density (BMD) and increased risk of fractures. Notably, natural molecules can increase BMD and exert pro-osteogenic effects. Noteworthily, the nutraceutical BlastiMin Complex ® (Mivell, Italy, European Patent Application EP4205733A1) can induce differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) in osteoblasts and can exert in vitro pro-osteogenic and anti-inflammatory effects. Thus, the purpose of this study was to verify the effects of BlastiMin Complex ® on bone turnover markers (BTMs) and BMD in patients with senile and postmenopausal osteopenia or osteoporosis. The efficacy of BlastiMin Complex ® on BTMs in serum was evaluated through biochemical assays. BMD values were analyzed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and Radiofrequency Echographic Multi Spectrometry (R.E.M.S.) techniques, and the SNPs with a role in osteoporosis development were evaluated by PCR. Clinical data obtained after 12 months of treatment showed an increase in bone turnover index, a decrease in C-reactive protein levels, and a remarkable increase in P1NP levels, indicating the induction of osteoblast proliferation and activity in the cohort of 100% female patients recruited for the study. These findings show that the nutraceutical BlastiMin Complex ® could be used as an adjuvant in combination with synthetic drugs for the treatment of osteoporosis pathology.

Lippia alba (Mill.) N.E.Br. ex Britton and P. Wilson is used in folk medicine of Central and South America for its biological activities: i.e., antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory. Based on ethnopharmacological information and the increasing interest in this species, this work aimed to test a possible wide use of its essential oil (EO) in pharmaceutical and horticultural applications. Therefore, we focused the attention on the antioxidant activity of the oil as a possible tool to overcome the oxidative stress in both applications. For this purpose, we have chosen three aggressive breast cancer cell lines and two horticultural species ( Solanum lycopersicum L. and Phaseolus acutifolius L.) that are very sensitive to salt stress. We determined the antioxidant activity of L. alba EO through the quantification of phenols and flavonoids. Regarding tomato and bean plants under salt stress, L. alba EO was used for the first time as a seed priming agent to enhance plant salt tolerance. In this case, the seed treatment enhanced the content of phenolic compounds, reduced power and scavenger activity, and decreased membrane lipid peroxidation, thus mitigating the oxidative stress induced by salt. While in breast cancer cells the EO treatment showed different responses according to the cell lines, i.e., in SUM149 and MDA-MB-231 the EO decreased proliferation and increased antioxidant activity and lipid peroxidation, showing high cytotoxic effects associated with the release of lactate dehydrogenase, vice versa no effect was observed in MDA-MB-468. Such antioxidant activity opens a new perspective about this essential oil as a possible tool to counteract proliferation in some cancer cell lines and in horticulture as a seed priming agent to protect from oxidative damage in crops sensitive to salinity.

