Role of permanent atrial fibrillation (AF) on long-term mortality in community-dwelling elderly people with and without chronic heart failure (CHF)

Permanent AF is characterized by an increased mortality in elderly subjects with CHF. Moreover, AF increased the risk of mortality also in elderly subjects without CHF. Thus, we examined long-term mortality in community-dwelling elderly people with and without CHF. A total of 1332 subjects aged 65 and older were selected from the electoral rolls of Campania, a region of southern Italy. The relationship between AF and mortality during a 12-year follow-up in 125 subjects with CHF and in 1.143 subjects without CHF were studied. Elderly subjects showed a higher mortality in those with respect to those without AF (72.1% vs. 51.8%; p < 0.01). Similarly, elderly subjects without CHF showed a higher mortality in those with respect to those without AF (61.8% vs. 49.8%; p < 0.05). In contrast, elderly subjects with CHF showed a similar mortality in those with respect to those without AF (74.7% vs. 82.4%; p = 0.234). Multivariate analysis shows that AF was predictive of mortality in all elderly subjects (Hazard Risk = HR = 1.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.25-2.82; p < 0.001). When the analysis was conducted considering the presence and the absence of CHF, AF was strongly predictive of mortality in elderly subjects without CHF (HR = 1.95, 95% CI = 1.25-4.51; p < 0.001) but not in those with CHF (HR = 1.12, 95% CI = 0.97-3.69; p = 0.321). We concluded that AF is able to predict long-term mortality in elderly subjects. Moreover, AF is strongly predictive of long-term mortality in the absence but not in the presence of CHF. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Fulminant septic shock caused by Capnocytophaga canimorsus in Italy: Case report

Capnocytophaga canimorsus infection was recently recognized as a zoonosis. We report the first case of fulminant septic shock in Italy caused by this pathogen. The patient, with a history of splenectomy, died at the main hospital in Brescia with a presumptive diagnosis of sepsis. PCR and sequencing on post mortem samples confirmed C. canimorsus as a causative organism. Our purpose is to alert medical professionals to the virulence of C. canimorsus in asplenic and immunocompromised patients. Keywords: Capnocytophaga canimorsus, septic shock, PCR, sequencin

Mortality and heart rate in the elderly: role of cognitive impairment

Mortality related to heart rate ( HR) increase in the elderly has not yet been well established. To ascertain the relationships among cognitive impairment ( CI), mortality, and HR increase, the authors prospectively studied a random sample of elderly subjects stratified according to presence or absence of CI. Elderly subjects randomly selected in 1991 ( n = 1332) were followed up for 12 years. Mortality was established in 98.1% of the subjects. When HR was stratified in quartiles (< 69,70-75,76-80, and > 80 bpm), mortality was linearly associated with increased HR in all ( from 47.7 to 57.0; r(2) = .43, p = .019) and in subjects without ( from 41.7 to 51.1%; r(2) = .50, p = .043) but not in those with CI ( from 57.5 to 66.1; r(2) = .20, p = .363). Cox regression analysis, adjusted for several variables, shows that HR doesn't predict mortality in all subjects ( RR 0.69; 95% CI = 0.27-1.73) or in those with CI ( RR 0.91; 95% CI = 0.81-1.02). In contrast, HR predicts mortality in subjects without CI ( RR 1.10; 95% CI = 1.00-1.22). Hence, HR increase is a predictor of mortality in elderly subjects without CI. However, when considering all elderly subjects and those with CI, HR increase seems to have no effect on mortality. Thus, CI should be considered when focusing on HR increase as risk factor for mortality in the elderly

Waist circumference but not body mass index predicts long-term mortality in elderly subjects with chronic heart failure

OBJECTIVESTo examine whether waist circumference (WC) and body-mass index (BMI) can predict long-term mortality in elderly subjects with and without chronic heart failure (CHF).DESIGNLongitudinal evaluation with a 12-year follow-up.SETTINGCampania, a region of southern Italy.PARTICIPANTSOne thousand three hundred thirty-two subjects aged 65 and older selected from the electoral rolls of Campania.MEASUREMENTSThe relationship between WC or BMI and mortality during a 12-year follow-up in 125 subjects with and 1,143 subjects without CHF.RESULTSMortality increased as WC increased in elderly subjects without CHF (from 47.8% to 56.7%, P=.01), and the increase was even greater in patients with CHF (from 58.1% to 82.0%, P=.01). In contrast, mortality decreased as BMI increased in elderly subjects without CHF (from 53.8% to 46.1%, P0 =.046) but not in those with CHF. According to Cox regression analysis, BMI protected against long-term mortality in the absence but not in the presence of CHF. In the absence of CHF, WC was associated with a 2% increased risk of long-term mortality for each 1-cm greater WC (Hazard Ratio (HR)=1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.01-1.03; P <.001), versus 5% increased in the presence of CHF (HR=1.06, 95% CI=1.02-1.10; P <.001).CONCLUSIONWC, but not BMI, is predictive of long-term mortality in elderly individuals with CHF and to a lesser extent in those without CHF

