Neuroendocrine tumors: From anatomopathology to clinical presentation

Anatomopathological classification of Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs), today, covers a pivotal role in correctly identifying the disease and establish the right diagnostic and therapeutic approach it is needed in order to manage the patient. Depending on its grading and staging, NENs can have very different prognostic perspectives. Basing on WHO 2017 classification, in this paper will be explored their main characteristics, diving into main histotypes, dividing them into functional and non-functional tumors, keeping in mind their main locations: gastroenteropancreatic tract and lungs. Their typical clinical presentation and diagnostic strategies will be explained, mainly focusing on nuclear medicine and the importance of receptor overexpression (especially represented by somatostatin receptors, or SSTRs). This is the knowledge on which is based the diagnostic and therapeutic approach with peptide radiopharmaceuticals, especially 68Ga-DOTA-peptides (today, the gold standard in well-differentiated neuroendocrine neoplasms, only with the exception of insulinoma, that shows a low density of these molecules on its cellular surface)

IoT in healthcare: A scientometric analysis

This paper reviews scientific articles and patents about Internet of Things (IoT) in healthcare. The aim is to explore both the domain of research and the one of practice simultaneously. We compare the annual growth, the country production, and the trend topics of publications and patents, by focusing on the most relevant themes concerning the IoT in the healthcare industry. The analysis started with the selection of the publications and patents for the period 2015–2020. Since this comparative analysis between scientometric data in healthcare is new, the findings of this study can represent the basis for future studies to determine novel research opportunities on IoT. The study provides scholars with a better understanding of IoT research in healthcare and simultaneously extends knowledge of entrepreneurship in this field. Practitioners may benefit from this review to understand new and underexplored opportunities

Role of PET and SPECT in the study of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis has been defined as a "heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative syndromes characterized by progressive muscle paralysis caused by the degeneration of motor neurons allocated in primary motor cortex, brainstem, and spinal cord." A comprehensive diagnostic workup for ALS usually includes several electrodiagnostic, clinical laboratory and genetic tests. Neuroimaging exams, such as computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and spinal cord myelogram, may also be required. Nuclear medicine, with PET and SPECT, may also play a role in the evaluation of patients with ALS, and provide additional information to the clinicians.This paper aims to offer to the reader a comprehensive review of the different radiotracers for the assessment of the metabolism of glucose (FDG), the measurement of cerebral blood flow (CBF), or the evaluation of neurotransmitters, astrocytes, and microglia by means of newer and not yet clinically diffuse radiopharmaceuticals

Enhanced soluble CD40 ligand contributes to endothelial cell dysfunction in vitro and monocyte activation in patients with diabetes mellitus: effect of improved metabolic control

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Vapor etching to avoid micro-masking by gas-bubbles in wet release of MEMS

We report on the formation of gas bubbles during the release of MEMS devices using buffered oxide etch. Several approaches to mitigate the problem are proposed and tested together with a qualitative study of the phenomenon. The chemical reaction behind such phenomenon and the influence of defects and topography is discussed. Finally, a comparison with the HF-vapor release technique is shown

Phosphorylation of B14.5a subunit from bovine heart complex I identified by titanium dioxide selective enrichment and shotgun proteomics

Shotgun proteomics was used to study the steady phosphorylation state of NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase (complex I) subunits from bovine heart mitochondria. A total tryptic digestion of enzymatically active complex I was performed, and the resulting peptide mixture was subjected to phosphopeptide enrichment by the use of titanium dioxide (TiO2). The phosphopeptide-enriched fraction was separated and analyzed with nanoscale reverse-phase HPLC-ESI-MS/MS in single information-dependent acquisition. Hence two phosphorylated complex I subunits were detected: 42 kDa and B14.5a. Phosphorylation of 42-kDa subunit at Ser-59 has already been determined with fluorescent phosphoprotein-specific gel staining and mass spectrometry (Schilling, B., Aggeler, R., Schulenberg, B., Murray, J., Row, R. H., Capaldi, R. A., and Gibson, B. W. (2005) Mass spectrometric identification of novel phosphorylation site in subunit NDUFA10 of bovine mitochondrial complex I. FEBS Lett. 579, 2485-2490). In our work, this finding was confirmed using a non-gel-based approach. In addition, we report novel phosphorylation on B14.5a nuclear encoded subunit. We demonstrated evidence of the phosphorylation site at Ser-95 residue by collision-induced dissociation experiments on three different molecular ions of two tryptic phosphopeptides of B14.5a

