The Domains of Human Nutrition: The Importance of Nutrition Education in Academia and Medical Schools

open28noHuman nutrition encompasses an extremely broad range of medical, social, commercial, and ethical domains and thus represents a wide, interdisciplinary scientific and cultural discipline. The high prevalence of both disease-related malnutrition and overweight/obesity represents an important risk factor for disease burden and mortality worldwide. It is the opinion of Federation of the Italian Nutrition Societies (FeSIN) that these two sides of the same coin, with their sociocultural background, are related to a low "nutritional culture" secondary, at least in part, to an insufficient academic training for health-care professionals (HCPs). Therefore, FeSIN created a study group, composed of delegates of all the federated societies and representing the different HCPs involved in human nutrition, with the aim of identifying and defining the domains of human nutrition in the attempt to more clearly define the cultural identity of human nutrition in an academically and professionally oriented perspective and to report the conclusions in a position paper. Three main domains of human nutrition, namely, basic nutrition, applied nutrition, and clinical nutrition, were identified. FeSIN has examined the areas of knowledge pertinent to human nutrition. Thirty-two items were identified, attributed to one or more of the three domains and ranked considering their diverse importance for academic training in the different domains of human nutrition. Finally, the study group proposed the attribution of the different areas of knowledge to the degree courses where training in human nutrition is deemed necessary (e.g., schools of medicine, biology, nursing, etc.). It is conceivable that, in the near future, a better integration of the professionals involved in the field of human nutrition will eventually occur based on the progressive consolidation of knowledge, competence, and skills in the different areas and domains of this discipline.openDonini, Lorenzo M; Leonardi, Francesco; Rondanelli, Mariangela; Banderali, Giuseppe; Battino, Maurizio; Bertoli, Enrico; Bordoni, Alessandra; Brighenti, Furio; Caccialanza, Riccardo; Cairella, Giulia; Caretto, Antonio; Cena, Hellas; Gambarara, Manuela; Gentile, Maria Gabriella; Giovannini, Marcello; Lucchin, Lucio; Migliaccio, Pietro; Nicastro, Francesco; Pasanisi, Fabrizio; Piretta, Luca; Radrizzani, Danilo; Roggi, Carla; Rotilio, Giuseppe; Scalfi, Luca; Vettor, Roberto; Vignati, Federico; Battistini, Nino C; Muscaritoli, MaurizioDonini, Lorenzo M; Leonardi, Francesco; Rondanelli, Mariangela; Banderali, Giuseppe; Battino, Maurizio; Bertoli, Enrico; Bordoni, Alessandra; Brighenti, Furio; Caccialanza, Riccardo; Cairella, Giulia; Caretto, Antonio; Cena, Hellas; Gambarara, Manuela; Gentile, Maria Gabriella; Giovannini, Marcello; Lucchin, Lucio; Migliaccio, Pietro; Nicastro, Francesco; Pasanisi, Fabrizio; Piretta, Luca; Radrizzani, Danilo; Roggi, Carla; Rotilio, Giuseppe; Scalfi, Luca; Vettor, Roberto; Vignati, Federico; Battistini, Nino C; Muscaritoli, Maurizi

MiR-320a as a Potential Novel Circulating Biomarker of Arrhythmogenic CardioMyopathy

Diagnosis of Arrhythmogenic CardioMyopathy (ACM) is challenging and often late after disease onset. No circulating biomarkers are available to date. Given their involvement in several cardiovascular diseases, plasma microRNAs warranted investigation as potential non-invasive diagnostic tools in ACM. We sought to identify circulating microRNAs differentially expressed in ACM with respect to Healthy Controls (HC) and Idiopathic Ventricular Tachycardia patients (IVT), often in differential diagnosis. ACM and HC subjects were screened for plasmatic expression of 377 microRNAs and validation was performed in 36 ACM, 53 HC, 21 IVT. Variable importance in data partition was estimated through Random Forest analysis and accuracy by Receiver Operating Curves. Plasmatic miR-320a showed 0.53\u2009\ub1\u20090.04 fold expression difference in ACM vs. HC (p\u2009<\u20090.01). A similar trend was observed when comparing ACM (n\u2009=\u200913) and HC (n\u2009=\u200917) with athletic lifestyle, a ACM precipitating factor. Importantly, ACM patients miR-320a showed 0.78\u2009\ub1\u20090.05 fold expression change vs. IVT (p\u2009=\u20090.03). When compared to non-invasive ACM diagnostic parameters, miR-320a ranked highly in discriminating ACM vs. IVT and it increased their accuracy. Finally, miR-320a expression did not correlate with ACM severity. Our data suggest that miR-320a may be considered a novel potential biomarker of ACM, specifically useful in ACM vs. IVT differentiation

Nanoencapsulation may improve sunscreen agents

Due to the reduction of the ozone layer, there is an increasing need of effective UV protection systems with minimised side-effects. Octylmethoxycinnamate (OMC) represents one of the most widely used sunscreen compound. Several studies demonstrated that OMC is unstable following UV irradiation both in solution and in emulsion formulations. In order to ensure adequate efficacy and safety for this sunscreen agent, there is a need for new carrier systems to enhance OMC photostability. In the present study nanoparticles based on poly-D,L-lactide (PLA) as carrier for OMC were investigated. Photostability results show a significant reduction in photoisomerization degree when sunscreen is loaded in nanoparticles, highlighting that the encapsulation is a suitable strategy to improve OMC photostability. Moreover sun protection factor (SPF) results show that the UVB filter protective power is mantained also after encapsulation

