Publications (23)46.39 Total impact
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Article: Cytokines and T cells in atopic dermatitis.
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ABSTRACT: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is an inflammatory disorder of the skin characterized by an impaired immune response. Several effector T cell subsets, such as pro-inflammatory cells like Th9, Th17 and Th22 cells, expressing high levels of IL-9, IL-17 and IL-22, together with the anti-inflammatory, immuno-modulating Treg cells constitutively producing IL-10, seem to play a role in this condition. IL-9 and IL-9 receptors are significantly increased in lesional AD skin compared to normal control skin. In addition, some polymorphisms in IL-9 and IL-9r genes have been associated with AD. The role of IL-17 and IL-17-producing T cells remains under debate and conflicting data are available. IL-22-producing T-cells seem to correlate with the severity of the AD. The number and function of Treg cells, producing IL-10, have been widely investigated in AD with conflicting results. Other studies suggest that high levels of IL-31 or low levels of IL-21 might be involved in the pathogenesis of AD. This review was undertaken in order to provide a better understanding of the relevance of certain cytokines in AD. We have analysed the new insight into the pathogenesis of AD, with special attention to those cytokines produced by the different T cell subpopulations.European cytokine network. 04/2013; -
Article: Finger Thermoregulatory Model Assessing Functional Impairment in Raynaud’s Phenomenon
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ABSTRACT: Raynaud’s Phenomenon (RP) is a paroxysmal vasospastic disorder of small arteries, pre-capillary arteries, and cutaneous arteriovenous shunts of the extremities, typically induced by cold exposure and emotional stress. RP is either primary (PRP) or secondary to systemic sclerosis. In this study we use Control System Theory to model finger thermoregulatory processes in response to a standardized cold challenge (a diagnostic test routinely performed for differential diagnosis of RP). The proposed model is based on a homeostatic negative feedback loop, characterized by five distinct parameters which describe how the control mechanisms are activated and maintained. Thermal infrared imaging data from 14 systemic sclerosis subjects (SSc), 14 PRP, and 16 healthy control subjects (HCS) were processed. HCS presented the fastest active recovery, with the highest gain. PRP presented the slowest and weakest recovery, mostly due to passive heat exchange with the environment. SSc presented an intermediate behavior, with the longest delay of response onset. The estimated model parameters elucidated the level of functional impairment expressed in the various forms of this disease.Annals of Biomedical Engineering 04/2012; 37(12):2631-2639. · 2.37 Impact Factor -
Chapter: MSH peptides and application to treatment of hair
01/2012: pages 418 - 432; -
Article: Detection and management of latent tuberculosis infections before biologic therapy for psoriasis.
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ABSTRACT: Abstract The biologic agents can be highly efficacious in the treatment of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis; however, their use is associated with an increased risk of developing active TB. In particular, TNF-α plays critical role in preventing TB infection and reactivation of latent TB infection (LTBI). Therefore, it is critical that all patients be screened for LTBI prior to initiating therapy. An expert panel of Italian dermatologists met recently with the goal of producing a consensus paper on screening and chemoprophylaxis for LTBI in Italian psoriasis patients treated with biologics. Current recommendations for the screening algorithm include medical history, chest x-ray, and tests that evaluate immunologic response to the presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Patients with positive screening results and without active disease are to be treated with a full course of chemoprophylaxis; however, if the patient is compliant and tolerating the regimen, biologic therapy for psoriasis may be started after at least 1 month on prophylactic therapy when prompt control of disease is required.Journal of Dermatological Treatment 01/2012; · 1.23 Impact Factor -
Article: Treatment of cutaneous calciphylaxis with sodium thiosulfate: two case reports and a review of the literature.
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ABSTRACT: Cutaneous calciphylaxis is a potentially fatal condition characterized by calcium deposition in dermal arterioles and the subsequent development of livedo reticularis, plaques, and extremely painful ulcers. This condition may be present in up to 4% of end-stage renal disease patients. Several treatments, which mainly attempt to control calcium phosphate metabolism, are available for this condition. We describe two patients treated with sodium thiosulfate with good results. Moreover, we also performed a PubMed literature search of sodium thiosulfate treatment for calciphylaxis. We found 41 cases of which most (> 90%) presented a rapid and sustained resolution, indicating this drug is a very good candidate for the treatment of this condition.American Journal of Clinical Dermatology 10/2011; 12(5):339-46. · 1.71 Impact Factor -
Article: Microvessel density and VEGF expression seems to correlate with invasiveness of basal cell carcinoma.
