Umbilical Line Securement Bundle to Reduce Line Loss in the Neonate.

Background: Umbilical line migration not only increases the risks of complications but also results in malposition and, ultimately, loss of the umbilical line.

Purpose: To evaluate the use of an umbilical line securement bundle to reduce unintended line discontinuation after line adjustment in the neonate at a single 40-bed Level IV neonatal intensive care unit.

Methods: A pre-post design of 75 neonates, preimplementation (n = 50) and postimplementation (n = 25), was analyzed using data collection from the electronic health record.

Glioblastoma: A Retrospective Analysis of the Role of the Maximal Surgical Resection on Overall Survival and Progression Free Survival.

Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive primary brain tumor in adults; despite advances in the understanding of GBM pathogenesis, significant achievements in treating this disease are still lacking. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic significance of the extent of surgical resection (EOR), beyond the neoplastic mass, on the overall survival (OS).

Methods: A retrospective review of a single-institution glioblastoma patient database (January 2012-September 2021) was undertaken.

Interpretation of intraoperative parathyroid hormone monitoring according to the Rome criterion in primary hyperparathyroidism.

Intraoperative parathyroid hormone dosage allows real-time monitoring of the decrease in PTH levels during parathyroidectomy and verify procedure's efficacy. Currently, none of the interpretative criteria used has absolute accuracy. The aim of this study is to evaluate diagnostic accuracy of the Rome criterion verifying diagnostic significance of the individual assays.

Effects of omega-3 fatty acids supplementation on inflammatory parameters after chronic administration of L-tyrosine.

Tyrosinemia type II is an autosomal recessive inborn error of metabolism caused by hepatic cytosolic tyrosine aminotransferase deficiency. Importantly, this disease is associated with neurological and developmental abnormalities in many patients. Considering that the mechanisms underlying neurological dysfunction in hypertyrosinemic patients are poorly understood, in the present work we investigated the levels of cytokines - tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-6 and IL-10 - in cerebellum, hippocampus, striatum of young rats exposed to chronic administration of L-tyrosine.

En Face Optical Coherence Tomography to Detect and Measure Geographic Atrophy.

Purpose: To detect and quantify geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration using en face optical coherence tomography (OCT) and to correlate it to GA measured with fundus autofluorescence (FAF).

Methods: Twenty-four consecutive patients (27 eyes) were studied with both standard (STD)- and enhanced depth imaging (EDI)-OCT. En face OCT images were obtained at the outer retinal layer (OR) and at the choroidal layer (CH) level for both STD- and EDI-OCT.

Fluvoxamine alters the activity of energy metabolism enzymes in the brain.

Objective: Several studies support the hypothesis that metabolism impairment is involved in the pathophysiology of depression and that some antidepressants act by modulating brain energy metabolism. Thus, we evaluated the activity of Krebs cycle enzymes, the mitochondrial respiratory chain, and creatine kinase in the brain of rats subjected to prolonged administration of fluvoxamine.

Methods: Wistar rats received daily administration of fluvoxamine in saline (10, 30, and 60 mg/kg) for 14 days.

Topography of Gng2- and NetrinG2-expression suggests an insular origin of the human claustrum.

The claustrum has been described in the forebrain of all mammals studied so far. It has been suggested that the claustrum plays a role in the integration of multisensory information: however, its detailed structure and function remain enigmatic. The human claustrum is a thin, irregular, sheet of grey matter located between the inner surface of the insular cortex and the outer surface of the putamen.

Modifications in plasma membrane lipid composition and morphological features of AH-130 hepatoma cells by polyenylphosphatidylcholine in vivo treatment.

The plasma membrane lipid composition in AH-130 hepatoma cells was found to change remarkably after polyenylphosphatidylcholine (PPC) treatment. Plasma membranes from cells grown in rats treated for 7 days i.v.

Expression of the α7 nAChR subunit duplicate form (CHRFAM7A) is down-regulated in the monocytic cell line THP-1 on treatment with LPS.

We investigated the expression of the partially duplicated α7 nAChR subunit gene in three monocytic cell lines: THP-1, U937 and Mono-Mac-6. Qualitative PCR revealed the presence of the classic α7 gene in these lineages, but real-time PCR showed the exclusive expression of α7dup. Both mRNA and protein levels were reduced in THP-1 upon LPS challenge, and it was found that transcriptional down-regulation was mediated by a direct mechanism dependent on NF-κB as its specific inhibitor parthenolide prevented the reduction in the α7dup transcript.

Serum adiponectin is decreased in patients with familial combined hyperlipidemia and normolipaemic relatives and is influenced by lipid-lowering treatment.

Background And Aims: Hypoadiponectinemia has been reported in patients with familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCHL) presenting increased waist circumference and insulin resistance. However, no studies have evaluated this association in non-obese FCHL patients. Moreover, it is unclear whether correction of lipoprotein abnormalities may influence adiponectin levels in FCHL.

Myeloperoxidase overexpression in children with hypercholesterolemia.

Background: Studies conducted in healthy children showed that biomarkers of oxidative stress decreased with increasing age from 1 to 11 years. No data have been reported concerning the behavior of age-related oxidative stress in hypercholesterolemic children.

Objective: Aim of this study was to test if children with hypercholesterolemia have prolonged exposure to enhanced oxidative stress and to study the underlying mechanism.

