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Abstract Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) based screening of prostate cancer (PCa) needs refinement. The aim of this study was the identification of urinary biomarkers to predict the Prostate Imaging—Reporting and Data System (PI-RADS) score and the presence of PCa prior to prostate biopsy. Urine samples from patients with elevated PSA were collected prior to prostate biopsy (cohort = 99). The re-analysis of mass spectrometry data from 45 samples was performed to identify urinary biomarkers to predict the PI-RADS score and the presence of PCa. The most promising candidates, i.e. SPARC-like protein 1 (SPARCL1), Lymphatic vessel endothelial hyaluronan receptor 1 (LYVE1), Alpha-1-microglobulin/bikunin precursor (AMBP), keratin 13 (KRT13), cluster of differentiation 99 (CD99) and hornerin (HRNR), were quantified by ELISA and validated in an independent cohort of 54 samples. Various biomarker combinations showed the ability to predict the PI-RADS score (AUC = 0.79). In combination with the PI-RADS score, the biomarkers improve the detection of prostate carcinoma-free men (AUC = 0.89) and of those with clinically significant PCa (AUC = 0.93). We have uncovered the potential of urinary biomarkers for a test that allows a more stringent prioritization of mpMRI use and improves the decision criteria for prostate biopsy, minimizing patient burden by decreasing the number of unnecessary prostate biopsies.

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) and related peptides have been proposed as promising biomarkers for the diagnosis of prostate cancer by previous immunoassays and immunohistochemical studies. In this study, we evaluated the additional value of NPY and related peptides compared with prostate-specific antigen (PSA). We performed a comprehensive analysis of NPY, its precursors, and metabolite concentrations in both plasma and tissue samples from 181 patients using a highly specific liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method. Compared with PSA, NPY and related peptides (NPYs) were less accurate at diagnosing significant prostate cancer. Combinations of NPYs in a stepwise approach did not improve a model that would be beneficial for patients. NPY may be beneficial for patients presenting with a PSA concentration in the gray area between 4 and 9 ng/ml, but the strength of this conclusion is limited. Thus, the use of NPYs as standalone or in combination with other variables, such as PSA, prostate volume, or age, to improve the diagnosis is not supported by our study. Patient summary: This study evaluated neuropeptide Y (NPY) of the family of endogenous peptides as a new biomarker to diagnose prostate cancer. We found that NPY in a patient’s blood was not more helpful at diagnosing prostate cancer than the standard prostate-specific antigen blood test. Further research is needed to explore the potential of NPY and related peptides in specific subgroups of patients.

Abstract Additive manufacturing (AM) is now widely used for research and industrial production. The benchmark data for mechanical properties of additively manufactured specimens is very useful for many communities. This data article presents a tensile testing dataset of ASTM D638 size specimens without and with embedded internal geometrical features printed using polylactic acid (PLA) in a Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) additive manufacturing process. The added features can mimic defects of various shapes and sizes. This work is a supplement to the published research article Assisted defect detection by in-process monitoring of additive manufacturing using optical imaging and infrared thermography (Additive Manufacturing, 2023, 103483). The printed specimens were tensile tested. Stress-strain graphs were developed and used to calculate the mechanical properties such as ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and strain at UTS. The mechanical properties, the correlations between mechanical properties and size, shape and location of geometrical features (defects), and the trends in mechanical properties can be useful in benchmarking the results of other researchers.

Freshwater ecosystems in Lithuania are threatened by the introduction of invasive fish species including Neogobius fluviatilis, N. melanostomus, Perccottus glenii, and Pseudorasbora parva. Data on helminth parasites of these fishes have not been comprehensively studied, with only two reports on parasites of N. melanostomus from the Curonian Lagoon and Baltic Sea, Lithuania. We examined 278 fish individuals representing 4 invasive species from 13 waterbodies. Using morphological and molecular analyses, we identified 29 helminth taxa representing 15 digenean trematodes, 6 nematodes, 4 cestodes, 2 acanthocephalans, and 2 monogeneans. With 18 species, N. fluviatilis had the highest helminth diversity, followed by N. melanostomus (11 species) and Ps. parva (8 species). Perccottus glenii was found to be free from helminth infection. The availability of historical information on the native fish parasites in Lithuania allowed us to conclude that out of the 29 recorded species, invasive fish serve as hosts for 22 local fish helminth species, while 7 helminth species have been reported exclusively in invasive fish. Based on newly obtained and previously published data, a total of 34 helminth species parasitise invasive fish in Lithuania, of which 30 use these fish as intermediate or paratenic hosts.

