Sul rapporto tra il sistema di riferimento cosale e gli altri sistemi di riferimento in Empiricism, Semantics and Ontology

Il veto anti-metafisico posto da Carnap in Empiricism, Semantics, and Ontology postula e allo stesso tempo implica che tutti i sistemi di riferimento linguistici siano sullo stesso livello, ossia che tutti siano sistemi composti da tipi di entità e regole di composizione deliberatamente introdotti nel linguaggio per scopi pragmatici e che nessuno possa vantare differenze o particolarità di statuto rispetto agli altri. Nel presente articolo cercherò di dimostrare che ci sono buone ragioni per dubitare che le cose stiano così, in particolare sosterrò che il sistema di riferimento cosale gode di un’eccellenza funzionale rispetto agli altri, che lo mette in una posizione asimmetrica e che rende il suo rifiuto più problematico degli altri.Il veto anti-metafisico posto da Carnap in Empiricism, Semantics, and Ontology postula e allo stesso tempo implica che tutti i sistemi di riferimento linguistici siano sullo stesso livello, ossia che tutti siano sistemi composti da tipi di entità e regole di composizione deliberatamente introdotti nel linguaggio per scopi pragmatici e che nessuno possa vantare differenze o particolarità di statuto rispetto agli altri. Nel presente articolo cercherò di dimostrare che ci sono buone ragioni per dubitare che le cose stiano così, in particolare sosterrò che il sistema di riferimento cosale gode di un’eccellenza funzionale rispetto agli altri, che lo mette in una posizione asimmetrica e che rende il suo rifiuto più problematico degli altri

ESTIMATE OF TRUNK INCLINATION DURING FAST MOVEMENTS BY INERTIAL SENSING

The purpose of this study was to identify a reliable algorithm to estimate the inclination of a trunk-mounted inertial measurement unit (IMU) during fast movements and to test its subject- and task-specificity. Ten amateur football players performed three times the approach phase of the drive block technique and a fast sit-to-stand-to-sit task. IMU data were processed using an ad hoc adaptive Kaman filter, and pitch angular displacements were obtained and compared to stereophotogrammetric reference estimates. Tuning of the algorithm parameters was performed and relevant accuracy was tested in terms of root mean squared difference (RMSD) and correlation coefficient. Strong correlation (>0.978) were observed for both motor tasks, together with RMSD smaller than 4.4±1.7 deg. The tuned algorithm proved to be neither subject- nor task-specific (p>0.05)

RuO2 Nanostructure as an Efficient and Versatile Catalyst for H2 Photosynthesis

Photocatalytic H-2 generation holds promisein the greenproduction of alternative fuels and valuable chemicals. Seeking alternative,cost-effective, stable, and possibly reusable catalysts representsa timeless challenge for scientists working in the field. Herein,commercial RuO2 nanostructures were found to be a robust,versatile, and competitive catalyst in H-2 photoproductionin several conditions. We employed it in a classic three-componentsystem and compared its activities with those of the widely used platinumnanoparticle catalyst. We observed a hydrogen evolution rate of 0.137mol h(-1) g(-1) and an apparent quantumefficiency (AQE) of 6.8% in water using EDTA as an electron donor.Moreover, the favorable employment of l-cysteine as the electronsource opens possibilities precluded to other noble metal catalyst.The versatility of the system has also been demonstrated in organicmedia with impressive H-2 production in acetonitrile. Therobustness has been proved by the recovery of the catalyst by centrifugationand reusage alternatively in different media

Gonadal Function in Male Patients With Metastatic Renal Cell Cancer Treated With Sunitinib

