Barriers in the management of cancerrelated pain and strategies to overcome them: findings of a qualitative research involving physicians and nurses in Italy

Introduction and aims. There are many barriers and obstacles that even today lead to an inadequate treatment of cancer-related pain. The aim is to describe the experiences of a group of Italian physicians and nurses as far as the nature of these barriers is concerned and the possible tools to be used to overcome them. Material and method. We run 5 focus groups with 42 healthcare professionals (11 physicians, 31 nurses) working in 5 hospitals in Italy. The findings of the focus groups were analysed according to the “Content Analysis” method. Results. Five main items emerged: the importance of communication, the need for education regarding pain therapy, the ethnic/cultural/religious differences, the mutual trust and support within the working group, the daily challenges. Conclusion. In harmony with the most recent literature, physicians and nurses voice above all their need for an education more directly aimed at overcoming the prevailing barriers rooted in ignorance, prejudice and fears

Environmental sustainability fruit quality and production in mycorrhizal tomato plants without P fertilizing

The influence of root colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus Funelliformis mosseae, on fruit quality, production and environmental sustainability were evaluated in field-tomato plants grown exposed to P-limited soil 5 µg g -1 soil (basal-soil) with nitrate fertilization (50 µg g -1 soil), after greenhouse germination and fungus colonization. After 60 days sowing (DAS), when the percentage of mycorrhizal root length (% RLC) raised at about 50%, the plants were transplanted in open field. During the experiment, the mycorrhization has affected a lot of physiological aspects like vegetative and reproductive growth, improving them and ended the fruiting with a major fruit production that was 50% higher than not mycorrhizal (NM) plants. The ripening process of the fruits was also followed by testing sugars content and ß-Amylase activity in fruits of NM and mycorrhizal (M) plants fruits. At 140 DAS, in the harvesting fruits stage, fruits of M plants showed significantly higher mineral nutrient sugars and organic nitrogen compounds as amino acids and protein, compared to fruits from NM plants. In particular, GLU-GLN-ASP and ASN raised about 35% more than fruits from NM plants, improving nutritional aspect and flavor of the product. THR-ILEU-LEU-VAL and LYS, essential amino acids in man nutrition, increased around 25% more than fruits from NM plants, too. In this contest, lycopene, total carotenoids, ascorbic acid and glutathione (GS) and reduced form (GSH) were also tested in ripe fruits. The overall results suggest that tomato roots colonization by mycorrhizal fungus Funelliformis mosseae affects host plant nutritional status, modifying reproductive behavior, fruits production and nutritional quality

Sensors for the monitoring of analytes in the sweat

In the last decade, can be found an exceptional growth in research activity relating to the development of wearable devices, capable of continuously monitoring the health conditions of the wearer by analyzing body fluids such as blood, urine, saliva, tears and sweat. Among the body fluids available, sweat is a biofluid of particular interest, as it allows a non-invasive, continuous and comfortable collection. Human sweat contains useful information on the health of an individual and therefore is an excellent biofluid for the detection of specific analytes. The most abundant ions in the sweat are Na+ and Cl- (10 - 100 mM), and their monitoring is useful in patients with cystic fibrosis. Other constituents are Ca2+, K+, ascorbic acid, glucose (0.1-10 µM) related to osteoporosis, hypoaldosteronism, scurvy and diabetes disease. The sweat pH is in the range 3 to 8 [1] [2] and indicates the level of metabolism and homeostasis of the body. Wearable sensor needs to be flexible, compact and easily applicable. It must also offer a stable response, with high sensitivity and selectivity towards specific analytes [3]. Over the years, many wearable sensors for sweat monitoring have been developed, combining different form factors, substrates and sensing mechanism. In this work, electrochemical sensors based on polyaniline (PANi), which is pH sensitive, were studied. First, the best conditions of electrochemical deposition of PANi were studied [4], using as flexible substrate polyethylene terephthalate coated with indium-tin oxide (ITO-PET). In order to improve the sensor performance electrodes were also modified by electrochemical deposition of reduced graphene oxide (rGO). All samples were characterized by XRD, SEM and EDS analysis in order to study morphology and evaluate the crystalline phases of the deposited PANi. The electrodes were tested as pH sensors using different buffer solutions, from 2 to 8, by Open Circuit Potential (OCP) technique. The ITO-PET/rGO/PANi electrodes show good behavior in terms of sensitivity (62.3 mV/pH), very close to Nernstian response of 59 mV/pH and reproducibility of 3.8%. Flexibility and mechanical stability tests were carried out on the sensor to evaluate both the wearability and mechanical resistance. In addition, interference tests, in the presence of competing ions such as Na+, Cl-, K+, NH4+, aimed to verify the selectivity were also performed

Cellular and Molecular Signatures of Oxidative Stress in Bronchial Epithelial Cell Models Injured by Cigarette Smoke Extract

Exposure of the airways epithelium to environmental insults, including cigarette smoke, results in increased oxidative stress due to unbalance between oxidants and antioxidants in favor of oxidants. Oxidative stress is a feature of inflammation and promotes the progression of chronic lung diseases, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Increased oxidative stress leads to exhaustion of antioxidant defenses, alterations in autophagy/mitophagy and cell survival regulatory mechanisms, thus promoting cell senescence. All these events are amplified by the increase of inflammation driven by oxidative stress. Several models of bronchial epithelial cells are used to study the molecular mechanisms and the cellular functions altered by cigarette smoke extract (CSE) exposure, and to test the efficacy of molecules with antioxidant properties. This review offers a comprehensive synthesis of human in-vitro and ex-vivo studies published from 2011 to 2021 describing the molecular and cellular mechanisms evoked by CSE exposure in bronchial epithelial cells, the most used experimental models and the mechanisms of action of cellular antioxidants systems as well as natural and synthetic antioxidant compounds

Pani-based wearable electrochemical sensor for ph sweat monitoring

Nowadays, we are assisting in the exceptional growth in research relating to the development of wearable devices for sweat analysis. Sweat is a biofluid that contains useful health information and allows a non-invasive, continuous and comfortable collection. For this reason, it is an excellent biofluid for the detection of different analytes. In this work, electrochemical sensors based on polyaniline thin films deposited on the flexible substrate polyethylene terephthalate coated with indium tin oxide were studied. Polyaniline thin films were abstained by the potentiostatic deposition technique, applying a potential of +2 V vs. SCE for 90 s. To improve the sensor perfor-mance, the electronic substrate was modified with reduced graphene oxide, obtained at a constant potential of −0.8 V vs. SCE for 200 s, and then polyaniline thin films were electrodeposited on top of the as-deposited substrate. All samples were characterized by XRD, SEM, EDS, static contact angle and FT-IR/ATR analysis to correlate the physical-chemical features with the performance of the sensors. The obtained electrodes were tested as pH sensors in the range from 2 to 8, showing good behavior, with a sensitivity of 62.3 mV/pH, very close to a Nernstian response, and a reproducibility of 3.8%. Interference tests, in the presence of competing ions, aimed to verify the selectivity, were also performed. Finally, a real sweat sample was collected, and the sweat pH was quantified with both the proposed sensor and a commercial pH meter, showing an excellent concordance