Heterogeneity and penetration of HIV-1 non-subtype B viruses in an Italian province: Public health implications

SUMMARYThis study assessed changes in prevalence and distribution of HIV-1 non-subtype B viruses in Italian and immigrant patients over two decades in a province in Italy. All HIV-positive patients who underwent genotypic resistance testing were selected. Prevalence of non-subtype B viruses in 3-year periods was calculated. All sequences of non-subtype B and those provided by REGA as unassigned were analysed for phylogenetic relationships. In total, 250/1563 (16%) individuals were infected with a non-subtype B virus. Prevalence increased over time, reaching a peak (31·5%) in 2004–2006. In Italian patients, the most frequent subtypes were B (92·5%) and F1 (4%). F1 subtype was also prevalent in patients from South America (13·6%); in patients of African origin, CRF02_AG (54·9%) and G (12·3%) were the most frequent. HIV-1 non-subtype B infections in Italians were mostly found in patients who acquired HIV sexually. A phylogenetic relationship between F subtypes in Italian and representative HIV-1 sequences from Brazil was found. C subtypes in Italians were phylogenetically related to subtypes circulating in Brazil. Inter-subtype recombinants were also found in the latest years. The HIV-1 epidemic in Brescia province evolved to the point where about 1/3 patients recently diagnosed harboured non-B HIV subtypes. The distribution of HIV-1 non-B subtypes in Italian patients resembled that in South American patients and phylogenetic relatedness between some Italian and South American HIV-1 strains was found. The possible epidemiological link between these two populations would have been missed by looking only at risk factors for HIV acquisition declared by patients. The evidence of inter-subtype recombinants points to significant genetic assortment. Overall our results support phylogenetic analysis as a tool for epidemiological investigation in order to guide targeted prevention strategies

Open radial artery harvesting better preserves endothelial function compared to the endoscopic approach

OBJECTIVES: Both the open and endovascular techniques are commonly used for harvesting the radial artery (ORAH and ERAH, respectively), and yet, very little is known about the effects of these 2 techniques on endothelial integrity and function of the radial artery (RA). The aim of this study was to assess the endothelial integrity and function of RA harvested using the 2 approaches. METHODS: Two independent surgical teams working in the same institution routinely use the RA for coronary artery bypass grafting exclusively employing either ORAH or ERAH. Thirty-nine consecutive patients were enrolled in this comparative study. Endothelial function after ORAH or ERAH was assessed by using the wire myograph system. The integrity of the RA endothelium was evaluated by immunohistochemical staining for erythroblast transformation specific-related gene. RESULTS: The vasodilation in response to acetylcholine was significantly higher in RA harvested with ORAH (P ≤ 0.001 versus ERAH). Endothelial integrity was not different between the 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS: ORAH is associated with a significantly higher endothelium-dependent vasodilation. Further investigation on the potential implications of these findings in terms of graft spasm and patency as well as clinical outcomes are needed

The VANDELS Survey: New constraints on the high-mass X-ray binary populations in normal star-forming galaxies at 3 < z < 5.5

We use VANDELS spectroscopic data overlapping with the ≃7 Ms Chandra Deep Field South survey to extend studies of high-mass X-ray binary systems (HMXBs) in 301 normal star-forming galaxies in the redshift range 3 6 may be ≳0.25 dex higher than previously estimated

Impact of the number of comorbidities on cardiac sympathetic derangement in patients with reduced ejection fraction heart failure

