Caratterizzazione di un target in niobio per la produzione di 18F-

Una delle problematiche principali nella produzione di 18F- è rappresentata dal rilascio di impurezze radionuclidiche generate durante l’irraggiamento del target liquido contenente H218O.Il rilascio di tali impurezze è dovuto, principalmente, all’attivazione dei diversi metalli che compongono il foil in havar posto a contatto con il materiale bersaglio. Diverse attività di ricerca, attualmente in corso, prevedono la marcatura di nuovi radiofarmaci con 18F-, per i quali la presenza dei contaminanti interferisce in maniera critica sull’intero processo di sintesi. In questo lavoro di tesi, svolto presso il Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi di Bologna, al fine di ridurre la presenza di impurezze radionuclidiche durante la produzione di 18F-, è stato modificato il target in uso tramite l’inserimento di un foil in niobio tra l’ H218O e il foil standard in havar. Sono state fatte delle previsioni teoriche sugli effetti di temperatura e tensione a cui è sottoposto il nuovo foil in niobio.In seguito, è stata effettuata una serie di misurazioni spettrometriche, tramite un rivelatore HPGe, dei campioni di acqua irraggiata contenuta nel target modificato, confrontando i risultati ottenuti con quelli relativi al target standard.Nei campioni di acqua provenienti dagli irraggiamenti del target standard sono stati identificati 51Cr, 52Mn, 54Mn, 55Co, 56Co, 57Ni, 57Co, 58Co, 94Tc, 95Tc, 96Tc e 181Re, mentre nel caso del target con il foil in niobio sono stati individuati solamente 56Co, 57Co, 58Co, 92mNb e 93mMo.Le impurezze prodotte dal target modificato presentano una minor attività ed, inoltre, l’emivita dei radionuclidi prodotti è inferiore rispetto a quelli generati nel target standard. Alla luce dei risultati ottenuti è quindi possibile concludere che le modifiche effettuate al target sono risultate efficaci nella riduzione delle impurezze radionuclidiche presenti nel prodotto finale, tanto che il nuovo target è ora utilizzato per l’attività di routine della produzione di 18F-

Shareability: novel perspective on human-media interaction

Interpersonal communication in the twenty-first century is increasingly taking place within digital media. This poses the problem of understanding the factors that may facilitate or hinder communication processes in virtual contexts. Digital media require a human-machine interface, and the analysis of human-machine interfaces traditionally focuses on the dimension of usability. However, interface usability pertains to the interaction of users with digital devices, not to the interaction of users with other users. Here we argue that there is another dimension of human-media interaction that has remained largely unexplored, but plays a key role in interpersonal communication within digital media: shareability. We define shareability as the resultant of a set of interface features that: (i) make sharing of materials with fellow users easy, efficient, and timely (sharing-related usability); (ii) include features that intuitively invite users to share materials (sharing-related affordances); and (iii) provide a sensorimotor environment that includes perceptual information about both presented materials and the behavior of other users that are experiencing these materials through the medium at hand (support to shared availability). Capitalizing on concepts from semiotics, proxemics, and perceptual and cognItive neuroscience, we explore potential criteria to asses shareability in human-machine interfaces. Finally, we show how these notions may be applied in the analysis of three prototypical cases: online gaming, visual communication on social media, and online distance teaching

Adapting the System to Users Based on Implicit Data: Ethical Risks and Possible Solutions

Symbiotic systems are systems that gather personal data implicitly provided by the user, derive a profile/model of the user from such data and adjust their output/service according to their notion of what would be desirable to the user thus modeled. Because of these three characteristics, symbiotic systems represent a step forward towards facilitated, simplified, user-friendly digital devices, or do they? Here we propose three cases describing realistic applications of symbiotic systems that potentially encapsulate some serious risk to their users. Experts of five different domains (i.e., ethics, security, law, human-computer interaction and psychology) dissect each case to identify the risks to the users and derive some possible minimization strategies. This panel aims at contributing to a beneficial development of symbiotic systems as it can be achieved by increasing users' discernment and awareness of their consequences for society and everyday life

Occurrence of wine yeasts on grapes subjected to different pesticide treatments

As a contribution to the study and preservation of indigenous wine yeast populations, we initiated a programme of isolation and characterization of yeast strains from grapes of the Italian region of Marche. During the 1996 vintage, grape samples were collected from three groups of vineyards differing in the pesticide treatments given. Of the 279 yeasts isolated, thirty-nine were assigned to the species Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The majority of the isolates and all thirty-nine S. cerevisiae came from vineyards which had not been treated with systemic pesticides, indicating that these pesticides may exert a negative effect on the biodiversity of the grape microflora, and in particular on the occurrence of S. cerevisiae on grapes. The thirty-nine S. cerevisiae isolated were subjected to microfermentation mals, in which ten of them showed promising fermentative capabilities

