Sonography of fetal holoprosencephaly: a guide to recognize the lesser varieties.

Background: Alobar holoprosencephaly (HPE) is easily detected during a first-trimester screening examination, conversely, recognizing the lesser varieties may be difficult even in the second trimester.

Objectives: To describe the imaging findings of a cohort of fetuses with holoprosencephaly (HPE) and to elucidate the appearances of the different anatomical varieties.

Materials And Methods: We reviewed medical records and stored images of pregnant women referred to our clinic because of a diagnosis or the suspicion of various forms of HPE.

The role of a new three-dimensional ultrasound technique in the diagnosis of levator ani muscle avulsion.

Aims: To evaluate the intermethod agreement between the tomographic ultrasound imaging (TUI), considered as the gold standard, and the OmniView-VCI in the diagnosis of levator ani muscle (LAM) avulsion and in the measurement of levator-urethral gap (LUG).

Methods: We acquired dynamic 4D transperineal ultrasound volumes from 114 women. Each data set was analyzed on maximal pelvic floor contraction by TUI and OmniView-VCI techniques to check for LAM avulsion.

A simple sonographic finding is associated with a successful vacuum application: the fetal occiput or forehead sign.

Background: Intrapartum ultrasound scanning has been proposed as an ancillary tool in the decision-making process of instrumental vaginal delivery.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the correlation between the sonographic visualization with a transperineal scan of the fetal occiput or forehead distal to the pubic symphysis with anterior or posterior presentation, respectively (fetal occiput or forehead sign), and the outcome of a vacuum delivery.

Study Design: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent a vacuum application in our hospital from 2011-2017, excluding outlet applications.

Comparison of two "a priori" risk assessment algorithms for preeclampsia in Italy: a prospective multicenter study.

Purpose: To compare the performance of the algorithms proposed by the Fetal Medicine Foundation in 2012 and BCNatal in 2013 in an Italian population.

Methods: A multicentric prospective study was carried out which included pregnancies at 11-13 weeks' gestation from Jan 2014 through May 2017. Two previously published algorithms were used for the calculation of the "a priori" risk of preeclampsia (based on risk factors from medical history) in each individual.

Randomised Italian Sonography for occiput POSition Trial Ante vacuum (R.I.S.POS.T.A.).

Objective: To assess whether sonographic diagnosis of fetal head position before instrumental vaginal delivery can reduce the risk of failed vacuum extraction and improve delivery outcome.

Methods: Randomised Italian Sonography for occiput POSition Trial Ante vacuum (R.I.

Fundal pressure in second stage of labor (Kristeller maneuver) is associated with increased risk of levator ani muscle avulsion.

Objective: To investigate the association between application of fundal pressure during the second stage of labor (Kristeller maneuver) and the risk of levator ani muscle (LAM) injury.

Methods: This was a prospective case-control study of women recruited immediately after their first vaginal delivery in our university hospital between March 2014 and September 2016. Women who underwent the Kristeller maneuver were recruited as cases.

Infant born with Robert's syndrome without prenatal care in a developing nation.

Maternal and child well-being during pregnancy can be attributed to receiving optimal prenatal care. However, in developing nations, there are many barriers to receiving this. We present a primigravid female aged 29 years with severe abdominal pain.

Customized Fetal Growth Charts for Parents' Characteristics, Race, and Parity by Quantile Regression Analysis: A Cross-sectional Multicenter Italian Study.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to construct fetal biometric charts between 16 and 40 weeks' gestation that were customized for parental characteristics, race, and parity, using quantile regression analysis.

Methods: In a multicenter cross-sectional study, 8070 sonographic examinations from low-risk pregnancies between 16 and 40 weeks' gestation were analyzed. The fetal measurements obtained were biparietal diameter, head circumference, abdominal circumference, and femur diaphysis length.

Reliability of new three-dimensional ultrasound technique for pelvic hiatal area measurement.

Objective: To assess the reproducibility of a new technique for three-/four-dimensional (3D/4D) ultrasound imaging of the pelvic floor: OmniView™ volume contrast imaging (VCI) for measurement of the pelvic hiatal area on maximum contraction and Valsalva maneuver. In addition, we aimed to study the intermethod agreement between the new technique and the 3D/4D render method.

Methods: We acquired one static 3D and two dynamic 4D transperineal volumes (one obtained during contraction and one during Valsalva maneuver) from 35 nulliparous asymptomatic healthy volunteers and 35 women with symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction.

A new simple technique for 3-dimensional sonographic assessment of the pelvic floor muscles.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the reproducibility of a new technique for 3-dimensional (3D) pelvic floor sonography: OmniView combined with Volume Contrast Imaging (VCI; GE Healthcare, Kretz Ultrasound, Zipf, Austria) for pelvic hiatal area measurement. In addition, we aimed to study the intermethod agreement between the new technique and the standard 3D rendering method.

Methods: We acquired a static 3D sonographic transperineal volume from 124 nulliparous asymptomatic women and 118 women with symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction.

Sonographic assessment of fetal occiput position during the second stage of labor: how reliable is the transperineal approach?

Objective: To compare the accuracy of transperineal (TP) ultrasound with transabdominal (TA) approach in the sonographic assessment of fetal occiput position during the second stage of labour.

