A SURVEY ON THE FRAUDULENT USE OF ANABOLIC SUBSTANCES IN BOVINES SLAUGHTERED IN MOLISE

An investigation has been performed on the fraudulent use of anabolic substances in the Region of Molise. One hundred fourty-four bovines (12-24 months old, 123 males and 21 females) have been included in the survey. Ante-mortem assessment on their behaviour and clinical analysis on some target organs were carried out. After slaughtering, samples of prostate, bulbo-urethral glands, Bartholin's glands, mammary gland, ovaries, thymus and thyroid were collected and processed for an anatomo-histopathological evaluation, as suggested in the guidelines of the Italian National Plan for Residues (PNR) 2009. Overall, the 15% of the subjects analysed have been classified as "suspect", whereas the 44% as "uncertain" and the remaining 59% as "negative". The lesion most frequently found was a serious atrophy of the thymic parenchyma with fat infiltration (15% of males and 14% of females), suggesting a prevalence of an illegal use of cortisonic drugs

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is effective curative treatment in pediatric refractory/aggressive Langerhans cell histiocytosis

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The Long and Winding Road to Cardiac Regeneration

Cardiac regeneration is a critical endeavor in the treatment of heart diseases, aimed at repairing and enhancing the structure and function of damaged myocardium. This review offers a comprehensive overview of current advancements and strategies in cardiac regeneration, with a specific focus on regenerative medicine and tissue engineering-based approaches. Stem cell-based therapies, which involve the utilization of adult stem cells and pluripotent stem cells hold immense potential for replenishing lost cardiomyocytes and facilitating cardiac tissue repair and regeneration. Tissue engineering also plays a prominent role employing synthetic or natural biomaterials, engineering cardiac patches and grafts with suitable properties, and fabricating upscale bioreactors to create functional constructs for cardiac recovery. These constructs can be transplanted into the heart to provide mechanical support and facilitate tissue healing. Additionally, the production of organoids and chips that accurately replicate the structure and function of the whole organ is an area of extensive research. Despite significant progress, several challenges persist in the field of cardiac regeneration. These include enhancing cell survival and engraftment, achieving proper vascularization, and ensuring the long-term functionality of engineered constructs. Overcoming these obstacles and offering effective therapies to restore cardiac function could improve the quality of life for individuals with heart diseases

Cardiovascular Response to Intraneural Right Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Adult Minipig.

Objective: This study explored intraneural stimulation of the right thoracic vagus nerve (VN) in sexually mature male minipigs to modulate safe heart rate and blood pressure response. Material and methods: We employed an intraneural electrode designed for the VN of pigs to perform VN stimulation (VNS). This was delivered using different numbers of contacts on the electrode and different stimulation parameters (amplitude, frequency, and pulse width), identifying the most suitable stimulation configuration. All the parameter ranges had been selected from a computational cardiovascular system model. Results: Clinically relevant responses were observed when stimulating with low current intensities and relatively low frequencies delivered with a single contact. Selecting a biphasic, charge-balanced square wave for VNS with a current amplitude of 500 μA, frequency of 10 Hz, and pulse width of 200 μs, we obtained heart rate reduction of 7.67 ± 5.19 beats per minute, systolic pressure reduction of 5.75 ± 2.59 mmHg, and diastolic pressure reduction of 3.39 ± 1.44 mmHg. Conclusion: Heart rate modulation was obtained without inducing any observable adverse effects, underlining the high selectivity of the intraneural approach

The Effects of Park Based Interventions on Health: The Italian Project “Moving Parks”

Obesity and physical inactivity are global health problems responsible for the risk increment of noncommunicable diseases. To overcome these problems, interventions aimed at increasing physical activity (PA) are necessary. Green space can have a positive influence on promoting PA, so, the aim of the present study was to assess the effectiveness of the project “The moving parks project”, which provides for the administration of PA to citizens within Bologna’s parks (Italy). An ad hoc questionnaire was administered before and after three months of outdoor PA. A total of 329 adult subjects participated in the survey. At follow-up, all psychosocial parameters showed an improvement, with a reduction in the state of tension, sadness and fatigue, and an improvement in the state of energy, serenity, and vitality. The impact of the interventions carried out in the “Moving Parks project” was positive and appears to be a good strategy for improving health outcomes

Geodetic model of the 2016 Central Italy earthquake sequence inferred from InSAR and GPS data

We investigate a large geodetic data set of interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR)and GPS measurements to determine the source parameters for the three main shocks of the 2016Central Italy earthquake sequence on 24 August and 26 and 30 October (Mw6.1, 5.9, and 6.5,respectively). Our preferred model is consistent with the activation of four main coseismic asperitiesbelonging to the SW dipping normal fault system associated with the Mount Gorzano-Mount Vettore-Mount Bove alignment. Additional slip, equivalent to aMw~ 6.1–6.2 earthquake, on a secondary (1) NEdipping antithetic fault and/or (2) on a WNW dipping low-angle fault in the hanging wall of the mainsystem is required to better reproduce the complex deformation pattern associated with the greatestseismic event (theMw6.5 earthquake). The recognition of ancillary faults involved in the sequencesuggests a complex interaction in the activated crustal volume between the main normal faults and thesecondary structures and a partitioning of strain releas

A multi-channel stimulator with an active electrode array implant for vagal-cardiac neuromodulation studies.

