A CLEIA Antigen Assay in Diagnosis and Follow-Up of SARS-CoV-2-Positive Subjects.

This study includes 259 consecutive nasopharyngeal swabs which tested positive for a molecular SARS-CoV-2 test and 77 subjects who were followed longitudinally, with nasopharyngeal swabs performed weekly until clinical recovery and a negative result for the molecular test were reached. All swabs were also tested with a Lumipulse SARS-CoV-2 chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA) antigen assay. The antigen test was positive in 169 (65.

Microglia contribute to the propagation of Aβ into unaffected brain tissue.

Microglia appear activated in the vicinity of amyloid beta (Aβ) plaques, but whether microglia contribute to Aβ propagation into unaffected brain regions remains unknown. Using transplantation of wild-type (WT) neurons, we show that Aβ enters WT grafts, and that this is accompanied by microglia infiltration. Manipulation of microglia function reduced Aβ deposition within grafts.

Distinct Aβ pathology in the olfactory bulb and olfactory deficits in a mouse model of Aβ and α-syn co-pathology.

Several degenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD) and Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) are characterized by the simultaneous appearance of amyloid-β (Aβ) and α-synuclein (α-syn) pathologies and symptoms that are similar, making it difficult to differentiate between these diseases. Until now, an accurate diagnosis can only be made by postmortem analysis. Furthermore, the role of α-syn in Aβ aggregation and the arising characteristic olfactory impairments observed during the progression of these diseases is still not well understood.

Immunity Profiling of COVID-19 Infection, Dynamic Variations of Lymphocyte Subsets, a Comparative Analysis on Four Different Groups.

Background: A novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2)-induced pneumonia (COVID-19) emerged in December 2019 in China, spreading worldwide. The aim of the present investigation was to evaluate the immunological response and the clinical subset of peripheral lymphocyte subset alteration in COVID-19 infection.

Methods: the study was conducted on four different clinical groups ( = 4; total = 138).

Meclofenamate causes loss of cellular tethering and decoupling of functional networks in glioblastoma.

Background: Glioblastoma cells assemble to a syncytial communicating network based on tumor microtubes (TMs) as ultra-long membrane protrusions. The relationship between network architecture and transcriptional profile remains poorly investigated. Drugs that interfere with this syncytial connectivity such as meclofenamate (MFA) may be highly attractive for glioblastoma therapy.

Clinical and diagnostic findings in COVID-19 patients: an original research from SG Moscati Hospital in Taranto Italy.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a worldwide medical challenge due to the scarcity of proper information and remedial resources. The ability to efficiently avoid a further SARS-CoV-2 pandemic will, therefore, depend on understanding several factors which include host immunity, virus behavior, prevention measures, and new therapies. This is a multi-phase observatory study conducted in the SG Moscati Hospital of Taranto in Italy that was converted into COVID-19 Special Care Unit for SARS-Co-V2 risk management.

Detection of Synaptic Proteins in Microglia by Flow Cytometry.

A growing body of evidence indicates that microglia actively remove synapses , thereby playing a key role in synaptic refinement and modulation of brain connectivity. This phenomenon was mainly investigated in immunofluorescence staining and confocal microscopy. However, a quantification of synaptic material in microglia using these techniques is extremely time-consuming and labor-intensive.

Mechanisms of Pathogenic Tau and Aβ Protein Spreading in Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is pathologically defined by extracellular accumulation of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides generated by the cleavage of amyloid precursor protein (APP), strings of hyperphosphorylated Tau proteins accumulating inside neurons known as neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) and neuronal loss. The association between the two hallmarks and cognitive decline has been known since the beginning of the 20th century when the first description of the disease was carried out by Alois Alzheimer. Today, more than 40 million people worldwide are affected by AD that represents the most common cause of dementia and there is still no effective treatment available to cure the disease.

A Subset of Skin Macrophages Contributes to the Surveillance and Regeneration of Local Nerves.

The skin comprises tissue macrophages as the most abundant resident immune cell type. Their diverse tasks including resistance against invading pathogens, attraction of bypassing immune cells from vessels, and tissue repair require dynamic specification. Here, we delineated the postnatal development of dermal macrophages and their differentiation into subsets by adapting single-cell transcriptomics, fate mapping, and imaging.

Environmental enrichment reverses Aβ pathology during pregnancy in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Several studies suggest that women have a higher risk to develop Alzheimer's disease (AD) than men. In particular, the number of pregnancies was shown to be a risk factor for AD and women with several pregnancies on average had an earlier onset of the disease, thus making childbearing a risk factor. However, the impact of being pregnant on Aβ plaque pathology and adult neurogenesis still remains elusive.

Seed-induced Aβ deposition is modulated by microglia under environmental enrichment in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by severe neuronal loss as well as the accumulation of amyloid-β (Aβ), which ultimately leads to plaque formation. Although there is now a general agreement that the aggregation of Aβ can be initiated by prion-like seeding, the impact and functional consequences of induced Aβ deposits (Aβ seeding) on neurons still remain open questions. Here, we find that Aβ seeding, representing early stages of plaque formation, leads to a dramatic decrease in proliferation and neurogenesis in two APP transgenic mouse models.

Lasers for caries removal in deciduous and permanent teeth.

Background: Despite considerable improvements in oral health, dental caries continue to be a public health issue. The most frequently used, and universally accepted technique, to remove caries is through mechanical ablation of decayed tissues by means of rotating drills (diamond or tungsten carbide, or both). In the past few decades, the introduction of adhesive filling materials (resin composites) has affected cavity filling procedures by reducing its retention needs, with advantages for dental tissue conservation.

