Le "scarpe di Van Gogh" e le scarpe della contadina

Analisi delle considerazioni di Adorno su Heidegge

Developmental motor profile in preschool children with primary stereotypic movement disorder

Aim. Different neuropsychological dysfunctions have been described in children with primary Stereotypic Movement Disorder (SMD), mainly attention or motor coordination problems. Up to now with no study has evaluated psychomotor functions in preschoolers primary SMD. The aim of this observational study was to gather information on the motor profiles of SMD patients in this age range in comparison with typically developing children. Patients and Methods. Twenty-six children (four girls) aged 36 to 76 months (mean= 53 ±10) with primary SMD were assessed by a structured evaluation including the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC-2), the Beery-Buktenica Developmental test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI), the Repetitive Behaviour Scale-Revised (RBS-R), the Motor Severity Stereotypy Scale (MSSS), and the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). The diagnoses of Intellectual Disability or Autism Spectrum Disorder were exclusion criteria from the study. A comparison group of twenty-seven (four girls) typically developing children without stereotypies aged 36 to 59 months (mean= 48 ±7) was also examined. Results. The MABC-2 total score was lower than 15th percentile in fifteen children with SMD (58%); the worst performances were observed in Balance and Manual Dexterity subtests. The motor coordination score of VMI was lower than 15th percentile in ten children (38%). The majority of the children with low scores at MABC-2 also had low scores at the motor coordination subscale of VMI. MABC-2 standard scores of the clinical group were significantly lower than those of controls on MABC-2 Total, Balance, and Ball Skills subtests. Conclusion. The finding of widespread dysfunction of gross and fine motor abilities in preschoolers with primary SMD seems to delineate a peculiar phenotype and could provide new approaches to the management of this neurodevelopment disorder

A free form feature taxonomy

No abstract availabl

Fast method for skeletal tissue gene expression analysis

open9Several chronic diseases have been associated with bone alteration in the last few years. Despite the wealth of information provided by the analysis of the transcriptome in affected tissues, only a limited number of studies evaluated gene expression in bone tissue due to the difficulty to obtain high quality RNA. Therefore, skeletal pathologies have been often associated to a defective maturation process that occurs during recruitment of progenitor stem cells. In order to explore the possibility of analysing the gene expression during osteogenic differentiation in skeletal tissue, a single-step method to extract well-preserved RNA from bone specimens was performed. A comparison between this technique and a traditional method was made by analysing the quality and yield of RNA obtained. In addition, RNAs were assayed by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction to analyse the expression levels of the bone genes associated with the differentiation process in a mouse model. The present data showed that good quality RNA can be obtained from bone tissue by a simple single-step method allowing the expression analysis of the genes encoded by skeletal tissue. In conclusion, the present study allows the possibility to easily obtain good quality RNA from bone tissue that is suitable for gene expression studies of bone diseases.openDalle Carbonare, Luca; Vilei, Maria Teresa; Stranieri, Chiara; Innamorati, Giulio; Rosato, Antonio; Boldrin, Elisa; Sella, Stefania; Giannini, Sandro; Valenti, Maria TeresaDALLE CARBONARE, LUCA GIUSEPPE; Vilei, MARIA TERESA; Stranieri, Chiara; Innamorati, Giulio; Rosato, Antonio; Boldrin, Elisa; Sella, Stefania; Giannini, Sandro; Valenti, Maria Teres

CdSe/CdS/ZnS Double Shell Nanorods with High Photoluminescence Efficiency and Their Exploitation As Biolabeling Probes

We report the synthesis, the structural and optical characterization of CdSe/CdS/ZnS "double shell" nanorods and their exploitation in cell labeling experiments. To synthesize such nanorods, first "dot-in-a-rod" CdSe(dot)/CdS(rod) core/shell nanocrystals were prepared. Then a ZnS shell was grown epitaxially over these CdSe/CdS nanorods, which led to a fluorescence quantum yield of the final core-shell-shell nanorods that could be as high as 75%. The quantum efficiency was correlated with the aspect ratio of the nanorods and with the thickness of the ZnS shell around the starting CdSe/CdS rods, which varied from 1 to 4 monolayers (as supported by a combination of X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis with inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy and high resolution transmission electron microscopy analysis). Pump-probe and time-resolved photoluminescence measurements confirmed the reduction of trapping at CdS surface due to the presence of the ZnS shell, which resulted in more efficient photoluminescence. These double shell nanorods have potential applications as fluorescent biological labels, as we found that they are brighter in cell imaging as compared to the starting CdSe/CdS nanorods and to the CdSe/ZnS quantum dots, therefore a lower amount of material is required to label the cells. Concerning their cytotoxicity, according to the MTT assay, the double shell nanorods were less toxic than the starting core/shell nanorods and than the CdSe/ZnS quantum dots, although the latter still exhibited a lower intracellular toxicity than both nanorod samples

Low elasticity of thyroid nodules at ultrasound elastography is correlated with malignancy, degree of fibrosis and high expression of galectin-3 and fibronectin-1

