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Iodine, a micronutrient that plays a pivotal role in thyroid hormone synthesis, is essential for proper health at all life stages. Indeed, an insufficient iodine intake may determine a thyroid dysfunction also with goiter, or it may be associated to clinical features such as stunted growth and mental retardation, referred as iodine deficiency disorders (IDDs). Iodine deficiency still remains an important public health problem in many countries, including Italy. The effective strategy for the prevention and control of IDDs is universal salt iodization, which was implemented in Italy in 2005 as a nationwide program adopted after the approval of an Italian law. Despite an improvement in the iodine intake, many regions in Italy are still characterized by mild iodine deficiency. In this review, we provide an overview of the historical evolution of the iodine status in the Calabria region, located in the South of Italy, during the past three decades. In particular, we have retraced an itinerary from the first epidemiological surveys at the end of the 1980s to the establishment of the Regional Observatory of Endemic Goiter and Iodine Prophylaxis, which represents an efficient model for the surveillance of IDDs and monitoring the efficacy of iodine prophylaxis., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Objectives: The study aimed at prospectively evaluating the evolution of asthma control in Italy, to evaluate the reasons for lack of asthma control, perceived quality of life (QoL) and association with level of asthma control, the impact of pharmacological treatment, the number of exacerbations and the healthcare resource consumption., Methods: PRISMA (PRospectIve Study on asthMA control) was an observational study performed in asthmatic patients including a cross-sectional phase and a 12-month prospective phase. Asthma control was assessed with the Asthma Control Test™ (ACT) and QoL was evaluated with EuroQoL-5D questionnaire filled in and collected during 5 clinic visits together with all the other data., Results: The prospective phase included 1017 patients with uncontrolled (55.7%) or partly controlled asthma (44.3%). Out of the 739 patients evaluable after 12 months, 22.2% achieved full asthma control (ACT score = 25) and 58.7% reached a good control (ACT score: 20-24). The improvement in asthma control was associated with improved QoL and reduced hospital visits. The main reasons for lack of asthma control were comorbidities, continued exposure to irritants/triggers and poor adherence to therapy. The frequency of exacerbations was lower in patients with controlled asthma.A fixed combination therapy with an inhaled corticosteroid and a long-acting β2 agonist was reported by 77.0% of patients. A better asthma control and improved QoL were achieved with extrafine beclomethasone/formoterol compared to either budesonide/formoterol or fluticasone/salmeterol., Conclusions: An improvement in asthma control and QoL can be achieved during a 1-year monitoring in a real life setting. Extrafine beclomethasone/formoterol was associated with significant benefit in terms of asthma control and QoL compared to large-particles combinations.ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT01110460.

The mechanisms by which varicocele affects fertility remain undetermined. Estrogens play a key role in the human male reproduction and human sperm expresses the estrogen receptors (ERs) and aromatase. In this study, by Western blotting we evidenced the ERs content concomitantly in healthy sperm and in oligoastenoteratozoospermic (OAT) samples without and with varicocele. In varicocele a strong reduction of the ERβ was observed, while the ERα was almost absent. Besides, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) confirmed the reduction of ERs expression in "varicocele" sperm, indicating that varicocele has a detrimental effect on sperm structure at molecular level. To further define the estrogen significance in male gamete and the pathophysiology of varicocele we investigated both the expression of ERα and ERβ in normal and pathologic sperm samples as well as we evaluated estradiol (E2) action on lipid and glucose sperm metabolism. Responses to E2 treatments on cholesterol efflux, protein tyrosine phosphorylations, motility, and acrosin activity in varicocele sperm were reduced or absent. The evaluation of the triglycerides content, lipase and acyl-CoA dehydrogenase activities, suggest that E2 exerts a lipolytic effect on human sperm metabolism. Concerning glucose metabolism, it appears that E2 induces G6PDH activity concomitantly to the insulin secretion. In "varicocele" sperm, the E2 did not induce energy expenditure. OAT sperm had E2-responsiveness but in a lesser extent with respect healthy sperm. This study discovered a novel role for E2/ERs in human sperm physiology, since they modulate sperm metabolism and new detrimental effects related to the pathophysiology of the varicocele condition., (Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.)

Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is a recently described cause of respiratory infection. The purpose of this study was to to further the available information on the circulation of HMPV among young asymptomatic subjects. The epidemiology of HMPV was examined in a cohort of 73 university students during a winter season by using polymerase chain reaction. HPMV was detected in 3/73 (4.1%) asymptomatic subjects. Phylogenetic analysis has shown that circulating viruses belonged to different HMPV sublineages. Our findings indicate that asymptomatic carriage of HMPV might be a neglected source of viral transmission in the community.

Background: The association between forearm bone mineral areal density (BMD) and dietary calcium, anthropometric characteristics, puberty, and physical activity was studied for the first time in 200 girls (aged 11-15 years) and 100 women (aged 20-23 years) living in Southern Italy., Methods: The BMD was assessed by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry at ultradistal (ud) and proximal (pr) radial sites and dietary calcium was evaluated using Food Frequency Questionnaires and detailed 3-day food records., Results: For population samples grouped according to low and high calcium intake levels, forearm densities were quite similar among both girls and women. Independently of calcium intake, girls displayed strong correlations between ud/pr-BMD and age, bone age, weight, height and BMI. Furthermore, in girls of similar age and BMI, radial densities were substantially increased following menarche. Positive relationships between weight, BMI and both ud/pr-BMD were only evident in women with high calcium intake., Conclusions: This study showed that different calcium intake values do not appear to affect forearm mineral densities at the ages investigated, however puberty represents the major event in radial bone mass acquisition during adolescence.