Efficacy and safety of nilotinib as frontline treatment in elderly (> 65 years) chronic myeloid leukemia patients outside clinical trials.

Here, we report real-world evidence on the safety and efficacy of nilotinib as a first-line treatment in elderly patients with chronic phase CML, treated in 18 Italian centers. Sixty patients aged > 65 years (median age 72 years (65-84)) were reported: 13 patients were older than 75 years. Comorbidities were recorded at baseline in 56/60 patients. At 3 months of treatment, all patients obtained complete hematological response (CHR), 43 (71.6%) an early molecular response (EMR), while 47 (78%) reached a complete cytogenetic response (CCyR). At last follow-up, 63.4% of patients still had a deep molecular response (MR4 or better), 21.6% reached MR3 as best response and 11.6% persisted without MR. Most patients (85%) started the treatment at the standard dose (300 mg BID), maintained at 3 months in 80% of patients and at 6 months in 89% of them. At the last median follow-up of 46.3 months, 15 patients discontinued definitively the treatment (8 due to side effects, 4 died for unrelated CML causes, 1 for failure, 2 were lost to follow-up). One patient entered in treatment-free remission. As to safety, 6 patients (10%) experienced cardiovascular events after a median time of 20.9 months from the start. Our data showed that nilotinib could be, as first-line treatment, effective and relatively safe even in elderly CML patients. In this setting, more data in the long term are needed about possible dose reduction to improve the tolerability, while maintaining the optimal molecular response.

An investigation into Video Game Addiction in Pre-Adolescents and Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Game addiction is an emerging problem in public health. A gaming disorder is characterized by a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behavior. The behavioral pattern is severe enough to implicate a significant involvement of family, social, educational, professional, or other relationships. Therefore, greater attention needs to be paid to potential addictive behaviors in terms of video games in order to identify both pre-adolescents and adolescents at risk and to provide them with adequate assistance. Materials and Methods: A random sample of 622 students including pre-adolescents and adolescents were enrolled from September 1st to October 31th 2016, and the Game Addiction Scale (GAS) interview was used to identify pathological students with both Monothetic and Polythetic analysis. RESULTS: This study shows the presence of pathological students is equal to 1.93%, with 37.46% and 4.50% obtained with Monothetic and Polythetic analysis (global and partial), respectively. In our sample, the most frequent were students with a gaming time of 1 or 2 h, and students with a day gaming frequency of 1, 2, or 3 times a day. The items with more pathological students were Item 2 (i.e., Tolerance) and 4 (i.e., Withdrawal). Every item was positively correlated with Daily gaming time(hours) and Daily game frequency, excluding Item 4(i.e., Withdrawal). Finally, the Monothetic GAS score was positively correlated with Daily gaming time while the Polythetic Global GAS was positively correlated with Daily game frequency and negatively with Education level; instead, the Polythetic Partial GAS score was positively correlated with only Daily gaming time. CONCLUSION: Males are pathological gamblers more so than females and spend more time playing video games. An increase in Daily game frequency or Daily gaming time implicates an increase in video game addictions, while an increase in Education level, which generally corresponds to a greater age, implicates a decrease in game addiction. Finally, we observed that the correlations obtained between the Polythetic Partial GAS score with the independent variables such as Age, Gender, Education level, Daily gaming time (hours), and Daily game frequency were analogous to the significant correlations obtained with the Monothetic GAS score, while these correlations were different for the Polythetic Global GAS and the independent variables. These results suggest that the use of the original Polythetic scale should not be neglected.

Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium: Italian cultural validation and preliminary testing.

INTRODUCTION: Paediatric delirium is associated with a longer duration of hospitalization in paediatric intensive care units, the emergence of post-traumatic symptoms and possible neurocognitive dysfunction after discharge. In preschool children, the diagnosis of delirium appears rather challenging: their pre-verbal status and the presence of cognitive skills still in development make accurate diagnosis difficult. Recently, a pediatric delirium screening tool suitable for critical preschool children has also been developed and identified in international literature, with excellent results also in critical infants under 2 years of age: the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium (CAPD). The CAPD, using a Likert scale, bases the assessment of paediatric delirium within the context of child development. This scale follows the development of the infant by comparing the detection of specific items on the scale as the anchor points that characterize the development of infants by age groups. OBJECTIVE: Culturally and linguistically validation in Italian language and prior testing of the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium. METHOD: Translation and Cultural Validation of the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium (CAPD) for the Evaluation/Diagnosis of Pediatric Delirium within Pediatric Intensive Care. The translation and adaptation of this instrument followed the phases of the model proposed by the World Health Organization. Prior testings, such as item descriptive analysis, item-total correlation and Cronbach's alpha, were conducted. RESULTS: All phases of the cultural-linguistic validation process were carried out in a satisfactory manner. For the prior testing, the scale was administered to a sample of 42 children, with age ranged 0-5 years old (66.6%), with a higher prevalence of the male gender. All items were normally distributed and there was no excessive Skeweness and Kurtosis. Each item contributed to the scale fairly well and all coefficients of item total correlation (rjx) were higher than the recommended level of 0.30. The composite reliability index was 0.94 and Cronbach's alpha was 0.96. CONCLUSIONS: The process has meticulously followed the recommendations in international literature. The final version was approved by the authors of the original instrument.

