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Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a hereditary blood disorder characterized by abnormal hemoglobin, leading to the sickle shape of red blood cells. It has several vascular complications and the cerebrovascular ones are among the most frequent and severe both in children and in adults. This review summarizes the main neurovascular manifestations of SCD, including acute stroke, silent cerebral infarction, large-vessel diseases (moyamoya arteriopathy and aneurysms), and brain bleeding. Both epidemiology, pathophysiology, and treatment issues are addressed and prevention of cerebrovascular events, including silent cerebral infarctions, is particularly relevant in SCD patients, being associated to poor functional outcome and cognitive complaints. Transfusions and hydroxyurea are the main available therapy at the moment, but contraindications, availability, and complications might prevent their long term use, particularly in low-income countries. The role of transcranial Doppler in monitoring the patients (mainly children) is analyzed and a practical approach has been selected in order to give the main messages from the current literature for a better management of SCD patients.

A new geological map representing the southern leading edge of Central High Atlas (Toundoute, South Morocco) updates the stratigraphic architecture of a Lower Jurassic-Cretaceous succession including marine carbonates and terrestrial clastics. Integrated facies and structural analyses outline a marked syn-tectonic control on depositional patterns since the Early Jurassic, as documented by geological maps of adjacent sectors of the Central High Atlas southern flank recently published on Journal of Maps. This incipient diffuse crustal uplift and denudation attests to a pre-collisional stage in the development of the Central High Atlas mountains.

Our second interviewee for this special issue is Professor is Cecilia Åsberg, a leading figure in Feminist STS. She is a professor at the Department of Thematic Studies (TEMA) at Linköping University (https://liu.se/en/organisation/liu/tema) and the founder of the Posthumanities Hub (https://posthumanitieshub.net). Her research revolves around the natural or non-human as opposed to the human, in a world shaped by technoscience and environmental change. Her career narrative was incredibly engaging, prompting us to collaborate with her on editing the interview to give it a more cohesive and speech-like flow. Our pleasant one-hour conversation revolved around the themes of Feminist STS in the Nordics and academia as a community.

The Nordic Journal of Science and Technology (NJSTS) celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2023, have used the occasion to direct attention toward young scholars in STS and bring in reflections about how STS is changing as a field.

Abstract Ethylene and ethylene oxide are widely used in the chemical industry, and ethylene is also important for its role in fruit ripening. Better sensing systems would assist risk management of these chemicals. Here, we characterise the ethylene regulatory system in Mycobacterium strain NBB4 and use these genetic parts to create a biosensor. The regulatory genes etnR1 and etnR2 and cognate promoter Petn were combined with a fluorescent reporter gene (fuGFP) in a Mycobacterium shuttle vector to create plasmid pUS301‐EtnR12P. Cultures of M. smegmatis mc2‐155(pUS301‐EtnR12P) gave a fluorescent signal in response to ethylene oxide with a detection limit of 0.2 μM (9 ppb). By combining the epoxide biosensor cells with another culture expressing the ethylene monooxygenase, the system was converted into an ethylene biosensor. The co‐culture was capable of detecting ethylene emission from banana fruit. These are the first examples of whole‐cell biosensors for epoxides or aliphatic alkenes. This work also resolves long‐standing questions concerning the regulation of ethylene catabolism in bacteria.

ABSTRACT Purpose To analyze the learning curve regarding complication rates of transrectal prostate biopsy (TRPB) versus transperineal prostate biopsy (TPPB), using real time software-based magnetic resonance imaging ultrasound (MRI-US) fusion techniques, along with first year experience of transperineal approach. Materials and Methods retrospective unicentric cohort study at a quaternary care hospital. Medical records of all consecutive patients that underwent TPPB between March 2021 and February 2022, after the introduction of MRI-US fusion device, and those who underwent TRPB throughout the entire years of 2019 and 2020 were analyzed. All complications that occurred as consequences of the procedure were considered. Descriptive statistics, Chi-squared and Fisher tests were used to describe complications and compare the two groups. Results A total of 283 patients were included in the transperineal group and 513 in the transrectal group. The analysis of a learning curve for the transperineal method showed lower complications rates comparing the first six months of TPPB procedures (group 1); The complication rate for TPPB was lower than that of TRPB (55.1% versus 81.9%, respectively; p

