169,926 research outputs found
“Acceptance-rejection in Alzheimer’s Dementia: A Study of Caregivers”, I° International Congress on Interpersonal Acceptance and Rejection
No full textLa reazione alla crisi economica determinata dal Covid: alcune considerazioni sugli interventi della Banca Centrale e sul Next Generation EU
No full textIl processo europeo di reazione alla crisi economica del Covid-19 è il risultato di una pluralità di interventi dispiegati dal marzo 2020 che possono essere idealmente distinti in interventi per la gestione della emergenza e gli interventi di medio-lungo periodo mirati a calibrare l’impostazione impressa dalla nuova Commissione nel dicembre 2019 con l’approvazione dei suoi orientamenti politici, incluso il Green Deal Europeo. Il quadro che abbiamo oggi davanti è il frutto di un anno di profonde trasformazioni che stanno attraverso i singoli paesi colpiti dal Covid e, inevitabilmente, l’Unione Europea e le sue istituzioni, in particolare, la Banca Centrale Europea, la Commissione europea ed il Consiglio Europeo. Un anno di cambiamenti ancora non conclusi, che vale la pena brevemente ripercorrere per comprendere in quale contesto sia emerso il programma Next Generation EU, a cui si affidano, forse impropriamente, i destini del nostro paese e dell’Europa intera
Neuropsychological features of pathological gambling
No full textPathological gambling is a nosographic category,
object of many disputes; that is whether it belongs
to impulse-control disorders or to obsessive-compulsive spectrum. Recently the role played by
frontal functioning in this disease has been often
stressed. Twenty-seven subjects suffering from
pathological gambling have been examined by a
wide-spectrum neuropsychological battery of executive functioning tests; that is WSCT, Gambling
task, PM38, Towers of London, Trail Making Test,
Verbal Judgments Test, Verbal Fluency Test
(Phonetic and Semantic) and Stroop Colour Test.
Results show abnormal performances in impulse
inhibition skill and verbal abstraction, whereas
selective attention and planning appear intact
The role of diet in managing inflamatory bowel disease affected dogs: a retrospective cohort study on 76 cases
No full textThe term inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) refers to a group of idiopathic, chronic intestinal diseases characterized by a diffuse infiltration of inflammatory cells into the lamina propria of the intestine. The pathogenesis of IBD is unknown. The most common signs described are diarrhoea, vomit, and progressive weight loss. In order to make a definitive diagnosis, though, the presence of inflammatory cells infiltration must be evident on histopathologic analysis. The therapeutic approach has 2 main goals: decrease the inflammatory response and remove possible antigenic sources, such as food components or intestinal microflora. Therefore, the most common therapy is the association of Prednisone with a single protein diet, especially when the inflammatory cells infiltration is severe. Another way to reduce the antigenic stimulation is to control the intestinal microflora, so antibiotics and pre/ probiotics may be used. This retrospective study tested and compared the therapeutic value of Prednisone and specific diets, used as a single therapy or combined together. The results show a significative clinical improvement in dogs fed with hydrolized protein diets rather than novel protein diets. Finally, fish is the more reliable source of protein to use during therapy, because of its low ability to trigger an antigenic reaction
A solution state NMR study of the structure and ligand binding properties of the human C-type lectin DC-SIGNR
No full textThe protein DC-SIGNR (Dendritic-cell specific ICAM3 grabbing non-integrin
related) is a C-type (calcium-dependent) lectin, which binds highly-branched
mannose oligosaccharides. DC-SIGNR interacts with a range of deadly diseases via
surface glycans on pathogenic glycoproteins, and the ability of DC-SIGNR to
increase the rate of infection of viruses including human immunodeficiency virus
(HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) makes the study of DC-SIGNR/oligosaccharide
interactions very attractive. The research described in this thesis sought to gain
insight into the calcium and ligand binding properties of the DC-SIGNR
carbohydrate recognition domain (CRD) in solution by utilising solution state
nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR).
A protocol for the production of uniformly 15N /13C labelled DC-SIGNR CRD
was developed, allowing the acquisition of heteronuclear NMR experiments and
the first assignment of the calcium-bound (holo) DC-SIGNR CRD to be reported.
The assignment has allowed investigation of calcium and glycan binding, as well
as the pH dependence of the DC-SIGNR CRD.
The data presented in this thesis reveal that the DC-SIGNR CRD is highly
dynamic in the calcium-free state, with the addition of calcium resulting in global
conformational and dynamic changes throughout the CRD. While calcium binding
hinders the protein dynamics (particularly in the calcium binding regions), a large
degree of mobility remains. The evidence that ligands are released at low pH
suggests that DC-SIGNR may act as an endocytic receptor.
