Search results for "stages"
showing 10 items of 217 documents
Population dynamics of Antarctophthirus microchir (Anoplura: Echinophthiriidae) in pups from South American sea lion, Otaria flavescens, in Northern …
2009
We analysed population dynamics of the louse Antarctophthirus microchir in pups of the South American sea lion, Otaria flavescens, at the Punta León rookery (Argentina) over a period of 2 years. A total of 136 pups were aged and marked at the beginning of the lactation period ashore, then sampled for lice at different times within 30 days. Sampling was restricted to the chest and belly, two sites where lice were especially abundant. This concentration on ventral areas might protect lice from thermal stress in the austral summer. Infestation patterns in pups ≤3 days old suggested that the potential for transmission increased from first nymphs to adults. Population trends of each instar with …
Sexual differences in larval life history traits of acanthocephalan cystacanths
2006
Sexual differences in life history traits, such as size dimorphism, presumably arise via sexual selection and are most readily observed in adults. For complex life-cycle parasites, however, sexual selection may also have consequences for larval traits, e.g., growth in intermediate hosts. Two acanthocephalan species (Acanthocephalus lucii and Echinorhynchus borealis) were studied to determine, whether larval life histories differ between males and females. The size of female A. lucii cystacanths had a much stronger relationship with intermediate host size than males, suggesting females invest more in growth and are consequently more limited by resources. No relationship between host size and…
Sleep in children with autistic spectrum disorder: a questionnaire and polysomnographic study.
2007
Abstract Objective To evaluate sleep in children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) by means of sleep questionnaires and polysomnography; moreover, to analyze their cyclic alternating pattern (CAP). Methods Thirty-one patients with ASD (28 males, 3 females, aged 3.7–19 years) and age-matched normal controls were included. ASD children were evaluated by a standard sleep questionnaire that consisted of 45 items in a Likert-type scale covering several areas of sleep disorders and by overnight polysomnography in the sleep laboratory after one adaptation night. Results The questionnaire results showed that parents of ASD children reported a high prevalence of disorders of initiating and maint…
REM sleep behavior disorder and periodic leg movements during sleep in ALS
2017
Objective To assess sleep characteristics and the occurrence of abnormal muscle activity during sleep, such as REM sleep without atonia (RSWA), REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD), and periodic leg movements during sleep (PLMS), in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Methods A total of 41 patients with ALS and 26 healthy subjects were submitted to clinical interview and overnight video-polysomnography. Results A total of 22 patients with ALS (53.6%) reported poor sleep quality. Polysomnographic studies showed that patients with ALS had reduced total sleep time, increased wakefulness after sleep onset, shortened REM and slow-wave sleep, and decreased sleep efficiency, compared t…
Social withdrawal in children moderates the association between parenting styles and the children's own socioemotional development.
2014
Background: Social withdrawal in early childhood is a risk factor for later socioemotional difficulties. This study examined the joint effects of children’s social withdrawal and mothers’ and fathers’ parenting styles on children’s socioemotional development. Based on diatheses-stress, vantage sensitivity, and differential susceptibility models, socially withdrawn children were assumed to be more prone to parental influences than others. Methods: Teachers rated 314 children on prosocial skills, and internalizing and externalizing behaviors at three points in time between grades 1–3. Mothers (n = 279) and fathers (n = 182) filled in questionnaires measuring their affection, and their behavio…
Chromatic-achromatic perimetry in four clinic cases: Glaucoma and diabetes
2015
Color perimetry has interesting clinical application for the diagnosis and detection of certain eye conditions, due to the variations that certain diseases can cause in chromatic thresholds, both in the red-green (RG) and the blue-yellow (BY) pathways.[1,2,3,4] The separate study of the visual function of both the chromatic and achromatic mechanisms could be more efficient in detecting sensitivity variations, and such variations would not be obscured by the intrusion of other mechanisms. Currently, the supply of conventional perimeters that are capable of performing a chromatic perimetry test is very limited and with reduced options regarding the possibility of choosing the physical charact…
Interactive Multiobjective Robust Optimization with NIMBUS
2018
In this paper, we introduce the MuRO-NIMBUS method for solving multiobjective optimization problems with uncertain parameters. The concept of set-based minmax robust Pareto optimality is utilized to tackle the uncertainty in the problems. We separate the solution process into two stages: the pre-decision making stage and the decision making stage. We consider the decision maker’s preferences in the nominal case, i.e., with the most typical or undisturbed values of the uncertain parameters. At the same time, the decision maker is informed about the objective function values in the worst case to support her/him to make an informed decision. To help the decision maker to understand the behavio…
Calabrian and Ionian: A proposal for the definition of Mediterranean stages for the Lower and Middle Pleistocene
2006
The need to standardise stratigraphical subdivisions of continuous marine sedimentary successions that outcrop for hundreds metres, using clearly defined points fixed in the field is strongly felt. A proposal is presented here to formalize regional stages for the Lower Pleistocene (Calabrian) and for the Middle Pleistocene (Ionian) in Italy. The sections are well exposed, carefully investigated using multiple criteria (an integrated stratigraphical approach) and located in the central part of the Mediterranean. This area is recognized worldwide as a classical region for the Neogene and the Pleistocene sequences. The terrestrial record is directly correlated with the deep-sea record, as dete…
Molecular and morphological identification of larval opecoelids (Digenea: Opecoelidae) parasitising prosobranch snails in a Western Mediterranean lag…
2012
In a study of the digeneans parasitising molluscs in the Els Alfacs lagoon (Ebro Delta, Western Mediterranean) we found heavy infections with sporocysts emitting two types of cotylocercous cercariae in the prosobranch trochid gastropod Gibbula adansonii and with metacercariae in the prosobranch nassariid gastropod Cyclope neritea. A comparative analysis using ITS ribosomal DNA sequences from these larval stages and published sequences of 17 larval and adult opecoelid stages allowed us to elucidate the life-cycle of Macvicaria obovata and to confirm the identification of Cainocreadium labracis based on cercarial morphology. We provide molecular evidence for the identification and the first d…
Current and future challenges in HCV: insights from an Italian experts panel
2017
Background: The recent availability of direct acting antiviral drugs (DAAs) has drastically changed hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment scenarios, due to the exceedingly high rates of sustained virological response (SVR) and excellent tolerability allowing for treatment at all disease stages. Methods: A panel of Italian experts was convened twice, in November 2016 and January 2017, to provide further support on some open issues and provide guidance for personalized HCV care, also in light of forthcoming regimens. Results and conclusions: Treatment recommendations issued by international and national liver societies to guide clinicians in the management of HCV infection are constantly updated …