Capillaroscopy in 2016 : new perspectives in systemic sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disorder of unknown etiology characterized by early impairment of the microvascular system. Nailfold microangiopathy and decreased peripheral blood perfusion are typical clinical aspects of SSc. The best method to evaluate vascular injury is nailfold videocapillaroscopy, which detects peripheral capillary morphology, and classifies and scores the abnormalities into different patterns of microangiopathy. Microangiopathy appears to be the best evaluable predictor of the disease development and has been observed to precede the other symptoms by many years. Peripheral blood perfusion is also impaired in SSc, and there are different methods to assess it: laser Doppler and laser speckle techniques, thermography and other emerging techniques

Physiopathology and biomechanics of hip osteoarthritis

Several factors seem to play a relevant role in the pathogenesis of hip osteoarthritis. Among these, an altered biomechanic and neuromuscular integrity of the hip joint should be considered. This is a review of the recent international literature concerning the role of loads and strengths acting on the hip joint, in order to better understand the pathogenesis and the physiopathology of the hip osteoarthritis. The study of these factors might be important to prevent the development of the osteoarthritis and might suggest the conservative treatment. In particular, the role of the balance among the muscles working in maintaining the equilibrium of the acting strengths is matter of discussion. The articular and neuromuscular dysfunction might induce an altered load distribution in the hip, particularly on the articular cartilage surface, and seems to favour the development of hip osteoarthritis..

Coexistence of osteopoikilosis with seronegative spondyloarthritis and Raynaud's phenomenon: first case report with evaluation of the nailfold capillary bed and literature review.

Osteopoikilosis (OPK) is a rare autosomal dominant bone disorder characterized by numerous hyperostotic areas that tend to localize in periarticular osseous regions. It is usually asymptomatic and is often diagnosed incidentally during X-rays. OPK may be an isolated finding or associated with other pathologies, e.g. skin manifestations, rheumatic and/or skeletal disorders. We report a literature review and, for the first time, the coexistence of OPK with seronegative spondyloarthritis and Raynaud's phenomenon in a 48-year old female. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of OPK studied by videocapillaroscopy, demonstrating the absence of specific microvascular abnormalities of nailfold capillaries

Geo-hazards of the San Vito peninsula offshore (southwestern Tyrrhenian Sea)

In this paper we present geomorphological hazard mapping of the San Vito Peninsula offshore (Sicilian margin of Tyrrhenian Sea), characterised by a very narrow continental shelf and a very dipping, tectonically active continental slope, no far from a seismogenic belt. The data set consists of morpho-bathymetric models achieved by means of multibeam survey and scattered high resolution seismic profiles. The morpho-bathymetric study highlighted some potential sites of geomorphological hazards, the most representative of which are: (i) two canyons developing from the upper slope off San Vito Cape down to the Erice basin; (ii) a dense network of small incisions across the upper slope; (iii) a very active landslide, developed onland and extending in the continental shelf close to the Scopello village. The geomorphological features that can generate submarine hazard are represented by: unstable sediment packages into canyon heads or along the upper slope; submarine canyons with regressive erosion; coastal landslides

Assessment of treatment effects on digital ulcer and blood perfusion by laser speckle contrast analysis in a patient affected by systemic sclerosis

Laser speckle contrast analysis (LASCA) is a good tool to evaluate the variation in peripheral blood perfu-sion during long-term follow-up andis able to safely monitor digital ulcer evolution inscleroderma patients. It evaluates blood perfusion in different areas within the skin lesions and surrounding them during standard treatment

Ampiezza e tassi dei movimenti verticali a Capo Vaticano (Calabria occidentale,Italia) negli ultimi 20 mila anni determinati sulla base di cunei progradanti epiattaforme di abrasione.

