571. What is a circular economy champion? Defining a home-grown concept in an emerging fieldDolores Modic, Sahana Swaroop Chetan, Shajara Ul-Durar, Noman Arshed, Marco De Sisto, Nadja Damij, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Circular economy, which aims to keep resources in production cycles and minimize waste, has emerged as a viable alternative to the traditional linear model. However, it is often criticized for being under-theorized and lacking indigenous, home-grown concepts, particularly regarding fundamental elements such as actors and actor types. This paper focuses on a specific actor: the circular economy champion. Circular economy champions can drive the transition toward a more circular economy, yet the concept remains under-conceptualized despite a growing body of literature. The aims of this study are twofold: first, to highlight the importance of home-grown concepts in emerging fields; and second, to address the ambiguity surrounding the terminology of “circular economy champion” by providing a novel conceptualization. The paper develops this concept using a family resemblance approach, employing differentiation criteria through a piecemeal method and underpinned by a theoretical review of the literature. By extending both the scope of actor types and, based on their traits, the range of their attributes, activities, and contributions to the circular economy, the concept of the circular economy champion is further delineated from related constructs and firmly defined. This contributes to circular economy discourse by proposing a novel definition of a key actor within the circular economy system, thus strengthening its theoretical foundations. Moreover, the proposed definition reduces ambiguity in understanding actors’ roles within the circular economy, further clarifying its microfoundations.
Keywords: circular economy, actor, circular economy champion, concept development
Published in DiRROS: 13.11.2025; Views: 148; Downloads: 70
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572. Quantum computing and the stable set problemAljaž Krpan, Janez Povh, Dunja Pucher, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Given an undirected graph, the stable set problem asks to determine the cardinality of the largest subset of pairwise non-adjacent vertices. This value is called the stability number of the graph, and its computation is an NP-hard problem. In this paper, we solve the stable set problem using the D-Wave quantum annealer. By formulating the problem as a quadratic unconstrained binary optimization problem with the penalty method, we show its optimal value equals the graph's stability number for specific penalty values. However, D-Wave's quantum annealer is a heuristic, so the solutions may be far from the optimum and may not represent stable sets. To address these, we introduce a post-processing procedure that identifies samples that could lead to improved solutions. Additionally, we propose a partitioning method to handle larger instances that cannot be embedded on D-Wave's quantum processing unit. Finally, we investigate how different penalty parameter values affect the solutions' quality. Extensive computational results show that the post-processing procedure significantly improves the solution quality, while the partitioning method successfully extends our approach to medium-size instances.
Keywords: stable set problem, quantum annealing, graph partitioning, D-Wave
Published in DiRROS: 13.11.2025; Views: 183; Downloads: 92
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574. Mycoplasma arginini cellulitis, tenosynovitis, and arthritis in kidney transplant recipient, Slovenia, 2024Tjaša Vivoda, Tereza Rojko, Barbara Kokošar Ulčar, Katja Strašek Smrdel, Andraž Celar Šturm, Darja Keše, Tina Triglav, Željka Večerić-Haler, 2025, other scientific articles Abstract: Mycoplasma arginini is a bacterium primarily found in animals and is seldom reported in human infections. We identified M. arginini infection in a severely immunocompromised kidney transplant recipient in Slovenia. Clinicians should be aware of M. arginini's potential as a pathogen in immunocompromised persons with animal contact.
