Body image distortion: validation of a new scale for children and adolescents.

Background: A possible definition of body image is the picture that an individual has of her/his own body, irrespective of how her/his body actually is. Body image is a competence that develops in children similar to many other skills. The aim of this study was to validate a new rapid 20-items questionnaire to study the body image distortion in children and adolescents: the Strange Sensations Questionnaire (SSQ).

Addition of 5% CO to Inspiratory Gas Prevents Lung Injury in an Experimental Model of Pulmonary Artery Ligation.

Unilateral ligation of the pulmonary artery may induce lung injury through multiple mechanisms, which might be dampened by inhaled CO. This study aims to characterize bilateral lung injury owing to unilateral ligation of the pulmonary artery in healthy swine undergoing controlled mechanical ventilation and its prevention by 5% CO inhalation and to investigate relevant pathophysiological mechanisms. Sixteen healthy pigs were allocated to surgical ligation of the left pulmonary artery (ligation group), seven to surgical ligation of the left pulmonary artery and inhalation of 5% CO (ligation + Fi 5%), and six to no intervention (no ligation).

The Validation of the Free Fantasy Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents: From Imaginary Playmate to "Dreamtime".

Fantasy in children is a precocious and important skill. In normal subjects some imaginative events, very close to hallucinations (perception-like experiences), have been found. Therefore, a better knowledge on both fantasy and the difference between imagination and the external world is needed.

Emerging roles of long non-coding RNAs in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a heterogeneous neurodegenerative disorder and represents the most common form of senile dementia. The pathogenesis of AD is not yet completely understood and no curative treatment is currently available. With the recent advancement in transcriptome-wide profiling approach, several non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have been identified.

Activation of angiotensin type 2 (AT2) receptors prevents myocardial hypertrophy in Zucker diabetic fatty rats.

Aims: Compound 21 (C21), selective AT2 receptor agonist, has cardioprotective effects in experimental models of hypertension and myocardial infarction. The aims of the study was to evaluate the effect of C21, losartan, or both in Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats (type 2 diabetes) on (1) the prevention of myocardial hypertrophy; (2) myocardial expression of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN), a target gene of miR-30a-3p, involved in myocardial remodelling.

Methods: Experiments were performed in ZDF (n = 33) and in control Lean (8) rats.

Angiotensin type-2 (AT-2)-receptor activation reduces renal fibrosis in cyclosporine nephropathy: evidence for blood pressure independent effect.

Compound 21 (C21), selective agonist of angiotensin type-2 (AT-2) receptors, shows anti-inflammatory effects in experimental models of hypertension and nephroprotection in diabetes. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of C21 in cyclosporine nephropathy, which is characterized mainly by tubulo-interstitial fibrosis. Ten days before and during the experimental periods, low-salt diet was administered to Sprague-Dawley rats.

Different regulation of miR-29a-3p in glomeruli and tubules in an experimental model of angiotensin II-dependent hypertension: potential role in renal fibrosis.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of the angiotensin II (Ang II) induced-differential miRNA expression in renal glomerular and tubulo-interstitial fibrosis in an experimental model of Ang II-dependent hypertension. To clarify this issue, Sprague Dawley rats were treated with Ang II (200 ng/kg per minute, n = 15) or physiological saline (n = 14) for 4 weeks. Systolic blood pressure and albuminuria were measured every 2 weeks.

Next-generation sequencing analysis of miRNA expression in control and FSHD myogenesis.

Emerging evidence has demonstrated that miRNA sequences can regulate skeletal myogenesis by controlling the process of myoblast proliferation and differentiation. However, at present a deep analysis of miRNA expression in control and FSHD myoblasts during differentiation has not yet been derived. To close this gap, we used a next-generation sequencing (NGS) approach applied to in vitro myogenesis.

Comorbid Depressive Disorders in ADHD: The Role of ADHD Severity, Subtypes and Familial Psychiatric Disorders.

Objective: To evaluate the presence of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Dysthymic Disorder (DD) in a sample of Italian children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and to explore specific features of comorbid depressive disorders in ADHD.

Methods: Three hundred and sixty-six consecutive, drug-naïve Caucasian Italian outpatients with ADHD were recruited and comorbid disorders were evaluated using DSM-IV-TR criteria. To evaluate ADHD severity, parents of all children filled out the ADHD Rating Scale.