0000000000529248
AUTHOR
Roberto Gambino
Effects of IL28B rs12979860 CC Genotype on Metabolic Profile and Sustained Virologic Response in Patients With Genotype 1 Chronic Hepatitis C
Patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C (G1 CHC) frequently develop steatosis and insulin resistance (IR), caused by metabolic and viral factors. These accelerate the progression of liver disease and reduce the response to therapy. A sustained virologic response (SVR) to therapy in patients with G1 CHC is associated strongly with polymorphisms near the interleukin-28B (IL28B) gene, but the interaction between IL28B genotype and IR, and their combined effects on SVR, have not been defined. We tested the association between the IL28B rs12979860 single-nucleotide polymorphism and metabolic features, including IR, and evaluated their effects on SVR.We performed genotype analysis of IL28B r…
Identification of Type I and IX Collagens in the Ascidian Ciona intestinalis
Immunohistochemical methods showed that a type I collagen is a component of the tunic of Ciona intestinalis, involved in the encapsulation process. Since the fibril-forming collagen types are characterized by triple helical domain with a highly preserved Gly-Xaa-Yaa repeated sequence, a probe coding the fibril-forming type I collagen of the echinoderm Paracentrotus lividus was used to identify ascidian cDNA clones. Northern blot hybridization established that P. lividus probe cross-hybridizes with a 6 Kb C. intestinalis mRNA isolated from the pharynx. Using the echinodermal type I collagen cDNA as a probe several positive clones were identified. Analysis of sequence and the deduced amino ac…
Rilevazione della prevalenza del Bullismo in un campione di scuole di Palermo
Il bullismo è uno dei problemi sociali e sanitari più rilevanti in ambito scolastico per i bambini e gli adolescenti di tutto il mondo. Dal 2007, il Ministero Italiano della Pubblica Istruzione (D.M. n°16 del 5 febbraio 2007) promuove attività per il contrasto e la prevenzione del fenomeno in scuole di ogni ordine e grado, ed allo stesso tempo le aziende sanitarie locali o provinciali dovrebbero farsi carico di una risposta socio-sanitaria efficace al problema. Nella città di Palermo, negli ultimi anni, sia alcune scuole che alcuni distretti sanitari hanno messo in atto attività ed interventi per cercare di contrastare il fenomeno in questione. La mancanza di un dato rilevato in maniera uni…
Cloning and expression of a type IX-like collagen in tissues of the ascidian Ciona intestinalis
Collagens are highly preserved proteins in invertebrates and vertebrates. To identify the collagens in urochordates, the total RNA extracted from the pharynx of the ascidian Ciona intestinalis was hybridized with a heterologous probe specific for the echinoderm Paracentrotus lividus fibrillar type I-like larval collagen. Using this probe, two main bands (i.e. 6 and 2.8 kb mRNA) were observed on Northern blot hybridization. The cDNA library prepared from poly(A)+RNA extracted from pharyngeal tissue was screened and a cDNA that specifies a type IX-like collagen was identified. This molecule presents a conceptual open reading frame for a protein containing 734 amino acids. In particular, we sh…
Serum concentration of E-selectin in patients with chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma
Objectives: High levels of soluble E-selectin have been reported in acute and chronic inflammatory disorders. Moreover, in some types of tumor elevated values have been found while in other types reduced levels have been reported. Our aims were to determine whether soluble E-selectin levels might be useful in monitoring the progression of chronic liver disease, including hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: Circulating soluble E-selectin was measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in the sera of 18 patients with chronic hepatitis, 44 with liver cirrhosis, and 38 with hepatocellular-carcinoma-associated liver cirrhosis. Immunohistochemical localization of E-selectin was also performed…
40(th) EASD Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes : Munich, Germany, 5-9 September 2004
Heat-Shock Proteins in Sea Urchin Embryos
The production of heat-shock proteins in sea urchin embryos is accompanied by the appearance at the polysomal level of their relative mRNAs, as shown by their translation in a cell-free system; thus suggesting that the regulation of their production occurs at a transcriptional level. The mechanism for the inhibition of the bulk protein synthesis and for its reversal on the other hand should be looked for at a posttranscriptional level, since both these phenomena occur also in the presence of actinomycin D. The heat-shock proteins produced as early as at the mesenchyme blastula stage persist within the embryo at least till the pluteus stage.