An Overview of Mitochondrial Protein Defects in Neuromuscular Diseases

none8noNeuromuscular diseases (NMDs) are dysfunctions that involve skeletal muscle and cause incorrect communication between the nerves and muscles. The specific causes of NMDs are not well known, but most of them are caused by genetic mutations. NMDs are generally progressive and entail muscle weakness and fatigue. Muscular impairments can differ in onset, severity, prognosis, and phenotype. A multitude of possible injury sites can make diagnosis of NMDs difficult. Mitochondria are crucial for cellular homeostasis and are involved in various metabolic pathways; for this reason, their dysfunction can lead to the development of different pathologies, including NMDs. Most NMDs due to mitochondrial dysfunction have been associated with mutations of genes involved in mitochondrial biogenesis and metabolism. This review is focused on some mitochondrial routes such as the TCA cycle, OXPHOS, and β-oxidation, recently found to be altered in NMDs. Particular attention is given to the alterations found in some genes encoding mitochondrial carriers, proteins of the inner mitochondrial membrane able to exchange metabolites between mitochondria and the cytosol. Briefly, we discuss possible strategies used to diagnose NMDs and therapies able to promote patient outcomeopenMarra Federica, Lunetti Paola, Curcio Rosita, Lasorsa Francesco Massimo, Capobianco Loredana, Porcelli Vito, Dolce Vincenza, Fiermonte Giuseppe and Scarcia PasqualeMarra, Federica; Lunetti, Paola; Curcio, Rosita; Lasorsa Francesco, Massimo; Capobianco, Loredana; Porcelli, Vito; Dolce, Vincenza; Fiermonte Giuseppe and Scarcia, Pasqual

VALUTAZIONE QUANTITATIVA DI HIV RNA CON IL SISTEMA NUCLISENS EASYQ HIV-1 E CORRELAZIONE CON VERSANT HIV -1 (bDNA)

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Influence of the area per player in non-professional soccer players: A pilot study focused on positional roles

This study analyses the influence of different area per player (AP; 75, 98 and 131 m2 ) on the average metabolic power (MP) and other soccer-related performance variables in relation to the positional roles. We recruited 19 non-professional male soccer players (25.2 ± 6.3 y; 23.7 ± 2.3 kg/m2; 16.4 ± 6.3 y soccer experience) to play three different small-sided games (SSGs): SSG1 (5 vs. 5; 30 × 30 m; 5 min), SSG2 (5 vs. 5; 35 × 45 m; 5 min) and SSG3 (7 vs. 7; 35 × 45 m; 8 min). Specific playing rules were applied. GPS-assessed soccer-related variables were: average MP (AMP), distance covered in 1 min (DIS); % time spent at high speed (v > 16 km/h; % hst) or MP (>20 W/kg; % hmpt); % distance covered at high positive/negative speed (2 < v < 4 m/s2, % ACC; −6 < v < −2 m/s2, % DEC); and number of actions at high MP (hmpa). All recorded variables differed when each SSG was compared to the others (p < 0.05), but for hmpa for attackers. Most performance variables were positively associated with increasing AP (p < 0.05), but for % ACC and % DEC, and differed among positional roles within the same SSG (p < 0.05). Here the general applicability of SSGs, regardless the physical/technical skills of the group of players, to enhance performance is confirmed; furthermore, quantitative advices on AMP and other performance variables are provided to achieve significant improvements in all soccer players of the team

Directive Ultra-Wideband Planar Antennas

Two different techniques for Directive Ultra-Wideband Planar Antennas were presented throughout chapter 1: the operation of a novel bow-tie antenna with high front-to-back ratio and directivity and a differential planar UWB antenna characterized by higher gain (more than 11 dB around 7 GHz) with respect to conventional printed radiators has been demonstrated

The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on admission to gynecological emergency departments: Results from a multicenter Italian study

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on admissions to gynecological emergency departments (ED) of three Italian university hospitals with different rates of COVID-19 incidence. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in the gynecological EDs of Modena (Emilia-Romagna), Sassari and Cagliari (Sardinia) regarding all admissions to gynecological EDs during November 1 to 30, 2019, and March 11 to April 9, 2020 (lockdown period). Results: A total of 691 women (mean age 38.3 \ub1 14.3 years) who were admitted to the gynecological EDs were included. The relative decrease in women evaluated from March 11 to April 9, 2020, was 1256.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 52.2\u201361.1). Time spent in the ED was also significantly shorter during this period (P=0.02) in comparison to November 1 to 30, 2019. The most evident decrease was observed for pelvic pain ( 1268.9% [95% CI 60.3\u201376.7]; 1291 cases). The management of women suggests a more effective use of the ED, with higher rates of hospitalization (P=0.001) and recourse to emergent surgeries (P=0.005) and lower rates of discharge to home (P=0.03). Conclusion: The COVID-19 lockdown greatly reduced the rate of admission to gynecological EDs, but the real emergencies were filtered from the more deferrable ones

Spatial modeling for low pathogenicity avian influenza virus at the interface of wild birds and backyard poultry

Low pathogenicity avian influenza virus (LPAIV) is endemic in wild birds and poultry in Argentina, and active surveillance has been in place to prevent any eventual virus mutation into a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV), which is exotic in this country. Risk mapping can contribute effectively to disease surveillance and control systems, but it has proven a very challenging task in the absence of disease data. We used a combination of expert opinion elicitation, multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA), and ecological niche modeling (ENM) to identify the most suitable areas for the occurrence of LPAIV at the interface between backyard domestic poultry and wild birds in Argentina. This was achieved by calculating a spatially‐explicit risk index. As evidenced by the validation and sensitivity analyses, our model was successful in identifying high‐risk areas for LPAIV occurrence. Also, we show that the risk for virus occurrence is significantly higher in areas closer to commercial poultry farms. Although the active surveillance systems have been successful in detecting LPAIV‐positive backyard farms and wild birds in Argentina, our predictions suggest that surveillance efforts in those compartments could be improved by including high‐risk areas identified by our model. Our research provides a tool to guide surveillance activities in the future, and presents a mixed methodological approach which could be implemented in areas where the disease is exotic or rare and a knowledge‐driven modeling method is necessary