The transverse-axial tubular system of cardiomyocytes

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Operational oceanography in support to indicator reporting

Operational Oceanography (OO) has now emerged to a stage that allows the design, development and execution of marine core services tailored to user requirements. As such it is also feasible to provide routine production of environmental and climate indicators. Indicators are synthetic indices of environmental changes at various temporal and spatial scales. In this paper we outline the possible contribution and strengthening of existing indicator reporting based on OO products followed by a discussion of the relevance of such improved reporting for marine environmental policy implementation and regulation. In particular, it capitalizes on the main achievements of the Marine Environment and Security of the European Area (MERSEA) project, the outcome of a European Marine Monitoring and Assessment (EMMA) workshop on the connection between operational oceanography and the European Marine Strategy (EMS) Directive and the regular European Environmental Agency (EEA) assessment reports

Compared clinical efficacy and bone metabolic effects of low-dose deflazacort and methyl prednisolone in male inflammatory arthropathies: a 12-month open randomized pilot study.

Objective. To evaluate: (i) a correct equivalence ratio of clinical efficacy between low-dose deflazacort (DFZ) and methyl prednisolone (MP); and (ii) bone metabolic effects of low-dose DFZ and MP in the treatment of male RA and PsA. Methods. A total of 21 male patients with active RA or PsA, naive to steroid treatment were chosen for the study. Group I: 10 patients treated for 6 months with DFZ 7.5 mg, calcium, cholecalciferol and a DMARD; for the following 6 months with MP 4 mg, calcium, cholecalciferol and a DMARD. Group II: 11 patients treated for 6 months with MP 4 mg, calcium, cholecalciferol and a DMARD; for the following 6 months with DFZ 7.5 mg, calcium, cholecalciferol and a DMARD. At day 0, 90, 180, 240 and 360 evaluation of ACR improvement criteria; a blood sample for total and bone-specific ALP, calcium, phosphorus, PTH, SHBG, estradiol, ACTH, osteocalcin, LH, OPG; a sample of urine for calcium, phosphorus, creatinine and DPD. Results. 13/21 patients (6/10 Group I; 7/11 Group II) reached ACR 20 at 6 months; 14/21 (7/10 Group I, 7/10 Group II) at 12 months. Only at the third month we observed in Group II vs Group I a reduction of OPG (24% vs 6%, P= n.s.); ALP (P < 0.001) and osteocalcin (P = 0.006) decreased in both groups from the third month; DPD decreased in both groups only from the sixth month (P = 0.002). Conclusions. The correct equivalence ratio of DFZ to MP is 1.875:1, and of DFZ to prednisolone 1.5:1. We found a relative prevalence of bone resorption compared to bone formation in the first 6 months of treatment. The trend of OPG requires further investigation

Fecal Calprotectin Predicts Mucosal Healing in Patients With Ulcerative Colitis Treated With Biological Therapies: A Prospective Study

INTRODUCTION: Biological therapies are widely used for the treatment of ulcerative colitis. However, only a low proportion of patients achieve clinical remission and even less mucosal healing. There is currently scarce knowledge about the early markers of therapeutic response, with particular regard to mucosal healing. The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate the role of fecal calprotectin (FC) as early predictor of mucosal healing. METHODS: A prospective observational study was conducted on patients with ulcerative colitis, who started biological therapy with infliximab, adalimumab, golimumab, or vedolizumab at our center. All patients underwent colonoscopy, performed by 2 blinded operators, at baseline and week 54 or in case of therapy discontinuation because of loss of response. FC was assessed at baseline and week 8 and evaluated as putative predictor of mucosal healing at week 54. RESULTS: We enrolled 109 patients, and 97 were included in the analysis. Twenty-six patients (27%) experienced loss of response. Over 71 patients (73%) with clinical response at week 54, clinical remission was obtained in 60 patients (61.9%) and mucosal healing in 45 patients (46.4%). After 8 weeks of treatment, FC predicted mucosal healing at week 54 (P &lt; 0.0001). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were estimated to be 75%, 88.9%, 86.6%, and 75.5%, respectively, based on a cutoff of 157.5 mg/kg. DISCUSSION: The present study suggests that FC assessment after 8 weeks of treatment with all the biological drugs could represent a promising early marker of response to therapy in terms of mucosal healing

Hindcast of oil-spill pollution during the Lebanon crisis in the Eastern Mediterranean, July–August 2006

MOON (Mediterranean Operational Oceanography Network http://www.moon-oceanforecasting.eu) pro- vides near-real-time information on oil-spill detection (ocean color and SAR) and predictions [ocean fore- casts (MFS and CYCOFOS) and oil-spill predictions (MEDSLIK)]. We employ this system to study the Lebanese oil-pollution crisis in summer 2006 and thus to assist regional and local decision makers in Europe, regionally and locally. The MEDSLIK oil-spill predictions obtained using CYCOFOS high-resolution ocean fields are compared with those obtained using lower-resolution MFS hydrodynamics, and both are validated against satellite observations. The predicted beached oil distributions along the Lebanese and Syrian coasts are compared with in situ observations. The oil-spill predictions are able to simulate the northward movement of the oil spill, with the CYCO- FOS predictions being in better agreement with satellite observations. Among the free MEDSLIK param- eters tested in the sensitivity experiments, the drift factor appears to be the most relevant to improve the quality of the results.The paper was produced using the INGV MFS forecasting-sys- tem product and the OC-UCY CYCOFOS forecasting-system prod- ucts. The MODIS satellite data products were processed at the GOS-CNR-ISAC Rome laboratory using the SeaDAS software devel- oped by NASA GSFC, Greenbelt, Maryland, the HDFLook software developed by The Laboratoire d’Optique Atmosphérique, Univer- sity of Lille, France, and the MS2GT tool box developed by the Uni- versity of Colorado. Procedures for oil-spill detection were developed in the ENVI environment. Processed ENVISAT-ASAR data were made available by Telespazio and JRC. Part of this work was carried out with the support of the PRIMI project (ASI Contract No. I/094/06/0) financed by the Italian Space Agency (ASI).In press4.6. Oceanografia operativa per la valutazione dei rischi in aree marineJCR Journalreserve