Page as a Visual Story: An Adventure in a Workshop Images Deeply Settled in a Real Space to Promote Cambiano City’s (Turin’s Area) Artistic, Cultural and Territorial Heritage and the Distilleria Mazzetti d’Altavilla in Alexandria

What is the meaning each of us want to give to “his own” architecture, “his own” city, “his own” life? And how can we communicate this with a vision and especially through images? Can the “visual story” become a mirror reflecting our culture, our soul? We are going through a historical moment of which reflection on “visual culture”, but even the most widespread practice of the “act of seeing”, is back to being very contemporary, supported by an ever wider use of images in scientific practice. In this sense, the fundamental role of images in many different disciplines and scientific areas is undeniable, ranging from the culture of vision experienced in the introductory workshop “The page as a visual narrative”, declined in its various applications, from public to private. This workshop ranged between theory and practice, between vision laws and graphic applications for existing work and products, interacting with the customer. The activity carried out a series of practical experiences and reasoning aimed at showing how communication should be planned. The realization of four exhibition panels and four illustrative brochures have put in practice the concept of “visual narrative” to evoke, in the modern communicative reality, the artistic cultural heritage of Cambiano city in Turin’s area and history, products and philosophy of Mazzetti d’Altavilla company in Monferrato

Acidic Mammalian Chitinase and the Eye: Implications for Ocular Inflammatory Diseases

Chitinases have an important role in the defense of organisms against chitin-containing parasites. An acidic mammalian chitinase (AMCase) has been detected in epithelial cells in lung tissue samples taken from patients with asthma as well as in conjunctival epithelium of patients with inflammatory ocular diseases. Particularly, elevated AMCase activity has been observed in ocular tissues of patients with vernal keratoconjunctivitis, seasonal allergic conjunctivitis, and in patients affected by dry eye syndrome. This enzyme is induced via a TH2-specific, IL-13-dependent pathway. AMCase may thus be a key mediator of IL-13-induced responses in TH2-driven inflammatory ocular diseases

Long-term efficacy and safety profile of multiple injections of intravitreal dexamethasone implant to manage diabetic macular edema: A systematic review of real-world studies

Introduction: Systematic review of real-world studies about repeated dexamethasone intravitreal implant (DEXi) 0.7 mg in diabetic macular edema management, in order to identify the effective window of time occurring between injections, the critical evaluation of efficacy of the treatment, and the relative long-term safety in the real life setting. Methods: Literature databases such as PubMed, SCOPUS, and EMBASE were used to identify reports including DEX implant injections. Results: Twenty-one peer-reviewed publications were identified. DEX implants retreatment was considered on a pro re nata (PRN) basis at any time or starting from month three or four. About 1/3 of the eyes were retreated before six months from first injection (range 0–86.7%). Mean retreatment average time was 5.3 ± 0.9 months, with an estimated average of 1.3 injections each six months. There was no statistical correlation between average retreatment time and incidence of adverse events or other variables investigated. Limited safety issues related to implants number have been found, suggesting an overall good tolerance of long-term DEXi. Conclusions: Comprehensive evaluation of real-world data suggests an average DEXi duration close to five months, following a PRN treatment strategy, including about 1/3 of patients. Repeated DEXi administration revealed an acceptable long-term efficacy/safety ratio. Keywords: Diabetic macular edema, Dexamethasone, Intravitreal implant, Systematic review, Ocular drug deliver

Behavioural and neurochemical changes induced by stress-related conditions are counteracted by the neurokinin-2 receptor antagonist saredutant.

Abstract These experiments were undertaken to assess the mechanisms underlying the antidepressant-like effects of the neurokinin-2 (NK2) receptor antagonist saredutant (SR48968) in rats tested in the forced swim test (FST), by analysing hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and plasma corticosterone [as index of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity]. Male Wistar rats received three intraperitoneal injections over 24 h of vehicle, saredutant (5 mg/kg), citalopram (15 mg/kg), clomipramine (50 mg/kg). Rats were subjected to restraint stress (4 h) 24 h prior to the FST procedure. This stress procedure increased immobility and decreased swimming behaviour in the FST; furthermore, it lowered hippocampal BDNF protein expression and increased plasma corticosterone levels. Saredutant and clomipramine or citalopram, used here as positive controls, reduced the immobility time in the FST both under basal conditions and after stress exposure. This effect was not attributable to changes in locomotion, because locomotor activity was unchanged when assessed in the open field test. Pretreatment with para-cholorophenylalanine (150 mg/kg, 72 h and 48 h prior to FST) abolished the effect of citalopram and saredutant on immobility time. At neurochemical level, saredutant attenuated activation of HPA axis in stressed animals more than clomipramine or citalopram. The behavioural effects of saredutant support the hypothesis that NK2 receptor activity is involved in stress-related disorders. These effects of saredutant may be related to normalization of the HPA axis. Moreover, saredutant increases BDNF expression in the hippocampus, confirming the role of NK2 receptor blockade in BDNF activation following stressor application

Protective effects of a coumarin derivative in diabetic rats,”