Somatic mutations in specific and connected subpathways are associated with short neuroblastoma patients' survival and indicate proteins targetable at onset of disease.

Neuroblastoma (NB) is an embryonic malignancy of the sympathetic nervous system with heterogeneous biological, morphological, genetic and clinical characteristics. Although genomic studies revealed the specific biological features of NB pathogenesis useful for new therapeutic approaches, the improvement of high-risk (HR)-NB patients overall survival remains unsatisfactory. To further clarify the biological basis of disease aggressiveness, we used whole-exome sequencing to examine the genomic landscape of HR-NB patients at stage M with short survival (SS) and long survival (LS). Only a few genes, including SMARCA4, SMO, ZNF44 and CHD2, were recurrently and specifically mutated in the SS group, confirming the low recurrence of common mutations in this tumor. A systems biology approach revealed that in the two patient groups, mutations occurred in different pathways. Mutated genes (ARHGEF11, CACNA1G, FGF4, PTPRA, PTK2, ANK3, SMO, NTNG2, VCL and NID2) regulate the MAPK pathway associated with the organization of the extracellular matrix, cell motility through PTK2 signaling and matrix metalloproteinase activity. Moreover, we detected mutations in LAMA2, PTK2, LAMA4, and MMP14 genes, impairing MET signaling, in SFI1 and CHD2 involved in centrosome maturation and chromosome remodeling, in AK7 and SPTLC2, which regulate the metabolism of nucleotides and lipoproteins, and in NALCN, SLC12A1, SLC9A9, which are involved in the transport of small molecules. Notably, connected networks of somatically mutated genes specific for SS patients were identified. The detection of mutated genes present at the onset of disease may help to address an early treatment of HR-NB patients using FDA-approved compounds targeting the deregulated pathways.

[Effectiveness of the Situation-Background-Assessment-Recommendation (SBAR) methodology in patient handovers between nurses, Italy]. / Implementazione nella sicurezza delle cure e la continuità assistenziale: revisione narrativa della letteratura sull'efficacia del metodo Sbar.

Exchange of information between healthcare professionals involved in the care of patients is essential for providing effective care. Use of the Situation-BackgroundAssessment-Recommendation (SBAR) methodology is increasingly indicated in the health sector to facilitate communication during handovers of patients between clinicians or clinical teams. The present review of the literature aims to determine the effectiveness of the SBAR methodology in the handover of nursing documentation.

Neuroblastoma treatment in the post-genomic era.

Neuroblastoma is an embryonic malignancy of early childhood originating from neural crest cells and showing heterogeneous biological, morphological, genetic and clinical characteristics. The correct stratification of neuroblastoma patients within risk groups (low, intermediate, high and ultra-high) is critical for the adequate treatment of the patients.High-throughput technologies in the Omics disciplines are leading to significant insights into the molecular pathogenesis of neuroblastoma. Nonetheless, further study of Omics data is necessary to better characterise neuroblastoma tumour biology. In the present review, we report an update of compounds that are used in preclinical tests and/or in Phase I-II trials for neuroblastoma. Furthermore, we recapitulate a number of compounds targeting proteins associated to neuroblastoma: MYCN (direct and indirect inhibitors) and downstream targets, Trk, ALK and its downstream signalling pathways. In particular, for the latter, given the frequency of ALK gene deregulation in neuroblastoma patients, we discuss on second-generation ALK inhibitors in preclinical or clinical phases developed for the treatment of neuroblastoma patients resistant to crizotinib.We summarise how Omics drive clinical trials for neuroblastoma treatment and how much the research of biological targets is useful for personalised medicine. Finally, we give an overview of the most recent druggable targets selected by Omics investigation and discuss how the Omics results can provide us additional advantages for overcoming tumour drug resistance.

