This paper presents an overview on the response of the healthcare system in the area mostly affected by the 2016 Central Italy earthquake based on specific surveys and information from local health ...authorities. The authors collected in the field information on the seismic response capacity of the healthcare system. They surveyed five hospital complexes from medium to small dimension whose maximum capacity was up to 50 beds. This type of hospitals are representative of those ones present in the small towns located along the Apennines mountain range, usually including few buildings (i.e. 3–5) constructed in different periods and with different structural types. In all the surveyed hospitals there were partially or totally unusable buildings causing severe limitations to the functionality of the healthcare services, forcing to move many patients to other hospitals and to stop outpatient treatment. This was due mainly to severe damage to non-structural components and, in some cases, to moderate damage to structural components. In the present paper, two hospital case studies, namely “Tolentino” and “San Severino” hospitals, both located in Marche region, are analysed and discussed in detail in order to better understand their performance to the earthquakes, by also estimating their seismic risk via simplified methods, including the WHO Safety Index and the Cosenza and Manfredi (in: Fajfar and Krawinkler (eds) Seismic design methodologies for the next generation of codes, Balkema, Rotterdam,
1997
) damage index.
Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is an ancient Andean crop that produces edible seeds and leaves. Quinoa's tolerance to salinity and other types of abiotic stresses provides it with high potential ...in a world where scarcity of water and increased soil salinization are important causes of crop failures. Due to its traditionally broad cultivation area (from Colombia to southern Chile), there is a wide range of quinoa cultivars adapted to specific conditions displaying a broad genetic variability in stress tolerance. In addition, being practically unique as a halophytic seed-producing crop with amazing nutritional properties, it is ideal as a model species for investigating morphological, cellular, physiological, and bio-molecular mechanisms of salinity tolerance. This review summarizes current knowledge of genotype-dependent variability in salinity responses and adaptive salt-tolerance mechanisms in quinoa. These include anatomical features and physiological aspects, such as osmotic adjustment through accumulation of ions, osmoprotectants, and sodium loading, transport, and storage, including the activity and gene expression of plasma and vacuolar membrane transporters. Finally, current knowledge regarding the effect of salinity on the nutritional properties of quinoa is discussed.
•An LC–MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantitation of enmetazobactam (also known as AAI101) and cefepime in human plasma was developed and validated.•Enmetazobactam and cefepime and their stable ...labelled internal standards were extracted from human plasma by protein precipitation.•The method validated over the range 0.05–50 μg/mL for enmetazobactam and 0.5–500 μg/mL for cefepime proved to be precise, accurate and selective.•This method was successfully applied to measure the concentrations of enmetazobactam and cefepime in human plasma samples following intravenous administration.
A simple ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the simultaneous analysis enmetazobactam (also known as AAI101) and cefepime in human plasma. Sample preparation was based on protein precipitation with acetonitrile. Separation was performed on Acquity BEH HILIC column (50 mm × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) with a mobile phase containing ammonium formate in water and acetonitrile. The analytes were analyzed with the corresponding isotopically labeled internal standards and were detected in multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) using API 5000 triple-quadrupole mass spectrometer with electrospray (ESI) source operating in positive ion mode. The calibration curves were linear over the selected ranges (r > 0.9970 for both analytes). The intra and inter-assay precision of the Quality Control samples showed CV ≤ 15% and the accuracy was within 85 and 115% in all cases for both compounds. The lower limit of quantification was 0.05 μg/mL for enmetazobactam and 0.5 μg/mL for cefepime.
In the aftermath of the M
w
6.0 August 24, 2016 Central Italy earthquake, the authors carried out a reconnaissance survey in the municipality of Amatrice and gathered extensive photographic evidence ...of damage, with emphasis on 37 reinforced concrete buildings located outside the historical centre. Damage distribution is generally represented by widespread cracking and/or collapse of the masonry infill panels at the lower buildings’ stories. Moreover, damage was observed in the columns due to the interaction with masonry infill panels. Starting from the collected information, POST—a mechanics-based damage prediction model—was applied in order to compare predicted damage distribution and damage observed during the field reconnaissance. The comparison shows an overall good agreement between the results of the POST method and the observed damage with a slightly conservative tendency by POST.
