Commutability of control materials in glycohemoglobin determinations

The intermethod variabilities of control materials and patient blood samples for the measurement of glycohemoglobin were compared. Sets of 50 blood samples and 15 control materials were analyzed by HPLC and affinity and immunochemical methods. For each pair of methods, the distances of the materials from the regression line of patient blood results (expressed as normalized residuals) were calculated. Only two of 15 controls had normalized residuals exceeding 3 standard deviations from the regression line. Total hemoglobin (Hb) content, Hb derivatives, and cellulose acetate electrophoresis demonstrated that only a minority of controls could be considered similar to patients' blood samples. We selected Menarini's and our home-prepared controls to simulate calibration of the different techniques by these materials. Intermethod calibration succeeded mostly in harmonizing results obtained by HPLC methods. On the contrary, calibration of the immunochemical techniques (Boehringer and Roche) did not improve intermethod agreement to a clinically useful level.     

Smoked tuna, sliced and vacuum packed, a relatively new product

The possibility of storing vacuum packed, smoked and sliced tuna fish was studied. The microbiological and chemical analyses demonstrated that hygienic conditions and organoleptic properties remain unaltered after storage at 5 degrees C for 60 days.     

Buffalo meat as a salted and cured product

Bresaola, a GPI product, is produced by salting and curing different cuts of the hindquarters of lean bovine meat. The use of buffalo meat to produce similar processed, cold-cut products demonstrated the possibility of transforming cuts of buffalo rump into a product similar to that of beef, even considering parameters that penalise the buffalo product like tenderness and colour.     

Ostrich meat: Physico-chemical characteristics and comparison with turkey and bovine meat

In several European countries ostrich breeding has now become quite common. In Italy this has also given rise to the need for regulations for the slaughtering of Ratites. The present work studies and compares the physico-chemical characteristics of the meat from the thigh of the ostrich with the same anatomical cuts of turkey and bovine. The ostrich meat muscle of the thigh was imported vacuum packed from Israel and France, the muscles considered were m. flexor cruris and m. iliofibularis. The turkey thighs were from the domestic market (supermarket) and the bovine muscle m. pectineus was from spent milking animals from an EEC slaughterhouse. Needless to say that the breeding, the feeding and the system of slaughtering could influence some parameters of the different kinds of meat; however these factors could not be assessed. Due to its tenderness, low fat content and cholesterol levels ostrich meat is, in accordance with modern-day nutritional principles, a valid alternative to other kinds of meat.     

A Presurgical Study of Curcumin Combined with Anthocyanin Supplements in Patients with Colorectal Adenomatous Polyps

Adenomatous polyps are precancerous lesions associated with a higher risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). Curcumin and anthocyanins have shown promising CRC-preventive activity in preclinical and epidemiological studies. The objective of this window-of-opportunity, proof-of principle trial was to evaluate the effect of curcumin combined with anthocyanin supplements on tissue biomarkers of colorectal adenomatous polyps. Eligible patients received either anthocyanin and curcumin supplementation or related matching placebo for 4–6 weeks before polyp removal. Adenomatous polyps and adjacent tissue biopsies were collected at baseline and after supplementation for immunohistochemical assessment of β-catenin, NF-kappa B (NF-κB), Ki-67, P53, and dysplasia. No differences were observed in baseline biomarker expression between normal and dysplastic tissues. The combination of anthocyanins and curcumin resulted in a significant borderline reduction of NF-κB immunohistochemistry (IHC) expression in adenoma tissue (geometric mean ratio (GMR): 0.72; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.51–1.00; p-value: 0.05) and a trend to a reduction of Ki-67 (GMR: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.50–1.08; p-value: 0.11). No significant modulation of biomarkers in normal adjacent mucosa was observed. We concluded that the combined supplementation of anthocyanins and curcumin seems to lead to a potentially favorable modulation of tissue biomarkers of inflammation and proliferation in colon adenomas.     

Chemical and microbiological parameters and sensory attributes of a typical Sicilian salami ripened in different conditions

A study was carried out on a typical Sicilian salami prepared from meat of the local Nero Siciliano pig in order to characterize this typical product. One formulation of salami was divided in two batches and ripened in two different environments, a traditional sicilian room (TR) and a controlled industrial ripening room (RR). Microbiological and physico-chemical analysis were performed on raw mixture and after 7 and 90 days of ripening. Sensory analysis was carried out on salami at the end of ripening, and flavour compounds were extracted by simultaneous distillation–extraction and analysed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Commercial salami prepared from meat from white pig were purchased locally and used as comparative samples. The experimental salami at the end of ripening was characterized by a high level of fat and low level of moisture. Fatty acid analysis showed that experimental salami contained a higher percentage of oleic acid, vaccenic acid and palmitic acid and a lower percentage of stearic acid and linoleic acid, when compared to commercial salami (P<0.05). No significant differences were found in fatty acid composition of the experimental salami between the two types of ripening. Instrumental analysis of flavour volatile compounds in the experimental salami demonstrated that traditionally ripened salami contained the most volatiles, especially aldehydes (8217 vs. 3104 ng g⁻¹, P<0.05). Sensory analysis showed no significant differences as a consequence of different ripening conditions for firmness, saltiness, acidity, cohesiveness and elasticity. In contrast, there were significant differences for hardness and rancidity, which were higher in TR salami compared with RR and commercial salami. Lactic acid bacteria and Micrococcaceae counts were higher in controlled ripened salami although the hygienic quality of both products was satisfactory. The use of a controlled room for the ripening of this typical salami seems to be a potential technological improvement to maintain an all year around production of this salami, that otherwise cannot be produced in the summer period due to the higher environmental temperatures. However, the non traditionally ripened product showed some chemical differences that were not evidenced by sensory analysis.     

Natural disasters in Italy: do we invest enough in risk prevention and mitigation?

Italy is exposed to a number of major natural risks. In the period 1944–2012, earthquakes, landslides and floods have resulted in huge losses with an economic cost (widely underestimated) of 3.5 billion Euros per year. Risk prevention and mitigation (RPM) should represent, therefore, a national priority and would require an adequate scale of financing. The Italian Government has earmarked financial resources for RPM through a multitude of laws. Based on an analysis of this legislation, this paper surveys the main measures financed by the Government to prevent and mitigate the seismic and hydrogeological risks in recent years. Besides, it compares RPM Government financing to the available estimates of the RPM financial need. It concludes that RPM Government financing, although increasing, still represents a small share of the RPM financial need, with, however, discrepancies across Regions.     

Structure of low-silica glasses in the K2O-Nb2O5-SiO2 system

The nanostructure and nonlinear optical properties of high-niobium glasses in the (1 ? x)KNbO₃-xSiO₂ system with an SiO₂ content x = 0.05–0.35 have been studied by small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), electron microscopy (EM), and second-optical-harmonic generation (SHG). Vitreous samples are manufactured by the methods of fast melt cooling (pressing with metal plates and quenching between rotating rolls). Glasses with x < 0.12 have been established to form a micro-inhomogeneous structure in the form of silica-enriched regions at the cooling rates used. According to SANS data, quenched glasses with x > 0.2 are homogeneous, but form a silica-enriched nanostructure after thermal treatments. At temperatures below ～T _g + 50°C, silica-enriched regions manifest a very slight tendency to grow, whereas, according to SANS and X-ray diffraction data, their chemical composition is observed to shift appreciably towards SiO₂ with thermal treatment. The obtained data on an inhomogeneous structure allows us to clarify the complicated character of the previously revealed dependence T _g (x). Nano-inhomogeneous transparent samples produce a weak SHG signal, which indicates the quasi-periodic modulation of the chemical composition and, correspondingly, polarizability, in the volume of glass. The nonlinear optical phase KNbO₃ precipitates at later stages of crystallization, when a glass loses its transparency. In this case, the SHG signal is amplified by several orders of magnitude.     

Effect of methyl methacrylate monomer on bond strength of denture base resin to acrylic teeth

Bond failures at the acrylic teeth and denture base resin interface are still a common clinical problem in prosthodontics. The effect of methyl methacrylate (MMA) monomer on the bond strength of three types of denture base resins (Acron MC, Lucitone 550 and QC-20) to two types of acrylic teeth (Biotone and Trilux) was evaluated. Twenty specimens were produced for each denture base resin/acrylic tooth combination and were randomly divided into control (acrylic teeth received no surface treatment) and experimental groups (MMA was applied to the surface of the acrylic teeth for 180 s) and were submitted to shear tests (1 mm/min). Data (MPa) were analyzed using three-way ANOVA/Student's test (α=0.05). MMA increased the bond strength of Lucitone denture base resins and decreased the bond strength of QC-20. No difference was detected for the bond strength of Acron MC base resin after treatment with MMA.