Measurement of heavy-flavour decay muon production at forward rapidity in pp and Pb-Pb collisions at sqrt(s_NN)=2.76 TeV with the ALICE experiment

The ALICE experiment measured the heavy-flavour production in the semi-muonic decay channel at forward rapidities ($2.5<y<4$) in pp and Pb--Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{{NN}}} = 2.76$ TeV. We report on the first results on the $p_{\rm T}$-differential cross-sections in pp collisions as well as on the nuclear modification factors as a function of the transverse momentum and centrality.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Proceedings of parallel talk at the 5th international conference on hard and electromagnetic probes of high-energy nuclear collisions (Hard Probes 2012), Cagliari, Ital

Therapeutic drug monitoring to improve outcome of anti-TNF drugs in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease

Introduction: Medical treatment of pediatric inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) has been greatly changed by the introduction of a number of biologic agents that are able to target various players of the immune response. In particular, monoclonal antibodies against the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-alpha (TNF) such as infliximab, adalimumab, and golimumab are now in the clinics both in induction and maintenance therapy, and several efforts are currently ongoing to optimize the use of these drugs in children. Areas covered: This review focuses on therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of anti-TNF levels and antidrug antibodies (ADAs), in IBD children. A revision of the analytical assays used for assessing anti-TNF plasma levels is also provided. Expert opinion: Although there is a consensus across studies that higher anti-TNF trough levels are associated with a better clinical outcome, and that early anti-TNF serum measurements could be predictive of long-term response, it is still not clear what the best predictive time of sampling is and what the ideal target drug plasma concentration to achieve. Indeed, there are a number of published studies, particularly in pediatric cohorts, limited by the population size analyzed and more prospective large studies are needed to examine the value of these predictive markers

Comparison of accuracy of single crowns generated from digital and conventional impressions: An in vivo controlled trial

Aim With the advances of digital technology, intraoral digital impression (DI) technique has become a major trend in prosthodontics with respect to traditional impression (TI) techniques; despite that, very few data are available concerning its accuracy. Thus, the purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of DI versus TI considering both marginal and internal gap (MG, IG, respectively) in cobalt-chromium (Co-Cr) single crowns manufactured by mean of computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) technology. Material and methods Thirty posterior teeth were considered for this study. For each abutment tooth, sixty and thirty copings were produced with the aid of TI and DI, respectively. Thirty of the sixty copings of the TI-group were then randomly selected to be veneered and cemented onto existing abutments. The space existing between the internal surface of the coping and the abutment tooth was evaluated onto an in vitro replica; the MG and IG were measured by Scanning Electron Microscope. The data were analysed by the Wilcoxon test (1-tailed). Results The mean MG was 75.04 μm (SD = 13.12) and 55.01 μm (SD = 7.01) for the TI group and DI group, respectively. As regards the mean IGs, the values recorded were of 78.36 μm (SD = 19.66) for the TI-group and 59.20 μm (SD=3.33) for the DI-group. A statistically significant difference was found between the two groups (p-value = 0.001). Conclusions Copings manufactured from DI showed better MGs and IGs with respect to copings produced from TI. However, both approaches produced clinically acceptable results

Covid-19 vaccine: A survey of hesitancy in patients with celiac disease

(1) Background: COVID-19 vaccination campaigns offer the best hope of controlling the pandemic. However, the fast production of COVID-19 vaccines has caused concern among the general public regarding their safety and efficacy. In particular, patients with chronic illnesses, such as celiac disease (CD), may be more fearful. Information on vaccine hesitancy plays a pivotal role in the development of an efficient vaccination campaign. In our study, we aimed to evaluate COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Italian CD patients. (2) Methods: an anonymous questionnaire was sent to CD patients followed at our tertiary referral center for CD in Milan, Italy. Patients were defined as willing, hesitant and refusing. We evaluated the reasons for hesitancy/refusal and the possible determinants, calculating crude and adjusted odds ratios [AdjORs] with 95% confidence intervals [CIs]. (3) Results: the questionnaire was sent to 346 patients with a response rate of 29.8%. Twenty-six (25.2%) of the 103 respondents were hesitant, with a total refusal rate of 4.8%. The main reason was fear of adverse events related to vaccination (68.2%). Among hesitant patients, 23% declared that their opinion was influenced by their CD. The determinants positively influencing willingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19 were adherence to a GFD, perception of good knowledge about COVID-19 and its vaccines, and a positive attitude to previous vaccines (AdjOR 12.71, 95% CI 1.82–88.58, AdjOR 6.50, 95% CI 1.44–29.22, AdjOR 0.70, 95% CI 0.11–4.34, respectively). (4) Conclusions: CD patients should be vaccinated against COVID-19 and a specific campaign to address the determinants of hesitancy should be developed

Thiopurine metabolites variations during co-treatment with aminosalicylates for inflammatory bowel disease: effect of N-acetyl transferase polymorphisms

AIM: To evaluate variation of the concentration of thiopurine metabolites after 5-aminosalicylate (5-ASA) interruption and the role of genetic polymorphisms of N-acetyl transferase (NAT) 1 and 2. METHODS: Concentrations of thioguanine nucleotides (TGN) and methymercaptopurine nucleotides (MMPN), metabolites of thiopurines, were measured by high performance liquid chromatography in 12 young patients (3 females and 9 males, median age 16 years) with inflammatory bowel disease (6 Crohn's disease and 6 ulcerative colitis) treated with thiopurines (7 mercaptopurine and 5 azathioprine) and 5-ASA. Blood samples were collected one month before and one month after the interruption of 5-ASA. DNA was extracted and genotyping of NAT1, NAT2, inosine triphosphate pyrophosphatase (ITPA) and thiopurine methyl transferase (TPMT) genes was performed using PCR assays. RESULTS: Median TGN concentration before 5-ASA interruption was 270 pmol/8 x 108 erythrocytes (range: 145-750); after the interruption of the aminosalicylate, a 35% reduction in TGN mean concentrations (absolute mean reduction 109 pmol/8 7 108 erythrocytes) was observed (median 221 pmol/8 7 108 erythrocytes, range: 96-427, P value linear mixed effects model 0.0011). Demographic and clinical covariates were not related to thiopurine metabolites concentrations. All patients were wild-type for the most relevant ITPA and TPMT variants. For NAT1 genotyping, 7 subjects presented an allele combination corresponding to fast enzymatic activity and 5 to slow activity. NAT1 genotypes corresponding to fast enzymatic activity were associated with reduced TGN concentration (P value linear mixed effects model 0.033), putatively because of increased 5-ASA inactivation and consequent reduced inhibition of thiopurine metabolism. The effect of NAT1 status on TGN seems to be persistent even after one month since the interruption of the aminosalicylate. No effect of NAT1 genotypes was shown on MMPN concentrations. NAT2 genotyping revealed that 6 patients presented a genotype corresponding to fast enzymatic activity and 6 to slow activity; NAT2 genotypes were not related to thiopurine metabolites concentration in this study. CONCLUSION: NAT1 genotype affects TGN levels in patients treated with thiopurines and aminosalicylates and could therefore influence the toxicity and efficacy of these drugs; however the number of patients evaluated is limited and this has to be considered a pilot study