Rituximab in steroid-refractory immune-related pancreatitis: a case report

The use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) for treating several types of cancer is increasing, but they may be associated with immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Pancreatitis is a rare irAE, mostly responsive to steroid treatment. There are no published data on the management of steroid-refractory ICI-induced pancreatitis. Rituximab has shown efficacy in the setting of relapsing non-ICI-induced autoimmune pancreatitis. However, its use has not been tested for treating immunotherapy-related pancreatitis. Here, we present the case of a patient with steroid-refractory immune-related pancreatitis successfully treated with rituximab as a potential strategy for irAE management

Osservatorio territoriale droga e tossicodipendenze. Il fenomeno delle dipendenze nel territorio della ASL della Provincia di Sondrio. Rapporto 2008.

Report on the state of legal and illegal substances use in the territory of Sondrio province.Il report analizza il fenomeno delle dipendenze nel territorio della Provincia di Sondrio. La descrizione del fenomeno si sviluppa intorno all\u27analisi degli indicatori individuati dall\u27Osservatorio Europeo delle Dipendenze di Lisbona (OEDT): 1-uso di sostanze nella popolazione generale (questo indicatore va a rilevare i comportamenti nei confronti di alcol e sostanze psicoattive da parte della popolazione generale); 2-prevalenza d\u27uso problematico delle sostanze psicoattive; 3-domanda di trattamento degli utilizzatori di sostanze; 4-mortalit? degli utilizzatori di sostanze; 5-malattie infettive. Altri due importanti indicatori che si stanno sviluppando, e che vengono qui illustrati, sono l\u27analisi delle Schede di Dimissione Ospedaliera (SDO) e gli indicatori relativi alle conseguenza sociali dell\u27uso di droghe (criminalit? droga correlata). Inoltre sono state applicate diverse metodologie standard di stima sia per quantificare la quota parte sconosciuta di utilizzatori di sostanze che non afferiscono ai servizi, sia per identificarne alcune caratteristiche

The effects of visual control and distance in modulating peripersonal spatial representation

In the presence of vision, finalized motor acts can trigger spatial remapping, i.e., reference frames transformations to allow for a better interaction with targets. However, it is yet unclear how the peripersonal space is encoded and remapped depending on the availability of visual feedback and on the target position within the individual’s reachable space, and which cerebral areas subserve such processes. Here, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to examine neural activity while healthy young participants performed reach-to-grasp movements with and without visual feedback and at different distances of the target from the effector (near to the hand–about 15 cm from the starting position–vs. far from the hand–about 30 cm from the starting position). Brain response in the superior parietal lobule bilaterally, in the right dorsal premotor cortex, and in the anterior part of the right inferior parietal lobule was significantly greater during visually-guided grasping of targets located at the far distance compared to grasping of targets located near to the hand. In the absence of visual feedback, the inferior parietal lobule exhibited a greater activity during grasping of targets at the near compared to the far distance. Results suggest that in the presence of visual feedback, a visuo-motor circuit integrates visuo-motor information when targets are located farther away. Conversely in the absence of visual feedback, encoding of space may demand multisensory remapping processes, even in the case of more proximal targets

La Svizzera tedesca tra lingua e dialetto: Hochdeutsch oder Schwyzerdütsch? Analisi della situazione linguistica della Svizzera germanofona

Il presente elaborato si apre con una prima parte dedicata a una panoramica sulla situazione linguistica nella Svizzera tedesca, seguita da un approfondimento sul tedesco svizzero standard, sullo svizzero tedesco, sul rapporto tra i due e infine da un’analisi dei dialetti bernesi e di quelli zurighesi. Prosegue poi con la seconda parte, che consiste nell’analisi di due canzoni scritte nei due dialetti già analizzati. Infine, vi è una sezione dedicata alle conclusioni. Lo scopo di questo elaborato è di riportare un quadro globale e dettagliato della variegata e complessa situazione linguistica svizzera tedesca e di confrontare tra loro due varietà dialettali e il tedesco svizzero standard per evidenziarne somiglianze e differenze

Effects of prolonged treatment with the opiate tramadol on prodynorphin gene expression in rat CNS.

