Near-infrared modulation by means of GeTe/SOI-based metamaterial.

Today, nanophotonics still lacks components for modulation that can be easily implementable in existing silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology. Chalcogenide phase change materials (PCMs) are promising candidates for tuning in the near infrared: at the nanoscale, thin layers can provide enough contrast to control the optical response of a nanostructure. Moreover, all-dielectric metamaterials allow for resonant behavior without having ohmic losses in the telecom range. Here, a novel hybridization of a SOI-based metamaterial with PCM GeTe is experimentally investigated. A metamaterial based on Si nanorods, covered by a thin layer of GeTe, is designed and fabricated. Switching GeTe from amorphous to crystalline leads to a rather high resonance-governed reflection contrast at 1.55 µm. Additional confocal Raman imaging is done to differentiate the crystallized zones of the metamaterials' unit cell. The findings are in good agreement with numerical analysis and show good perspectives of all-dielectric tunable near-infrared nanophotonics.

SERUM YKL-40 IN CHILDREN WITH ASTHMA.

Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in children. To date the diagnosis of asthma is mainly clinical, based on the clinical history, a careful physical examination and lung function tests. However, symptoms are often not specific and lung function tests are not very sensitive. In order to find a solution to this problem new biomarkers of airway inflammation are being developed. YKL-40 is a chitinase-like protein that has a role in the inflammation and tissue remodeling in several human diseases. The aim of this study is to evaluate serum levels of YKL40 in children with intermittent or persistent asthma. We performed a cross-sectional analysis of serum samples from a cohort of patients with asthma and healthy controls. Patients with asthma were stratified according to four levels of asthma severity (mild intermittent, mild persistent, moderate persistent, and severe persistent). The analysis of serum samples was performed with the use of a commercially available enzyme-linked immune-adsorbent assay (ELISA) kit (Quidel). The minimum detection limit of the assay for YKL-40 is 15.6 ng per milliliter (ng/ml). Our data showed that circulating YKL-40 levels are significantly higher in patients with asthma than healthy subjects (36±18.6 vs 14:41±2.88, p= 0.001). Furthermore, we found significantly higher values of YKL-40 in both groups of children with intermittent asthma (p less than 0.001) and persistent asthma (p less than 0.001) than healthy controls. However, no correlation was found with duration and severity of asthmatic disease (r = 0:18, p= 0:33, r = 0.28 P = 0:13, respectively). Our data allow us to suggest that YKL-40 represents a useful biomarker of asthma in children with intermittent or persistent asthma.

Preventing corona effects: multiphosphonic acid poly(ethylene glycol) copolymers for stable stealth iron oxide nanoparticles.

When dispersed in biological fluids, engineered nanoparticles are selectively coated with proteins, resulting in the formation of a protein corona. It is suggested that the protein corona is critical in regulating the conditions of entry into the cytoplasm of living cells. Recent reports describe this phenomenon as ubiquitous and independent of the nature of the particle. For nanomedicine applications, however, there is a need to design advanced and cost-effective coatings that are resistant to protein adsorption and that increase the biodistribution in vivo. In this study, phosphonic acid poly(ethylene glycol) copolymers were synthesized and used to coat iron oxide particles. The copolymer composition was optimized to provide simple and scalable protocols as well as long-term stability in culture media. It is shown that polymers with multiple phosphonic acid functionalities and PEG chains outperform other types of coating, including ligands, polyelectrolytes, and carboxylic acid functionalized PEG. PEGylated particles exhibit moreover exceptional low cellular uptake, of the order of 100 femtograms of iron per cell. The present approach demonstrates that the surface chemistry of engineered particles is a key parameter in the interactions with cells. It also opens up new avenues for the efficient functionalization of inorganic surfaces.

[Criteria of choice and long-term results of surgery for plain goiter (author's transl)]. / Criteri di scelta e risultati a distanza della terapia chirurgica del gozzo semplice.

The Authors review their criteria of choice in 95 operations for plain goiter. The explain the parameters used in the evaluation of the various surgical procedures represented in this series, and give an account of long-term results in patients completing the followup period.

[Irrigation of colostomized patients]. / L'irrigazione dei colostomizzati.

