1. Health-related quality of life assessed by the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire in the general Slovenian populationVaneja Velenik, Ajra Šečerov Ermenc, Jasna But-Hadžić, Vesna Zadnik, 2017, original scientific article Abstract: The aim of our study was to obtain reference data of the EORTC QLQ-C30 quality of life dimensions for the general Slovenian population. We intend to provide the researchers and clinicians in our country with the expected mean health-related quality of life (HRQL) scores for distinctive socio-demographic population groups. Methods. The EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire supplemented by a socio-demographic inquiry was mailed or distributed to 1,685 randomly selected individuals in the Slovenian population aged 18 % 90. Answers from 1,231 subjects representing socio-demographic diversity of the Slovenian population were collected and transformed into EORTC dimensions and symptoms. The impact of socio-demographic features on HRQL scores was assessed by multiple linear regression models. Results. Gender, age and self-rated social class are the important confounders in the quality of life scores in our population. Men reported better quality of life on the majority of the specific scales and, at the same time, reported fewer symptoms. There was no gender-specific difference in cognitive functioning. The mean scores were consistently lower with age in both sexes. Conclusions. This is the first study to report the normative EORTC QLQ-C30 scores for one of the south-eastern European populations. The reported expected mean scores allow Slovenian oncologists to estimate what the quality of life in cancer patients would be, had they not been ill. As they are derived by common methodology, our results can easily be included in any further international comparisons or in the calculation of European summarized HRQL scores.
Published in DiRROS: 24.05.2024; Views: 70; Downloads: 34
 Full text (570,58 KB) |
2. Cancer burden in Slovenia with the time trends analysisVesna Zadnik, Maja Primic-Žakelj, Katarina Lokar, Katja Jarm, Urška Ivanuš, Tina Žagar, 2017, original scientific article Abstract: Background The aim of our study was to describe cancer burden and time trends of all cancers combined, the most frequent as well as the rare cancers in Slovenia. Patients and methods The principal data source was the population-based Cancer Registry of Republic of Slovenia. The cancer burden is presented by incidence and prevalence for the period 1950%2013 and by mortality for years 1985%2013. The time trends were characterized in terms of an average annual percent change estimated by the log-linear joinpoint regression. The Dyba-Hakulinen method was used for estimation of incidence in 2016 and the projections of cancer incidence for the year 2025 were calculated applying the Globocan projection software. Results In recent years, near 14,000 Slovenes were diagnosed with cancer per year and just over 6,000 died; more than 94,000 people who were ever diagnosed with cancer are currently living among us. The total burden of cancer is dominated by five most common cancer sites: skin (non-melanoma), colon and rectum, lung, breast and prostate, together representing almost 60% of all new cancer cases. On average the incidence of common cancers in Slovenia is increasing for 3.0% per year in last decade, but the incidence of rare cancers is stable. Conclusions Because cancer occurs more among the elderly, and additionally more numerous post-war generation is entering this age group, it is expected that the burden of this disease will be growing further, even if the level of risk factors remains the same as today.
Keywords: cancer burden, cancer registry, incidence, prevalence
Published in DiRROS: 24.05.2024; Views: 76; Downloads: 56
Full text (557,44 KB)
This document has many files! More... |
3. |
4. Annual recurrence of prokaryotic climax communities in shallow waters of the North MediterraneanMauro Celussi, Vincenzo Manna, Elisa Banchi, Viviana Fonti, Matteo Bazzaro, Vesna Flander-Putrle, Katja Klun, Martina Kralj, Neža Orel, Tinkara Tinta, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: In temperate coastal environments, wide fluctuations of biotic and abiotic factors drive microbiome dynamics. To link recurrent ecological patterns with planktonic microbial communities, we analysed a monthly-sampled 3-year time series of 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing data, alongside environmental variables, collected at two stations in the northern Adriatic Sea. Time series multivariate analyses allowed us to identify three stable, mature communities (climaxes), whose recurrence was mainly driven by changes in photoperiod and temperature. Mixotrophs (e.g., Ca. Nitrosopumilus, SUP05 clade, and Marine Group II) thrived under oligotrophic, low-light conditions, whereas copiotrophs (e.g., NS4 and NS5 clades) bloomed at higher temperatures and substrate availability. The early spring climax was characterised by a more diverse set of amplicon sequence variants, including copiotrophs associated with phytoplankton-derived organic matter degradation, and photo-auto/heterotrophic organisms (e.g., Synechococcus sp., Roseobacter clade), whose rhythmicity was linked to photoperiod lengthening. Through the identification of recurrent climax assemblages, we begin to delineate a typology of ecosystem based on microbiome composition and functionality, allowing for the intercomparison of microbial assemblages among different biomes, a still underachieved goal in the omics era.
