Situazione attuale e tendenze future del settore idrico con un focus sul caso dell’acquedotto pugliese spa

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Excretion of Aflatoxin M1 in milk of goats fed diet contaminated by Aflatoxin B1

An experiment was carried out to study the excretion of aflatoxin M1(AFM1) in milk of three goats fed a single dose (0.8mg/head) of pure aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). The values of AFM1 concentration excreted in milk was highly variable among goats, even if the pattern of excretion over time was very similar among the three animals. AFM1 was first detected at the milking performed 1h after the AFB1 administration. The highest values of AFM1 concentration in milk were reached 3 and 6h after the AFB1 intake. The trend of clearance of AFM1 in milk over time was expressed by a decreasing exponential equation. AFM1 concentration was below the EU maximum allowed level (50 ng/L) in milk collected 36 h after the AFB1 administration

Role of sensorial perceptions in feed selection and intake by domestic herbivores

Sensorial perceptions play an important role in feed selection and intake by herbivores. Much research has been carried out to study the sensorial perceptions evoked by forages and their effects on intake and feed selection. Certain specific compounds are clearly able to evoke positive or negative sensorial perceptions when forages are eaten. This might lead to the development of plant extracts and aromas that might be used to improve the intake of unpalatable feeds. In the case of concentrates, the little research available seems to support an important role of the interaction between sensorial perceptions and post-ingestive effects when simple unmixed concentrates are supplied. It is not clear to what extent these effects are important when compound concentrates are offered. Despite these advances, it appears that most of the research carried out so far has been exploratory and observational. More research is needed to better understand the mechanisms underlying feed palatability before it can be included in intake prediction models

Specialized pro-resolving mediator RvD1 reduces neuroinflammation in a transgenic rat model of Parkinson’s disease

The neuroinflammatory processes in Parkinson’s disease (PD) are usually associated with activation of the immune system caused by a growing aggregation of α-synuclein (α-Syn) in central nervous system. The active immune response in brain of PD patients leads to infiltration of lymphocytes, production of cytokines and microgliosis, these features could be a consequence of failure to resolve inflammation, a process mediated by a superfamily of endogenous lipids termed specialized pro-resolvin mediators (SPMs). A previous study from our group has shown that precocious treatment with resolvin D1 (RvD1) prevents the onset of PD by attenuating immune response in a rat model of PD. Herein, we explored the long-term effect of RvD1 in α-Syn rats by treating them with intraperitoneal injections twice a week, starting at early stage of the disease (2 months old) until the symptomatic phase (12 months old). Hence, we assessed motor deficit evaluated through Rotarod test and the infiltration of the main CD45+ leukocyte cell populations (i.e. CD3+ T-cells, CD45RA+ B-cells, CD161+ NK-cells and CD45/CD11bhigh macrophages) within substantia nigra and striatum by flow cytometry. We found that α-Syn rats showed a higher degree of nigral and striatal infiltration of all cell subsets compared to age-matched wildtype rats and that RvD1 treatment not only ameliorated motor deficits but also reduced their infiltration in both anatomical regions. Furthermore, although the percentage of CD45lowCD11b+ microglial cells remained unchanged between the different experimental groups, we observed that microglia of α-Syn rats shifted from a pro-inflammatory M1-like to a pro-resolving/anti-inflammatory M2-like immunophenotype upon RvD1 treatment, in terms of modulation of their respective M1 (CD68, CD86, MHC-II) and M2 (CD206, TREM2) markers. These results suggest that RvD1 is able to delay disease progression by blunting neuroinflammation and inducing a microglia- driven pro-resolving response

Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion in High Bleeding Risk Patients

Objectives. The aim of this study was to investigate the outcomes of left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) in high bleeding risk patients suffering atrial fibrillation (AF) and to analyze the different antithrombotic therapies following the intervention. Background. Methods. This monocentric study included 68 patients with nonvalvular AF with an absolute contraindication to OAT or at high bleeding risk. Follow-up was done with a clinical visit at 3-6-12 months. Results. Successful LAAO was achieved in 67/68 patients. At discharge, 32/68 patients were on dual antiplatelet therapy (APT), 34/68 were without any antithrombotic therapy or with a single antiplatelet drug, and 2/68 were on anticoagulant therapy. At three-month follow-up visit, 73.6% of the patients did not receive dual APT, of whom 14.7% had no thrombotic therapy and 58.9% were on single antiplatelet therapy. During a follow-up of 1.4 ± 0.9 years, 3/62 patients had late adverse effects (2 device-related thrombus without clinical consequences and 1 extracranial bleeding). The device-related thrombosis was not related to the antithrombotic therapy. Conclusions. LAAO is feasible and safe and prevents stroke in patients with AF with contraindication to oral anticoagulant therapy. After LAAO, single antiplatelet therapy seems to be a safe alternative to dual antiplatelet therapy, especially in patients at high bleeding risk. No benefit has been observed with dual APT

Serum free thyroxine levels are positively associated with arterial stiffness in the SardiNIA study

OBJECTIVE: Thyroid dysfunction may accelerate atherosclerosis. Aortic pulse wave velocity is an early index of arterial stiffness and an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and might therefore be linked to changes in thyroid activity. We investigated the relationship between thyroid function and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity, as an index of arterial stiffness. DESIGN: Cross-sectional cohort study. PATIENTS: Participants from the SardiNIA study. Those being treated for thyroid diseases were excluded, yielding a sample of 5,875 ages 14-102. MEASUREMENTS: Clinical parameters, blood tests including serum TSH and serum FT4, and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity were measured. RESULTS: After adjusting for confounders, a direct and linear association between FT4 and pulse wave velocity was shown (multiple regression analysis). The model containing age, mean blood pressure, body mass index, heart rate, FT4, hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidaemia accounted for 55% of the variation in pulse wave velocity. CONCLUSIONS: Like several other known risk factors, serum FT4 levels are associated with carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity, suggesting that high FT4 levels have a detrimental effect on aortic stiffness and may contribute to aging process of the vascular system. This finding may help to understand the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease and contribute to improve prevention therapy

'Verrucano' and 'Pseudoverrucano' in the central-western Mediterranean Alpine chains: palaeogeographic evolution and geodynamic significance

Geological Society of London Special Publication