Ampiezza e tassi dei movimenti tettonici verticali sono stati quantificati nel settore offshore di Capo Vaticano (Calabria occidentale), nell’intervallo Pleistocene superiore – Olocene, sulla base delle profondità del ciglio dei cunei progradanti infralitorali e delle piattaforme di abrasione formatesi durante l’ultimo massimo glaciale (LGM). I cunei progradanti sono stati riconosciuti in profili sismici a riflessione ad alta risoluzione Sparker. I dati sismici sono stati acquisiti lungo la piattaforma e la scarpata continentale superiore, durante le crociere oceanografiche Marisk 2010 e 2012 organizzate dall’IAMC del CNR di Napoli, il DISTEM dell’Università di Palermo e il Dip. di Scienze della Terra dell’Università di Napoli. La deformazione tettonica verticale del promontorio di Capo Vaticano e del suo prolungamento offshore è caratterizzata da una marcata asimmetria, con profondità dei cigli dei cunei infralitorali che si approfondisce progressivamente procedendo verso NE. La rimozione della componente non tettonica dei movimenti verticali, ottenuta utilizzando dati sulle variazioni glacio-eustatiche del tardo Quaternario [Lambeck et al., 2011], indica nell’area in esame ~11 (± 5) m di sollevamento e di ~25 (± 5) m di subsidenza, nell’intervallo post-LGM, muovendoci da sud-ovest verso nord-est, su una distanza di ~22 km. Il valore medio del tasso di sollevamento e di subsidenza (considerando la componente sia regionale sia locale) per gli ultimi 20.350 (± 1,35) anni sono pari a 0,52 (± 0,28) mm/anno e di 1,23 (± 0,32) mm/anno, rispettivamente. I valori dell’ampiezza e il pattern dei movimenti verticali ottenuti attraverso l’analisi dei cunei progradanti infralitorali sono comparabili, sebbene a tassi parzialmente differenti, sia con quelli determinati attraverso marker geomorfologici tardo Olocenici [Spampinato et al., 2012] che con i tassi di sollevamento a lungo termine calcolati sulla base delle posizioni dei terrazzi marini formatisi a 80 a 215 mila anni [Cucci & Tertulliani, 2010]. L’integrazione dei nuovi dati con quelli disponibili in letteratura indica che il basculamento del promontorio di Capo Vaticano è episodico ed è avvenuto principalmente tra 215 e 125 mila anni e nel post-LGM

[17beta-Estradiol and testosterone influence the mRNA expression and the time course of inflammatory cytokines in activated human monocytic cell line (THP-1)].

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of 17b-estradiol (E2) and testosterone (T) on the mRNA expression of IL-1b, IL-6, TNF-a and TGF-b in cultured human monocytic cells (THP-1) after INF-g activation. Methods: THP-1 were cultured with E2 and T (10 nM) for 24 hs and then activated with INF-g (500 U/ml), during different periods of time (1, 3, 6, and 12 hs). After total RNA extraction, all samples were analyzed by multiple RT-PCR to detect mRNA expression of the selected cytokines. Results: Cells cultured without hormonal treatment expressed IL-1b mRNA after 1 h; on the contrary TNF-a, TGF-b and IL-6 mRNA were expressed only after 3 hs. At 6 and 12 hs only IL-6 mRNA was still expressed. Interestingly, cells cultured with testosterone never expressed IL-1b nor TNF-a mRNA and showed an IL-6 mRNA expression similar to the untreated controls at 3, 6 and 12 hours. On the contrary, cells treated with E2 showed the expression of all cytokines at 3 and 12 hs, and in general showed an higher expression of all the analyzed cytokines mRNA when compared to the other conditions. Conclusions: This study suggests that sex hormones may modulate the cytokine mRNA expression in the inflammatory cells. In fact, T inhibits TNF-a production at all the tested times, whereas E2 seems to accelerate and to enhance the inflammatory response. Therefore, the altered sex hormone ratio, as observed in the synovial fluid of RA patients (high E2/low T), might contribute to the occurrence and last of synovitis