Leptin system in obese dog skin: A pilot study

Obesity predisposes to several health problems including skin diseases. However, information on the relationship between obesity and skin disorders in pets is very scarce. Leptin (LEP) is mainly produced by adipose tissue and has a prominent role in skin biology. This study evaluated the LEP system in the skin of obese dogs compared to normal-weight animals. The investigation was carried out on 10 obese (Obese group) and 10 normal-weight (Normal-weight group) dogs through Real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry. Cells of skin associated immune system were also evaluated. No differences were evidenced between the two groups as well as skin inflammation. LEP differences were no significant, while LEPR transcript appeared 10-fold higher in obesedogs than in normal-weight ones. Immunostaining for both molecules was observed in several skin structures such as the epidermis, hair follicles, and glands. No differences appeared in the skin associated immune system composition. This study is a preliminary report showing that LEP system changes in obese dog skin. The increased LEPR expression observed in the obese group suggests that the receptor plays a modulating role in the system control. However, the exact role of LEPin the skin under obesity conditions needs further elucidation

Effects of obesity on adiponectin system skin expression in dogs: A comparative study

Obesity is an important health issue in dogs since it influences a plethora of associated pathologies, including dermatological disorders. Considering the scarcity of information in pets, this work aimed to evaluate the localization and expression of adiponectin (ADIPOQ) and its two receptors (ADIPOR1 and ADIPOR2) in the skin of 10 obese dogs, compared with serum ADIPOQ level. Through immunohistochemistry, ADIPOQ and ADIPOR2 were observed in the adipose tissue, sweat and sebaceous glands, endothelium, and some connective cells. Both receptors were observed in the epidermis and the hair follicles, other than in the sweat and sebaceous glands. Real-time PCR evidenced that the ADIPOQ and ADIPOR2 transcripts were expressed 5.4-fold (p < 0.01) and 2.3-fold less (p < 0.01), respectively, in obese than in normal weight dogs, while ADIPOR1 expression did not change. Obese dogs showed lower serum ADIPOQ levels than the normal weight group. Accordingly, ADIPOQ and ADIPOR2 expression in the skin appear negatively correlated with obesity in the same way as the serum ADIPOQ level. These findings evidence that ADIPOQ system changes in the skin of obese dogs and suggest that the ADIPOQ effect on the skin is at least in part regulated by the reduced expression of ADIPOR2

Statistical Consequences of Devroye Inequality for Processes. Applications to a Class of Non-Uniformly Hyperbolic Dynamical Systems

In this paper, we apply Devroye inequality to study various statistical estimators and fluctuations of observables for processes. Most of these observables are suggested by dynamical systems. These applications concern the co-variance function, the integrated periodogram, the correlation dimension, the kernel density estimator, the speed of convergence of empirical measure, the shadowing property and the almost-sure central limit theorem. We proved in \cite{CCS} that Devroye inequality holds for a class of non-uniformly hyperbolic dynamical systems introduced in \cite{young}. In the second appendix we prove that, if the decay of correlations holds with a common rate for all pairs of functions, then it holds uniformly in the function spaces. In the last appendix we prove that for the subclass of one-dimensional systems studied in \cite{young} the density of the absolutely continuous invariant measure belongs to a Besov space.Comment: 33 pages; companion of the paper math.DS/0412166; corrected version; to appear in Nonlinearit

A low escape fraction of ionizing photons of L>L* Lyman break galaxies at z=3.3

We present an upper limit for the relative escape fraction (f_{esc}^{rel}) of ionizing radiation at z~3.3 using a sample of 11 Lyman Break Galaxies (LBGs) with deep imaging in the U band obtained with the Large Binocular Camera, mounted on the prime focus of the Large Binocular Telescope. We selected 11 LBGs with secure redshift in the range 3.27<z<3.35, from 3 independent fields. We stacked the images of our sources in the R and U band, which correspond to an effective rest-frame wavelength of 1500\AA and 900\AA respectively, obtaining a limit in the U band image of >=30.7(AB)mag at 1 sigma. We derive a 1 sigma upper limit of f_{esc}^{rel}~5%, which is one of the lowest values found in the literature so far at z~3.3. Assuming that the upper limit for the escape fraction that we derived from our sample holds for all galaxies at this redshift, the hydrogen ionization rate that we obtain (Gamma_{-12}<0.3 s^{-1}) is not enough to keep the IGM ionized and a substantial contribution to the UV background by faint AGNs is required. Since our sample is clearly still limited in size, larger z~3 LBG samples, at similar or even greater depths are necessary to confirm these results on a more firm statistical basis.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in Ap

