Economic and monetary integration of the new Member States - helping to chart the route

This paper examines diverse aspects of the monetary integration of the ten new Member States (NMS) which joined the EU on 1 May 2004 into the euro area. Most NMS have undergone a rapid and deep transformation in all areas with considerable progress in their processes of reform and convergence, and more is underway. While trade integration with the other 15 EU Member States (EU15) has progressed quickly, convergence in output specialisation to EU standards has been slow, especially if measured in real terms. This may influence negatively the pace of real convergence. Most NMS lag significantly behind in building up and deepening their financial systems. There is also evidence that exchange rate flexibility may still be serving as a useful shock absorber for some NMS, and so far the evidence indicates that real exchange rates have moved, broadly speaking, in line with long term fundamental equilibria. On the positive side, many NMS are quite advanced relative to the euro area in the process of labour market and institutional reform (their labour market structures are more flexible than those of the euro area countries). There is also some evidence that a few NMS have a significant degree of business-cycle synchronisation with the euro area: hence, they may become less likely to be affected by different economic shocks. This, however, is not true for all NMS. The monetary policy institutions of the NMS have also converged to some degree - goals and institutional settings of central banks are now much more similar than before. A case-by-case approach to adopting the euro, based on country-specific conditions, seems natural due to the differences between the countries.Optimum Currency Area, Economic and Monetary Integration, EMU.

Broadband amplified spontaneous emission and random lasing from wurtzite CdSe/CdS 'giant-shell' nanocrystals

Colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) are attractive materials for light-emitting applications thanks to their flexible synthesis, size-dependent properties, and bright emission. Yet, colloidal NCs still present a narrow gain band (full-width half maximum around 10 nm), which limits their application to single-color lasers. Widening of the gain band by specifically engineered NCs can further improve the prospect of this class of materials toward the fabrication of solution-processed white-emitting or color-tunable lasers. Here, we report broadband amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) from wurtzite CdSe/CdS "giant-shell" nanocrystals (g-NCs) with an unprecedented large core up to 7.5 nm in diameter that were synthesized through a continuous injection route. The combination of large core and shell enables ASE from different CdSe optical transitions as well as from the CdS. Importantly, thin films of g-NCs with a large CdSe core (7.5 and 5.1 nm in diameter) show ASE at different colors with a similar threshold, indicating that light emission amplification can be achieved from different optical transitions simultaneously. Tuning of the core diameter allows obtaining ASE in a wide spectral range, and blending of g-NCs with different core sizes gives rise to a continuous amplified spontaneous emission band from green to red (510 to 650 nm). Drop-cast films of CdSe/CdS g-NCs demonstrate simultaneous dual-color random lasing under nanosecond-pulsed excitation

Optimal low-intensity pulsed ultrasound stimulation for promoting anti-inflammatory effects in macrophages

: In this paper, we stimulated M1-like macrophages (obtained from U937 cells) with low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) to lower pro-inflammatory cytokine production. A systematic screening of different frequencies, intensities, duty cycles, and exposure times was performed. The optimal stimulation conditions leading to a marked decrease in the release of inflammatory cytokines were determined to be 38 kHz, 250 mW/cm2, 20%, and 90 min, respectively. Using these parameters, we verified that up to 72 h LIPUS did not affect cell viability, resulting in an increase in metabolic activity and in a reduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Moreover, we found that two mechanosensitive ion channels (PIEZO1 and TRPV1) were involved in the LIPUS-mediated cytokine release modulation. We also assessed the role of the nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway and observed an enhancement of actin polymerization. Finally, transcriptomic data suggested that the bioeffects of LIPUS treatment occur through the modulation of p38 MAPK signaling pathway

Lack of protective role of HDL-C in patients with coronary artery disease undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting

