Organismi geneticamente modificati: definizioni e finalità.

Article 2 of the European Directive 2011/18/EC defines a genetically modified organism (GMO) a san organism in which the genetic material has been altered in a way that does not occuirr naturally by inserting DNA fragments from one organism's gene into the chromosomes of another, changing its genetic expression. In the field of animal and plants biotechnology there are different application areas of genetic engineering such as improving the quantity and quality of argicultural production, pharmaceutical production in more sustainable ways or applications in environmental field

THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET: A HISTORY OF HEALTH

The Mediterranean tradition offers a cousine rich in colors, aromas and memories, which support the taste and the spirit of those who live in harmony with nature. Everyone is talking about the Mediterranean diet, but few are those who do it properly, thus generating a lot of confusion in the reader. And so for some it coincides with the pizza, others identified it with the noodles with meat sauce, in a mixture of pseudo historical traditions and folklore that do not help to solve the question that is at the basis of any diet: combine and balance the food so as to satisfy the qualitative and quantitative needs of an individual and in a sense, preserves his health through the use of substances that help the body to perform normal vital functions. The purpose of our work is to demonstrate that the combination of taste and health is a goal that can be absolutely carried out by everybody, despite those who believe that only a generous caloric intake can guarantee the goodness of a dish and the satisfaction of the consumers. That should not be an absolute novelty, since the sound traditions of the Mediterranean cuisine we have used for some time in a wide variety of tasty gastronomic choices, from inviting colors and strong scents and absolutely in line with health

Is secondary hyperparathyroidism-related myelofibrosis a negative prognostic factor for kidney transplant outcome?

Secondary hyperparathyroidism (HP) presenting with hypocalcemia and subsequent increased parathormone (PTH), is mainly identified in patients with chronic renal failure, which has been associated with variable degrees of bone marrow fibrosis. For suitable patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), kidney transplantation is recognized as the therapy of choice, being superior to dialysis in terms of quality of life and long-term mortality risk; in this regard interesting data show that increased time on dialysis prior to kidney transplantation is associated with decreased graft and patient survival. In our opinion an important and until now underestimated determinant of graft survival is the proper activity of bone marrow because of the emerging role of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) in repair of ischemia/reperfusion (IR) damage. We postulate that in ESRD patients, who usually undergo long dialytic treatment, a myelofibrosis caused by an overt secondary HP could drastically decrease the HSC potential for IR damage repair after kidney transplant; this could irremediably lead to a delay in graft function with all related complicances. If the curative role of bone marrow-derived stem cells was confirmed by more data obtained in experimental animal models, it could be possible to try a cellular-based therapeutic approach in the management of ESRD patients which are in waiting list for a kidney transplant

Enteral nutrition: our experience with percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and revision of literature

Enteral nutrition (EN), as parenteral nutrition (PN), can be used in cases of patients whose medical conditions prevent the intake of food by mouth; unlike PN, EN keeps the functionality of the digestive tract and it makes home management of patients easier. However, the experience and literature have documented a number of serious complications, fortunately rare, which depend on the methods used in EN realization. We report in this paper our experience in 44 cases of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG), concluding that it is a safe and complications-free procedure. We believe that a nutritional intervention is indicated when, improving nutritional status, patients can obtain a better quality of life and have an average life expectancy

Towards an ideal source of mesenchymal stem cell isolation for possible therapeutic application in regenerative medicine

Background. The possibility of obtaining mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from fetal tissue such as amniotic fluid, chorionic villi and placenta is well-known and a comparison between MSCs originating in different sources such as fetal tissue and those from bone marrow in terms of yield and function is a topical issue. The mesenchymal stem cells isolated from bone marrow are well-characterized. Unfortunately the low quantitative yield during isolation is a major problem. For this reason, other tissue sources for MSCs are of paramount importance. Conclusion. In this review, starting from a description of the molecular and cellular biology of MSCs, we describe alternative sources of isolation other than bone marrow. Finally, we describe the potential therapeutic application of these cells

