The prediction of hypertensive disorders by maternal hemodynamic assessment in the first trimester of pregnancy

Background: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and fetal growth restriction share common etiopathological origins and could be caused by maternal hemodynamic maladaptation to pregnancy. Objective: The aim of our study is to evaluate if there is a correlation between maternal hemodynamic detected by UltraSonic Cardiac Output Monitor (USCOM®) during the first trimester and the pregnancy outcome. Study design: We recruited a nonconsecutive series of women in the first trimester of pregnancy with no previous history of hypertensive disorders. We measured the pulsatility index uterine arteries and performed a hemodynamic evaluation by USCOM® device. After delivery, we reported the development of hypertensive disorders or intrauterine fetal growth restriction later during gestation. Results: A total of 187 women were enrolled during the first trimester; 17 (9%) developed gestational hypertension or preeclampsia while 11 (6%) delivered a restricted growth fetus. Mean uterine artery pulsatility index above the 95th percentile was significantly more frequent in both women who developed hypertension and those with fetal growth restriction compared to controls. Hemodynamic parameters (reduced cardiac output and increased total vascular resistance) were significantly different in the group that developed hypertensive disorders, compared to uncomplicated pregnancy. ROC curves demonstrated the usefulness of uterine artery pulsatility index in the prediction of fetal growth restriction, while hemodynamic parameters were significantly associated to the development of hypertensive disorders. Conclusions: Hemodynamic maladaptation to pregnancy may predispose to the development of hypertension, while we demonstrated a significative relationship between growth restriction and mean uterine pulsatility index. Further studies are needed to assess the value of hemodynamics evaluation in screening protocols of preeclampsia

Assessing the robustness of decentralized gathering: a multi‐agent approach on micro‐biological systems

Adopting a multi-agent systems paradigm, we developed, tested and exploited a computational testbed that simulates gathering features of the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum. It features a tailored design and implementation to manage discrete simulations with autonomous agents on a microscopic scale, thus focusing on their social behavior and mutual interactions. Hence, we could assess the behavioral conditions under which decentralized gathering could occur. We investigated the dependence of the model dynamics on the main physical variables, namely density and number of amoebas, gaining indications that the process strongly depends on both. This result integrates previous researches, where density is identified as the sole relevant variable. We determined a high-density and high-numerosity region where assuming a scale-free behavior is safe. We also estimated the systematic uncertainties arising from a number of amoebas off the scale-free region, when coping with limited computational resources. Finally, we probed the robustness of the simulated gathering process against both extrinsic and intrinsic noise sources

Identification of Fetuses at Increased Risk of Trisomies in the First Trimester Using Axial Planes

Introduction: The measurement of nuchal translucency (NT) is crucial for assessing risk of aneuploidies in the first trimester. We investigate the ability of NT assessed by a transverse view of the fetal head to detect fetuses at increased risk of common aneuploidies at 11–13 weeks of gestation. Methods: We enrolled a nonconsecutive series of women who attended our outpatient clinic from January 2020 to April 2021 for aneuploidy screening by means of a first trimester combined test. All women were examined by operators certified by the Fetal Medicine Foundation. In each patient, NT measurements were obtained both from the median sagittal view and transverse view. We calculated the risk of aneuploidy using NT measurements obtained both with sagittal and axial scans, and then we compared the results. Results: A total of 1,023 women were enrolled. An excellent correlation was found between sagittal and transverse NT measurements. The sensitivity and specificity of the axial scan to identify fetuses that were deemed at risk of trisomy 21 using standard sagittal scans were 40/40 = 100.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 91.2–100.0) and 977/ 983 = 99.4% (95% CI: 98.7–99.7), respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of the axial scan to identify fetuses at risk of trisomy 13 or 18 were 16/16 = 100.0% (95% CI: 80.6–100.0) and 1,005/1,007 = 99.8% (95% CI: 99.3–99.9). Conclusions: When the sonogram, a part of combined test screening, is performed by an expert sonologist, axial views can reliably identify fetuses at increased risk of trisomies without an increase in false negative results

Size-assortative mating in a long-lived monogamous seabird

Mate choice is a key process in animals to optimize the ftness benefts of reproduction, and it is generally guided by phenotypic features of potential partners that mirror reproductive abilities. Assortative mating occurs when there is within-pair selection for specifc functional traits that can confer ftness benefts. Assortative mating can be positive if mates are more similar, and negative if they are more dissimilar than expected by chance. Mate choice is particularly important in long-lived species with biparental care, such as procellariforms that form long term monogamous bonds. We assessed the mating strategy of a sexually dimorphic Mediterranean procellariform, the Scopoli’s Shearwater (Calonectris diomedea), by testing for assortative mating according to bill (in accordance with previous studies on a sister species) and tarsus size (proxy of body size). We found that shearwaters adopted a positive size-assortative mating by tarsus length, while mating for bill size was random. Moreover, tarsus length was positively correlated with the duration of incubation shifts, when individuals are fasting on eggs. The observed assortative mating could be the results of choice by similarity between individuals, likely because partners with similar relative size have similar tolerance to fasting. Alternatively, the observed pattern could be the product of mutual mate choice, with a selection for large size that could confer competitive abilities in nest selection, defense, foraging aggregations and fasting ability. While our data suggest strong assortative mating in the Scopoli’s Shearwater (R=0.4), we cannot fully disentangle the multiple processes at play acting on mate choice.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia - FCTinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Santa Maria di Agnano (Ostuni, Puglia)

La frequentazione neolitica esterna e le testimonianze rituali ellenistiche nell’area H-I-P-Q(Donato Coppola, Nicola de Pinto, Michele Pellegrino) La frequentazione neolitica esterna Le indagini archeologiche del 2015 a Santa Maria di Agnano ad Ostuni hanno interessato le aree di scavo già esplorate nel 2011 : l’estensione dello scavo del muro di recinzione e l’esplorazione dei livelli olocenici e pleistocenici sottostanti la parete rocciosa del riparo nell’Area H-I-P-Q ; i settori identifica..

Santa Maria di Agnano (Ostuni, Puglia)

Nel 2016 le ricerche archeologiche nel sito di Santa Maria di Agnano ad Ostuni-Brindisi sono proseguite nelle aree già indagate nel 2015 con l’estensione dello scavo del muro di recinzione ellenistico, l’esplorazione dei livelli olocenici e pleistocenici sottostanti la parete rocciosa occidentale del riparo nell’Area H-I-P-Q (fig. 1), la prosecuzione nei settori identificati come « Scavo esterno » riferibile alle stratificazioni paleolitiche, le Aree dei quadrati L-M, pertinenti alla terrazza..