Search

During the years 2008-2011 repeated isolations from symptomatic organs and plant parts of Actinidia chinensis cvs Hort16A and Jintao, grown in the provinces of Latina and Rome (Latium, central Italy), were done with the aim of determining the main colonization and penetration sites exploited by Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidiae (Psa). Isolations were also made from exudates, pruned twigs and from tissues surrounding elastic laces used to tie young shoots. Artificial inoculations were performed to identify the main avenues for pathogen colonization. Climatic data (maximum, minimum and average temperature as well as rainfall) were recorded by weather stations established in the areas of yellow-fleshed kiwifruit cultivation. The bacterium appeared to be capable of colonizing the host all year round and to systemically migrate from young leaves to twigs. Unprotected lenticels, fruit stalks and leaf scars, as well as pruning wounds and tissues surrounding the elastic laces were easily colonized by the pathogen. The whitish exudates yielded, in many cases, pure cultures of the bacterium. A clear-cut relationship was found between the occurrence of frost events during winter 2007-2008 and the first outbreaks of bacterial canker on A. chinensis in the following spring-autumn. Moreover, in 2008, in the infected area, the rainfall was 30-35% higher than the average, which may have promoted the massive spread of the pathogen on the very susceptible yellow-fleshed cultivars. The disease cycle of Psa on A. chinensis in central Italy is postulated and described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypothalamus-pituitaryadrenal (HPA) axis activity was monitored in 20 women with chronic migraine (CM), previously affected by medication overuse headache (MOH), in comparison to healthy women (20 subjects) by measuring salivary cortisol, testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone-sulphate (DHEA-S) levels, and their ratios, one week after the end of the MOH rehabilitation procedure. The participants were instructed how to collect saliva samples at home, a procedure that was performed twice a day (08:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.). Morning and evening levels of cortisol were significantly increased in CM patients with respect to controls. With regard to the cortisol/DHEA-S ratio, an inverse marker of psycho-physical wellbeing, CM women showed significantly higher values than controls. Moreover, testosterone/cortisol ratios (anabolic/catabolic index of physical performance) were significantly lower in CM patients than in controls. In the present study, CM appears not to be associated with an impairment of cortisol and DHEAS circadian fluctuation; however, CM patients present alterations in HPA axis function that might contribute to metabolic and psychological alterations that have also been associated with CM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human intravenous immunoglobulins (hIVIgs) are used in two broad categories of diseases: immunodeficiency and autoimmunity. Among the immune-mediated diseases hIVIgs are of benefit in idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, and dermatomyositis. Chronic idiopathic pericarditis (CIP) is a chronic disease of unknown origin characterized by recurrent episodes of pericardial inflammation. The cause of the recurrence is unknown, although in some cases it may be traced to a viral infection and to the presence of antimyocardial antibodies. Since a viral infection can induce an autoimmune process through a mechanism of molecular mimicry, and since the optimal therapy for prevention of the recurrences has not been established, we reasoned that treatment with hIVIgs could be beneficial in our patients unresponsive to previous immunosuppressive therapies. We describe four patients affected by CIP treated with monthly high-dose hIVIgs (0.4 g/kg daily for 5 consecutive days) for five times followed by administration every 2 months. Three of the four patients could permanently discontinue steroid therapy and are still in remission after years of follow-up. Our experience suggests that hIVIgs therapy may be a useful and safe treatment for CIP in steroid-dependent patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An inverse supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) procedure has been developed for the efficient isolation of six of the most common xanthene dyes (fluorescein; 4′,5′-dibromofluorescein; 2′,4′,5′,7′-tetrabromofluorescein; 2′,4′,5′,7′-tetrabromo-4,5,6,7-tetrachlorofluorescein; 4′,5′-diiodofluorescein and 2′,4′,5′,7′-tetraiodofluorescein) from lipstick matrices. A rapid high-performance liquid chromatographic method is also presented for the separation of the six dyes on a cyanopropyl-bonded silica column eluted with acetonitrile-methanol-acetate buffer. Extraction of the lipstick with supercritical CO2 at 350 atm and 40°C for 10 min exclusively removed the matrix components, whereas the xanthene colorants remained in the extraction vessel. After treatment with CO2, the target analytes were quantitatively recovered (>96.8%) by dispersion of the sample in ethanol under sonication. The inverse SFE method was compared with conventional liquid-liquid extraction on commercial lipstick products. The two methods produced comparable recoveries. However, inverse SFE was superior in terms of precision and speed of analysis and gave cleaner extracts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monochromatic X-ray beam produced by synchrotron radiation may be considered an ideal probe in some fields of diagnostic radiology. In this paper the potential of monochromatic synchrotron radiation X-ray beam in mammography is analyzed. The image quality of four different phantom radiographs, obtained using two different energies equal to 17 and 18 keV, respectively, and a mammographic film/screen system, is assessed. The doses have been determined for both energies by using thermoluminescent dosimeters and a 5-cm thick phantom having a composition of 50% water and 50% fat. The results have been compared with those obtained in the same manner using a mammographic unit equipped with a molybdenum anode, molybdenum filter tube and antiscanner grid. The radiographs obtained with synchrotron radiation show higher contrast and less blur than those obtained with a conventional mammographic system. The average breast doses, 1.55 and 0.80 mGy at 17 and 18 keV, respectively, are comparable with the dose (1.51 mGy) of the conventional technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]