Pasta consumption and connected dietary habits: Associations with glucose control, adiposity measures, and cardiovascular risk factors in people with type 2 diabetes—TOSCA.IT study

Background: Pasta is a refined carbohydrate with a low glycemic index. Whether pasta shares the metabolic advantages of other low glycemic index foods has not really been investigated. The aim of this study is to document, in people with type-2 diabetes, the consumption of pasta, the connected dietary habits, and the association with glucose control, measures of adiposity, and major cardiovascular risk factors. Methods: We studied 2562 participants. The dietary habits were assessed with the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) questionnaire. Sex-specific quartiles of pasta consumption were created in order to explore the study aims. Results: A higher pasta consumption was associated with a lower intake of proteins, total and saturated fat, cholesterol, added sugar, and fiber. Glucose control, body mass index, prevalence of obesity, and visceral obesity were not significantly different across the quartiles of pasta intake. No relation was found with LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, but there was an inverse relation with HDL-cholesterol. Systolic blood pressure increased with pasta consumption; but this relation was not confirmed after correction for confounders. Conclusions: In people with type-2 diabetes, the consumption of pasta, within the limits recommended for total carbohydrates intake, is not associated with worsening of glucose control, measures of adiposity, and major cardiovascular risk factors

The “Personal Health Budget” intervention model in early psychosis: Preliminary findings from the Parma experience

Objectives Personal Health Budget (PHB) has recently been provided to people with severe mental illness, reflecting a policy shift towards a personalized mental health care based on individual unmet needs. However, evidence on effectiveness of PHB initiatives is still limited. Aim of this research was to provide preliminary data about the beneficial effects of adding PHB to a multicomponent EIP intervention in patients with First-Episode Psychosis (FEP) along a 2-year follow-up period. Methods Participants (n = 49) were FEP patients, aged 18-50 years, entered the “Parma Early Psychosis” program and completing the Health of Nation Outcome Scale (HoNOS), the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF). Friedman test for repeated measure (with Wilcoxon test as post-hoc procedure) was performed to evaluate the longitudinal stability of functioning and clinical parameters. A linear regression analysis was also carried out. Results A significant effect of time on all HoNOS, BPRS and GAF scores along the 2 years of follow-up was found. Regression analysis results specifically showed a relevant association between a PHB multiaxial intervention and the longitudinal decrease in BPRS “Negative Symptoms” subscores, as well as in HoNOS “Behavioral Problems” and “Social Problems” scores. Conclusions Our results support the general applicability of a PHB approach within an “Early Intervention in Psychosis” program for help-seeking adults with FEP

Effects of Dietary Zn/Se and α-Tocopherol Supplementation on Metabolic Milieu, Haemogram and Semen Traits of Breeding Stallions

Trace element status and metabolic milieu are sometimes overlooked in common veterinary clinical practice across animal species. The evaluation of requirements of trace elements, in fact, may be useful to prevent the perturbation of tissue-specific metabolic impair. In particular, essential trace elements in the diet play key roles within sub-cellular metabolic patterns with macro effects at the systemic level, like blood cell stability and semen quality. This effect was studied in breeding stallions, in which semen quality and haemogram are important for reproduction. A case-control feeding trial involved 40 stallions (age: 8–21&nbsp;years; body weight, BW: 510–531&nbsp;kg) of one stud centre, allotted to two experimental groups (n = 20 control, CON vs. n&nbsp;= 20 supplemented, SUPPL100), following a matched-pairs approach based on age. Supplemented stallions (SUPPL100) received a mixed mineral and vitamin supplement of Zn/Se and α-tocopherol (α-TOH) (100&nbsp;g/day stallion) to compound feed, fed as control diet to horses of the control group (CON). Horses resulted deficient in circulating α-TOH and Zn at the start, though clinically healthy. After supplementation, different plasmatic levels of α-TOH, Zn and Se were found between groups. Circulating basophils (BASO) and mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were affected by the dietary treatment (p &lt; 0.05). Plasmatic Se affected monocyte count, haematocrit, mean cell volume and mean cell haemoglobin concentration. Semen traits were not affected by the dietary treatment per se, except for mobile/progressive sperm cells (%) of stallions aged &gt; 13&nbsp;years marginal circulating levels of α-TOH (p = 0.04). Ameliorating the micromineral status showed to improve the haemogram of stallions in view of circulating levels of Cu. Semen quality appeared to be strongly dependent on animal effects