Earth stabilisation via carbonate precipitation by plant-derived urease for building applications

Raw (unfired) earth represents a sustainable and efficient alternative to traditional construction materials but its dissemination into building practice has been hindered by a relatively high vulnerability to water erosion. Enzyme induced carbonate precipitation (EICP) can improve the durability of earth materials without using traditional chemical binders such as cement and lime. EICP utilises the urease enzyme to catalyse the hydrolysis of urea, which produces carbonate ions that react with the calcium ions dissolved in the pore water, thus resulting in the precipitation of calcium carbonate. The calcium carbonate fills the soil voids and binds particles together, which reduces water permeability and increases material strength. The urease enzyme is a hexameric protein that is found in the tissues of many common plants. This work proposes a low-cost and simple stabilisation technology that makes use of crude urease enzyme extracted from soybeans. This technology is applied to the stabilisation of compacted earth, whose properties are then assessed via unconfined compression, moisture buffering and durability tests. The findings suggest a noticeable improvement of material strength and durability, though further investigation is necessary to increase the competitiveness of EICP stabilisation against standard techniques using cement and lime

A comparative study of the effects of particle grading and compaction effort on the strength and stiffness of earth building materials at different humidity levels

This paper presents an investigation of the mechanical properties of three different earth building materials manufactured by compacting two soils with distinct particle size distributions under two markedly different efforts. Multiple samples of each material have been equalised either inside a climatic chamber at different humidity levels or oven-dried, before being subjected to shearing inside a triaxial cell to measure the corresponding levels of strength and stiffness. Triaxial shearing has been performed under different levels of radial stress to investigate the effect of material confinement inside thick walls. Consistent with previous research, the study has indicated that strength and stiffness increase as ambient humidity reduces and degree of saturation decreases, though the actual variation of these properties strongly depends on the dry density and clay content of the material. Most importantly, particle grading has emerged as a key material parameter, whose impact on earth building has often been overlooked. Particle grading appears to influence strength and stiffness even more than compaction effort, dry density and average particle size, which are usually quoted as the most important variables for the design of earth building materials

Clinical and environmental distribution of legionella pneumophila in a university hospital in italy: efficacy of ultraviolet disinfection

The molecular epidemiology of Legionella pneumophila in the 'V. Monaldi' University Hospital was studied. Seven cases of nosocomial Legionnaires' disease were diagnosed between 1999 and 2003. Two clinical legionella strains obtained from two patients in the adult cardiac surgery unit (CSU) and 30 environmental legionella strains from the paediatric and adult CSUs, neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and the cardiorespiratory intensive care unit (CR-ICU) were serotyped and genotyped. L. pneumophila serogroup 1/Philadelphia with an identical pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) profile A was isolated from two patients in the adult CSU, and from three and one water samples taken in the adult CSU and the paediatric CSU, respectively, from 2001 to 2002. Furthermore, L. pneumophila serogroup 3 with an identical PFGE profile B was identified in 20 environmental strains from all wards, L. pneumophila serogroup 3 with PFGE profile C was identified in a single environmental strain from the CR-ICU, and non-pneumophila Legionella with identical PFGE profile D was identified in five environmental strains from the adult CSU, paediatric CSU and NICU. Ultraviolet irradiation was effective in disinfection of the hospital water supplies in the adult and paediatric CSUs contaminated by L. pneumophila clone associated with nosocomial Legionnaires' disease. In conclusion, these data demonstrate that two cases of nosocomial legionellosis were caused by the persistence of a single clone of L. pneumophila serogroup 1/Philadelphia in the hospital environment, and that disinfection by ultraviolet irradiation may represent an effective measure to prevent nosocomial Legionnaires' disease. © 2005 The Hospital Infection Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved