Definizione di indici per valutazione e confronto di prestazioni in impianti controllati

Obiettivo della tesi è la verifica di un sistema di monitoraggio automatico della prestazione di anelli di controllo, la definizione di indici ausiliari per consentire il corretto utilizzo delle diverse tecniche implementate e la proposta di un metodo di organizzazione dei dati ed estrazione di informazioni utili

Effect of the Growing Season, Trichoderma, and Clinoptilolite Application on Potentially Toxic Elements Uptake by Cucumis melo L

The extent to which different agricultural strategies may affect the uptake of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) by cropped plants is not entirely understood at a field scale. This study addresses the effect of seasonality, Trichoderma inoculation alone, or combined with different applications of commercial-grade clinoptilolite (i.e., foliar action, fertigation, and pellet) on the PTE content of early- and late-ripening cultivars of Cucumis melo L. Two similar field experiments were performed in spring and summer. For each cultivar/treatment combination, the input of PTEs [namely, chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), and lead (Pb)] into the soil-crop system through irrigation water, fertilizers, pesticides, and treatment products (i.e., Trichoderma and clinoptilolite products), as well as the PTE content of melon stem, leaves, and fruit, were measured through inductively coupled plasma-optic emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Neither Trichoderma alone nor with clinoptilolite had a visible effect on PTE uptake by plants, whereas early season cultivation was strongly associated with reduced uptake of Cu and Pb. The high correlation of Cu and Pb content with stem and leaf calcium (Ca) content (used as a proxy for different transpiration rates under different growing seasons) indicated a possible uptake of these metals through Ca nonselective cation channels as a defense against drought stress. Reduced Cu and Pb concentrations were found in early-ripening fruit cultivated in spring. Concerning Cu and Pb risk management, in case of significant contamination in Mediterranean calcareous soils, early-ripening Cucumis melo L. cultivars are suggested instead of lateripening ones

Multiple primary melanomas: Is there a correlation between dermoscopic features and germline mutations?

No abstract availabl

New ⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar dating and revision of the geochronology of the Monte Amiata Volcano, Central Italy

The duration of the Mt. Amiata volcanic activity is still a matter of debate, in spite of the presence of several geochronological data in the literature. We performed new 40Ar-39Ar dating on the sanidinegroundmass pairs of the upper stratigraphic units: Dome and massive Lava flows Complex (DLC) and Olivine Latitic final Lavas (OLF). The aim was twofold: to check the reliability of sanidine ages as geochronometer in these products, questioned in the literature, and to better define the chronology of the late activity of this volcano. Ages obtained on coexisting sanidine and groundmass of the Dome and massive Lava flows Complex (DLC) samples overlap within errors, demonstrating that sanidine crystals recorded reliable emplacement ages in these rocks. The Olivine Latite final lavas (OLF) display a different scenario, where the groundmass has an age younger than that of the sanidine, which is xenocrystic and, evidently, retains inherited Ar. Preferred ages for analysed DLC samples are comprised between 301 and 294 ka, an interval of time too short to resolve the ages of the four dome samples taken into account. The Ermeta lava is about 60 ka younger. We propose that the majority of Mt. Amiata volcanic rocks were emplaced in a narrow interval of time, whilst a temporal gap, which needs more detailed constraints, exists with at least one of the Olivine Latite final lavas (OLF)

Honeybee Venom Immunotherapy: A Comparative Study Using Purified and Nonpurified Aqueous Extracts in Patients with Normal Basal Serum Tryptase Concentrations

In this study, we compared a purified aqueous extract and the corresponding nonpurified aqueous preparation under the same build-up protocol in bee venom allergic patients with a normal baseline mast cell tryptase concentration. Eighty patients with a history of a systemic reaction were enrolled for immunotherapy using a 5-day rush protocol. Patients treated with the purified extract and those treated with the non purified aqueous extract who developed a systemic reaction underwent maintenance therapy with the purified aluminium hydroxide adsorbed preparations. Patients treated with the nonpurified aqueous extract who did not experience a systemic reaction during the rush phase underwent the maintenance phase with that extract. Systemic reactions during the build-up phase occurred significantly more often in patients treated with nonpurified aqueous extract than in those treated with the corresponding purified aqueous preparations. During the one-year maintenance phase, no systemic reactions occurred in either of the groups. Neither age nor baseline mast cell tryptase concentration presented a significant correlation with the occurrence of a systemic reaction during the treatment, while the type of extract did. In conclusion, nonpurified aqueous extracts induced more frequent systemic reactions than the purified aqueous preparations, during the same rush protocol. The efficacy seemed to be comparable

The complex link between severity of asthma and rhinitis in mite allergic patients

AIM: The aim of the study was to evaluate the link between the severity of upper and lower airways diseases in mite allergic patients with respiratory allergy. PATIENTS AND METHOD: A multicentre, observational, cross-sectional study was carried out in 556 consecutively enrolled mite allergic patients with rhinitis and asthma comorbidity attending a specialist unit. Severity assessment of rhinitis and asthma was evaluated in accordance with ARIA and GINA guidelines. RESULTS: Reliable data were available for 518 patients. The distribution of rhinitis severity was: 15.6% mild intermittent rhinitis, 4.4% moderate-severe intermittent rhinitis, 30.3% mild persistent rhinitis and 49.6% moderate persistent rhinitis. The distribution of asthma severity was: 41.3% mild intermittent asthma, 14.3% mild persistent asthma, 19.1% moderate persistent asthma and 25.3% severe persistent asthma. In patients with moderate-severe persistent rhinitis (49.5%) a significant trend (p = 0.005) was found pointing to an increased link with asthma severity. CONCLUSION: A link between respective severities of rhinitis and asthma was found in only half of mite allergic patients with rhinitis and asthma

Severe asthma: One disease and multiple definitions

Introduction There is, so far, no universal definition of severe asthma. This definition usually relies on: number of exacerbations, inhaled therapy, need for oral corticosteroids, and respiratory function. The use of such parameters varies in the different definitions used. Thus, according to the parameters chosen, each patient may result in having severe asthma or not. The aim of this study was to evaluate how the choice of a specific definition of severe asthma can change the allocation of patients. Methods Data collected from the Severe Asthma Network Italy (SANI) registry were analyzed. All the patients included were then reclassified according to the definitions of U-BIOPRED, NICE, WHO, ATS/ERS, GINA, ENFUMOSA, and TENOR. Results 540 patients, were extracted from the SANI database. We observed that 462 (86%) met the ATS/ERS criteria as well as the GINA criteria, 259 (48%) the U-Biopred, 222 (41%) the NICE, 125 (23%) the WHO, 313 (58%) the Enfumosa, and 251 (46%) the TENOR criteria. The mean eosinophil value were similar in the ATS/ERS, U-Biopred, and Enfumosa (528, 532 and 516 cells/mcl), higher in WHO and Tenor (567 and 570 cells/mcl) and much higher in the NICE classification (624 cells/mcl). Lung function tests resulted similarly in all groups, with WHO (67%) and ATS/ERS-GINA (73%), respectively, showing the lower and upper mean FEV1 values. Conclusions The present observations clearly evidence the heterogeneity in the distribution of patients when different definitions of severe asthma are used. However, the recent definition of severe asthma, provided by the GINA document, is similar to that indicated in 2014 by ATS/ERS, allowing mirror reclassification of the patients examined. This lack of homogeneity could complicate the access to biological therapies. The definition provided by the GINA document, which reflects what suggested by ATS/ERS, could partially overcome the problem