The prevalence of elevated reinforced concrete tanks is widespread across Italian water distribution networks, particularly in flat or low-relief areas. Primarily constructed by the late 1970s, these tanks often suffer from outdated hydraulic efficiency, unable to cope with the increasing urban water demands. With rising construction costs, the economic advantage has shifted toward underground tanks, leading to the decommissioning of many elevated tanks. Despite being obsolete, elevated tanks from the 1960s and 1970s still stand in densely urbanized regions. However, demolishing them may prove less cost-effective than retrofitting to restore their original structural capacity. The widespread presence of these structures, coupled with their susceptibility to decay from weathering and poor maintenance, necessitates a comprehensive assessment of their resilience against gravitational and lateral forces, including seismic activity. Consequently, there is a pressing need to develop an analysis and verification methodology, particularly focused on seismic resilience, tailored to existing elevated tanks. These structures, distinct from conventional reinforced concrete frames, are primarily designed to withstand vertical forces, emphasizing the importance of optimizing material usage in their retrofitting efforts.

Abstract This study aims to describe a case series of patients who underwent thoracic duct embolization (TDE) to treat traumatic iatrogenic chylothorax (TIC). Three patients were included: Case #1, a 49-year-old woman with follicular lymphoma developed a TIC following video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery to resect a solid right paravertebral mass and was treated with TDE using microcoils and N-butyl cyanoacrylate (NBCA) glue. Case #2, a 68-year-old man with cardiac amyloidosis developed a TIC following heart transplantation and was treated with TDE using microcoils and ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer. Case#3: A 6-year-old patient with congenital heart disease developed a TIC following a Fontan procedure and was treated with TDE using NBCA glue. All lesions were identified during lymphangiography and TDE was successfully performed in all cases. TDE is a safe and valuable technique that provides minimally invasive treatment for TCI.

Primary Angiitis of the Central Nervous System (PACNS) is a rare disease and its diagnosis is a challenge for several reasons, including the lack of specificity of the main findings highlighted in the current diagnostic criteria. Among the neuroimaging pattern of PACNS, a tumefactive form (t-PACNS) is a rare subtype and its differential diagnosis mainly relies on neuroimaging. Tumor-like mass lesions in the brain are a heterogeneous category including tumors (in particular, primary brain tumors such as glial tumors and lymphoma), inflammatory (e.g., t-PACNS, tumefactive demyelinating lesions, and neurosarcoidosis), and infectious diseases (e.g., neurotoxoplasmosis). In this review, the main features of t-PACNS are addressed and the main differential diagnoses from a neuroimaging perspective (mainly Magnetic Resonance Imaging—MRI—techniques) are described, including conventional and advanced MRI.