European journal of dermatology: EJD 08/2011; 21(4):608-9. · 2.53 Impact Factor -
Article: Un caso di psoriasis Multi-drug Resistant
Dermatology (ed. Italiana). 01/2011; 5(1):34-35. -
Article: A four-year old-child with widespread pyoderma gangrenosum resistant to topical treatment.
European journal of dermatology: EJD 11/2010; 20(6):839-40. · 2.53 Impact Factor -
Article: The effect of deproteinized bovine bone on osteoblast growth factors and proinflammatory cytokine production.
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ABSTRACT: To test the ability of Bio-Oss in inducing growth factors and proinflammatory cytokines that may have a role in inflammation after grafting, bone resorption, remodeling and in the homeostasis of osteoblasts. Normal human osteoblasts were seeded in Petri dishes containing granules of Bio-Oss, cells were harvested after confluency and RNA was extracted. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction was performed using specific primers for osteonectin, bone sialoprotein (BSP), bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2 and BMP-7, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), interleukin 6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and integrin beta1. Glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase was used as the housekeeping gene and normal human osteoblasts grown on Petri dishes without Bio-Oss granules were used as negative controls. Osteoblast grown on Bio-Oss showed a normal RNA expression of osteonectin, integrin beta1 and PDGF. However, compared with control osteoblasts it showed a reduced expression of BSP, BMP-2 and BMP-7, IL-6 and TNF-alpha. Our findings further support the evidence that Bio-Oss is an excellent biomaterial that does not enhance the production of proinflammatory cytokines.Clinical Oral Implants Research 06/2010; 21(6):650-5. · 2.51 Impact Factor -
Article: Epidemiology and clinical and pathologic characteristics of cutaneous malignant melanoma in Abruzzo (Italy).
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ABSTRACT: Malignant melanoma incidence has increased worldwide in recent decades. Cancer registry-derived epidemiologic data on malignant melanoma in Italy are available only in some northern regions of the country. To report the number and characteristics of incident cases of cutaneous malignant melanoma in Abruzzo, a central-southern Italian region. Screening of the archives of the pathology departments of regional hospitals from 2002 to 2005 was performed. For each patient, clinical and pathologic data were collected. Cases of metastatic, multiple, or relapsing melanoma were excluded. Six hundred and seventy-two cases of primary melanoma were recorded, with an incidence rate of 14.1 per 100,000 inhabitants per year. Differences related to gender (41.1% males and 58.9% females) and age (35% in the 50-70-year age group) were found. The trunk (30.7%) and lower limbs (25.94%) were the most frequent sites observed. The superficial spreading histiotype and thin melanoma (< or = 1.00 mm) were more often recorded (44.8% and 62%, respectively). Despite the bias present in this study, linked to the nature and source of the data, we believe that the figures found in this report are comparable with those obtained in the international literature from other Mediterranean countries.International journal of dermatology 08/2009; 48(7):718-22. · 1.18 Impact Factor -
Article: Cutaneous lupus erythematosus mimicking multiple keratoacanthomas.
European journal of dermatology: EJD 01/2009; 19(2):186-7. · 2.53 Impact Factor -
Article: Topical preparations for the treatment of psoriasis: results of a retrospective study over 15 years.
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ABSTRACT: Psoriasis requires lifelong treatments that depend on the extent, clinical forms and associated conditions. To retrospectively analyze which topical treatments were used, their efficacy, and potential advantages and disadvantages. A total of 666 patients admitted for the first time over 15 years who were topically treated were retrospectively reviewed and subdivided using clinical forms and PASI into four groups and four subgroups for the applied treatments. For each treatment the mean PASI was calculated daily: on the first, third and sixth day. An X sample statistical analysis and Mann--Whitney U-test were performed. The hospitalization time and correlation with the response to treatment were analyzed. A statistically significant response was recorded for every regimen. The best combination was clobetasol propionate plus eosin on alternate days with eosin plus cade oil. The highest score was recorded for the 'en plaques' psoriasis. The average length of treatment was of 7.5 days in the best combination. No statistically significant difference among the groups was recorded with respect to the length of hospitalization and PASI. The statistically significant response for all the topical treatments analyzed and recorded in this study does not exclude a potential benefit due to hospitalization per se.Journal of Dermatological Treatment 02/2008; 19(3):134-40. · 1.23 Impact Factor -
Article: Skin toxicity from glyphosate-surfactant formulation.
