Multimodal imaging features of retinal neovascularization in response to 3 anti-VEGF injections.

Objective: To analyze longitudinal changes of retinal neovessels (NV) in eyes with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) after 3 monthly intravitreal injections (IVI) of ranibizumab by means of different imaging modalities, particularly focusing on optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT-angiography (OCT-A) features.

Methods: Prospective, monocentric study, Luigi Sacco Hospital, Milan. Consecutive patients with PDR were enrolled.

Implementing a multi-cycle datapath with Liquid Marbles.

Liquid Marbles are liquid droplets encapsulated by hydrophobic powder particles; due to their non-wetting nature, they allow to manipulate liquids efficiently. Literature highlighted their potential to be employed as micro-reactors, micro-containers for growing micro-organisms and cells, micro-fluidics devices, and have also been used in the framework of unconventional computing. In this work, we discuss a theoretical implementation of all required components to define a multi-cycle datapath based on Liquid Marbles.

A bibliometric review on the Water Framework Directive twenty years after its birth.

The European Water Framework Directive (WFD) is one of the most studied environmental legislations and recently turned twenty. The paper deals with a literature search and analysis of 4120 references related to this Directive. After a period of strong increase in article production (2002-2012) WFD scientific productivity is currently still high (~ 260 papers year), suggesting a persistent interest of the scientific community on this issue.

A Global Building Occupant Behavior Database.

This paper introduces a database of 34 field-measured building occupant behavior datasets collected from 15 countries and 39 institutions across 10 climatic zones covering various building types in both commercial and residential sectors. This is a comprehensive global database about building occupant behavior. The database includes occupancy patterns (i.

Role of optical coherence tomography angiography in Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease.

Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease (VKH) is an autoimmune severe multisystem condition characterized by both ocular and systemic findings that should be promptly recognized and treated. Although invasive imaging modalities, namely fluorescein angiography and indocyanine green angiography, are still the gold standard for the diagnosis and follow-up of the ocular findings in VKH, the role of retinal non-invasive imaging including optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is under investigation and is not mentioned in the current diagnostic criteria of VKH. The aim of this manuscript was to report the clinical course and the multimodal retinal imaging of a VKH case and to discuss the role of OCTA in this condition.

Placoid lesions of the retina: progress in multimodal imaging and clinical perspective.

Placoid lesions of the retina may be secondary to a wide spectrum of acquired inflammatory conditions that have been reported as single entities with different presentation and clinical course. These conditions include acute posterior multifocal placoid pigment epitheliopathy, persistent placoid maculopathy, serpiginous choroiditis, serpiginous-like choroiditis, relentless placoid chorioretinitis and acute syphilitic posterior placoid chorioretinitis. In this article, we will group these conditions under the name of 'placoids'.

Distribution and Progression of Inflammatory Chorioretinal Lesions Related to Multifocal Choroiditis and Their Correlations with Clinical Outcomes at 24 Months.

Purpose: To analyze distribution and progression of multifocal choroiditis (MFC) inflammatory lesions and their correlations with clinical outcomes at 24 months.

Methods: Distribution and progression of inflammatory lesions were evaluated in eyes with MFC using a semi-automatic approach based on fundus autofluorescence. Twenty-four-months clinical outcomes were correlated with baseline features.

Intravitreal Dexamethasone Implant as a Sustained Release Drug Delivery Device for the Treatment of Ocular Diseases: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature.

Drug delivery into the vitreous chamber remains a great challenge in the pharmaceutical industry due to the complex anatomy and physiology of the eye. Intravitreal injection is the mainstream route of drug administration to the posterior segment of the eye. The purpose of this review is to assess the current literature about the widening use of the intravitreal 0.

Spontaneous resolution of acute syphilitic posterior placoid chorioretinitis: reappraisal of the literature and pathogenetic insights.

Acute syphilitic posterior placoid chorioretinitis (ASPPC) is a rare clinical manifestation of ocular syphilis. Spontaneous resolution of this condition has been reported in a few cases. The aim of this manuscript is to report an additional case and to discuss the possible pathogenesis of this condition by reviewing the current evidence on this subject.

Twenty-four-month outcomes of inflammatory choroidal neovascularisation treated with intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factors: a comparison between two treatment regimens.

Background And Aim: There is still no established treatment regimen for eyes with inflammatory choroidal neovascularisation (iCNV) treated with intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) injections. This study compared the 24-month outcomes of two treatment regimens of anti-VEGF injections in eyes with iCNV.

Methods: Eyes with iCNV treated with anti-VEGF injections were divided into two groups: eyes treated with a loading phase of 3 monthly injections and then re-treated as needed (LOADING group) and eyes treated as needed from the beginning (PRN group).

Defining Maximum Ecological Potential for heavily modified lowland streams of Northern Italy.

In relation to hydromorphological alteration the Water Framework Directive (WFD), a major piece of European legislation, has introduced the concept of Heavily Modified Water Bodies (HMWB). In water bodies falling in this category, hydromorphological modifications are permanent, significantly alter the character of the river and cannot be removed without compromising the use of the water body. In HMWBs a dedicated approach to the evaluation of their status is set, and their Ecological Potential must be assessed.