Methods: A series of low-risk women at term attending the labour ward of three university hospitals were prospectively recruited for the purpose of this study. During the second stage of labor patients were evaluated first by TP and than by TA ultrasound to determine the fetal position.

Fetal head-symphysis distance and mode of delivery in the second stage of labor.

Objective: To evaluate whether the fetal head-symphysis distance measured by three-dimensional transperineal ultrasound during the active second stage predicts operative delivery.

Design: Prospective observational study.

Setting: University hospital, Bologna, Italy.

Intrapartum transperineal ultrasound assessment of fetal head progression in active second stage of labor and mode of delivery.

Objective: To compare longitudinal changes in angle of progression (AoP) and midline angle (MLA) during the active second stage of labor according to the mode of delivery.

Methods: A three-dimensional transperineal ultrasound volume was acquired in a series of nulliparous women at the beginning of the active second stage (T1) and every 20 min thereafter (T2, T3, T4, T5 and T6). Following delivery, all ultrasound volumes were analyzed and AoP and MLA were measured.

Natural variation of model mutant phenotypes in Ciona intestinalis.

Background: The study of ascidians (Chordata, Tunicata) has made a considerable contribution to our understanding of the origin and evolution of basal chordates. To provide further information to support forward genetics in Ciona intestinalis, we used a combination of natural variation and neutral population genetics as an approach for the systematic identification of new mutations. In addition to the significance of developmental variation for phenotype-driven studies, this approach can encompass important implications in evolutionary and population biology.

Characterization of sea urchin transglutaminase, a protein regulated by guanine/adenine nucleotides.

Transglutaminases (TGs) are calcium-dependent enzymes that catalyze the transamidation of glutamine residues to form intermolecular isopeptide bonds. Nine distinct TGs have been identified in mammals, and three of them (types 2, 3, and 5) are regulated by GTP/ATP and are able to hydrolyze GTP, working as bifunctional enzymes. We have isolated a cDNA clone encoding a TG from a cDNA library prepared from the blastula stage of sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus (PlTG).

The length of polyglutamine tract, its level of expression, the rate of degradation, and the transglutaminase activity influence the formation of intracellular aggregates.

A common feature of CAG-expansion neurodegenerative diseases is the presence of intranuclear aggregates in neuronal cells. We have used a synthetic fusion protein containing at the NH2 terminus the influenza hemoagglutinin epitope (HA), a polyglutamine stretch (polyQ) of various size (17, 36, 43 CAG) and a COOH tail encoding the green fluorescent protein (GFP). The fusion proteins were expressed in COS-7 and neuroblastoma SK-N-BE cells.

A new transglutaminase-like from the ascidian Ciona intestinalis.

A cDNA clone encoding a transglutaminase (TGase) was isolated from a cDNA library prepared from the larval stage of Ciona intestinalis. The cDNA sequence has an open reading frame encoding a protein of 696 amino acids and is about 36% identical to 11 other TGase sequences. In addition, the critical residues thought to form the catalytic center are conserved.

Transglutaminase activity is related to CAG repeat length in patients with Huntington's disease.

Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder associated with CAG repeat expansion. We measured transglutaminase (TGase) activity in lymphocytes from 35 HD patients and from healthy individuals to ascertain whether it was altered in this condition. TGase activity was above maximum control levels in 25% of HD patients; it was correlated with the age of the patient and inversely correlated with the CAG repeat length.

Cloning of ascidian homeobox genes provides evidence for a primordial chordate cluster.

In order to isolate genes important in controlling embryonic development in Tunicates, a genomic library from the ascidian Ciona intestinalis was screened with a degenerate oligodeoxyribonucleotide encoding the third helix of Antennapedia-type homeoboxes. Fourteen C. intestinalis homeobox genes, corresponding to several classes of homeodomains, have been identified.

Effects of inhibiting transglutaminase during egg fertilization and development.

Transglutaminase inhibitor (1,3,4,5-tetramethyl-2-[(2-oxopropyl)thio]imidazolium chloride or L-682777) affected the appearance of the fertilization envelope (FE) and subsequent development in Sphaerechinus granularis and Arbacia punctulata in a concentration-dependent manner. Abnormalities were first visible in forming FE's at the lowest concentration (0.001 mM) of the inhibitor used.

Isolation and characterization of two genes encoding calitoxins, neurotoxic peptides from Calliactis parasitica (Cnidaria).

Among sea anemone neurotoxins, calitoxin, recently isolated from Calliactis parasitica, is a highly toxic peptide of 46 amino acids (aa), whose sequence differs greatly from that of all sea anemone toxins isolated so far. In this study, two genes (clx-1 and clx-2) coding for two highly homologous calitoxins were isolated and characterized from a C. parasitica genomic library.

Starfish saponins, Part 50. Steroidal glycosides from the Okinawan starfish Nardoa tuberculata.

This paper describes a complete analysis of the glycoside and polyhydroxysteroid constituents of the starfish Nardoa tuberculata, collected at Zampa, Okinawa, Japan. Besides a group of known non-sulfated steroidal diglycosides, halitylosides A [5], B [6], D [7], E [8], and F [9], and two known polyhydroxysteroids 10 and 11, N. tuberculata also contains four new sulfated steroidal glycosides 1-4 closely related to the previous halitylosides.