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COVID-19 is a global health threat with a huge number of confirmed cases and deaths all over the world. Human-to-human transmission via respiratory droplets and contact with aerosol-infected surfaces are the major routes of virus spread. Because SARS-CoV-2 can remain in the air and on surfaces from several hours to several days, disinfection of frequently touched surfaces and critical rooms, in addition to observing individual hygiene tips, is required to reduce the virus spreading. Here we report on an investigation into the use of gaseous ozone as a potentially effective sanitizing method against the new coronavirus.

Purpose The outcome of lung transplantion (LuTx) suffers from a high rejection rate, and there are still huge gaps of knowledge about immune-mediated rejection mechanisms. Acute rejection (AR) can lead to chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD), the main cause of poor survival and low quality of life. The standardized morphologic evaluation of rejection is based on histopathologic diagnostic criteria at a given time-point, but it has a limited prognostic value towards clinical outcome and the likelihood to develop CLAD. We analyzed immune-check point proteins in lung tissues of patients who received a LuTx and who were or were not undergoing rejection in the attempt to define novel immunological markers that could predict rejection. Methods We conducted an observational retrospective study on eight consecutive explanted grafts for chronic rejection and on transbronchial cryobiopsies (TCB) obtained from 24 consecutive patients during the first year LuTx follow-up. A broad spectrum of immunohistochemical analysis was carried out (PD1/CD279, PDL1/CD274, CTLA4/CD152, CD4, CD8, hFoxp3, TIGIT, TOX, B-Cell-Specific Activator Protein). Of those TCB-patients we recorded at least 1 year follow up of survival, infections and rejections (acute and chronic) rate. Results Exhausted (PD1+/TOX+) as well as Treg (PD1+/FOXP3+) lymphocytes were significantly reduced in restrictive allograft syndrome (RAS)-compared to bronchiolitis-obliterans-syndrome (BOS)-rejected lungs. PD1-expressing T-lymphocytes in TCBs correlated (sensitivity 0.69; specificity 1) with the presence of AR and were highly suggestive of CLAD development (sensitivity 0.86; specificity 0.82; overall 10 times higher risk of developing CLAD) at one-year follow-up. Conclusion Results herein for the first time show the importance of immunological checkpoints in the setting of LuTx rejection and indicate that the evaluation of the expression of such proteins could offer a distinct prognostic advantage in monitoring the onset of AR in patients who underwent LuTx. Longitudinal analyses in ampler cohorts will be needed to confirm these data.

The eStation is a collecting and processing system designed to automatically deal with the reception, processing, analysis and dissemination of key environmental parameters derived from remotely sensed data. Developed mainly at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, the eStation has been distributed to 47 sub-Saharan countries in the frame of the AMESD (Africa n Monitoring of Environment for Sustainable Development) project to provide local institutions with the capacity to easily access a large range of remote sensing products on vegetation, precipitation, fires and oceans. These products, derived from the processing of images coming from various instruments including SPOT-Vegetation, MSG-SEVIRI and MODIS are developed to allow end-users to make local and regional assessments of the state of marine and terrestrial ecosystems. The products, dispatched to the users through the EUMETSAT data broadcasting system (EUMETCast) or provided by other Earth Observation (EO) data agencies (e.g. NASA), are further processed by the eStation to allow end-users to generate their own environmental, whether terrestrial or marine, assessments and reports. Initially designed as a stand-alone system using an open source development framework, the eStation has recently been further developed as a web processing service to allow a broader range of end-users to access the data and services over the Internet. It is the purpose of this paper to introduce the readers to the eStation and its products, to share the lessons learnt in deploying these services as well as to discuss its more recent use in chained environmental web based modeling services.

A selective uptake of boron in the tumor is the base of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy, which can destroy the tumor substantially sparing the normal tissue. In order to deliver a lethal dose to the tumor, keeping the dose absorbed by normal tissues below the tolerance level, it is mandatory to know the 10 B concentration present in each kind of tissue at the moment of irradiation. This work presents the calibration procedure adopted for a boron concentration measurement method based on neutron autoradiography, where biological samples are deposited on sensitive films and irradiated in the thermal column of the TRIGA reactor (University of Pavia). The latent tracks produced in the film by the charged particles coming from the neutron capture in 10 B are made visible by a proper etching, allowing the measurement of the track density. A calibration procedure with standard samples provides curves of track density as a function of boron concentration, to be used in the measurement of biological samples. In this paper, the bulk etch rate parameter and the calibration curves obtained for both liquid samples and biological tissues with known boron concentration are presented. A bulk etch rate value of (1.64 ± 0.02) μm/h and a linear dependence with etching time were found. The plots representing the track density versus the boron concentration in a range between 5 and 50 μg/g (ppm) are linear, with an angular coefficient of (1.614 ± 0.169)·10 −3 tracks/(μm 2 ppm) for liquids and (1.598 ± 0.097)·10 −2 tracks/(μm 2 ppm) for tissues.