The introduction of antibiotics to treat bacterial infections either by killing or blocking their growth has been accompanied by the development of resistance mechanism that allows the bacteria to ...survive and proliferate. In particular the successive series of β-lactams have selected several generations of β-lactamases including ESBLs, AmpC β-lactamases, KPC carbapenamases in Enterobacteriaceae, the metallo β-lactamases VIMs and IMPs, and very recently the threatening NDM-1 that confers resistance to virtually any clinically used antibiotic. The increasing use of carbapenems due to the spread of resistance to other existing antibacterial agents has facilitated the spread of resistance, especially in Acinetobacter spp. due to OXA- and metallo-carbapenemases. The pharmaceutical industry, that abandoned this field at the end of the nineties, is now trying to recover by developing some novel β-lactam antibiotics and novel β-lactamase-inhibitors, the latter to be used in combination with new as well as seasoned β-lactam antibiotics. This article provides a survey of patent and scientific literature for β-lactamase inhibitors discovered in the period 2006-2010.
Three
ex situ collections of poplar clones from natural populations of
Populus alba and
P. nigra growing in northern Italy were assessed for their genetic dissimilarity (GD) by means of amplified ...fragment length polymorphism (AFLP). The high GD evidenced within populations was exploited for screening 168 clones in a field trial on heavy metal-polluted soil. After one growth season, clonal differences in plant survival and growth were observed. On the basis of performance, six clones were singled out, and used to evaluate copper and zinc accumulation in different organs. Clonal differences in metal concentrations were most evident for leaves and stems; one clone of
P. alba (AL35) had a distinctly higher concentration of both metals in the roots. Leaf polyamine (putrescine, spermidine, spermine) profiles correlated with tissue metal concentrations, depending on the clone, plant organ and metal. In particular, the high metal-accumulating clone AL35 exhibited a dramatically higher concentration of free and conjugated putrescine. Overall, the results indicate that, given the high GD of
Populus even within populations, it is possible to identify genotypes best suited for soil clean-up, and useful also for investigating physiological markers associated with high metal accumulation/tolerance
High survival rate and heavy metal accumulation are associated with high polyamine concentration in an elite poplar clone.
Strength assessment of concrete in existing structures is a key issue. Many non destructive techniques (NDT) are available which can provide information about the material condition and several ...approaches can be used to derive strength estimates from NDT test results. However, common practice suffers from many drawbacks: (a) it is difficult to ascertain the level of accuracy/confidence of concrete strength estimates, (b) one lacks established guidelines for estimating the concrete strength variability, (c) the best way to combine NDT methods and coring remains an open issue. The RILEM TC 249 “Non destructive in situ strength assessment of concrete” is addressing these problems. A benchmark was carried out in order to compare (a) how experts define and can carry out an NDT investigation program and (b) how experts derive strength values from the NDT measurements. The benchmark was based on synthetic simulations which reproduced a synthetic data set corresponding to a grid of twenty 3 m-high columns defining a single-storey building structure. The comparison of the various strategies and the analysis of results enabled identification of the most influential parameters that define an investigation approach and influence its efficiency and accuracy. A special emphasis was placed on the magnitude of the measurement error. A model of the investigation strategy is proposed, that will be detailed in future guidelines. The reader is invited to refer to a companion paper (Alwash et al. in Mater Struct,
1
. doi:
10.1617/s11527-016-0962-x
), based on more extensive Monte-Carlo simulations of the same case-study, which analyzes and quantifies the efficiency of the investigation strategies with respect to both average strength and strength variability assessment, in order to draw conclusions based on rational analyses rather than on the element of chance.
