Metodo AIT Berard e disturbi dell\u2019attenzione e del comportamento: studio pilota.

Il lavoro intende approfondire come, alla base di disturbi dell\u2019attenzione e del comportamento, ci possano essere anomalie della percezione uditiva che non permettono alla persona di recepire correttamente le informazioni dall\u2019ambiente, e quindi di rispondere con modalit\ue0 adeguate.Si presenta uno studio pilota riguardo l\u2019efficacia del programma di rieducazione uditiva A.I.T. Berard, in risposta ai bisogni educativi speciali di bambini e ragazzi che presentano queste problematiche.The work intends to investigate how, at the basis of attention and behavior disorders, there may be anomalies of auditory perception that do not allow the person to correctly receive information from the environment, and therefore respond appropriately. A study is presented pilot about the effectiveness of the AIT auditive rehabilitation program Berard, in response to the special educational needs of children and young people who present these problems

Determination of chemical compositions of essential oils by GC-MS analysis related with inhibition of microorganisms in food

Microbial contamination is a serious problem in food safety, which can lead to spoilage of food products and/or cause health problems for consumers, so alternative sources of safe, effective natural antimicrobial compounds could be a useful tool. Some essential oils have shown antibacterial activity but seldom the synergic effects of EO combinations have been investigated. In this work the chemical composition of five EOs was investigated: the identification of the analytes was carried out by means of a double GC-MS analysis matching the spectra with the NIST Library, while semi-quantitative analysis has been carried out by means of GC-FID

Determination of isoflavones and coumestrol in river water and domestic waste water sewage treatment plants.

Phytoestrogens activate a biological response in vertebrata where they can mime or modulate the action of endogenous estrogens. For this reason they have been subjected to several studies about their physiological effects on humans and many analytical methodologies for their determination in food matrices and physiological fluids have been developed. On the contrary, little information can be found in literature about the presence of isoflavones and coumestrol in the environment, even if it is known that this may have significance. In the present study we investigated the presence of nine selected free and conjugated phytoestrogens in environmental water. A liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) based analytical methodology was developed and employed for detection of target compounds in surface water and wastewater. The methodology uses solid-phase extraction, followed by high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry using an electrospray (ESI) interface operating in positive ion mode (LC-ESI-MS/MS). The extraction was made with 200 mg, 6 mL OASIS HLB(R) cartridges. Recoveries for the selected compounds were in the 67-97% range for all the considered analytes. The method was employed for environmental monitoring. Samples of river water and wastewater collected over a 4-month period were analyzed with the developed procedure. Results showed the presence of isoflavones in most of the samples analyzed. Average concentration of target analytes found in wastewater sewage treatment plant influent ranged from 454 to 12 ng/L. In effluent water and river water the analytes were present at lower concentration

Occurrence and determination of herbicides and their major transformation products in environmental waters

