Expression of miRNA from spent pre-implantation embryos culture media.

This study examines the expression of three microRNAs (hsa-miR-661, hsa-miR-21-5p, hsa-miR-372-5p) in spent pre-implantation embryos culture media to identify possible new non-invasive biomarkers of embryo competence, predictive of development to the blastocyst stage. A preliminary analysis on 16 patients undergoing IVF cycles was performed by collecting and stored spent culture media on the fifth/sixth day of embryo culture. Expression of miRNAs was evaluated according to the embryos' fate: 1) NE/DG: non-evolved or degenerate embryos; 2) BLOK: embryos developed to the blastocyst stage.

Calprotectin as a novel diagnostic approach to screen male infertility risk: A pilot study.

Research Question: Diagnosis of male infertility is essentially based on the evaluation of semen quality (sperm concentration, motility, viability, and morphology). However, there is a lack of knowledge about possible molecules used as candidates for the early identification of male infertility risk. Calprotectin is a biological marker for inflammation, measured prevalently in stool specimens, widely used to discriminate between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and for the subsequent monitoring of gastrointestinal diseases' development.

Myeloperoxidase and lactoferrin expression in semen fluid: Novel markers of male infertility risk?

Research Question: Infections and/or inflammation processes of male genital tract are highly prevalent and often associated with risk of infertility. These conditions represent a possible cause of leukocytospermia, which is still under debate. Leukocytes are key-factors to reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and the increase of ROS in semen fluid is associated with the worsening of semen parameters.

A case-control study on GB virus C/hepatitis G virus infection and hepatocellular carcinoma. Brescia HCC Study.

A new hepatitis-associated RNA virus of the Flaviviridae family has been identified and named GB virus C/ hepatitis G virus (HGV). We carried out a case-control study to evaluate the association of HGV infection with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We recruited 170 patients hospitalized for HCC (143 male and 27 female, mean age 64 years) and 306 patients hospitalized for nonliver diseases (controls) in Brescia, Italy.

Cigarette smoking and sports participation in adolescents: a cross-sectional survey among high school students in Italy.

All the male students in a high school in Brescia, North Italy (about 195,000 inhabitants) in Grades 9 through 13 were given a self-administered anonymous questionnaire during school time. Among the 1,462 students who filled in a valid questionnaire, 29.1% claimed to practice one or more sports regularly (at least 4 hours/week for 9 months/year or more), 30.

Hepatitis B and C virus infection, alcohol drinking, and hepatocellular carcinoma: a case-control study in Italy. Brescia HCC Study.

We performed a case-control study to assess the association of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and alcohol drinking. We recruited as cases 172 subjects with an initial diagnosis of HCC, who were admitted to the two major hospitals in the province of Brescia, northern Italy, and 332 subjects, sex-, age-, and hospital-matched, who were admitted to the Departments of Ophthalmology, Dermatology, Urology, Cardiology, and Internal Medicine, as controls. Of the HCC cases, 23.

[Evaluation of a health education program for preventing alcohol and tobacco abuse in a health unit in Lombardi, Italy].

The effectiveness of a health education programme for prevention of alcohol abuse and tobacco smoking among adolescents was assessed by an intervention study with a non-randomized control group. The study was carried out among 7th-9th grade school students in a Local Health Unit of the Brescia province, North Italy. Students were enrolled in either the intervention or the control group, based on the participation of their teachers to the educational programme.

Primary liver cancer in a high-incidence area in north Italy: etiological hypotheses arising from routinely collected data.

The incidence rate for primary liver cancer (PLC) was investigated in the Health Unit of Brescia (about 325,000 inhabitants), North Italy, in the 5-year period 1986-90, in order to ascertain whether there was a high risk for developing the disease in the area as suggested by mortality data. A total of 349 incident cases were observed (male: female ratio = 3.4: 1), of which 182 (52.