10 research outputs found
Sexual functioning and opioid maintenance treatment in women. Results from a large multicentre study
Opioid maintenance treatment (OMT) is the most widespread therapy for both females and males opioid addicts. While many studies have evaluated the OMT impact on menâs sexuality, the data collected about the change in womenâs sexual functioning is still limited despite the fact that it is now well-known that opioids-both endogenous and exogenous-affect the endocrine system and play an important role in sexual functioning. The present study aims to determine how OMT with buprenorphine (BUP) or methadone (MTD) affects sexual health in women; examining also any possible emerging correlation between sexual dysfunction (SD), type of opioid and patientsâ mental health. This multi-center study case recruited 258 female volunteers attending Italian public Addiction Outpatients Centers that were stabilized with OMT for at least 3 months. SD was assessed with the Arizona Sexual Experience Scale. The twelve-item General Health Questionnaire was used to assess participantsâ mental health conditions. The results show that 56.6% of women receiving OMT for at least 3 months presented SD without significant differences between MTD e BUP groups. The majority of the subjects with SD have a poorer quality of intimate relationships and worse mental health than the average. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the largest report on the presence of SDs in women as a side effects of MTD and BUP used in OMT. Since SDs cause difficulties in intimate relationships, lower patientsâ quality of life and interfere with OMT beneficial outcomes, we recommend that women undertaking an opioid therapy have routine screening for SD and we highlight the importance to better examine opioid-endocrine interactions in future studies in order to provide alternative potential treatments such as the choice of opioid, opioid dose reduction and hormone supplementation
Calixarene-decorated liposomes for intracellular cargo delivery
Amphiphilic calix[4]arenes, functionalized with guanidinium groups, are used to decorate the outer surface of liposomes and significantly improve the cellular uptake of a cargo compared to plain liposomes. The improved uptake is elicited and mediated by the interaction between the cationic polar heads of the macrocycle units embedded in the liposome bilayer and anionic heparan-sulfate proteoglycans surrounding the exterior of cells
Sexual Functioning and Opioid Maintenance Treatment in Women. Results From a Large Multicentre Study
Opioid maintenance treatment (OMT) is the most widespread therapy for both females and males opioid addicts. While many studies have evaluated the OMT impact on menâs sexuality, the data collected about the change in womenâs sexual functioning is still limited despite the fact that it is now well-known that opioids - both endogenous and exogenous - affect the endocrine system and play an important role in sexual functioning. The present study aims to determine how OMT with buprenorphine (BUP) or methadone (MTD) affects sexual health in women; examining also any possible emerging correlation between sexual dysfunction (SD), type of opioid and patientsâ mental health. This multi-center study case recruited 258 female volunteers attending Italian public Addiction Outpatients Centers that were stabilized with OMT for at least 3 months. SD was assessed with the Arizona Sexual Experience Scale. The twelve-item General Health Questionnaire was used to assess participantsâ mental health conditions. The results show that 56.6% of women receiving OMT for at least 3 months presented SD without significant differences between MTD e BUP groups. The majority of the subjects with SD have a poorer quality of intimate relationships and worse mental health than the average. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the largest report on the presence of SDs in women as a side effects of MTD and BUP used in OMT. Since SDs cause difficulties in intimate relationships, lower patientsâ quality of life and interfere with OMT beneficial outcomes, we recommend that women undertaking an opioid therapy have routine screening for SD and we highlight the importance to better examine opioid-endocrine interactions in future studies in order to provide alternative potential treatments such as the choice of opioid, opioid dose reduction and hormone supplementation
Solvent-tunable morphology and emission of pyrene-dipeptide organogels
Two pyrene based organogelators in which the pyrene moiety has been linked to the diphenylalanine dipeptide have been
synthesized. We show how the solvent can tune both the morphology and the optical properties of the organogels: spherical
aggregates with quenched emission were obtained in acetonitrile, whereas an entangled fibrillar network with enhanced emission
was formed in o-dichlorobenzene. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, circular dichroismand nuclearmagnetic resonance spectroscopy
experiments suggest that both\u3c0\u2013\u3c0 stacking and hydrogen bonding contribute to the formation of the supramolecular networks.
Ultraviolet\u2013visible and steady state emission studies demonstrated the formation of I-aggregates in acetonitrile. In
contrast, in o-dichlorobenzene, the formation of J-type aggregates leads to assemblieswith enhancedemission. These results give
some insight into the important role of the gelling solvent in the morphology of the supramolecular gels and may help in the
design of new soft-material
Growth Behavior of Coatings Formed by Vapor Phase Aluminizing Using Fe-Al Pellets of Varying Composition
Fluidic and mechanical thermal control devices
In recent years, intensive studies on thermal control devices have been conducted for the thermal management of electronics and computers as well as for applications in energy conversion, chemistry, sensors, buildings, and outer space. Conventional cooling or heating techniques realized using traditional thermal resistors and capacitors cannot meet the thermal requirements of advanced systems. Therefore, new thermal control devices are being investigated to satisfy these requirements. These devices include thermal diodes, thermal switches, thermal regulators, and thermal transistors, all of which manage heat in a manner analogous to how electronic devices and circuits control electricity. To design or apply these novel devices as well as thermal control principles, this paper presents a systematic and comprehensive review of the state-of-the-art of fluidic and mechanical thermal control devices that have already been implemented in various applications for different size scales and temperature ranges. Operation principles, working parameters, and limitations are discussed and the most important features for a particular device are identified