Air pollution remains a major global challenge in addressing environmental and health issues requiring continuous and immediate action. Nevertheless, the extensive adverse effects from atmospheric pollution are mainly experienced by communities and people in lower- and middle-income countries, such as the medium- and large-sized cities in Latin America including the coastal city of Guaruja in Brazil. Urban forests, as integral parts of the city landscape, play a crucial role in mitigating air pollution and should therefore be considered in environmental policies. This study aimed to evaluate the spatiotemporal concentrations of air pollutants using the biological monitoring method with Tillandsia usneoides L. to highlight the capacity of urban forests to act as nature-based solutions (NbS) in improving air quality and providing other ecosystem services. Based on the quantification of chemical indicators of vehicle emissions, scientifically recognized as traffic‐related elements (TREs) such as cadmium (Cd), Copper (Cu) and lead (Pb) in the biomonitoring samples, the results showed spatiotemporal variations in their concentrations. This finding demonstrates that urban fragments in the low-income settlement of the city exhibited higher values for TREs during the wet season. Cu values were the highest during the wet season in all study areas, underscoring the intensity of the light vehicle fleet. Forest fragments attenuated air pollution, highlighting their importance as features of environmental planning. The identification of atmospheric pollution hotspots in the territory guided the strategic implementation of NbS through tree planting, thus promoting a healthier environment with greater mitigation potential. This study is the first in Brazil to explore the spatiotemporal relationship between air pollution and urban forests in highly dense and low-income settlements providing quantitative indicators toward the benefits of NbS.

Simple Summary: In this paper, we studied the parasitic worms of invasive fish in Lithuania. We focused on four fish species foreign to Lithuanian freshwaters, namely the monkey goby (Neogobius fluviatilis), the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), the stone moroko (Pseudorasbora parva), and the Chinese sleeper (Perccottus glenii). In total, we examined 278 fish from 13 freshwater bodies and found 29 species of parasitic worms. Most of them were found to be juvenile and we used morphological and DNA-based methods to identify these parasitic worms. The monkey goby was the most infected fish species, carrying 18 species of parasitic worms, while the Chinese sleeper was, surprisingly, not infected. Most of the parasitic worms we found were already present in fish in Lithuania, but seven were only found within the invasive fish species we examined. This means that these fish likely brought some parasites with them when they were first introduced to Lithuanian freshwaters and are also capable of carrying and spreading local Lithuanian parasites. This novel information is important, as it helps us to better understand how invasive fish might be affecting ecosystems beyond the well-known effects that they have on habitats and other local animals. Freshwater ecosystems in Lithuania are threatened by the introduction of invasive fish species including Neogobius fluviatilis, N. melanostomus, Perccottus glenii, and Pseudorasbora parva. Data on helminth parasites of these fishes have not been comprehensively studied, with only two reports on parasites of N. melanostomus from the Curonian Lagoon and Baltic Sea, Lithuania. We examined 278 fish individuals representing 4 invasive species from 13 waterbodies. Using morphological and molecular analyses, we identified 29 helminth taxa representing 15 digenean trematodes, 6 nematodes, 4 cestodes, 2 acanthocephalans, and 2 monogeneans. With 18 species, N. fluviatilis had the highest helminth diversity, followed by N. melanostomus (11 species) and Ps. parva (8 species). Perccottus glenii was found to be free from helminth infection. The availability of historical information on the native fish parasites in Lithuania allowed us to conclude that out of the 29 recorded species, invasive fish serve as hosts for 22 local fish helminth species, while 7 helminth species have been reported exclusively in invasive fish. Based on newly obtained and previously published data, a total of 34 helminth species parasitise invasive fish in Lithuania, of which 30 use these fish as intermediate or paratenic hosts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most abundant fish species, Rutilus rutilus, is widely distributed in Lithuania and its potential to adapt to environmental changes attracted our interest. Unfortunately, it is not properly understood how anthropogenic activities can affect the genetic diversity within this species. We studied three populations of roaches (samples collected in the Neris and Žeimena rivers, and Lake Drūkšiai) over a period of five years (from 2017 to 2022) to determine genetic diversity using mtDNA D-loop and ATP6 genetic markers. Genetic diversity parameters, AMOVA analysis, haplotype network, and PCoA analysis revealed a greater genetic variability in roach samples collected in 2017, and the greatest differences were noticed in the population inhabiting Lake Drūkšiai, as compared with other samples studied over a five-year period. Differences in genetic diversity detected after a five-year period led us to the assumption that roach populations may be related to the effects of natural (changing climatic conditions) and anthropogenic (operating nuclear power plant) origin.

