Prevalence of depressive symptomatology among nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 and the policies to contain it have been a social problem and public health emer-gency for people in Italy in 2020. The aim of the study is assessing the prevalence of depression symptoms among nursing students from the University of Palermo during the COVID-19 pandemic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study employed a cross-sectional study design. On April 2020, a survey was performed including all the nursing students of the University of Palermo. The survey was structured into two parts. The first part consisted in the collection of socio-demographic information, the second in the administration of the QIDS-SR16 questionnaire. A multivariable logistic regression model was used to elaborate the results and adjusted Odds Ratios are presented. RESULTS: The sample consisted of 525 students (70.3% female). The probability to have a moderate/severe/very severe depressive symptomatology is significantly associated with the following variables: "Female gender" (aOR 1.96), "Low perceived economic status" (aOR 2.32), "Low perceived health status" (aOR 2.30) and "To be a smoker" (aOR 2.24). CONCLUSIONS: The global pandemic and the efforts to contain it represent a unique event and offer the oppor-tunity to advance our understanding of how to provide mental health care focused on online psychoeducation and psychotherapy programs for young students.

Fatty acid composition and cholesterol content of muscles as related to genotype and vitamin E treatment in crossbred lambs.

Various factors (weight, sex, diet and breed) influence meat lamb fatty acid composition. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the lipid profile in two different lamb types. Sixty crossbred lambs (Ile de France×Pagliarola and Gentile di Puglia×Sopravissana) were used to determine cholesterol, lipid content and fatty acid profile of Longissimus dorsi, Semimembranosus and Gluteobiceps muscles. Moreover, the effect of vitamin E treatment in vivo on propensity of the lamb meat to lipoperoxidation was assessed. In both crossbreeds total muscle lipids ranged between 2.4 and 4.0 mg/100 g. In the Ile de France×Pagliarola lambs a lower percentage of saturated fatty acids and a low atherogenic index were found. The vitamin E treatment reduced significantly the lipoperoxidation, without difference between the two crossbreeds.

Oxidative status of plasma and muscle in rabbits supplemented with dietary vitamin E.

Thirty New Zealand white rabbits, mean weight 2 kg, were divided into three equal groups balanced for body weight and randomly assigned to a diet containing 60 (C), 150 (T1) or 375 (T2) mg/kg of all-rac-alpha-tocopheryl acetate. After 29 days, the animals were slaughtered. alpha-Tocopherol was assayed in muscle (longissimus dorsi) and plasma; triglycerides and cholesterol (total, high density lipoprotein, low density lipoprotein) were analysed in plasma; reactive oxygen metabolites (ROMs) were analysed in serum; and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) were analysed in muscle. There were no body weight and food intake differences between the groups. The plasma vitamin E and vitamin E:lipid ratio were significantly higher in groups T1 and T2 than in C, but increases were not linearly related to dietary levels. Muscle alpha-tocopherol concentrations in the treated groups were significantly higher than in C, and linearly related (R =.67) to the vitamin E:lipid ratio. ROM and vitamin E levels in blood were inversely related (R =.74), with ROMs significantly lower in the treated groups than in C. The 60-mg/kg dose of C recommended by the National Research Council was unable to control ROM production. Lipid oxidation in muscle was significantly lower in T2 than in the other groups, and TBARS correlated significantly with muscle vitamin E (R =.61) and serum ROM (R =.73). These data suggest that vitamin E supplemented at 375 mg/kg diet can effectively control ROM production and improve muscle lipostability. ROM assay provides a useful indirect estimate of the oxidative status of muscle in vivo.

Influence of dietary vitamin E supplementation on "heavy" pig carcass characteristics, meat quality, and vitamin E status.

Crossbred "heavy" pigs (average weight 120 kg, slaughter weight above 160 kg) were supplemented with all-rac-alpha-tocopheryl acetate during the last 60 d of late finishing at doses of 25 (control), 50, 100, 200, or 300 mg/kg of diet. At the end of this period, the pigs were slaughtered. Carcass characteristics and the meat quality of pork chops from longissimus muscle (LM) at the last lumbar vertebra were evaluated on eight barrows from each dosage group. Alpha-tocopherol levels were determined in plasma during supplementation and in LM muscle after slaughter. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and drip loss were also evaluated in meat. Plasma alpha-tocopherol levels increased (P < .005) during supplementation in treated animals compared to controls, with a peak at 40 d. Alpha-tocopherol levels were higher (P < .05) in LM from pigs treated with 300 mg/kg than in controls (8.4 vs 5.6 microg/g). Dressing percentages correlated (P < .05) with the ratio of plasma alpha-tocopherol levels to the sum of cholesterol and triglycerides. Inhibition of TBARS during storage was related (P < .005) to vitamin E supplementation level, but drip losses in chops were not related to supplementation levels. We concluded that dietary vitamin E supplementation to heavy pigs during the last 60 d of finishing improves dressing percentage, reduces lipid oxidation, and increases the alpha-tocopherol concentration of tissues.

Effects of intramuscular injection of alpha-tocopheryl acetate on fatty acid profile in lamb liver.

The effects of intramuscularly administrated vitamin E on total lipids, fatty acid profile, and lipid stability to oxidation was investigated in lamb liver. Twenty-four 5-day-old lambs were allotted to 4 groups of 6 each and given respectively 0 (control), 125, 200, 300 mg dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate weekly from day 5 to 33. alpha-Tocopherol stored in lamb liver at the end of experiment showed linear correlation with the level of injected vitamin E. No effect on total lipids was found. A decrease in the level of liver thiobarbituric-acid reactive substances (TBARS), significantly correlated with liver alpha-tocopherol content, was found in vitamin E groups. The amount of linoleic and linolenic acids significantly increased in the vitamin E groups as compared to control group, and were correlated with the liver alpha-tocopherol content. TBARS were negatively correlated with the concentration of unsaturated fatty acids. Finally, in the liver of the treated groups, vitamin E concentrations in the range 30-50 micrograms/g showed adequate for an efficient protection from peroxidation of membrane lipids, and determined an increase in the unsaturated to saturated fatty acid ratio.

Improvement of color and lipid stability of rabbit meat by dietary supplementation with vitamin E.

The effects of vitamin E (all-rac-α-tocopheryl acetate) supplementation on meat color and oxidative stability of muscle lipids in New Zealand White rabbits was determined. Twenty animals received pelleted diet (containing 60 mg/kg α-tocopheryl acetate) and 10 of these (treatment group) received drinking water containing 100 mg α-tocopheryl acetate/L for 15 days before slaughter. The α-tocopherol content of the longissimus lumborum muscle (LL) was higher (5.66 vs 1.65 µg/g) in the supplemented group than the control group (p<0.001). The surface redness (a*) of the muscle showed a significant time×treatment effect (p<0.001), decreasing more in the control group over 11 days of storage in the dark at +2.5°C. The lightness (L*) showed a tendency (p=0.06) for a treatment×time effect. No effect of vitamin supplementation was observed on yellowness (b*). Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) in muscle, an index of oxidative stability, were lower in the treated than control group throughout storage (p<0.01 for treatment effect). Vitamin E supplementation appears to be an effective way to improve the color and lipid stability of rabbit meat.