After a brief recall of the main problems of post-colostomy patients, the authors describe the method of colonic irrigation, which affords the complete discharge of fecal matter and continence over the ensuing 24 hours. The authors give an account of the results obtained with this methodology at the Stoma Center of Catania; and they conclude that the method in question, applied correctly and appropriate cases, seems to represent the treatment of first choice for the postoperative management of colostomy cases.

[Indications and limitations of bronchography in surgery of carcinoma of the lung]. / Indicazione e limiti della broncografia nella chirurgia del carcinoma del polmone.

Starting from a consecutive series of 53 bronchographies performed under local anesthesia, in subjects with carcinoma of the lung ascertained by operation, the Authors analyse both the bronchographical aspects which most frequently come under the surgeon's observation, and the usefulness of this investigation in formulating the operating plan. As regards carcinomas of the large and medium bronchi, the bronchographic aspects they found most frequently are occlusion (82%) both in the form of sudden arrest and in the form of a cone image and stenosis (18%). In peripheral carcinomas, on the other hand, most characteristic bronchographic signs are identified as occlusion (58%) (amputation and stenosis) and dislocation (38%) with rigidity of one or more small calibre bronchi (rigid impairment). On the basis of their experience the Authors conclude that bronchography constitutes an almost indispensable examination for diagnostic purposes in malignant neoplasias, especially in the initial stage, when located outside the field of action of bronchoscopy, and can supply elements indispensable in the preoperative operatability judgement. In fact it not only gives very reliable information on the anatomical situation of the bronchus, as well as on the site and presumed starting-point of the neoplasia, but also supplies more approximate elements with regard to the extent of the neoplasia and any presence of lymphoglandular metastases.

[Bochdalek's hernia with retroperitoneal contents in adults]. / L'ernia di Bochdalek a contenuto retroperitoneale nell'adulto.

The authors report a case they had the opportunity to observe, surgically treated (thoraco-phrenotomy, removal of the herniated mass, repair of the diaphragmatic breach). They illustrate the genesis of such abnormality, its incidence and symptomatology. The Authors, moreover, dwell upon the diagnostic problems caused by Bochdalek's hernia with retroperitoneal contents, and upon the advantages shown by the thoracic way of aggression in the light of their own experience.

[Development of anesthesiological techniques in the surgical treatment of inguinal hernia]. / Evoluzione del trattamento anestesiologico nella terapia chirurgica dell'ernia inguinale.

The Authors describe the evolution of their anesthesiological techniques in the surgical repair of inguinal hernia. In this study they compare indications, complications, costs, hospital stay, length of surgery, postoperative pain and return to work after operations performed under local, spinal and general anesthesia. In their experience inguinal hernia treatment with local anesthesia and a tension-free technique is the preferred method of surgical repair.

[Clinical and therapeutic considerations on bochdalek's congenital posterolateral diaphragmatic hernia (author's transl)]. / Considerazioni clinico-terapeutiche sulle ernie congenite postero-laterali diaframmatiche di Bochdalek.

The Authors describe 5 cases of Bochdalek's posterolateral diaphragmatic hernia in terms of their clinical, diagnostic, and therapeutic aspects. They also explain their criteria in the choice of surgical approaches and describe reconstruction methods used in the repair of large hernias. Finally, they propose a special schedule of postoperative management to be used in connection with neonatal surgery, where surgical mortality is still high.

Supramolecular self-assembled multilayers of terpyridine-functionalized perylene bisimide metal complexes.

A terpyridine-functionalized perylene bisimide chromophore (TPBI) has been used as a building block in the stepwise, layer-by-layer fabrication of self-assembled Fe-TPBI multilayers on gold, with the assembled supramolecular chains oriented approximately perpendicular to the gold surface. Time-resolved spectroscopy measurements seem to indicate that the energy absorbed by the multilayer is promptly dissipated to the gold surface by ultrafast processes.

[Use of tissue adhesives in oral surgery]. / L'utilizzo degli adesivi tissutali in chirurgia orale.

The Authors, after a short review of the literature, report their clinical experience using alpha-cyanoacrylate, a new tissue adhesive. This substance shows haemostatic and adhesive properties and it is useful to protect surgical wounds. On these bases, the alpha-cyanoacrylate shows definite directions in oral and maxillo-facial surgery.