Keywords: marine microbial ecology, coastal seas, microbial community analyses, marine biology, marine ecology
Published in DiRROS: 17.05.2024; Views: 93; Downloads: 111
Full text (10,22 MB)
This document has many files! More... |
5. Indicated domination gameBoštjan Brešar, Csilla Bujtás, Vesna Iršič, Douglas F. Rall, Zsolt Tuza, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: Motivated by the success of domination games and by a variation of the coloring game called the indicated coloring game, we introduce a version of domination games called the indicated domination game. It is played on an arbitrary graph $G$ by two players, Dominator and Staller, where Dominator wants to finish the game in as few rounds as possible while Staller wants just the opposite. In each round, Dominator indicates a vertex $u$ of $G$ that has not been dominated by previous selections of Staller, which, by the rules of the game, forces Staller to select a vertex in the closed neighborhood of $u$. The game is finished when all vertices of $G$ become dominated by the vertices selected by Staller. Assuming that both players are playing optimally according to their goals, the number of selected vertices during the game is the indicated domination number, $\gamma_{\rm i}(G)$, of $G$. We prove several bounds on the indicated domination number expressed in terms of other graph invariants. In particular, we find a place of the new graph invariant in the well-known domination chain, by showing that $\gamma_{\rm i}(G)\ge \Gamma(G)$ for all graphs $G$, and by showing that the indicated domination number is incomparable with the game domination number and also with the upper irredundance number. In connection with the trivial upper bound $\gamma_{\rm i}(G)\le n(G)-\delta(G)$, we characterize the class of graphs $G$ attaining the bound provided that $n(G)\ge 2\delta(G)+2$. We prove that in trees, split graphs and grids the indicated domination number equals the independence number. We also find a formula for the indicated domination number of powers of paths, from which we derive that there exist graphs in which the indicated domination number is arbitrarily larger than the upper irredundance number. We provide some partial results supporting the statement that $\gamma_{\rm i}(G)=n(G)/2$ if $G$ is a cubic bipartite graph, and leave this as an open question.
Keywords: domination game, indicated coloring, independence number, upper domination number
Published in DiRROS: 16.05.2024; Views: 96; Downloads: 70
Full text (367,70 KB)
This document has many files! More... |
6. Ingenious architecture and coloration generation in enamel of Rodent teethVesna Šrot, Sophia Houari, Gregor Kapun, Birgit Bußmann, Felicitas Predel, Boštjan Pokorny, Elena Bužan, Ute Salzberger, Bernhard Fenk, Marion Kelsch, Peter van Aken, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: Teeth exemplify architectures comprising an interplay of inorganic and organic constituents, resulting in sophisticated natural composites. Rodents (Rodentia) showcase extraordinary adaptations, with their continuously growing incisors surpassing human teeth in functional and structural optimizations. In this study, employing state-of-the-art direct atomic-scale imaging and nanoscale spectroscopies, we present compelling evidence that the release of material from ameloblasts and the subsequent formation of iron-rich enamel and surface layers in the constantly growing incisors of rodents are complex orchestrated processes, intricately regulated and independent of environmental factors. The synergistic fusion of three-dimensional tomography and imaging techniques of etched rodent́s enamel unveils a direct correlation between the presence of pockets infused with ferrihydrite-like material and the acid resistant properties exhibited by the iron-rich enamel, fortifying it as an efficient protective shield. Moreover, observations using optical microscopy shed light on the role of iron-rich enamel as a microstructural element that acts as a path for color transmission, although the native color remains indistinguishable from that of regular enamel, challenging the prevailing paradigms. The redefinition of “pigmented enamel” to encompass ferrihydrite-like infusion in rodent incisors reshapes our perception of incisor microstructure and color generation. The functional significance of acid-resistant iron-rich enamel and the understanding of the underlying coloration mechanism in rodent incisors have far-reaching implications for human health, development of potentially groundbreaking dental materials, and restorative dentistry. These findings enable the creation of an entirely different class of dental biomaterials with enhanced properties, inspired by the ingenious designs found in nature.