A method for the simultaneous determination of selected maize and grain herbicides (amidosulfuron, N-([{[(4,6-dimethoxy-2-pyrimidinyl)amino]carbonyl}amino)sulfonyl]-N-methylmethanesulfonamide; bentazone, 3-(1-methylethyl)-1H-2,1,3-benzothiadiazin-4(3H)-one2,2-dioxide; 2,4-D, (2,4-dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid; MCPA, (4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy)acetic acid; metosulam, N-(2,6'-dichloro-3-methylphenyl)-5,7-dimethoxy[1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine-2-sulfonamide) and their transformation products (TPs) (8-hydroxybentazone, 1H-2,1,3-benzothiadiazin-4(3H)-one,8-hydroxy-3-(1-methylethyl)-2, 2-dioxide; bifenox acid, 5-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)-2-nitrobenzoic acid; clodinafop acid; 2,4-dichlorophenol; 4-chloro-2-methylphenol) in environmental waters was developed. The procedure combines a solid-phase extraction (SPE) with column liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry detection utilizing a pneumatically assisted and heat-assisted electrospray interface in negative mode. The extraction of analytes from filtered drainage or river water samples was performed using as sorbent a graphitized carbon. The recovery, for drinking water, ranged from 91 to 98%, and from 84 to 95% for river water. Excellent method precision was demonstrated with percent relative standard deviation of less than 10% for all analytes at fortification level. Detection limits were at level of few nanograms per liter, except for 2,4-dichlorophenol and 4-chloro-2-methylphenol, that was in the range of tens of nanogram per liter. The present methodology was used for searching in river and drainage waters of maize-grain fields of the Tiber valley, during a typical period of herbicides application from April to July 2001. The levels detected of four compounds were in the range of: non-detectable (ND)-6.1, ND-27, ND-1.9 and ND-0.5 mug l(-1), for MCPA, bentazone, 8-hydroxybentazone and 2,4-D, respectively. Detectable amounts of bentazone-8-hydroxy at level of 0,3 mug l(-1) was found to be transported into river. The highly satisfactory results for all target analytes demonstrate the potential of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for the identification and the quantification of the polar and acidic herbicides at below 100 ng l(-1) levels. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved

Evaluation of the atmospheric pressure photoionization source for the determination of benzidines and chloroanilines in water and industrial effluents by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

A solid phase extraction-high performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry based analytical method suitable for simultaneous analysis of benzidine, 3,3-dichlorobenzidine, mono-, di-, and tri-chloroanilines has been developed. Normal phase separation by liquid chromatography was performed using a cyano propyl methyl silica column, and atmospheric pressure photoionization was employed as interface with mass spectrometer. The developed method was evaluated in terms of limit of detection, accuracy, and precision. The quantification limit for all the compounds ranged between 7 and 112 ng L−1, while recovery for all the compounds was higher than 94%. The method was tested by analyzing different industrial wastes, showing residual contamination by most of the analytes

Sample preparation for determination of macrocyclic lactone mycotoxins in fish tissue, based on on-line matrix solid-phase dispersion and solid-phase extraction cleanup followed by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A new method based on matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) on-line with a solid-phase extraction (SPE) cleanup process followed by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) is presented for the determination of 3 macrocyclic lactone mycotoxins in fish tissues: zearalenone, alpha-zearalenol, and beta-zearalenol. The sample was prepared in a device that used a reversed-phase material (C-18) or a normal-phase material (neutral alumina) as a matrix dispersing agent, and a graphitized carbon black cartridge was used for sequential cleanup by SPE. LC/MS/MS was used for selective determination. Isocratic elution with acetonitrile-methanol-water was used for LC separation; for MS/MS, 2 types of interfaces (a pneumatically assisted electrospray ionization interface or an atmospheric pressure chemical ionization interface) were evaluated and compared in terms of the intensity of the total ion current produced by each analyte. The use of highly selective MSPD on-line with SPE for sample preparation before analysis allowed the removal of interfering matrix compounds present in tissue extracts that would otherwise cause severe ionization suppression of zearalenone and its metabolites during the ionization process. Average recoveries at 100 ng/g were between 83 and 103 % with C-18 and greater than or equal to67% with neutral alumina; the relative standard deviations were <11% with C-18 and <18% with alumina. The limits of detection ranged from 0.1 to 1.0 ng/g. Sample preparation is simple to perform, no special technical equipment is required, and solvent volumes are minimal

Italian Cheeses Discrimination by Means of δ13C and δ15N Isotopic Ratio Mass Spectrometry

