Is caretta caretta a carrier of antibiotic resistance in the mediterranean sea?

Sea turtles can be considered a sentinel species for monitoring the health of marine ecosystems, acting, at the same time, as a carrier of microorganisms. Indeed, sea turtles can acquire the microbiota from their reproductive sites and feeding, contributing to the diffusion of antibiotic-resistant strains to uncontaminated environments. This study aims to unveil the presence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in (i) loggerhead sea turtles stranded along the coast of Sicily (Mediterranean Sea), (ii) unhatched and/or hatched eggs, (iii) sand from the turtles’ nest and (iv) seawater. Forty-four bacterial strains were isolated and identified by conventional biochemical tests and 16S rDNA sequencing. The Gram-negative Aeromonas and Vibrio species were mainly found in sea turtles and seawater samples, respectively. Conversely, the Gram-positive Bacillus, Streptococcus, and Staphylococcus strains were mostly isolated from eggs and sand. The antimicrobial resistance profile of the isolates revealed that these strains were resistant to cefazolin (95.5%), streptomycin (43.2%), colistin and amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (34.1%). Moreover, metagenome analysis unveiled the presence of both antibiotic and heavy metal resistance genes, as well as the mobile element class 1 integron at an alarming percentage rate. Our results suggest that Caretta caretta could be considered a carrier of antibiotic-resistant genes

Serum coding and non-coding RNAs as biomarkers of NAFLD and fibrosis severity

BACKGROUND & AIMS: In patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), liver biopsy is the gold standard to detect non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and stage liver fibrosis. We aimed to identify differentially expressed mRNAs and non-coding RNAs in serum samples of biopsy-diagnosed mild and severe NAFLD patients with respect to controls and to each other. METHODS: We first performed a whole transcriptome analysis through microarray (n = 12: four Control: CTRL; four mild NAFLD: NAS 64 4 F0; four severe NAFLD NAS 65 5 F3), followed by validation of selected transcripts through real-time PCRs in an independent internal cohort of 88 subjects (63 NAFLD, 25 CTRL) and in an external cohort of 50 NAFLD patients. A similar analysis was also performed on liver biopsies and HepG2 cells exposed to oleate:palmitate or only palmitate (cellular model of NAFL/NASH) at intracellular/extracellular levels. Transcript correlation with histological/clinical data was also analysed. RESULTS: We identified several differentially expressed coding/non-coding RNAs in each group of the study cohort. We validated the up-regulation of UBE2V1, BNIP3L mRNAs, RP11-128N14.5 lncRNA, TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 coding/lncRNA in patients with NAS 65 5 (vs NAS 64 4) and the up-regulation of HBA2 mRNA, TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 coding/lncRNA in patients with Fibrosis stages = 3-4 (vs F = 0-2). In in vitro models: UBE2V1, RP11-128N14.5 and TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 had an increasing expression trend ranging from CTRL to oleate:palmitate or only palmitate-treated cells both at intracellular and extracellular level, while BNIP3L was up-regulated only at extracellular level. UBE2V1, RP11-128N14.5, TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 and HBA2 up-regulation was also observed at histological level. UBE2V1, RP11-128N14.5, BNIP3L and TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 correlated with histological/biochemical data. Combinations of TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 + Fibrosis Index based on the four factors (FIB-4) showed an Area Under the Curve (AUC) of 0.891 (P = 3.00E-06) or TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 + Fibroscan (AUC = 0.892, P = 2.00E-06) improved the detection of F = 3-4 with respect to F = 0-2 fibrosis stages. CONCLUSIONS: We identified specific serum coding/non-coding RNA profiles in severe and mild NAFLD patients that possibly mirror the molecular mechanisms underlying NAFLD progression towards NASH/fibrosis. TGFB2/TGFB2-OT1 detection improves FIB-4/Fibroscan diagnostic performance for advanced fibrosis discrimination

Prospective memory performance in older people, adults and youth

The aims of this study were to verify the potential differences in prospective memory (PM) among young people, adults and the elderly; analyze the relationships between variables of comprehension and verbal fluency and PM; and finally, verify the existence of a relationship between self-reported health status and performance on PM. A cross- sectional design was used. The study involved 270 participants divided into three age groups: young people aged 18 to 28 years; adults 45 to 55, and seniors 60 to 80. Their comprehension and verbal fluency skills were assessed as well as their self-perceived health status. Subsequently, an experiment was carried out where participants were presented with paragraphs of three sentences on a computer screen and they had to recognize previously agreed words that would indicate their level of MP. The results established significant differences in prospective memory between adults and older people and between young people and the elderly. But no differences between youth and adults were found..The importance of verbal comprehension and verbal fluency in solving prospective memory experimental tasks was also significant. In addition, a better self-perception of well-being was linked to a higher performance in PMEste trabajo fue posible gracias a la financiación del grupo de investigación HUM634 de la Junta de Andalucía y al contrato OTRI de este grupo con la Diputación provincial de Cádiz. El primer autor fue becario AECID en el Departamento de Psicología de la UCA durante la realización del estu

