Search results for "Hox"
showing 10 items of 1357 documents
Melatonin and phytomelatonin: Chemistry, biosynthesis, metabolism, distribution and bioactivity in plants and animals—an overview
2021
Melatonin is a ubiquitous indolamine, largely investigated for its key role in the regulation of several physiological processes in both animals and plants. In the last century, it was reported that this molecule may be produced in high concentrations by several species belonging to the plant kingdom and stored in specialized tissues. In this review, the main information related to the chemistry of melatonin and its metabolism has been summarized. Furthermore, the biosynthetic pathway characteristics of animal and plant cells have been compared, and the main differences between the two systems highlighted. Additionally, in order to investigate the distribution of this indolamine in the plan…
Rituximab for Immune Thrombocytopenia: A Retrospective Analysis on the Role of Prophylaxis Against Pneumocystis Jirovecii and Herpes Zoster Virus
2018
Abstract Introduction and objective of the study Rituximab (RTX) is considered a valid second line treatment option for persistent or chronic Immune Thrombocytopenia (ITP). RTX is known to affect the immune system thus increasing the risk for viral and fungal infections. Although prophylactic treatment to prevent Pneumocystis jirovecii (PJ) and herpes viruses' infections is used in patients with haematological neoplasms receiving RTX, these evidence is lacking in ITP patients candidated to anti-CD20 therapy. We here reported the role of phrophylaxis in a cohort of patients treated with RTX for refractory/relapsed ITP. Methods Data from patients affected by ITP and treated at our Institution…
Modular Breath Analyzer (MBA): Introduction of a Breath Analyzer Platform Based on an Innovative and Unique, Modular eNose Concept for Breath Diagnos…
2021
Exhaled breath analysis for early disease detection may provide a convenient method for painless and non-invasive diagnosis. In this work, a novel, compact and easy-to-use breath analyzer platform with a modular sensing chamber and direct breath sampling unit is presented. The developed analyzer system comprises a compact, low volume, temperature-controlled sensing chamber in three modules that can host any type of resistive gas sensor arrays. Furthermore, in this study three modular breath analyzers are explicitly tested for reproducibility in a real-life breath analysis experiment with several calibration transfer (CT) techniques using transfer samples from the experiment. The experiment …
Film blowing of silane-modified polyethylene
2009
The grafting of vinyltriethoxysilane (VTES) onto polyethylene (PE) with the help of small amounts of peroxides was investigated to film-blow these modified materials. The degree of crosslinking was kept very low to achieve good melt processability and improved mechanical properties. The possibility of obtaining modified PE films with improved properties and regularly distributed crosslinking with a single processing step demonstrates the uniqueness of this study. The additive concentration was established through preliminary studies; with a batch mixer, it was possible to process the modified PE in the film-blowing operation. Water treatment of the modified films after film blowing allowed …
Nebivolol inhibits superoxide formation by NADPH oxidase and endothelial dysfunction in angiotensin II-treated rats.
2006
Nebivolol is a β 1 -receptor antagonist with vasodilator and antioxidant properties. Because the vascular NADPH oxidase is an important superoxide source, we studied the effect of nebivolol on endothelial function and NADPH oxidase activity and expression in the well-characterized model of angiotensin II–induced hypertension. Angiotensin II infusion (1 mg/kg per day for 7 days) caused endothelial dysfunction in male Wistar rats and increased vascular superoxide as detected by lucigenin-derived chemiluminescence, as well as dihydroethidine staining. Vascular NADPH oxidase activity, as well as expression at the mRNA and protein level, were markedly upregulated, as well as NOS III uncoupled, …
Effects of pre- and postnatal exposure to 5-methoxytryptamine and early handling on an object-place association learning task in adolescent rat offsp…
2007
A reduction in 5-HT1A receptor response enhances learning and memory performance in rats. Pre- and postnatal treatment with 5-methoxytryptamine (5MT), a non-selective serotonergic agonist, and early handling, reduce the number of 5-HT1A receptors in neonatal and pre-pubertal rat progeny. The aim of this study was to investigate in adolescent male rats the consequences of pre- and postnatal treatment with 5MT and its interaction with early handling on an object-place association learning task, the "Can test", a motivated, non-aversive, spatial/object discrimination task. Results show that a single daily injection of 5MT from gestational days 12 to 21 (1 mg/kg s.c.) and from postnatal days 2 …
CONSERVED CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS IN DEVELOPMENT
2002
This review discusses examples of conserved cellular and molecular mechansims in development, including the pathway of signal transduction between the photoreceptors R8 and R7 in Drosophila, which is compared to vulval induction in Caenorhabditis elegans. The Wg pathway in Drosophila is compared, first, to the Wnt pathway in dorsal mesoderm specification in Xenopus: second, to the same pathway in sea urchins; third, to the equivalent in the mom cascade of C. elegans; and finally, to parts of the equivalent pathway in Dictyostelium discoideum. The conserved expression of some hox genes in vertebrate limb buds and in the heads or tails of several invertebrate and vertebrate embryos is also il…
Benzyl ions from 1,1-(2,2′-dimethoxyphenyl)-substituted 2-methylpropanes under electron ionization
2006
The electron ionization (EI)-induced fragmentations of a series of 1,1-(2,2'-dimethoxyphenyl)-substituted 2-methylpropanes (1-20) in both 70 eV and mass-analyzed ion kinetic energy (MIKE) spectra have been investigated. The EI-MS spectra of these compounds are characterized by the presence of abundant benzyl ions. These ions result from competitive hydrogen migration from the 2- and 2'-methoxy groups on the carbenium center of the diphenylmethyl cations formed by benzylic cleavage of the molecular ions. The relative abundances of the benzyl ions arising from such competitive processes are discussed and rationalized. The steric effect of the 3- or 3'-substituents is the main discriminating f…
Metabolic pathways of 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C-B): analysis of phase I metabolism with hepatocytes of six species including human
2004
Abstract 4-Bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C-B) is a psychoactive designer drug of abuse that is sold under the street names “Venus”, “Bromo”, “Erox”, “XTC” or “Nexus”. Concern has been raised because only little is known about its toxicity and metabolism in humans. In the present study we incubated 2C-B with human, monkey, dog, rabbit, rat and mouse hepatocytes to identify the metabolites formed and to determine possible toxic effects as evidenced by an ATP assay. Our data allow construction of the main metabolic pathways of 2C-B. Oxidative deamination results in the 2-(4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-ethanol (BDMPE) and 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenylacetic acid (BDMPAA) metabolites. Additio…
Soil legacy determines arbuscular mycorrhizal spore bank and plant performance in the low Arctic
2020
AbstractHuman impact is rapidly changing vegetation globally. The effect of plant cover that no longer exists in a site may still affect the development of future vegetation. We focused on a little studied factor—arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus spore bank—and its effect on three test plant species. In a low Arctic field site, plots were maintained for 6 years, devoid of any vegetation or with a Solidago virgaurea monoculture cover. We analysed the AM fungal morphospecies composition and identified 21 morphospecies in the field plots. The AM morphospecies community was dominated by members of Acaulosporaceae. Monoculturing under low Arctic field conditions changed the soil AM spore commun…