%0 Journal Article %J Ital J Pediatr %D 2018 %T Impact of near infrared light in pediatric blood drawing Centre on rate of first attempt success and time of procedure. %A Conversano, Ester %A Cozzi, Giorgio %A Pavan, Matteo %A Minute, Marta %A Gortan, Elena %A Montico, Marcella %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Ronfani, Luca %A Barbi, Egidio %K Adolescent %K Age Factors %K Child %K Child, Preschool %K Female %K Humans %K Infant %K Infant, Newborn %K Infrared Rays %K Lighting %K Male %K Phlebotomy %K Time Factors %X

BACKGROUND: Peripheral blood access and venipuncture are a stressful and painful experience in pediatric patients; moreover, it is estimated that more than one attempt is required to achieve the procedure in about one third of children. For this reason, we investigated if Near-infrared light technology routinely used, could give an advantage to venipuncture in a pediatric blood center setting.

METHODS: We conducted an open, pseudo-randomized controlled trial with two parallel arms, in the blood-drawing center, with enrolment of 115 patients between 0 and 18 years, in 14 consecutive working days. Fifty-three subjects were enrolled in group 1 (VeinViewer®) and 62 in group 2 (control group). We divided patients into three subgroups considering their age (< 5 years, 6-10 years, > 10 years). The primary study outcome was to assess if the use of VeinViewer® was associated with a reduction of time to perform blood sampling. The secondary outcome was to analyze VienViewer®'s impact on first attempt success rate in blood sampling.

RESULTS: No difference was found regarding the duration of blood sampling between the two groups, even after stratifying the patients into the three age subgroups. There was no difference between the two groups in the success at the first attempt in blood sampling.

CONCLUSIONS: Routine use of VeinViewer® is not useful to reduce time of the procedure during venipuncture.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, with number NCT03277092 , on September 8, 2017.

%B Ital J Pediatr %V 44 %P 60 %8 2018 May 25 %G eng %N 1 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29801519?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1186/s13052-018-0501-1 %0 Journal Article %J Am J Reprod Immunol %D 2018 %T Pre-eclampsia affects procalcitonin production in placental tissue. %A Agostinis, Chiara %A Rami, Damiano %A Zacchi, Paola %A Bossi, Fleur %A Stampalija, Tamara %A Mangogna, Alessandro %A Amadio, Leonardo %A Vidergar, Romana %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Ricci, Giuseppe %A Celeghini, Claudio %A Radillo, Oriano %A Sargent, Ian %A Bulla, Roberta %K Adult %K Calcitonin %K Cohort Studies %K Female %K Humans %K Macrophages %K Placenta %K Pre-Eclampsia %K Pregnancy %K Trophoblasts %K Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha %K Up-Regulation %K Young Adult %X

PROBLEM: Procalcitonin (PCT) is the prohormone of calcitonin which is usually released from neuroendocrine cells of the thyroid gland (parafollicular) and the lungs (K cells). PCT is synthesized by almost all cell types and tissues, including monocytes and parenchymal tissue, upon LPS stimulation. To date, there is no evidence for PCT expression in the placenta both in physiological and pathological conditions.

METHOD: Circulating and placental PCT levels were analysed in pre-eclamptic (PE) and control patients. Placental cells and macrophages (PBDM), stimulated with PE sera, were analysed for PCT expression. The effect of anti-TNF-α antibody was analysed.

RESULTS: Higher PCT levels were detected in PE sera and in PE placentae compared to healthy women. PE trophoblasts showed increased PCT expression compared to those isolated from healthy placentae. PE sera induced an upregulation of PCT production in macrophages and placental cells. The treatment of PBDM with PE sera in the presence of anti-TNF-α completely abrogated the effect induced by pathologic sera.

CONCLUSION: Trophoblast cells are the main producer of PCT in PE placentae. TNF-α, in association with other circulating factors present in PE sera, upregulates PCT production in macrophages and normal placental cells, thus contributing to the observed increased in circulating PCT in PE sera.