Advanced remote sensing techniques and regional algorithms are combined to produce and analyze a 12-year multi-sensor time series of bio-optical properties for the Adriatic Sea. First, a multi-sensor series of normalized water-leaving radiance LWN is created with an optically-based merging technique applied to SeaWiFS and MODIS data, then distributions of inherent optical properties (IOPs) are obtained with a semi-analytical bio-optical model. Additionally, Chla is computed by two regional empirical algorithms associated with two classes of optical properties representative of open ocean waters and Adriatic coastal regions (Classes 1 and 2, respectively). The domain of applicability of each algorithm is dynamically determined on the basis of the LWN input spectrum by a novelty detection approach. The various satellite products are validated using a comprehensive bio-optical time series collected in the northern Adriatic. At the basin level, the frequency of occurrence of Classes 1 and 2 are 61% and 10%, respectively, with Class 2 waters particularly located in the northern part and characterized by higher levels of Chla and IOPs. The annual cycle of Chla over the 12-year period exhibits significant variations in amplitude and phase; moreover, the annual cycle shows a reduced amplitude during a period centered on 2004 for a time interval that varies with the region. In the northern Adriatic, the overall level of Chla appears lower between 2003 and 2008 compared to the beginning of the series.

Almost eight years ago, in December 2001, we performed for the first time in the world thermal neutron irradiation on an isolated liver of a patient. The organ was affected by diffuse metastases of a colon carcinoma and had been previously loaded with a 10 B compound. In July 2003, the same procedure was applied again on a patient for the treatment of unresectable and incurable hepatic metastases of a carcinoma of the rectum. Both patients are dead at present. Now we can analyze in depth the clinical history of these patients and evaluate the effectiveness of this therapy. From this exciting experience we learned much, and we also found out about complications till then unknown, which need to be studied and addressed experimentally. Unfortunately we can base our conclusions just on the experience we had with these two patients. We could have been much more detailed and firm in our statements if the number of clinical cases was larger. The BNCT Pavia project has been suspended, but it is more than likely to resume in a short time. Good findings were many. The procedure is feasible; the original concept of complete immersion of the diseased liver in a homogeneous neutron field proved effective and winning. The tumor masses resulted completely necrotic and unknown metastases too appeared radically treated; healthy hepatic tissue was preserved from both morphological and functional points of view; no symptoms of cirrhosis appeared even four years after treatment. For the long term surviving patient, quality of life was excellent. Other findings require to be tackled in depth. The “post-irradiation syndrome” we observed in both patients, with identical symptoms and biochemical derangements, creates a dramatic—even though totally reversible—clinical condition, that is the probable cause of death for our second patient, suffering from cardiomyopathy, 33 days after treatment. For the first patient, recurrences were a late yet fatal complication, for which even a further surgical revision was ineffective. We offer some hypotheses about their origin and possible prevention.

Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) is the new generation of European geostationary meteorological satellites operated at ELIMETSAT. SEVIRI, the MSG main radiometer, measures the reflected solar radiation within three spectral bands centered at 0.6, 0.8 and 1.6 μm, and within a broad band similar to the VIS channel of MVIRI, the radiometer on-board the first generation of METEOSAT satellites. The operational calibration of these channels relies on modelled radiances over bright desert sites, as no in-flight calibration device is available. These simulated radiances represent therefore the “reference” against which SEVIRI is calibrated. The present study evaluates the uncertainties associated with the characterization of this “reference”, i.e. , the modelled radiances. A theoretical estimation is first assessed, based on the impact of the target surface and atmospheric parameter error on the simulated radiance. Top-of-atmosphere simulated radiances are next compared with several thousands of calibrated observations acquired by the ERS2/ATSR-2 and SeaStar/SeaWiFS instruments over the SEVIRI desert calibration sites. Results show that the relative bias between simulation and observation does not exceed ±5%.

Objective : To evaluate the reliability and sensitivity of the high-voltage electrical stimulation for studying proximal conduction of peripheral motor axons in normal subjects, S 1 radiculopathies and acquired demyelinating neuropathies. Methods : Twelve patients with compressive S 1 radiculopathy, 22 patients with acquired demyelinating neuropathy and 29 healthy volunteers were examined. The conduction of peripheral motor axons between lumbosacral roots and the sciatic nerve at the gluteal fold was investigated by high-voltage electrical stimulation delivered percutaneously. Results : The main electrophysiological finding in S 1 radiculopathy was an abnormal side to side difference in the amplitude of the compound motor action potential by proximal stimulation. Overall, the frequency of abnormalities detected by using high-voltage electrical stimulation was similar to that found with conventional EMG studies, and the two methods showed electrophysiological alterations in the same patients. In all patients with acquired demyelinating neuropathy, the proximal motor nerve conduction velocity from lumbosacral roots to the sciatic nerve at the gluteal fold was reduced; proximal stimulation of the motor axons revealed electrophysiological abnormalities more often than when using other electrophysiological techniques (F wave and H reflex). Conclusions : High-voltage electrical stimulation of peripheral motor axons shows high sensitivity in detecting proximal neuropathies; it can also define the site and relevance of proximal lesions in the peripheral nervous system better than other conventional techniques.

