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Maternal vaginal and rectal colonization by Streptococcus agalactiae (group B streptococcus, GBS) is the main risk factor for the development of newborn early-onset GBS disease (GBS-EOD). Much effort is in place for its prevention, including the development of vaccines. Currently, both a hexavalent glycoconjugate GBS vaccine against the most prevalent serotypes and a protein subunit vaccine have completed phase two clinical trials. GBS surveillance in both maternal carriage and neonatal disease is therefore important in establishing the coverage of the potential vaccines and in setting up the basis for pre- and post-marketing surveillance. A single-site study was conducted in the years 2020–2021 on the characteristics of 325 GBS strains (serotype distribution; identification of the alpha-like protein family member; and resistance to macrolides, tetracycline, and high-level gentamicin) isolated from the vaginal/rectal site in women in late pregnancy as well as in seven cases of GBS-EOD and one case of GBS-related stillbirth occurring in the same location and time period. The study indicated that the coverage of the developing vaccines was excellent (97.2% for the hexavalent glycoconjugate vaccine and 98.7% for the alpha-like protein subunit vaccine). However, the detection of the serotypes VI, VII, and IX—not covered by current vaccine formulations—accounting for 3.0% of isolates, as well as of negative alpha-like GBS strains from maternal carriage (1.2%), should be closely monitored over time. The high rates of GBS resistance to erythromycin (33.5%) and to clindamycin (29.5% in maternal carriage and 57.1% in GBS-EOD) was mostly due to the ever-increasing spread of the multidrug-resistant ST-17 subclone of serotype III. This finding, along with the newly emerging high-level gentamicin resistance in carriers (4.0%), mainly in serotype IV strains, poses a threat for the continued effectiveness of antibiotic therapy in invasive disease.

It’s known that a magnesium (Mg)-deficient diet is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis. The aim of this work is to investigate, by a histological approach, the effects of a Mg-deprived diet on the bone of 8-weeks-old C57BL/6J male mice. Treated and control mice were supplied with a Mg-deprived or normal diet for 8 weeks, respectively. Body weight, serum Mg concentration, expression of kidney magnesiotropic genes, and histomorphometry on L5 vertebrae, femurs, and tibiae were evaluated. Body weight gain and serum Mg concentration were significantly reduced, while a trend toward increase was found in gene expression in mice receiving the Mg-deficient diet, suggesting the onset of an adaptive response to Mg depletion. Histomorphometric parameters on the amount of trabecular and cortical bone, number of osteoclasts, and thickness of the growth plate in femoral distal and tibial proximal metaphyses did not differ between groups; these findings partially differ from most data present in the literature showing that animals fed a Mg-deprived diet develop bone loss and may be only in part explained by differences among the experimental protocols. However, the unexpected findings we recorded on bones could be attributed to genetic differences that may have developed after multiple generations of inbreeding.

The Hedgehog (HH) signaling network is one of the main regulators of invertebrate and vertebrate embryonic development. Along with other networks, such as NOTCH and WNT, HH signaling specifies both the early patterning and the polarity events as well as the subsequent organ formation via the temporal and spatial regulation of cell proliferation and differentiation. However, aberrant activation of HH signaling has been identified in a broad range of malignant disorders, where it positively influences proliferation, survival, and therapeutic resistance of neoplastic cells. Inhibitors targeting the HH pathway have been tested in preclinical cancer models. The HH pathway is also overactive in other blood malignancies, including T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). This review is intended to summarize our knowledge of the biological roles and pathophysiology of the HH pathway during normal T-cell lymphopoiesis and in T-ALL. In addition, we will discuss potential therapeutic strategies that might expand the clinical usefulness of drugs targeting the HH pathway in T-ALL.

Historically considered downstream effects of tumorigenesis—arising from changes in DNA content or chromatin organization—nuclear alterations have long been seen as mere prognostic markers within a genome‐centric model of cancer. However, recent findings have placed the nuclear envelope (NE) at the forefront of tumor progression, highlighting its active role in mediating cellular responses to mechanical forces. Despite significant progress, the precise interplay between NE components and cancer progression remains under debate. In this review, we provide a comprehensive and up‐to‐date overview of how changes in NE composition affect nuclear mechanics and facilitate malignant transformation, grounded in the latest molecular and functional studies. We also review recent research that uses advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, to predict malignancy risk and treatment outcomes by analyzing nuclear morphology. Finally, we discuss how progress in understanding nuclear mechanics has paved the way for mechanotherapy—a promising cancer treatment approach that exploits the mechanical differences between cancerous and healthy cells. Shifting the perspective on NE alterations from mere diagnostic markers to potential therapeutic targets, this review calls for further investigation into the evolving role of the NE in cancer, highlighting the potential for innovative strategies to transform conventional cancer therapies. The review is focused on exploring novel intriguing perspectives on the role of the nuclear envelope in tumor progression. Alterations of nuclear envelope proteins result in the dysregulation of cellular pathways and promote tumorigenesis, highlighting that complex regulatory mechanisms lie behind the alterations in nuclear shape in cancer, thus revealing that these mechanisms could potentially open new frontiers for cancer therapies.

Basic research, especially morphological research, often fails to get off the ground due to scarcity of opportunities and funding. There is a need to exploit ideas, while starting from a morphological basis, to channel them into pathways with translational value: patents, trademarks, alternative experimental models, etc., aimed at formulating new proposals for applied research.  Among the many sprouts emerging in laboratories where basic research is carried out throughout the country, one reality from Emilia Romagna region is represented by some insights from human anatomy teachers and researchers at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia. They have developed an original idea whereby they propose to use very small bone segments (the scleral ossicles –SO) taken from the sclero-corneal boundary of lower vertebrates with protruding eyes (particularly from avian species) to supplement 3D scaffolds to be used in regenerative medicine (by triggering/improving angiogenesis and osteogenesis) for the recovery of severe bone injuries, defined as “critical size”, i.e., unable to recover autonomously. The idea was followed by the patent application and, subsequently, the filing of a trademark (Pal-OS®) concerning to SO-derivatives (powders, sticks, caps, etc.). In times when respect for the natural environment and attention to animal health are among the relevant aspects for an ecosystem’s welfare, along with these patent and trademark a focus was developed on experimental methods alternative to animal testing, with which to be able to test the efficacy of the proposed products while respecting the 3 R’s rules, using a model already known and exploited in the past, the chorio-allantoic membrane – CAM, revisited today from an ethical perspective.  The article traces the observations that led to the idea of patenting scleral ossicles, of filing the Pal-OS® trademark and of using the CAM model to test their validity for regenerative purposes, with the ultimate goal of underlining how morphological observations, interpreted from a translational perspective, can provide interesting insights for clinical applications.