%B Am J Reprod Immunol %V 79 %P e12823 %8 2018 04 %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29427369?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1111/aji.12823 %0 Journal Article %J Nutrients %D 2017 %T Curcumin Anti-Apoptotic Action in a Model of Intestinal Epithelial Inflammatory Damage. %A Loganes, Claudia %A Lega, Sara %A Bramuzzo, Matteo %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Piscianz, Elisa %A Valencic, Erica %A Tommasini, Alberto %A Marcuzzi, Annalisa %K Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal %K Apoptosis %K Cell Survival %K Curcuma %K Curcumin %K Cytokines %K Epithelial Cells %K HT29 Cells %K Humans %K Inflammation %K Interferon-gamma %K Interleukin-7 %K Intestinal Mucosa %K NF-kappa B %K Phosphorylation %K Signal Transduction %X

The purpose of this study is to determine if a preventive treatment with curcumin can protect intestinal epithelial cells from inflammatory damage induced by IFNγ. To achieve this goal we have used a human intestinal epithelial cell line (HT29) treated with IFNγ to undergo apoptotic changes that can reproduce the damage of intestinal epithelia exposed to inflammatory cytokines. In this model, we measured the effect of curcumin (curcuminoid from ) added as a pre-treatment at different time intervals before stimulation with IFNγ. Curcumin administration to HT29 culture before the inflammatory stimulus IFNγ reduced the cell apoptosis rate. This effect gradually declined with the reduction of the curcumin pre-incubation time. This anti-apoptotic action by curcumin pre-treatment was paralleled by a reduction of secreted IL7 in the HT29 culture media, while there was no relevant change in the other cytokine levels. Even though curcumin pre-administration did not impact the activation of the NF-κB pathway, a slight effect on the phosphorylation of proteins in this inflammatory signaling pathway was observed. In conclusion, curcumin pre-treatment can protect intestinal cells from inflammatory damage. These results can be the basis for studying the preventive role of curcumin in inflammatory bowel diseases.

%B Nutrients %V 9 %8 2017 Jun 06 %G eng %N 6 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28587282?dopt=Abstract %R 10.3390/nu9060578 %0 Journal Article %J Acta Diabetol %D 2015 %T Serum TRAIL levels increase shortly after insulin therapy and metabolic stabilization in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus. %A Tornese, Gianluca %A Tisato, Veronica %A Monasta, Lorenzo %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Zauli, Giorgio %A Secchiero, Paola %B Acta Diabetol %V 52 %P 1003-6 %8 2015 Oct %G eng %N 5 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25863780?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1007/s00592-015-0731-2 %0 Journal Article %J Int J Mol Sci %D 2015 %T To Extinguish the Fire from Outside the Cell or to Shutdown the Gas Valve Inside? Novel Trends in Anti-Inflammatory Therapies. %A Marcuzzi, Annalisa %A Piscianz, Elisa %A Valencic, Erica %A Monasta, Lorenzo %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Tommasini, Alberto %X

Cytokines are the most important soluble mediators of inflammation. Rare pediatric diseases provided exemplar conditions to study the anti-inflammatory efficacy of new generation therapies (biologics/biopharmaceuticals) selectively targeting single cytokines. Monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins have revolutionized anti-inflammatory therapies in the last two decades, allowing the specific targeting of single cytokines. They are very effective in extinguishing inflammation from outside the cell, even with the risk of an excessive and prolonged immunosuppression. Small molecules can enter the cell and shutdown the valve of inflammation by directly targeting signal proteins involved in cytokine release or in response to cytokines. They are orally-administrable drugs whose dosage can be easily adjusted to obtain the desired anti-inflammatory effect. This could make these drugs more suitable for a wide range of diseases as stroke, gout, or neurological impairment, where inflammatory activation plays a pivotal role as trigger. Autoinflammatory diseases, which have previously put anti-cytokine proteins in the limelight, can again provide a valuable model to measure the real potential of small inhibitors as anti-inflammatory agents.