Introduction Heart failure (HF) is frequently associated with comorbidities. 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (123I-mIBG) imaging constitutes an effective tool to measure cardiac adrenergic innervation and to improve prognostic stratification in HF patients, including the risk of major arrhythmic events. Although comorbidities have been individually associated with reduced cardiac adrenergic innervation, thus suggesting increased arrhythmic risk, very comorbid HF patients seem to be less likely to experience fatal arrhythmias. We evaluated the impact of the number of comorbidities on cardiac adrenergic innervation, assessed through 123I-mIBG imaging, in patients with systolic HF. Methods Patients with systolic HF underwent clinical examination, transthoracic echocardiography and cardiac 123I-mIBG scintigraphy. The presence of 7 comorbidities/conditions (smoking, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes mellitus, peripheral artery disease, atrial fibrillation, chronic ischemic heart disease and chronic kidney disease) was documented in the overall study population. Results The study population consisted of 269 HF patients with a mean age of 66±11 years, a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of 31±7%, and 153 (57%) patients presented ≥3 comorbidities. Highly comorbid patients presented a reduced late heart to mediastinum (H/M) ratio, while no significant differences emerged in terms of early H/M ratio and washout rate. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the number of comorbidities was not associated with mIBG parameters of cardiac denervation, which were correlated with age, body mass index and LVEF. Conclusion In systolic HF patients, the number of comorbidities is not associated with alterations in cardiac adrenergic innervation. These results are consistent with the observation that very comorbid HF patients suffer lower risk of sudden cardiac death

Challenges on Optical Printing of Colloidal Nanoparticles

While colloidal chemistry provides ways to obtain a great variety of nanoparticles with different shapes, sizes, material composition, and surface functions, their controlled deposition and combination on arbitrary positions of substrates remains a considerable challenge. Over the last ten years, optical printing arose as a versatile method to achieve this purpose for different kinds of nanoparticles. In this article, we review the state of the art of optical printing of single nanoparticles and discuss its strengths, limitations, and future perspectives, by focusing on four main challenges: printing accuracy, resolution, selectivity, and nanoparticles photostability.Fil: Violi, Ianina Lucila. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Bionanociencias "Elizabeth Jares Erijman"; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de San Martin. Instituto de Nanosistemas; ArgentinaFil: Martínez, Luciana Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Bionanociencias "Elizabeth Jares Erijman"; ArgentinaFil: Barella, Mariano. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Bionanociencias "Elizabeth Jares Erijman"; ArgentinaFil: Zaza, María Cecilia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Bionanociencias "Elizabeth Jares Erijman"; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; ArgentinaFil: Chvátal, Lukás. Czech Academy of Sciences; República ChecaFil: Zemánek, Pavel. Czech Academy of Sciences; República ChecaFil: Gutierrez, Marina Veronica. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Delta; ArgentinaFil: Paredes, María Yanela. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Delta; ArgentinaFil: Scarpettini, Alberto Franco. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Delta; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Olmos Trigo, Jorge. Donostia International Physic Center; EspañaFil: Pais, Valeria Rocío. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; ArgentinaFil: Díaz Nóblega, Iván Agustín. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; ArgentinaFil: Cortés, Emiliano. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Ludwig Maximilians Universitat. Katholisch - Theologische Fakultat; AlemaniaFil: Sáenz, Juan José. Donostia International Physic Center; EspañaFil: Bragas, Andrea Veronica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; ArgentinaFil: Gargiulo, Julian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Bionanociencias "Elizabeth Jares Erijman"; Argentina. Ludwig Maximilians Universitat. Katholisch - Theologische Fakultat; AlemaniaFil: Stefani, Fernando Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Bionanociencias "Elizabeth Jares Erijman"; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; Argentin

Implication of Oxidative Stress, Aging, and Inflammatory Processes in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Growth Factors as Therapeutic Approach

Oxidative stress (OS) is defined as the imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the antioxidant defense system. Living organisms produce ROS from molecular oxygen as a consequence of normal cellular metabolism. In order to prevent damage, cells have an antioxidant defense system constituted by an enzymatic component (including catalases, superoxide dismutases, etc.) and nonenzymatic antioxidants component (glutathione, α-tocopherol, ascorbic acid, etc.). When the levels of ROS exceed cell capacity, it can cause damage in cellular components such as carbohydrates, nucleic acids, lipids, and proteins, thus altering their function. Whenever this imbalance occurs within the central nervous system, it can lead to the development of the neurodegenerative disorders. Neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by the loss of neuronal cells and, in most cases, by the aggregates of proteins that form intracytoplasmic and intranuclear inclusions in neurons and glial cells. Data on the literature show that there are two possible mechanisms involved in most of neurodegenerative diseases: (1) mutations and/or aggregation of characteristic proteins of each disease such as α-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease (PD) or beta-amyloid peptide in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and (2) dysfunction of mitochondrial energy metabolism in neurons. In this section, we will focus on this last one.Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de La Plat