Multiple clinical forms of dehydrated hereditary stomatocytosis arise from mutations in PIEZO1.

Autosomal dominant dehydrated hereditary stomatocytosis (DHSt) usually presents as a compensated hemolytic anemia with macrocytosis and abnormally shaped red blood cells (RBCs). DHSt is part of a pleiotropic syndrome that may also exhibit pseudohyperkalemia and perinatal edema. We identified PIEZO1 as the disease gene for pleiotropic DHSt in a large kindred by exome sequencing analysis within the previously mapped 16q23-q24 interval. In 26 affected individuals among 7 multigenerational DHSt families with the pleiotropic syndrome, 11 heterozygous PIEZO1 missense mutations cosegregated with disease. PIEZO1 is expressed in the plasma membranes of RBCs and its messenger RNA, and protein levels increase during in vitro erythroid differentiation of CD34(+) cells. PIEZO1 is also expressed in liver and bone marrow during human and mouse development. We suggest for the first time a correlation between a PIEZO1 mutation and perinatal edema. DHSt patient red cells with the R2456H mutation exhibit increased ion-channel activity. Functional studies of PIEZO1 mutant R2488Q expressed in Xenopus oocytes demonstrated changes in ion-channel activity consistent with the altered cation content of DHSt patient red cells. Our findings provide direct evidence that R2456H and R2488Q mutations in PIEZO1 alter mechanosensitive channel regulation, leading to increased cation transport in erythroid cells.

Genetic abnormalities in adolescents and young adults with neuroblastoma: A report from the Italian Neuroblastoma group.

BACKGROUND: Less than 5% of neuroblastomas (NB) occur in adolescents and young adults (AYA), in whom the disease has an indolent and fatal course. PROCEDURE: We studied the genomic profile and histological characteristics of 34 NBs from AYA patients enrolled in the Italian Neuroblastoma Registry (INBR) between 1979 and 2009. RESULTS: Disease was disseminated in 20 patients and localized in 14; 30/34 tumors were classified as NB and 4/34 as nodular ganglioneuroblastoma (nGNB). Segmental Chromosome Aberrations (SCAs) were observed in 29 tumors (85%) namely 1p imbalance (58%), 17q gain (52%), 9p loss (32%), 11q loss (30%), 1q gain (17%), 7q gain (17%), 2p gain (14%), 3p loss (14%), and 4p loss (7%). MYCN amplification and MYCN gain were detected in 3 (10%) and 2 cases (7%) respectively. An anaplastic lymphoma receptor tyrosine kinase (ALK) gene mutation study on the available cases from this cohort revealed 4/25 (16%) mutated cases. In parallel, alpha thalassaemia/mental retardation syndrome X linked (ATRX) gene mutations were also sought, a novel mutation being detected in 1/21 (4,7%) cases. CONCLUSION: This study confirmed the low incidence of MYCN amplification in AYA and recorded a high frequency of 17q gain and 9p and 11q loss independently from the stage of the disease. The presence of 1q gain, which identifies patients with particularly aggressive disease, relapse and poor survival, was also detected. Furthermore, the frequency of ALK mutations suggests that a target-based therapy with ALK inhibitors might be effective in this subset of patients.

Cytotoxic effects induced by combined exposure to the mycotoxins sterigmatocystin, ochratoxin A and patulin on human tumour and healthy 3D spheroids.

Humans are exposed to complex mixtures of mycotoxins through diet. Despite the serious threat they pose, mycotoxin risk assessment often overlooks co-exposure. With the aim of filling this gap, the present study investigates the combined cytotoxicity of sterigmatocystin (STE), ochratoxin A (OTA) and patulin (PAT) in human tumour Neuroblastoma and healthy Mesenchymal Stem Cells three-dimensional (3D) spheroids. The range of concentrations tested (1.56-50 µM for STE, 0.78-25 µM for OTA and 0.15-5 µM for PAT) was selected considering the IC50 values obtained in previous studies and the estimated dietary exposure of consumers. To ensure appropriate experimental conditions, assessments for single mycotoxins and their combinations were conducted simultaneously. The nature of the toxicological interactions among the mycotoxins was then defined using the isobologram analysis. Our results demonstrated increased cytotoxicity in mycotoxin mixtures compared to individual exposure, with abundance of synergistic interactions. These findings highlight that the co-occurrence of STE, OTA and PAT in food may increase their individual toxic effects and should not be underestimated. Moreover, the use of advanced culture models increased the reliability and physiological relevance of our results which can serve as a groundwork for formulating standardized regulatory approaches towards mycotoxin mixtures in food and feed.

Comparative Study of Spheroids (3D) and Monolayer Cultures (2D) for the In Vitro Assessment of Cytotoxicity Induced by the Mycotoxins Sterigmatocystin, Ochratoxin A and Patulin.

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by filamentous fungi associated with a variety of acute and chronic foodborne diseases. Current toxicology studies mainly rely on monolayer cell cultures and animal models, which are undeniably affected by several limitations. To bridge the gap between the current in vitro toxicology approach and the in vivo predictability of the data, we here investigated the cytotoxic effects induced by the mycotoxins sterigmatocystin (STE), ochratoxin A (OTA) and patulin (PAT) on different 2D and 3D cell cultures. We focused on human tumours (neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells and epithelial breast cancer MDA-MB-213 cells) and healthy cells (bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells, BM-MSC, and umbilical vein endothelial cells, HUVECs). The cytotoxicity of STE, OTA, and PAT was determined after 24, 48 and 72 h of exposure using an ATP assay in both culture models. Three-dimensional spheroids' morphology was also analysed using the MATLAB-based open source software AnaSP 1.4 version. Our results highlight how each cell line and different culture models showed specific sensitivities, reinforcing the importance of using more complex models for toxicology studies and a multiple cell line approach for an improved and more comprehensive risk assessment.

Telehealth vs in-person education for enhancing self-care of ostomy patients (Self-Stoma): Protocol for a noninferiority, randomized, open-label, controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: Postoperative patients with ostomies experience significant changes in their lives as a result of the device implantation. Self-care is important to improve their health outcomes. Telehealth provides an opportunity to expand access to self-care education. AIM: This is a multicenter, non-inferiority randomized, open-label, controlled trial to evaluate the non-inferiority of a telehealth intervention to the standard in-person approach in improving self-care behaviors. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Three hundred and eighty-four patients aged ≥ 18 years, with a recently placed ostomy, no stomal/peristomal complications, and documented cognitive integrity will be randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either a telehealth intervention (four remote educational sessions) or a standard educational approach (four in-person sessions) delivered in outpatient settings. Every session (remote and in-person) will occur on Days 25, 32, 40, and 60 after discharge. Follow-ups will occur 1, 3, and 6 months after the last intervention session. Primary outcome is self-care maintenance measured using the Ostomy Self-care Index (OSCI). Secondary outcomes include self-care monitoring, self-care management, self-efficacy (OSCI), quality of life (Stoma specific quality of Life), depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9), adjustment (Ostomy Adjustment Inventory-23), stomal and peristomal complication rates, healthcare services utilization, mobility, and number of working days lost. Analyses will be performed per intention-to-treat and per protocol. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study has been approved by the Institutional Review Board of the main center (registration number: 119/22). Following completion of the trial, dissemination meetings will be held to share the results of the study with the participants and the health-care team. Adoption of telehealth technologies for ostomy patients can improve service organization by ensuring better integration and continuity of care. If the remote intervention produces comparable effects to the in-person intervention, it would be wise to make telehealth education an alternative treatment for addressing the educational needs of uncomplicated postoperative ostomy patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier number: NCT05796544).

Hypomorphic mutations of SEC23B gene account for mild phenotypes of congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type II.

Congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type II, a recessive disorder of erythroid differentiation, is due to mutations in SEC23B, a component of the core trafficking machinery COPII. In no case homozygosity or compound heterozygosity for nonsense mutation(s) was found. This study represents the first description of molecular mechanisms underlying SEC23B hypomorphic genotypes by the analysis of five novel mutations. Our findings suggest that reduction of SEC23B gene expression is not associated with CDA II severe clinical presentation; conversely, the combination of a hypomorphic allele with one functionally altered results in more severe phenotypes. We propose a mechanism of compensation SEC23A-mediated which justifies these observations.

Inherited hematological disorders due to defects in coat protein (COP)II complex.

Many diseases attributed to trafficking defects are primary disorders of protein folding and assembly. However, an increasing number of disease states are directly attributable to defects in trafficking machinery. In this context, the cytoplasmic coat protein (COP)II complex plays a pivotal role: it mediates the anterograde transport of correctly folded secretory cargo from the endoplasmic reticulum towards the Golgi apparatus. This review attempts to describe the involvement of COPII complex alteration in the pathogenesis of human genetic disorders; particularly, we will focus on two disorders, the Congenital Dyserythropoietic Anemia type II and the Combined Deficiency of Factor V and VIII.