Protection of the quality products and particularly Protected Designation of Origin (PDO)/Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) foods is a strategic issue in the EU economy, in terms of protection of market competition and safety. Having reliable tools for the assessment of key parameters useful for the identification of authenticity and/or frauds is therefore of main interest. In this work, the isotope ratios of stable elements variability of four PDO cheeses (Taleggio PDO, Asiago PDO, Pecorino Toscano PDO, and Provolone Valpadana PDO) were investigated with the aim to find discrimination among different kinds of cheeses. The specificity of isotope ratios of stable elements can be profitably used when sample characteristics, conditions, or degradation strongly suggest looking directly at the atoms rather than to the molecules. We analyzed five isotopic parameters: δ13C and δ15N on casein fraction and on cheese as a whole; δ13C on the fat fraction of the cheese. The dataset was composed by 118 cheese samples coming from five different Italian regions and collected over a 3-year period. Data elaboration showed that beyond interesting differences already observed on each individual cheese on the basis of some parameters taken into account (year, season, province, altitude), the characteristic isotopic ratios of each cheese are stable within a narrow range of δâ\u80°. Univariate analysis showed that single parameters were not enough to provide a clear discrimination between each cheese, while principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares regression-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) showed a good separation between cheese classes, particularly for the Pecorino Toscano cheese type. This data suggested a positive indication to the possibility of introducing in the production disciplinary of the concerned cheeses also a range of isotopic ratios of C and N as a further tool for the protection of this four types of PDO cheeses

The use of IRMS, 1H NMR and chemical analysis to characterise Italian and imported Tunisian olive oils

Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS), 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H NMR), conventional chemical analysis and chemometric elaboration were used to assess quality and to define and confirm the geographical origin of 177 Italian PDO (Protected Denomination of Origin) olive oils and 86 samples imported from Tunisia. Italian olive oils were richer in squalene and unsaturated fatty acids, whereas Tunisian olive oils showed higher \u3b418O, \u3b42H, linoleic acid, saturated fatty acids \u3b2-sitosterol, sn-1 and 3 diglyceride values. Furthermore, all the Tunisian samples imported were of poor quality, with a K232 and/or acidity values above the limits established for extra virgin olive oils. By combining isotopic composition with 1H NMR data using a multivariate statistical approach, a statistical model able to discriminate olive oil from Italy and those imported from Tunisia was obtained, with an optimal differentiation ability arriving at around 98%

Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes inactivation dynamics after treatment with selected essential oils

Twenty one essential oils (EOs) were screened against 10 Salmonella enterica and 10 Listeria monocytogenes strains, by Disk Diffusion and Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) determination. The most effective EOs were: Origanum vulgare (oregano) &gt; Cinnamomum zeylanicum (cinnamon) ≈ Caryophillus aromaticus (clove) &gt; Thymus vulgaris (red thyme) &gt; Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree), with MIC values ranging from 0.6 for oregano and 20.0 μL/mL for tea tree. The survival/inactivation dynamics of S. Typhimurium S4 and L. monocytogenes ATCC 7644, selected as the most resistant strains, in presence of increasing concentrations (MIC/4, MIC/2, MIC value, MIC × 2, MIC × 4) of the five most active EOs were determined. All EOs were effective, showing bacteriostatic or bactericidal effects, depending on concentration. Overall, when cells survived in presence of sub-MIC concentrations, lag phase was significantly extended, while cells death was promptly evidenced, immediately after exposure to the highest EOs concentrations. Particularly oregano showed the best antimicrobial activity on both bacteria at low concentrations (0.15–5.0 μL/mL). The five EOs showed a total phenols concentration between 1.85 (tea tree) and 17.75 mg GAE/g for clove, which gave also the highest radical-scavenging activity, with 1362 μM Trolox equivalent/mL. Phenols, terpenes and aldehydes were the major compounds detected by double GC/MS, evidencing carvacrol, borneol, eugenol, terpinen-4-ol and trans-cinnamaldehyde as principal components. In conclusion, our results highlighted a good activity of the five selected EOs on S. enterica and L. monocytogenes, with bactericidal or bacteriostatic effect at very low concentrations and were particularly encouraging, with regard to the Gram negative pathogen. Information on the inactivation dynamics provided useful details to be taken into account with the aim of developing control strategies based on natural antimicrobial agents