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Giuseppe Altavilla

Publications and source records attributed to Giuseppe Altavilla.

24 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2003

Immunization with low doses of HIV-1 tat DNA delivered by novel cationic block copolymers induces CTL responses against Tat.

Cytotoxic T cell responses are key to the control of intracellular pathogens including HIV-1. In particular, HIV-1 vaccines based on regulatory proteins, such as Tat, are aimed at controlling HIV-1 replication and at blocking disease development by inducing cytotoxic T cell responses. Naked DNA is capable of inducing such responses but it requires several inoculations of high amounts of DNA, and/or prime-boost regimens. Here, we show that a novel class of cationic block copolymers protect the DNA from DNAse I digestion, and improve DNA delivery to antigen-presenting cells (APCs) after intramuscular (i.m.) vaccination. In particular, three cationic block copolymers (K1, K2 and K5) were used to deliver the HIV-1 pCV-tat DNA vaccine in BALB/c mice. The results indicate that vaccination with a very low dose (1 microg) of pCV-tat delivered by the cationic block copolymer K2 is safe and, as compared to naked DNA (up to 30 microg), greatly increases the CTL response against Tat, which was detected in all animals in the absence or in the presence of re-stimulation.

AIDS Vaccines↗
PubMed2003

Spindle-cell tumours of the larynx: diagnostic pitfalls. A case report and review of the literature.

Malignant laryngeal tumours with spindle-cell morphology are relatively rare. Differential diagnosis of spindle-cell carcinoma, leiomyosarcoma, fibrosarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, malignant melanoma and inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour may be particularly difficult. Ambiguous and indeterminate diagnoses are also possible after immunohistochemical investigations of the expression of specific tumour markers but electron microscopic observations help to clarify most of these diagnoses.

Aged↗
PubMed2003

Detection of human papillomavirus in temporal bone inverted papilloma by polymerase chain reaction.

There is debate about the role of human papillomavirus in the induction of rare inverted papillomas involving the temporal bone and in the higher recurrence rates and association with squamous cell carcinoma of temporal bone inverted papillomas compared with sinonasal inverted papillomas. An exhaustive review of the literature revealed that eight cases of temporal bone inverted papilloma have been analysed for human papillomavirus. None of the cases studied with in situ hybridization proved positive. Only one case was found to be positive using the more sensitive polymerase chain reaction assay. We present the first two cases of Schneiderian-type papilloma involving the temporal bone to be analysed by type-specific polymerase chain reaction methods for human papillomavirus.

Ear Neoplasms↗
PubMed2002

Micellar-type complexes of tailor-made synthetic block copolymers containing the HIV-1 tat DNA for vaccine application.

A novel class of cationic block copolymers constituted by a neutral hydrophilic poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) block and a positively charged poly(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate block was prepared for delivery of DNA. These block copolymers spontaneously assemble with DNA to give in aqueous medium micellar-like structures. Five of these novel block copolymers (K1-5), differing in the length of both the PEG chain and the linear charge density of the poly(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate block, were prepared and analyzed for gene delivery, gene expression and safety. All five block copolymers protected DNA from DNAse I digestion and delivered the DNA into the cell. However, only three of them (K1, K2 and K5) released the DNA at level allowing efficient gene expression into cells. No toxic effects of both the copolymers alone or their DNA complexes were observed in vitro or in mice. In addition, copolymers were scarcely immunogenic. These results indicate that this novel class of cationic block copolymers is safe and possesses the biological characteristics required for DNA delivery, thus, representing promising vehicles for DNA vaccination.

AIDS Vaccines↗
PubMed2002

Older people with non small cell lung cancer in clinical stage IIIA and co-morbid conditions. Is curative irradiation feasible? Final results of a prospective study.

Radiotherapy (RT) is widely used in the management of lung cancer but age-oriented randomized trials are lacking in older-unfit patients. We started a prospective study to evaluate the toxicity and efficacy of definitive RT in very old-unfit patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in clinical stage IIIA, according to AJCC 1988. Forty patients, age > or = 75 years, Karnofsky Performance status (KPS) > or = 60, unfit to receive an aggressive combined treatment, were entered in the study. Each patient had one or more comorbidities, and the Charlson score was greater than two in 7/40. All patients were treated with radiation fields encompassing the primary tumor and grossly involved lymph nodes. A median radiation dose of 60 Gy/2 Gy day/5 days a week, was delivered. The 40 patients have been followed up, including those who died, for a potential median time of 4.6 years. As results, no treatment-related mortality, and clinically insignificant acute morbidity was recorded: in 28/40 cases a mild esophagitis occurred. Two patients showed a clinical radiation pneumonitis (RP). Late normal tissue damage was represented by lung fibrosis (40/40 patients). The treatment was efficacy since each patient obtained some clinical benefit from it. Median survival (MS) was 19 months (range 5-68); the 3 and 5-year actuarial survival was 18 and 12%, respectively. In conclusion, we think that older patients with concomitant illness can be submitted to curative 'involved field' irradiation and the results observed in this trial encourage to use curative RT in older subjects with local-regionally advanced NSCLC and co-morbid condition.

Aged↗