University of Catania

From Reactive Oxygen Species to Organelle Stress and Innate Immunity in Dry Eye Disease

Dry eye disease (DED) is a complex, multifactorial condition in which oxidative stress is increasingly recognized as a recurrent feature of ocular-surface dysfunction and as a signaling hub linking environmental stress, organelle dysfunction, innate immunity, and regulated cell d...

Autophagy in Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumors (PitNETs): Molecular Mechanisms, Secretory Homeostasis, Therapeutic Resistance, and Translational Perspectives

Pituitary neuroendocrine tumors (PitNETs) are usually indolent but may show invasive growth, recurrence, hormonal hypersecretion, and treatment resistance. Autophagy intersects with nutrient sensing, lysosomal homeostasis, mitochondrial quality control, and secretory-granule turn...

Anisotropic variable exponent Sobolev spaces and applications to elliptic equations with critical growth

Abstract We establish critical embeddings for anisotropic Sobolev spaces with variable exponents, resolving, under log-Hölder continuity supplemented by finite Sobolev regularity and a quantitative integrability-gap condition, an open problem raised by Fan. We derive a Poincaré-t...

Network science in sports

Network science has become a central methodological framework for the study of complex systems, with applications across social, biological, and technological domains. Its strength lies in formalizing such systems as collections of interacting units, whose collective behavior dep...

Vital reactions in thermal injury: a forensic review of histological, immunohistochemical and molecular markers

Abstract Distinguishing antemortem from postmortem thermal injury remains one of the most challenging tasks in forensic pathology, particularly in cases involving rapid death, extensive charring, or advanced tissue degradation. Classical macroscopic and histological findings prov...

Effect of switching to combustion-free nicotine delivery systems on salivary c-reactive protein levels in smokers with gingivitis or mild periodontitis: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract Background Smoking is a significant risk factor for periodontal disease and is associated with elevated salivary C-Reactive Protein (CRP), a marker of local inflammation. Combustion-free nicotine delivery systems (CFNDS) reduce exposure to certain combustion-derived toxi...

Porphyrin−Peptide Bioconjugates: Photophysical Properties and Targeted Singlet Oxygen-Mediated Photooxidation of Amyloid-β

Abstract The aberrant self-assembly of amyloid β (Aβ) peptides into toxic oligomers is a central event in Alzheimer’s disease, motivating the development of molecular systems capable of modulating or degrading these species. Porphyrins and porphyrin−peptide bioconjugates have eme...

Genomic insights into diversity, population structure and selection signatures in Sicilian horse breeds

Sicilian horse breeds represent a valuable genetic resource shaped by environmental and selective processes. This study investigated the genetic diversity and population structure of three Sicilian horse breeds: Purosangue Orientale (68–ORI), Sanfratellano (70–SAN) and Cavallo Si...

Boron Monofluoride Complexes Bearing π‐Expanded Coumarin Subunits: Facile Synthesis, Crystal Structure, and Solid‐State Enhanced Emission

Boron-containing compounds have received special interest over the last few years owing to their favorable photophysical characteristics, stimulating their use as fluorescent sensors, in bioimaging and mechanofluorochromic materials. However, their synthesis is often time-consumi...

Assisted Reproductive Technology and Risk of Congenital Heart Defects in the Offspring: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis

Background To date, >10 million children have been conceived via assisted reproductive technology (ART) globally. However, there are some concerns about potential adverse outcomes associated with ART‐conceived pregnancies, including the risk of congenital heart defects (CHDs). Th...

A revision of the Nearctic species of Brachygluta Thomson, 1859 (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae)

The North American species of Brachygluta Thomson, 1859 are revised, treating a total of 29 species. Six names are placed as junior synonyms: Bryaxis perpunctata Brendel, 1890 (=B. luniger LeConte, 1849), B. labyrinthea Casey, 1894 (=B. intermedia Brendel, 1866), B. loripes Casey...

Organizing healthcare delivery in the era of disease-modifying therapies for Alzheimer’s Disease: an Italian RAND/UCLA consensus

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer's disease (AD) poses a growing clinical and organizational challenge, requiring coordinated, multidisciplinary care models. In Italy, significant regional variability in resources and access to diagnostic services persists, while the implementation of commun...

Clinical exit strategy in anti-VEGF therapy for neovascular AMD: incidence of recurrence and risk factors for relapse

PURPOSE: To evaluate the recurrence rate of neovascular activity after discontinuation of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and to identify baseline clinical and imaging factors...

Monolithic Intrinsic-Capacitance Bootstrapped Inverter in E-Mode GaN-on-SOI: Design, Analysis, and Electro-Thermal Characterization

This paper presents, analyzes, and experimentally validates a bootstrapped inverter implemented via low-voltage enhancement-mode HEMTs offered by a 200-V E-mode GaN-on-SOI monolithic platform. Unlike conventional resistor–transistor logic (RTL), the proposed topology exploits int...

Travel distance to tertiary healthcare reflects disease severity and medication access in Italian systemic sclerosis patients: a geographical study on adult-onset rare diseases from SPRING-SIR registry

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a rare, multiorgan disease in adults that requires specialized care. Commuting to tertiary medical centers poses a considerable burden and incurs significant costs, potentially affecting management choices. This study aims to describe the healthcare co...

Epithelioid infraligamentary uterine leiomyoma in an adolescent: imaging–pathology correlation and minimally invasive management

Abstract Background Epithelioid uterine leiomyoma is an uncommon histological variant and is exceptionally rare in adolescence. Its unusual anatomical presentation may complicate preoperative characterization, while definitive diagnosis relies on histopathological evaluation, inc...

Large Language Models for Code Generation from Multilingual Prompts: A Curated Benchmark and a Study on Code Quality

Large Language Models (LLMs) perform differently on identical tasks when prompted in different languages—a phenomenon known as language bias. Although well-documented for general text generation, the extent to which language bias affects code generation quality and programming co...

Artificial intelligence for craniofacial and mandibular growth prediction: A systematic review

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective was to evaluate the predictive performance of artificial intelligence (AI) models for craniofacial and mandibular growth prediction. Secondary objectives were to assess methodological quality and identify research gaps. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nin...

Taxonomy and Ecology of Novel Pythium sensu stricto Clade B Species Isolated from Cucurbits

Pythium species are globally distributed oomycetes of major ecological and phytopathological importance, yet species boundaries and character evolution within Pythium sensu stricto remain incompletely understood. Using an integrative taxonomic approach, we investigated oomycete d...

Conditional vaccine performance benchmarks for reducing MRSA burden in an idealised national transmission model for Italy

Vaccine development against antimicrobial-resistant pathogens benefits from quantitative benchmarks, but national burden estimates cannot identify all conditions required for impact. We developed a deterministic compartmental model of methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resis...