BACKGROUND Orthodontic retention is the most important factor after successful orthodontic treatment. The use of thermoplastic retainers has increased in recent years, but information is lacking about the product materials and orthodontists' awareness of the products they use. The aim of this survey was to map the retention protocols among Scandinavian orthodontists, particularly their use of thermoplastic retainers. Furthermore, the aim was to investigate their knowledge of thermoplastic materials and record any possible adverse effects. METHODS An online questionnaire was prepared, and 667 orthodontists in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark were invited to take the survey. The survey was sent to all members of the national orthodontic associations using Nettskjema in Norway and Microsoft Forms in Sweden and Denmark. Data were collected anonymously and analyzed using chi-square and correlation coefficients. RESULTS Of the 667 orthodontists, 432 (64%) responded (59% female). The most common retention protocol (51%) was fixed retainer in both maxilla and mandible and thermoplastic retainer in the maxilla. Two-thirds of the orthodontists were unaware of the thermoplastic material used, and 58% did not acquire knowledge of the materials. Only 1% of the respondents had registered adverse reactions to thermoplastic retainers, and none were aware of the type of material that was used. CONCLUSIONS Scandinavian orthodontists use similar retention protocols, with the most common being fixed retainer in the mandible and dual retention, fixed, and thermoplastic retainer in the maxilla. Orthodontists' knowledge about thermoplastic materials was insufficient, but adverse effects related to thermoplastic retainer use were rare.

Rapid population growth requires more intense production of food industry, with two major consequences: significant amount of food processing residues and more sewage sludge originating from biological wastewater treatment plant. Sludge is a big concern for the disposal for wastewater treatment plant. The European Union makes an effort regarding the reduction of organic fractions disposed at a landfill. Composting is a cost-effective and ecological-friendly alternative for managing biodegradable organic fractions. Experiments of co-composting of sewage sludge, green waste and food waste, at carbon/nitrogen ratios 8.75, 18.00 and 24.90, were performed during three months by monitoring temperature, pH, moisture, carbon and nitrogen proportion, carbon/nitrogen ratio, and germination index. The results showed that co-composting of sewage sludge, green waste, and food waste is effective and results in the production of quality compost.

Introduction Hyperprolactinemia is a common unwanted antipsychotic-induced adverse effect, particularly in female patients, and can induce poor adherence to treatment. Aripiprazole is an antipsychotic with partial agonist activity over the dopamine D2 receptors which can be effective in reducing hyperprolactinemia in patients treated with antipsychotics. Objectives We investigate the efficacy of adjunctive treatment with aripiprazole for olanzapine-induced hyperprolactinemia and related hormonal side effects (amenorrhea, oligomenorrhea) in female patients with schizophrenia. Methods Eight female patients (22 to 40 years old) participated in this study with a diagnosis of schizophrenia and hyperprolactinemia-related hormonal side effects (amenorrhea, oligomenorrhea). Patients were treated with aripiprazole 10 mg/day added to a fixed olanzapine dose of 20 mg/day. Serum prolactin levels were measured at baseline and after 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks. Symptoms and side effects were assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, Clinical Global Impressions Severity scale, Barnes Akathisia Scale. Results Adjunctive treatment with aripiprazole resulted in significantly lower prolactin levels beginning at week 2. 87.5 % of patients at week 8 had prolactin levels normalize. Among 8 patients with menstrual disturbances, 75% of patients regained menstruation during the study. No significant changes were observed regarding psychopathology and adverse effect ratings. Conclusions Adjunctive aripiprazole treatment is effective for resolving olanzapine-induced hyperprolactinemia and reinstatement of menstruation in female patients, provides significant improvement and it appears to be safe with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome, without increased risk of adverse effects. Disclosure No significant relationships.

Abstract This paper presents the findings of a study on digital maturity in higher education institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Empirical research was conducted in 2020. Teachers from eight public higher education institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina were included in the sample. The findings revealed that digital transformation has been ongoing in these institutions for some time, that some results have been achieved, but that digital maturity has not yet been attained. The findings also revealed barriers that must be overcome in order to accelerate digitalization and reap the anticipated benefits.