PURPOSE. Retinal microvascular cells play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy. The endothelial effects of cloricromene, a novel coumarin derivative, on diabetic retinopathy induced by streptozotocin (STZ) in the rat were investigated. METHODS. Cloricromene (10 mg/kg intraperitoneally) was administered daily in diabetic rats, and 60 days later eyes were enucleated for localization of nitrotyrosine, ICAM-1, VEGF, ZO-1, occludin, claudin-5, and VE-cadherin by immunohistochemical analysis. The effect of treatment was also evaluated by TNF␣, ICAM-1, VEGF, and eNOS protein levels measurement in the retina with the respective ELISA kits. Blood-retinal barrier (BRB) integrity was also evaluated by Evans blue. RESULTS. Increased amounts of cytokines, adhesion molecule, and nitric oxide synthase were observed in retina. Cloricromene treatment significantly lowered retinal TNF␣, ICAM-1, VEGF, and eNOS. Furthermore, immunohistochemical analysis for VEGF, ICAM-1, nitrotyrosine (a marker of peroxynitrite), and tight junctions revealed positive staining in the retina from STZ-treated rats. The degree of staining for VEGF, ICAM-1, nitrotyrosine, and tight junctions was markedly reduced in tissue sections obtained from diabetic rats treated with cloricromene. Treatment with cloricromene suppressed diabetesrelated BRB breakdown by 45%. CONCLUSIONS. This study provides the first evidence that the new coumarin derivative cloricromene attenuates the degree of inflammation preserving the BRB in diabetic rats. (Inves

Eosinophil as a cellular target of the ocular anti-allergic action of mapracorat, a novel selective glucocorticoid receptor agonist

Abstract: Purpose: Glucocorticoids can either suppress gene transcription (transrepression) or activate it (transactivation). This latter process may contribute to certain side effects caused by these agents. Mapracorat (also known as BOL-303242-X or ZK 245186) is a novel selective glucocorticoid receptor agonist that maintains a beneficial anti-inflammatory activity but seems to be less effective in transactivation, resulting in a lower potential for side effects; it has been proposed for the topical treatment of inflammatory skin disorders. This study assessed the anti-allergic activity of mapracorat at the ocular level and whether eosinophils and mast cells are targets of its action

‘Disegno dal vero e dell’immaginario’: le verità di un ossimoro visivo | ‘Drawing from Life and Imagination’: the Truths of a Visual Oxymoron

ITA - Pare che in alcuni Corsi di Laurea in Architettura le “magnifiche sorti e progressive” della tecnologia digitale sempre più avanzata abbiano generato la quasi totale scomparsa del disegno manuale e tradizionale. Il dominio dell’immagine digitale, che si impone come nuova forma di comunicazione visiva, regala l’illusione che si possa prescindere dalle forme di rappresentazione tradizionali, tanto da pensare di poterle escludere dal percorso formativo dell’architetto. Restando fermi nella convinzione che sia, invece, indispensabile per un architetto avere una solida cultura del Disegno, da quello tradizionale alle modalità più innovative, un contributo prezioso viene fornito dal Workshop di Disegno dal Vero e dell’Immaginario, inserito nei Corsi di Laurea Magistrale in Architettura, presso il Politecnico di Torino. Il nome scelto per questo corso racchiude in sé un evidente ossimoro, nell’ottica di conciliare due aspetti apparentemente contraddittori, ma in realtà complementari. In un’epoca in cui la comune visione tridimensionale dell’opera d’arte può essere integrata o sostituita da una realtà virtuale, alcuni termini come ‘fantastico’, ‘immaginario’ o ‘visionario’, assumono una diversa funzione. Così, paradossalmente (in architettura e non solo), la rappresentazione della realtà ‘virtuale’ viene impiegata per meglio rappresentare il ‘vero’ e la realtà. Il presente contributo affronterà in prevalenza il secondo approccio proposto nel corso e cioè quello dell’immaginario. ENG - It seems that in some Degree Courses in Architecture the “magnifiche sorti e progressive” of increasingly advanced digital technology have generated the almost total disappearance of manual and traditional drawing. The dominion of the digital image, which imposes itself as a new form of visual communication, gives the illusion that one can disregard traditional forms of representation, so much so that one thinks one can exclude them from the architect’s educational path. Staying firm in the belief that it is, instead, indispensable for an architect to have a solid culture of Drawing, from the traditional one to the most innovative modalities, the Drawing from Life and Imagination Workshop, included in the Master’s Degree Courses in Architecture, at the Polytechnic of Turin, provides a valuable contribution in this sense. The name chosen for this course contains an obvious oxymoron, in order to reconcile two apparently contradictory but actually complementary aspects. In an age when the common three-dimensional vision of the work of art can be integrated or replaced by virtual reality, some terms such as ‘fantastic’, ‘imaginary’ or ‘visionary’ take on a different function. In this way, paradoxically (in architecture and not only), the representation of ‘virtual’ reality is used to better represent the ‘real’ and reality. The present contribution will deal mainly with the second approach proposed in the course, namely that of the imaginary