A complex case of fatal calciphylaxis in a female patient with hyperparathyroidism secondary to end stage renal disease of graft and coexistence of haemolytic uremic syndrome

Background. Calciphylaxis is a potentially fatal complication of persistent secondary hyperparathyroidism; its cause is still not clear. Unfortunately there is no close relation in severity of clinical picture, serological and pathological alteration. For this reason the prognosis is difficult to establish. Administration of sodium thiosulphate may reduce the precipitation of calcium crystals and improve the general clinical conditions before surgical parathyroidectomy, which seems the only therapeutic approach able to reduce the mortality risk in these patients. Methods and Results. A 60 year old female patient suffering from End Renal Stage Disease, on haemodialysis from 2001 due to the onset of haemolytic uremic syndrome, underwent a kidney transplant in April 2008. After transplantation there was a recurrence of the haemolytic uremic syndrome, with temporary worsening of the graft. Six months later there was a definite loss of graft and return to dialysis treatment. On April 2010 a severe systemic calciphylaxis related to secondary hyperparathyroidism was diagnosed. The patient underwent parathyroidectomy but, because of the unimproved clinical picture, treatment with sodium thiosulphate was initiated. There was only improvement in cutaneous lesions. The worsening general clinical condition of the patient caused death due to general septic complications. Conclusions. The coexistence of haemolytic uremic syndrome and secondary hyperpathyroidism makes the prognosis poor and, in this case, therapy, which counteracts calcium crystals precipitation, has no effect. Preventive parathyroidectomy can be considered as the only possible treatment

STUDIO SPERIMENTALE SU PANCREAS DI MAIALE PER L’OTTENIMENTO DI CELLULE PRODUCENTI INSULINA

L’obiettivo del mio studio è stato quello di standardizzare delle tecniche per prelevare, mantenere e transdifferenziare la componente sia esocriche sia endocrine del pancreas in cellule producenti insulina; per poter realizzare tale lavoro sono state seguite diverse fasi. Nella fase preliminare furono prelevate e trans-differenziate cellule provenienti dal dotto di Wirsung di maiale in cellule-ß producenti isulina. Nella seconda fase le ß-cellule furono ottenute dalla componente esocrina di pancreas in toto di maiale dopo exsaguinazio e con l’impiego di due diverse soluzioni di conservazione, al fine di valutare quale delle due potesse mantenere meglio l’organo e potesse dare una successivamente una migliore resa cellulare; inoltre l’altro obiettivo di questa seconda fase del mio studio fu quella di confrontare la vitalità e la capacità di produrre insulina delle cellule prima e dopo crioconservazione. Nella fase finale furono prelevate direttamente le cellule ß-pancreatiche da maiale a cuore non battente con l’impiego delle due soluzioni di conservazione prima citate, al fine di valutare ancora una volta le differenze nelle capacità conservative delle due soluzioni direttamente sulle cellule ß e di valutare la vitalità e la capacità di produrre insulina delle suddette ß-cellule direttamente prelevate dal maiale prima e dopo criopreservazione. Questo studio è stato condotto presso il laboratorio di Chirurgia Sperimentale e presso il reparto di Virologia Sperimentale dell’Istituto Zooprofilattico della Sicilia “A.Mirri”, in collaborazione con il Consorzio Interuniversitario per i Trapianti d’Organo di Roma

