No abstract

Circulating oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory markers change after regular physical exercise; however, how a short session of acute physical activity affects the inflammatory status and redox balance in sedentary individuals is still unclear. Aim of this study is to assess antioxidant and inflammatory parameters, both at rest and after acute exercise, in sedentary young men with or without obesity. Thirty sedentary male volunteers, aged 20–45 (mean age 32 ± 7 years), were recruited, divided into 3 groups (normal weight: BMI < 25 kg/m2; overweight to moderate obesity: 25–35 kg/m2; severe obesity: 35–40 kg/m2), and their blood samples collected before and after a 20-min run at ~ 70% of their VO2max for the measurement of Glutathione Reductase, Glutathione Peroxidase, Superoxide Dismutase, Total Antioxidant Status (TAS) and cytokines (IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-1α, IL-1β, TNFα, MCP-1, VEGF, IFNγ, EGF). Inter-group comparisons demonstrated significantly higher Glutathione Reductase activity in severely obese subjects in the post-exercise period (P = 0.036), and higher EGF levels in normal weight individuals, either before (P = 0.003) and after exercise (P = 0.05). Intra-group comparisons showed that the acute exercise stress induced a significant increase in Glutathione Reductase activity in severely obese subjects only (P = 0.007), a significant decrease in MCP-1 in the normal weight group (P = 0.02), and a decrease in EGF levels in all groups (normal weight: P = 0.025, overweight/moderate obesity: P = 0.04, severe obesity: P = 0.018). Altogether, these findings suggest that in sedentary individuals with different ranges of BMI, Glutathione Reductase and distinct cytokines are differentially involved into the adaptive metabolic changes and redox responses induced by physical exercise. Therefore, these biomarkers may have the potential to identify individuals at higher risk for developing diseases pathophysiologically linked to oxidative stress.

Since the 1970s, a great deal of attention has been paid to the development of semiconductor-based biosensors because of the numerous advantages they offer, including high sensitivity, faster response time, miniaturization, and low-cost manufacturing for quick biospecific analysis with reusable features. Commercial biosensors have become highly desirable in the fields of medicine, food, and environmental monitoring as well as military applications, whereas increasing concerns about food safety and health issues have resulted in the introduction of novel legislative standards for these sensors. Numerous devices have been developed for monitoring biological processes such as nucleic acid hybridization, protein–protein interaction, antigen–antibody bonds, and substrate–enzyme reactions, just to name a few. Since the 1980s, scientific interest moved to the development of semiconductor-based devices, which also include integrated front-end electronics, such as the extended-gate field-effect transistor (EGFET) biosensor, one of the first miniaturized chemical sensors. This work is intended to be a review of the state of the art focused on the development of biosensors and chemosensors based on extended-gate field-effect transistor within the field of bioanalytical applications, which will highlight the most recent research reported in the literature. Moreover, a comparison among the diverse EGFET devices will be presented, giving particular attention to the materials and technologies.

An ultrasonic sensor for in-air applications has been fabricated using ferroelectric polymer technology. The proximity sensor, designed to be incorporated into a multiple sensing robotic gripper, consists of two unimodal transducers, a transmitter, and a receiver and is obtained by curving a strip of 40-mum-thick polyvinylidene fluoride. The transducers have a resonance frequency of 63.5 kHz, a quality factor Q approximately equal to 12 and a transverse piezoelectric coupling coefficient k(31) of 0.29. The maximum detectable distance is 300 mm, with an axial resolution of about 3 mm. Furthermore transducers resonating at 380 kHz, which operate at a maximum distance of 100 mm with a resolution of 2 mm can be fabricated by using the same technique. Features and performance of both transmitter and receiver are discussed, together with the echo acquisition and the preprocessing electronic unit.

The demand of glucose monitoring devices and even of updated guidelines for the management of diabetic patients is dramatically increasing due to the progressive rise in the prevalence of diabetes mellitus and the need to prevent its complications. Even though the introduction of the first glucose sensor occurred decades ago, important advances both from the technological and clinical point of view have contributed to a substantial improvement in quality healthcare. This review aims to bring together purely technological and clinical aspects of interest in the field of glucose devices by proposing a roadmap in glucose monitoring and management of patients with diabetes. Also, it prospects other biological fluids to be examined as further options in diabetes care, and suggests, throughout the technology innovation process, future directions to improve the follow-up, treatment, and clinical outcomes of patients.