Aims Primary prevention studies have confirmed that high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels are strongly associated with reduced cardiovascular events. However, recent evidence suggests that HDL-C functionality may be impaired under certain conditions. In the present study, we hypothesize that HDL-C may lose their protective role in the secondary prevention of coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods and results A consecutive series of 1548 patients undergoing isolated first-time elective CABG at one institution between 2004 and 2009 was studied. According to the ATPIII criteria, pre-operative HDL-C values were used to identify patients with high (Group A) vs. low HDL-C (Group B). To eliminate biased estimates, a propensity score model was built and two cohorts of 1:1 optimally matched patients were obtained. Cumulative survival and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were analysed by means of Kaplan-Meier method. Cox proportional-hazards regression models were used to identify independent predictors of MACE and death. Propensity matching identified two cohorts of 502 patients each. At a median follow-up time of 32 months, there were 44 out of 502 (8.8%) deaths in Group A and 36 out of 502 deaths in Group B (7.2%, HR 1.19; P = 0.42). MACE occurred in 165 out of 502 (32.9%) in Group A and 120 out of 502 (23.9%) in Group B (P = 0.04). Regression analysis showed that pre-operative HDL-C levels were not associated with reduced but rather increased MACE occurrence during follow-up (HR 1.43, P = 0.11). Conclusion Higher HDL-C levels are not associated with reduced risk of vascular events in CAD patients undergoing CABG. Our findings may support efforts to improve HDL-C functionality instead of increasing their level

Distribution of high and low risk HPV types by cytological status: a population based study from Italy

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>HPV type distribution by cytological status represents useful information to predict the impact of mass vaccination on screening programs.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>women aged from 25 to 64 who attended cervical cancer screening in five different Italian regions were tested for HPV infection with Hybrid Capture II (HCII) low and high risk probes. Women repeating Pap-test upon unsatisfactory or positive results, or as a post-treatment and post-colposcopy follow-up analysis, were excluded from our study. High risk (HR) HPV positive samples were typed using GP5+/GP6+ primed PCR, followed by Reverse Line Blot for 18 high/intermediate risk HPV types, while low risk (LR) HPV positive samples were tested with type specific primers for HPV6 and HPV11.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>3410 women had a valid HCII and Pap-test. The prevalence of HR and LR infections was 7.0% and 3.6%, 29.1% and 13.7%, 68.1% and 31.9%, 60.0% and 0.0%, 65.0% and 12.0%, for negative, ASC-US, L-SIL, ASC-H and H-SIL cytology, respectively. The fraction of ASC-US+ cytology due to HPV 16 and 18 ranged from 11.2 (HPV 16/18 alone) to 15.4% (including HPV 16/18 in co-infection with other virus strains), and that due to HPV 6 and 11 ranged from 0.2% (HPV 6/11 alone) to 0.7% (including HPV 6/11 in co-infection with other LR virus strains).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>mass vaccination with bivalent or quadrivalent HPV vaccine would modestly impact on prevalence of abnormal Pap-test in screening.</p

CT Images in Follicular Lymphoma: Changes after Treatment Are Predictive of Cardiac Toxicity in Patients Treated with Anthracycline-Based or R-B Regimens

The aim of this study is to evaluate changes in epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) and cardiac extracellular volume (ECV) in patients with follicular lymphoma (FL) treated with R-CHOP-like regimens or R-bendamustine. We included 80 patients with FL between the ages of 60 and 80 and, using computed tomography (CT) performed at onset and at the end of treatment, we assessed changes in EAT by measuring tissue density at the level of the cardiac apex, anterior interventricular sulcus and posterior interventricular sulcus of the heart. EAT is known to be associated with metabolic syndrome, increased calcium in the coronary arteries and therefore increased risk of coronary artery disease. We also evaluated changes in ECV, which can be used as an early imaging marker of cardiac fibrosis and thus myocardial damage. The R-CHOP-like regimen was associated with lower EAT values (p &lt; 0.001), indicative of a less active metabolism and more adipose tissue, and an increase in ECV (p &lt; 0.001). Furthermore, in patients treated with anthracyclines and steroids (R-CHOP-like) there is a greater decrease in ejection fraction (EF p &lt; 0.001) than in the R-B group. EAT and ECV may represent early biomarkers of cardiological damage, and this may be considered, to our knowledge, the first study investigating radiological and cardiological parameters in patients with FL