Background/aim: Single-agent tyrosine kinase inhibitors are still prescribed as first-line treatment to a relevant subgroup of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). These agents are known to cause disfunction of many endocrine glands (e.g., thyroid). In this two-step trial, we aimed to assess gonadal function among male patients with mRCC treated with sunitinib. Patients and methods: We enrolled a first cross-sectional cohort of pre-treated (>6 months) patients and a subsequent cohort of treatment-naïve patients who were prospectively followed-up. All patients were screened for hypogonadism and received a Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - General (FACT-G) questionnaire at study entry and after 6 months of therapy. Patients who were candidates for testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) also received a FACT-G questionnaire at baseline and 3 months after supplementation. Results: Among the 30 enrolled patients, the prevalence of hypogonadism was found to be higher in those receiving sunitinib for a longer period (27.3% at baseline, 41.7% in the first 6 months, and 68.4% after 9 months of therapy). The testosterone level of patients correlated with quality of life (R=0.32). A total of six patients received TRT, with a significant improvement in their global quality of life after the first 3 months of treatment. Conclusion: An increasing prevalence of hypogonadism was seen among male patients who received long-term treatment with sunitinib. TRT was associated with relevant improvements in quality of life. These findings corroborate similar published observations and encourage the assessment of gonadal function in male patients with mRCC under treatment with sunitinib

Diagnostic proteomic biomarkers to detect kidney diseases

Urinary proteomics is primarily applied to the study of renal and urogenital tract disorders. Here are reported two distinct successful examples of this approach for the discovery of early urinary biomarkers of kidney­ related dysfunctions: diabetic nephropathy (DN), a well ­known complication of diabetes frequently leading to dialysis, and drug­induced nephrotoxicity, a possible condition caused by medication ­overuse headache (MOH). Early detection of kidney disorders based on selective biomarkers could permit to diagnose patients at the initial stage of the disease, where the therapy is still possible to stop or prevent occurrence of advance disease. Urine samples were first concentrated and desalted. Subsequently, they were subjected to two­-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2­DE) coupled to mass spectrometry (MS) for protein identification. Furthermore, some proteins were verified by Western blot and ELISA test. In diabetes-­related study, 11 differentially expressed proteins were detected (8 up­regulated and 3 down­regulated) in type 2 diabetic (T2D) and T2DN patients compared to the healthy control subjects. In MOH study, a total of 21 over­excreted proteins was revealed in urine of non­-steroidal anti­inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and mixtures abusers vs controls. Particularly, 4 proteins were positively validated by immunoblotting and ELISA. Urinary proteomics allows non­invasive assessment of renal diseases at an early stage by the identification of characteristic protein pattern

Failure and multiple failure for disease modifying antirheumatic drugs in rheumatoid arthritis: Real-life evidence from a tertiary referral center in Italy

Background rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease with a heterogeneous treatments' clinical response. goals of treatment are remission and low disease activity, which are not achieved in all patients despite the introduction of early treatment and the treat to target strategy. ObjectiveTo investigate the causes of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) discontinuation and treatment failure and multiple failure for inefficacy, and to identify possible failure predictors' according to RA patient characteristics in a real-world setting. methods718 RA patients were retrospectively evaluated. Conventional synthetic (cs) and biologic (b)DMARDs treatments line/s, effectiveness, and reasons of discontinuations were evaluated. patients failing to at least two csDMARDs or bDMARDs' drug for inefficacy were defined "csDMARDs multifailure" and "bDMARDs multifailure", respectively. Discontinuation of at least two cs- and bDMARDs was termed "global multifailure". ResultsIn total, 1422 csDMARDs and 714 bDMARDs treatment were analysed. Causes of csDMARDs discontinuation were intolerance (21.8%), inefficacy (20.2%), acute adverse reactions (5.3%) and severe infections (0.6%) while csDMARDs multifailure for inefficacy was observed in 5.7% of cases. reasons of bDMARDs withdrawal were inefficacy (29%), intolerance (10.0%), acute adverse reaction (6.3%) and severe infections (1.5%). Altogether, 8.4% of patients were bDMARDs multifailure for inefficacy while 16.6% were global multifailure. longstanding disease (>= 12 months) and smoke habit, resulted as positive predictor of csDMARDs failure (OR 2.6 and OR 2.7, respectively). thyreopathy was associated with both csDMARDs failure and global multifailure (OR 2.4 and OR 1.8, respectively). Higher prevalence of failure to at least one bDMARDs and global multifailure was detected in female than male (OR 2.3 and OR 2, respectively). conclusionsdifferent causes of drug discontinuation were observed on DMARDs treatments. demographic and clinical features were identified as possible predictors of both cs- and bDMARDs treatment failure and multiple failure, underlining the need of a more personalized therapeutic approach to achieve treatment targets