Normative Data for Retinal-Layer Thickness Maps Generated by Spectral-Domain OCT in a White Population.

Purpose: (1) To collect a dataset of normative Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) thickness map values for single retinal layers automatically segmented by Spectralis (Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany) spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT) in a healthy white population. (2) To test the effect of age, sex, and axial length (AXL) on such values.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

In-stream microhabitat mosaic depicts the success of mitigation measures and controls the Ecological Potential of benthic communities in heavily modified rivers.

The positive effect of mitigation measures on in-stream habitat conditions and the benthic community is recognised. In heavily modified rivers, though, the response of aquatic invertebrates to mitigation measures and habitat mosaic changes is scarcely documented. We used non-metric multidimensional scaling to explore the benthic community of leveed rivers in the agricultural lowlands of Northern Italy.

Choroidal Structural Changes Correlate With Neovascular Activity in Neovascular Age Related Macular Degeneration.

Purpose: To correlate changes in choroidal thickness and vascularity index with disease activity in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD).

Methods: Eyes diagnosed with AMD that had two sequential visits within 12 months and that had no choroidal neovascularization (CNV) or had inactive CNV at the first visit were included. Those that had active CNV at follow-up were enrolled as cases.

Reproducibility of Vessel Density, Fractal Dimension, and Foveal Avascular Zone Using 7 Different Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Devices.

Purpose: To evaluate the reproducibility of parafoveal microvascular anatomy of 7 different optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) devices by comparing vessel density (VD), fractal dimension (FD), and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) of superficial and deep capillary plexus in healthy volunteers.

Design: Reliability analysis.

Methods: Consecutive healthy volunteers presenting at the Eye Clinic, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Luigi Sacco Hospital, University of Milan in the same clinic visit were imaged by 7 different OCT-A devices: Optovue RTVue XR Avanti (Optovue, Inc, Fremont, California, USA), prototype Spectralis OCT-A (Spectralis; Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany), AngioPlex (Cirrus 5000 HD-OCT; Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc, Dublin, California, USA), prototype PlexElite (Carl Zeiss Meditec), RS-3000 Advance (Nidek, Gamagori, Japan), OCT-HS100 (Canon, Tokyo, Japan), and Revo NX (Optopol Technology SA, Zawiercie, Poland).

Detecting the impact of bank and channel modification on invertebrate communities in Mediterranean temporary streams (Sardinia, SW Italy).

We hypothesized that reach-scale, bank and channel modification would impact benthic communities in temporary rivers of Sardinia, when pollution and water abstraction are not relevant. A range of variables were considered, which include both artificial structures/alterations and natural features observed in a stream reach. Multivariate regression trees (MRT) were used to assess the effects of the explanatory variables on invertebrate assemblages and five groups, characterized by different habitat modification and/or features, were recognized.

A biological tool to assess flow connectivity in reference temporary streams from the Mediterranean Basin.

Many streams in the Mediterranean Basin have temporary flow regimes. While timing for seasonal drought is predictable, they undergo strong inter-annual variability in flow intensity. This high hydrological variability and associated ecological responses challenge the ecological status assessment of temporary streams, particularly when setting reference conditions.

[Epidemiology of sexting].

Aim: Aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence of sexting, defined as "the sharing of images or videos of sexually explicit content", identifying the age groups involved and assessing the possible cultural ties. The study also aimed at providing a clear picture of the phenomenon to educators and parents, an essential starting point for planning any effective educational program.

Methods: We performed a literature search on Medline (PubMed) database.

Comparability of ecological quality boundaries in the Mediterranean basin using freshwater benthic invertebrates. Statistical options and implications.

Within the Mediterranean region each country has its own assessment method based on aquatic macroinvertebrates. However, independently of the classification system, quality assessments should be comparable across members of the European Commission, which means, among others, that the boundaries between classes should not deviate significantly. Here we check for comparability between High-Good and Good-Moderate classifications, through the use of a common metric.

Least Disturbed Condition for European Mediterranean rivers.

The present report describes a three-step approach that was used to characterize and define thresholds for the Least Disturbed Condition in Mediterranean streams of four different types, regarding organic pollution and nutrients, hydrological and morphological alterations, and land use. For this purpose, a common database composed of national reference sites (929 records) from seven countries, sampled for invertebrates, diatoms and macrophytes was used. The analyses of reference sites showed that small (catchment <100 km(2)) siliceous and non-siliceous streams were mainly affected by channelization, bank alteration and hydropeaking.

Magnetic tweezers measurements of the nanomechanical stability of DNA against denaturation at various conditions of pH and ionic strength.

The opening of DNA double strands is extremely relevant to several biological functions, such as replication and transcription or binding of specific proteins. Such opening phenomenon is particularly sensitive to the aqueous solvent conditions in which the DNA molecule is dispersed, as it can be observed by considering the classical dependence of DNA melting temperature on pH and salt concentration. In the present work, we report a single-molecule study of the stability of DNA against denaturation when subjected to changes in solvent.