1,721,237 research outputs found
Comparative study of the efficacy of olmesartan/amlodipine vs. perindopril/amlodipine in peripheral blood pressure after missed dose in type 2 diabetes
No full textIntroduction: Combination therapy is needed to control blood pressure (BP) in a large number of hypertensive patients with diabetes mellitus. Adherence to treatment is a major clinical problem; therefore, the time duration of the antihypertensive action of a drug determines BP control when a dose is skipped. Objectives: The aim was to determine whether the fixed-dose combination of olmesartan/amlodipine provides equal efficacy and safety as the perindopril/amlodipine combination when a drug dose is missed. Methods: In this noninferiority trial with a randomized, double-blind, double-dummy parallel group, controlled design, 260 patients received either olmesartan 20-40 mg/amlodipine 5-10 mg or perindopril 4-8 mg/amlodipine 5-10 mg for 24 weeks. The main outcome was the sitting office DBP after 24 weeks of treatment at 48 h from last administration. Results: The olmesartan/amlodipine combination reached noninferiority criteria in reduction of office DBP after 24 weeks of treatment and after the missed dose, compared with the perindopril/amlodipine combination (-11.7 and -10.5 mmHg, respectively). Office SBP and pulse pressure were significantly lower in both groups after 24 weeks of treatment and 48 h after the missed dose, observing a trend to greater SBP reduction in the olmesartan/amlodipine group. Conclusions: The combination olmesartan/amlodipine is safe, well tolerated, and as effective as the combination of perindopril/amlodipine in the control of essential hypertension in patients with diabetes mellitus. A missed dose does not leave the patients unprotected in both treatments; however, a faster control with less dose increment is observed with olmesartan/amlodipine
Advances on the toxicity of the cereal contaminant Fusarium esadepsipeptides
No full textFusarium head blight (FHB) of cereals is a well known disease caused by a complex of several
toxigenic species of Fusarium. FHB can reduce grain yield and quality, because of the accumulation of
mycotoxins in cereal grains and derived foods and feeds. The pathogen mainly reported as causal agent of
FHB is F. graminearum, that produces Deoxynivalenol (DON), the mycotoxin mostly associated to the
disease. However in the last decade, in Europe, in addition to DON, the esadepsipeptides Enniatins (ENs) and
Beauvericin (BEA) have been often reported as cereal contaminants, in association with different species such
as F. avenaceum, F. poae, and F. tricinctum. The natural occurrence of high amounts of BEA and ENs in
FHB small grains, evaluated with the phytotoxic and zootoxic properties of these metabolites, compel to an
examination of their potential role in contributing to the severity of FHB. On the other hand, the recent studies
that have provided further data on the biological role of the esadepsipeptide in plants and their toxicity toward
plants, animal and humans, make it worthwhile to expand the knowledge on the significance and the toxicity
of these frequent contaminants of cereals
Renal resistive index: Beyond the hemodynamics
No full textWe read with great interest the original article entitled “Prognostic
significance of the renal resistive index in the primary prevention of type
II diabetes” by Delsart et al1 In this issue of The Journal, the authors
interestingly underlined the prognostic value of renal resistive index
(RRI) in diabetic subjects and its role as an independent predictor of
a first cardiovascular or renal event.
Similar conclusions were previously obtained by others in different
subsets of patients (hypertension, chronic kidney disease,
or heart failure), in which intrarenal hemodynamic alterations
showed to be independent predictors of cardiovascular events.
It is likely that the mechanisms underlying renal hemodynamic
alterations in diabetics are similar to those involved in hypertensive
subjects and that “renal resistance indices reflect systemic rather than
renal vascular damage,” as previously postulated by Heine et al
APPLICAZIONE DI UNA METODOLOGIA QUALI-QUANTITATIVA DEL RISCHIO A SISTEMI ENERGETICI INDUSTRIALI.
No full textTECNOLOGIE CHIMICH
Plant Bioactive Compounds in Pre- and Postharvest Management for Aflatoxins Reduction
Full text linkAflatoxins (AFs) are secondary metabolites produced by Aspergillus spp., known for their hepatotoxic, carcinogenic, and mutagenic activity in humans and animals. AF contamination of staple food commodities is a global concern due to their toxicity and the economic losses they cause. Different strategies have been applied to reduce fungal contamination and AF production. Among them, the use of natural, plant-derived compounds is emerging as a promising strategy to be applied to control both Aspergillus spoilage and AF contamination in food and feed commodities in an integrated pre- and postharvest management. In particular, phenols, aldehydes, and terpenes extracted from medicinal plants, spices, or fruits have been studied in depth. They can be easily extracted, they are generally recognized as safe (GRAS), and they are food-grade and act through a wide variety of mechanisms. This review investigated the main compounds with antifungal and anti-aflatoxigenic activity, also elucidating their physiological role and the different modes of action and synergies. Plant bioactive compounds are shown to be effective in modulating Aspergillus spp. contamination and AF production both in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, their application in pre- and postharvest management could represent an important tool to control aflatoxigenic fungi and to reduce AF contamination
The mycotoxins beauvericin and T-2 induce cell death and alteration to the ascorbate metabolism in tomato protoplasts
No full textThe phytotoxicity of the mycotoxins from Fusarium spp. beauvericin and T-2 toward tomato protoplasts was evaluated. Both toxins
caused protoplast death, but the phytotoxicity of beauvericin was much more severe in terms of reduction in protoplast viability. The possible
involvement of the ascorbate system in the response induced by the two mycotoxins was also studied. Tomato protoplast death was preceded
by an imbalance of the ascorbate system, which was diversely affected by the two mycotoxins. Beauvericin caused a decrease in the ascorbate
level, whereas T-2 induced a significant increase in dehydroascorbate. The changes in the activity of ascorbate peroxidase, the most efficient
scavenger of hydrogen peroxide in plant cells present in all cell compartments, were also analysed. Ascorbate peroxidase activity decreased
after 3 h of treatment with beauvericin. The activity of dehydroascorbate reductase, the enzyme involved in ascorbate regeneration from its
oxidized form, also increased within the first hour of treatment. T-2 treatment did not induce significant changes in either ascorbate
peroxidase or dehydroascorbate reductase activities. The possible role of the ascorbate system in tomato protoplast death induced by
treatment with beauvericin and T-2 mycotoxins is discusse
Characterization of dinucleotide and trinucleotide EST-derived microsatellites in the wheat genome
No full textDifferences in cardiac structure and function between black and white patients: Another step in the evaluation of cardiovascular risk in chronic kidney disease
No full text- …