Missense mutations in the ABCB6 transporter cause dominant familial pseudohyperkalemia.

Familial Pseudohyperkalemia (FP) is a dominant red cell trait characterized by increased serum [K(+)] in whole blood stored at or below room temperature, without additional hematological abnormalities. Functional gene mapping and sequencing analysis of the candidate genes within the 2q35-q36 critical interval identified-in 20 affected individuals among three multigenerational FP families-two novel heterozygous missense mutations in the ABCB6 gene that cosegregated with disease phenotype. The two genomic substitutions altered two adjacent nucleotides within codon 375 of ABCB6, a porphyrin transporter that, in erythrocyte membranes, bears the Langereis blood group antigen system. The ABCB6 R375Q mutation did not alter the levels of mRNA or protein, or protein localization in mature erythrocytes or erythroid precursor cells, but it is predicted to modestly alter protein structure. ABCB6 mRNA and protein levels increase during in vitro erythroid differentiation of CD34(+) erythroid precursors and the erythroleukemia cell lines HEL and K562. These data suggest that the two missense mutations in residue 375 of the ABCB6 polypeptide found in affected individuals of families with chromosome 2-linked FP could contribute to the red cell K(+) leak characteristic of this condition.

The Growing Importance of Three-Dimensional Models and Microphysiological Systems in the Assessment of Mycotoxin Toxicity.

Current investigations in the field of toxicology mostly rely on 2D cell cultures and animal models. Although well-accepted, the traditional 2D cell-culture approach has evident drawbacks and is distant from the in vivo microenvironment. To overcome these limitations, increasing efforts have been made in the development of alternative models that can better recapitulate the in vivo architecture of tissues and organs. Even though the use of 3D cultures is gaining popularity, there are still open questions on their robustness and standardization. In this review, we discuss the current spheroid culture and organ-on-a-chip techniques as well as the main conceptual and technical considerations for the correct establishment of such models. For each system, the toxicological functional assays are then discussed, highlighting their major advantages, disadvantages, and limitations. Finally, a focus on the applications of 3D cell culture for mycotoxin toxicity assessments is provided. Given the known difficulties in defining the safety ranges of exposure for regulatory agency policies, we are confident that the application of alternative methods may greatly improve the overall risk assessment.

miR-210-3p enriched extracellular vesicles from hypoxic neuroblastoma cells stimulate migration and invasion of target cells.

BACKGROUND: Tumor hypoxia stimulates release of extracellular vesicles (EVs) that facilitate short- and long-range intercellular communication and metastatization. Albeit hypoxia and EVs release are known features of Neuroblastoma (NB), a metastasis-prone childhood malignancy of the sympathetic nervous system, whether hypoxic EVs can facilitate NB dissemination is unclear. METHODS: Here we isolated and characterized EVs from normoxic and hypoxic NB cell culture supernatants and performed microRNA (miRNA) cargo analysis to identify key mediators of EVs biological effects. We then validated if EVs promote pro-metastatic features both in vitro and in an in vivo zebrafish model. RESULTS: EVs from NB cells cultured at different oxygen tensions did not differ for type and abundance of surface markers nor for biophysical properties. However, EVs derived from hypoxic NB cells (hEVs) were more potent than their normoxic counterpart in inducing NB cells migration and colony formation. miR-210-3p was the most abundant miRNA in the cargo of hEVs; mechanistically, overexpression of miR-210-3p in normoxic EVs conferred them pro-metastatic features, whereas miR-210-3p silencing suppressed the metastatic ability of hypoxic EVs both in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSION: Our data identify a role for hypoxic EVs and their miR-210-3p cargo enrichment in the cellular and microenvironmental changes favoring NB dissemination.

Clinical aspects and pathogenesis of congenital dyserythropoietic anemias: from morphology to molecular approach.

Congenital dyserythropoietic anemias belong to a group of inherited conditions characterized by a maturation arrest during erythropoiesis with a reduced reticulocyte production in contrast with erythroid hyperplasia in bone marrow. The latter shows specific morphological abnormalities that allowed for a morphological classification of these conditions mainly represented by congenital dyserythropoietic anemias types I and II. The identification of their causative genes provided evidence that these conditions have different molecular mechanisms that induce abnormal cell maturation and division. Some altered proteins seem to be involved in the chromatin assembly, such as codanin-1 in congenital dyserythropoietic anemia I. The gene involved in congenital dyserythropoietic anemia II, the most frequent form, is SEC23B. This condition seems to belong to a group of diseases attributable to defects in the transport of newly synthesized proteins from endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi. This review will analyze recent insights in congenital dyserythropoietic anemias types I and II. It will also attempt to clarify the relationship between mutations in causative genes and the clinical phenotype of these conditions.

