ricontestualizzare il dono nella formazione degli insegnanti spunti a partire da comunita di pratica e peer teaching

The paper aims to suggest how teacher education can today be seen as a field in which some aspects of anthropological theories of the gift can be re-contextualized. First, the paper will shortly describe the anthropological idea that the gift can be seen as a way to promote relationships with others. The paper will then outline the role that this idea of the gift can play in current educational environments, with special reference to the relevance of communities of practices within the field of teacher education. In this perspective, the paper will finally present some examples, drawing on an ongoing experience of peer teaching practices in preprimary and primary teacher education

Breast Cancer Preoperative Staging: Does Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Mammography Modify Surgery?

Women with newly diagnosed breast cancer may have lesions undetected by conventional imaging. Recently contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance mammography (CE-MRM) showed higher sensitivity in breast lesions detection. The present analysis was aimed at evaluating the benefit of preoperative CE-MRM in the surgical planning. From 2005 to 2009, 525 consecutive women (25–75 years) with breast cancer, newly diagnosed by mammography, ultrasound, and needle-biopsy, underwent CE-MRM. The median invasive tumour size was 19 mm. In 144 patients, CE-MRM identified additional lesions. After secondlook, 119 patients underwent additional biopsy. CE-MRM altered surgery in 118 patients: 57 received double lumpectomy or wider excision (41 beneficial), 41 required mastectomy (40 beneficial), and 20 underwent contra lateral surgery (18 beneficial). The overall false-positive rate was 27.1% (39/144). CE-MRM contributed significantly to the management of breast cancer, suggesting more extensive disease in 144/525 (27.4%) patients and changing the surgical plan in 118/525 (22.5%) patients (99/525, 18.8% beneficial)

Standard treatment–refractory cytomegalovirus encephalitis unmasked by immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome and successfully treated with virus‐specific hyperimmune globulin

Objectives Cytomegalovirus (CMV)‐related encephalitis is a rare but potentially life‐threatening complication of CMV infection in immunocompromised patients. The high mortality rate is associated with deficient immune system reconstitution after hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) and poor bioavailability of antiviral drugs in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). CMV‐related central nervous system (CNS) infection may occur with aspecific symptoms, without evidence of either blood viral load or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signs of encephalitis. Methods Here, we describe a 10‐year‐old girl who underwent an allogeneic HSCT and subsequently developed CMV encephalitis. Because of the absence of CMV antigen in the blood, the diagnosis of encephalitis was proposed only after a delay, following the onset of immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS). Two months of combined dual antiviral therapy with ganciclovir and foscarnet proved ineffective against CMV and caused significant bone marrow and renal toxicity. To avoid further toxicity, the girl was given daily treatment with CMV‐hyperimmune globulins alone. Results After three weeks, the CSF viral load dropped significantly and was undetectable within three more weeks. In the meantime, the renal impairment resolved, and there was a complete bone marrow recovery. Conclusion We suggest that this patient succeeded in achieving CMV CSF clearance with high dose of CMV‐hyperimmune globulin, given alone, because of the ability of immunoglobulins to penetrate the blood–brain barrier (BBB)

Design, synthesis and antimycobacterial activity of benzoxazinone derivatives and open-ring analogues: preliminary data and computational analysis

This study examines in depth benzoxazine nucleus for antimycobacterial property. We synthesized some benzoxazin-2-one and benzoxazin-3-one derivatives, which were tested for activity against a panel of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) strains, including H37Ra, H37Rv and some resistant strains. Several compounds displayed a high antimycobacterial activity and the three isoniazid analogue derivatives 8a-c exhibited a MIC range of 0.125-0.250 \u3bcg/mL (0.37-0.75 \u3bcM) against strain H37Ra, therefore lower than the isoniazid reference drug. Two benzoxazin-2-one derivatives, 1c and 5j, together with isoniazid-analogue compound 8a, also revealed low MIC values against resistant strains and proved highly selective for mycobacterial cells, compared to mammalian Vero cells. To predict whether molecule 8a is able to interact with the active site of InhA, we docked it into the crystal structure; indeed, during the molecular dynamic simulation the compound never left the protein pocket. The more active compounds were predicted for ADME properties and all proved to be potentially orally active in humans

Post-Irradiation Hyperamylasemia Is a Prognostic Marker for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Outcomes in Pediatric Population: A Retrospective Single-Centre Cohort Analysis

Background: Total body irradiation (TBI) is a mandatory step for patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). In the past, amylases have been reported to be a possible sign of TBI toxicity. We investigated the relationship between total amylases (TA) and transplant-related outcomes in pediatric recipients. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of all the patients who underwent allogeneic HSCT between January 2000 and November 2019. The inclusion criteria were the following: recipient's age between 2 and 18, diagnosis of ALL, no previous transplantation, and use of TBI-based conditioning. The serum total amylase and pancreatic amylase were evaluated before, during, and after transplantation. Cytokines and chemokines assays were retrospectively performed. Results: 78 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Fifty-seven patients were treated with fractionated TBI, and 21 with a single-dose regimen. The overall survival (OS) was 62.8%. Elevated values of TA were detected in 71 patients (91%). The TA were excellent in predicting the OS (AUC = 0.773; 95% CI = 0.66-0.86; p < 0.001). TA values below 374 U/L were correlated with a higher OS. The highest mean TA values (673 U/L) were associated with a high disease-progression mortality rate. The TA showed a high predictive performance for disease progression-related death (AUC = 0.865; 95% CI = 0.77-0.93; p < 0.0001). Elevated TA values were also connected with significantly higher levels of proinflammatory cytokines, such as TNF-alpha, IL-6, and RANTES (p < 0.001). Conclusions: this study shows that TA is a valuable predictor of post-transplant OS and increased risk of leukemia relapse

Post-HSCT graft failure due to refractory human cytomegalovirus successfully treated with haploidentical donor-derived immunoglobulins and stem cell graft infusion: a case report

Background: Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) remains an important cause of transplant-related morbidity and mortality. The incidence of HCMV recurrence in the donor seronegative (D-)/recipient seropositive (R+) group is significantly higher than in other serostatus combinations as a result of a lack of pre-existing HCMV-specific memory T-lymphocytes in the donor, coupled with the eradication of the recipient's cellular immunity due to the conditioning regimen. Case presentation: We describe the case of an 8-year-old βE-thalassemic girl from Bangladesh who was seropositive for human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from a HLA-matched, unrelated, HCMV-seronegative donor. Despite administering antiviral prophylaxis with commercial pooled anti-HCMV immunoglobulin (Ig) from day +1, the post-transplant course was complicated by prompt viral reactivation, and foscarnet therapy was initiated. The virus was refractory to treatment, leading rapidly to complete bone marrow failure, and targeted immunotherapy was proposed as a second-line therapy. Hypothesizing that the patient and her relatives may have been exposed to similar HCMV strains, we selected the patient's mother, who presented a high HCMV antibody titer, as the donor of virus strain-specific anti-HCMV Ig and T-lymphocytes. Complete viral clearance was achieved after two transfusions of the mother's plasma. Subsequently, the patient underwent a haploidentical rescue transplant, promptly reaching full hematological recovery. Conclusion: These findings suggest that treatment with virus strain-specific Ig may offer a new therapeutic option for critically ill patients