OBJECTIVE Real-life management of hypertensive patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is unclear. METHODS A survey was conducted in 2023 by the European Society of Hypertension (ESH) to assess management of CKD patients referred to ESH-Hypertension Excellence Centres (ESH-ECs) at first referral visit. The questionnaire contained 64 questions with which ESH-ECs representatives were asked to estimate preexisting CKD management quality. RESULTS Overall, 88 ESH-ECs from 27 countries participated (fully completed surveys: 66/88 [75.0%]). ESH-ECs reported that 28% (median, interquartile range: 15-50%) had preexisting CKD, with 10% of them (5-30%) previously referred to a nephrologist, while 30% (15-40%) had resistant hypertension. The reported rate of previous recent (<6 months) estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urine albumin-creatinine ratio (UACR) testing were 80% (50-95%) and 30% (15-50%), respectively. The reported use of renin-angiotensin system blockers was 80% (70-90%). When a nephrologist was part of the ESH-EC teams the reported rates SGLT2 inhibitors (27.5% [20-40%] vs. 15% [10-25], P = 0.003), GLP1-RA (10% [10-20%] vs. 5% [5-10%], P = 0.003) and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (20% [10-30%] vs. 15% [10-20%], P = 0.05) use were greater as compared to ESH-ECs without nephrologist participation. The rate of reported resistant hypertension, recent eGFR and UACR results and management of CKD patients prior to referral varied widely across countries. CONCLUSIONS Our estimation indicates deficits regarding CKD screening, use of nephroprotective drugs and referral to nephrologists before referral to ESH-ECs but results varied widely across countries. This information can be used to build specific programs to improve care in hypertensives with CKD.

The start-up sector in Romania, particularly in the North-West Development Region (NW), is experiencing rapid growth and driving innovation and economic development. Understanding this sector and its connection to Research and Development (R&D) is vital for regional progress. The NW Region has become a prominent hub for start-up activity in Romania. Examining the start-up sector in these regions is essential as it contributes significantly to economic growth. Start-ups introduce disruptive technologies, create new market opportunities, and promote regional diversification. The impact of the R&D sector on economic growth cannot be underestimated. R&D activities drive innovation, laying the groundwork for the emergence and success of start-ups. Investing in R&D fosters knowledge creation, technological advancements, and intellectual property, which are crucial for entrepreneurial ventures. By understanding the interplay between start-ups and the R&D sector, stakeholders can develop targeted strategies for fostering innovation-driven economic growth. This article aims to provide valuable insights into the start-up sector in Romania's NW Region, its relationship with R&D, and the connection between total expenditure on R&D and economic growth in both Romania and the NW Region.

Bidirectional communication between pathogenic microbes and their plant hosts via small (s)RNA-mediated cross-kingdom RNA interference (ckRNAi) is one key element for successful host colonisation. However, whether mutualistic fungi from the Serendipitaceae family, known for their extremely broad host range, employ sRNAs to colonize plant roots is still under discussion. To address this question, we developed a pipeline to validate the accumulation, translocation, and activity of fungal sRNAs in post-transcriptional silencing of Arabidopsis thaliana genes. Using stem-loop PCR, we detected the expression of a specific set of Serendipita indica (Si)sRNAs, targeting host genes involved in cell wall organization, hormonal signalling regulation, immunity, and gene regulation. To confirm the gene silencing activity of these sRNA in plant cells, SisRNAs were transiently expressed in protoplasts. Stem-loop PCR proved the expression of sRNAs, while qPCR validated post-transcriptional gene silencing of their predicted target genes. Furthermore, ARGONAUTE 1 immunoprecipitation (AtAGO1-IP) revealed the loading of fungal SisRNAs into the plant RNAi machinery, suggesting the translocation of SisRNA from the fungus into root cells. In conclusion, this study provides a blueprint for rapid selection and analysis of sRNA effectors in plant-microbe interactions and further suggests cross-kingdom communication in the Sebacinoid symbiosis. Highlight Small RNAs of the beneficial fungus Serendipita indica are translocated and silence Arabidopsis genes at the onset of the interaction, revealing cross-kingdom communication in sebacinoid symbiosis.

The choices made by autonomous robots in social settings bear consequences for humans and their presumptions of robot behavior. Explanations can serve to alleviate detrimental impacts on humans and amplify their comprehension of robot decisions. We model the process of explanation generation for robot navigation as an automated planning problem considering different possible explanation attributes. Our visual and textual explanations of a robot’s navigation are influenced by the robot’s personality. Moreover, they account for different contextual, environmental, and spatial characteristics. We present the results of a user study demonstrating that users are more satisfied with multimodal than unimodal explanations. Additionally, our findings reveal low user satisfaction with explanations of a robot with extreme personality traits. In conclusion, we deliberate on potential future research directions and the associated constraints. Our work advocates for fostering socially adept and safe autonomous robot navigation.