A Wasserstein approach to the one-dimensional sticky particle system

We present a simple approach to study the one-dimensional pressureless Euler system via adhesion dynamics in the Wasserstein space of probability measures with finite quadratic moments. Starting from a discrete system of a finite number of "sticky" particles, we obtain new explicit estimates of the solution in terms of the initial mass and momentum and we are able to construct an evolution semigroup in a measure-theoretic phase space, allowing mass distributions with finite quadratic moment and corresponding L^2-velocity fields. We investigate various interesting properties of this semigroup, in particular its link with the gradient flow of the (opposite) squared Wasserstein distance. Our arguments rely on an equivalent formulation of the evolution as a gradient flow in the convex cone of nondecreasing functions in the Hilbert space L^2(0,1), which corresponds to the Lagrangian system of coordinates given by the canonical monotone rearrangement of the measures.Comment: Added reference

Years of life that could be saved from prevention of hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) causes premature death and loss of life expectancy worldwide. Its primary and secondary prevention can result in a significant number of years of life saved. AIM: To assess how many years of life are lost after HCC diagnosis. METHODS: Data from 5346 patients with first HCC diagnosis were used to estimate lifespan and number of years of life lost after tumour onset, using a semi-parametric extrapolation having as reference an age-, sex- and year-of-onset-matched population derived from national life tables. RESULTS: Between 1986 and 2014, HCC lead to an average of 11.5 years-of-life lost for each patient. The youngest age-quartile group (18-61 years) had the highest number of years-of-life lost, representing approximately 41% of the overall benefit obtainable from prevention. Advancements in HCC management have progressively reduced the number of years-of-life lost from 12.6 years in 1986-1999, to 10.7 in 2000-2006 and 7.4 years in 2007-2014. Currently, an HCC diagnosis when a single tumour <2 cm results in 3.7 years-of-life lost while the diagnosis when a single tumour 65 2 cm or 2/3 nodules still within the Milan criteria, results in 5.0 years-of-life lost, representing the loss of only approximately 5.5% and 7.2%, respectively, of the entire lifespan from birth. CONCLUSIONS: Hepatocellular carcinoma occurrence results in the loss of a considerable number of years-of-life, especially for younger patients. In recent years, the increased possibility of effectively treating this tumour has improved life expectancy, thus reducing years-of-life lost

Polyphenol intake and cardiovascular risk factors in a population with\ua0type 2 diabetes: The TOSCA.IT study.

Summary Background The role of polyphenol intake on cardiovascular risk factors is little explored, particularly in people with diabetes. Aim: To evaluate the association between the intake of total polyphenols and polyphenol classes with the major cardiovascular risk factors in a population with type 2 diabetes. Methods Dietary habits were investigated in 2573 males and females participants of the TOSCA.IT study. The European Prospective Investigation on Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) questionnaire was used to assess dietary habits. In all participants, among others, we assessed anthropometry, plasma lipids, blood pressure, C-reactive protein and HbA1c following a standard protocol. The USDA and Phenol-Explorer databases were used to estimate the polyphenol content of the habitual diet. Results Average intake of polyphenols was 683.3 \ub1 5.8 mg/day. Flavonoids and phenolic acids were the predominant classes (47.5% and 47.4%, respectively). After adjusting for potential confounders, people with the highest intake of energy-adjusted polyphenols (upper tertile) had a more favorable cardiovascular risk factors profile as compared to people with the lowest intake (lower tertile) (BMI was 30.7 vs 29.9 kg/m2, HDL-cholesterol was 45.1 vs 46.9 mg/dl, LDL-cholesterol was 103.2 vs 102.1 mg/dl, triglycerides were 153.4 vs 148.0 mg/dl, systolic and diastolic blood pressure were respectively 135.3 vs 134.3 and 80.5 vs 79.6 mm/Hg, HbA1c was 7.70 vs 7.67%, and C-reactive Protein was 1.29 vs 1.25 mg/dl, p < .001 for all). The findings were very similar when the analysis was conducted separately for flavonoids or phenolic acids, the two main classes of polyphenols consumed in this population. Conclusions Polyphenol intake is associated with a more favorable cardiovascular risk factors profile, independent of major confounders. These findings support the consumption of foods and beverages rich in different classes of polyphenols particularly in people with diabetes. Clinical trial http://www.clinicaltrials.gov; Study ID number: NCT00700856