The vertical distribution of radiocarbon (14C) was examined in two bottom sediment cores, taken from Lake Drūkšiai which had been used as a cooling pond for the Ignalina nuclear power plant (INPP) with two RBMK type reactors. The aim of this work was to reconstruct 14C amounts in the lake ecosystem during an 8-year period after the INPP was closed, as any official monitoring of 14C in liquid releases from the INPP was not performed. The possibility of comparing the variation of the 14C specific activity in the corresponding layers of the same period of 3 different cores (one taken in 2013 and two in 2019) revealed the variability of the determined values of liquid radiocarbon discharges from the INPP into the lake. Cores taken in 2019 showed a permament14C release rate of 0.76±0.06 GBq/y all eight years after the closure of the INPP. The 14C release rate established from radiocarbon measurements in both cores did not differ by more than 0.8 GBq/y. However, including data from the core taken several years ago, the estimated radiocarbon release rate values varied within 1.3 GBq/y.

Introduction High-resolution micro-ultrasound (micro-US) is a novel precise imaging modality that allows targeted prostate biopsies and multiparametric magnet resonance imaging (mpMRI) fusion. Its high resolution relying on a 29 MHz transducer allows real-time visualisation of prostate cancer lesions; this might overcome the inaccuracy of conventional MRI-US fusion biopsy strategies. We compared cancer detection rates in patients who underwent transrectal (TR-B) versus transperineal (TP-B) MR-micro-US fusion biopsy. Materials and methods 1:2 propensity score matching was performed in 322 consecutive procedures: 56 TR-B and 266 TP-B. All prostate biopsies were performed using ExactVuTM micro-US system with mpMRI image fusion. Clinically significant disease was defined as grade group ≥2. The primary objective was to evaluate the detection of clinically significant disease according to access route. The secondary outcomes were to compare the respective detection rates of random and targeted biopsies stratified per access route and to evaluate micro-US for its potential added value. Results 47 men undergoing TR-B and 88 undergoing TP-B were matched for age, PSA, clinical stage, prostate volume, PIRADS score, number of mpMRI-visible lesions and indication to biopsy. The detection rates of clinically significant and of any prostate cancer did not differ between the two groups (45% TR-B vs 42% TP-B; p = 0.8, and 57% TR-B vs 59% TP-B; p = 0.9, respectively). Detection rates also did not differ significantly between random (p = 0.4) and targeted biopsies (p = 0.7) stratified per access route. Micro-US targeted biopsy detected 36 MRI-invisible lesions in 33 patients; 19% of these lesions were positive for clinically significant disease. Overall, micro-US targeted biopsies upgraded 2% of patients to clinically significant disease that would have been missed otherwise. Conclusions MR-micro-US-fusion TR-B and TP-B have similar diagnostic yields in terms of detection rates of clinically significant prostate cancer. Micro-US targeted biopsy appears to have an additional diagnostic value over systematic and MRI-targeted biopsies.

