Lava flow hazard at Mount Etna (Italy): new data from a GIS-based study

Invasion of inhabited areas and destruction of human property by lava flows represents the greatest volcanic hazard at Mount Etna (Italy) in the short term, based on the character of the historically documented eruptions of the volcano. Virtually all eruptions of Etna produce lava flows, which are more likely to cause damage when emitted from flank vents. Since 1600, more than sixty eruptions have occurred on the flanks of Etna. About half of these caused damage to, or destruction of, human property, dwellings and infrastructures, and at least two destroyed entire population centers. We present a quantitative analysis and evaluation of a new database containing numerical volcanological parameters of each post-1600 eruption, which allows us to quantify the hazard from future eruptions and to create a preliminary hazard zonation map divided into six zones. A total area of nearly 1400 km2 is considered vulnerable, which is home to >900,000 people. The greatest hazard is from voluminous and/or low-altitude flank eruptions, which during the historical period have occurred at irregular intervals of 120-400 years, the most recent in 1669. In the future, eruptions at higher elevations will occur much more frequently, at intervals of a few months to several decades, and many will cause damage in relatively limited areas. A recent increase in the intensity and frequency of eruptions indicate that the Etna volcanic system is presently more dynamic than during the past 330 years, and low-altitude flank eruptions have to be considered a realistic possibility for the near future

Lava flow hazard at Mount Etna (Italy): new data from a GIS-based study

Invasion of inhabited areas and destruction of human property by lava flows represents the greatest volcanic hazard at Mount Etna (Italy) in the short term, based on the character of the historically documented eruptions of the volcano. Virtually all eruptions of Etna produce lava flows, which are more likely to cause damage when emitted from flank vents. Since 1600, more than sixty eruptions have occurred on the flanks of Etna. About half of these caused damage to, or destruction of, human property, dwellings and infrastructures, and at least two destroyed entire population centers. We present a quantitative analysis and evaluation of a new database containing numerical volcanological parameters of each post-1600 eruption, which allows us to quantify the hazard from future eruptions and to create a preliminary hazard zonation map divided into six zones. A total area of nearly 1400 km2 is considered vulnerable, which is home to >900,000 people. The greatest hazard is from voluminous and/or low-altitude flank eruptions, which during the historical period have occurred at irregular intervals of 120-400 years, the most recent in 1669. In the future, eruptions at higher elevations will occur much more frequently, at intervals of a few months to several decades, and many will cause damage in relatively limited areas. A recent increase in the intensity and frequency of eruptions indicate that the Etna volcanic system is presently more dynamic than during the past 330 years, and low-altitude flank eruptions have to be considered a realistic possibility for the near future.Published189-2081.5. TTC - Sorveglianza dell'attività eruttiva dei vulcani3.5. Geologia e storia dei sistemi vulcanici3.6. Fisica del vulcanismoreserve

Laparoscopy in the management of impalpable testis (Series of 64 Cases)

Background: The undescended testis represents one of the most common disorders of childhood. Laparoscopy has been widely used both in the diagnosis and treatment of non-palpable testis. In this study, we investigated and evaluated the usefulness of laparoscopy in the diagnosis and treatment of no palpable testis. Patients and Methods: From January 2003 to January 2008, we used laparoscopy in the management of 64 patients with 75 impalpable testes. Their ages varied from 1 to 15 years (median age = 4.6 years). The site and the size of the testes were localised by abdominopelvic ultrasonography in all 64 children for accurate diagnosis. One stage laparoscopic orchiopexy was performed in 26 testes, staged Fowler-Stephens orchiopexy was underwent in 17 testes, while laparoscopic orchidectomy was done in 5 testes. Follow-up by clinical examination and colour Doppler ultrasound was performed in every patient who underwent orchiopexy. Results: There were 11 patients with bilateral non-palpable testes. The overall diagnostic agreement of ultrasound with laparoscopy was seen in only 16 out of 75 testes (21.3%). The results of diagnostic laparoscopy were varied and showed various pathological. Conditions and positioned of the testes, such as 20 low intra-abdominal testes (26.6%), 17 testes were high intra-abdominal (22.7%), and 18 testes (24%) entered the inguinal canal. Associated inguinal hernia was present in 4 patients. After a mean follow-up period of 26 months (6 months – 5 years), all testes were in the bottom of the scrotum except 3 testes were retracted to the neck of the scrotum and atrophy of the testis occurred in 2 patients (2.7%). Conclusion: Laparoscopy has proven to be the only diagnostic modality where the findings provide a clear dependable direction for the definitive management of impalpable testes, so it allows an accurate diagnosis and definitive treatment in the same sitting

Visible-light-induced photocatalytic and antibacterial activity of TiO2 codoped with nitrogen and bismuth: new perspectives to control implant-biofilm-related diseases

