11 research outputs found
Pattern of care and effectiveness of treatment for glioblastoma patients in the real world: Results from a prospective population-based registry. Could survival differ in a high-volume center?
BACKGROUND:
As yet, no population-based prospective studies have been conducted to investigate the incidence and clinical outcome of glioblastoma (GBM) or the diffusion and impact of the current standard therapeutic approach in newly diagnosed patients younger than aged 70 years.
METHODS:
Data on all new cases of primary brain tumors observed from January 1, 2009, to December 31, 2010, in adults residing within the Emilia-Romagna region were recorded in a prospective registry in the Project of Emilia Romagna on Neuro-Oncology (PERNO). Based on the data from this registry, a prospective evaluation was made of the treatment efficacy and outcome in GBM patients.
RESULTS:
Two hundred sixty-seven GBM patients (median age, 64 y; range, 29-84 y) were enrolled. The median overall survival (OS) was 10.7 months (95% CI, 9.2-12.4). The 139 patients 64aged 70 years who were given standard temozolomide treatment concomitant with and adjuvant to radiotherapy had a median OS of 16.4 months (95% CI, 14.0-18.5). With multivariate analysis, OS correlated significantly with KPS (HR = 0.458; 95% CI, 0.248-0.847; P = .0127), MGMT methylation status (HR = 0.612; 95% CI, 0.388-0.966; P = .0350), and treatment received in a high versus low-volume center (HR = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.328-0.986; P = .0446).
CONCLUSIONS:
The median OS following standard temozolomide treatment concurrent with and adjuvant to radiotherapy given to (72.8% of) patients aged 6470 years is consistent with findings reported from randomized phase III trials. The volume and expertise of the treatment center should be further investigated as a prognostic factor
MR cholangiography (MRC) in the evaluation of CBD stones before laparoscopic cholecystectomy
Despite the good results of MRC, it cannot be proposed as a screening technique to be performed in all patients submitted to laparoscopic cholecystectomy due to high cost and the limited amount of MR equipment. In conclusion, only selected patients should be submitted to MRC before laparoscopic cholecystectomy
Protein and growth during the first year of life: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Dietary protein intake in the first year of life might influence later growth. We conducted a systematic review to investigate the growth effects of interventions based on infant formula composition providing different amounts of protein within the first year of life of healthy term infants; in the absence of other comparable information over the investigated period, a meta-analysis further compared weight or length gain at 120 days from high- (>2.0 g/100 kcal) and low-protein (<= 2.0 g/100 kcal) content formula groups. Twelve papers (n = 2275) were included and five of them (n = 677) contributed to the meta-analysis. Most studies compared a high-protein formula, a low-protein formula, and breastfeeding. Evidence from the systematic review was inconclusive due to heterogeneity in design and treatments. In the presence of modest heterogeneity but in the absence of publication bias, the weighted mean difference for weight gain at 120 days was -0.02 g/day (95% CI: -1.41, 1.45); with higher heterogeneity, the weighted MD estimate of length gain at 120 days was 0.004 cm/month (95% CI: -0.26, 0.27). Although limited and underpowered, evidence from the meta-analysis does not support the assumption that high- vs. low-protein content formulas during exclusive milk-feeding lead to different growth outcomes in the first months of life. Prospero registration number: CRD42017058535.ImpactThe optimal amount of dietary protein that should be given to healthy full-term infants early in life is still debated.Despite heterogeneity in study design, treatments, and outcomes, this systematic review showed that there is no clear-cut effect on the growth of different amounts of protein intake from formulas or complementary feeding.Evidence from the meta-analysis based on the five articles enrolling infant
Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 activity in AQP2-expressing cells can be either proliferative or anti-proliferative depending on extracellular pH
We have previously shown in renal cells that expression of the water channel Aquaporin-2 increases cell proliferation by a regulatory volume mechanism involving Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 2. Here, we investigated if Aquaporin-2 (AQP2) also modulates Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1-dependent cell proliferation. We use two AQP2-expressing cortical collecting duct models: one constitutive (WT or AQP2-transfected RCCD1 cell line) and one inducible (control or vasopressin-induced mpkCCDc14 cell line). We found that Aquaporin-2 modifies Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 (NHE1) contribution to cell proliferation. In Aquaporin-2-expressing cells, Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 is anti-proliferative at physiological pH. In acid media, Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 contribution turned from anti-proliferative to proliferative only in AQP2-expressing cells. We also found that, in AQP2-expressing cells, NHE1-dependent proliferation changes parallel changes in stress fiber levels: at pH 7.4, Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 would favor stress fiber disassembly and, under acidosis, NHE1 would favor stress fiber assembly. Moreover, we found that Na+/H+ exchanger-dependent effects on proliferation linked to Aquaporin-2 relied on Transient Receptor Potential Subfamily V calcium channel activity. In conclusion, our data show that, in collecting duct cells, the water channel Aquaporin-2 modulates NHE1-dependent cell proliferation. In AQP2-expressing cells, at physiological pH, the Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 function is anti-proliferative and, at acidic pH, Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 function is proliferative. We propose that Na+/H+ exchanger isoform 1 modulates proliferation through an interplay with stress fiber formation.Fil: Mazzocchi, Marina Antonella. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Di Giusto, Gisela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Porta, Micaela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Pizzoni, Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Beltramone, Natalia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Ford, Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Capurro, Claudia Graciela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Rivarola, Valeria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de FisiologĂa y BiofĂsica Bernardo Houssay; Argentin
