Spontaneous coronary artery dissection in a young woman without risk factors.

BACKGROUND: Spontaneous coronary artery dissection is a very rare event and is more common in women than in men. Pregnancy and the early puerperium stage have been recognized as predisposing factors for this condition. CASE REPORT: A 33-year-old woman presented to the Emergency Department (ED) with chest pain; the patient's electrocardiogram (ECG) showed an ST-segment elevation similar to that observed in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). She experienced a ventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest when she was in the hospital and received resuscitation, after which she regained consciousness and showed spontaneous circulation. She underwent cardiac catheterization under the impression of spontaneous coronary artery dissection, and conservative therapy was chosen. CONCLUSION: In this report, we have underlined the importance of considering coronary artery dissection in the differential diagnosis of young women who present to the ED with chest pain, an ECG with ST-segment elevation, and very few cardiac risk factors.

Self-assembling peptide hydrogels for the stabilization and sustained release of active Chondroitinase ABC in vitro and in spinal cord injuries.

Activated microglia/macrophages infiltration, astrocyte migration, and increased production of inhibitory chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs) are standard harmful events taking place after the spinal cord injuries (SCI). The gliotic scar, viz. the outcome of chronic SCI, constitutes a long-lasting physical and chemical barrier to axonal regrowth. In the past two decades, various research groups targeted the hostile host microenvironments of the gliotic scar at the injury site. To this purpose, biomaterial scaffolds demonstrate to provide a promising potential for nervous cell restoration. We here focused our efforts on two self-assembling peptides (SAPs), featuring different self-assembled nanostructures, and on different methods of drug loading to exploit the neuroregenerative potential of Chondroitinase ABC (ChABC), a thermolabile pro-plastic agent attenuating the inhibitory action of CSPGs. Enzymatic activity of ChABC (usually lasting less than 72 hours in vitro) released from SAPs was remarkably detected up to 42 days in vitro. ChABC was continuously released in vitro from a few days to 42 days as well. Also, injections of ChABC loaded SAP hydrogels favored host neural regeneration and behavioral recovery in chronic SCI in rats. Hence, SAP hydrogels showed great promise for the delivery of Chondroitinase ABC in future therapies targeting chronic SCI.

[Chronic obstructive lung disease. Systemic manifestations]. / Broncopneumopatia cronica ostruttiva. Le manifestazioni sistemiche.

Chronic obstructive lung diseases (COPD) are a complex disease state which not rarely can be associated with significant systemic manifestations. These alterations, though recognized since long time, are currently under extensive research, due to the increasing appreciation of their relevant negative role in the prognosis and health-related quality of life (Hr-QoL) of the COPD patients. The most clinically important are the decrease in body weight with loss of skeletal muscle mass (cachexia), osteoporosis, hypercapnia-induced peripheral edema, neuro-psychiatric disorders, such as oxygen-related cognitive impairment and depression, excessive polycytaemia and sleep disorders. Chronic systemic inflammation, oxidative stress and chronic hypoxia are believed as the main factors involved in the pathogenesis of systemic effects seen in COPD. Their adequate control with nutritional support, change of life-style and targeted pharmacological treatment is able to improve the prognosis and Hr-QoL among these COPD patients.