Projected climate oligotrophication of the Adriatic marine ecosystems

The Adriatic Sea hosts diverse marine ecosystems, characterized by rich biodiversity and unique ecological dynamics. Its intricate coastal habitats and open waters support a range of species and contribute to the region's ecological and economic significance. Unraveling the consequences of the ongoing climate changes on this delicate environment is essential to ensure the future safeguard of this basin. To tackle this problem, we developed a biogeochemical model for the entire basin, with a horizontal resolution of about 2 km and 120 vertical levels, forced by the projections of atmosphere, hydrology and ocean circulation between 1992 and 2050, under emission scenario RCP8.5. The changes projected between 2031–2050 and 1992–2011 were evaluated on ecoregions characterized by different trophic conditions, identified using a k-medoid classification technique. The results point toward a generalized oligotrophication of the basin, especially intense in the northern estuarine areas, driven by a substantial decrease in river discharge projected for the rivers of the Po Plain. This scenario of unproductive and declining resources, together with the ongoing warming, salinization, and acidification of marine waters, cast doubt on the long-term resilience of the Northern Adriatic food web structure, which has evolved to thrive in high trophic conditions. The outcome of this study provides the stakeholders with a tool to understand how potential long-term decreases in the regimes of the Northern Adriatic Rivers could affect the marine ecosystem and its goods and services in the future

Genomic investigations of unexplained acute hepatitis in children

Since its first identification in Scotland, over 1000 cases of unexplained pediatric hepatitis in children have been reported worldwide, including 278 cases in the UK 1. Here we report investigation of 38 cases, 66 age-matched immunocompetent controls and 21 immunocompromised comparator subjects, using a combination of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and immunohistochemical methods. We detected high levels of adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2) DNA in liver, blood, plasma or stool from 27/28 cases. We found low levels of Adenovirus (HAdV) and Human Herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B), in 23/31 and 16/23 respectively of the cases tested. In contrast, AAV2 was infrequently detected at low titre in blood or liver from control children with HAdV, even when profoundly immunosuppressed. AAV2, HAdV and HHV-6 phylogeny excluded emergence of novel strains in cases. Histological analyses of explanted livers showed enrichment for T-cells and B-lineage cells. Proteomic comparison of liver tissue from cases and healthy controls, identified increased expression of HLA class 2, immunoglobulin variable regions and complement proteins. HAdV and AAV2 proteins were not detected in the livers. Instead, we identified AAV2 DNA complexes reflecting both HAdV and HHV-6B-mediated replication. We hypothesize that high levels of abnormal AAV2 replication products aided by HAdV and in severe cases HHV-6B, may have triggered immune-mediated hepatic disease in genetically and immunologically predisposed children

How future surgery will benefit from SARS-COV-2-related measures: a SPIGC survey conveying the perspective of Italian surgeons

COVID-19 negatively affected surgical activity, but the potential benefits resulting from adopted measures remain unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in surgical activity and potential benefit from COVID-19 measures in perspective of Italian surgeons on behalf of SPIGC. A nationwide online survey on surgical practice before, during, and after COVID-19 pandemic was conducted in March-April 2022 (NCT:05323851). Effects of COVID-19 hospital-related measures on surgical patients' management and personal professional development across surgical specialties were explored. Data on demographics, pre-operative/peri-operative/post-operative management, and professional development were collected. Outcomes were matched with the corresponding volume. Four hundred and seventy-three respondents were included in final analysis across 14 surgical specialties. Since SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, application of telematic consultations (4.1% vs. 21.6%; p < 0.0001) and diagnostic evaluations (16.4% vs. 42.2%; p < 0.0001) increased. Elective surgical activities significantly reduced and surgeons opted more frequently for conservative management with a possible indication for elective (26.3% vs. 35.7%; p < 0.0001) or urgent (20.4% vs. 38.5%; p < 0.0001) surgery. All new COVID-related measures are perceived to be maintained in the future. Surgeons' personal education online increased from 12.6% (pre-COVID) to 86.6% (post-COVID; p < 0.0001). Online educational activities are considered a beneficial effect from COVID pandemic (56.4%). COVID-19 had a great impact on surgical specialties, with significant reduction of operation volume. However, some forced changes turned out to be benefits. Isolation measures pushed the use of telemedicine and telemetric devices for outpatient practice and favored communication for educational purposes and surgeon-patient/family communication. From the Italian surgeons' perspective, COVID-related measures will continue to influence future surgical clinical practice

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely