Association of kidney disease measures with risk of renal function worsening in patients with type 1 diabetes

Background: Albuminuria has been classically considered a marker of kidney damage progression in diabetic patients and it is routinely assessed to monitor kidney function. However, the role of a mild GFR reduction on the development of stage 653 CKD has been less explored in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) patients. Aim of the present study was to evaluate the prognostic role of kidney disease measures, namely albuminuria and reduced GFR, on the development of stage 653 CKD in a large cohort of patients affected by T1DM. Methods: A total of 4284 patients affected by T1DM followed-up at 76 diabetes centers participating to the Italian Association of Clinical Diabetologists (Associazione Medici Diabetologi, AMD) initiative constitutes the study population. Urinary albumin excretion (ACR) and estimated GFR (eGFR) were retrieved and analyzed. The incidence of stage 653 CKD (eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) or eGFR reduction > 30% from baseline was evaluated. Results: The mean estimated GFR was 98 \ub1 17 mL/min/1.73m2 and the proportion of patients with albuminuria was 15.3% (n = 654) at baseline. About 8% (n = 337) of patients developed one of the two renal endpoints during the 4-year follow-up period. Age, albuminuria (micro or macro) and baseline eGFR < 90 ml/min/m2 were independent risk factors for stage 653 CKD and renal function worsening. When compared to patients with eGFR > 90 ml/min/1.73m2 and normoalbuminuria, those with albuminuria at baseline had a 1.69 greater risk of reaching stage 3 CKD, while patients with mild eGFR reduction (i.e. eGFR between 90 and 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) show a 3.81 greater risk that rose to 8.24 for those patients with albuminuria and mild eGFR reduction at baseline. Conclusions: Albuminuria and eGFR reduction represent independent risk factors for incident stage 653 CKD in T1DM patients. The simultaneous occurrence of reduced eGFR and albuminuria have a synergistic effect on renal function worsening

Mechanical Spectroscopy examination of human dentin

This work describes the anelastic behaviour of human dentin in the temperature range from 100 K to 673 K. Human molars, extracted from individuals (males 55-70 years old) as part of their dental treatment, were cut to obtain bar-shaped samples for mechanical spectroscopy (MS) experiments. The results are presented and discussed in two parts referring to experiments above and below room temperature.</jats:p

Task-uninformative visual stimuli improve auditory spatial discrimination in humans but not the ideal observer.

In order to survive and function in the world, we must understand the content of our environment. This requires us to gather and parse complex, sometimes conflicting, information. Yet, the brain is capable of translating sensory stimuli from disparate modalities into a cohesive and accurate percept with little conscious effort. Previous studies of multisensory integration have suggested that the brain's integration of cues is well-approximated by an ideal observer implementing Bayesian causal inference. However, behavioral data from tasks that include only one stimulus in each modality fail to capture what is in nature a complex process. Here we employed an auditory spatial discrimination task in which listeners were asked to determine on which side they heard one of two concurrently presented sounds. We compared two visual conditions in which task-uninformative shapes were presented in the center of the screen, or spatially aligned with the auditory stimuli. We found that performance on the auditory task improved when the visual stimuli were spatially aligned with the auditory stimuli-even though the shapes provided no information about which side the auditory target was on. We also demonstrate that a model of a Bayesian ideal observer performing causal inference cannot explain this improvement, demonstrating that humans deviate systematically from the ideal observer model

Anelastic phenomena associated to water loss and collagen degradation in human dentin

This work describes the anelastic and dynamic Young modulus behaviour of human dentin from room temperature up to 673 K. Human molars, extracted from individuals (males 55-70 years old) as part of their dental treatment, were cut to obtain bar-shaped samples subsequently used for mechanical spectroscopy experiments. In addition, thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) has been performed to assess a possible weight loss occurring in the same temperature range of mechanical spectroscopy tests. A broad and asymmetric internal friction (Q-1) maximum at 500 K has been observed during the heating of the as prepared samples. This maximum is absent during the following cooling down to room temperature. It is therefore due to the occurrence of an irreversible transformation in the sample. TGA shows a remarkable weight loss in the same temperature range. This effect has been related to loss of fluids and degradation of collagen. Another set of samples, previously kept for 36 hours under a vacuum of 10-2 Pa, were submitted at room temperature to tests at increasing strain from 6 x 10-6 to 7 x 10-4. The results show transient and fully recoverable Q-1 increase and dynamic modulus (E) decrease. The phenomenon has been ascribed to the breaking of weak H-bonds between polypeptide chains forming the triple-helix with consequent increase of the mean length of vibrating chain segments

Anelastic phenomena associated to water loss and collagen degradation in human dentin

This work describes the anelastic and dynamic Young modulus behaviour of human dentin from room temperature up to 673 K. Human molars, extracted from individuals (males 55–70 years old) as part of their dental treatment,were cut to obtain bar-shaped samples subsequently used formechanical spectroscopy experiments. In addition, thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) has been performed to assess a possible weight loss occurring in the same temperature range of mechanical spectroscopy tests. A broad and asymmetric internal friction (Q−1)maximumat 500 K has been observed during the heating of the as-prepared samples. This maximum is absent during the following cooling down to room temperature. It is therefore due to the occurrence of an irreversible transformation in the sample. TGA shows a remarkableweight loss in the same temperature range. This effect has been related to loss of fluids and degradation of collagen. Another set of samples, previously kept for 36 h under a vacuum of 10−2 Pa, were submitted at room temperature to test at increasing strain from 6×10−6 to 7×10−4. The results show transient and fully recoverable Q−1 increase and dynamic modulus (E) decrease. The phenomenon has been ascribed to the breaking of weak H-bonds between polypeptide chains forming the triple-helix with consequent increase of the mean length of vibrating chain segments

Anelastic phenomena in human dentin below room temperature

The work describes the anelastic behaviour of human dentin below room temperature. Human molars, extracted from individuals as part of their dental treatment, were cut to obtain bar-shaped samples for mechanical spectroscopy (MS) experiments. Repeated cooling-heating cycles in the range 300-100 K have been carried out on the same samples. In the cooling stage of the first cycle Q-1 exhibits a very broad maximum due to a series of phase transformations involving water present in the pores, in the interstices between fibres, between fibrils and inside collagen triple helix. The formation of ice Ih produces permanent damages to the dentin structure (rupture of fibres and fibrils) leading to a decrease of maximum intensity in the following cycles. In the heating stage of all the cycles two maxima, M1 and M2, have been observed around 155 K and 178 K. M1 is due to the transformation of LDA ice into ice IC while M2 to that of ice IC to ice Ih. Above 200 K, Q-1 progressively increases with lower damping values in the cycles after the first one

Anelastic Phenomena in Human Dentin below Room Temperature

The work describes the anelastic behaviour of human dentin below room temperature. Human molars, extracted from individuals as part of their dental treatment, were cut to obtain bar-shaped samples for mechanical spectroscopy (MS) experiments. Repeated cooling-heating cycles in the range 300-100 K have been carried out on the same samples. In the cooling stage of the first cycle Q-1 exhibits a very broad maximum due to a series of phase transformations involving water present in the pores, in the interstices between fibres, between fibrils and inside collagen triple helix. The formation of ice Ih produces permanent damages to the dentin structure (rupture of fibres and fibrils) leading to a decrease of maximum intensity in the following cycles. In the heating stage of all the cycles two maxima, M1 and M2, have been observed around 155 K and 178 K. M1 is due to the transformation of LDA ice into ice IC while M2 to that of ice IC to ice Ih. Above 200 K, Q-1 progressively increases with lower damping values in the cycles after the first one