Keywords: Mycoplasma arginini, Slovenia, arthritis, bacteria, cellulitis, immunocompromised, kidney transplant recipient, zoonoses
Published in DiRROS: 13.11.2025; Views: 155; Downloads: 78
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575. Bisphenol a disrupts steroidogenesis and induces apoptosis in human granulosa cells cultured in vitroDominika Celar Šturm, Tadeja Režen, Nina Jančar, Irma Virant-Klun, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Bisphenol A (BPA) is a common synthetic chemical compound classified as an endocrine disruptor. It affects multiple physiological systems in the body, including the female reproductive system, particularly granulosa cells (GCs) in the ovaries, where steroidogenesis occurs. This study investigated the impact of various BPA concentrations (environmentally relevant concentrations of 0.001 µM and 0.1 µM and toxicological concentration of 100 µM) and exposure times (24 and 72 h) on cell viability and counts and in vitro production of estradiol and progesterone in human GCs collected from waste follicular fluid of IVF patients. Gene expression analysis of 182 genes associated with steroidogenesis and apoptosis was performed in GCs using PCR arrays, followed by protein expression analysis by Western blot. Our results demonstrate that after longer BPA exposure (72 h), a higher concentration of BPA (100 µM) negatively affects the cellular viability and counts and significantly alters steroid hormone biosynthesis in vitro, leading to reduced concentrations of estradiol and progesterone in the culture medium. We found that all BPA concentrations altered the expression of different steroidogenesis- and apoptosis-related genes in GCs. At 0.001 µM, BPA exposure decreased the expression of TRIM25, UGT2B15, CASP3, and RPS6KA3 genes and increased the expression of NR6A1 and PPID genes. At 0.1 µM, BPA increased the expression of AR, HSD3B1, BID, IKBKG, and PPID genes while reducing the expression of TRIM25 and CASP3 genes. At the highest concentration of 100 µM, BPA upregulated the expression of AR, GPER30, BID, IKBKG, and PPID genes and downregulated the expression of FOXO1 and UGT2B15 genes. These results highlight BPA’s concentration-specific effects on steroidogenesis and apoptosis and show its potential to compromise GC function, with possible negative implications for female fertility and ovarian health, even at environmentally relevant concentrations.
Keywords: bisphenol A, human granulosa cells, steroidogenesis, apoptosis, steroid hormones
Published in DiRROS: 13.11.2025; Views: 156; Downloads: 69
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576. Safety, long-term effectiveness, and immunogenicity of varicella vaccination in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis treated with biologic therapyMaša Bizjak, Jakob Peterlin, Tadej Avčin, Miroslav Petrovec, Alojz Ihan, Mojca Zajc Avramovič, Gašper Markelj, Tina Vesel, Veronika Osterman, Jerneja Ahčan, Helena Mole, Katja Dejak Gornik, Alenka Biteznik, Sara Jevnikar, Larisa Janžič, Miha Bajc, Andreja Nataša Kopitar, Nataša Toplak, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Objective: To evaluate safety, long-term effectiveness and immunogenicity of varicella vaccination in children with JIA, treated with biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs). Methods: This is a prospective case-control study. VZV-naive patients with JIA on selected bDMARDs (TNFi, IL-6 and IL-1 inhibitors), who were at risk for contracting varicella, had stable disease and normal values of immunoglobulins and lymphocyte populations, were vaccinated against varicella. Adverse events (AEs) and disease activity were followed after vaccination. VZV-specific humoral (VZV-IgG) and cell-mediated immunity (VZV-CMI) were measured at predetermined time points after vaccination by Liaison and intracellular cytokine staining, respectively. Two healthy control (HC) groups comprised 52 healthy children after varicella vaccination and 69 healthy children after varicella infection. Results: 17 patients were vaccinated against varicella (12 on TNFi, 4 on IL-6 inhibitors and 1 on IL-1 inhibitor), of whom 14 patients received both the first and second dose on bDMARDs. No vaccine-strain infections or other serious AEs occurred after vaccination. Disease activity increased in 3/17 (18 %) patients following vaccination. Four out of 17 (24 %) patients developed mild breakthrough varicella (BV) 4 months-4.5 years after vaccination, and none of the HC. Fourteen out of 17 (82 %) patients and 50/52 (96 %) vaccinated HC were seropositive after second vaccination and 8/11 (72 %) patients and 42/43 (98 %) vaccinated HC developed VZV-CMI, which persisted longer compared to VZV-IgG. Patients presented lower antibody levels compared to HC. The rate of VZV-IgG decline was comparable between patients and HC after vaccination or infection. Five patients received the third vaccine dose due to primary or secondary vaccine failure, and none of them developed BV. Conclusions: Varicella vaccination was safe and largely immunogenic in our cohort of JIA patients treated with bDMARDs. Although the vaccination was not always fully effective, it prevented severe disease in all vaccinated patients.