Cross-Linking del collagene corneale senza disepitelizzazione

Aim. The aim of this paper was to evaluate the effectiveness of transepithelial crosslinking (TE CXL) in patients with bilateral progressive keratoconus. Methods. The study population was patients with a history of bilateral progressive keratoconus. The worse eye was treated; the untreated fellow eye served as control. TE CXL was performed stepwise in six steps of irradiation delivered by a laser source (CBM X-linker VEGA ® ) and application of Ricrolin TE ® (0.1% riboflavin, dextrane T500, and enhancers to facilitate passage of the solution through the corneal epithelium) every 5 minutes, 2 hours before imbibtion with Ricrolin TE ® in the worse eye. Results. A gradual improvement in topographic and abberometric values, without postoperative corneal haze or other side effects, was noted in the TE-CXL-treated eyes. Confocal microscopy demonstrated corneal crosslinks starting 5 months after treatment; all indices deteriorated in the control eyes. Conclusion. TE CXL treatment was found to be effective in slowing keratoconus progression, with a statistically significant improvement in parameters. Thanks to transepithelial treatment and absence of side effects, TE CXL permits treatment of keratoconus in cases of corneal thickness <400 micron; "complicated" patients <12 years of age (e.g., trisomy 21 syndrome); patients aged ≥35 years or with a mean K >55. Unlike conventional CXL, TE CXL, because it spares the epithelium, ensures better patient compliance, without postoperative pain or haze or deterioration of vision. TE CXL is an innovative treatment that acts on the anterior third of cornea, without side effects; as it is simple to perform, it can be used in conjunction with conventional CXL, which acts on the posterior third of cornea. Key words: Collagen -Cross-linking reagentsCornea. I l cross-linking del collagene corneale (CXL) è una procedura chirurgica nata allo scopo di rallentare o arrestare la progressione delle patologie corneali da sfiancamento progressivo come il cheratocono, la degenerazione marginale pellucida e le ectasie corneali da chirurgia refrattiva. I primi studi che hanno ampiamente dimostrato che il CXL incrementa la rigidità dello stroma di oltre il 300%, grazie all'incremento del diametro delle fibre collagene del 12,2% e alla formazione di legami cross-link nella struttura del collagene, furono pubblicati a partire dalla fine degli anni '90 1-3 . Il trattamento si basa sull'esposizione dello stroma corneale ai raggi ultravioletti di tipo A dopo imbibizione dello stroma corRicevuto il 5 marzo, 2010. Accettato il 9 marzo, 2010

To do or not to do? Prospective memory versus response inhibition in autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Item does not contain fulltextIn the present research, event-based prospective memory and response inhibition (RI) abilities were investigated in children with ASD (Study 1), with ADHD (Study 2), and their matched neurotypical controls. Children engaged in a categorisation (ongoing) task and, concurrently, in either an event-based prospective memory (PM) or a Go/No-Go secondary task. Results showed that, as compared to their matched controls, ASD children's performance was more impaired in the PM task than in the Go/No-Go task, while the performance pattern of ADHD children was reversed. In the ongoing task, ASD children were as accurate as, but significantly slower than, controls, independently of conditions. ADHD children did not differ from controls in the presence of a concurrent PM task, while they were less accurate than controls in the presence of the go/no-go task. Overall, the two patterns of findings suggest important differences in the way ASD and ADHD children remember and realise intentions requiring opposite behaviours (acting vs stopping)

Parental stress, coping strategies and social support in families of children with a disability

The aim of this research was to compare parental stress, coping strategies and social support perceived in families of children with low functioning autism (n = 8), high functioning autism (n = 10), Down syndrome (n = 12) and parents of typically developing children (n = 20). Specifically, the objective was to investigate which variables (coping strategies and perception of social support available) might better predict different stress outcomes in the four groups. Parents were asked to fill in three questionnaires: Parent Stress Index, Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced and Social Support Questionnaire. Significant differences among groups in all of the variables considered were found. These results suggest the advisability of fostering functional coping strategies and social support received in families of children with disabilities, and especially in those with children with low functioning autism

The relationship between school-basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration, academic engagement and academic achievement

The main purpose of this study is to investigate how students’ perceptions of need satisfaction and need frustration at school are indirectly associated with academic achievement through academic engagement. A modified version of the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale was used to assess these needs in a school-based context. The study sample consisted of 551 students, comprising 299 males (54.3%) and 252 females (45.7%), with an average age of 16.19 years (SD = 1.49). The results suggested autonomy satisfaction and relatedness satisfaction are positively correlated with academic engagement, autonomy frustration is negatively correlated with academic engagement, and, moreover, academic engagement is associated with increased academic achievement. The results of this study highlight the importance of developing specific training programs to promote a school environment that pays attention to students’ psychological needs

Penetration of 14C-methisoprinol into rabbit eyes with experimentally induced herpetic keratitis.

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Atorvastatin but not pravastatin impairs mitochondrial function in human pancreatic islets and rat \uce\ub2-cells. Direct effect of oxidative stress

Statins are a class of drugs widely prescribed as frontline therapy for lowering plasma LDL-cholesterol in cardiovascular risk prevention. Several clinical reports have recently suggested an increased risk of type 2 diabetes associated with chronic use of these drugs. The pathophysiology of this effect remains to be fully elucidated but impaired \uce\ub2-cell function constitutes a potential mechanism. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of a chronic treatment with lipophilic and hydrophilic statins on \uce\ub2-cell function, using human pancreatic islets and rat insulin-secreting INS-1 cells; we particularly focused on the role of mitochondria and oxidative stress. The present study demonstrates, for the first time, that atorvastatin (lipophilic) but not pravastatin (hydrophilic) affected insulin release and mitochondrial metabolism due to the suppression of antioxidant defense system and induction of ROS production in pancreatic \uce\ub2-cell models. Mevalonate addition and treatment with a specific antioxidant (N-AcetylCysteine) effectively reversed the observed defects. These data demonstrate that mitochondrial oxidative stress is a key element in the pathogenesis of statin-related diabetes and may have clinical relevance to design strategies for prevention or reduction of statin induced \uce\ub2-cell dysfunction and diabetes in patients treated with lipophilic statins