Characteristics of out-of-hospital births and perinatal outcomes: data from the Lazio Region, Italy, cross-sectional study from 2019 to 2021.

Introduction: In Italy, the primary place of birth is typically a hospital, with only a small number of women opting for an out-of-hospital setting. This study details the characteristics of midwifery care and perinatal and maternal outcomes of women who gave birth in an out-of-hospital setting in the Lazio Region, Italy, from 2019 to 2021.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out.

Granulomatous Secondary Syphilis: A Case Report with a Brief Overview of the Diagnostic Role of Immunohistochemistry.

The diagnosis of syphilis can be challenging for dermatologists and dermatopathologists. In particular, secondary syphilis can have different clinical and histopathological presentations. A granulomatous tissue response is an unusual finding in secondary syphilis.

Complement protein C1q stimulates hyaluronic acid degradation gC1qR/HABP1/p32 in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Complement component C1q can act as a pro-tumorigenic factor in the tumor microenvironment (TME). The TME in malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is rich in C1q and hyaluronic acid (HA), whose interaction enhances adhesion, migration and proliferation of malignant cells. HA-bound C1q is also capable of modulating HA synthesis.

Partially Dedifferentiated Primitive Malignant Melanoma with Pseudo-Angiomatous Features: A Case Report with Review of the Literature.

Malignant melanoma (MM) is traditionally known as the "great mime" of human pathology, as it is potentially capable of imitating the most disparate neoplasms. It is known that in addition to the more classic histotypes of MM, there are also rare forms, including angiomatoid MM. Similarly, it has been amply demonstrated in the literature that MM is capable of dedifferentiating, losing melanocytic lineage markers, constituting a diagnostic challenge for the pathologist.

Monkeypox Virus Infections in Southern Italy: Is There a Risk for Community Spread?

The ongoing outbreak of the Monkeypox virus (MPXV) is characterized by sustained human-to-human transmission, particularly among men who have sex with men (MSM). The aim of the study was to describe the characteristics of the MPXV infection identified in Southern Italy. Clinical samples for each suspected case identified from 1 June to 1 August 2022 were tested for MPXV, and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) was performed on two strains.

C1q-HA Matrix Regulates the Local Synthesis of Hyaluronan in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma by Modulating HAS3 Expression.

Increased hyaluronic acid (HA) production is often associated with cancer progression. In malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), HA is found at elevated levels in pleural effusions and sera of patients, and it has been widely debated whether MPM cells are able to produce HA by themselves or through the release of growth factors stimulating other cells. Another key component of the MPM microenvironment is C1q, which can act as a pro-tumorigenic factor favoring cell adhesion, migration and proliferation.

The uptake of tau amyloid fibrils is facilitated by the cellular prion protein and hampers prion propagation in cultured cells.

Tauopathies are prevalent, invariably fatal brain diseases for which no cure is available. Tauopathies progressively affect the brain through cell-to-cell transfer of tau protein amyloids, yet the spreading mechanisms remain unknown. Here we show that the cellular prion protein (PrP ) facilitates the uptake of tau aggregates by cultured cells, possibly by acting as an endocytic receptor.

Effect of methylene blue photodynamic therapy on human neutrophil functional responses.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has become an emerging novel therapeutic approach for treating localized microbial infections, particularly those sustained by multidrug-resistant strains. Given the irreplaceable role played by professional phagocytes in limiting infections, such as polymorphonuclear neutrophils, any newly designed antimicrobial therapeutic approach must not interfere with their function. The present investigation presents a detailed analysis of the effect of PDT on the viability and several functional responses of human polymorphonuclear neutrophils loaded with methylene blue (MB), one of the more commonly used photosensitizers in antimicrobial PDT.

Efficacy and Tolerability of Polyphenon E in "Difficult-to-Treat" Multiple Genital Warts in an HIV-Positive Male Subject.

A 55-year-old man, nonsmoker, with a HIV-positive history came to our attention in February 2017. He was on treatment with Stribild, 1 capsule daily (150 mg elvitegravir, 150 mg cobicistat, 200 mg emtricitabine, and 245 mg tenofovir disoproxil). The CD4+/CD8+ cellular count was 326/µL (normal values: 404-1,612); the CD3+/CD8+ cellular count was 819/µL (normal values: 220-1,219).

Prevalence of breastfeeding in Italy: a population based follow-up study.

Introduction: Breastfeeding is widely recommended. Updated data are needed to assess its prevalence and the effectiveness of interventions. Breastfeeding practices in Italy need to be promoted and monitored with updated and standard data The objective of this study is to provide estimates of the prevalence of breastfeeding and exclusively breastfeeding and to identify factors that may be modified to improve them.

The effect of contraceptive counselling in the pre and post-natal period on contraceptive use at three months after delivery among Italian and immigrant women.

Introduction: Contraceptive counselling in the pre and post-natal period may be important for the use of postpartum contraception and prevention of induced abortion. This paper evaluates the use of postpartum contraceptives and the factors associated with it in a sample of Italian and immigrant women.

Materials And Methods: Data are drawn from two population-based follow-up surveys conducted to evaluate the quality of maternal care in 25 Italian Local Health Units in 2008/9 and 2010/1.

Assessment of postpartum perineal pain after vaginal delivery: prevalence, severity and determinants. A prospective observational study.

