Short-term efficacy of ultramicronized palmitoylethanolamide in peripheral neuropathic pain.

Introduction. This study evaluates the efficacy of palmitoylethanolamide ultramicronized (PEA-um) as an add-on treatment in patients with diabetic or traumatic neuropathic pain (NP). Methods. 30 patients with chronic NP were assessed with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), NP Symptom Inventory (NPSI), and Health Questionnaire Five Dimensions (EQ-5D), both at baseline and after 10 and 40 days of treatment with 1200 mg/die of PEA-um. All other therapies were maintained stable during the follow-up period. Results. VAS mean score significantly improved within the first 10 days, ranging from 8.20 ± 1.53 to 6.40 ± 1.83 (P<0.002), with a further decrease to 5.80 ± 2.04 (P<0.001) after 40 days of PEA-um administration. Moreover, NPSI total score improved from 5.2 ± 1.5 to 3.8 ± 2.1 (P: 0.025) and EQ-5D ranged from −0.30 ± 0.65 to 0.5 ± 0.34 (P<0.001) between T0 and T2. Conclusions. This study reports the prospective short-term efficacy data of oral PEA-um in patients with diabetic or traumatic NP. A significant improvement was observed both in VAS and NPSI scores and in quality of life scales after 40 days of treatment, although some limitations should be considered, including the short followup and the open-label study design

Assessing the Effect of Stabilization and Carbonization Temperatures on Electrochemical Performance of Electrospun Carbon Nanofibers from Polyacrylonitrile

Supercapacitors (SCs) are considered a promising alternative to batteries to power up portable and wearable devices. Among different categories of materials for SCs, carbon nanofibers (CNFs) are particularly appealing for their electrochemical, morphological, and mechanical properties, coupled with the ease of synthesis. Electrospinning is a simple and low-cost technique to prepare the polymer-based precursors for CNFs, allowing to obtain fibers with a tunable morphology and a diameter in the nanometer range. However, even if electrospun CNFs were intensely studied over the years, in the literature there is a lack of information regarding the optimization of the thermal treatment to prepare bare CNFs with high specific capacitance (C s). Herein, a systematic study on the optimization of the stabilization and carbonization temperatures for electrospun CNFs prepared from polyacrylonirtile is reported, achieving a maximum C s of 49 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1 in a symmetrical SC device based on 1 m H2SO4 electrolyte. Aspects related to the specific surface area, nitrogen doping, and carbon microstructure are examined concerning the different thermal treatments, allowing to define structure–property–function relationships in these capacitive nanoarchitectures

Pure autonomic failure versus prodromal dysautonomia in Parkinson&#8217;s disease: Insights from the bedside

Autonomic failure may include orthostatic hypotension, supine hypertension, bowel and bladder disturbances, impaired thermal regulation, and sexual dysfunction, all of which can be features of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other a‐synucleinopathies. All patients with pure autonomic failure, most patients with multiple system atrophy, and 18% of patients with PD will develop symptomatic orthostatic hypotension. However, the extent of central and peripheral norepinephrine deficiency, parasympathetic nuclei degeneration, and arterial baroreflex failure may be differentially impaired in these disorders. Consequently, clinical features and prognostic implications of autonomic dysfunction in a‐synucleinopathies may be more complex than previously envisioned. The case described in this report highlights the clinical similarities between PD and pure autonomic failure, raising the question of whether pure autonomic failure represents a restricted Lewy body synucleinopathy or an early manifestation of PD

Nanostructured 2D WS2@PANI nanohybrids for electrochemical energy storage

: 2D materials are interesting flat nanoplatforms for the implementation of different electrochemical processes, due to the high surface area and tunable electronic properties. 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) can be produced through convenient top-down liquid-phase exfoliation (LPE) methods and present capacitive behaviour that can be exploited for energy storage applications. However, in their thermodynamically stable 2H crystalline phase, they present poor electrical conductivity, being this phase a purely semiconducting one. Combination with conducting polymers like polyaniline (PANI), into nanohybrids, can provide better properties for the scope. In this work, we report on the preparation of 2D WS2@PANI hybrid materials in which we exploit the LPE TMD nanoflakes as scaffolds, onto which induce the in-situ aniline polymerization and thus achieve porous architectures, with the help of surfactants and sodium chloride acting as templating agents. We characterize these species for their capacitive behaviour in neutral pH, achieving maximum specific capacitance of 160 F/g at a current density of 1 A/g, demonstrating the attractiveness of similar nanohybrids for future use in low-cost, easy-to-make supercapacitor devices