Biofilm-associated diseases are one of the main causes of implant failure. Currently, the development of process and focuses on the creation of surfaces with implant surface treatment goes beyond the osseointegration antimicrobial action and with the possibility to be re-activated (i.e., light source activation). Titanium dioxide (TiO2), an excellent photocatalyst used for photocatalytic antibacterial applications, could be a great alternative, but its efficiency is limited to the ultraviolet (UV) range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Since UV radiation has carcinogenic potential, we created a functional TiO2 coating codoped with nitrogen and bismuth via the plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) of titanium to achieve an antibacterial effect under visible light with re-activation potential. A complex surface topography was demonstrated by scanning electron microscopy and three-dimensional confocal laser scanning microscopy. Additionally, PEO-treated surfaces showed greater hydrophilicity and albumin adsorption compared to control, untreated titanium. Bismuth incorporation shifted the band gap of TiO2 to the visible region and facilitated higher degradation of methyl orange (MO) in the dark, with a greater reduction in the concentration of MO after visible-light irradiation even after 72 h of aging. These results were consistent with the in vitro antibacterial effect, where samples with nitrogen and bismuth in their composition showed the greatest bacterial reduction after 24 h of dual-species biofilm formation (Streptococcus sanguinis and Actinomyces naeslundii) in darkness with a superior effect at 30 min of visible-light irradiation. In addition, such a coating presents reusable photocatalytic potential and good biocompatibility by presenting a noncytotoxicity effect on human gingival fibroblast cells. Therefore, nitrogen and bismuth incorporation into TiO2 via PEO can be considered a promising alternative for dental implant application with antibacterial properties in darkness, with a stronger effect after visible-light application11201818618202COORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPESFUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESPsem informação2017/00314-6; 2017/01320-0; 2016/11470-6This study was financed by the State of Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) (grant numbers 2017/00314-6, 2017/01320-0 and 2016/11470-6) and the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001. We thank the Oral Biochemistry Lab at Piracicaba Dental School, University of Campinas, for providing their microbiology facility and the Brazilian Nanotechnology National Laboratory (LNNano) at the Brazilian Center of Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) for the CLSM, XPS, and XRD facilities. We also thank Professor Dr Ricardo Armini Caldas for his contribution to the elaboration of a table of contents graphic desig

Xeroderma pigmentosum genes and melanoma risk

Xeroderma pigmentosum is a rare autosomal recessive disease that is associated with a severe deficiency in nucleotide excision repair. The presence of a distinct the nucleotide excision repair (NER) mutation signature in melanoma suggests that perturbations in this critical repair process are likely to be involved with disease risk. We hypothesized that persons with polymorphic NER gene(s) are likely to have reduced NER activity and are consequently at an increased risk of melanoma development. We assessed the association between 94 SNPs within seven XP genes (XPA–XPG) and the melanoma risk in the Polish population. We genotyped 714 unselected melanoma patients and 1,841 healthy adults to determine if there were any polymorphisms differentially represented in the disease group. We found that a significantly decreased risk of melanoma was associated with the Xeroderma pigmentosum complementation (XPC) rs2228000_CT genotype (odds ratio [OR] = 0.15; p < 0.001) and the rs2228000_TT genotype (OR = 0.11; p < 0.001) compared to the reference genotype. Haplotype analysis within XPC revealed the rs2228001_A + G1475A_G + G2061A_A + rs2228000_T + rs3731062_C haplotype (OR = 0.26; p < 0.05) was associated with a significantly decreased disease risk. The haplotype analysis within the Xeroderma pigmentosum group D (XPD) showed a modest association between two haplotypes and a decrease in melanoma risk. There were no major differences between the prevalence of the XP polymorphisms among young or older patients with melanoma. Linkage disequilibrium of XPC: rs2228001, G1475A, G2061A, rs2228000 and rs3731062 was found. The data from our study support the notion that only XPC and XPD genes are associated with melanoma susceptibility

Vitamin D receptor variants and the malignant melanoma risk: a population-based study

Background: There is continuing interest in identifying low-penetrance genes which are associated with an increased susceptibility to common types of cancer, including malignant melanoma. Methods: We sought to examine the association between four VDR common variants (rs1544410, rs731236, rs10735810, rs4516035) and the risk of melanoma in the Polish population. We also determined the prevalence of compound carriers of VDR and known MM genetic risk factors MC1R and CDKN2A (A148T) variants. We examined 763 unselected melanoma cases, 763 healthy adults matched for sex and age with the melanoma cases and 777 newborns. Results: None of the VDR variants alone or as compound carriers of two or more of the VDR genotypes were associated with MM risk. There were no major differences between the prevalences of the examined variants among patients with MM on UV-exposed and UV-non exposed skin areas, as well as among early-onset and late-onset cases. We found no association between VDR and MC1R or between VDR and CDKN2A common variants. A statistically significant over-representation of one VDR haplotype: rs731236_A + rs1544410_T (OR = 3.2, p = 0.02) was detected. Linkage disequilibrium of rs1544410 and rs731236 was confirmed. Conclusion: To answer the question, whether VDR can be regarded as melanoma susceptibility gene, additional, large multi-center association studies have to be performed

Common variants of DNA repair genes and malignant melanoma

In the current study, we evaluated the possible associations of seven common variants of the DNA repair and cell cycle control genes BRCA2 and CHEK2 with malignant melanoma (MM). We genotyped 630 unselected MM patients and over 3700 controls (newborns, age and sex-matched healthy adults with negative cancer family histories, and the adults selected at random by family doctors) for the prevalence of three common variants of the BRCA2 (T1915M, N991D and N372H) and four common variants of the CHEK2 (1100delC, VS2 + 1G → A, I157T and del5395). Our study strongly suggests that the common variant of the BRCA2 gene – the N991D variant is associated with malignant melanoma risk (OR = 1.8, p = 0.002 after Bonferroni correction). Patients homozygote for the N991D variant were present in 0.32% of cases and only 0.13% of controls. The other variants studied were not over-represented among MM patients when compared to the general population. In conclusion, we report an increased melanoma risk among carriers of the N991D change of the BRCA2 and no association of the CHEK2 changes with malignant melanoma