Preliminary evaluation of particle systems visualization on the skin surface by scanning electron microscopy and transparency profilometry

Background: There is a rising debate concerning the possible side effects arising from the use of particles at nanosize since the production of nanomaterials is increasing worldwide. Nanoparticles are able to enter the body through the skin, lungs or intestinal tract, depositing in several organs, and the risk associated with exposure to them, the routes of entry and the molecular mechanisms of any cytotoxicity need to be well understood. The aim of this work was to evaluate the suitability of skin replica as a method to study the colloidal systems visualization and distribution on skin surface. Methods: Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) were used as carrier systems. Skin replicas on healthy volunteers, before and after SLN application, were prepared and visualized using profilometry and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results: The results obtained in our study show that skin replica represents a suitable method to study the colloidal systems and their interaction with the skin surface. Conclusion: Profilometry enabled us to observe the systems distribution on a cutaneous texture. In addition, SEM, thanks to its high magnifications and field depth, allowed us to evaluate particles' distribution on the skin texture and the interaction between particles of different compositions and replica silicone

Sistemi lipidici nanoparticellari per applicazione topica

Le nanoparticelle lipidiche solide (SLN) vengono considerate la nuova generazione dei sistemi di rilascio dopo i liposomi. Esse consistono di un lipide solido oppure di una miscela di lipidi sempre allo stato solido, le cui dimensioni variano in un intervallo compreso tra i 50 e i 1000 nm e in cui l’ingrediente attivo è dissolto o finemente disperso nella matrice lipidica. I maggiori utilizzi delle SLN li ritroviamo in campo cosmetico, in quanto possono migliorare la stabilità di ingredienti chimicamente instabili, il rilascio dell’ingrediente attivo, l’idratazione della pelle creando su di essa un film occlusivo. Lo scopo di questo lavoro è stato lo sviluppo di sistemi lipidici nanoparticellari per la veicolazione di sostanze attive. Sono state utilizzate due metodiche preparative e diverse miscele di componenti al fine di ottenere sistemi solidi lipidici; l’aggiunta di eccipienti quali fosfatidilcolina, sorbitano e poligliceril-diisostearato è stata studiata per ottimizzare le caratteristiche e le prestazioni dei sistemi preparati. Per questa ragione, dopo una caratterizzazione morfologica e dimensionale sono state valutate le capacità occlusive “in vitro” delle SLN preparate. Infine, al fine di valutare la sicurezza d’uso delle nanoparticelle lipidiche prodotte è stato effettuato un test di tollerabilità cutanea “in vivo” in condizioni occlusive, formulando le SLN in un emulgel e valutando la variazione dei parametri cutanei di eritema e di contenuto d’acqua dello strato corneo mediante metodiche non invasive di bioingegneria cutanea. Questo studio ha permesso di evidenziare come sia possibile ottenere rapidamente e a costi relativamente bassi, sistemi lipidici nanoparticellari con buone caratteristiche morfologiche e dimensionali, scegliendo opportunamente i materiali lipidici e gli emulsionanti. Gli additivi studiati ed in particolare la fosfatidilcolina, hanno permesso di modificare le caratteristiche dei sistemi prodotti; i risultati ottenuti sono indicativi di una interazione tra il cetil palmitato, utilizzato come lipide principale, e la fosfatidilcolina; questa interazione potrebbe facilitare il caricamento di principi attivi anche idrofili all’interno delle SLN, modificandone così le prestazioni sia in termini di penetrazione che di rilascio. I risultati del test di occlusione “in vitro” mostrano come la presenza di fosfatidilcolina aumenti il fattore di occlusione ai tempi di 24 e 48 ore per tutte le concentrazioni testate; questo risultato è sicuramente indicativo di una modifica della matrice lipidica dopo aggiunta del fosfolipide. Lo studio in occlusione condotto “in vivo” ha dimostrato, infine, che tutte le formulazioni non presentano potere eritemigeno e, quindi, risultano ben tollerate

Poly(D,L-lactide) nanoencapsulation to reduce photoinactivation of a sunscreen agent

The use of sunscreens is the 'gold standard' for protecting the skin from ultraviolet light. Octyl methoxycinnamate (OMC) is one of the most widely used UVB filter but it can act as a sensitizer or photoallergen. When exposed to sunlight, OMC can change from the primary trans-form to cis-form and the isomerization, not reversible, conducts to a reduction of the UVB filtering efficiency because the trans-form has a higher extinction coefficient. Photostability is the most important characteristic of effective sunscreens and it can be influenced by formulation ingredients and by applying technological strategies. In this work, photostability experiments, performed on emulsion–gels containing different percentages of OMC free or loaded in poly(d,l-lactide) nanoparticles, were carried out. The presence of a polymeric envelop may act to protect the active ingredient. In this study, the influence of poly(d,l-lactide) matrices on the photochemical stability of the sunscreen agent was investigated. As highlighted in this study, free OMC in different formulations has different photoisomerization degree. Moreover, a dissimilar behaviour was observed by studying different sunscreen concentrations in the same cosmetic formulation. Photostability results show a significant reduction in photoisomerization degree for formulations containing sunscreen loaded in nanoparticles, highlighting that the encapsulation is a suitable strategy to improve OMC photostability. Moreover, sun protection factor (SPF) results show that the UVB filter protective power is also maintained after encapsulation