Identifying the impact of the confinement of Covid-19 on emotional-mood and behavioural dimensions in children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

The current study examined the impact of the lockdown due to the Covid-19 disease on mood state and behaviours of children and adolescents with ADHD. Nine hundred ninety-two parents of children and adolescents with ADHD filled out an anonymous online survey through the ADHD family association website. The survey investigated the degree of severity of six emotional and mood states (sadness, boredom, little enjoyment/interest, irritability, temper tantrums, anxiety) and five disrupted behaviours (verbal and physical aggression, argument, opposition, restlessness) based on their frequency/week (absent; low: 1-2 days/week; moderate: 3-4 days/week; severe: 5-7 days/week) before and during the lockdown. Important fluctuations were found in all dimensions during the lockdown independently by the severity degree. Subjects with previous low severity degree of these behaviors significantly worsened in almost all dimensions during the lockdown. On the contrary, ADHD patients with moderate and severe degree showed important improvement during the lockdown. Little enjoyment/interests and boredom resulted the dimensions more strongly affected by the condition of restriction, overall in children. Children vs. adolescents showed substantially similar trend but the former resulted significantly more vulnerable to emotive changes. The results provided both the individuation of domains affected, and the indirect benefits produced by restriction condition.

Synthetic, structural and biochemical studies of polynuclear platinum(II) complexes with heterocyclic ligands.

"Non-classical" di- and trinuclear Pt(II) complexes with polydentate nitrogen ligands; ionic [(PtCl(2))(2)(tptz)(2)(mu-PtClNCPh)]Cl (1) [tptz =2,4,6-tris(2-pyridyl)-1,3,5-triazine], [(PtCl(2))(2)(bptz)(2)(mu-Pt)]Cl(2) (2) [bptz = 3,6-bis(2-pyridyl)-1,2,4,5-tetrazine] and neutral [(PtCl(2))(2)(tptz)(2)(mu-PtCl(2))](H(2)O)(4) (3), [(PtCl(2))(2)(mu-tppz)](CHCl(3)) (4) [tppz = 2,3,5,6-tetra(2-pyridyl)pyrazine] complexes, have been prepared and structurally characterized. The neutral tptz and tppz complexes present three and two separate PtCl(2) moieties, respectively, in a cis position, presumably acting in a bifunctional mode towards DNA; the cationic tptz and bptz complexes contain monofunctional and bifunctional bridging Pt(II) moieties, respectively, (other Pt(II) moieties in the complexes are bifunctional). All complexes were tested for their biological activity. Both tptz complexes, neutral and ionic, show a potent cytotoxic activity and reduced cell viability in a concentration-dependent manner that was evaluated in a panel of different cancer cell lines: human HT29 colon-rectal carcinoma, HepG2 hepatoma, MDA-MB-231 breast cancer and MG63 osteosarcoma cells; their activity was higher than cisplatin, IC50 values have been calculated for the active compounds and flow cytometric analysis for the tptz complexes performed. Therefore, these new platinum drugs warrant further investigation into their antitumor activity against different types of tumors.

Mono- and polynuclear complexes of Pt(II) with polypyridyl ligands. Synthesis, spectroscopic and structural characterization and cytotoxic activity.

An array of poly- and mononuclear complexes of Pt(II) with polypyridyl ligands is reported. The framework complexes [(PtCl(2))(2)(bpp)(2)(micro-PtCl(2))](H(2)O)(2) [bpp=2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)pyrazine], [PtCl(2)(micro-tptz)PtClNCPh]Cl [tptz=2,4,6-tris(2-pyridyl)-1,3,5-triazine], and mononuclear PtCl(2)(NH(2)dpt) [NH(2)dpt=4-amino-3,5-bis(2-pyridyl)-1,2,4-triazole] have been prepared and structurally characterized. Both neutral and ionic complexes are present, with bifunctional and monofunctional Pt(II) moieties, whose size and shape enable them to behave as novel scaffolds for DNA binding. Pt(II) complexes were tested for their biological activity. Cell viability assay and flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that these complexes, particularly [PtCl(2)(micro-tptz)PtClNCPh]Cl, were effective death inducers in human colon rectal carcinoma HT29 cells and their cytotoxic activity was higher than that exerted by cisplatin. Morphological analysis of treated HT29 cells, performed by fluorescence microscopy after Hoechst 33258 staining, showed the appearance of the typical features of apoptosis. Moreover, our results suggested that mitochondria are involved in apoptosis induced by Pt(II) complexes in HT29 cells as demonstrated by dissipation of mitochondrial transmembrane potential.

Neolithic ceramic findings from western Sicily. Chemical-physical and mineralogical characterization.

This paper presents the results of a study that is part of a wider research program regarding the knowledge of the initial living phases of Sicilian agricultural and pastoral societies. Three ceramic samples attributed to the medium initial Neolithic (NEO1 and NEO2) and to the first neolithic (NEO3), recovered in two different archaeological sites of the western Sicily, have been analysed. Chemical, mineralogical and spectroscopic data point out a similarity between NEO1 and NEO3 samples; compositional and morphological differences instead have been observed in the NEO2 sample. The firing temperatures of the samples have been estimated by Mössbauer spectroscopy; they are lower than 500 degrees C for the samples NEO1 and NEO3, and about 700 degrees C for NEO2.