Metamorfosi dei Lumi 8
âLâetĂ della storiaâ, cosĂŹ Foucault, in Les mots et les choses, definisce lo sconvolgimento dellâepisteme occidentale avvenuto alla fine del Settecento e nei primi decenni dellâOttocento che dĂ lâavvio allâera della modernitĂ . Foucault teorizza il disfacimento del sapere classico e la conseguente mutazione dallââordineâ alla âstoriaâ: allâordine del sapere classico, ai valori della tradizione, si Ăš sostituita lâidea di progresso, nonchĂ© la visione frammentata di una realtĂ naturale molteplice, le cui variazioni sono legate allo scorrere del tempo. Il valore normativo della tradizione viene, dâaltra parte, contestato, negli ultimi decenni del diciottesimo secolo, da vari sommovimenti politici che sconvolgono lâordine tradizionale delle nazioni europee: la Rivoluzione americana crea un governo razionale fondato sul diritto naturale; la Rivoluzione francese recide traumaticamente i legami con i valori di una monarchia secolare; i suoi drammatici sviluppi, il Terrore, le guerre europee, il crollo dellâimpero napoleonico impongono, nel corso degli anni, la consapevolezza concreta dellâincidere storico. Questa irruzione della dimensione storica nel mondo europeo Ăš stata, nel biennio 2013-2015, al centro dei lavori del seminario âMetamorfosi dei Lumiâ che presenta, nel suo ottavo volume, un insieme di articoli centrati sul processo di temporalizzazione che caratterizza il tournant des LumiĂšres, nelle esperienze di vita e in tutti i settori dello scibile
Fate of melatonin orally administered in preterm newborns: Antioxidant performance and basis for neuroprotection
Preterm infants cannot counteract excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) production due to preterm birth, leading to an excess of lipid peroxidation with malondialdehyde (MDA) production, capable of contributing to brain damage. Melatonin (ME), an endogenous brain hormone, and its metabolites, act as a free radical scavenger against ROS. Unfortunately, preterms have an impaired antioxidant system, resulting in the inability to produce and release ME. This prospective, multicenter, parallel groups, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial aimed to assess: (i) the endogenous production of ME in very preterm infants (gestational age <= 29 + 6 WE, 28 infants in the ME and 26 in the placebo group); (ii) the exogenous hormone availability and its metabolization to the main metabolite, 6-OH-ME after 15 days of ME oral treatment; (iii) difference of MDA plasma concentration, as peroxidation marker, after treatment. Blood was collected before the first administration (T1) and after 15 days of administration (T2). ME and 6-OH-ME were detected by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, MDA was measured by liquid chromatograph with fluorescence detection. ME and 6-OH-ME were not detectable in the placebo group at any study time-point. ME was absent in the active group at T1. In contrast, after oral administration, ME and 6-OH-ME resulted highly detectable and the difference between concentrations T2 versus T1 was statistically significant, as well as the difference between treated and placebo groups at T2. MDA levels seemed stable during the 15 days of treatment in both groups. Nevertheless, a trend in the percentage of neonates with reduced MDA concentration at T2/T1 was 48.1% in the ME group versus 38.5% in the placebo group. We demonstrated that very preterm infants are not able to produce endogenous detectable plasma levels of ME during their first days of life. Still, following ME oral administration, appreciable amounts of ME and 6-OH-ME were available. The trend of MDA reduction in the active group requires further clinical trials to fix the dosage, the length of ME therapy and to identify more appropriate indexes to demonstrate, at biological and clinical levels, the antioxidant activity and consequent neuroprotectant potential of ME in very preterm newborns
EXPADES: a new detection system for charged particles in experiments with RIBs
A new detection apparatus, named EXPADES (EXotic PArticle DEtection System), has been expressly designed to be used in nuclear physics experiments involving exotic beams and devoted to the study of nuclear reactions (scattering, direct reactions, breakup ...) at energies around the Coulomb barrier. It consists of double-side segmented silicon detectors arranged in a compact configuration around the target. A very large solid angle, a wide angular range, high granularity and a highly miniaturized readout electronics, based on a new production commercial ASIC chipset, are the main features of the system
Modulation of neuronal nicotinic receptor function by the neuropeptides CGRP and substance P on autonomic nerve cells
1. One classical example of how neuropeptides can affect the function of ligand-gated receptors is the modulation of neuronal nicotinic receptors (nAChRs) by substance P. The present review updates current understanding of this action by substance P and compares it with other neuropeptides more recently found to modulate nAChRs in the autonomic nervous system. 2. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and its N-terminal fragments have been shown to exert complex inhibitory as well facilitatory actions on nAChRs. Fragments such as CGRP(1â4), CGRP(1â5) and CGRP(1â6) rapidly and reversibly enhance agonist sensitivity of nAChRs without directly activating those receptors. Longer fragments or the full-length peptide potently inhibit responses mediated by nAChRs via an apparently competitive-type antagonism. This phenomenon differs from the substance P-induced block, which is agonist use-dependent and preferential towards large nicotinic responses. 3. It is argued that the full-length peptides CGRP and substance P might play distinct roles in the activity-dependent modulation of cholinergic neurotransmission, by inhibiting background noise in the case of CGRP or by reducing excessive excitation in the case of substance P. Hence, multiple neuropeptide mechanisms may represent a wide array of fine-tuning processes to regulate nicotinic synaptic transmission. 4. The availability of novel CGRP derivatives with a strong enhancing action on nAChRs may offer new leads for the drug design targeted for potentiation of nAChRs in the autonomic nervous system as well as in the brain, a subject of interest to counteract the deficit of the nAChR function associated with neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases