Evaluation of immunization practices in Naples, Italy.

This paper reports the results of a survey on vaccination coverage among children born in January 1995 and residing at the beginning of the study (March 1998) in the city of Naples, Italy. The percentages vaccinated, at various times from birth, with oral polio vaccine (OPV), have been compared with those found in a similar survey conducted at the end of 1985 regarding the cohort of children born in June 1983. By the fourth month of life 67% of the 1995 cohort were vaccinated with the first doses of OPV, an increase of about 26% on that found in the 1983 cohort. Similar results were found with the second doses. Among the 1995 cohort 49% were vaccinated with the third dose of OPV within the thirteenth month of life; the corresponding value for the 1983 cohort was 33%. Within the twenty-fourth month of life, in the 1995 cohort, 86% completed the primary cycle of vaccination with OPV; the corresponding figure for the 1983 cohort was 65%. At the end of the third year of life 80% of the 1995 cohort received the fourth dose of OPV. A significant association has been found between socioeconomic status and coverage level

ERG conductance expression modulates the excitability of ventral horn GABAergic interneurons that control rhythmic oscillations in the developing mouse spinal cord

During antenatal development, the operation and maturation of mammalian spinal networks strongly depend on the activity of ventral horn GABAergic interneurons that mediate excitation first and inhibition later. Although the functional consequence of GABA actions may depend on maturational processes in target neurons, it is also likely that evolving changes in GABAergic transmission require fine-tuning in GABA release, probably via certain intrinsic mechanisms regulating GABAergic neuron excitability at different embryonic stages. Nevertheless, it has not been possible, to date, to identify certain ionic conductances upregulated or downregulated before birth in such cells. By using an experimental model with either mouse organotypic spinal cultures or isolated spinal cord preparations, the present study examined the role of the ERG current (IK(ERG) ), a potassium conductance expressed by developing, GABA-immunoreactive spinal neurons. In organotypic cultures, only ventral interneurons with fast adaptation and GABA immunoreactivity, and only after 1 week in culture, were transformed into high-frequency bursters by E4031, a selective inhibitor of IK(ERG) that also prolonged and made more regular spontaneous bursts. In the isolated spinal cord in which GABA immunoreactivity and m-erg mRNA were colocalized in interneurons, ventral root rhythms evoked by NMDA plus 5-hydroxytryptamine were stabilized and synchronized by E4031. All of these effects were lost after 2 weeks in culture or before birth in coincidence with decreased m-erg expression. These data suggest that, during an early stage of spinal cord development, the excitability of GABAergic ventral interneurons important for circuit maturation depended, at least in part, on the function of IK(ERG)

Deepfield connect, an innovative decision support system for crops irrigation management under Mediterranean conditions

The irrigation management, in the Mediterranean region, represents an important technique useful to reach sustainable yield and improve the quality of the crop. The use of decision support systems and water saving techniques has gained importance during the last decades mainly in arid and semiarid countries where water is considered a precious resource. DeepField Connect by BOSCH is an innovative tool able to support farmers in irrigation management and consists of three main parts: hardware (sensors, device-to-web-data logger and thermo-hygrometer), algorithm and graphic use interface (app). This system is based on GIS analysis, which represents the most innovative and functional tool for such studies, which provides a mapping of soil hydrological characteristics at the regional level. We used, as a reference, soil data analysis obtained at Regional level from the ACLA II Project. In this way, the system creates an interactive mapping system, matching each point of the Apulian surface, in particular, the texture composition of the soil and the values of the hydrological constants (wilting point, WP and field capacity FC), for irrigation planning. These data are integrated with the recharging point (RP) a value calculated for the main regional irrigated crop which represents the level of soil moisture that, together with FC, represent the range of plant-available water. Besides, this tool provides different irrigation strategies such as deficit irrigation or complete restitution of evapotranspiration losses, according to farmer needs. DeepField Connect by BOSCH transmits the data via the Bosch Cloud to the smartphone. This allows to keep track of fields at any given time and to provide assistance in: when to irrigate and which irrigation volumes to use. This intelligent system can be considered as the application of one of the best practices that the agricultural sector can implement to improve its environmental performance and contribute to sustainable food production

Temperature-modulated reflectance of GaSe at the ground state exciton line

Thermoreflectance spectra in the exciton region were obtained on the layer compound GaSe. The experimental results can be explained by assuming that the only temperature effect is a shift of the whole structure. At liquid nitrogen temperature the values Eo = 2.093 eV and T = 41.0 meV are found for the first energy level and the broadening parameter, respectively. Measurements at three different temperatures gave the value dE0/dT = −5.49 × 10−4 eV/deg for the temperature coefficient. On a mesuré les spectres de thermoréflectivité du composé lamellaire GaSe dans la region excitonique. Les resultats des expériences peuvent ětre expliqués par un déplacement des structures seulement. A la température de l'azote liquide on a trouvé pour le premier niveau d'énergie et pour le paramètre d'élargissement les valeurs E0 = 2,093 eV, et T = 41,0 meV. Par des mesures à trois températures différentes nous avons obtenu pour le coefficient thermique la valeur dE0/dT = −5,49 × 10−4 eV/deg

Early signs of motoneuron vulnerability in a disease model system: characterization of transverse slice cultures of spinal cord isolated from embryonic ALS mice.

Cell types within the G93A slice underwent maturation and slices could be maintained in culture for at least 3 weeks when prepared from embryos. Electron microscopy investigation confirmed the absence of early signs of mitochondria vacuolization or protein aggregate formation in G93A ventral horns. However, a significantly different ratio between inhibitory and excitatory synapses was present in G93A cultures, when compared with wild type ones, suggesting the expression of subtle synaptic dysfunction in G93A cultured tissue. When compared with controls, G93A motoneurons exhibited increased vulnerability to AMPA glutamate receptor-mediated excitotoxic stress prior to clear disease appearance. This in vitro disease model may thus represent a valuable tool to test early mechanisms contributing to motoneuron degeneration and potential therapeutic molecular interventions