114 research outputs found
Ustekinumab in the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases: Evolving Paradigms
No full textInflammatory bowel diseases, comprising Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), are chronic, relapsing, and remitting immune-mediated inflammatory diseases affecting the gastrointestinal tract. Ustekinumab (UST) is a monoclonal antibody that blocks the p40 subunit of the anti-interleukin (IL) 12/23. Pivotal trials (CERTIFI and UNITI-IM for CD, UNIFI for UC) established the efficacy of UST for the induction and maintenance of remission in both CD and UC, with the most favorable results in naïve patients to biologics. In recent years, a wealth of ‘real-world’ data has emerged supporting positive clinical, endoscopic, and histological outcomes in patients treated with UST, as well as reassuring safety data. More recently, the results of the first head-to-head trials of UST and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) antagonists were reported. Moreover, a number of studies exploring the role of UST in specific clinical settings, such as perianal CD, postoperative complications and recurrence, extraintestinal manifestations, chronic antibiotic-refractory pouchitis, and pregnancy, were reported. This review explores the results reported to date on UST, including those from pivotal trials, real-world data, and emerging studies regarding therapeutic drug monitoring and immunogenicity. The safety profile of UST was also reviewed
Comparing deep-sea fish fauna between coral and non-coral "megahabitats" in the Santa Maria di Leuca cold-water coral province (Mediterranean Sea)
No full textTwo experimental longline surveys were carried out in the Santa Maria di Leuca (SML) cold-water coral province (Mediterranean Sea) during May-June and September-October 2010 to investigate the effect of corals on fish assemblages. Two types of “megahabitat” characterized by the virtual absence of fishing were explored. One was characterized by complex topography including mesohabitats with carbonate mounds and corals. The other type of megahabitat, although characterized by complex topographic features, lacks carbonate mounds and corals. The fishing vessel was equipped with a 3000 m monofilament longline with 500 hooks and snoods of 2.5 m in length. A total of 9 hauls, using about 4500 hooks, were carried out both in the coral megahabitat and in the non-coral megahabitat during each survey. The fish Leucoraja fullonica and Pteroplatytrygon violacea represent new records for the SML coral province. The coral by-catch was only obtained in the coral megahabitat in about 55% of the stations investigated in both surveys. The total catches and the abundance indices of several species were comparable between the two habitat typologies. The species contributing most to the dissimilarity between the two megahabitat fish assemblages were Pagellus bogaraveo, Galeus melastomus, Etmopterus spinax and Helicolenus dactylopterus for density and P. bogaraveo, Conger conger, Polyprion americanus and G. melastomus for biomass. P. bogaraveo was exclusively collected in the coral megahabitat, whereas C. conger, H. dactylopterus and P. americanus were found with greater abundance in the coral than in the non-coral megahabitat. Differences in the sizes between the two megahabitats were detected in E. spinax, G. melastomus, C. conger and H. dactylopterus. Although these differences most probably related to the presence-absence of corals, both megahabitats investigated play the role of attraction-refuge for deep-sea fish fauna, confirming the important role of the whole SML coral province as a refuge area from fishing
Prevenzione e controllo delle aggressioni in ambito sanitario: revisione della letteratura
No full textDisamina delle principali strategie di prevenzione e gestione del fenomeno aggressioni nella più recente letteratur
A GIS-based geostatistical approach for palaeo-environmental reconstructions of coastal areas: the case of the Cilento promontory (southern Italy)
No full textCold-water coral communities in the Central Mediterranean: aspects on megafauna diversity, fishery resources and conservation perspectives
