Esperienze di Debate all’Università di Palermo

Introduzione Il Progetto Mentore per la didattica dell'Università di Palermo è un’esperienza di formazione e miglioramento della didattica universitaria a cui partecipiamo su base volontaria da alcuni anni. Le attività del Progetto includono anche la formazione su alcune specifiche metodologie didattiche, ma contemporaneamente, attraverso il confronto e il dialogo tra pari, incentivano la ricerca e l’elaborazione di nuovi percorsi didattici all’interno dei rispettivi insegnamenti. In questo contesto, su iniziativa autonoma e attraverso una formazione da autodidatti, abbiamo sperimentato in due insegnamenti di Corsi di Laurea di ambito disciplinare diverso (Giurisprudenza e Chimica) la metod…

Efficacy of Rapamycin as Inducer of Hb F in Primary Erythroid Cultures from Sickle Cell Disease and β-Thalassemia Patients.

Phenotypic improvement of hemoglobinopathies such as sickle cell disease and β-thalassemia (β-thal) has been shown in patients with high levels of Hb F. Among the drugs proposed to increase Hb F production, hydroxyurea (HU) is currently the only one proven to improve the clinical course of these diseases. However, Hb F increase and patient's response are highly variable, indicating that new pharmacological agents could be useful for patients not responding to HU or showing a reduction of response during long-term therapy. In this study we evaluated the efficacy of rapamycin, a lypophilic macrolide used for the prevention of acute rejection in renal transplant recipients, as an inducer of Hb…

LA NUTRIZIONE PARENTERALE e L'INTESTINO RESIDUO: quale relazione nel decorso dei pazienti con Sindrome da Intestino Corto? Valutazione da una Casistica Nazionale Multicentrica

In età pediatrica la Sindrome da INtestino Corto (SIC), il più delle volte conseguenza di un intervento chirurgico di resezione intestinale massiva, è la più frequente causa di Insufficienza Intestinale (ID). L'esigenza di conoscere la realtà delle SIC ha promosso uno Studio Nazionale Multicentrico retrospettivo ("SIC 91" ) per valutare i casi di SIC osservati dal 1991 al 2001, avvalendosi inoltre dei dati del Network Italiano "Insufficienza Intestinale in Età Pediatrica". I dati preliminari sono già stati presenatti e pubblicati in altra sede ed hanno permesso di esprimere alcune considerazioni iniziali. Gli obiettivi di questo Studio sono quelli di valutare l'outcome dei pazienti in relaz…

X‐Ray Spectroscopy of the Unsteady Quiescent Corona of AD Leonis withChandra

We present the analysis and interpretation of an observation of the flare star AD Leo (dM3e) with Chandra/LETG. The high resolution X-ray spectrum allowed us to infer the plasma emission measure distribution (EMD) vs. temperature, and the abundances of individual elements in the corona of this magnetically-active star, during a typical state characterized by significant variability but no large flaring event. We have also measured plasma densities at various temperatures using spectroscopic diagnostics provided by He-like triplets and Fe XXI lines. We show that the present EMD is similar to those previously obtained from EUVE spectra during quiescent and flaring states, confirming the long-…

Study on the efficacy of Rapamicin as an inducer of fetal hemoglobin in primary erythroid cultures from patientes with hemoglobinopathies

MR imaging of the brain: findings in asymptomatic patients with thalassemia intermedia and sickle cell-thalassemia disease.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the spectrum of MR findings of the brain in asymptomatic patients affected with thalassemia intermedia or sickle cell-thalassemia disease to prevent brain damage by identifying patients at risk for stroke so that transfusional or pharmacologic treatment could be implemented.Forty-one asymptomatic patients who were younger than 50 years and were affected by minor hemoglobinopathies underwent MR imaging of the brain. Ischemic lesions were classified as small, medium, or large and as single or multifocal. Atrophic changes were graded subjectively as mild, moderate, or severe. A grade of brain damage was assigned to every patient. The frequency and seve…

IL-23R determines susceptibility in Crohn's disease in a Mediterranean area

The sea urchin sns5 chromatin insulator settles a gene therapy vector into an independent domain of expression in the vertebrate genome

One of the critical aspects of introducing a transgene into the eukaryotic genome is the great variability of gene expression due to position effects (1). Chromatin-dependent repressive states could be overcome by incorporation in the transgene of chromatin insulators, functioning to establish and delimit domains of expression. We have previously demonstrated that the sea urchin sns5 DNA element has the typical features of an insulator: by acting as enhancer blocker, it shields promoters from neighboring regulatory elements, and by acting as barrier it buffers a transgene from the propagation of condensed chromatin (2,3). We have investigated the use of sns5 in the field of gene therapy. Ou…

THE ROLE OF CARD15 MUTATIONS AND SMOKING IN THE COURSE OF DISEASE IN A MEDITERRANEAN AREA

. Am J Gastroenterol. 2008 Mar;103(3):649-55. The role of CARD15 mutations and smoking in the course of Crohn's disease in a Mediterranean area. Renda MC, Orlando A, Civitavecchia G, Criscuoli V, Maggio A, Mocciaro F, Rossi F, Scimeca D, Modesto I, Oliva L, Cottone M. Ematologia II Ospedale V. Cervello, Palermo, Italy. AIM: To evaluate the role of CARD15 mutations and smoking in the main events of Crohn's disease (CD). PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 182 patients with CD were included in a prospective study in order to evaluate the role of CARD15 mutations and smoking in the main outcomes of disease course: first operation and surgical recurrence. The following variables were evaluated in …

Coronal properties of G-type stars in different evolutionary phases

We report on the analysis of XMM-Newton observations of three G-type stars in very different evolutionary phases: the weak-lined T Tauri star HD 283572, the Zero Age Main Sequence star EK Dra and the Hertzsprung-gap giant star 31 Com. They all have high X-ray luminosity (10^31 erg/s for HD 283572 and 31 Com and 10^30 erg/s for EK Dra). We compare the Emission Measure Distributions (EMDs) of these active coronal sources, derived from high-resolution XMM-Newton grating spectra, as well as the pattern of elemental abundances vs. First Ionization Potential (FIP). We also perform time-resolved spectroscopy of a flare detected by XMM from EK Dra. We interpret the observed $EMD$s as the result of …