Keywords: varicella vaccination, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, biologic therapy, anti-cytokine therapy
Published in DiRROS: 13.11.2025; Views: 185; Downloads: 75
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578. Napredno upravljanje betonarn s podporo digitalnih dvojčkovMateja Držečnik, Uroš Klanšek, Tjaša Zupančič Hartner, Rok Cajzek, 2025, review article Abstract: Članek predstavlja najnovejše stanje tehnike na področju naprednega upravljanja betonarn s podporo digitalnih dvojčkov (angl. Digital Twins, DT), s poudarkom na povezovanju senzorskih podatkov, spremljanju procesov v realnem času, napovednem vzdrževanju, simulacijah delovanja in usposabljanju v kontekstu razvoja Industrije 4.0. Za zagotavljanje ažurnega virtualnega modela betonarne, tj. njenega DT, se kontinuirano zbirajo potrebni podatki iz številnih sistemskih komponent. Računalniška analitika, ki podpira DT betonarne in se napaja s podatki v realnem času, omogoča hitre prilagoditve v proizvodnem procesu, kar izboljšuje učinkovitost in zmanjša količino odpadkov. DT betonarne tako služi tudi kot učinkovito orodje za usposabljanje strokovnjakov, saj omogoča preizkušanje različnih scenarijev brez tveganja za dejanski obrat. Poleg tega DT izboljša preglednost delovanja in predvidljivost vzdrževanja betonarne ter poveča njeno operativno učinkovitost, kar vodi do znižanja stroškov in doseganja višjih nivojev kakovosti poslovanja. Prispevek poudari vlogo DT pri preoblikovanju tradicionalnih proizvodnih procesov, kot je proizvodnja betona, in podaja reprezentativen dejanski primer srednje velike betonarne, ki s podporo DT kaže napredek pri upravljanju tovrstnih proizvodnih obratov.
Keywords: betonarne, digitalni dvojčki, industrija 4.0, spremljanje procesov, vzdrževanje, simulacije, usposabljanje
Published in DiRROS: 13.11.2025; Views: 182; Downloads: 76
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579. Prophylactic treatment of hepatitis C virus infection after kidney transplantation with the combination of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir and sofosbuvir in a highly sensitized hepatitis c virus-negative recipient : a case report and review of the literatureTanja Belčič Mikič, Igor Sterle, Mojca Matičič, Miha Arnol, 2025, other scientific articles Abstract: Background: Since the discovery of successful direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment, kidneys from hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA-positive donors represent a new opportunity to expand the organ donor pool for HCV-negative recipients. Case presentation: In this paper, we describe a unique case of transplantation of an HCV genotype 3a-infected kidney into an HCV-negative recipient who was highly sensitized, with a virtual panel-reactive antibody level of 99.96%. Prior to the kidney transplantation, the recipient received DAA treatment with glecaprevir/pibrentasvir as a viable prophylactic strategy. Post-transplant, the recipient received a triple-combination DAA regimen with glecaprevir/pibrentasvir/sofosbuvir, which continued for 12 weeks. Subsequently, viral load was undetectable at 12 and 24 weeks after treatment, with no significant adverse events associated with DAA therapy. A 12-month post-transplantation biopsy revealed mixed rejection requiring treatment. The 19-month follow-up showed a favorable outcome regarding the function of the kidney allograft and the recipient’s quality of life. HCV-positive transplantation allowed our recipient to receive a kidney from an immunologically compatible donor without donor-specific antibodies and the need for desensitization strategies. Conclusions: Each transplant center should decide on the selection of candidates for kidney transplantation from HCV RNA-positive donors to HCV-negative recipients, the availability and choice of DAA treatment, and post-transplant follow-up. Our case emphasizes the need for early DAA treatment based on viral load and HCV genotyping, as well as for careful post-transplant surveillance including protocol biopsies.
Keywords: kidney transplantation, HCV RNA, direct-acting antiviral (DAA), glecaprevir/pibrentasvir, sensitization, case report
Published in DiRROS: 12.11.2025; Views: 166; Downloads: 69
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