Product design and manufacturing leverage 3D scanning for various applications. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of 3D scanning in furniture production by surveying the literature and showcasing four real-world case studies. The literature review reveals that 3D data acquired from real-world objects have applications in research, rapid prototyping, restoration, and preservation of antique furniture, optimizing CNC machining processes, and measuring furniture components for quality control. The case study descriptions demonstrated the circumstances, rationale, and methodology for 3D scanning. All the case studies analyzed stem from the collaboration between the Laboratory for Product Development and Design at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Sarajevo and various furniture production enterprises from Bosnia and Herzegovina. The conclusions highlight that 3D scanning in the furniture sector is advantageous for developing computer-aided design models from early-stage design prototypes, validating the dimensional accuracy of manufactured components by comparing with CAD models, safeguarding and reconstructing vintage furniture, and remanufacturing formerly produced goods that lack complete technical records (reverse engineering).

Objective. This study develops a deep learning (DL) method for fast auditory attention decoding (AAD) using electroencephalography (EEG) from listeners with hearing impairment (HI). It addresses three classification tasks: differentiating noise from speech-in-noise, classifying the direction of attended speech (left vs. right) and identifying the activation status of hearing aid noise reduction algorithms (OFF vs. ON). These tasks contribute to our understanding of how hearing technology influences auditory processing in the hearing-impaired population. Approach. Deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) models were designed for each task. Two training strategies were employed to clarify the impact of data splitting on AAD tasks: inter-trial, where the testing set used classification windows from trials that the training set had not seen, and intra-trial, where the testing set used unseen classification windows from trials where other segments were seen during training. The models were evaluated on EEG data from 31 participants with HI, listening to competing talkers amidst background noise. Main results. Using 1 s classification windows, DCNN models achieve accuracy (ACC) of 69.8%, 73.3% and 82.9% and area-under-curve (AUC) of 77.2%, 80.6% and 92.1% for the three tasks respectively on inter-trial strategy. In the intra-trial strategy, they achieved ACC of 87.9%, 80.1% and 97.5%, along with AUC of 94.6%, 89.1%, and 99.8%. Our DCNN models show good performance on short 1 s EEG samples, making them suitable for real-world applications. Conclusion: Our DCNN models successfully addressed three tasks with short 1 s EEG windows from participants with HI, showcasing their potential. While the inter-trial strategy demonstrated promise for assessing AAD, the intra-trial approach yielded inflated results, underscoring the important role of proper data splitting in EEG-based AAD tasks. Significance. Our findings showcase the promising potential of EEG-based tools for assessing auditory attention in clinical contexts and advancing hearing technology, while also promoting further exploration of alternative DL architectures and their potential constraints.

This article is linked to Aliu et al papers. To view these articles, visit https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.17988 and https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.18027.

Abstract Introduction Post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL) arises as a dermal complication following a visceral leishmaniasis (VL) infection. Current treatment options for PKDL are unsatisfactory, and there is a knowledge gap regarding the distribution of antileishmanial compounds within human skin. The present study investigated the skin distribution of miltefosine in PKDL patients, with the aim to improve the understanding of the pharmacokinetics at the skin target site in PKDL. Methods Fifty-two PKDL patients underwent treatment with liposomal amphotericin B (20 mg/kg) plus miltefosine (allometric dosing) for 21 days. Plasma concentrations of miltefosine were measured on study days 8, 15, 22 and 30, while a punch skin biopsy was taken on day 22. A physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model was developed to evaluate the distribution of miltefosine into the skin. Results Following the allometric weight-based dosing regimen, median miltefosine concentrations on day 22 were 43.73 µg/g (IQR: 21.94–60.65 µg/g) in skin and 33.29 µg/mL (IQR: 25.9–42.58 µg/mL) in plasma. The median individual concentration ratio of skin to plasma was 1.19 (IQR: 0.79–1.9). In 87% (45/52) of patients, skin exposure was above the suggested EC90 PK target of 10.6 mg/L associated with in vitro susceptibility. Simulations indicated that the residence time of miltefosine in the skin would be more than 2-fold longer than in plasma, estimated by a mean residence time of 604 versus 266 hours, respectively. Conclusion This study provides the first accurate measurements of miltefosine penetration into the skin, demonstrating substantial exposure and prolonged retention of miltefosine within the skin. These findings support the use of miltefosine in cutaneous manifestations of leishmaniasis. In combination with parasitological and clinical data, these results are critical for the future optimization of combination therapies with miltefosine in the treatment of PKDL.