Background: Implantable vagus nerve stimulation is a promising approach for restoring autonomic cardiovascular functions after heart transplantation. For successful treatment a system should have multiple electrodes to deliver precise stimulation and complex neuromodulation patterns. Methods: This paper presents an implantable multi-channel stimulation system for vagal-cardiac neuromodulation studies in swine species. The system comprises an active electrode array implant percutaneously connected to an external wearable controller. The active electrode array implant has an integrated stimulator ASIC mounted on a ceramic substrate connected to an intraneural electrode array via micro-rivet bonding. The implant is silicone encapsulated for biocompatibility and implanted lifetime. The stimulation parameters are remotely transmitted via a Bluetooth telemetry link. Results: The size of the encapsulated active electrode array implant is 8 mm × 10 mm × 3 mm. The stimulator ASIC has 10-bit current amplitude resolution and 16 independent output channels, each capable of delivering up to 550 μA stimulus current and a maximum voltage of 20 V. The active electrode array implant was subjected to in vitro accelerated lifetime testing at 70 °C for 7 days with no degradation in performance. After over 2 h continuous stimulation, the surface temperature change of the implant was less than 0.5 °C. In addition, in vivo testing on the sciatic nerve of a male Göttingen minipig demonstrated that the implant could effectively elicit an EMG response that grew progressively stronger on increasing the amplitude of the stimulation. Conclusions: The multi-channel stimulator is suitable for long term implantation. It shows potential as a useful tool in vagal-cardiac neuromodulation studies in animal models for restoring autonomic cardiovascular functions after heart transplantation

Effect of a Park-Based Physical Activity Intervention on Psychological Wellbeing at the Time of COVID-19

Practicing regular physical activity in green spaces has been invocated as a promising strategy for improving wellbeing in urban settings. The aim of the study was to assess the effect of a structured park-based physical activity intervention, the “Moving Parks” project, on citizens’ wellbeing at the time of COVID-19. The intervention was carried out in six public parks in Bologna (Italy) and administered by qualified instructors (from May 2021 to September 2021). The Psychological General Well Being Index short form questionnaire was administered before and after the three months of outdoor activities. A total of 328 participants completed the questionnaire at the beginning and at the end of the project. In September 2021, all psychosocial domains of the questionnaire (anxiety, depressed mood, self-control, positive well-being, vitality energy, and vitality-tiredness) significantly improved in the female sample (p value < 0.01) and only the last two in the male sample (p value < 0.05). The “Moving Parks” project seems to be able to improve citizens’ psychological wellbeing, particularly in women

Implementation of an epicardial implantable MEMS sensor for continuous and real-time postoperative assessment of left ventricular activity in adult minipigs over a short- and long-term period

The sensing of left ventricular (LV) activity is fundamental in the diagnosis and monitoring of cardiovascular health in high-risk patients after cardiac surgery to achieve better short- and long-term outcome. Conventional approaches rely on noninvasive measurements even if, in the latest years, invasive microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors have emerged as a valuable approach for precise and continuous monitoring of cardiac activity. The main challenges in designing cardiac MEMS sensors are represented by miniaturization, biocompatibility, and long-term stability. Here, we present a MEMS piezoresistive cardiac sensor capable of continuous monitoring of LV activity over time following epicardial implantation with a pericardial patch graft in adult minipigs. In acute and chronic scenarios, the sensor was able to compute heart rate with a root mean square error lower than 2 BPM. Early after up to 1 month of implantation, the device was able to record the heart activity during the most important phases of the cardiac cycle (systole and diastole peaks). The sensor signal waveform, in addition, closely reflected the typical waveforms of pressure signal obtained via intraventricular catheters, offering a safer alternative to heart catheterization. Furthermore, histological analysis of the LV implantation site following sensor retrieval revealed no evidence of myocardial fibrosis. Our results suggest that the epicardial LV implantation of an MEMS sensor is a suitable and reliable approach for direct continuous monitoring of cardiac activity. This work envisions the use of this sensor as a cardiac sensing device in closed-loop applications for patients undergoing heart surgery