%B Int J Mol Sci %V 16 %P 21277-93 %8 2015 %G eng %N 9 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26370962?dopt=Abstract %R 10.3390/ijms160921277 %0 Journal Article %J Molecules %D 2014 %T Curcumin and inflammatory bowel disease: potential and limits of innovative treatments. %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Marcuzzi, Annalisa %A Tricarico, Paola Maura %A Zanin, Valentina %A Girardelli, Martina %A Bianco, Anna Monica %K Animals %K Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal %K Chemistry, Pharmaceutical %K Clinical Trials as Topic %K Curcumin %K Humans %K Inflammatory Bowel Diseases %K Molecular Targeted Therapy %K Nanotechnology %K Treatment Outcome %X

Curcumin belongs to the family of natural compounds collectively called curcuminoids and it possesses remarkable beneficial anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and neuroprotective properties. Moreover it is commonly assumed that curcumin has also been suggested as a remedy for digestive diseases such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), a chronic immune disorder affecting the gastrointestinal tract and that can be divided in two major subgroups: Crohn's disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC), depending mainly on the intestine tract affected by the inflammatory events. The chronic and intermittent nature of IBD imposes, where applicable, long-term treatments conducted in most of the cases combining different types of drugs. In more severe cases and where there has been no good response to the drugs, a surgery therapy is carried out. Currently, IBD-pharmacological treatments are generally not curative and often present serious side effects; for this reason, being known the relationship between nutrition and IBD, it is worthy of interesting the study and the development of new dietary strategy. The curcumin principal mechanism is the suppression of IBD inflammatory compounds (NF-κB) modulating immune response. This review summarizes literature data of curcumin as anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant in IBD, trying to understand the different effects in CD e UC.

%B Molecules %V 19 %P 21127-53 %8 2014 %G eng %N 12 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25521115?dopt=Abstract %R 10.3390/molecules191221127 %0 Journal Article %J BMC Pediatr %D 2014 %T Piccolipiù, a multicenter birth cohort in Italy: protocol of the study. %A Farchi, Sara %A Forastiere, Francesco %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Alviti, Sabrina %A Arnofi, Antonio %A Bernardini, Tommaso %A Bin, Maura %A Brescianini, Sonia %A Colelli, Valentina %A Cotichini, Rodolfo %A Culasso, Martina %A De Bartolo, Paolo %A Felice, Laura %A Fiano, Valentina %A Fioritto, Alessandra %A Frizzi, Alfio %A Gagliardi, Luigi %A Giorgi, Giulia %A Grasso, Chiara %A La Rosa, Francesca %A Loganes, Claudia %A Lorusso, Paola %A Martini, Valentina %A Merletti, Franco %A Medda, Emanuela %A Montelatici, Veronica %A Mugelli, Isabella %A Narduzzi, Silvia %A Nisticò, Lorenza %A Penna, Luana %A Piscianz, Elisa %A Piscicelli, Carlo %A Poggesi, Giulia %A Porta, Daniela %A Ranieli, Antonella %A Rapisardi, Gherardo %A Rasulo, Assunta %A Richiardi, Lorenzo %A Rusconi, Franca %A Serino, Laura %A Stazi, Maria Antonietta %A Toccaceli, Virgilia %A Todros, Tullia %A Tognin, Veronica %A Trevisan, Morena %A Valencic, Erica %A Volpi, Patrizia %A Ziroli, Valentina %A Ronfani, Luca %A Di Lallo, Domenico %K Adolescent %K Child %K Child Development %K Child Welfare %K Child, Preschool %K Cohort Studies %K Environmental Exposure %K Humans %K Infant %K Infant, Newborn %K Italy %K Prospective Studies %K Socioeconomic Factors %X

BACKGROUND: The fetal and infant life are periods of rapid development, characterized by high susceptibility to exposures. Birth cohorts provide unique opportunities to study early-life exposures in association with child development and health, as well as, with longer follow-up, the early life origin of adult diseases. Piccolipiù is an Italian birth cohort recently set up to investigate the effects of environmental exposures, parental conditions and social factors acting during pre-natal and early post-natal life on infant and child health and development. We describe here its main characteristics.

METHODS/DESIGN: Piccolipiù is a prospective cohort of expected 3000 newborns, who will be recruiting in six maternity units of five Italian cities (Florence, Rome, Trieste, Turin and Viareggio) since October 2011. Mothers are contacted during pregnancy or at delivery and are offered to participate in the study. Upon acceptance, their newborns are recruited at birth and followed up until at least 18 years of age. At recruitment, the mothers donate a blood sample and complete a baseline questionnaire. Umbilical cord blood, pieces of umbilical cord and heel blood spots are also collected. Postnatal follow-up currently occurs at 6, 12, and 24 months of age using on-line or postal self administered questionnaire; further questionnaires and medical examinations are envisaged. Questionnaires collect information on several factors, including mother's and/or child's environmental exposures, anthropometric measures, reproductive factors, diet, supplements, medical history, cognitive development, mental health and socioeconomic factors. Health promotion materials are also offered to parents.

