Little information is available on severe obesity in childhood. This study estimates the prevalence of severe obesity in 8- to 9-year-old children resident in Italy and its association with gender, ...age, geographical area and parents' nutritional status and education using the World Health Organization (WHO) and International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) criteria.
A nationally representative sample of grade 3 Italian students was measured in 2010 (N=42,431) using standardized instruments and methodology. Severe obesity in children was assessed using definitions provided by the WHO and by the IOTF. Prevalence was estimated within categories of sociodemographic variables and their independent effects were estimated using multivariate logistic regression.
The estimated prevalence of severe obesity in 2010 was 4.5% (95% confidence interval (CI): 4.2-4.7) according to the WHO definition and 2.7% (95% CI: 2.5-2.9) with IOTF cutoffs. These values were slightly lower than those observed in 2008. The prevalence was higher in males, in 8-year-old children and in the South. Parental low education and high body mass index were strongly associated with childhood severe obesity.
According to the definition used, between 30,000 and 50,000 children aged 8-9 years suffer severe obesity in Italy.
•An open benchmark based on the PERSEO data has been conducted in OECD/NEA/CSNI/WGAMA.•The paper summarizes PERSEO facility, selected test, benchmark targets and results.•Code modeling approaches of ...the benchmark participants are presented.•Qualitative and quantitative code accuracy has been evaluated.•Based on the benchmark results, possible future research activities are proposed.
In the framework of the OECD/NEA/CSNI/WGAMA, an activity on the “Status report on thermal–hydraulic passive systems design and safety assessment” has been conducted. Within this activity, a benchmark exercise, based on the experimental data developed in the full scale PERSEO (in-Pool Energy Removal System for Emergency Operation) component separate effect test facility, built at SIET (Piacenza, Italy), has been proposed and carried out. An “OPEN” benchmark exercise, hosted by ENEA, has been conducted. Twelve results from eleven Organizations were submitted. PERSEO is a full-scale separate effect test facility designed to study a new passive decay heat removal system operating in natural circulation. Test 7 is a full pressure test (7 MPa) and investigates the system stability and the system operation. The accuracy of the calculated results has been evaluated both qualitatively and quantitatively. The latter has been conducted adopting the Fast Fourier Transform Based Method. The present paper summarizes the main features of the PERSEO facility and Test 7 and discusses the main results and outcome of the benchmark exercise.
Purpose
Universal anti-hepatitis B vaccination of infants and of 12-year-old children became mandatory in Italy in 1991. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the persistence of anti-hepatitis B ...surface (HBs) antibodies several years after a primary course of vaccination.
Methods
In 2010, anti-HBs titers were measured in all subjects aged between 5 and 25 years residing in a southern Italian town. Individuals with an anti-hepatitis B antibody concentration of 10 IU/ml or more were considered to be protected.
Results
Of the 671 subjects evaluated, 149 (30%) lacked protective antibodies. Fifty-three (29.4%) of the subjects had been vaccinated ≤10 years earlier and 96 (30.3%) more than 10 years earlier (
P
= not significant). Subjects vaccinated in infancy were more likely to lack protective anti-HBs antibodies than subjects vaccinated at 12 years of age, regardless of the years elapsed since immunization.
Conclusions
Most subjects maintained protective antibodies for a considerable number of years after vaccination. Vaccination in adolescence results in more prolonged immunogenicity than vaccination in infancy.
Continuous de novo fatty acid synthesis is a common feature of cancer that is required to meet the biosynthetic demands of a growing tumor. This process is controlled by the rate-limiting enzyme ...acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), an attractive but traditionally intractable drug target. Here we provide genetic and pharmacological evidence that in preclinical models ACC is required to maintain the de novo fatty acid synthesis needed for growth and viability of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. We describe the ability of ND-646-an allosteric inhibitor of the ACC enzymes ACC1 and ACC2 that prevents ACC subunit dimerization-to suppress fatty acid synthesis in vitro and in vivo. Chronic ND-646 treatment of xenograft and genetically engineered mouse models of NSCLC inhibited tumor growth. When administered as a single agent or in combination with the standard-of-care drug carboplatin, ND-646 markedly suppressed lung tumor growth in the Kras;Trp53
(also known as KRAS p53) and Kras;Stk11
(also known as KRAS Lkb1) mouse models of NSCLC. These findings demonstrate that ACC mediates a metabolic liability of NSCLC and that ACC inhibition by ND-646 is detrimental to NSCLC growth, supporting further examination of the use of ACC inhibitors in oncology.
Introduction
The recent appearance of SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan in 2019 has started a pandemic which has involved over a million people worldwide. A matter of debate is the possible viral detection in ...different body fluids than respiratory droplets. Thus, we evaluated the possible presence of SARS-CoV-2 in semen and urine samples of a volunteer with confirmed COVID-19.
