Current hospital policies on breastfeeding: a survey from Italy.

BACKGROUND: The availability of an appropriate newborn feeding policy is an essential component of the promotion of breastfeeding in health facilities. The Italian Society of Neonatology (SIN) and the Italian Society of Paediatrics (SIP) have run an online survey among Maternity Hospitals to explore the existing breastfeeding policies and their characteristics. METHODS: Between February and April 2023, an online survey was carried out among 110 Italian maternity hospitals with a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). RESULTS: Forty-nine Maternity Hospitals completed the online questionnaire. Twenty out of 49 (40.8%) reported to have a breastfeeding policy. When a policy is available, its quality appears to be suboptimal because of lack of inclusion of a family representative in the policy working group, limited options for translating breastfeeding policy into minority languages, lack of periodic assessment of their implementation. CONCLUSION: Currently, only a limited number of Italian Maternity Hospitals have developed a breastfeeding policy. Additional efforts are needed for their improvement as well as implementation.

Classification and reporting of severity experienced by animals used in scientific procedures: FELASA/ECLAM/ESLAV Working Group report.

Directive 2010/63/EU introduced requirements for the classification of the severity of procedures to be applied during the project authorisation process to use animals in scientific procedures and also to report actual severity experienced by each animal used in such procedures. These requirements offer opportunities during the design, conduct and reporting of procedures to consider the adverse effects of procedures and how these can be reduced to minimize the welfare consequences for the animals. Better recording and reporting of adverse effects should also help in highlighting priorities for refinement of future similar procedures and benchmarking good practice. Reporting of actual severity should help inform the public of the relative severity of different areas of scientific research and, over time, may show trends regarding refinement. Consistency of assignment of severity categories across Member States is a key requirement, particularly if re-use is considered, or the safeguard clause is to be invoked. The examples of severity classification given in Annex VIII are limited in number, and have little descriptive power to aid assignment. Additionally, the examples given often relate to the procedure and do not attempt to assess the outcome, such as adverse effects that may occur. The aim of this report is to deliver guidance on the assignment of severity, both prospectively and at the end of a procedure. A number of animal models, in current use, have been used to illustrate the severity assessment process from inception of the project, through monitoring during the course of the procedure to the final assessment of actual severity at the end of the procedure (Appendix 1).

Isolation and identification of cultivable Bifidobacterium spp. from the faeces of 5 baby common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus L.).

Ninety-two bifidobacterial strains were obtained from the faeces of 5 baby common marmosets, three known species Bifidobacterium aesculapii, Bifidobacterium callithricos and Bifidobacterium reuteri and 4 novel putative bifidobacterial species were retrieved. The occurrence of bifidobacteria in non-human primate babies is described for the first time.

Evaluation of the role of intestinal and liver metabolism in the conversion of two different ester prodrugs of sanfetrinem to the parent drug in vitro and in vivo using different rat tissues and a surgically prepared rat model.

To improve oral absorption of sanfetrinem, a broad-spectrum, beta-lactamase-stable antibiotic, two different ester prodrugs have been selected. Both prodrugs proved to be readily hydrolyzed after absorption before reaching the systemic circulation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the role of intestinal and liver metabolism in the conversion of the two prodrugs into the active compound. In vitro experiments were performed in different rat tissues involved in the absorption process. Moreover data obtained with in vitro experiments have been integrated with data obtained in vivo using a surgically prepared rat model which allows for the measurement of the amount of intact prodrug that overcomes the intestinal mucosa and its presence in the portal vein. Both prodrugs proved to be readily cleaved by jejunum and liver microsomes. The rates of ester hydrolysis with these two tissues were 10- to 30-fold higher than those calculated in intestinal juice at pH 7.4 and about 100-fold higher than in buffer at pH 5.5. These data suggest that both the intestinal wall and liver could play an important role in the conversion of the two prodrugs in active parent compound. In the in vivo experiment, relative to sanfetrinem levels, very low concentrations of intact esters were measured in the portal vein blood, indicating that the two prodrugs are nearly completely hydrolyzed to the active drug by the intestinal wall. In conclusion this study demonstrated that the intestinal epithelium plays a major role in the conversion of the two prodrugs into sanfetrinem. The liver, despite its high esterase activity seems to be only marginally involved.