A low abuse liability is reported for tramadol, an analgesic drug centrally acting through either opioid or nonopioid mechanisms. In this paper, we evaluated the effects of the repeated administration (7 d) of different doses of tramadol (10, 20, and 80 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) on the opioid precursor prodynorphin biosynthesis, in comparison with morphine (10 mg/kg, intraperitoneally), in the rat central nervous system (CNS). Northern analysis showed that morphine and tramadol produced different effects. While morphine caused a downregulation of prodynorphin mRNAlevels in all investigated areas (hypothalamus, hippocampus, and striatum), tramadol did not cause any significant change in the striatum, and did not decrease prodynorphin biosynthesis in the hypothalamus and in the hippocampus, at nontoxic doses (10 and 20 mg/kg). The highest dose of tramadol (80 mg/kg) decreased prodynorphin mRNA levels in the hypothalamus and the hippocampus but not in the striatum. These data give some information on tramadol effects at molecular level in the CNS. They indicate that the alterations of prodynorphin gene expression caused by tramadol and morphine show a different pattern that may be related to the different abuse potential of the two analgesic drugs

Survival of the functional yeast Kluyveromyces marxianus B0399 in fermented milk with added sorbic acid

In this study, the survival of the functional yeast Kluyveromyces marxianus B0399 in an industrially produced fermented milk was evaluated. In particular, the yeast viability was assessed throughout the entire shelf-life of the product (30 d) to ensure the presence of the effective yeast dose (20 million viable cells for each serving of 125 g) while avoiding, by sorbic acid addition, yeast growth, which could affect product quality and stability. To find the best combination of yeast and sorbic acid concentration, 13 different combinations were tested, and then 2 of them were chosen for industrial production. In production at lower concentrations (30 million viable cells, 150 mg/kg of sorbic acid) the effective dose was maintained only at 4 and 6\ub0C, whereas at higher dosages (70 million viable cells, 250 mg/kg of sorbic acid) the effect of temperature was less evident. In all the trials, the concentration of sorbic acid was not affected by microbial metabolism and remained stable throughout the entire shelf-life

NGR-hTNF and Doxorubicin as Second-Line Treatment of Patients with Small Cell Lung Cancer

Background. Relapsed small cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients have limited treatment options and poor outcomes. NGR-hTNF is a vascular-targeting agent, which increases intratumoral chemotherapy penetration and Tlymphocyte infiltration. Methods. Twenty-eight patients relapsing after at least one platinum-based regimen with a treatment-free interval shorter (n = 16; platinum-resistant) or longer (n = 12; platinum- sensitive) than 3 months received NGR-hTNF 0.8 mu g/ m2 plus doxorubicin 75 mg/ m2 every 3 weeks. The primary endpoint of this single-arm phase II trial was progression-free survival (PFS), and safety, response rate, and survival were secondary endpoints. Results. The most common grade 3-4 toxicities were neutropenia (53%) and anemia (21%). Median PFS was 3.2 months for all patients, 2.7 months for platinum-resistant patients, and 4.1 months for platinum-sensitive patients. Seven patients had partial responses (25%), including four (25%) with platinum-resistant and three (25%) with platinum-sensitive relapse. Mean changes from baseline in tumor burden (after two, four, and six cycles) did not differ between platinum- resistant (-9%, -29%, and -32%) and platinum-sensitive (-11%, -20%, and -43%) cohorts. Overall survival was associated only with baseline lymphocyte counts, with median survival times of 13.1 and 5.2 months for lymphocyte counts above or below the median, respectively. Conclusion. NGR-hTNF plus doxorubicin showed manageable toxicity and promising activity in patients with relapsed SCLC. The Oncologist 2018; 23: 1133-e11