0000000000920481

AUTHOR

S. Lazzara

Phytochemical profile and phototoxicity of eleven Hypericum species extracts

The genus Hypericum (family Hypericaceae) contains 484 species, one of which, Hypericum perforatum, is largely used in medicine as antidepressant, as well as antinflammatory, and antimicrobial agent. Hypericin, together with the other naphthodianthrone derivatives named hypericins (the red pigments recognized as partially responsible for biological activities of this plant), has been identified largely in more than 300 Hypericum species (Skalkos et al., 2006). Particularly, hypericins are one of the most potent naturally occurring photodynamic agents; indeed, upon light irradiation, they very effectively induce apoptosis and/or necrosis of cancer cells (Karioti et al., 2010) and thus might …

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Changes in surgicaL behaviOrs dUring the CoviD-19 pandemic. The SICE CLOUD19 Study

Abstract Background The spread of the SARS-CoV2 virus, which causes COVID-19 disease, profoundly impacted the surgical community. Recommendations have been published to manage patients needing surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic. This survey, under the aegis of the Italian Society of Endoscopic Surgery, aims to analyze how Italian surgeons have changed their practice during the pandemic. Methods The authors designed an online survey that was circulated for completion to the Italian departments of general surgery registered in the Italian Ministry of Health database in December 2020. Questions were divided into three sections: hospital organization, screening policies, and safety profile of…

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In vitro rooting and acclimatization of Sicilian Hypericum perforatum

Hypericum perforatum L. is traditionally used as a medicinal plant because of different bioactive compounds with documented antidepressant and anti-inflammatory activities. Plantlets mass production with high content of these secondary metabolites has been enhanced through in vitro culture but often the process has been stopped at the multiplication phase. A study was conducted in order to set up an efficient in vitro rooting and acclimatization protocol of a H. perforatum Sicilian genotype well-adapted to south Mediterranean conditions. Aseptic nodal segments were cultured on to a Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium supplemented with 4.44 μM 6-benzyladenine (BA) for multiplication. Micro…

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