In addition to calcium binding, interactions of the DC-SIGNR CRD with a
range of ligands were investigated. In particular, interactions with the
oligosaccharide Man9GlcNAc (present on the HIV viral envelope) are described,
representing the first direct study of the CRD interacting with a diseaseassociated
ligand. The glycans employed in this study all bind to the primary
calcium binding site, supporting previous crystal data. However, each glycan
displays distinct patterns of chemical shift perturbations implying that they each
have different, extended binding modes. Particularly striking is the difference
between the disease-associated Man9GlcNAc ligand and the ligand present in a
previously published crystal structure, (GlcNAc)2Man3.
An investigation of the dynamics of the CRD in the holo form and bound
to the ligand Man5 shows that the CRD is highly dynamic and that glycan binding
further hinders, but does not abolish, the molecular motions. The dynamics data
also suggests that a ligand-induced conformational change may occur and
indicates potential new binding sites which are not present in any published
crystal structures. The dynamic nature of the DC-SIGNR CRD may explain the wide
range of ligand specificities and affinities of the C-type lectin scaffold and
suggests that the study of the ligand binding properties and dynamics of proteins
such as DC-SIGNR in solution is essential to further understanding of this class of
proteins
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
The concordance between endoscopic and histological diagnosis in 114 dogs affected by gastric disease
No full textEndoscopy is a common, minimally invasive diagnostic technique that can be used to observe internal organs, e. g. the stomach, and to obtain mucosal bioptic samples for histo pathological examination. The aim of this study was to analyse the concordance between endoscopic and histological evaluation of gastric diseases in dogs. One hundred twenty-nine medical records of dogs undergoing gastroscopy have been received and stored by the Veterinary Hospital of Perugia University (Perugia, Italy) between 2009-2012. The concordance between endoscopic and histological reports of acute and chronic gastritis or gastric tumours was assessed by Cohen's k coefficient. Considering histological diagnosis as the "gold standard", sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of the endoscopic report have been calculated. Frequencies of gastritis types differed between macroscopic and microscopic analyses. The evaluation of histological and endoscopic agreement was fair (0.35). Endoscopy showed sensitivity of 45%, 88%, and 100% for acute gastritis, chronic gastritis, and gastric tumours, respectively; and specificity of 84%, 71%, and 100%. The positive predictive value and NPV resulted to be 25% and 93% for acute gastritis, 93% and 60 % for chronic gastritis, 100% and 100% for gastric tumours. The results of this study show that gastric endoscopy cannot be performed as a screening exam, and that to optimise diagnosis both endoscopic and histological exam should be conducted
Mitomycin C in highly myopic eyes - Author reply
No full textOphthalmology. 2005 Feb;112(2):208-18; discussion 219.
Mitomycin C modulation of corneal wound healing after photorefractive keratectomy in highly myopic eyes.
Gambato C, Ghirlando A, Moretto E, Busato F, Midena E.
SourceRefractive Surgery Service and Antimetabolite Therapy Research Unit, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Abstract
PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of topical mitomycin C in corneal wound healing (CWH) after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) in highly myopic eyes.
DESIGN: Prospective, double-masked, randomized clinical trial.
PARTICIPANTS: Seventy-two eyes of 36 patients affected by high (>7 diopters) myopia.
METHODS: In each patient, one eye was randomly assigned to PRK with intraoperative topical 0.02% mitomycin C application, and the fellow eye was treated with a placebo. Postoperatively, mitomycin C-treated eyes received artificial tears (3 times daily, tapered in 3 months), whereas the fellow eye was treated with fluorometholone sodium 2% and artificial tears (3 times daily, tapered in 3 months).
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), contrast sensitivity, manifest refraction, and biomicroscopy. Contrast sensitivity was determined using the Pelli-Robson chart. Corneal confocal microscopy documented CWH.
RESULTS: Mean follow-up was 18 months (range, 12-36). No side effects or toxic effects were documented. At 12-month follow-up examination, UCVAs (logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) were 0.4+/-0.48 and 0.5+/-0.53 (P = .03) in mitomycin C-treated eyes and corticosteroid-treated eyes, respectively. At 1 year, corneal haze developed in 20% of corticosteroid-treated eyes, versus 0% of mitomycin C-treated eyes. At 12, 24, and 36 months, corneal confocal microscopy showed activated keratocytes and extracellular matrix significantly more evident in untreated eyes (Ps = 0.004, 0.024, and 0.046, respectively).
CONCLUSION: Topical intraoperative application of 0.02% mitomycin C can reduce haze formation in highly myopic eyes undergoing PRK.
Comment in
Ophthalmology. 2006 Feb;113(2):357; author reply 357-8
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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