Search results for " ACTIVATION"
showing 10 items of 1535 documents
Poly(sarcosine) surface modification imparts stealth-like properties to liposomes
2019
Circulation lifetime is a crucial parameter for a successful therapy with nanoparticles. Reduction and alteration of opsonization profiles by surface modification of nanoparticles is the main strategy to achieve this objective. In clinical settings, PEGylation is the most relevant strategy to enhance blood circulation, yet it has drawbacks, including hypersensitivity reactions in some patients treated with PEGylated nanoparticles, which fuel the search for alternative strategies. In this work, lipopolysarcosine derivatives (BA-pSar, bisalkyl polysarcosine) with precise chain lengths and low polydispersity indices are synthesized, characterized, and incorporated into the bilayer of preformed…
Selective estrogen receptor modulators and risk for coronary heart disease.
2007
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death in women in most countries. Atherosclerosis is the main biological process determining CHD. Clinical data support the notion that CHD is sensitive to estrogens, but debate exists concerning the effects of the hormone on atherosclerosis and its complications. Selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) are compounds capable of binding the estrogen receptor to induce a functional profile distinct from estrogens. The possibility that SERMs may shift the estrogenic balance on cardiovascular risk towards a more beneficial profile has generated interest in recent years. There is considerable information on the effects of SERMs on disti…
Interpersonal Circumplex Profiles Of Persistent Depression: Goals, Self-Efficacy, Problems, And Effects Of Group Therapy
2016
Objectives We assessed severely and persistently depressed patients’ interpersonal self-efficacy, problems, and goals, plus changes in interpersonal functioning and depression during 20 weeks of group therapy. Method Outpatients (32 female, 26 male, mean age = 45 years) completed interpersonal circumplex measures of goals, efficacy, and problems before completing 20 weeks of manualized group therapy, during which we regularly assessed depression and interpersonal style. Results Compared to normative samples, patients lacked interpersonal agency, including less self-efficacy for expressive/assertive actions; stronger motives to avoid conflict, scorn, and humiliation; and more problems with b…
Alteration of serotonin system by polychlorinated biphenyls exposure.
2011
Although commercial production of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) was banned in 1979, PCBs continue to be an environmental and health concern due to their high bioaccumulation and slow degradation rates. In fact, PCBs are still present in our food supply (fish, meat, and dairy products). In laboratory animals, exposure to single PCB congener or to mixtures of different congeners induces a variety of physiological alterations. PCBs cross the placenta and even exposure at low level is harmful for the foetus by leading to neurodevelopment alterations. Serotonin system which regulates many physiological functions from platelet activation to high cerebral processes and neurodevelopment is one o…
Induction capacity and influence of dThdMP on thymidine kinase activity of type 1 and 2 strains of herpes simplex virus
1978
The thymidine kinase inducing ability of 104 strains of herpes simplex virus was studied comparatively. A pronounced relationship was established between induction of the enzyme and the serotype of the strains. As a rule, the strains of serotype 2 are weaker inducer of dThd- and dCyd-kinase activity than serotype 1 strains. A certain parallelism exists between induction of both enzymes, however the activity of the thymidine kinase increases after infection with herpes simplex virus 4--5 times more than that of the dCyd-kinase. Adaptation of the strains to cell cultures only slightly modifies the inducing ability of the herpes simplex virus strains. The thymidine kinase activity induced by H…
Flavonoids against the SARS-CoV-2 induced inflammatory storm
2021
The disease severity of COVID-19, especially in the elderly and patients with co-morbidities, is characterized by hypercytokinemia, an exaggerated immune response associated with an uncontrolled and excessive release of proinflammatory cytokine mediators (cytokine storm). Flavonoids, important secondary metabolites of plants, have long been studied as therapeutic interventions in inflammatory diseases due to their cytokine-modulatory effects. In this review, we discuss the potential role of flavonoids in the modulation of signaling pathways that are crucial for COVID-19 disease, particularly those related to inflammation and immunity. The immunomodulatory ability of flavonoids, carried out …
Josephson-junction-based axion detection through resonant activation
2022
We discuss the resonant activation phenomenon on a Josephson junction due to the coupling of the Josephson system with axions. We show how such an effect can be exploited for axion detection. A nonmonotonic behavior, with a minimum, of the mean switching time from the superconducting to the resistive state versus the ratio of the axion energy and the Josephson plasma energy is found. We demonstrate how variations in switching times make it possible to detect the presence of the axion field. An experimental protocol for observing axions through their coupling with a Josephson system is proposed.
Role of the colored noise in a FitzHugh-Nagumo system driven by a periodic signal
2007
During these last years the interest in neuronal dynamics increased. The study of this kind of system has been carried out by using the FitzHugh-Nagumo (FHN) model that is a simplified modification of the Hodgkin-Huxley model. Many interesting phenomena can be observed in the presence of fluctuations: modification of detection threshold by manipulation of noisy parameters (FHN model), noise-induced activation and coeherence resonance for suitable noise amplitude (absence of periodic signal), resonant activation for high periodic signals and noise reduction, intrinsic stochastic resonance (ISR) in Hodgkin-Huxley neuron and the enhancement of a weak signal by tuning the subthreshold intrinsic…
Neutron and gamma-ray radiation fields characterisation in an 241Am-Be irradiator in view of its use as reserach tool
2019
Introduction A neutron irradiation facility based on four 241Am–Be sources, activity of 1.11·1011 Bq each (yield ~7.0 ·106 n s-1), consisting in four source-channels and an irradiation channel placed in a tank filled with light water both as moderator and biological shielding, was realized at DEIM Department. The aim of this work is to evaluate neutron and gamma fluxes in several points inside the irradiation channel, in view of its use as a testing tool in various research activities. For this goal, an experimental measurement campaign was started also to validate Monte Carlo (MCNP5 code) simulation results. Methods Experimental measurements of neutron radiation fields (fast and thermal) w…
A High-Throughput Mechanical Activator for Cartilage Engineering Enables Rapid Screening of in vitro Response of Tissue Models to Physiological and S…
2021
Articular cartilage is crucially influenced by loading during development, health, and disease. However, our knowledge of the mechanical conditions that promote engineered cartilage maturation or tissue repair is still incomplete. Current in vitro models that allow precise control of the local mechanical environment have been dramatically limited by very low throughput, usually just a few specimens per experiment. To overcome this constraint, we have developed a new device for the high throughput compressive loading of tissue constructs: the High Throughput Mechanical Activator for Cartilage Engineering (HiT-MACE), which allows the mechanoactivation of 6 times more samples than current tech…