Materials and methods
A 31-year-old man with fever, myalgia, anosmia, and ageusia was tested and found positive for SARS-CoV-2 through a pharyngeal swab. Eight days after he provided semen and urine samples in which viral RNA presence was measured using a Real time RT PCR system (RealStar SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR, Altona Diagnostics) targeting E and S viral genes.
Results and discussion
Semen and urine samples search for SARS-CoV-2 RNA was negative. Although this should be interpreted cautiously, it may be possible that either the viral clearance kinetics in these matrices matches the progressive clinical recovery of the patient or that the virus was never present in these fluids at the time of the laboratory diagnosis.
We present a Raman study of Ar+-bombarded graphene samples with increasing ion doses. This allows us to have a controlled, increasing, amount of defects. We find that the ratio between the D and G ...peak intensities, for a given defect density, strongly depends on the laser excitation energy. We quantify this effect and present a simple equation for the determination of the point defect density in graphene via Raman spectroscopy for any visible excitation energy. We note that, for all excitations, the D to G intensity ratio reaches a maximum for an interdefect distance ∼3 nm. Thus, a given ratio could correspond to two different defect densities, above or below the maximum. The analysis of the G peak width and its dispersion with excitation energy solves this ambiguity.
The current COVID‐19 pandemic has created a global context likely to increase eating disorder (ED) risk and symptoms, decrease factors that protect against EDs, and exacerbate barriers to care. Three ...pathways exist by which this pandemic may exacerbate ED risk. One, the disruptions to daily routines and constraints to outdoor activities may increase weight and shape concerns, and negatively impact eating, exercise, and sleeping patterns, which may in turn increase ED risk and symptoms. Relatedly, the pandemic and accompanying social restrictions may deprive individuals of social support and adaptive coping strategies, thereby potentially elevating ED risk and symptoms by removing protective factors. Two, increased exposure to ED‐specific or anxiety‐provoking media, as well as increased reliance on video conferencing, may increase ED risk and symptoms. Three, fears of contagion may increase ED symptoms specifically related to health concerns, or by the pursuit of restrictive diets focused on increasing immunity. In addition, elevated rates of stress and negative affect due to the pandemic and social isolation may also contribute to increasing risk. Evaluating and assessing these factors are key to better understanding the impact of the pandemic on ED risk and recovery and to inform resource dissemination and targets.
Aim
In Italy, the ISPED CARD initiative was launched to measure and improve quality of care in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes.
Methods
Process and outcome indicators and the related ...information derived from electronic medical records were identified. A network of pediatric diabetes centers was created on a voluntary basis.
Results
Overall, 20 centers provided data on 3284 patients aged < = 18 years. HbA1c was monitored ≥ 2/year in 81.2% of the cases. BMI was monitored ≥ 1/year in 99.0%, lipid profile in 45.3%, and blood pressure in 91.7%. Pubertal status, albuminuria, eye examination, and screening of celiac disease and thyroiditis were underreported. From 2017 to 2021, average HbA1c levels decreased from 7.8 ± 1.2 to 7.6 ± 1.3%, while patients with LDL cholesterol > 100 mg/dl increased from 18.9 to 36.7%. Prevalence of patients with elevated blood pressure and BMI/SDS values also increased. In 2021, 44.7% of patients were treated with the newest basal insulins, while use of regular human insulin had dropped to 7.7%. Use of insulin pump remained stable (37.9%).
Conclusions
This report documents the feasibility of the ISPED CARD initiative and shows lights and shadows in the care provided. Improving care, increasing number of centers, and ameliorating data recording represent future challenges.
Objective: To evaluate prospectively the response of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) to high dose dobutamine infusion in patients showing substantial viability, with and without improved ...resting LVEF after revascularisation. Methods: Before and 9–12 months after revascularisation, 50 patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy (LVEF 32 (8)%) and substantial myocardial viability (⩾ 4 viable segments) underwent radionuclide ventriculography and dobutamine stress echocardiography. Patients were divided into group 1, patients with, and group 2, patients without significant improvement in resting LVEF (⩾ 5% by radionuclide ventriculography) after revascularisation. The response of LVEF during dobutamine stress echocardiography was compared in these two groups. Results: Groups 1 and 2 were comparable in baseline characteristics, resting LVEF, and number of viable segments (mean (SD) 7 (4) v 6 (2), not significant). After revascularisation, the LVEF response during dobutamine stress echocardiography improved significantly in both groups (group 1, 34 (10)% to 56 (8)%; group 2, 32 (10)% to 46 (11)%; both p < 0.001). Interestingly, although resting LVEF did not improve in group 2, peak stress LVEF after revascularisation did (p < 0.001). Group 1 patients had, however, a greater increase in peak stress LVEF (group 1, 22 (10)%; group 2, 13 (9)%; p < 0.01). New York Heart Association and Canadian Cardiovascular Society classes decreased in both groups. Conclusions: Although patients with viable myocardium did not always have improved rest LVEF after revascularisation, peak stress LVEF improved. Assessment of improvement of resting function may not be the ideal end point to evaluate successful revascularisation.
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