Field maple (Acer campestre L.) is naturally distributed in most of Europe, with the exception of its northern parts. Field maple can serve as a valuable model for researching the sensitivity of its populations to habitat fragmentation, considering lack of silvicultural treatments in its stands. The research aims to determine interpopulation and intrapopulation variability of field maple populations from Bosnia and Herzegovina in the nursery test. The authors researched measured root collar diameter, height, observed forkness and calculated slenderness coefficient of the one-year-old generative material from 18 Bosnian-Herzegovinian populations of field maple, produced in the nursery of Žepče. The descriptive statistics and variance analysis was performed. All analyzed traits showed a high degree of intra-population as well as interpopulation variability, as confirmed by the analysis of variance. The highest average height had provenance Bosanski Brod (46.08 cm) and the smallest Bosanska Dubica (19.11 cm). Kreševo provenance had the highest average root neck diameter (8.27 mm) and Bosanska Dubica (5.24 mm) the lowest. A very low percentage of forkness (6.86%) was determined, and the values of the slenderness coefficient were acceptable for all provenances. The results indicate need for further systematic research on this ecologically valuable species.

Although fluorides are essential for dental health, there are growing health concerns regarding the risk-benefit ratio of fluoride exposure. The objectives of the study were to obtain data on the amount and human health risks of fluoride in drinking groundwater, as well as to compare and evaluate the differences in the outputs obtained by two different approaches in health risk assessment (deterministic vs probabilistic). From a densely populated industrial area of northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, a total of 54 groundwater samples were collected. Fluoride concentrations varied from 1.69 to 3.52 mg/L. The WHO’s threshold value for fluoride in drinking water was exceeded in all the samples analysed, indicating an increased daily intake of fluoride from groundwater. Deterministic and semi-probabilistic techniques were used for exposure assessment and health risk quantification. Generally, the deterministic approach resulted in acceptable health risks in most adult exposure scenarios. However, the Monte Carlo simulation revealed that 20.6, 20.8, and 99.8% of adult males, females, and children, respectively, were above the tolerable upper intake level, indicating that both adults and children face a significant health risk. Nevertheless, small children are more vulnerable to environmental hazards than youth and adults. Hence, a more in-depth risk-benefit analysis is required to reduce/or optimize fluoride content in drinking water to prevent tooth decay and fluorosis at all ages. Considering that optimal daily intake of fluorides is a crucial factor for preserving human health, decision-makers should take steps to emphasize the importance of continuous monitoring of fluoride concentrations in drinking water.

Aim To investigate the influence of specific intrapopulation genetic structures on interpopulation relationships. Special focus was the influence of island population isolation on the substructuring of the Croatian population, and the influence of regional population groups on the substructuring of Southeast European populations. Methods Autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) loci were analyzed by using four forensic parameters: matching probability (PM), power of discrimination (PD), power of exclusion (PE), and polymorphic information content (PIC) on a sample of 2877 unrelated participants of both sexes. A sample set comprising 590 participants was analyzed for the first time, and 2287 participants were included from previous studies. The analysis was performed with PowerStats v. 1.2. Results The analysis of forensic parameters for all nine loci in the Croatian subpopulations showed the largest deviations in the populations of the islands of Korčula and Hvar. The smallest deviations were found in the mainland population. As for Southeast European populations, the largest deviations were found in the population of North Macedonia, followed by Romania, Albanians from Kosovo, and Montenegro, while the smallest deviations were found in the population of Hungary. Conclusion The comparison of forensic parameters between different subpopulations of Croatia and Southeast Europe indicates that the isolation of individual Croatian subpopulations and rare alleles in their gene pool affect the values of forensic parameters. Specific features of (sub)populations should be taken into account for appropriate sampling of the total population when creating a DNA database of STR markers.