Abstract
The FOOT (FragmentatiOn Of Target) multi-detector experiment aims at improving the accuracy of oncological hadrontherapy for tumor treatment. It studies the nuclear fragmentation due to the ...interactions of charged particle beams with patient tissues employing the inverse kinematic approach to boost the fragments in the laboratory reference system. Hence it is necessary a tracking system in a magnetic field to measure the momentum of the charged fragments. The Microstrip Silicon Detector (MSD) is part of the charged-ions-tracking magnetic spectrometer for the evaluation of the Linear Energy Transfer LET (d
E
/d
x
) and the nuclear fragments momentum. Here we describe the MSD architecture and its data acquisition system whose task is to collect and digitize the detectors output, generating a data packet to be sent to the experiment’s central acquisition. This data acquisition system is designed and tested to withstand the trigger rate and detector’s throughput; it has a small size and is easily portable, a necessary feature for an experiment that will move among the available ion beam accelerators and proton therapy treatment rooms.
Abstract Background Despite several guidelines recommend the use of psychoeducational family interventions (PFIs) as add-on in the treatment of patients with bipolar I disorder, their implementation ...on a large scale remains limited. The aim of the present study is to identify obstacles for the feasibility of PFIs in routine care. Methods This was a multicentre, real-world, controlled, outpatient trial, carried out in 11 randomly recruited Italian mental health centres. Two mental health professionals from each center attended a modular training course on PFI and provided the intervention. Difficulties and benefits experienced by mental health professionals in implementing the intervention were assessed through the Family Intervention Schedule (FIS-R), which was administered six times. Results Sixteen out of the 22 recruited professionals completed the training and administered the PFI to 70 patients with bipolar I disorder and their relatives. The retention rate of families receiving the intervention was 93%. Mental health professionals reported high levels of organizational difficulties, several benefits in their daily clinical work and low levels of intervention-related difficulties. The most important organizational obstacles were related to the need to integrate the intervention with other work responsibilities and to the lack of time to carry out the intervention. These difficulties did not decrease over time. Intervention-related difficulties were rated as less problematic since the first time assessment and tended to improve over time. Limitations Low number of recruited professionals; use of a not previously validated assessment instrument. Conclusions PFIs are feasible in routine care for the treatment of patients with bipolar I disorder and their relatives, and main obstacles are related to the organization/structure of mental health centres, and not to the characteristics of the intervention itself.
Balloon dilatational tracheostomy using the Ciaglia Blue Dolphin device has recently been introduced as a modification of the Ciaglia technique. The aim of this study was to compare the new Dolphin ...system with the single-step dilatational tracheostomy (Ciaglia Blue Rhino) in intensive care unit (ICU) patients.
Consecutive patients admitted to the ICU of the Emergency Department (Careggi Teaching Hospital, Florence, Italy) from January 2009 to October 2009, aged >18 years and with an indication for percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy (PDT), were enrolled. Exclusion criteria were infection/injury/malignancy of the neck, thyroid gland hypertrophy, severe head injury with uncontrolled intracranial hypertension, and coagulopathy. Patients were randomly assigned to undergo PDT using either the Ciaglia Blue Rhino (n=35) or the Ciaglia Blue Dolphin technique (n=35). Groups were compared according to tracheal puncture, tracheal tube placement time, procedure-related complications, and bleeding.
Baseline clinical data were comparable between the two groups. Median procedure time was significantly shorter in the Rhino group compared with the Dolphin group (1.5 vs 4 min, P = 0.035). The presence of limited intra-tracheal bleeding at bronchoscopy examination after 6 h from PDT was more frequent in the Dolphin group than in the Rhino group patients (68.6% vs 34.3%, respectively, P = 0.008). No major bleeding occurred in either group.
PDT using the Ciaglia Blue Dolphin technique is a feasible and viable option in ICU patients, but the Rhino technique had a shorter execution time and seemed to be associated with fewer tracheal injuries.
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