ACTA OTORHINOLARYNGOLOGICA ITALICA

Lobiettivo del presente studio è stato determinare se i livelli plasmatici dei prodotti avanzati di ossidazione proteica (AOPP) rappresentino dei marker di stress ossidativo nei pazienti pediatrici affetti da tonsillite cronica. Per lo studio sono stati arruolati, presso i Dipartimenti di Otorinolaringoiatria e Chirurgia pediatrica dellOspedale Universitario di Dumlupinar, trenta bambini sani e trenta affetti da tonsillite cronica. Il gruppo dei pazienti affetti da malattia è stato sottoposto a un prelievo ematico preoperatorio e ad una biopsia intraoperatoria del tessuto tonsillare. Il gruppo dei pazienti sani è stato sottoposto unicamente al prelievo ematico. I livelli plasmatici e tissutali degli AOPP sono quindi stati misurati mediante spettrofotometria. I livelli sierici degli AOPP sono risultati essere più elevati nel gruppo dei pazienti affetti da tonsillite cronica (13,1 ± 3,3 ng/ml) rispetto al gruppo di controllo (11,6 ± 2,3 ng/ml; P < 0,05). Il livello tissutale medio degli AOPP nei pazienti malati è risultato essere superiore a quello plasmatico medio sia nel gruppo dei pazienti sani che in quello dei pazienti malati (41,9 ± 13,5 ng/mg; P < 0,05). I livelli plasmatici e tissutali degli AOPP sono risultati quindi essere più elevati nei pazienti malati rispetto al gruppo di controllo. Gli AOPP potrebbero quindi rappresentare una nuova classe di molecole pro-infiammatorie coinvolte nello stress ossidativo nella tonsillite cronica e potrebbero avere un ruolo come marker di stress ossidativo nei pazienti pediatrici affetti da tale patologia

Gentamicin sulphate permeation through porcine intestinal epithelial cell monolayer

Gentamicin is an aminoglycoside antibiotic widely used in combination with dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) in topical drug formulations. It is not known, however, whether DMSO can enhance the permeation of gentamicin through biological membranes, leading to oto- and nephrotoxic side effects. A simple and reliable high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was applied for the quantitative determination of gentamicin collected from the apical and basolateral compartments of the porcine intestinal epithelial cell line IPEC-J2 cell monolayer using fluorometric derivatisation of the analyte with fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl chloride (FMOC) prior to chromatographic run in the presence and absence of 1% DMSO. The lack of change in transepithelial electrical resistance (TER) demonstrated that gentamicin and 1% DMSO did not affect IPEC-J2 cell monolayer integrity via the disruption of cell membranes. Chromatographic data also ascertained that gentamicin penetration across the cell monolayer even in the presence of 1% DMSO was negligible at 6 h after the beginning of apical gentamicin administration. This study further indicates that the addition of this organic solvent does not increase the incidence of toxic effects related to gentamicin permeation

FACIAL PLASTIC SURGERY CLINICS OF NORTH AMERICA

The importance and effectiveness of prevention efforts and strategies for skin cancers are reviewed. Topical sunscreens and their proper use are presented. Topical and ingested forms of natural, synthetic, or biologic chemical agents that are potentially efficacious for chemoprevention are listtdldted and discussed

Genetic analysis of grain yield, days to flowering and maturity in oilseed rape (B. napus L.) using diallel crosses.

Abstract Twenty one F 2 progenies derived from a 7×7 diallel crosses along with parents were evaluated for grain yield, flowering and maturity time. Due to significant genotypic effects for all traits, genetic analyses were performed on F 2 progenies including analyses of combining ability and genetic components. The Analysis of variance revealed that both additive and non-additive genetic effects were involved in controlling these traits. GCA/SCA ratios were 0.91 for days to flowering, 0.95 for days to maturity and 0.83 for grain yield which indicated that the additive gene effects were more important than non-additive gene effects for all these traits. Narrow-sense heritability was high for days to flowering (73.12%) and days to maturity (81.99%) and low for grain yield (30.15%). Heterosis in hybrids seemed to be largely determined by complementary epistasis as well as genetic distance between the parents. The spring-type varieties Tower and Regent appeared as the best parents for earliness whereas winter-type varieties D.R. and Ceres were best parents for high grain yield. It could be concluded from the study that S 1 recurrent selection would be effective to improve the performance of these genotypes for grain yield, flowering and maturity time. The selected S 1 lines from each cycle can be used in a pedigree-breeding program to identify superior genotypes

Effectiveness of montelukast in pediatric patients with allergic rhinitis

PubMedID: 24210867Allergic rhinitis (AR) is one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood and carries significant morbidity as well as physical and psychosocial consequences. Therapy aims to alleviate clinical symptoms, prevent complications and improve psychosocial consequences. Leukotrienes which are amongst the main mediators in pathogenesis of AR have chemotactic properties and lead to increased vascular permeability. Thus, leukotriene antagonism may be an effective therapeutic option in treatment of allergic diseases, specifically AR. Montelukast which is a leukotriene receptor type I inhibitor has variable efficacy in children with AR and the guidelines recommend its use in children with seasonal AR aged six years and above. Although its efficacy is inferior to anti-histamines and intranasal corticosteroids, combination treatment may warrant clinical efficacy. Therefore, montelukast may be considered to be a well-tolerated therapeutic option for children with AR with minor side effects though long term results need to be assessed.In conclusion, larger scale research enrolling pediatric cases with seasonal and persistent AR are required before concise recommendations about montelukast use in pediatric AR can be made. © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd