262,260 research outputs found
Il cortisolo come indicatore di stress in specie ittiche d'interesse commerciale
No full textDuring the last years, fish welfare interest is increasing in the public opinion and, consequently, in scientists, industry and governments. Reared fishes are often exposed to stress conditions, due to practices such as manipulation, grading, high stocking densities, transport, pre-slaughter conditions and slaughter methods.
The stress response in fishes is similar to that of the other vertebrate and, if stress conditions are prolonged, it causes lowered grow rate, immunosuppression and reproductive failure. In aquaculture, stressors are often unavoidable despite the stress control is essential for welfare and productivity.
In this study, cortisol was used to identify the more appropriate practices to improve welfare in two very important farmed species: rainbow trout and European sea bass. Diets with different vegetable protein meal levels and different slaughter methods were evaluated in trout. In sea bass, the study focused on pre-slaughter conditions with different dissolved oxygen concentrations and stocking densities. Due to the difficulties related to blood sampling, cortisol was evaluated also in other matrices such as mucus, muscle, fin and intestinal content. The timing of cortisol diffusion into the various matrices was also evaluated in sea bass exposed to air exposure stress.
The stress response was lastly investigated in the very early stages of sea bass development (zero-fifteen days post hatching). In summary, the electrical stunning is preferable as regard trout welfare and a diet in which fish meal is replaced by plant proteins could not influence the stress response to slaughter in this species.
In sea bass, stocking densities and dissolved oxygen level seemed to be less effective on cortisol level than the fishing and transport procedures during the pre-slaughter practices. So, an accurate planning of this phase is important to reduce stress of the fishes at slaughter. The cortisol levels in the matrices different from plasma, in most cases, were effective in detecting the stress status of fish.
Lastly, the study on sea bass larvae evidenced a precocity in the stress response ontogenesis which impose very soon accuracy in aquaculture managementll benessere dei pesci o “fish welfare” sta riscuotendo negli ultimi anni sempre maggiore interesse nell’opinione pubblica e di conseguenza nel mondo della ricerca, dell’industria e dei governi. In allevamento, i pesci sono sottoposti molto spesso a condizioni stressanti (manipolazione, selezione, densità , trasporto, condizioni di pre-macellazione e tecniche di macellazione), condizioni alle quali non possono sottrarsi dato il confinamento. La risposta allo stress nei pesci è analoga a quella dei cosiddetti vertebrati superiori e, se lo stress si prolunga nel tempo, determina crescita ridotta, immunosoppressione e deficit riproduttivi. Gli stressori in acquacoltura sono in molti casi inevitabili ma la riduzione dello stress e dei suoi deleteri effetti è fondamentale sia per il welfare che per la produttività . Nel presente studio, si è utilizzato il cortisolo per identificare pratiche più idonee al benessere di due specie d’interesse commerciale: la trota iridea e la spigola. In particolare, si sono valutati gli effetti di diete con percentuali diverse di farina proteica vegetale e di diversi metodi di macellazione sullo stress nella trota e di condizioni diverse di densità di stoccaggio e ossigeno disciolto durante le fasi di pre-macellazione nella spigola. Date le problematiche legate al dosaggio del cortisolo nel plasma e alle modalità di prelievo, negli animali adulti lo steroide è stato valutato anche in altre matrici quali muco, muscolo, pinna e contenuto intestinale. I risultati ottenuti dalle sperimentazioni hanno suggerito tempi di diffusione diversi dello steroide nelle diverse matrici e pertanto si è condotta una verifica di questa ipotesi sottoponendo spigole ad uno stress di esposizione all’aria. Infine, data la fragilità delle prime fasi di sviluppo e l’effetto deleterio del cortisolo, si è valutata la risposta allo stress termico in larve di spigola nei primi quindici giorni di vita. La sperimentazione sulla trota ha messo in evidenza che, in questa specie, le diete testate sono ininfluenti sulla risposta allo stress e che, alla macellazione, l’elettrostordimento è da preferire all’asfissia all’aria. Per quanto riguarda la spigola si è visto che le condizioni di densità di stoccaggio e di ossigeno disciolto testate sembrano ininfluenti sulla concentrazione di cortisolo rispetto alle pratiche di pesca e trasferimento che le fasi di pre-macellazione comportano e quindi è soprattutto questa fase che va pianificata con cura per ridurre il lo stress agli animali. Lo studio dell’ontogenesi della risposta allo stress nella stessa specie ha evidenziato una precoce capacità di secrezione endogena del cortisolo che impone agli allevatori una attenta cura a partire dalle primissime fasi di vita della spigola. La valutazione del cortisolo in matrici diverse dal plasma si è rivelata, nella maggior parte dei casi, uno strumento utile per monitorare lo stato di stress oltre che in pesci macellati, in cui il prelievo di sangue non è possibile, anche in animali ai quali non sia possibile ridurre lo stress prodotto dalle pratiche di pesca e manipolazion
Gene and protein expression analysis of insulin-like growth factor-I and myostatin during development of Dicentrarchus labrax
No full textThis study reports the expression and cellular localization of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and myostatin (MSTN) during the life cycle of sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) by RealTime PCR, in situ hybridization (ISH) and immunohistochemistry. RealTime PCR indicated that IGF-I mRNA increased significantly during the first week post-hatching (ph). In adults, the highest expression of IGF-I mRNA was observed in liver whereas MSTN mRNA was almost exclusively detected in muscle. ISH showed IGF-I mRNA expression in liver already at 8 days ph and, at 25 days ph, also in growing cartilage. MSTN mRNA increased significantly from day 25 and the expression of mRNA was higher in muscle and almost paltry in other organs/tissues. Interestingly, the lateral muscle showed a quantitative differential expression of IGF-I and MSTN mRNAs in red and white muscle, depending on the developmental stage examined.