Understanding the mechanisms by which drugs interact with cell membranes is crucial for unraveling the underlying biochemical and biophysical processes that occur on the surface of these membranes. Our research focused on studying the interaction between an ester-type derivative of tristearoyl uridine and model cell membranes composed of lipid monolayers at the air-water interface. For that, we selected a specific lipid to simulate nontumorigenic cell membranes, namely 1,2-dihexadecanoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-l-serine. We noted significant changes in the surface pressure-area isotherms, with a noticeable shift towards larger areas, which was lower than expected for ideal mixtures, indicating monolayer condensation. Furthermore, the viscoelastic properties of the interfacial film demonstrated an increase in both the elastic and viscous parameters for the mixed film. We also observed structural alterations using vibrational spectroscopy, which revealed an increase in the all-trans to gauche conformers ratio. This confirmed the stiffening effect of the prodrug on the lipid monolayer. In summary, this study indicates that this lipophilic prodrug significantly impacts the lipid monolayer's thermodynamic, rheological, electrical, and molecular characteristics. This information is crucial for understanding how the drug interacts with specific sites on the cellular membrane. It also has implications for drug delivery, as the drug's passage into the cytosol may involve traversing the lipid bilayer., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Aims: A set of indicators to assess the quality of care for patients hospitalized for heart failure was developed by an expert working group of the Italian Health Ministry. Because a better performance profile measured using these indicators does not necessarily translate to better outcomes, a study to validate these indicators through their relationship with measurable clinical outcomes and healthcare costs supported by the Italian National Health System was carried out., Methods and Results: Residents of four Italian regions (Lombardy, Marche, Lazio, and Sicily) who were newly hospitalized for heart failure (irrespective of stage and New York Heart Association class) during 2014-2015 entered in the cohort and followed up until 2019. Adherence to evidence-based recommendations [i.e. renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAS) inhibitors, beta-blockers, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs), and echocardiograms (ECCs)] experienced during the first year after index discharge was assessed. Composite clinical outcomes (cardiovascular hospital admissions and all-cause mortality) and healthcare costs (hospitalizations, drugs, and outpatient services) were assessed during the follow-up. The restricted mean survival time at 5 years (denoted as the number of months free from clinical outcomes), the hazard of clinical outcomes (according to the Cox model), and average annual healthcare cost (expressed in euros per person-year) were compared between adherent and non-adherent patients. A non-parametric bootstrap method based on 1000 resamples was used to account for uncertainty in cost-effectiveness estimates. A total of 41 406 patients were included in this study (46.3% males, mean age 76.9 ± 9.4 years). Adherence to RAS inhibitors, beta-blockers, MRAs, and ECCs were 64%, 57%, 62%, and 20% among the cohort members, respectively. Compared with non-adherent patients, those who adhered to ECCs, RAS inhibitors, beta-blockers, and MRAs experienced (i) a delay in the composite outcome of 1.6, 1.9, 1.6, and 0.6 months and reduced risks of 9% (95% confidence interval, 2-14%), 11% (7-14%), 8% (5-11%), and 4% (-1-8%), respectively; and (ii) lower (€262, €92, and €571 per year for RAS inhibitors, beta-blockers, and MRAs, respectively) and higher costs (€511 per year for ECC). Adherence to RAS inhibitors, beta-blockers, and MRAs showed a delay in the composite outcome and a saving of costs in 98%, 84%, and 93% of the 1000 bootstrap replications, respectively., Conclusions: Strict monitoring of patients with heart failure through regular clinical examinations and drug therapies should be considered the cornerstone of national guidelines and audits., (© 2024 The Authors. ESC Heart Failure published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Society of Cardiology.)

The recently identified syndrome known as Long COVID (LC) is characterized by a constellation of debilitating conditions that impair both physical and cognitive functions, thus reducing the quality of life and increasing the risk of developing the most common age-related diseases. These conditions are linked to the presence of symptoms of autonomic dysfunction, in association with low cortisol levels, suggestive of reduced hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity, and with increased pro-inflammatory condition. Alterations of dopamine and serotonin neurotransmitter levels were also recently observed in LC. Interestingly, at least some of the proposed mechanisms of LC development overlap with mechanisms of Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) imbalance, previously detailed in the framework of the aging process. ANS imbalance is characterized by a proinflammatory sympathetic overdrive, and a concomitant decreased anti-inflammatory vagal parasympathetic activity, associated with reduced anti-inflammatory effects of the HPA axis and cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway (CAP). These neuro-immune-endocrine system imbalanced activities fuel the vicious circle of chronic inflammation, i.e. inflammaging. Here, we refine our original hypothesis that ANS dysfunction fuels inflammaging and propose that biomarkers of ANS imbalance could also be considered biomarkers of inflammaging, recognized as the main risk factor for developing age-related diseases and the sequelae of viral infections, i.e. LC., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors state no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) represents ∼85% of all lung cancers and ∼15-20% of them are characterized by mutations affecting the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR). For several years now, a class of tyrosine kinase inhibitors was developed, targeting sensitive mutations affecting the EGFR (EGFR-TKIs). To date, the main burden of the TKIs employment is due to the onset of resistance mutations. This scoping review aims to resume the current situation about the cell line models employed for the in vitro evaluation of resistance mechanisms induced by EGFR-TKIs in oncogene-addicted NSCLC. Adenocarcinoma results the most studied NSCLC histotype with the H1650, H1975, HCC827 and PC9 mutated cell lines, while Gefitinib and Osimertinib the most investigated inhibitors. Overall, data collected frame the current advancement of this topic, showing a plethora of approaches pursued to overcome the TKIs resistance, from RNA-mediated strategies to the innovative combination therapies., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)