Validation of potential candidate biomarkers of drug-induced nephrotoxicity and allodynia in medication-overuse headache

Medication-overuse headache (MOH) is a chronic disorder that results from the overuse of analgesics drugs, triptans or other acute headache compounds. Although the exact mechanisms underlying MOH remain still unknown, several studies suggest that it may be associated with development of "central sensitization", which may cause cutaneous allodynia (CA). Furthermore, the epidemiology of drug-induced disorders suggests that medication overuse could lead to nephrotoxicity. The aim of this work was to confirm and validate the results obtained from previous proteomics studies, in which we analyzed the urinary proteome of MOH patients in comparison with healthy non-abusers individuals

Clinical characterization of neonatal and pediatric enteroviral infections: an Italian single center study

Enteroviruses (EVs) are an important cause of illness, especially in neonates and young infants. Clinical and laboratory findings at different ages, brain imaging, and outcomes have been inadequately investigated.Background Enteroviruses (EVs) are an important cause of illness, especially in neonates and young infants. Clinical and laboratory findings at different ages, brain imaging, and outcomes have been inadequately investigated. Methods We retrospectively investigated EV infections occurring at an Italian tertiary care center during 2006-2017. Cases were confirmed with a positive polymerase chain reaction on blood or cerebrospinal fluid. Clinical and laboratory findings according to age at presentation were analyzed. Results Among 61 cases of EV infection, 56 had meningitis, 4 had encephalitis, and 1 had unspecific febrile illness. Forty-seven cases (77.0%) presented at less than 1 year of age, and most were less than 90 days of age (n = 44). Presentation with fever (p < 0.01), higher median temperature (p < 0.01), and irritability (p < 0.01) were significantly more common among infants aged less than 90 days, who also had significantly higher peak temperatures during the course of the disease (p < 0.01). In contrast, gastrointestinal symptoms were more common in infants and children aged over 90 days (p = 0.02). Only 4 of 61 infections (6.5%) were severe and all affected younger infants (p < 0.01). Conclusions We detail epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory findings in a cohort of 61 children. Infants aged less than 90 days have more severe disease; they are more likely to present with fever, higher median temperature, and irritability and less likely to develop gastrointestinal symptoms

What's new and what's next for biological and targeted synthetic treatments in psoriatic arthritis?

introductionpsoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic arthritis typically associated with cutaneous psoriasis (PsO). Its pathogenesis is connected to an innate and acquired immune response, as well as genetic risk alleles. the extent of immunopathogenic mechanisms and the heterogenicity of clinical manifestation make the identification of patient-targeted therapies a critical issue, and the treatment decision challenging in patients' management.areas coveredThis review includes a brief overview of biological and small-molecule therapies, focusing on evidence from clinical trials and real-world data that support their use in PsA. We summarize novel and future possible therapeutic strategies, the importance that comorbidities have on selection of therapy and discuss the adverse event of each drug. relevant papers for up to 1 august 2022 (trials, real-life studies, and reviews) regarding biologics and/or small molecules were summarized.Expert opinionIn recent years, the treatment of PsA has been revolutionized by new targeted therapies, which offer the opportunity to perform a tailored-tail management, considering risk factors, comorbidities, and the different PsA phenotypes. growing experience with these new agents allows novel treatment approaches that may improve clinical outcomes for PsA patients, in terms of remission/low disease activity and quality of life