Purpose
The study was aimed at evaluating the prevalence of osteoporosis, defined by BMD and the National Bone Health Alliance (NBHA) criteria, and the prevalence of clinical risk factors for ...fractures in Italian postmenopausal women.
Methods
This is a cross-sectional, multicenter, cohort study evaluating 3247 postmenopausal women aged ≥ 50 and older in different areas of Italy in the period 2012–2014. All the participants were evaluated as far as anthropometrics; questionnaires for FRAX
®
and DeFRA calculation were administered and bone mineral density was measured at lumbar spine, femoral neck and total hip by DXA.
Results
The prevalence of osteoporosis, as assessed by BMD and NBHA criteria was 36.6 and 57%, respectively. Mean ± SD values of FRAX
®
and DeFRA were: 10.2 ± 7.3 and 11 ± 9.4 for major fractures, and 3.3 ± 4.9 and 3.9 ± 5.9 for hip fractures, respectively. Among clinical risk factors for fracture, the presence of previous fracture, particularly non-spine/non-hip fracture, parental history of hip fracture and current smoking were the most commonly observed.
Conclusions
Our study showed that more that the half of postmenopausal women aged 50 and older in Italy has osteoporosis on the basis of the NBHA criteria. There is a relevant high risk of femur fracture, as assessed by the FRAX
®
and DeFRA and previous fracture, parental history of hip fracture and current smoking are the most common risk factors. The data should be considered particularly in relation to the need to increase prevention strategies on modifiable risk factors and therapeutic intervention.
This work evaluated the modulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by the cisplatin–human DNA interaction in a cell-free experimental model by the carotenoids bixin and lycopene, extracted ...from natural dietary sources and purified through luminol- and Cypridina luciferin methoxy-analogue (MCLA)-enhanced chemiluminescence assays. The results showed that the ROS generation by DNA–cisplatin interaction was inhibited by both lycopene and bixin in a concentration-dependent manner. At a concentration of 100
μM, lycopene and bixin inhibited superoxide anion (
O
2
-
) generation at 90% and 82%, respectively, and the total ROS generation at 44% and 42%, respectively. The formation of significant amounts of isomers or degradation products of both carotenoids was not observed after ROS scavenging, as evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography. Taken together, these results suggest that carotenoids can be helpful to modulate the oxidative stress found in cancer therapy with cisplatin.
The optical properties of silica aerogel tiles with a refractive index of 1.03 and dimensions
11×11×1
cm
3
, produced by the Matsushita Electric Works (Japan), have been measured in the wavelength ...range from 200 to 900 nm. The tiles are used as one of the two radiators of the ring imaging Cherenkov counter of the HERMES experiment at DESY-HERA. The transmittance of light has been measured on 200 tiles by means of a double beam spectrophotometer. The light transflectance and reflectance have been measured on one tile by means of a single-beam spectrophotometer and an integrating reflecting sphere. Typical values of the measured transmittances at a wavelength
λ=400 nm are around 0.67. The measured transflectance increases almost linearly from 0.4 to 0.96 in the interval 200–300 nm, and remains nearly constant at the value 0.95 in the complementary
λ-range. The measured reflectance, mostly confined below 400 nm, is completely interpretable as backscattering from inside the aerogel, revealing an absence of light reflection at the aerogel surfaces. The transmittance data have been fitted with the Hunt formula, whose parameters have been used to evaluate the number of unscattered and scattered Cherenkov photons produced by aerogel. For stacks of 5 tiles and quantum efficiencies of phototubes with bialkali photocathodes, rings with up to 19 photoelectrons/event can be expected for
β=1 particles.
