The oil from the heterotroph Schizochytrium is a rich source of n-3 PUFA, particularly DHA, and therefore highly susceptible to oxidation. The present work reports the first application of coaxial prilling for the protection of this oil through microencapsulation. After process optimization, core-shell microparticles were produced with calcium or zinc alginate at different concentrations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe production of aerogels for different applications has been widely known, but the use of polysaccharide-based aerogels for pharmaceutical applications, specifically as drug carriers for wound healing, is being recently explored. The main focus of this work is the production and characterization of drug-loaded aerogel capsules through prilling in tandem with supercritical extraction. In particular, drug-loaded particles were produced by a recently developed inverse gelation method through prilling in a coaxial configuration.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Matern Fetal Neonatal Med
October 2012
Very low birth weight and other critically ill neonates require prolonged vascular access, which is achieved in current practice with central venous catheters. The initiation of adequate parenteral nutrition and prolonged intravenous medications represent the most important applications. Central vascular access in neonates is associated with a high risk for mechanical, infectious and thrombotic complications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Hyperbilirubinemia can lead to potentially irreversible bilirubin-induced neurotoxicity. Transcutaneous bilirubin (TcB) determination has become a valuable aid in non invasive screening of neonatal jaundice.The aim of this study is to compare the performance of three most widespread transcutaneous bilirubinometers on a multiracial population of term and late pre-term neonates.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCeliac disease (CD) is a unique autoimmune disorder in which the genetic factors (DQ2/DQ8) and the environmental trigger (gluten) are known and necessary but not sufficient for its development. Other environmental components contributing to CD are poorly understood. Studies suggest that aspects of gluten intake might influence the risk of CD occurrence and timing of its onset, i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aim: Very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) neonates may develop severe intolerance to standard preterm formula especially if they are associated with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). We tested the hypothesis that these infants may tolerate an elemental, amino acid-based formula as a rescue feeding strategy.
Methods: In a prospective, case-control pilot study, we enrolled VLBW IUGR infants enterally fed with standard preterm formula (SPF) at daily increments of 16 mL/kg.
Purpose: We present a case-control study of seven polymorphisms of six genes involved in homocysteine/folate pathway as risk factors for Down syndrome. Gene-gene/allele-allele interactions, haplotype analysis and the association with age at conception were also evaluated.
Methods: We investigated 94 Down syndrome-mothers and 264 control-women from Campania, Italy.