The cost of HIV disease in Northern Italy: the payer's perspective.

Background: Healthcare expenditures incurred by the Health Service for HIV-infected patients have not been reported in Italy.

Objective: To present health care costs for HIV-infected patients in the Lombardy Region, in 2004-2007, to determine the clinical characteristics of HIV infection associated with costs.

Methods: Retrospective, observational, budget impact study, based on information collected for the period 2004-2007, including hospitalizations, outpatient services, highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and non-HAART drug utilization.

Uncoupling of p21 induction and MyoD activation results in the failure of irreversible cell cycle arrest in doxorubicin-treated myocytes.

Doxorubicin (Dox, Adriamicin), a potent broad spectrum anthracycline anticancer drug, selectively inhibits muscle specific gene expression in cardiac cells in vivo and prevents terminal differentiation of skeletal muscle cells in vitro. By inducing the expression of the helix-loop-helix (HLH) transcriptional inhibitor ld2, Dox represses the myogenic function of the MyoD family of muscle regulatory factors (MRFs). In many cell types, terminal differentiation is coupled to an irreversible exit from the cell cycle and MyoD plays a critical role in the permanent cell cycle arrest of differentiating myocytes by upregulating the cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor (cdki) p21.

Cyclosporine-A in the treatment of serpiginous choroiditis.

Seven patients affected by bilateral inflammatory serpiginous choroiditis have been treated with Cyclosporine-A for 6-21 months. Nine out of the fourteen eyes showed a significant improvement in their visual acuity; five eyes did not change. Cyclosporine-A may, therefore, be considered effective in the treatment of this disease.