Telomere Length Variation in Juvenile Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) provides a potential marker of biological age, closely related to the endothelial dysfunction and consequently to the atherosclerotic process. To investigate the relationship between the LTL and the risk of premature acute myocardial infarction and to evaluate the predictive value of LTL on the onset of major cardiovascular events, 199 patients from 18 to 48 years old with first diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction were enrolled and were matched with 190 controls for sex and age (± 1 year). Clinical data and coronary artery disease were evaluated at enrollment and at follow up. LTL was measured at enrollment using a quantitative PCR-based method. No significant differences were observed in LTL between cases and controls (p = 0.20) and with the presence of coronary artery disease in patients (p = 0.47). Hypercholesterolemic cases presented LTL significantly longer than cases without hypercholesterolemia (t/s: 0.82 ± 0.16 p = 0.79 and t/s norm: 0.79 ± 0.19 p = 0.01), as confirmed in multivariate regression analysis (p = 0.005, β = 0.09). Furthermore, multivariate regression analysis showed LTL significantly shorter in hypertensive cases than in normotensive cases (p = 0.04, β = -0.07). One hundred seventy-one cases (86%) ended the average follow up of 9 ± 5 years, 92 (54%) presented a major cardiovascular event. At multivariate regression analysis the LTL detected at enrollment did not represent a predictive factor of major cardiovascular events nor it significantly impacted with cumulative events. Based on present cohort of young Italian patients, the LTL did not represent a marker of acute myocardial infarction nor had a predictive role at medium term follow up

Contrasting styles of (U)HP rock exhumation along the Cenozoic Adria-Europe plate boundary (Western Alps, Calabria, Corsica)

Since the first discovery of ultrahigh pressure (UHP) rocks 30 years ago in the Western Alps, the mechanisms for exhumation of (U)HP terranes worldwide are still debated. In the western Mediterranean, the presently accepted model of synconvergent exhumation (e.g., the channel-flow model) is in conflict with parts of the geologic record. We synthesize regional geologic data and present alternative exhumation mechanisms that consider the role of divergence within subduction zones. These mechanisms, i.e., (i) the motion of the upper plate away from the trench and (ii) the rollback of the lower plate, are discussed in detail with particular reference to the Cenozoic Adria-Europe plate boundary, and along three different transects (Western Alps, Calabria-Sardinia, and Corsica-Northern Apennines). In the Western Alps, (U)HP rocks were exhumed from the greatest depth at the rear of the accretionary wedge during motion of the upper plate away from the trench. Exhumation was extremely fast, and associated with very low geothermal gradients. In Calabria, HP rocks were exhumed from shallower depths and at lower rates during rollback of the Adriatic plate, with repeated exhumation pulses progressively younging toward the foreland. Both mechanisms were active to create boundary divergence along the Corsica-Northern Apennines transect, where European southeastward subduction was progressively replaced along strike by Adriatic northwestward subduction. The tectonic scenario depicted for the Western Alps trench during Eocene exhumation of (U)HP rocks correlates well with present-day eastern Papua New Guinea, which is presented as a modern analog of the Paleogene Adria-Europe plate boundary

Innovative composite membranes for advanced applications

Ph CourseScienceand Engineering of Environmental, Structure and Energy. Ciclo XXXIPresented thesis work is mainly focused on coatings preparation, their potentiality and applications in membrane science: from water desalination to antibiofouling membranes, to gas separation. In fact, coating preparation represents an useful and versatile technique which allows a fine control of membrane properties and performance such as chemical or physical resistance, durability, etc. One of major drawbacks is represented by production costs, which can become important in scale-up operations. Therefore, although several type and methodologies for coating preparation are known and reported in literature, a lack of cheap, efficient and scale-up adaptable coating methods made their different preparation methods of particular interest. The results presented herein, concern the preparation of three different coating methods whose applications are briefly summarized below: Chapter 2: Development of PVDF-f-Graphene Thin Film Composite Membrane for Membrane Distillation Chapter 2 reports a novel method for TFC membrane fabrication, using graphene layer coated on chemically-functionalized PVDF. PVDF is hydrophobic polymer whose properties are well suited for those applications in which hydrophobicity is needed such as Membrane Distillation. In order to increase adhesion between PVDF and graphene, we co-polymerized PVDF with a suitable monomer bearing aromatic part, using a procedure which involves 2 steps reaction: introduction of double bonds on polymer backbone by basic treatment followed by its reaction with monomer through radical reaction. Membranes have been prepared using functionalized PVDF polymer (PVDF-f) and tested on Direct Contact Membrane Distillation (DCMD) apparatus at first. Subsequently tests were conducted using PVDF-f-Graphene composite membrane, using graphene synthetized using Chemical Vapor Deposition ( CVD) method. Created membranes were analyzed and their chemical, physical and morphological properties were investigated. Membranes made using PVDF-f polymer exhibited good flux and salt rejection (up to 99.9 %), whereas graphene association to PVDF-f membranes leads to lower water flux but higher rejection and durability (up to 99.99 %). In chapter 3 a simple and innovative synthetic strategy for Acryloyloxyalkiltriethyl ammonium salts surfactants (AATEABs) starting from cheap and easily available chemicals is discussed. Herein reported surfactants can be used as coating for membranes to whom they confer high anti biofouling properties. Synthetic procedure was first optimized in order to work avoiding prohibitive conditions such as Inert atmosphere or high temperature and then applied to the synthesis of surfactants bearing a different alkyl-chain length. Antibacterial activity evaluation, has been done performing several tests against Gram +\- and yeast strains; results confirmed that AATEABs bearing C11 (AUTEAB) and C12 (ADTEAB) alkyl chain possess highest activity which is remarkable high for ADTEAB. AATEABs may find applications as polymerizable coatings for watr-treatment membranes ( commercial or not) to be used in Pressure-Driven Membrane Processes or in any other membrane-based system in which antifouling properties may play an important role. Chapter 4: Thin Film Composite Membrane fabrication for gas separation: Defect control and bench-scale demonstration Fourth chapter of this thesis work, concerns the preparation of TFC membranes to be used for CO2/N2 separation, on the relationship between TFC membrane material and membrane properties and the role of the protective layer in determining the amount of defects, which is a crucial aspect for all the gas separation-related processes. We report a simple and efficient procedure which can also be applied to for defect controlling during scale-up process and which is not valid for CO2 separation membranes only. Results demonstrate a correlation between the properties of protective layer and separation performances: in particular, the possibility to apply a coating film on commercial membrane permits the creation of membranes in which the amount of defect is dramatically reduced. Another crucial aspect discussed in chapter 4 concerns the thickness of protective layer used for defect control: in fact, whereas the presence of protective layer plays an important role defect-free membrane creation process, its thickness impacts on separation operation. With our method, the preparation of membranes with very thin protective layer ( 0.1 μm or below) is possible.Università della Calabri