The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of two doses (700 and 1000 IU) of the native eCG (N-eCG) and a synthetic eCG like glycoprotein (S-eCG) on ovarian superstimulation and embryo ...production in llamas. Females were examined daily by transrectal ultrasonography until a follicle ≥ 7 mm was observed and a GnRH analogue was injected (i.v.) (Day 0). On Day 3, transrectal ultrasonography was performed to confirm the absence of follicles > 5 mm and animals were randomly divided into four groups (n=10/group): N-eCG700, N-eCG1000, S-eCG700 and S-eCG1000 which received 700 or 1000 IU (i.m.) of N-eCG or S-eCG, accordingly. On Day 7, 112.5 μg of cloprostenol (i.m.) was injected in all llamas. On Day 10, the number of follicles ≥7 mm, mean diameter and their vascularization were determined by ultrasonography. Then, llamas were injected with a GnRH analogue and mated. Natural mating was repeated 24 h later. On Day 18, the number of corpora lutea (CL), their diameter and vascularization were assessed and embryo recovery was performed by uterine flushing. On Day 10, there were no significant differences in the number of follicles ≥ 7 mm, neither in their diameter or vascularization between groups. Similarly, no significant differences were observed in the number of CL on Day 18, neither in their diameter or vascularization between groups. In conclusion, the results of the present study indicate that S-eCG produced by recombinant technology has the same biological activity as N-eCG in llamas.
•Embryo recovery rate was similar after native eCG or synthetic eCG treatment.•Superstimulatory response was similar after native eCG or synthetic eCG treatment.•No significant differences between doses of synthetic eCG were observed.
A myogenic phenotype was induced in cultures of human mesothelial cells treated for 72 h with atrazine, a triazine derivative. Immunoreactivity for both myosin and myoglobin was detected in a large ...number of these cells, irrespective of their polygonal or spindle morphology, whereas no expression of desmin was observed. These findings support the embryological identity of mesothelium and mesoderm, the former being, in the post-embryonic stage, potentially capable of differentiation along the same lineages which the latter normally displays during embryogenesis. In the light of this concept it can be assumed that primary malignancies arising from the mesothelium have the competence to express the pluripotent nature of embryonic mesoderm, and hence the term mesodermoma is appropriate for this group of tumours, including mesotheliomas in a classical sense. A postulated mechanism for the phenotypic change of mesothelial cells is also outlined, involving atrazine conversion to 5-aza-chloro-cytidine, a probable DNA hypomethylating and gene activating agent, like its analogue 5-azacytidine.
We use the UV-optical color magnitude diagram in combination with spectroscopic and photometric measurements derived from the SDSS spectroscopic sample to measure the distribution of galaxies in the ...local universe (z < 0.25) and their physical properties as a function of specific star formation rate (SFR/M unk) and stellar mass (M unk). Throughout this study our emphasis is on the properties of galaxies on and off of a local "star-forming sequence." We discuss how the physical characteristics of galaxies along this sequence are related to scaling relations typically derived for galaxies of different morphological types. We find, among other trends, that our measure of the star formation rate surface density, capital sigma sub(SFR), is nearly constant along this sequence. We discuss this result and implications for galaxies at higher redshift. For the first time, we report on measurements of the local UV luminosity function versus galaxy structural parameters, as well as inclination. We also split our sample Into disk-dominated and bulge-dominated subsamples using the l-band Sersic index and find that disk-dominated galaxies occupy a very tight locus in SFR/M unk vs. M unk space, while bulge-dominated galaxies display a much larger spread of SFR/M unk at fixed stellar mass. A significant fraction of galaxies with SFR/M unk and capital sigma sub(SFR) above those on the "star-forming sequence" are bulge-dominated. We can use our derived distribution functions to ask whether a significant fraction of these galaxies may be experiencing a final episode of star formation (possibly induced by a merger or other burst), soon to be quenched, by determining whether this population can explain the growth rate of the non-star-forming galaxies on the "red sequence." We find that this is a plausible scenario for bulge-dominated galaxies near the characteristic transition mass under reasonable assumptions regarding quenching timescales. Similarly, we use this technique to estimate the rate of mergers/starbursts that take galaxies off of the star-forming sequence and show that the implied merger rates are consistent with local measurements.