Chromium (Cr) toxicity, even at low concentrations, poses a significant health threat to various environmental species. Cr is found in the environment in two oxidation states that differ in their bioavailability and toxicity. While Cr(III) is essential for glucose metabolism, the oxyanion chromate Cr(VI) is mostly of anthropogenic origin, toxic, and carcinogenic. The sources of Cr in the environment are multiple, including geochemical processes, disposal of industrial waste, and industrial wastewater. Cr pollution may consequently impact the health of numerous plant and animal species. Despite that, the number of published studies on Cr toxicity across environmental species remained mainly unchanged over the past two decades. The presence of Cr in the environment affects several plant physiological processes, including germination or photosynthesis, and consequently impacts growth, and lowers agricultural production and quality. Recent research has also reported the toxic effects of Cr in different aquatic and terrestrial organisms. Whereas some species showed sensitivity, others exhibited tolerance. Hence, this review discusses the understanding of the ecotoxicological effect of Cr on different plant and animal groups and serves as a concise source of consolidated information and a valuable reference for researchers and policymakers in an understanding of Cr toxicity. Future directions should focus on expanding research efforts to understand the mechanisms underlying species-specific responses to Cr pollution.

Anonymous communication networks (ACNs) enable Internet browsing in a way that prevents accessed content from being traced back to the user. This provides a high level of privacy, protecting individuals from being tracked by advertisers, governments, and other entities. The Tor network, a prominent example of such a network, uses a layered encryption scheme to encapsulate data packets, employing Tor nodes to obscure the routing process before the packets enter the public Internet. While Tor is capable of providing substantial privacy, its encryption relies on schemes such as RSA and Diffie-Hellman for distributing symmetric keys, which are vulnerable to quantum computing attacks and are currently in the process of being phased out. To overcome this threat, we propose a quantum resistant alternative to RSA and Diffie-Hellman for distributing symmetric keys, namely, quantum key distribution (QKD). Standard QKD networks depend on trusted nodes to relay keys across long distances. However, reliance on trusted nodes in the quantum network does not meet the criteria necessary for establishing a Tor circuit in the ACN. We address this issue by developing a protocol and network architecture that integrates QKD without the need for trusted nodes, thus meeting the requirements of the Tor network and creating a quantum secure anonymous communication network.

Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) are pivotal for various pathological processes, impacting disease progression. The potential for leveraging ncRNAs to prevent or treat atherosclerosis and associated cardiovascular diseases is of great significance, especially given the increasing prevalence of atherosclerosis in an ageing and sedentary population. Together, these diseases impose a substantial socio-economic burden, demanding innovative therapeutic solutions. This review explores the potential of ncRNAs in atherosclerosis treatment. We commence by examining approaches for identifying and characterizing atherosclerosis-associated ncRNAs. We then delve into the functional aspects of ncRNAs in atherosclerosis development and progression. Additionally, we review current RNA and RNA-targeting molecules in development or under approval for clinical use, offering insights into their pharmacological potential. The importance of improved ncRNA delivery strategies is highlighted. Finally, we suggest avenues for advanced research to accelerate the use of ncRNAs in treating atherosclerosis and mitigating its societal impact.

This document presents a summary of the 2023 Terrestrial Very-Long-Baseline Atom Interferometry Workshop hosted by CERN. The workshop brought together experts from around the world to discuss the exciting developments in large-scale atom interferometer (AI) prototypes and their potential for detecting ultralight dark matter and gravitational waves. The primary objective of the workshop was to lay the groundwork for an international TVLBAI proto-collaboration. This collaboration aims to unite researchers from different institutions to strategize and secure funding for terrestrial large-scale AI projects. The ultimate goal is to create a roadmap detailing the design and technology choices for one or more kilometer--scale detectors, which will be operational in the mid-2030s. The key sections of this report present the physics case and technical challenges, together with a comprehensive overview of the discussions at the workshop together with the main conclusions.

The relationship between the civil and business sectors has intensified in the last few years, including cross-sectoral partnerships as part of corporate social responsibility. The authors examine the impact of these partnerships on the performance of 100 of the largest businesses in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Large companies were chosen because they are most likely to be involved with corporate social responsibility activities and cooperation with civil society organizations. Methodologically, the authors analyzed the effect of these partnerships on business performance using four Balanced Scorecard components - three non-financial and one financial performance. The research results show specific influences on non-financial business performance but not financial performance.