Transcatheter ablation of tachyarrhythmias: A critical overview

[No abstract available

Preparation and Characterisation of Photocatalysts for CO2 valorisation in Membrane Reactors

Dottorato in Scienze e Ingegneria dell’Ambiente, delle Costruzioni e dell’Energia. Ciclo XXXIUniversità della Calabri

<<I>> sintomi comportamentali e psicologici nella malattia di Alzheimer: esordio e differenze di genere

Dottorato di Ricerca in Scienze e Ingegneria dell'Ambiente delle Costruzioni e dell'Energia. Ciclo XXXBPSD have a deep physical and psychological impact on patients affected by any kind of dementing illness and on caregiver in terms of costs and resources and represent an important cause of institutionalization. The aim of the study was to investigate the occurrence of BPSD in a sample of patients with Alzheimer’s disease in three stages: preclinical (TO), from AD onset to five years (T1) and for five years onwards (T2). Furthermore, possible differences between men and women and Early and Late Onset Alzheimer’s disease (EOAD and LOAD) have been analyzed. 1925 medical records of AD patients, diagnosed with NINCDS-ADRDA, criteria have been examined from the digital database of the Regional Neurogenetics Center (ASP-CZ). Symptoms have been extracted from Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) and from a check list of BPSD for internal use for as long as BPSD have been observed(apathy, irritability, depression, anxiety, delusions, hallucinations, aggression, agitation, disinhibition, affective lability, wandering, sleep disorders and eating disorders). At least one BPSD was detected in 90,4% of the sample. The most represented symptoms were apathy (57.4%), irritability/affective lability (50.5%) and agitation/aggression (42.3%), the last two were presented especially in men (p = 0.000). Most of BPSD are distributed between the fourth and fifth year of illness. According to gender, disinhibition appears significantly later in women and according to onset all BPSD manifest significantly later in patients with EOAD. Concerning differences between EOAD and LOAD patients, sleep disorders characterize EOAD in preclinical stage (p=0.022). Depression (p=0.017) is predominant in EOAD at T1, while LOAD presents with more irritability/affective lability (p=0.000), agitation/aggression (p=0.001) and sleep disorders (p=0.000). A considerable number of EOAD patients still develop BPSD in the advanced stage (T2). As regard gender, considering BPSD timing, depression characterizes women in preclinical stage (T0) (p=0.01). At T1 men show disinhibition (p=0.002) irritability/affective lability (p=0.000), sleep disorders (p=0.03), agitation/aggression (p=0.000) while women exibit greater anxiety (p=0.027) and depression (p=0.000). No gender differences have been evidenced in T2. Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms in our cohort demonstrates, in agreement with the literature how AD is not only “a cognitive” disease. Interestingly, a number of signs of behavioral changes appear before AD onset. The identification of these “red flags” of AD can be important and significant for the early detection of the disease. Predominance of affective pattern in women and aggressivity in men suggests that gender differences can be related to a brain’s pathophysiological diversity. Therefore, a strategic and adaptive management of these symptoms is always necessary to early diagnose, cure and care patients with this devastating brain disorderUniversità della Calabri

Coronary artery bypass grafting for Fabry's disease: veins more suitable than arteries?

Coronary artery bypass grafting was performed in a 54-year-old man affected by untreated Fabry's disease. Left internal mammary artery (LIMA) and saphenous vein grafts were implanted. Surgical samples of LIMA revealed diffuse glycosphyngolipid infiltration of smooth muscle cells, whereas SV was normal. After surgery, the patient received antithrombotic and enzyme replacement therapy. At 1-year follow-up, LIMA graft occluded, whereas saphenous vein graft remained patent. In Fabry's disease, veins, probably because of a low pressure load, seem to be spared from glycosphingolipid accumulation and are more suitable than arteries for grafting. A preventive histology of conduits is suggested before graft selection. © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved