Current and novel infusion therapies for patients with Parkinson's disease

Advanced Parkinson’s disease is characterized by periods of poor mobility, dyskinesia and progressive decline in functional independence of the affected person despite the manipulation of levodopa doses and the introduction of supplemental therapies such as catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitors, monoamine oxidase-B inhibitors and dopamine agonists. The implementation of drug delivery systems allows to bypass problems related to irregular and often unpredictable intestinal absorption of oral levodopa, which significantly affects its bioavailability and contributes to the development and persistence of motor complications. Subcutaneous apomorphine and levodopa/carbidopa jejunal infusion systems have been available for many years and their efficacy is confirmed by randomized studies and long-term experience in many centers worldwide. Recently, a new formulation of levodopa/carbidopa infusion gel that includes the catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitor Entacapone has been introduced to the market. The use of entacapone allows to reduce total daily dose of administered levodopa. Two different soluble formulations of levodopa/carbidopa (ND0612 and ABBV-951) have completed clinical development, and both can ensure subcutaneous delivery by a portable pump infusion system. ABBV-951 uses a foslevodopa/foscarbidopa formulation, both prodrugs to improve absorption and tolerability. Both systems provide effective improvement of motor complications and are likely to expand the therapeutic options in advanced patients. Future efforts should focus on the earlier detection of patients who are candidates for device-aided therapies, increasing appropriate referral and broadening the availability of these treatments globally

Energy Transition at Home: A Survey on the Data and Practices That Lead to a Change in Household Energy Behavior

Since energy transition depends significantly on reducing the built environment’s energy needs, many regulations and incentives have been implemented globally over the last three decades. Despite some positive results, many scholars suggest that households’ behavioral change could greatly accelerate progress. People’s levels of awareness and willingness to change, as well as the provision of feedback technologies, are important factors affecting the process. In spite of the extent of this body of literature, household consumption keeps rising. Our thesis is that the subject has been investigated without considering some important correlations among factors. Therefore, this study developed a survey to investigate actual consumers’ perspectives on the topic by combining people’s awareness of energy use, interaction with metering devices, and user motivation into a coherent framework. A testing session involving 500 people was held as a validation phase for a future large-scale launch of the questionnaire. The test yielded some early outcomes on how people become more interested in changing as they gain more knowledge and are offered suggestions. However, despite their supposedly advanced knowledge as educators and students, the sample’s level of awareness was low, suggesting that a more user-centered approach is needed for wide-scale progress

Effect of metabolic and antioxidant supplementation on sperm parameters in oligo-astheno-teratozoospermia, with and without varicocele: a double-blind placebo-controlled study

Since sperm require high energy levels to perform their specialised function, it is vital that essential nutrients are available for spermatozoa when they develop, capacitate and acquire motility. However, they are vulnerable to a lack of energy and excess amounts of reactive oxygen species, which can impair sperm function, lead to immotility, acrosomal reaction impairment, DNA fragmentation and cell death. This monocentric, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial investigated the effect of 6 months of supplementation with l-carnitine, acetyl-l-carnitine and other micronutrients on sperm quality in 104 subjects with oligo- and/or astheno- and/or teratozoospermia with or without varicocele. In 94 patients who completed the study, sperm concentration was significantly increased in supplemented patients compared to the placebo (p =.0186). Total sperm count also increased significantly (p =.0117) in the supplemented group as compared to the placebo group. Both, progressive and total motility were higher in supplemented patients (p =.0088 and p =.0120, respectively). Although pregnancy rate was not an endpoint of the study, of the 12 pregnancies that occurred during the follow-up, 10 were reported in the supplementation group. In general, all these changes were more evident in varicocele patients. In conclusion, supplementation with metabolic and antioxidant compounds could be efficacious when included in strategies to improve fertility

Cognitive Health of Nonagenarians in Southern Italy: A Descriptive Analysis from a Cross-Sectional, Home-Based Pilot Study of Exceptional Longevity (Cilento Initiative on Aging Outcomes Or CIAO).

Background: Nonagenarians and centenarians (NCs) are an extremely fragile population, particularly in regard to their physical and cognitive function. The aim of this study was to define the neurocognitive profiles among 29 NCs and their 49 younger cohabitants aged 50-75 years from The Cilento Initiative on Aging Outcomes (CIAO) Pilot study in the South of Italy that had provided initial hypotheses regarding positive psychological traits related to exceptional longevity. Methods: During the home visits, lifestyle information with specific questionnaires, functional autonomy and the neuropsychological Mini Mental Scale Examination (MMSE), and the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive (ADAS-Cog) scale were obtained by qualified study personnel. The total blood oxidative capacity was also determined by testing the reactive derivative of oxygen metabolites (d-ROM) and by the Biological Antioxidant Potential (BAP). In all individuals, the APOE genotype determination was also performed. Results: All the subjects in both groups showed high adherence to the Mediterranean Diet. None of the NCs had severe cognitive impairment, and a very low incidence of dementia was found. The data obtained on the Activities ed Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (ADL-IADL) scale showed that the majority of NCs (16/29) were autonomous in daily life activities. The comparative assessment of NCs and cohabitants showed no significant differences in the laboratory assessment of oxidative stress and APOE genotype. Conclusion: In the Cilento Region of Southern Italy, NCs seemed to have good cognitive status when compared to younger cohabitants aging 50-65 years without significant differences in oxidative stress markers or APOE genotype. These results might be related to optimal adherence to the Mediterranean diet, although other lifestyle factors and positive personality traits may also contribute to their healthy aging. Further studies on a larger population should be performed to confirm the results of this pilot study

Independent Component Analysis and Support Vector Machine for Face Feature Extraction

We propose Independent Component Analysis representation and Support Vector Machine classification to extract facial features in a face detection/localization context. The goal is to find a better space where project the data in order to build ten different face-feature classifiers that are robust to illumination variations and bad environment conditions. The method was tested on the BANCA database, in different scenarios: controlled conditions, degraded conditions and adverse conditions

Estabelecimento do momento de irrigação da palma de óleo, cultivada sob condições de clima tropical de savana.

Resumo ? Neste trabalho, objetivou-se determinar o momento de irrigação da palma de óleo (Elaeis gineenses Jacq.), com base no fator de disponibilidade de água no solo (f). O experimento foi implantado no Distrito Federal, utilizando o cultivar BRS C2501, plantado na densidade de 180 plantas por hectare, irrigado por microaspersão. O delineamento estatístico foi de blocos casualizados, três repetições e nove plantas por parcela. Os tratamentos foram representados pelo momento de irrigação, indicado pelos valores de f = 0,2; 0,4; 0,6 e 0,8. A lâmina de água, aplicada em cada irrigação, foi calculada para umidade do solo retornar à capacidade de campo até a profundidade de 0,40 m. O desenvolvimento vegetativo foi acompanhado com medições do diâmetro do colo, comprimento da quarta folha, altura do fuste e contagem do número de folhas, realizadas no final de cada estação seca. Na fase produtiva, foi monitorado o número de cachos por planta, peso médio de cachos e produtividade na escala mensal e anual. As análises foram feitas pelo teste t-pareado ao nível de 5% de probabilidade. Os resultados mostram que o momento adequado para irrigação da palma de óleo é quando o fator de disponibilidade de água no solo f for igual a 0,6.bitstream/item/204021/1/Bolpd-350.pd

¿Es posible la formación de profesionales integrales?: curso electivo de formación en extensión universitaria

El perfil de formación de los estudiantes de la carrera de Ciencias Veterinarias establece que el profesional es el que imbuido en un espíritu ético, científico y humanístico; sea capaz de entre otras cosas, resolver problemáticas planteadas en diferentes ámbitos de la realidad. Nos preguntamos cómo formar a estudiantes con este perfil, y cómo preparamos a nuestros estudiantes para ese futuro profesional, una posible respuesta a este interrogante, es la participación y formación en extensión universitaria. El presente trabajo pretende realizar un análisis del Curso Electivo de Formación en Extensión Universitaria de la Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, de la carrera de Medicina Veterinaria, de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata, (FCV UNLP) que lleva adelante la Secretaría de Extensión de la misma unidad académica, desde el año 2016, poniendo énfasis en los cambios metodológicos generados en el último ciclo lectivo. El cual no solo permitió la reflexión de los estudiantes en sus actuales o futuras prácticas en territorio, sino también analizar el rol del profesional en la comunidad, permitiendo que desarrollen y dirijan su propia actividad de extensión como trabajo final del curso, de los cuales dos fueron financiados por la institución para ser llevados a cabo.Especialización en Docencia UniversitariaFacultad de Ciencias Veterinaria

Mechanical modelling of high power lateral IGBT for LED driver applications

An assembly exercise was proposed to replace the vertical MOSFET by lateral IGBTs (LIGBT) for LED driver systems which can provide significant advantages in terms of size reduction (LIGBTs are ten times smaller than vertical MOSFETs) and lower component count. A 6 circle, 5V gate, 800 V LIGBT device with dimension of 818μm x 672μm with deposited solder balls that has a radius of around 75μm was selected in this assembly exercise. The driver system uses chip on board (COB) technique to create a compact driver system which can fit into a GU10 bulb housing. The challenging aspect of the LIGBT package in high voltage application is underfill dielectric breakdown and solder fatigue failure. In order to predict the extreme electric field values of the underfill, an electrostatic finite element analysis was undertaken on the LIGBT package structure for various underfill permittivity values. From the electro static finite element analysis, the maximum electric field in the underfill was estimated as 38 V/μm. Five commercial underfills were selected for investigating the trade-off in materials properties that mitigate underfill electrical breakdown and solder joint fatigue failure. These selected underfills have dielectric breakdown higher than the predicted value from electrostatic analysis. The thermo-mechanical finite element analysis were undertaken for solder bump reliability for all the underfill materials. The underfill which can enhance the solder reliability was chosen as prime candidate