DISCUSSION: Piccolipiù will broaden our understanding of the contribution of early-life factors to infant and child health and development. Several hypotheses on the developmental origins of health can be tested or piloted using the data collected from the Piccolipiù cohort. By pooling these data with those collected by other existing birth cohorts it will be possible to validate previous findings and to study rare exposures and outcomes.

%B BMC Pediatr %V 14 %P 36 %8 2014 %G eng %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24506846?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1186/1471-2431-14-36 %0 Journal Article %J J Hum Lact %D 2013 %T Human colostrum and breast milk contain high levels of TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL). %A Davanzo, Riccardo %A Zauli, Giorgio %A Monasta, Lorenzo %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Abate, Maria Valentina %A Ventura, Giovanna %A Rimondi, Erika %A Secchiero, Paola %A Demarini, Sergio %K Adult %K Apgar Score %K Colostrum %K Female %K Gestational Age %K Humans %K Infant Formula %K Infant, Newborn %K Milk, Human %K TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand %X

BACKGROUND: TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL) is a pleiotropic cytokine, which plays a key role in the immune system as well as in controlling the balance of apoptosis and proliferation in various organs and tissues.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the presence and levels of soluble TRAIL in human colostrum and milk.

METHODS: The levels of soluble human TRAIL were measured in human colostrum (day 2 after delivery) and breast milk (day 5 after delivery). The presence of TRAIL was also measured in infant formula.

RESULTS: Levels of soluble TRAIL in the colostrum and mature human milk were, respectively, at least 400 and 100 fold higher than those detected in human serum. No TRAIL was detected in formula.

CONCLUSION: Human soluble TRAIL is present at extremely high levels in human colostrum and human milk and might have a significant role in mediating the anti-cancer activity of human milk.

%B J Hum Lact %V 29 %P 23-5 %8 2013 Feb %G eng %N 1 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22529245?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1177/0890334412441071 %0 Journal Article %J PLoS One %D 2012 %T Burden of disease caused by otitis media: systematic review and global estimates. %A Monasta, Lorenzo %A Ronfani, Luca %A Marchetti, Federico %A Montico, Marcella %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Bavcar, Alessandro %A Grasso, Domenico %A Barbiero, Chiara %A Tamburlini, Giorgio %K Cost of Illness %K Hearing Loss %K Humans %K Internationality %K Otitis Media %X

BACKGROUND: Otitis media (OM) is a leading cause of health care visits and drugs prescription. Its complications and sequelae are important causes of preventable hearing loss, particularly in developing countries. Within the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study, for the year 2005 we estimated the incidence of acute OM, chronic suppurative OM, and related hearing loss and mortality for all ages and the 21 WHO regional areas.

METHODS: We identified risk factors, complications and sequelae of OM. We carried out an extensive literature review (Medline, Embase, Lilacs and Wholis) which lead to the selection of 114 papers comprising relevant data. Data were available from 15 of the 21 WHO regions. To estimate incidence and prevalence for all countries we adopted a two stage approach based on risk factors formulas and regression modelling.

RESULTS: Acute OM incidence rate is 10.85% i.e. 709 million cases each year with 51% of these occurring in under-fives. Chronic suppurative OM incidence rate is 4.76 ‰ i.e. 31 million cases, with 22.6% of cases occurring annually in under-fives. OM-related hearing impairment has a prevalence of 30.82 per ten-thousand. Each year 21 thousand people die due to complications of OM.

CONCLUSIONS: Our study is the first attempt to systematically review the available information and provide global estimates for OM and related conditions. The overall burden deriving from AOM, CSOM and their sequelae is considerable, particularly in the first five years of life and in the poorest countries. The findings call for incorporating OM-focused action within preventive and case management strategies, with emphasis on the more affected.