Aim: Perineal pain is present, after birth, in almost all (95-100%) women who have experienced perineal trauma. It has been shown that women with spontaneous vaginal delivery and minimal or absent perineal trauma will have better recoveries: less pain, more tonic perineal muscles, improved sexual function and lower rates of depression. The purpose of the present study was to prospectively assess the prevalence of perineal pain in a population of women with vaginal birth at term and physiological single newborn.

Inequalities in maternal care in Italy: the role of socioeconomic and migrant status.

Introduction: Maternal care is affected by socioeconomic factors. This study analyses the effect of maternal education, employment and citizenship on some antenatal and postnatal care indicators in Italy.

Methods: Data are from two population-based follow-up surveys conducted to evaluate the quality of maternal care in 25 Italian Local Health Units in 2008/9 and 2010/1 (6942 women).

Smoking behaviour before, during, and after pregnancy: the effect of breastfeeding.

Data for this study were obtained from a population-based follow-up study in 25 Italian Local Health Units (LHUs) to evaluate pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum care in Italy. A sample of 3534 women was recruited and interviewed within a few days of their giving birth and at 3, 6, and 12 months after delivery, by trained interviewers using questionnaires. The objective of the study was to evaluate changes in smoking behaviour from one interview to the next.

The patterns of spontaneous Ca2+ signals generated by ventral spinal neurons in vitro show time-dependent refinement.

Embryonic spinal neurons maintained in organotypic slice culture are known to mimic certain maturation-dependent signalling changes. With such a model we investigated, in embryonic mouse spinal segments, the age-dependent spatio-temporal control of intracellular Ca(2+) signalling generated by neuronal populations in ventral circuits and its relation with electrical activity. We used Ca(2+) imaging to monitor areas located within the ventral spinal horn at 1 and 2 weeks of in vitro growth.

Alginate/Hydroxyapatite biocomposite for bone ingrowth: a trabecular structure with high and isotropic connectivity.

Alginate/hydroxyapatite composite scaffolds were developed using a novel production design. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) was incorporated into an alginate solution and internal gelling was induced by addition of slowly acid hydrolyzing d-gluconic acid delta-lactone (GDL) for the direct release of calcium ions from HAp. Hydrogels were then freeze-casted to produce a three-dimensional isotropic porous network.

Carbon nanotubes might improve neuronal performance by favouring electrical shortcuts.

Carbon nanotubes have been applied in several areas of nerve tissue engineering to probe and augment cell behaviour, to label and track subcellular components, and to study the growth and organization of neural networks. Recent reports show that nanotubes can sustain and promote neuronal electrical activity in networks of cultured cells, but the ways in which they affect cellular function are still poorly understood. Here, we show, using single-cell electrophysiology techniques, electron microscopy analysis and theoretical modelling, that nanotubes improve the responsiveness of neurons by forming tight contacts with the cell membranes that might favour electrical shortcuts between the proximal and distal compartments of the neuron.

Alopecia areata and autoimmunity.

Aim: The aim of the present study was to estimate the association between alopecia areata (AA) and autoimmunity. To such scope, the authors have estimated the presence of autoantibodies in patients with alopecia areata joints to the authors' observation in the last two years.

Methods: In 63 patients affected with different forms of AA (45 cases with multiple patches, 10 with single patch, 5 with alopecia totalis and 3 with alopecia universalis), has been estimated a autoantibodies panel.

N-methyl-D-aspartate triggers neonatal rat hypoglossal motoneurons in vitro to express rhythmic bursting with unusual Mg2+ sensitivity.

The brainstem nucleus hypoglossus innervates the tongue which must contract rhythmically during respiration, chewing and swallowing. Such rhythmic discharges are due to network bursting mediated by AMPA receptor-dependent glutamatergic transmission. The contribution by hypoglossal motoneurons themselves to rhythmicity remains, however, unclear as they might simply express cyclic patterns produced by premotoneurons or, in analogy to spinal motoneurons, might participate to bursting due to activation of their N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors.

ERG conductance expression modulates the excitability of ventral horn GABAergic interneurons that control rhythmic oscillations in the developing mouse spinal cord.

During antenatal development, the operation and maturation of mammalian spinal networks strongly depend on the activity of ventral horn GABAergic interneurons that mediate excitation first and inhibition later. Although the functional consequence of GABA actions may depend on maturational processes in target neurons, it is also likely that evolving changes in GABAergic transmission require fine-tuning in GABA release, probably via certain intrinsic mechanisms regulating GABAergic neuron excitability at different embryonic stages. Nevertheless, it has not been possible, to date, to identify certain ionic conductances upregulated or downregulated before birth in such cells.

[How Italian midwives contribute to breastfeeding promotion: a national experience of "cascade" training].

Social changes of the last century have increasingly transformed maternity and newborn care into a medical act and have greatly reduced the number of breastfeeding women. In Italy, the explicit aim of the Ministry of Health concerning mother and child health (Progetto-Obiettivo Materno-Infantile) is to bring this process back to a more natural activity. The prevalence of women who breastfed after the third month of life has been set as an indicator of the effectiveness of mother and child health services.

The effects induced by the sulphonylurea glibenclamide on the neonatal rat spinal cord indicate a novel mechanism to control neuronal excitability and inhibitory neurotransmission.

Background And Purpose: Using the neonatal rat spinal cord in vitro, we investigated the action of glibenclamide, a drug possessing dual pharmacological effects, namely block of K(ATP) channels and of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR).

Experimental Approach: Intra- and extracellular recordings were performed on motoneurons and interneurons. RT-PCR and western immunoblotting were used to determine gene and protein expression.