Aim To use the method of meta-analysis to assess the influence of island population isolation on the sub-structuring of the Croatian population, as well as the influence of regional population groups on the sub-structuring of the Southeastern European population with regard to basic population genetic statistical parameters calculated by using STR locus analysis. Methods Bio-statistical analyses were performed for 2877 unrelated participants of both sexes from Southeastern Europe. Nine autosomal STR loci (D3S1358, vWA, FGA, TH01, TPOX, CSF1PO, D5S818, D13S317, and D7S82) were analyzed by using standard F-statistics and population structure analysis (Structure software). Results Genetic differentiation of Croatian subpopulations assessed with the FST method was higher at the level of the Croatian population (0.005) than at the level of Southeastern Europe (0.002). The island of Vis showed the most pronounced separation in the Croatian population, and Albanians from Kosovo in the population of Southeast Europe, followed by Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Hungary. Conclusion The higher structure of Croatian subpopulations in relation to Southeastern Europe suggest a certain degree of genetic isolation, most likely due to the influence of endogamy within rural island populations.

Using recent advancements in high-performance computing data assimilation to combine satellite InSAR data with numerical models, the prolonged unrest of the Sierra Negra volcano in the Galápagos was tracked to provide a fortuitous, but successful, forecast 5 months in advance of the 26 June 2018 eruption. Subsequent numerical simulations reveal that the evolution of the stress state in the host rock surrounding the Sierra Negra magma system likely controlled eruption timing. While changes in magma reservoir pressure remained modest (<15 MPa), modeled widespread Mohr-Coulomb failure is coincident with the timing of the 26 June 2018 moment magnitude 5.4 earthquake and subsequent eruption. Coulomb stress transfer models suggest that the faulting event triggered the 2018 eruption by encouraging tensile failure along the northern portion of the caldera. These findings provide a critical framework for understanding Sierra Negra’s eruption cycles and evaluating the potential and timing of future eruptions.

Background The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes a respiratory illness named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is one of the main global health problems since 2019. Glycans attached to the Fc portion of immunoglobulin G (IgG) are important modulators of IgG effector functions. Fc region binds to different receptors on the surface of various immune cells, dictating the type of immune response. Here, we performed a large longitudinal study to determine whether the severity and duration of COVID-19 are associated with altered IgG glycosylation. Methods Using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography analysis of released glycans, we analysed the composition of the total IgG N-glycome longitudinally during COVID-19 from four independent cohorts. We analysed 77 severe COVID-19 cases from the HR1 cohort (74% males, median age 72, age IQR 25-80); 31 severe cases in the HR2 cohort (77% males, median age 64, age IQR 41-86), 18 mild COVID-19 cases from the UK cohort (17% males, median age 50, age IQR 26-71) and 28 mild cases from the BiH cohort (71% males, median age 60, age IQR 12-78). Findings Multiple statistically significant changes in IgG glycome composition were observed during severe COVID-19. The most statistically significant changes included increased agalactosylation of IgG (meta-analysis 95% CI [0.03, 0.07], adjusted meta-analysis P= <0.0001), which regulates proinflammatory actions of IgG via complement system activation and indirectly as a lack of sialylation and decreased presence of bisecting N-acetylglucosamine on IgG (meta-analysis 95% CI [-0.11, -0.08], adjusted meta-analysis P= <0.0001), which indirectly affects antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity. On the contrary, no statistically significant changes in IgG glycome composition were observed in patients with mild COVID-19. Interpretation The IgG glycome in severe COVID-19 patients is statistically significantly altered in a way that it indicates decreased immunosuppressive action of circulating immunoglobulins. The magnitude of observed changes is associated with the severity of the disease, indicating that aberrant IgG glycome composition or changes in IgG glycosylation may be an important molecular mechanism in COVID-19. Funding This work has been supported in part by Croatian Science Foundation under the project IP-CORONA-2020-04-2052 and Croatian National Centre of Competence in Molecular Diagnostics (The European Structural and Investment Funds grant #KK.01.2.2.03.0006), by the UKRI/MRC (Cov-0331 - MR/V027883/1) and by the National Institutes for Health Research Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre and by Ministry Of Science, Higher Education and Youth Of Canton Sarajevo, grant number 27-02-11-4375-10/21.