ackground: Thyroid ultrasound (US) elastography provides an estimation of tissue stiffness and is helpful to differentiate malignant from benign lesions. Tissue proprieties and molecules causing stiffness are not established. The aim of the study was to correlate US elastography findings with tissue properties in thyroid nodules. Methods: A total of 115 thyroid nodules from 112 patients who underwent surgery for the presence of Thy 3 (indeterminate) cytology (n = 67), Thy 4-5 (suspicious - indicative of carcinoma) cytology (n = 47), or large goiter in the presence of Thy 2 cytology (n = 1) and suspicious US features were examined by US elastography. Tissues obtained after surgery were characterized for cell number, microvessel density, fibrosis, and expression of galectin-3 (Gal-3) and fibronectin-1 (FN-1). Results: Low elasticity on qualitative US elastography (LoEl) was found in 66 nodules (one benign and 65 carcinomas); high elasticity (HiEl) was found in 49 nodules (46 benign and three carcinomas; p < 0.0001). Quantitative analysis, performed in 24 nodules and expressed as elastic ratio between the strain of the nodule and that of the surrounding thyroid parenchyma, showed a mean of 1.90 (interquartile range [IQR] 1.18-2.77) in 14 nodules with LoEl, and a mean of 1.01 (IQR 0.91-1.10) in 10 nodules with HiEl (p = 0.002). Stiffness did not correlate with cell number and was inversely correlated with microvessel density. Fibrosis was higher in nodules with LoEl than in those with HiEl (p = 0.009) and in carcinomas than in benign nodules (p = 0.02). Fibrosis was higher in nodules with high expression of Gal-3 (p < 0.001) and FN-1 (p = 0.004). Fibrosis and expression of Gal-3 and FN-1 were higher in the classic compared with the follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma and lower in follicular adenomas. Conclusions: Low elasticity at US elastography is highly correlated with malignancy. Nodule stiffness is correlated with fibrosis and expression of Gal-3 and FN-1. These features are more evident in the classic than in the follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma

Dye-Derived Red-Emitting Carbon Dots for Lasing and Solid-State Lighting

Carbon dots are carbon-based nanoparticles renowned for their intense light-emitting capabilities covering the whole visible light range. Achieving carbon dots emitting in the red region with high efficiency is extremely relevant due to their huge potential in biological applications and in optoelectronics. Currently, photoluminescence in such an energy interval is often associated with polyheterocyclic molecular domains forming during the synthesis that, however, present low emission efficiency and issues in controlling the optical features. Here, we overcome these problems by solvothermally synthesizing carbon dots starting from Neutral Red, a common red-emitting dye, as a molecular precursor. As a result of the synthesis, such molecular fluorophore is incorporated into a carbonaceous core while retaining its original optical properties. The obtained nanoparticles are highly luminescent in the red region, with a quantum yield comparable to that of the starting dye. Most importantly, the nanoparticle carbogenic matrix protects the Neutral Red molecules from photobleaching under ultraviolet excitation while preventing aggregation-induced quenching, thus allowing solid-state emission. These advantages have been exploited to develop a fluorescence-based color conversion layer by fabricating polymer-based highly concentrated solid-state carbon dot nanocomposites. Finally, the dye-based carbon dots demonstrate both stable Fabry-Perot lasing and efficient random lasing emission in the red region

ISO -LWS two-colour diagram of young stellar objects

We present a [60-100] versus [100-170]μm two-colour diagram for a sample of 61 young stellar objects (YSOs) observed with the Long Wavelength Spectrometer (LWS) on-board the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). The sample consists of 17 Class 0 sources, 15 Class I, nine Bright Class I (Lbol>104Lsolar) and 20 Class II (14 Herbig Ae/Be stars and six T Tauri stars). We find that each class occupies a well-defined region in our diagram with colour temperatures increasing from Class 0 to Class II. Therefore the [60-100] versus [100-170] two-colour diagram is a powerful and simple tool to derive from future (e.g. with the Herschel Space Observatory) photometric surveys the evolutionary status of YSOs. The advantage over other tools already developed is that photometry at other wavelengths is not required: three flux measurements are enough to derive the evolutionary status of a source. As an example we use the colours of the YSO IRAS 18148-0440 to classify it as Class I. The main limitation of this work is the low spatial resolution of the LWS which, for some objects, causes a high uncertainty in the measured fluxes due to background emission or to source confusion inside the LWS beam

Strong H_2O and high-J CO emission towards the Class 0 protostar L1448-mm

The spectrum of the Class 0 source L1448-mm has been measured over the wavelength range extending from 6 to 190 mu m with the Long Wavelength Spectrometer (LWS) and the Short Wavelength Spectrometer (SWS) on the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). The far infrared spectrum is dominated by strong emission from gaseous H_2O and from CO transitions with rotational quantum numbers J >= 14; in addition, the H_2 pure rotational lines S(3), S(4) and S(5), the OH fundamental line at 119 mu m, as well as emission from [O I] 63 mu m and [C Ii] 158 mu m are also observed. The strong CO and water emission can be consistently explained as originating in a warm gas component at T ~ 700-1400 K and n_H_2 ~ (3-50) 10(4 ) cm(-3) , which fills about 0.2-2% of the ~ 75\arcsec LWS field of view (corresponding, assuming a single emitting region, to a physical size of about (3-12)\arcsec or (0.5-2) 10(-2) pc at d = 300 pc). We derive an H_2O/CO abundance ratio ~ 5, which, assuming a standard CO/H_2 abundance of 10(-4) , corresponds to H_2O/H_2 ~ 5 10(-4) . This value implies that water is enhanced by about a factor ~ 10(3) with respect to its expected abundance in the ambient gas. This is consistent with models of warm shocked regions which predict that most of the free atomic oxygen will be rapidly converted into water once the temperature of the post-shocked gas exceeds ~ 300 K. The relatively high density and compact size inferred for this emission may suggest an origin in the shocked region along the molecular jet traced by SiO and EHV CO millimeter line emission. Further support is given by the fact that the observed enhancement in H_2O can be explained by shock conditions similar to those expected to produce the abundant SiO observed in the region. L1448-mm shows the largest water abundance so far observed by ISO amongst young sources displaying outflow activity; we argue that the occurrence of multiple shocks over a relatively short interval of time, like that evidenced in the surroundings of L1448-mm, could have contributed to enrich the molecular jet with a high H_2O column density. Based on observations with ISO, an ESA project with instruments funded by ESA Member States (especially the PI countries: France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom) with the participation of ISAS and NAS