Search results for "Caps"

Enhanced in vivo targeting of murine nonparenchymal liver cells with monophosphoryl lipid A functionalized microcapsules.

2014

A broad spectrum of infectious liver diseases emphasizes the need of microparticles for targeted delivery of immunomodulatory substances to the liver. Microcapsules (MCs) are particularly attractive for innovative drug and vaccine formulations, enabling the combination of antigen, drugs, and adjuvants. The present study aimed to develop microcapsules characterized by an enhanced liver deposition and accelerated uptake by nonparenchymal liver cells (NPCs). Initially, two formulations of biodegradable microcapsules were synthesized from either hydroxyethyl starch (HES) or mannose. Notably, HES-MCs accumulated primarily in the liver, while mannose particles displayed a lung preference. Functio…

Microencapsulation of Phenolic Extracts from Cocoa Shells to Enrich Chocolate Bars

2021

AbstractCocoa bean shells were subjected to green extraction technologies, based on the absence of toxic organic solvents, to recover polyphenols; the extract was then encapsulated using a spray dryer and maltodextrin as coating agent. The best conditions observed in the spray drying tests (core-to-coating ratio 1:5; inlet temperature 150 °C; flow rate 6 ml min−1) were applied to produce the microcapsules used to enrich the same cocoa mass as the shells and processed for the preparation of the chocolate bars. Sensory analysis showed no significant differences between enriched chocolate bar and the unenriched reference one, except for the appearance. Both samples were then subjected to accel…

Evaluation of the improvement of sensibility with the new IOL Master software version 5.4.3

2009

Purpose To evaluate the improvement of sensibility of the new IOL-Master version 5.4.3 compared with the version 4.08. Methods 214 eyes of 115 patients were examined in a cataract preoperative evaluation making use of both IOL-Master software versions 5.4.3 and 4.08. The type and severity of the lens opacification was assessed by slitlamp biomicroscopy. Results In 182 of the eyes examined both versions were capable to determine the AL; in 29 the version 4.01 could not determine AL whereas the version 5.4.3 was able to measure it; these cases showed posterior capsular cataract (16), dense nuclear cataract (11), posterior synechiae (1) and asteroid hyalosis (1). Finally, the AL of 3 eyes coul…

Development of functionalized SYBR green II related cyanine dyes for viral RNA detection

2020

Abstract Fluorescent probes for sensing nucleic acids have found widespread use in the field of cell and molecular biology. However, probes combined with potential for post-synthetic conjugation, e.g. for intra-endosomal measurements of RNA, are unavailable. Herein we developed cyanine dyes that can be conjugated to viral capsid or other targets. First, we solved the crystal structure of SYBR Green II. The structural elucidation of this commonly used RNA probe provided the basis for synthesizing similar molecules with much desired function for post-synthetic conjugation. To address this need, cyanine dyes were prepared using an alternative synthesis protocol. All studied compounds showed co…

Apoptosis: a relevant tool for anticancer therapy.

2006

Apoptosis is a form of cell death that permits the removal of damaged, senescent or unwanted cells in multicellular organisms, without damage to the cellular microenvironment. Defective apoptosis represents a major causative factor in the development and progression of cancer. The majority of chemotherapeutic agents, as well as radiation, utilize the apoptotic pathway to induce cancer cell death. Resistance to standard chemotherapeutic strategies also seems to be due to alterations in the apoptotic pathway of cancer cells. Recent knowledge on apoptosis has provided the basis for novel targeted therapies that exploit apoptosis to treat cancer. These new target include those acting in the ext…

Il seme sintetico: nuova tecnologia per il settore vivaistico specializzato?

2010

Controlling the semi-permeability of protein nanocapsules influences the cellular response to macromolecular payloads.

2021

Nanocapsules are an excellent platform for the delivery of macromolecular payloads such as proteins, nucleic acids or polyprodrugs, since they can both protect the sensitive cargo and target its delivery to the desired site of action. However, the release of macromolecules from nanocapsules remains a challenge due to their restricted diffusion through the nanoshell compared to small molecule cargo. Here, we designed degradable protein nanocapsules with varying crosslinking densities of the nanoshell to control the release of model macromolecules. While the crosslinking did not influence the degradability of the capsules by natural proteases, it significantly affected the release profiles. F…

SAR of novel benzothiazoles targeting an allosteric pocket of DENV and ZIKV NS2B/NS3 proteases

2021

In recent years, dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV), both mosquito-borne members of the Flaviviridae family, have emerged as intercontinental health issues since their vectors have spread from their tropical origins to temperate climate zones due to climate change and increasing globalization. DENV and ZIKV are positive-sense, single-stranded RNA viruses, whose genomes consist of three structural (capsid, membrane precursor, envelope) and seven non-structural (NS) proteins, all of which are initially expressed as a single precursor polyprotein. For virus maturation, the polyprotein processing is accomplished by host proteases and the viral NS2B/NS3 protease complex, whose inhibitors …

Crystal structure of bacteriophage fr capsids at 3.5 A resolution.

1994

The structure of recombinant capsids of the bacterial virus fr has been determined by X-ray crystallography at 3.5 A resolution. The capsids were produced by expressing the fr coat protein in Escherichia coli, the natural host of the virus, and are probably essentially identical to the protein shell of the native virus. The structure was determined using molecular replacement with the protein shell of the related MS2 virus, and refined to a crystallographic R-factor of 0.228. A comparison of the protein shells of the viruses shows that they are very similar, and indicates that they may have a similar regulation of the assembly of the quasi-symmetrical protein shell.

Immunological analyses of human papillomavirus capsids

2001

Recombinant human papillomavirus (HPV) virus-like particles (VLPs) are promising vaccine candidates for controlling anogenital HPV disease. Questions remain, however, concerning the extent of capsid antigenic similarity between closely related virus genotypes. To investigate this issue, we produced VLPs and corresponding polyclonal immune sera from several anogenital HPV types, and examined these reagents in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) and in cross-neutralization studies. Despite varying degrees of L1 genetic sequence relatedness, VLPs of each type examined induced high-titer serum polyclonal antibody responses that were entirely genotype-specific. In an in vitro infectivity…