Radiation risks knowledge in resident and fellow in paediatrics: A questionnaire survey

Background: Analyse through a multi-choice anonymous questionnaire the knowledge's level in paediatric residents and fellows in two different main Italian hospital, looking mainly to the information to patients and relatives related to risks of ionizing radiation used in common radiological investigations in children. Methods: 65 multi choice questionnaires were distributed to paediatric residents and fellows of two different hospitals, an University Hospital (A.O.U.P. "P. Giaccone"- University of Palermo) and a national reference centre for paediatrics (Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù - Rome). The questionnaire included twelve multiple-choice questions with the aim of analyzing the knowledge about ionizing radiation related risks in infants and children who undergo common diagnostic radiology investigations. The data obtained were processed using software Stata/MP version 11.2. In order to measure the level of expertise of each interviewee a binary indicator was built. The value 1 was assigned if the percentage of correct answers exceeds the median of the distribution and 0 for values not exceeding the median. The association between the level of competence and demographic characteristics (gender, age) and training experience was measured by means of α2 test. Results: 51/65 questionnaires were completed, returned and analysed (87.7%). Only 18 surveyed (35%), (95% IC=[22%-48%]) can be defined as competent in radiation risk knowledge for common radiological investigations, considering the percentage of correct answers at least of 50% (sufficient knowledge was given with a minimum score of 8 correct answers out of 12). Conclusions: The study demonstrates an urgent need to implement the radiation protection knowledge in the training programme of paediatricians, that improve if just a short targeted training is performed

Sustained Exposure to the Widely Used Herbicide Atrazine: Altered Function and Loss of Neurons in Brain Monoamine Systems

The widespread use of atrazine (ATR) and its persistence in the environment have resulted in documented human exposure. Alterations in hypothalamic catecholamines have been suggested as the mechanistic basis of the toxicity of ATR to hormonal systems in females and the reproductive tract in males. Because multiple catecholamine systems are present in the brain, however, ATR could have far broader effects than are currently understood. Catecholaminergic systems such as the two major long-length dopaminergic tracts of the central nervous system play key roles in mediating a wide array of critical behavioral functions. In this study we examined the hypothesis that ATR would adversely affect these brain dopaminergic systems. Male rats chronically exposed to 5 or 10 mg/kg ATR in the diet for 6 months exhibited persistent hyperactivity and altered behavioral responsivity to amphetamine. Moreover, when measured 2 weeks after the end of exposure, the levels of various monoamines and the numbers of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive (TH(+)) and -negative (TH(−)) cells measured using unbiased stereology were reduced in both dopaminergic tracts. Acute exposures to 100 or 200 mg/kg ATR given intraperitoneally to evaluate potential mechanisms reduced both basal and potassium-evoked striatal dopamine release. Collectively, these studies demonstrate that ATR can produce neurotoxicity in dopaminergic systems that are critical to the mediation of movement as well as cognition and executive function. Therefore, ATR may be an environmental risk factor contributing to dopaminergic system disorders, underscoring the need for further investigation of its mechanism(s) of action and corresponding assessment of its associated human health risks

Effect of Multimodal Pore Channels on Cargo Release from Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) with multimodal pore channels were fully characterized by TEM, nitrogen adsorption-desorption, and DLS analyses. MSNs with average diameter of 200 nm with dual pore channel zones with pore diameters of 1.3–2.6 and 4 nm were tested for their use in drug delivery application. Important role of the multimodal pore systems present on MSNs on the quantitative release of model drug ibuprofen was investigated. The results obtained revealed that the release profile for ibuprofen clearly shows distinct zones which can be attributed to the respective porous channel zones present on the particles. The fluctuations in the concentration of ibuprofen during the prolonged release from MSNs were caused by the multimodal pore channel systems