IGF-I immunoreactivity was detected at hatching in developing intestine, skeletal muscle, skin and yolk sac. At hatching, MSTN immunostaining was evident in skeletal muscle, skin and yolk sac. From the fourth day ph IGF-I and MSTN proteins were detected in liver and, subsequently, in kidney and heart muscle from day 10. These results suggest that IGF-I and MSTN are involved in the regulation of somatic growth in the sea bass
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Immunohistochemical localization of IGF-I, IGF-II and MSTN proteins during development of triploid sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax)
No full textThe cellular localization of IGF-I, IGF-II and MSTN proteins was investigated during ontogenesis of triploid sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) by an immunohistochemical approach. The results were compared with those observed in diploids. IGF-I immunostaining was mainly observed in skin, skeletal muscle, intestine and gills of both diploids and triploids. From day 30 of larval life, IGF-I immunoreactivity observed in skeletal muscle, intestine, gills and kidney was stronger in triploids than in diploids. At day 30, triploids exhibited a standard length significantly higher than the one of diploids. Although IGF-II and MSTN immunoreactivity was detectable in different tissues and organs, no differences between diploids and triploids were observed. The spatial localization of IGF-I, IGF-II and MSTN proteins detected in this study is in agreement with previous findings on the distribution of these proteins in diploid larvae and fry. The highest IGF-I immunoreactivity observed in triploids suggests a possible involvement of ploidy in their growth performance
The NBT test in various juvenile virus diseases
No full textL'NBT-test in alcune virosi dell'infanzia. Vengono riportati i risultati del test al nitroblu di tetrazolio eseguito in una casistica di bambini affetti da epatite infettiva e varicella. Per quanto concerne i granulociti neutrofili la percentuale di positività non si discosta sensibilmente dai valori ottenuti nei soggetti sani di controllo; una elevata positività si riscontra invece a carico delle cellule mononucleate. Un tale comportamento potrebbe dipendere dal tipo di leucocita interessato nella reazione con l’agente infettante.
Il contributo di A. Faga è consistito nella collaborazione concreta all’attività di laboratorio.
Il lavoro è stato effettuato nell’ambito della collaborazione con l’Istituto di Clinica delle Malattie Infettive di Pavi
Immunologic studies of peripheral blood from patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy.
No full textWhole body cortisol and expression of HSP70, IGF-I and MSTN in early development of sea bass subjected to heat shock
No full textWhole body cortisol levels were determined during early larval developmental stages of sea bass
(Dicentrarchus labrax) subjected to a heat shock with the aim to investigate the correlation between
the stress event and the activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–interrenal axis. Moreover, the mRNA
expression of inducible heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and myostatin
(MSTN) was also detected. Whole body cortisol was determined by a radio-immunoassay (RIA) technique
whereas the expression of HSP70, IGF-I and MSTN mRNAs was quantified by Real-Time PCR.
Cortisol was detectable in all the larvae from hatching but its level increased significantly in larvae submitted
to heat shock from 2-day post hatching onwards. An effect of the sole transfer on cortisol levels
was detectable at day 10, indicating an increase of the hypothalamic–pituitary–interrenal axis sensitivity
from this stage of sea bass development.
In animals exposed to heat shock, the expression of inducible HSP70 resulted in a marked increase of
mRNA levels already at hatching. This increase was significantly higher from 6 days onwards if compared
to controls. Moreover, heat shock resulted in a decrease (although not significant) in IGF-I mRNA expression
of stressed larvae if compared to controls. On the contrary, heat shock did not influence the expression
of MSTN mRNA in all groups.
