Pre-HIV α4β7hi CD4+ T cells and HIV risk among heterosexual individuals in Africa.

Background: CD4+ T cells expressing α4β7 are optimal targets for HIV infections, with higher pre-HIV α4β7hi expression linked to increased HIV acquisition and progression in South African women. However, similar associations were not observed in men who have sex with men (MSM) or people who inject drugs (PWID) in the Americas, indicating need for further research.

Methods: This retrospective case-control study enrolled heterosexual men and women from South Africa (HIV Vaccine Trials Network; HVTN 503) and East Africa (Partners Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis/Couples' Observational Study; PP/COS), quantifying α4β7 expression on CD4+ T cells as a predictor of subsequent HIV risk using flow cytometry analyses.

Effects of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Treatment on Vascular Function in a Real-Life Cohort of Elderly Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnoea Syndrome.

Background: Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality and has a detrimental effect on vascular function, in particular on arterial stiffness and endothelial function. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the gold-standard therapy for OSAS and its effects on arterial stiffness and endothelial function have been demonstrated in non-elderly patients.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of one year of CPAP treatment on arterial stiffness, through assessment of carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cf-PWV), and on endothelial function, through the reactive hyperaemia index (RHi), in a real-life cohort of elderly patients with moderate-to-severe OSAS and several comorbidities.

Synergy-Dependent Center-of-Mass Control Strategies During Sit-to-Stand Movements.

The characterization, through the concept of muscle synergies, of clinical functional tests is a valid tool that has been widely adopted in the research field. While this theory has been exploited for a description of the motor control strategies underlying the biomechanical task, the biomechanical correlate of the synergistic activity is yet to be fully described. In this paper, the relationship between the activity of different synergies and the center of mass kinematic patterns has been investigated; in particular, a group of healthy subjects has been recruited to perform simple sit-to-stand tasks, and the electromyographic data has been recorded for the extraction of muscle synergies.