Two thrush species as dispersers of Miconia prasina (Sw.) DC. (Melastomataceae): an experimental approach.

We carried out a seed germination experiment using two thrush species in captivity. We compared the number of germinated seeds and germination time of control seeds (manually removed from fruits) and ingested seeds of Miconia prasina by two bird species, Turdus albicollis and T. amaurochalinus, and also compared retention times of seeds by both thrush species.

The expression of PHOX2A, PHOX2B and of their target gene dopamine-beta-hydroxylase (DbetaH) is not modified by exposure to extremely-low-frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) in a human neuronal model.

The homeodomain transcription factors PHOX2A and PHOX2B are vital for development of the autonomic nervous system. Their spatial and temporal expression at the neural crest is instrumental in determining neuronal precursor fate, and by regulating DbetaH expression, the enzyme catalysing noradrenaline synthesis from dopamine, they also play a role in determination of noradrenergic phenotype. Disturbing this finely regulated process leads to disruption of autonomic development and autonomic dysfunction syndromes such as DbetaH deficiency.

Usefulness of atherogenic dyslipidemia for predicting cardiovascular risk in patients with angiographically defined coronary artery disease.

The identification of factors contributing to residual cardiovascular risk is important to improve the management of patients with established coronary artery disease (CAD). This study was conducted to assess the predictive value of atherogenic dyslipidemia (defined as high triglycerides and low high-density lipoprotein [HDL] cholesterol) for long-term outcomes in patients with CAD. In 284 patients (238 men, 46 women; mean age at baseline 59.

Comparison of atorvastatin versus fenofibrate in reaching lipid targets and influencing biomarkers of endothelial damage in patients with familial combined hyperlipidemia.

Statins and fibrates have different effects on lipid abnormalities of familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCHL); thus, the selection of the first-line drug is troublesome. We evaluated to what extent monotherapy with a potent statin is more effective than fibrate in reaching the recommended lipid targets in FCHL. Fifty-six patients were randomized to receive optimal dosage of atorvastatin (n = 27) or 200 mg/d micronized fenofibrate (n = 29) for 24 weeks.

Increased plasma levels of oxysterols, in vivo markers of oxidative stress, in patients with familial combined hyperlipidemia: reduction during atorvastatin and fenofibrate therapy.

Familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCHL), the most common inherited disorder of lipid metabolism, is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis that is not fully explained by the metabolic disturbances of these patients. Oxidative damage to lipid components accumulating in the plasma of FCHL patients might contribute to explaining this lack of evidence. Cholesterol is one of the preferential targets of oxidation in LDL and this may contribute to setting a proatherogenetic phenotype in FCHL.

Extremely low-frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) does not affect the expression of alpha3, alpha5 and alpha7 nicotinic receptor subunit genes in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cell line.

Neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) are involved in a number of functional processes, including cognition, learning and memory, and alterations in their expression and/or activity have been implicated in various neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia. Epidemiological studies have shown that exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) may contribute to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. Given the role of nAChRs in physiological and pathological conditions, we wondered whether an extremely low-frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) may affect the expression of the molecules involved in neurodegenerative processes.

The expression of the human neuronal alpha3 Na+,K+-ATPase subunit gene is regulated by the activity of the Sp1 and NF-Y transcription factors.

The Na+,K+-ATPase is a ubiquitous protein found in virtually all animal cells which is involved in maintaining the electrochemical gradient across the plasma membrane. It is a multimeric enzyme consisting of alpha, beta and gamma subunits that may be present as different isoforms, each of which has a tissue-specific expression profile. The expression of the Na+,K+-ATPase alpha3 subunit in humans is confined to developing and adult brain and heart, thus suggesting that its catalytic activity is strictly required in excitable tissues.

Common variants in the lipoprotein lipase gene, but not those in the insulin receptor substrate-1, the beta3-adrenergic receptor, and the intestinal fatty acid binding protein-2 genes, influence the lipid phenotypic expression in familial combined hyperlipidemia.

Familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCHL) is a common, atherogenic lipid disorder characterized by a variable phenotypic expression of hyperlipidemia. Variations in genes regulating fatty acid metabolism must be considered in the search for factors affecting the lipid phenotypic expression of FCHL. Therefore, we have evaluated the association of the common variants in the lipoprotein lipase (LPL) (D9N, N291S, and S447X), insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) (G972R), fatty acid binding protein-2 (FABP-2) (A54T), and beta3-adrenergic receptor (beta3-AR) (W64R) genes with lipid and lipoprotein levels in 30 Italian FCHL families (195 individuals).

Blood cholesterol and MRI activity in first clinical episode suggestive of multiple sclerosis.

Objectives: The present study was planned to investigate the relationship between the plasma lipid profile and disease activity in patients with a first clinical episode suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS).

Material And Methods: Eighteen consecutive out-patients underwent a monthly brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), blood sample and neurological assessment over 6 months. Blood samples were used to evaluate total cholesterol and triglyceride levels as well as their lipoprotein fractions.

Treatment of severe hypercholesterolemia in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice by intramuscular injection of plasmid DNA.

We report on systemic delivery and long-term biological effects of apolipoprotein E (apoE) obtained by intramuscular (i.m.) plasmid DNA injection.