Keywords: teeth microstructure, ameloblasts, ferritin, Fe-rich enamel, tomography, rodent
Published in DiRROS: 26.04.2024; Views: 146; Downloads: 122
Full text (3,34 MB)
This document has many files! More... |
7. |
8. Adjuvant TNF-a therapy to electrochemotherapy with intravenous cisplatin in murine sarcoma exerts synergistic antitumor effectivenessMaja Čemažar, Vesna Todorović, Janez Ščančar, Urša Lampreht Tratar, Monika Savarin, Urška Kamenšek, Simona Kranjc Brezar, Andrej Cör, Gregor Serša, 2015, original scientific article Abstract: Background. Electrochemotherapy is a tumour ablation modality, based on electroporation of the cell membrane, allowing non-permeant anticancer drugs to enter the cell, thus augmenting their cytotoxicity by orders of magnitude. In preclinical studies, bleomycin and cisplatin proved to be the most suitable for clinical use. Intravenous administration of cisplatin for electrochemotherapy is still not widely accepted in the clinics, presumably due to its lower antitumor effectiveness, but adjuvant therapy by immunomodulatory or vascular-targeting agents could provide a way for its potentiation. Hence, the aim of the present study was to explore the possibility of adjuvant tumour necrosis factor % (TNF-%) therapy to potentiate antitumor effectiveness of electrochemotherapy with intravenous cisplatin administration in murine sarcoma. Materials and methods. In vivo study was designed to evaluate the effect of TNF-% applied before or after the electrochemotherapy and to evaluate the effect of adjuvant TNF-% on electrochemotherapy with different cisplatin doses. Results. A synergistic interaction between TNF-% and electrochemotherapy was observed. Administration of TNF-% before the electrochemotherapy resulted in longer tumour growth delay and increased tumour curability, and was significantly more effective than TNF-% administration after the electrochemotherapy. Tumour analysis revealed increased platinum content in tumours, TNF-% induced blood vessel damage and increased tumour necrosis after combination of TNF-% and electrochemotherapy, indicating an anti-vascular action of TNF-%. In addition, immunomodulatory effect might have contributed to curability rate of the tumours. Conclusion. Adjuvant intratumoural TNF-% therapy synergistically contributes to electrochemotherapy with intravenous cisplatin administration. Due to its potentiation at all doses of cisplatin, the combined treatment is predicted to be effective also in tumours, where the drug concentration is suboptimal or in bigger tumours, where electrochemotherapy with intravenous cisplatin is not expected to be sufficiently effective.
Keywords: electrochemotherapy, TNF, adjuvant immunotherapy, cisplatin
Published in DiRROS: 17.04.2024; Views: 160; Downloads: 30
Full text (978,26 KB) |
9. |
10. Domination and independence numbers of large 2-crossing-critical graphsVesna Iršič, Maruša Lekše, Miha Pačnik, Petra Podlogar, Martin Praček, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: After 2-crossing-critical graphs were characterized in 2016, their most general subfamily, large 3-connected 2-crossing-critical graphs, has attracted separate attention. This paper presents sharp upper and lower bounds for their domination and independence number.
Keywords: crossing-critical graphs, domination number, independence number
Published in DiRROS: 09.04.2024; Views: 138; Downloads: 65
Full text (393,09 KB)
This document has many files! More... |