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ABSTRACT: Glyphosate (N-[phosphonomethyl]glycine) is a nonselective herbicide used in agriculture as a foliage spray for the control and the destruction of herbaceous plants. Adverse skin reactions due to contact with this compound have been rarely described. We report a case of a 78-year-old woman presenting with extensive chemical burns on her trunk and legs caused by accidental contact with a glyphosate-surfactant formulation. The lesions healed in four weeks without scarring.Journal of toxicology. Clinical toxicology 02/2004; 42(3):317-9. -
Article: Recognition of depressive and anxiety disorders in dermatological outpatients.
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ABSTRACT: Although mental disorders are frequent among dermatological patients, little is known about their recognition by dermatologists. This study aimed to assess dermatologists' ability to recognize depressive and anxiety disorders. All adult outpatients who visited four dermatologists on predetermined days (n=317) completed the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) and the section on depressive and anxiety disorders of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). Dermatologists, masked to GHQ-12 and PHQ scores, rated patients' mental health status. The analysis was performed on 277 patients (87%) with complete data. With the PHQ as criterion standard, the dermatologists' assessment sensitivity was 33%, while specificity was 76%. In most cases of disagreement between the dermatologists and the PHQ, the GHQ-12 corroborated the PHQ classification. Anxiety disorders tended to be recognized better than depressive disorders. Among patients with a PHQ diagnosis, male gender tended to be associated with misclassification by dermatologists. Although limitations inherent in self-report psychiatric assessment should be considered, this study suggests that mental disorders often go unrecognized in dermatological patients. This issue might be addressed by implementing specific training programmes, using validated screening questionnaires for depression and anxiety, and developing rational consultation-liaison services.Acta Dermato Venereologica 02/2004; 84(3):213-7. · 3.18 Impact Factor -
Article: Eotaxins and CCR3 receptor in inflammatory and allergic skin diseases: therapeutical implications.
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ABSTRACT: Cell migration is mediated by a group of chemotactic cytokines called chemokines: low molecular weight molecules that have been shown as important leukocyte chemical attractants to sites of inflammation and infection. Eotaxin-1, also called CCL11, was first described in 1994, as a highly specific eosinophils chemokine. Many cell types including lymphocytes, macrophages, bronchial smooth muscle cells, endothelial cells and eosinophils, are able to produce this chemokine, predominantly after cytokine stimulation, however little is known about its expression in human skin in vivo. Eotaxin-1 also regulates the chemiotaxis and, in some conditions, activation of basophils, mast cells and T lymphocytes. Chemokine receptors are named from their ligand families, thus the CC chemokine eotaxin-1 binds to the CCR3 receptor which is expressed on eosinophis, mast cells, Th2 type lymphocytes and even on keratinocytes. It seems that eotaxin-1 is one of the most important cytokines involved in tissue inflammation playing a central role in the pathogenesis of allergic airway diseases (asthma and rhinitis), in inflammatory bowel disease and gastrointestinal allergic hypersensitivity and recently it has been proposed as a therapeutical target for these conditions. Our group has studied the role of eotaxin-1 in the pathogenesis of two skin conditions: dermatitis herpetiformis and AIDS-associated eosinophilic folliculitis, demonstrating that this chemokine, together with Th2 type cytokines (IL-13 and IL-4) is important in cell recruitment, inflammation and tissue damage; moreover eotaxin has proven to paly an important role in other skin conditions such as, bullous pemphigoid, pemphigoid gestationis, atopic dermatitis and allergic drug reactions Recent advances in the understanding of eotaxin-1-mediated mechanisms of chemotaxis in allergic and inflammatory conditions may predict that therapeutic antagonism is achievable. This paper will focus on the role that eotaxin and its receptor play in the pathogenetical mechanism in a number of dermatologic diseases, some of which, like atopic dermatitis, may benefit from the introduction of novel and more selective therapeutic options.Current Drug Targets - Inflammation & Allergy 04/2003; 2(1):81-94. -
Article: T cell receptor-Vbeta analysis identifies a dominant CD60+ CD26- CD49d- T cell clone in the peripheral blood of Sézary syndrome patients.
