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In this study, we investigate the phylogeographic patterns of Dolichophis species in the Aegean region, aiming to elucidate their genetic diversity and putative historical colonisation routes through mitochondrial and nuclear DNA data. Our findings revealed distinct phylogeographic patterns: D. caspius exhibited a higher level of haplotypes within two shallow mitochondrial lineages, contrasting with D. jugularis, which displayed lower genetic variability in the area. Additionally, we identified evidence showing possible human-mediated historical translocation of D. caspius populations to Karpathos from the Balkans mainland. The mitochondrial variability in D. jugularis remained relatively uniform across southwestern Anatolia and Dodecanese, except for Rhodes Island. The evidence from mitochondrial and nuclear data confirming the previously described morphological differentiation of the Rhodes snakes, and thus the name D. j. zinneri Cattaneo, 2012, described on the island, could be applied to this isolated population. This result addresses the first genetic view on the long-standing taxonomic uncertainties regarding the subspecies status of Rhodes D. jugularis. Our results also raise questions regarding possible historical hybridisations between D. caspius and D. jugularis in the Dodecanese islands, prompting the need for further investigation using extensive field studies and genomic approaches. Ultimately, the Aegean islands, particularly Kos and Rhodes, seem to be important sites for the evolution of these colubrid snakes and their historical dynamics.

The extent and effectiveness of digitalization are influenced by a variety of factors, which are worth studying both separately and together, looking at how they affect each other. Typically, researched aspects in the context of education are institutional support, teachers’ beliefs about using digital tools, digital competence in teaching, technostress, self-efficacy, and the extent of digital tool use. The present study aims to center around the final aspect. It examines the separate influencing factors of information and communications technology (hereafter, ICT) use within a complex model, with the help of partial least squares structural equation modeling. The study was based on a survey of university lecturers (n = 116) at a university in Hungary that has six different training locations and five faculties. It was conducted by using an online questionnaire. To summarize the identified correlations, it can be concluded that digital competence in teaching, collegial support, ICT self-efficacy and ICT perception play a significant role in the use of technology. The effects detailed in the results can contribute to the effective digitalization of higher education institutions in several practical ways.

Background: Chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) is associated with high rates of long-term cardiovascular mortality. Exercise stress testing to detect obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) can be difficult in this subset of patients due to inability to undergo exercise testing, presence of balanced ischemia and severe coronary artery calcification (CAC). Aim: To test the feasibility of regadenoson stress dynamic perfusion computed tomography (DPCT) in CLTI patients. Methods: Between 2018 and 2023, coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) and, in the case of a calcium score higher than 400, DPCT, were performed in 25 CLTI patients with a history of endovascular revascularization. Results: Of the 25 patients, 19 had a calcium score higher than 400, requiring DPCT image acquisition. Obstructive CAD could be ruled out in 10 of the 25 patients. Of the 15 CTA/DPCT+ patients, 13 proceeded to coronary angiography (CAG). Revascularization was necessary in all 13 patients. In these 13 patients, vessel-based sensitivity and specificity of coronary CTA/DPCT as compared to invasive evaluation was 75%, respectively. At follow-up (27 ± 21 months) there was no statistically significant difference in all-cause mortality between CTA/DPCT- positive and -negative patients (p = 0.065). Conclusions: Despite a high prevalence of severe CAC, coronary CTA complemented by DPCT may be a feasible method to detect obstructive and functionally significant CAD in CLTI patients.

Through this paper, we will provide a brief overview of the 3D virtual library project and a more detailed review of its current application for English language learning. The implementation of the library project makes use of the innovative 3D presentation features of the MaxWhere Seminar System. As an innovative application of the project, we compiled a bilingual learning material for Hungarian students to improve their language skills and competence in English at an advanced level. The complex structure and organization of the learning material is based partially on the hypertextual relationships between entries of selected keywords containing various contexts from different works of world literature. We developed the learning material taking into careful consideration the appropriate characteristics of the hyperlink structure. Our basic hypothesis was that if the bilingual learning material is organized as a more or less scale-free network of interconnected nodes, this might or would result in an optimized and efficient knowledge transfer in the learning process. After the first version of the material had been completed, we wanted to evaluate the overall difficulty of the material. As such, we were using the Google Translate (GT) service to check the proper understanding of a set of selected English language phrases and sentences through their Hungarian translations provided by GT. As a result, we created a more or less scale-free learning material whose linguistic content has been properly checked.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is accompanied by inflammation and fibrosis to variable extent. The biomarkers of fibrosis were measured in patients with different forms of AF and cardiac status. Herein, we assessed the associations of the baseline concentrations of different biomarkers with the long-term success of pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in patients with a structurally normal heart. Furthermore, we compared biomarker levels before and 3 years after ablation to gain further insights into the AF mechanism. Methods: Patients, undergoing PVI for paroxysmal/persistent AF were enrolled prospectively. Blood samples were obtained 24 hours before and 3 years after ablation. Serum cancer antigen 125 (CA-125), plasma Caspase-3, Galectin-3 and Cathepsin L concentrations were measured. Follow-up visits every 6 months included 12-lead electrocardiogram, 24-hour Holter, trans-telephonic monitoring as well as transthoracic echocardiography after ablation. Biomarker levels, left ventricular ejection fraction and left atrial (LA) diameters at baseline and at the 3-year follow-up were compared in patients with versus without AF recurrence. Results: A total of 63 patients were enrolled (23 women; age 61.4 (± 8.8) years). The acute isolation of all pulmonary veins was achieved in all patients. During a mean follow-up of 36.3 ± 6.3 months, AF recurrence was demonstrated in 26 (41.3%) patients. No significant differences were demonstrated in the levels of CA-125, Galectin-3, Caspase-3 and Cathepsin L pre- and post-ablation in patients with versus without AF recurrence. A significant decrease was detected in the concentrations of Caspase-3, Galectin-3 and Cathepsin L during follow-up with no difference in patients with versus without AF recurrence. A positive correlation was found between Caspase-3 levels and LA diameters in the AF recurrence group both before (r = 0.477; p = 0.018) and after the procedure (r = 0.533; p = 0.019). Conclusions: Our results demonstrated that the levels of CA-125, Caspase-3, Cathepsin L and Galectin-3 are not associated with AF recurrence after PVI in patients with a structurally normal heart and mainly paroxysmal AF. Except for CA-125, all the other biomarkers demonstrated a significant decrease during a 3-year follow-up post-ablation. Furthermore, Caspase-3 levels demonstrated a positive correlation with LA dimensions in patients with AF recurrence.