No full textIn the last two decades, many new living cold-water coral (CWC) sites throughout the Mediterranean basin have been discovered and investigated. As part of oceanographic cruises, using ROVs and towed cameras, and trawl and longline surveys as well as records from fishermen, a belt of CWC communities has been identified along the Apulian continental margin (Central Mediterranean). The most investigated CWC communities are those of the Santa Maria di Leuca (SML) CWC province (northern Ionian Sea) and Bari Canyon (BC) (southern Adriatic Sea). These communities are mainly structured by the habitat-former species Madrepora oculata and, to a lesser extent, by Lophelia pertusa together with Dendrophyllia cornigera, solitary species, such as Desmophyllum dianthus, black coral, such as Leiopathes glaberrima, sponges (e.g., Pachastrella monilifera, Poecillastra compressa), serpulids, boring clams and colonies of bryozoans. CWC sites are biodiversity hot-spots, that act as “Essential Fish Habitats” for commercial species and through the spill-over effect might contribute to the renewal of stocks in neighbouring fishing grounds, providing ecosystems’ goods and services. Despite their particular features, CWC areas along the Apulian slope are impacted by different anthropogenic activities. Fishermen operate close and around these areas with the aim of obtaining greater catches and sizes of commercial species. Although there are many conservation proposals for CWC habitats and a Fisheries Restricted Area established for Santa Maria di Leuca CWC province, human pressure is still very strong, due to the lack of adequate conservation measures. An effective system of monitoring, control and surveillance will be fundamental to meet the conservation objectives and to reach the Good Environmental Status as part of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive
Effects of deep-water coral banks on the abundance and size structure of the megafauna in the Mediterranean Sea
No full textThe Santa Maria di Leuca (SML) coral banks represent a rare example of living Lophelia-Madreporabearing coral mounds in the Mediterranean Sea. They are located between 350 and 1100m in depth, in the northern Ionian Sea (eastern-central Mediterranean). Using a multi-beam echo sounder, side-scan sonar, high-resolution seismics and underwater video, the zones were identified for the sampling demersal fauna without damaging the coral colonies. During September–October 2005 experimental samplings were carried out with longlines and trawl nets inside the coral habitat and outside, where fishery exploitation occurs. No significant differences were shown between the abundance of fish recorded using longlines in the coral and non-coral habitat even though some selachians and teleosts were more abundant in the former than in the latter. Large specimens of rockfish (Helicolenus dactylopterus) and blackspot seabream (Pagellus bogaraveo) were commonly caught using longlines in the coral habitat. Data from trawling revealed refuge effects in the coral habitat and fishing effects outside. Significant differences were detected between the recorded abundances in the two study areas. Greater densities and biomasses were obtained inside the coral area, and fish size spectra and size distributions indicate a greater abundance of large fish inside the coral habitat. The SML coral habitat is a spawning area for H. dactylopterus. The remarkable density of the young-of-the-year of the deep-water shark Etmopterus spinax as well as of Merluccius merluccius, Micromesistius poutassou, Phycis blennoides and H. dactylopterus, indicates that the coral habitat also acts as nursery area for these demersal species, which are exploited outside. Considering the evidence of the negative impact of bottom trawling and, to a lesser extent, of longlining, the coral banks can provide a refuge for the conservation of unique species and habitats as well as in providing benefit to adjacent fisheries through the spill-over effect both of eggs, larvae, juveniles and adults
A multi component approach to predict erosion susceptibility of rocky coasts: marine, terrestrial and climatic forcing—an application in Southern Italy
No full textRocky coasts are the most common type of coastal environment and are presently experiencing significant erosion as a consequence of accelerated sea-level rise and increase in coastal storms. This type of coastline, like all coastal environments, is subject to the effects of a huge number of marine and terrestrial processes that continually reshape them over time. This research suggests a new methodological approach for assessing the vulnerability of rocky coasts to forcing factors that may be emphasised by ongoing climate change. The proposed approach combines two matrices: the Physical Element Index (PEIx), which assesses the most relevant morphological and geotechnical features of the considered landform to evaluate its susceptibility to erosion, and the Cliff Forcing Index (CFIx), which accounts for the marine forces impacting the specific