Journal of Investigative Dermatology 08/2002; 119(1):193-6. · 6.31 Impact Factor -
Article: In Vitro and In Vivo Expression of Interleukin-1 and Tumor Necrosis Factor- mRNA in Pemphigus Vulgaris: Interleukin-1 and Tumor Necrosis Factor- are Involved in Acantholysis
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ABSTRACT: Keratinocyte-derived cytokines have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a number of skin diseases. In this study we examined the possible role of keratinocyte-derived cytokines in the development of acantholysis in pemphigus vulgaris. Nineteen patients with pemphigus vulgaris, demonstrating the characteristic clinical, pathologic, and immunopathologic findings were studied. In situ immunolabeling demonstrated the presence of two cytokines interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor-, in lesional and perilesional areas. Results were confirmed by reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction, demonstrating overexpression of both cytokines in vivo. To study the role of these cytokines in the pathogenesis of pemphigus vulgaris both in vitro and in vivo studies were performed. The results of the in vitro study demonstrated that pemphigus vulgaris IgG induced interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor- mRNA in the skin. The potential pathogenic role of these mediators was demonstrated by a blocking study using antibodies against human interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor- in keratinocytes cultures. A combination of anti-interleukin-1 and anti-tumor necrosis factor- antibodies inhibited in vitro pemphigus vulgaris IgG induced acantholysis. To confirm the role of interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor- in pemphigus, we utilized passive transfer studies using interleukin-1 deficient mice (ICE–/–, interleukin-1–/–) and tumor necrosis factor- receptor deficient mice (TNFR1R2–/–). Both groups demonstrated a decreased susceptibility to the passive transfer of pemphigus. Our data support the role of cytokines interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor- in the pathogenesis of pemphigus vulgaris.Keywords: autoimmune, bullous disease, keratinocytesJournal of Investigative Dermatology 12/1999; 114(1):71-77. · 6.31 Impact Factor -
Article: Granulomatous cheilitis in an HIV positive patient on HAART therapy.
European journal of dermatology: EJD 18(5):591. · 2.53 Impact Factor -
Article: Drug-induced cutaneous lupus erythematosus after 5 years of treatment with carbamazepine.
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ABSTRACT: Drug-induced lupus is a disease, inducible by several drugs, that shares symptoms and laboratory characteristics with idiopathic lupus erythematosus. We report a case of carbamazepine-induced cutaneous lupus erythematosus which developed after 5 years of treatment in a patient who was on this medication because of an epileptic crisis after cranial trauma. Carbamazepine is a medication rarely implicated in drug-induced cutaneous lupus, moreover there are very few reports of such long periods between the start of therapy and the presentation of the clinical symptoms. We describe this case to emphasize the possibility of cutaneous lupus induction by carbamazepine even after many years of therapy.European journal of dermatology: EJD 16(3):281-3. · 2.53 Impact Factor -
Article: Usefulness of erythrocyte sedimentation rate as tumor marker in cancer associated dermatomyositis.
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ABSTRACT: Dermatomyositis is an inflammatory myopathy characterized by proximal symmetrical muscle weakness with a characteristic cutaneous eruption. Population-based cohort studies provide evidence of an increased frequency of cancer in dermatomyositis patients. Many signs and serology tests have been suggested as markers for malignancy in dermatomyositis. We performed a case-control study on the patients admitted in our institutions for dermatomyositis. Clinical and laboratory data were collected and statistical analysis was performed to reveal important predictive signs of malignancy in dermatomyositis. We found no statistical difference in the clinical or laboratory parameters between the dermatomyositis patients with or without malignancy, with the exception of the erythrocyte sedimentation rate. In our study group an erythrocyte sedimentation rate higher than 35 mm/hr was very strongly associated with the presence or the development of a malignancy. Given the high positive and negative predictive values observed in our study, erythrocyte sedimentation rate evaluation using this cut-off point could be very useful in alerting dermatologists to the need for more in-depth diagnostic procedures in dermatomyositis patients.European journal of dermatology: EJD 12(2):165-9. · 2.53 Impact Factor
Top co-authors
Top Journals
Institutions
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2004–2011
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Università degli Studi G. d'Annunzio Chieti e Pescara
Chieti, Abruzzo, Italy
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2003
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Istituto Dermopatico dell'Immacolata
Roma, Latium, Italy
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