%B PLoS One %V 7 %P e36226 %8 2012 %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22558393?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1371/journal.pone.0036226 %0 Journal Article %J Curr Pharm Des %D 2012 %T Mevalonate kinase deficiency: disclosing the role of mevalonate pathway modulation in inflammation. %A Marcuzzi, Annalisa %A Crovella, Sergio %A Monasta, Lorenzo %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Gattorno, Marco %A Frenkel, Joost %K Animals %K Anti-Inflammatory Agents %K Apoptosis %K Cytokines %K Drug Design %K Hereditary Autoinflammatory Diseases %K Humans %K Inflammasomes %K Inflammation %K Mevalonate Kinase Deficiency %K Mevalonic Acid %X

Inflammation is a highly regulated process involved both in the response to pathogens as well as in tissue homeostasis. In recent years, a complex network of proteins in charge of inflammation control has been revealed by the study of hereditary periodic fever syndromes. Most of these proteins belong to a few families and share the capability of sensing pathogen-associated and damageassociated molecular patterns. By interacting with each other, these proteins participate in the assembly of molecular platforms, called inflammasomes, which ultimately lead to the activation of cytokines, to the transcription of inflammatory genes or to the induction of cell apoptosis. Among hereditary periodic fever syndromes, mevalonate kinase deficiency (MKD) is the sole in which the phenotype did not directly associate with a deficiency of these proteins, but with a metabolic defect of the mevalonate pathway, highlighting the importance of this metabolic pathway in the inflammation control. Noteworthy, drugs acting on this pathway can greatly influence the inflammatory response. The modulation of inflammation by mevalonate pathway is of interest, since it may involve mechanisms not directly referable to inflammasomes. MKD provides a model to study these mechanisms and possibly to develop new classes of anti-inflammatory drugs.

%B Curr Pharm Des %V 18 %P 5746-52 %8 2012 %G eng %N 35 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22726114?dopt=Abstract %0 Journal Article %J PLoS One %D 2011 %T Circulating TRAIL shows a significant post-partum decline associated to stressful conditions. %A Zauli, Giorgio %A Monasta, Lorenzo %A Rimondi, Erika %A Vecchi Brumatti, Liza %A Radillo, Oriano %A Ronfani, Luca %A Montico, Marcella %A D'Ottavio, Giuseppina %A Alberico, Salvatore %A Secchiero, Paola %K Adult %K Biological Markers %K C-Reactive Protein %K Female %K Fetal Blood %K Fetal Distress %K Humans %K Labor, Obstetric %K Logistic Models %K Multivariate Analysis %K Postpartum Period %K Pregnancy %K Pregnancy Outcome %K Statistics, Nonparametric %K Stress, Physiological %K TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand %X

BACKGROUND: Since circulating levels of TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL) may be important in the physiopathology of pregnancy, we tested the hypothesis that TRAIL levels change at delivery in response to stressful conditions.

METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We conducted a longitudinal study in a cohort of 73 women examined at week 12, week 16, delivery and in the corresponding cord blood (CB). Serum TRAIL was assessed in relationship with maternal characteristics and to biochemical parameters. TRAIL did not vary between 12 (67.6±27.6 pg/ml, means±SD) and 16 (64.0±16.2 pg/ml) weeks' gestation, while displaying a significant decline after partum (49.3±26.4 pg/ml). Using a cut-off decline >20 pg/ml between week 12 and delivery, the subset of women with the higher decline of circulating TRAIL (41.7%) showed the following characteristics: i) nullipara, ii) higher age, iii) operational vaginal delivery or urgent CS, iv) did not receive analgesia during labor, v) induced labor. CB TRAIL was significantly higher (131.6±52 pg/ml) with respect to the corresponding maternal TRAIL, and the variables significantly associated with the first quartile of CB TRAIL (<90 pg/ml) were higher pre-pregnancy BMI, induction of labor and fetal distress. With respect to the biochemical parameters, maternal TRAIL at delivery showed an inverse correlation with C-reactive protein (CRP), total cortisol, glycemia and insulin at bivariate analysis, but only with CRP at multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSIONS: Stressful partum conditions and elevated CRP levels are associated with a decrease of circulating TRAIL.

%B PLoS One %V 6 %P e27011 %8 2011 %G eng %N 12 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22194780?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1371/journal.pone.0027011