The intraspecific genetic diversity of freshwater fish inhabiting hydro-systems of the macrogeographic area spreading from the Black to Baltic Seas requires comprehensive investigation from fundamental and practical perspectives. The current study focused on the involvement of the mtDNA ATP6 region in the adaptability and microevolution of Perca fluviatilis within phylogeographic and anthropogenic contexts. We sequenced a 627 bp fragment encompassing the ATP6 region and used it for genetic analysis of 193 perch caught in Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, and Ukraine, representing natural and anthropogenically impacted populations. We evaluated patterns of intraspecific genetic diversity in the ATP6 region and phylogeographic trends within the studied area compared with previously established D-loop trends. Evaluation of ATP6 coding sequence variability revealed that among 13 newly detected haplotypes, only two were caused by non-synonymous substitutions of amino acids of the protein. PCoA revealed three genetic groups (I–III) based on the ATP6 region that encompassed four previously described genetic groups established based on the mtDNA D-loop. The two mtDNA regions (D-loop and ATP6) have microevolved at least partially independently. Prolonged anthropogenic impacts may generate new point mutations at the ATP6 locus, but this phenomenon could be mainly concealed by natural selection and reparation processes.

Background: The quadriceps tendon (QT) autograft has recently drawn attention for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Finding the best autograft option for adolescents after an ACL injury is essential to ensure them a high-quality active lifestyle. There are no studies comparing the all-soft-tissue QT autograft with the hamstring tendon (HT) autograft in such population. Methods: In this study, 68 patients younger than 18 years of age were assigned to the HT (38 patients) or the QT (30 patients) ACLR group. The groups were similar, allowing their comparison. The instrumented knee laxity was evaluated with a Genourob arthrometer. In total, 48 patients (27 HT and 21 QT) were tested 3 months post-op, and 45 patients (26 HT and 19 QT) were tested 6 months post-op. Results: We found that 3 months post-op, the side-to-side anterior tibial translation measurements (GNRB1) were worse in the HT than in the QT group (1.4 (0.2–5.2; 1.715) vs. 0.6 (0.1–2.1; 0.905) mm, p = 0.02). There was no difference in side-to-side anterior tibial translation at 6 months post-op (GNRB2) between the HT and the QT group (1 (0.2–5.3; 1.519) vs. 1.1 (0.3–3.4; 1.279) mm, p = 0.927). At 3 months post-op, the side-to-side anterior tibial translation (GNRB1) was worse in males than in females. irrespective of the graft choice (1.45 (0.1–5.2; 1.696) vs. 0.4 (0.1–3.4; 0.89) mm, p = 0.016). The displacement curve slopes 6 months post-op were better for females (3 (0–13.1; 3.335) vs. 5.3 (0–26.1; 7.848), p = 0.014). At 3 months post-op, the GNRB measurements showed that the side-to-side anterior tibial translation (GNRB1) was better for females when the HT autograft had been used (0.45 (0.2–3.4; 0.942) vs. 2.4 (0.3–5.2; 2.333) mm, p = 0.003). In general, both autografts provided excellent objective outcomes at early follow-up. Conclusions: The all-soft-tissue QT autograft should be considered as a reliable alternative for ACLR in adolescents. This autograft has at least the same properties as the HT autograft in the early stages after ACL reconstruction in adolescent athletes and, in some respects, seems superior to the HT autograft. Research should continue to find the best possible graft choice for the most active and willing-to-return-to-sport population.

The aim of our study was to provide a first overview of the population genetic structure of the invasive Chinese sleeper, Perccottus glenii, (Actinopterygii: Odontobutidae) in European water bodies. This species originates from inland waters of north-eastern China, northern North Korea and the Russian Far East. The 1172 bp long portion of the cytochrome b gene was sequenced from Chinese sleeper specimens collected from a variety of water bodies in Belarus, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia (European part) and Ukraine. Our study revealed that the invasive Chinese sleeper in Europe consists of at least three distinct haplogroups that may represent independent introduction events from different parts of its native area; i.e. three founding populations: (1) Baltic haplogroup that may originate either from fish introduced inadvertent from Russia or from some unidentified source (release by aquarists). So far, this haplogroup has been found only in the Daugava basin in Latvia. (2) East-European haplogroup that may originate from an unintentional introduction to the Volga basin in Russia and has expanded westward. So far, this group was recorded in the Volga, Upper Dnieper and Neman drainages in Belarus, Lithuania, and Russia. (3) Carpathian haplogroup, that originated from individuals unintentionally introduced with Asian cyprinid fishes to Lviv region in Ukraine and are now widely distributed in Central Europe.