11 research outputs found
Pediatric cochlear implantation: an update
Deafness in pediatric age can adversely impact language acquisition as well as educational and social-emotional
development. Once diagnosed, hearing loss should be rehabilitated early; the goal is to provide the child with
maximum access to the acoustic features of speech within a listening range that is safe and comfortable. In presence
of severe to profound deafness, benefit from auditory amplification cannot be enough to allow a proper language
development. Cochlear implants are partially implantable electronic devices designed to provide profoundly deafened
patients with hearing sensitivity within the speech range. Since their introduction more than 30 years ago, cochlear
implants have improved their performance to the extent that are now considered to be standard of care in the
treatment of children with severe to profound deafness. Over the years patient candidacy has been expanded and
the criteria for implantation continue to evolve within the paediatric population. The minimum age for implantation
has progressively reduced; it has been recognized that implantation at a very early age (12–18 months) provides
children with the best outcomes, taking advantage of sensitive periods of auditory development. Bilateral implantation
offers a better sound localization, as well as a superior ability to understand speech in noisy environments than unilateral
cochlear implant. Deafened children with special clinical situations, including inner ear malformation, cochlear nerve
deficiency, cochlear ossification, and additional disabilities can be successfully treated, even thogh they require
an individualized candidacy evaluation and a complex post-implantation rehabilitation. Benefits from cochlear
implantation include not only better abilities to hear and to develop speech and language skills, but also improved
academic attainment, improved quality of life, and better employment status. Cochlear implants permit deaf people
to hear, but they have a long way to go before their performance being comparable to that of the intact human ear;
researchers are looking for more sophisticated speech processing strategies as well as a more efficient coupling
between the electrodes and the cochlear nerve with the goal of dramatically improving the quality of sound of
the next generation of implants
Analytical assessment of MALDI-TOF Imaging Mass Spectrometry on thin histological samples. An insight in proteome investigation
Breast cancer stem cells rely on fermentative glycolysis and are sensitive to 2-deoxyglucose treatment
A number of studies suggest that cancer stem cells are essential for tumour growth, and failure to target these cells can result in tumour relapse. As this population of cells has been shown to be resistant to radiation and chemotherapy, it is essential to understand their biology and identify new therapeutic approaches. Targeting cancer metabolism is a potential alternative strategy to counteract tumour growth and recurrence. Here we applied a proteomic and targeted metabolomic analysis in order to point out the main metabolic differences between breast cancer cells grown as spheres and thus enriched in cancer stem cells were compared with the same cells grown in adherent differentiating conditions. This integrated approach allowed us to identify a metabolic phenotype associated with the stem-like condition and shows that breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) shift from mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation towards fermentative glycolysis. Functional validation of proteomic and metabolic data provide evidences for increased activities of key enzymes of anaerobic glucose fate such as pyruvate kinase M2 isoform, lactate dehydrogenase and glucose 6-phopshate dehydrogenase in cancer stem cells as well as different redox status. Moreover, we show that treatment with 2-deoxyglucose, a well known inhibitor of glycolysis, inhibits BCSC proliferation when used alone and shows a synergic effect when used in combination with doxorubicin. In conclusion, we suggest that inhibition of glycolysis may be a potentially effective strategy to target BCSCs
Contrabbandieri, banditi e guardiani. Le vie del traffico illecito nella costruzione del confine tra Messico e Stati Uniti
This article focuses on the Mexico-United States border creation between 1821, year of the Mexican independence from Spain, and 1924, when the establishment of the Border Patrol shaped the current border control structure. This process will be analysed through the lens of smuggling, considering both the thread of union and separation that still determines the relations between the two countries. In particular, during the 50 years between the war against the United States (1846-1848) and the end of Porfírio Diaz’s regime in 1910, two simultaneous trends developed: on one side, the border crystallized, resulting in the consolidation of the flimsy “line of sand”, on the other side, a counter movement split the two national sovereignties , claiming their respective territories. Smuggling was the very first, fundamental human behaviour marking the border, paradoxically by challenging it