Primary Angiitis of the Central Nervous System (PACNS) is a rare cerebrovascular disease involving the arteries of the leptomeninges, brain and spinal cord. Its diagnosis can be challenging, and the current diagnostic criteria show several limitations. Among the clinical and neuroimaging manifestations of PACNS, intracranial bleeding, particularly intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), is poorly described in the available literature, and it is considered infrequent. This review aims to summarize the available data addressing this issue with a dedicated focus on the clinical, neuroradiological and neuropathological perspectives. Moreover, the limitations of the actual data and the unanswered questions about hemorrhagic PACNS are addressed from a double point of view (PACNS subtyping and ICH etiology). Fewer than 20% of patients diagnosed as PACNS had an ICH during the course of the disease, and in cases where ICH was reported, it usually did not occur at presentation. As trigger factors, both sympathomimetic drugs and illicit drugs have been proposed, under the hypothesis of an inflammatory response due to vasoconstriction in the distal cerebral arteries. Most neuroradiological descriptions documented a lobar location, and both the large-vessel PACNS (LV-PACNS) and small-vessel PACNS (SV-PACNS) subtypes might be the underlying associated phenotypes. Surprisingly, amyloid beta deposition was not associated with ICH when histopathology was available. Moreover, PACNS is not explicitly included in the etiological classification of spontaneous ICH. This issue has received little attention in the past, and it could be addressed in future prospective studies.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are promising next-generation antibiotics, but are difficult to produce due to the toxicity to bacterial hosts. Here, the authors report the utilization of transplastomic tobacco plants for AMPs production without cytotoxic effects via inducible expression systems and fusions to cleavable carrier protein.

The amygdala facilitates memory encoding in the hippocampus. Here the authors show, using simultaneous intracranial recordings from these regions, that emotional memory encoding is mediated by the amygdala theta phase to which hippocampal gamma activity and neuronal firing is coupled.

Background: Mentalization is the ability to use internal mental states to manage and understand one’s own and others’ behavior. Inefficient mentalization has been associated to poor neuropsychological outcomes, including substance use disorder (SUD) and addiction. However, studies primarily investigating mentalization in SUD are lacking. Methods: Using the Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (RFQ), the Measurements in the Addictions for Triage and Evaluation, version 2.1 (MATE-IT-2.1), and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, 7th edition (MINI-7), an outpatient assessment investigated inefficient mentalization (i.e., ‘hypo-mentalization’ or ‘uncertainty’: concrete thinking with poor attribution of mental states; ‘hyper-mentalization’ or ‘certainty’: rigid and biased attribution of mental states) and socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, including SUD-related symptoms and any other psychiatric comorbidity, among opioid addiction (OA) patients in Opioid Agonist Treatment (OAT). Results: Thirty-seven consecutive OA patients in OAT (female, 45.9 %; age, M ± SD, 24.3 ± 3.55) were recruited. Patients’ mentalization differed from normative data, in terms of higher uncertainty and lower certainty scores. Also, higher uncertainty score was found among younger patients and in those with the most severe SUD in terms of craving and need for care. Finally, lower certainty score was found in those with a more severe substance abuse, previous contacts with pediatric mental-health services, and receiving a therapeutic community support. Conclusions: OA patients with inefficient mentalization present with a higher burden in terms of SUD severity, comorbidities, psychosocial disabilities, and service use, with important public health implications. Interventions targeting mentalization may have positive repercussions in preventing SUD, mitigating its severity, and containing its healthcare and social costs.

Treatment of refractory autoimmune cytopenias (AICs) and Evans syndrome (ES) represent a great challenge in pediatric setting, where an underlying primary immunodeficiency is recurrent. Frequently, second or third line treatments are employed, with an increased risk of toxicity and infections. The advent of novel drugs is the object of research in order to modify the management of these patients. We report a case of successful use of bortezomib in a child with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome and CVID-like phenotype with a multi-refractory severe ES. Last flares were prolonged and dominated by severe and symptomatic ITP, refractory to different courses of high dose steroid and IVIG, mofetil mycophenolate, thrombopoietin receptor agonists, sirolimus, and rituximab. Persistence of AICs in subjects with depletion of CD20 + B-cells and IgG strengthens the hypothesis about the production of autoantibodies by terminally differentiated plasma-cells, not targetable from immunosuppressants and rituximab. In the attempt to enhance plasma-cells inhibition, the child was addressed to bortezomib, with a good response at 6 month follow-up without side effects. Nowadays, the use of bortezomib in ES/AICs is based only on small retrospective studies and case reports. Despite the lack of long term follow-up, our work highlights the potential role of bortezomib in the management of pediatric patients with multi-resistant AICs secondary to immune-system impairment.