Commento critico-testuale alle Κύριαι δόξαι di Epicuro

L'elaborato prende in esame le «Kyriai Doxai» di Epicuro (341-271 a.C.), una raccolta di quaranta massime a carattere etico e didascalico, giunteci per il solo tramite di Diogene Laerzio (III d.C.), che dichiara di citarle quale degno coronamento della propria opera, affinché possano costituire per il lettore «l’inizio della felicità». L’apprezzamento espresso da Diogene trova puntuale conferma nei testimonia antichi che, sebbene provenienti da autori di secoli e orientamenti filosofici diversi, restituiscono un quadro unanime circa il prestigio e la diffusione delle «Kyriai Doxai» epicuree nell’antichità. Nonostante ciò, a partire dagli «Epicurea» di Usener (1887), la raccolta fu bollata quale tarda compilazione degli scritti del Maestro, confusa e disorganica nell’assetto, oltre che monca degli elementi fondamentali del sistema filosofico epicureo. Un accurato esame delle fonti antiche, unito alla considerazione degli aspetti letterari e filosofici dell’opera, consente di smentire un pregiudizio lungo più di un secolo, non ancora del tutto superato dalla critica più recente. Le particolari vicende testuali delle «Kyriai Doxai» rendono poi inevitabile un'indagine sulla tradizione manoscritta delle "Vite" di Diogene Laerzio sulla base del testo stabilito da Tiziano Dorandi (2013). Punto di partenza imprescindibile per l'analisi di ogni massima è la disamina dei principali problemi critico-testuali

A case report of a difficult dissection of the iliac vessels conducted by means of the harmonic scalpel during a kidney transplantation

Background. The “difficult” preparation of iliac vessels in the kidney transplant recipient caused by a perivascular fibrosis with satellite lymphadenopathy is sometimes burdened by post-transplant complications (lymphocele, seroma and hematoma). Both iliac vascular adhesions and satellite lymphoadenopaty are often due to reiterate femoral cannulation aimed to hemodialysis. Patients and Methods: The case report concerns a 60 years old female uremic patient, on dialysis for about 4 years with perivascular fibrosis and pelvic lymphadenopathy caused by bilateral femoral artery catheterization. In the course of kidney transplant, preparation of the iliac vessels was performed by ultrasonic scalpel. In the case we handled there was no incidence of immediate, medium and long term post operative complications, with a considerable reduction of the operative time in the vascular dissection performed without ligation. Often the long dialytic period, the same nephropathy, reiterative femoral catheterization determine perivascular fibrosis and/or consensual lymphadenopathy. In these cases, in light of initial experience, the use of ultrasonic scalpel enables easy dissection by the coagulative synthesis not only of vascular compartment but also of the lymphatic duct whose leakage, particularly in these cases, creates a favourable condition to hematoma and / or lymphocele formation. These complications, although rarely jeopardize patient’s life, however, may affect the outcome of transplantation in terms of morbidity and survival of the organ. The use of ultrasonic scalpel ensures total control of vascular and lymphatic compartment coagulation, alongside a reduction in the time of surgical dissection

Abnormal espansion of segmented filamentous bacteria in the gut: a role in pathogenesis of chronic in fiammatory intestinal desease

Human intestinal microbiota create a complex polymicrobial ecology characterized by high population density, wide diversity, and complexity of interactions. Any imbalance of this complex intestinal microbiome, both qualitative and quantitative, might have serious health consequences including an increase in the number and/or alteration in the type of bacteria in the upper gastrointestinal tract, which is referred to as small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) syndrome. SIBO is frequently found in persons fulfilling criteria for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and the large overlapping of symptoms of these two pathological conditions led some authors to believe that IBS is secondary to SIBO. Interestingly, SIBO is also found in about 25% of patients with Crohn's disease. Emerging data show that specific components of gut microbiota, particularly segmented filamentous bacteria (SFB), activate intestinal immunocompetent cells, for example, Th17 cells which have a potential role in pathogenesis of inflammatory intestinal diseases. On the basis of the aforementioned data we postulate that a previously unidentified specific form of SIBO, involving in particular the aberrant expansion of SFB in the gut, could play a role in the onset of chronic intestinal inflammatory diseases through persistent activation of Th17 cells. From this point of view, a successful therapeutic approach to inflammatory intestinal disease patients could be the administration of specific antibiotics directed against SFB to restore the physiological levels of these bacteria in the gut. Furthermore, it could be very useful to identify appropriate laboratory methodologies to monitor the level of SFB in the gut with the aim of preventing their potentially dangerous increase in numbers