coastal form. In a first step, to construct the two matrices, several variables were selected from previous studies. In a second step, a specific weight factor (Wfi) was attributed to each variable, i.e. each one of the Physical Elements and Forcing Agents considered, according to their specific relevance/contribution to cliff erosion susceptibility. In a third step, the two matrices were combined through interpolation to generate the final Cliff Susceptibility Index (CSIx). The method was tested on different coastal areas sited along the southwest coast of Italy, differing in geological characteristics and marine conditions. The analysis demonstrated that most of the considered coastal sectors belonged to the “Low” (Cala Rossa, Cirella 1, Guardiola, Marechiaro, Punta del Corvo, Puolo, Torre di Mezzo), “Medium” (Capo Rama, Cirella 2, Seiano 1, Spiaggia del Poggio, Torrefumo 2) and “High” (Coroglio, Irminio, Punta Braccetto, Punta Pennata) classes of CSIx due to the interaction among morphological, geotechnical and forcing factors. This procedure allows the zonation of wide rocky coastal areas according to their grade of susceptibility and the identification of areas of criticism where specific studies and monitoring programs need to be developed to adopt sound management strategies
sj-docx-1-tam-10.1177_17588359211059873 – Supplemental material for PANHER study: a 20-year treatment outcome analysis from a multicentre observational study of HER2-positive advanced breast cancer patients from the real-world setting
No full textSupplemental material, sj-docx-1-tam-10.1177_17588359211059873 for PANHER study: a 20-year treatment outcome analysis from a multicentre observational study of HER2-positive advanced breast cancer patients from the real-world setting by Laura Pizzuti, Eriseld Krasniqi, Isabella Sperduti, Maddalena Barba, Teresa Gamucci, Maria Mauri, Enzo Maria Veltri, Icro Meattini, Rossana Berardi, Francesca Sofia Di Lisa, Clara Natoli, Mirco Pistelli, Laura Iezzi, Emanuela Risi, Nicola D’Ostilio, Silverio Tomao, Corrado Ficorella, Katia Cannita, Ferdinando Riccardi, Alessandra Cassano, Emilio Bria, Maria Agnese Fabbri, Marco Mazzotta, Giacomo Barchiesi, Andrea Botticelli, Giuliana D’Auria, Anna Ceribelli, Andrea Michelotti, Antonio Russo, Beatrice Taurelli Salimbeni, Giuseppina Sarobba, Francesco Giotta, Ida Paris, Rosa Saltarelli, Daniele Marinelli, Domenico Corsi, Elisabetta Maria Capomolla, Valentina Sini, Luca Moscetti, Lucia Mentuccia, Giuseppe Tonini, Mimma Raffaele, Luca Marchetti, Mauro Minelli, Enzo Maria Ruggeri, Paola Scavina, Olivia Bacciu, Nello Salesi, Lorenzo Livi, Nicola Tinari, Antonino Grassadonia, Angelo Fedele Scinto, Rosalinda Rossi, Maria Rosaria Valerio, Elisabetta Landucci, Simonetta Stani, Beatrice Fratini, Marcello Maugeri-Saccà, Michele De Tursi, Angela Maione, Daniele Santini, Armando Orlandi, Vito Lorusso, Enrico Cortesi, Giuseppe Sanguineti, Paola Pinnarò, Federico Cappuzzo, Lorenza Landi, Claudio Botti, Federica Tomao, Sonia Cappelli, Giulia Bon, Fabio Pelle, Flavia Cavicchi, Elena Fiorio, Jennifer Foglietta, Simone Scagnoli, Paolo Marchetti, Gennaro Ciliberto and Patrizia Vici in Therapeutic Advances in Medical Oncology</p
Food from the Depths of the Mediterranean: The Role of Habitats, Changes in the Sea-Bottom Temperature and Fishing Pressure
No full textAs part of the “Innovations in the Food System: Exploring the Future of Food” Special Issue, this paper briefly reviews studies that highlight a link between deep-sea fishery resources (deep-sea food resources) and vulnerable marine ecosystems (VME), species, and habitats in the Mediterranean Sea, providing new insights into changes in commercial and experimental catches of the deep-sea fishery resources in the central Mediterranean over the last 30 years. About 40% of the total landing of Mediterranean deep-water species is caught in the central basin. Significant changes in the abundance of some of these resources with time, sea-bottom temperature (SBT), and fishing effort (FE) have been detected, as well as an effect of the Santa Maria di Leuca cold-water coral province on the abundance of the deep-sea commercial crustaceans and fishes. The implications of these findings and the presence of several geomorphological features, sensitive habitats, and VMEs in the central Mediterranean are discussed with respect to the objectives of biodiversity conservation combined with those of management of fishery resources
Exploring deep-sea benthopelagic fauna using a baited lander in the Santa Maria di Leuca cold-water coral province
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