Supracricoid laryngectomies: oncological and functional results for 152 patients.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the oncological and functional outcomes in patients who underwent supracricoid laryngectomies with a crico-hyoidopexy (SCL-CHP) or a crico-hyoido-epiglottopexy (SCL-CHEP) for the treatment of primary and reccurent laryngeal cancer. A retrospective study was conducted on 152 consecutive patients seen from January 1996 to December 2006. Overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were analysed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and were compared according to the type of surgery and clinical stage of the tumour.

Selective vulnerability of spinal and cortical motor neuron subpopulations in delta7 SMA mice.

Loss of the survival motor neuron gene (SMN1) is responsible for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), the most common inherited cause of infant mortality. Even though the SMA phenotype is traditionally considered as related to spinal motor neuron loss, it remains debated whether the specific targeting of motor neurons could represent the best therapeutic option for the disease. We here investigated, using stereological quantification methods, the spinal cord and cerebral motor cortex of ∆7 SMA mice during development, to verify extent and selectivity of motor neuron loss.

Mechanical effect of static loading on endodontically treated teeth restored with fiber-reinforced posts.

The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanical behavior of a dental system built up with fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) endodontic posts with different types of fibers and two cements (the first one used with a primer, the second one without it). Six FRC posts were used. Each system was characterized in terms of structural efficiency under external applied loads similar to masticatory forces.

Compressive and flexural behaviour of fibre reinforced endodontic posts.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanical properties of five types of fibre-reinforced composite (FRC) posts and compare them with traditional metal post.

Methods: Five FRC posts and a metallic post having different geometry and type of fibre (glass, carbon or quartz fibre) were loaded to failure in compression and bending. The transverse sections of FRC posts were observed using SEM to evaluate the fracture mode and the percentage of fibres (compared with burn-off test).

Human axonal survival of motor neuron (a-SMN) protein stimulates axon growth, cell motility, C-C motif ligand 2 (CCL2), and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1) production.

Spinal muscular atrophy is a fatal genetic disease of motoneurons due to loss of full-length survival of motor neuron protein, the main product of the disease gene SMN1. Axonal SMN (a-SMN) is an alternatively spliced isoform of SMN1, generated by retention of intron 3. To study a-SMN function, we generated cellular clones for the expression of the protein in mouse motoneuron-like NSC34 cells.

Spinal muscular atrophy pathogenic mutations impair the axonogenic properties of axonal-survival of motor neuron.

The axonal survival of motor neuron (a-SMN) protein is a truncated isoform of SMN1, the spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) disease gene. a-SMN is selectively localized in axons and endowed with remarkable axonogenic properties. At present, the role of a-SMN in SMA is unknown.

Otorhinolaryngology-related tuberculosis.

Data from personal case histories, from 1984 to 2000 inclusive, are reported in order to contribute to a better understanding of some of the clinical and epidemiological ENT associated TB aspects. Analysis of these data shows that: (1) Like the pulmonary form, ENT localizations are increasing due to the traditional risk factors (immigration, poverty, immunodeficiency, drug addiction). (2) They are generally clinically primitive forms (which are found in extrapulmonary regions as the first expression of tubercular disease) and typically affect young people with a slight prevalence among females.

Epidemiological and virological assessment of influenza activity in Apulia, Italy, during the seasons 2004 - 2005 and 2005 - 2006.

This study evaluated the impact of influenza and vaccination coverage in Apulia, Italy, during the 2004 - 2005 and 2005 - 2006 seasons, using epidemiological and virological surveillance data collected through the Italian Net of Surveillance of Influenza (InfluNet) organized by the Superior Institute of Health (ISS) and the Inter-University Centre of Research on Influenza (CIRI). Vaccination coverage was calculated from the number of doses administered to individuals aged >or= 65 years. Sentinel physicians reported weekly influenza-like illness (ILI) and acute respiratory illness (ARI) occurrences among patients.

MTBE ambient water quality criteria development: a public/private partnership.

A public/private partnership was established in 1997, under the administrative oversight of the American Petroleum Institute (API), to develop aquatic toxicity data sufficient to calculate ambient water quality criteria for methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE), a gasoline oxygenate. The MTBE Water Quality Criteria Work Group consisted of representatives from private companies, trade associations, and USEPA. Funding was provided by the private entities, while aquatic biological/toxicological expertise was provided by industry and USEPA scientists.

Cerebellar nodulectomy impairs spatial memory of vestibular and optokinetic stimulation in rabbits.

Natural vestibular and optokinetic stimulation were used to investigate the possible role of the cerebellar nodulus in the regulation and modification of reflexive eye movements in rabbits. The nodulus and folium 9d of the uvula were destroyed by surgical aspiration. Before and after nodulectomy the vertical and horizontal vestibuloocular reflexes (VVOR, HVOR) were measured during sinusoidal vestibular stimulation about the longitudinal (roll) and vertical (yaw) axes.

Role of cerebellar nodulus and uvula on the vestibular quick phase spatial constancy.

We investigated the orientation of quick phases (QPs) of vestibularly-induced eye movements in rabbits in response to "off-vertical" sinusoidal vestibular stimulation. We also examined the possible role of the cerebellar nodulus and ventral uvula in controlling QP spatial orientation and modification. During "off-vertical" vestibular stimulation QPs remained aligned with the earth's horizontal plane, while the slow phases (SPs) were aligned with the plane of vestibular stimulation.