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Introduction Catenin alpha 2 gene (CTNNA2) is important in the stability of hippocampal synapses and also in brain development. Our recent paper (Eszlari et al, Pharmaceuticals 2021, 14, 850) has demonstrated that rumination on sad mood mediates the association of CTNNA2 only towards psychiatric symptoms, but not towards cardiovascular risk phenotypes. Objectives Our present aim was to test the moderating role of rumination and its two subtypes, brooding and reflection, in genetic associations between CTNNA2 and the same cardiovascular risk phenotypes. Methods 633 unrelated subjects from the Budakalasz Health Examination Survey with non-missing phenotypic data, and 160 single-nucleotide CTNNA2 variants remaining after quality control, were included. Linear regression models were run in Plink 1.9 for separate outcomes of body mass index (BMI), and Framingham risk scores for cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, and stroke. With each variant, predictors were the variant, rumination or its subtype, the variant x rumination interaction, sex, age, and the top ten principal components of the genome. 100,000 label-swapping max(T) permutation was applied for the interaction term within each analysis. Results While no significant interaction term survived the familywise permutation, two trends emerged. Namely, BMI seems to have positive association with rumination and its maladaptive brooding subtype only in case of GG genotype of rs13412541, otherwise no association can be detected. Conclusions Although replication is needed in larger samples, the relationship between rumination and BMI, conditional on CTNNA2 genotype, can be important in atypical depression, thus may contribute to stratification of depressed patients. Disclosure The study was supported by the New National Excellence Program of the Ministry for Innovation and Technology from the source of the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund (ÚNKP-21-4-II-SE-1); and by 2019-2.1.7-ERA-NET-2020-00005.

Hazánkban, csakúgy, mint a fejlődő országok többségében, a megjelenő civilizációs betegségek nem csupán egyéni költségekként, hanem a társadalombiztosítási kiadások révén nemzetgazdasági kiadási oldalról is nagy értékben realizálhatóak. A civilizációs betegségek elterjedésének fő rizikófaktorai között a nem megfelelő élelmiszerfogyasztás, a fizikai aktivitás hiánya és a genetikai adottságok is megjelennek. Jelen kutatás témája az egészségvédő élelmiszerek szerepe a mindennapi táplálkozásban és a lakosság élelmiszer vásárlásában, amely a fent leírtaknak megfelelően aktuális kérdésekkel és problémafelvetésekkel foglalkozik.

Atractaspidines are poorly studied, fossorial snakes that are found throughout Africa and western Asia, including the Middle East. We employed concatenated gene-tree analyses and divergence dating approaches to investigate evolutionary relationships and biogeographic patterns of atractaspidines with a multi-locus data set consisting of three mitochondrial (16S, cyt b, and ND4) and two nuclear genes (c-mos and RAG1). We sampled 91 individuals from both atractaspidine genera (Atractaspis and Homoroselaps). Additionally, we used ancestral-state reconstructions to investigate fang and diet evolution within Atractaspidinae and its sister lineage (Aparallactinae). Our results indicated that current classification of atractaspidines underestimates diversity within the group. Diversification occurred predominantly between the Miocene and Pliocene. Ancestral-state reconstructions suggest that snake dentition in these taxa might be highly plastic within relatively short periods of time to facilitate adaptations to dynamic foraging and life-history strategies.

The traditional 'offline' data sources, which can be used to measure the size of the migrant social group can not be timely and reliable at the same time. These data sources can be combined well with their 'online' counterparts, which are not originally collected for research purposes but as they result from social interactions in the digital space can be accessed also for the researchers. The online data that is generated through the use of social media portals is easily accessible, timely, has a high level of disaggregation and has a wide coverage due to the extent of social media portals. In our study, we use an example to show how combining these two data sources can produce a realtime estimate of the number of Hungarian women living in Austria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]