The results indicate a very early activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–interrenal axis and in general
of the stress response during the development of European sea bass. Moreover, these results suggest the
importance of cortisol and inducible HSP70 as bioindicators of stress in aquaculture and confirm the role
of IGF-I and MSTN as regulatory factors during development and growth of fish
Variation of breast vascular maps at dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging after primary chemotherapy of locally advanced breast cancer
No full textOBJECTIVE. The purpose of this article is to assess changes in breast vascular maps on dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) after primary chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced breast cancer (LABC). SUBJECTS AND METHODS. Thirty-four patients with unilateral LABC underwent DCE-MRI before and after anthracycline- and taxane-based primary chemotherapy. The number of vessels 30 mm or longer in length and 2 mm or larger in maximum transverse diameter were counted on maximum intensity projections of the first subtracted phase for each of the two breasts. Patients achieving pathologic response or small clusters of residual cancer cells after primary chemotherapy were considered as responders, and those with an inferior pathologic response were considered as nonresponders. RESULTS. The mean (± SD) number of vessels in the breast harboring the cancer and in the contralateral breast was 2.7 ± 1.3 and 1.1 ± 1.0 (p < 0.001), respectively, before primary chemotherapy and 1.3 ± 1.1 and 1.1 ± 1.1 (p = 0.147), respectively, after primary chemotherapy. Overall, primary chemotherapy was associated with a significant reduction in DCE-MRI vascular maps in the breast harboring the cancer only (p < 0.001). Of the 34 patients, 10 were considered responders and 24 were nonresponders. The mean number of vessels in the breast harboring the cancer changed from 2.7 ± 1.1 to 0.6 ± 0.8 for the 10 responders and from 2.7 ± 1.4 to only 1.6 ± 0.9 for the 24 nonresponders. The mean reduction of vascular map in the breast harboring the cancer was significantly higher in responders compared with nonresponders (p = 0.017). CONCLUSION. Before primary chemotherapy, DCE-MRI vascular maps were asymmetrically increased ipsilaterally to the LABC. After primary chemotherapy, vascular maps significantly changed only in the breast harboring the cancer, with significant differences between responders and nonresponders
Letter: Differential N.B.T. test.
No full textSi espongono i risultati preliminari ottenuti saggiando con il test al nitroblu di tetrazolio granulociti e monociti, nel corso di diverse malattie infettive. La costante positività osservata viene interpretata come espressione delle interazioni fra agenti infettivi e fagociti mononucleati. Il contributo di A. Faga è consistito nella collaborazione concreta all’attività di laboratorio nonché nel reclutamento di pazienti colpiti da infezioni postchirurgiche. Il lavoro è stato effettuato nell’ambito della collaborazione con l’Istituto di Clinica delle Malattie Infettive di Pavi
A new algorithm for automatic vascular mapping of DCE-MRI of the breast: Clinical application of a potential new biomarker
No full textBackground and objective: Vascularity evaluation on breast dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) has a potential diagnostic value, but it represents a time consuming procedure, affected by intra- and inter-observer variability. This study tests the application of a recently published method to reproducibly quantify breast vascularity, and evaluates if the vascular volume of cancer-bearing breast, calculated from automatic vascular maps (AVMs), may correlate with pathologic tumor response after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). Methods: Twenty-four patients with unilateral locally advanced breast cancer underwent DCE-MRI before and after NAC, 8 responders and 16 non-responders. A validated algorithm, based on multiscale 3D Hessian matrix analysis, provided AVMs and allowed the calculation of vessel volume before the initiation and after the last NAC cycle for each breast. For cancer bearing breast, the difference in vascular volume before and after NAC was compared in responders and non-responders using the Wilcoxon two-sample test. A radiologist evaluated the vascularity on the subtracted images (first enhanced minus unenhanced), before and after treatment, assigning a vascular score for each breast, according to the number of vessels with length ≥30. mm and maximal transverse diameter ≥2. mm. The same evaluation was repeated with the support of the simultaneous visualization of the AVMs. The two evaluations were compared in terms of mean number of vessels and mean vascular score per breast, in responders and non-responders, by use of Wilcoxon two sample test. For all the analysis, the statistical significance level was set at 0.05. Results: For breasts harboring the cancer, evidence of a difference in vascular volume before and after NAC for responders (median. =. 1.71. cc) and non-responders (median. =. 0.41. cc) was found (. p=. 0.003). A significant difference was also found in the number of vessels (. p=. 0.03) and vascular score (. p=. 0.02) before or after NAC, according to the evaluation supported by the AVMs. Conclusions: The encouraging, although preliminary, results of this study suggest the use of AVMs as new biomarker to evaluate the pathologic response after NAC, but also support their application in other breast DCE-MRI vessel analysis that are waiting for a reliable quantification method
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