Using a data set of 2.93 fb taken at a center-of-mass energy root s = 3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, we perform a search for an extra U(1) gauge boson, also denoted as a ...dark photon. We examine the initial state radiation reactions e(+)e(-) -> e(+)e(-) gamma(ISR) and e(+)e(-) -> mu(+)mu(-) gamma(ISR) for this search, where the dark photon would appear as an enhancement in the invariant mass distribution of the leptonic pairs. We observe no obvious enhancement in the mass range between 1.5 and 3.4 GeV/c(2) and set a 90% confidence level upper limit on the mixing strength of the dark photon and the Standard Model photon. We obtain a competitive limit in the tested mass range.
We present \(NuSTAR\) X-ray observations of the active galactic nucleus (AGN) in NGC 7674. The source shows a flat X-ray spectrum, suggesting that it is obscured by Compton-thick gas columns. Based ...upon long-term flux dimming, previous work suggested the alternate possibility that the source is a recently switched-off AGN with the observed X-rays being the lagged echo from the torus. Our high-quality data show the source to be reflection-dominated in hard X-rays, but with a relatively weak neutral Fe K\(\alpha\) emission line (equivalent width EW of \(\approx\) 0.4 keV) and a strong Fe XXVI ionised line (EW \(\approx\) 0.2 keV). We construct an updated long-term X-ray light curve of NGC 7674 and find that the observed 2-10 keV flux has remained constant for the past \(\approx\) 20 years, following a high flux state probed by \(Ginga\). Light travel time arguments constrain the minimum radius of the reflector to be \(\sim\) 3.2 pc under the switched-off AGN scenario, \(\approx\) 30 times larger than the expected dust sublimation radius, rendering this possibility unlikely. A patchy Compton-thick AGN (CTAGN) solution is plausible, requiring a minimum line-of-sight column density (\(N_{\rm H}\)) of 3 \(\times\) 10\(^{24}\) cm\(^{-2}\) at present, and yields an intrinsic 2-10 keV luminosity of (3-5) \(\times\) 10\(^{43}\) erg s\(^{-1}\). Realistic uncertainties span the range of \(\approx\) (1-13) \(\times\) 10\(^{43}\) erg s\(^{-1}\). The source has one of the weakest fluorescence lines amongst {\em bona fide} CTAGN, and is potentially a local analogue of bolometrically luminous systems showing complex neutral and ionised Fe emission. It exemplifies the difficulty of identification and proper characterisation of distant CTAGN based on the strength of the neutral Fe K\(\alpha\) line.
The study of hot corinos in solar-like protostars has been so far mostly limited to the Class 0 phase, hampering our understanding of their origin and evolution. In addition, recent evidence suggests ...that planet formation starts already during Class I phase, which therefore represents a crucial step in the future planetary system chemical composition. Hence, the study of hot corinos in Class I protostars has become of paramount importance. Here, we report the discovery of a hot corino towards the prototypical Class I protostar L1551 IRS5, obtained within the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) Large Program FAUST (Fifty AU STudy of the chemistry in the disc/envelope system of solar-like protostars). We detected several lines from methanol and its isotopologues (13CH3OH and CH2DOH), methyl formate, and ethanol. Lines are bright towards the north component of the IRS5 binary system, and a possible second hot corino may be associated with the south component. The methanol lines' non-LTE analysis constrains the gas temperature (∼100 K), density (≥1.5 × 10^8 per cu.cm), and emitting size (∼10 au in radius). All CH3OH and 13CH3OH lines are optically thick, preventing a reliable measure of the deuteration. The methyl formate and ethanol relative abundances are compatible with those measured in Class 0 hot corinos. Thus, based on this work, little chemical evolution from Class 0 to I hot corinos occurs.
The isolation of broadly neutralizing antibodies against influenza A viruses has been a long-sought goal for therapeutic approaches and vaccine design. Using a single-cell culture method for ...screening large numbers of human plasma cells, we isolated a neutralizing monoclonal antibody that recognized the hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein of all 16 subtypes and neutralized both group 1 and group 2 influenza A viruses. Passive transfer of this antibody conferred protection to mice and ferrets. Complexes with HAs from the group 1 H1 and the group 2 H3 subtypes analyzed by x-ray crystallography showed that the antibody bound to a conserved epitope in the F subdomain. This antibody may be used for passive protection and to inform vaccine design because of its broad specificity and neutralization potency.
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