Two founder mutations in the SEC23B gene account for the relatively high frequency of CDA II in the Italian population.

Congenital Dyserythropoietic Anemia type II is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by unique abnormalities in the differentiation of cells of the erythroid lineage. The vast majority of CDA II cases result from mutations in the SEC23B gene. To date, 53 different causative mutations have been reported in 86 unrelated cases (from the CDA II European Registry), 47 of them Italian. We have now identified SEC23B mutations in 23 additional patients, 17 Italians and 6 non-Italian Europeans. The relative allelic frequency of the mutations was then reassessed in a total of 64 Italian and 45 non-Italian unrelated patients. Two mutations, E109K and R14W, account for over one-half of the cases of CDA II in Italy. Whereas the relative frequency of E109K is similar in Italy and in the rest of Europe (and is also prevalent in Moroccan Jews), the relative frequency of R14W is significantly higher in Italy (26.3% vs. 10.7%). By haplotype analysis we demonstrated that both are founder mutations in the Italian population. By using the DMLE+ program our estimate for the age of the E109K mutation in Italian population is ≈2,200 years; whereas for the R14W mutation it is ≈3,000 years. We hypothesize that E109K may have originated in the Middle East and may have spread in the heyday of the Roman Empire. Instead, R14W may have originated in Southern Italy. The relatively high frequency of the R14W mutation may account for the known increased prevalence of CDA II in Italy.

Influenza vaccination and healthcare workers: barriers and predisposing factors.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE WORK: Influenza is a disease that affects a large part of the world's population annually, with major health, social and economic impacts. Active immunisation practices have always been recommended to counter influenza, especially for people at risk. The recommendations of major health agencies strongly advise influenza vaccination for all healthcare workers, mostly for those in contact with at-risk or immunocompromised individuals. Yet, the influenza vaccination coverage among healthcare workers remains rather low worldwide. This review explore barriers and the facilitators of health care professional toward influenza's vaccination. METHODS: Narrative review  consulting the databases: PubMed, CINAHL by combining keywords health care worker, flu, influenza, vaccination, barrier, resistence, hesitangy, between November 2019 and February 2020 Results. From the 1031 records initially, twenty-two primary studies were included in this narrative review. Our results show that the identified facilitators are: desire for self-protection, protection for loved ones and community. Instead, the barriers to vaccination identified are: fear of contracting influenza from the vaccination itself; not considering themselves at risk; to believing believe that their immune system is capable of managing a trivial disease; disease considered trivial, laziness; false beliefs. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Adherence rate on influenza vaccination among health professionals is quite low. The interventions that make it "complex and traceable" flu vaccination refusal increase adherence to this type of vaccination. The results show that current vaccination campaigns do not increase the rate of adherence by healthcare workers. Identifying the predisposing factors and barriers to such vaccination can help to create, develop and test targeted educational programmes.

Verteporfin induces apoptosis and reduces the stem cell-like properties in Neuroblastoma tumour-initiating cells through inhibition of the YAP/TAZ pathway.

Neuroblastoma is an embryonal malignancy of early childhood arising from the embryonic sympatho-adrenal lineage of the neural crest. About half of all cases are currently classified as high-risk of disease recurrence, with an overall survival rate of less than 40% at 5 years despite intensive therapy. Recent studies on matched primary tumours and at the relapse revealed downregulation of genes transcriptionally silenced by YAP as significant association with neuroblastoma relapse. Here, we evaluated the pharmacological targeting of YAP/TAZ with the YAP/TAZ-TEAD inhibitor Verteporfin (VP) in Tumour Initiating Cells (TICs) derived from High-Risk Neuroblastoma patients. VP treatment suppresses YAP/TAZ expression, induces apoptosis and causes the re-organization of the cytoskeleton reducing cells migration and clonogenic ability. Moreover, VP reduces the percentage of side population cells and ABC transporters involved in drug resistance, and the percentage of stem cell subpopulations CD133+ and CD44+ of TICs. Finally, we demonstrated that VP sensitizes TICs to the standard drugs used for neuroblastoma therapy etoposide and cis-platin opening the way to use VP as drug repositioning candidate for recurrent neuroblastoma.