Background: Cisplatin-based chemotherapy is generally considered the most active treatment for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer. The combination of cisplatin and etoposide had for some time been the standard treatment at our center. Of the other active regimens, cisplatin in combination with mitomycin-C, vindesine or ifosfamide (MVP or MIC) showed the highest response rates. We decided to perform a comparative trial of the three «best» regimens in order to define a possible standard regimen in advanced NSCLC. Materials and methods: From May 1989 to April 1992, 393 consecutive, previously untreated NSCLC patients, stages IIIB and IV, were randomized to receive either cisplatin (120 mg/sqm day 1)+etoposide (100 mg/sqm days 1-3) every 3 weeks (PE) or cisplatin (120 mg/sqm every 4 weeks) + mitomycin-C (8 mg/sqm days 1-29-71) + vindesine (3 mg/sqm days 1-8-15-22) (MVP) or cisplatin (120 mg/sqm day 1) + mitomycin-C (6 mg/sqm day 1) + ifosfamide (3 mg/ sqm day 2) every 3 weeks (MIC). Of these, 382 were evaluable for survival and 360 for response. Results: Response rates were statistically higher for both MIC (40%) and MVP (36%) than for the PE arm (23%). Survival estimates analyzed by the log-rank test showed a significant benefit (p < 0.04) for patients treated with three-drug regimens (MVP; MIC) as compared to those in the PE arm. The main toxicity was myelosuppression; thrombocytopenia WHO grade 3-4 was worse in the MIC arm; nephrotoxicity grade 3-4 was also more frequent in the MIC arm. Conclusions: A three-drug cisplatin-based regimen (MVP; MIC) should be considered as reference treatment in NSCLC

The clinical efficacy and safety profile of a gemcitabine-cisplatin combination was investigated in a 12-centre phase II trial. 48 consecutive previously untreated NSCLC patients were entered. Median age was 60 years (range 37–70); performance status 0–1; 21 patients had locally advanced unresectable stage IIIb disease and 27 disseminated stage IV disease. Gemcitabine 1000 mg/m2 was administered weekly (days 1, 8, 15) followed by one week rest and cisplatin 100 mg/m2 monthly (day 2) of each 28-day cycle. This schedule was chosen because of experimental and clinical evidence of synergy when the 2 drugs are given in close sequence, and to assess separately acute side effects. Forty-six patients were evaluable for response and toxicity (≥ 1 measurable lesion and ≥ 2 cycles). 1 complete response and 26 partial responses were observed for an overall response rate of 58% (95% CI 44–72%), 11 stage IIIb (52%, CI 3l–73%) and 16 in stage IV (59%, CI 41–77%). Thrombocytopenia was the main side effect with 51% grade 3–4 toxicity, usually short-lived and responsible for the omission of gemcitabine administration on day IS in 90 courses of chemotherapy, and no serious bleeding episodes. Nonhaematological toxicity was usually mild with one acute but reversible renal failure. The combination of gemcitabine and cisplatin induced a significant response rate both in stage IlIb and IV NSCLC with modest side effects. The regimen deserves further careful evaluation in a phase III prospective randomized trial.

Studies regarding rHuEPO therapy of CDDP-anemia have been recently reported. We reviewed the incidence of this side-effect in pts receiving at least 3 cycles of CDDP-containing chemotherapy over the last 5 yrs. We identified 119 epithelial ovarian cancer pts (CDDP 90 mg/sqm + CTX 900 mg/sqm); 45 testicular cancer pts (CDDP 20 mg/sqm day 1–5, PEB or PVB regimens); 32 non small lung cancer pts (CDDP 120 mg/sqm + VP16 or IFO or MMC). All ofpts had normal renal function and hemocytometric controls every 1 or 2 weeks. RBC transfusion were given at a mean Hb level of 7.5 g/dl (range 6.5–8.1). The results are given in the table below: Ovarian Testicular Lung No.of pts 119 45 32 Average Hb baseline values 11.07 13.3 13.4 Average Hb nadir 9.07 11.02 9.08 % of pts with Hb 26% 4.40% 34.30% Total % of transfused pts 4.20% 4.40% 9.3% % of pts with Hb 16% 100% 17% Average n. of RBC units transfused/pt 2 2 3 So, considering the current cost of rHuEPO, clinical studies are required to evaluate its cost-effectiveness and to select pts who can most benefit from rHuEPO in relation to the type of neoplasm, life expectancy and response to rHuEPO, with the final aim of optimizing the use of thishormone.