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showing 10 items of 698 documents
miR-128 Is Implicated in Stress Responses by Targeting MAFG in Skeletal Muscle Cells.
2017
MAFG (v-Maf avian musculoaponeurotic fibrosarcoma oncogene homolog G) is a bZIP-type transcriptional regulator that belongs to the small MAF (sMAFs) protein family. By interacting with other bZIP transcription factors, sMAFs can form homo- and heterodimers governing either repressive or activating transcriptional functions. As heterodimeric partner of Nrf2, MAFG positively influences the ARE-dependent antioxidant/xenobiotic pathways, at least in condition of a correct MAFG:Nrf2 balance. MicroRNAs (miRs) participate to different regulatory networks being involved as fine-tuning regulators of gene expression. However, the connections between cellular surveillance to stresses mediated by MAFG:…
Declining Physical Performance Associates with Serum FasL, miR-21, and miR-146a in Aging Sprinters.
2016
Aging is associated with systemic inflammation and cellular apoptosis accelerating physiological dysfunctions. Whether physically active way of life affects these associations is unclear. This study measured the levels of serum inflammatory and apoptotic molecules, their change over 10 years, and their associations with physical performance in sprint-trained male athletes. HsCRP, cell counts, HGB, FasL, miR-21, and miR-146a were measured cross-sectionally (n=67, 18–90 yrs) and serum FasL, miR-21, and miR-146a and their aging-related associations with physical performance were assessed over a 10-year follow-up (n=49, 50–90 yrs). The cross-sectional study showed positive age correlations for …
Selection of the Optimal Algorithm for Real-Time Estimation of Beta Band Power during DBS Surgeries in Patients with Parkinson's Disease
2017
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is a surgical procedure for the treatment of motor disorders in patients with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). DBS involves the application of controlled electrical stimuli to a given brain structure. The implantation of the electrodes for DBS is performed by a minimally invasive stereotactic surgery where neuroimaging and microelectrode recordings (MER) are used to locate the target brain structure. The Subthalamic Nucleus (STN) is often chosen for the implantation of stimulation electrodes in DBS therapy. During the surgery, an intraoperative validation is performed to locate the dorsolateral region of STN. Patients with PD reveal a high power in the β band (frequenc…
A Dirichlet Autoregressive Model for the Analysis of Microbiota Time-Series Data
2021
Growing interest in understanding microbiota dynamics has motivated the development of different strategies to model microbiota time series data. However, all of them must tackle the fact that the available data are high-dimensional, posing strong statistical and computational challenges. In order to address this challenge, we propose a Dirichlet autoregressive model with time-varying parameters, which can be directly adapted to explain the effect of groups of taxa, thus reducing the number of parameters estimated by maximum likelihood. A strategy has been implemented which speeds up this estimation. The usefulness of the proposed model is illustrated by application to a case study.
Cellular Responses in Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells Treated with Three Endodontic Materials
2017
Human dental pulp stem cells (HDPSCs) are of special relevance in future regenerative dental therapies. Characterizing cytotoxicity and genotoxicity produced by endodontic materials is required to evaluate the potential for regeneration of injured tissues in future strategies combining regenerative and root canal therapies. This study explores the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity mediated by oxidative stress of three endodontic materials that are widely used on HDPSCs: a mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA-Angelus white), an epoxy resin sealant (AH-Plus cement), and an MTA-based cement sealer (MTA-Fillapex). Cell viability and cell death rate were assessed by flow cytometry. Oxidative stress was m…
Modified Vitrectomy Technique for Phakic Rhegmatogenous Retinal Detachment with Intermediate Break
2018
Purpose. To evaluate the effects of a modification of the traditional 25-gauge pars plana vitrectomy technique in the treatment of uncomplicated macula-on rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) with intermediate retinal break(s) and marked vitreous traction in the phakic eye. Methods. Prospective, noncomparative, and interventional case series. All consecutive phakic eyes with primary uncomplicated macula-on RRD with intermediate retinal break(s) and marked vitreous traction, with at least 1 year of postoperative follow-up, were enrolled. In all eyes, “localized 25-gauge vitrectomy” under air infusion with localized removal of the vitreous surrounding the retinal break(s), in association w…
2-Methoxyestradiol and Its Combination with a Natural Compound, Ferulic Acid, Induces Melanoma Cell Death via Downregulation of Hsp60 and Hsp90
2019
Melanoma is an aggressive type of skin cancer with one of the highest mortality rates. Notably, its incidence in the last few decades has increased faster than any other cancer. Therefore, searching for novel anticancer therapies is of great clinical importance. In the present study, we investigated the anticancer potential of 2-methoxyestradiol, potent chemotherapeutic, in the A375 melanoma cellular model. In order to furthermore evaluate the anticancer efficacy of 2-methoxyestradiol, we have additionally combined the treatment with a naturally occurring polyphenol, ferulic acid. The results were obtained using the melanoma A375 cellular model. In the study, we used MTT assay, flow cytomet…
Helicobacter pylori and Epstein–Barr Virus Infection in Gastric Diseases: Correlation with IL-10 and IL1RN Polymorphism
2019
Introduction. Helicobacter pylori and Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) infection have recently been shown to be associated with gastric diseases. Polymorphisms in genes encoding cytokines such as interleukin 10 (IL-10) and interleukin 1 Receptor (IL-1RN) influence cytokine secretion levels and appear to contribute to the risk of developing gastroduodenal diseases. To our knowledge, this is the first preliminary study to address the association of coinfection with H. pylori and EBV and their correlation with genetic predisposition in the development of gastric diseases. Methods. Gastric biopsy samples of 96 patients with different gastric diseases were used. Results. Our results showed that the rate…
Extra-Intestinal Fluoroquinolone-Resistant Escherichia coli Strains Isolated from Meat
2018
Extra-intestinal E. coli are emerging as a global threat due to their diffusion as opportunistic pathogens and, above all, to their wide set of antibiotic resistance determinants. There are still many gaps in our knowledge of their origin and spread pathways, although food animals have been adjudicated vehicles for passing mult-drug resistant bacteria to humans. This study analyzed 46 samples of meat purchased from retail stores in Palermo in order to obtain quinolone-resistant E. coli isolates. Strains were screened for their phylogenetic groups, ST131-associated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and then typed by ERIC-PCR. Their set of virulence factors, namely, kpsMII, papA, sfaS, …
Target Transportation of Auxin on Mesoporous Au/SiO2 Nanoparticles as a Method for Somaclonal Variation Increasing in Flax (L. usitatissimum L.)
2017
Development of methods for direct delivery of different bioactive substances into the cell is a promising and intensively approached area of research. It has become a subject of serious research for multidisciplinary team of scientists working in such areas as physics, biology, and biotechnology. Plant calluses were grown on medium supplemented with different nanoparticles to be used as a model for biotechnological research. Gold nanoparticles with mesoporous silica coating were used as hormone carriers, since they possess many of critical properties required for cellular transportation instrument. Some of those properties are great biocompatibility and controlled release of carried molecul…