Diagnosis of Brugada syndrome affects quality of life and psychological status.

Background: Chronic diseases have a negative impact on quality of life (QOL) and psychological health. There are limited related data regarding this topic in Brugada syndrome (BrS). We evaluated the effects of the diagnosis of BrS on health-related QOL and psychological status among patients and their relatives.

-Cinnamaldehyde as a Novel Candidate to Overcome Bacterial Resistance: An Overview of In Vitro Studies.

The increasing of drug-resistant bacteria and the scanty availability of novel effective antibacterial agents represent alarming problems of the modern society, which stimulated researchers to investigate novel strategies to replace or assist synthetic antibiotics. A great deal of attention has been devoted over the years to essential oils that contain mixtures of volatile compounds and have been traditionally exploited as antimicrobial remedies. Among the essential oil phytochemicals, remarkable antimicrobial and antibiotic-potentiating activities have been highlighted for cinnamaldehyde, an α,β-unsaturated aldehyde, particularly abundant in the essential oils of spp.

Design and biofabrication of bacterial living materials with robust and multiplexed biosensing capabilities.

The intertwined adoption of synthetic biology and 3D bioprinting has the potential to improve different application fields by fabricating engineered living materials (ELMs) with unnatural genetically-encoded sense & response capabilities. However, efforts are still needed to streamline the fabrication of sensing ELMs compatible with field use and improving their functional complexity. To investigate these two unmet needs, we adopted a workflow to reproducibly construct bacterial ELMs with synthetic biosensing circuits that provide red pigmentation as visible readout in response to different proof-of-concept chemical inducers.

Intensity of acute aerobic exercise but not aerobic fitness impacts on corticospinal excitability.

Aerobic exercise (AE) modulates cortical excitability. It can alter both corticospinal excitability and intra-cortical networks, which has implications for its use as a tool to facilitate processes such as motor learning, where increased levels of excitability are conducive to the induction of neural plasticity. Little is known about how different intensities of AE modulate cortical excitability or how individual-level characteristics impact on it.

Structural characterization of aerogels derived from enzymatically oxidized galactomannans of fenugreek, sesbania and guar gums.

Aerogels are obtained by laccase/2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl)oxyl (TEMPO)-oxidation of galactomannans (GMs) from the leguminous plants fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum), sesbania (Sesbania bispinosa) and guar (Cyamopsis tetragonolobus). GM oxidation in aqueous solutions causes a viscosity increase, resulting in structured and stable hydrogels. Upon lyophilization, water-insoluble aerogels are obtained, capable of water uptake up to several times their own weight.

Haptic communication between humans is tuned by the hard or soft mechanics of interaction.

To move a hard table together, humans may coordinate by following the dominant partner's motion [1-4], but this strategy is unsuitable for a soft mattress where the perceived forces are small. How do partners readily coordinate in such differing interaction dynamics? To address this, we investigated how pairs tracked a target using flexion-extension of their wrists, which were coupled by a hard, medium or soft virtual elastic band. Tracking performance monotonically increased with a stiffer band for the worse partner, who had higher tracking error, at the cost of the skilled partner's muscular effort.

Are small strongyles (Cyathostominae) involved in horse colic occurrence?

Strongyle infections have been traditionally regarded as a possible cause of colic in horses. Aim of the study was the comparison of parasitological status between subjects with or without colic syndrome, with particular attention to small strongyle infections. Coprological analyses were performed on 86 horses: 43 with colic and 43 controls.

Redescription of the male of Ixodes festai Rondelli, 1926 (Ixodida: Ixodidae) on specimens from Sardinia (Italy).

Ixodes festai Rondelli, 1926 is a poorly known bird parasite tick. Its immature forms have not been described yet, while the adult forms only insufficiently, especially the male. In this note the presence of the male of Ixodes festai for the first time in Sardinia (Italy) is reported and a detailed redescription is provided.

Strongylosis in horses slaughtered in Italy for meat production: epidemiology, influence of the horse origin and evidence of parasite self-regulation.

The influence of host and parasite-related factors on the strongyle infection in 50 horses coming from 6 European countries and slaughtered in Italy for meat production was investigated using a multivariable modelling approach. The study was carried out by examining adult helminths, faecal eggs (identified by culture to the third larval stage) and mucosal larval stages of Cyathostominae. A modified Transmural Illumination technique (TMI) has been performed and Cyathostominae empty mucosal cysts were also evaluated in order to obtain further indications about small strongyles dynamic.

Spirocerca lupi isolated from gastric lesions in foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Sicily (Italy).

Spirocerca lupi (Rudolphi 1809) is a cosmopolitan nematode of dogs and wild carnivores. In the past it has been reported in Italy, mainly in southern regions and in Sicily, where the parasite was observed in foxes in 2005. The parasite typically produces nodular masses in the oesophagus and thoracic aorta.

Early changes in hepatitis C viral quasispecies during interferon therapy predict the therapeutic outcome.

Despite recent treatment advances, the majority of patients with chronic hepatitis C fail to respond to antiviral therapy. Although the genetic basis for this resistance is unknown, accumulated evidence suggests that changes in the heterogeneous viral population (quasispecies) may be an important determinant of viral persistence and response to therapy. Sequences within hepatitis C virus (HCV) envelope 1 and envelope 2 genes, inclusive of the hypervariable region 1, were analyzed in parallel with the level of viral replication in serial serum samples obtained from 23 patients who exhibited different patterns of response to therapy and from untreated controls.

Endothelin 1 in migraine and tension-type headache.

We determined the plasma levels of ET1, both interictally and ictally, in 50 migraine patients, 20 with aura (MPA) and 30 without aura (MPWA), comparing them with the levels of 40 age-matched tension-type headache patients (20 episodic and 20 chronic) (ETTHP and CTTHP) and the levels of a group of 20 healthy control subjects (CS). No statistically significant difference was evident between the mean ET1 plasma levels of MPA and those of MPWA, assessed in headache-free periods. The mean ET1 plasma levels of MPA and MPWA, assessed interictally, were significantly higher than those of CS.

Neuropeptide Y plasma levels and serum dopamine-beta-hydroxylase activity in MS patients with and without abnormal cardiovascular reflexes.

An impairment in the autonomic function has been demonstrated in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) using electrophysiological, pupillary and biochemical tests. Particularly evident were alterations in the cardiovascular reflexes, cutaneous sympathetic response and lymphomonocyte adrenergic binding. Electrophysiological and biochemical findings in MS patients have only occasionally been compared.

Neuropeptide Y in juvenile migraine and tension-type headache.

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is widely distributed throughout sympathetic nerve endings where it is co-stored and co-secreted with noradrenaline. It is considered a marker of noradrenergic function. To determine the role of NPY in the pathogenesis of juvenile headache, we determined its plasma levels in two groups of young migraine patients (with and without aura), in a group of episodic tension-type headache patients and in a group of age and sex-matched healthy subjects.

Role of viruses in the etiopathogenesis of multiple sclerosis.

Epidemiological studies performed to identify the possible cause of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) suggest that an environmental agent could be involved in its etiopathogenesis. For a long time it has been hypothesized that this agent was a virus, but until now no virus specific to MS has been consistently identified. Animal models indicate that the demyelination of the central nervous system can be induced by certain families of viruses, but the implication of this in the etiopathogenesis of MS has not been clearly demonstrated.