Search results for "Pathway"

Chromatic and achromatic visual fields in relation to choroidal thickness in patients with high myopia: A pilot study

2018

Purpose. - To analyse the relationship between the choroidal thickness and the visual perception of patients with high myopia but without retinal damage. Methods. - All patients underwent ophthalmic evaluation including a slit lamp examination and dilated ophthalmoscopy, subjective refraction, best corrected visual acuity, axial length, optical coherence tomography, contrast sensitivity function and sensitivity of the visual pathways. Results. - We included eleven eyes of subjects with high myopia. There are statistical correlations between choroidal thickness and almost all the contrast sensitivity values. The sensitivity of magnocellular and koniocellular pathways is the most affected, an…

Author response: Novel adverse outcome pathways revealed by chemical genetics in a developing marine fish

2016

Deafferentation and pointing with visual double-step perturbations

1999

The capability of reprogramming movement responses following changes in the visual goal has been studied through the double-step paradigm. These studies have shown that: (a) continuous internal feedback-loops correct unconsciously the dynamic errors throughout the movement; (b) proprioceptive information and/or the efference copy have a privileged status among central processes, insuring on-line regulation of the initial motor commands; and (c) generation of the motor program starts after target presentation, and is continuously updated in the direction of the current internal representation of the target, at least until the onset of hand movement. This main corrective process of the initia…

Unit study in cat claustrum of the effects of iontophoretic neurotransmitters and correlations with the effects of activation of some afferent pathwa…

1982

Glutamate (Glut), acetylcholine (ACh) and dopamine (DA) were iontophoretically applied on cat claustral neurons. Glut did not affect all the neurons; ACh had both excitatory and inhibitory effects, while DA was prevalently inhibitory. An analysis was made of the time-course of excitatory and inhibitory responses on the basis of the mean firing rate variations during and after ACh and DA release. Three types of responses are described for each drug: short lasting inhibition, long lasting inhibition and long lasting excitation. The experimental data were statistically elaborated. The effects of ACh and of DA were compared with those of activation obtained by sensorial peripheric and thalamic …

Clinical pathways for fragility fractures of the pelvic ring: personal experience and review of the literature

2014

AbstractFragility fractures of the pelvic ring (FFP) are increasing in frequency and require challenging treatment. A new comprehensive classification considers both fracture morphology and degree of instability. The classification system also provides recommendations for type and invasiveness of treatment. In this article, a literature review of treatment alternatives is presented and compared with our own experiences. Whereas FFP Type I lesions can be treated conservatively, FFP Types III and IV require surgical treatment. For FFP Type II lessions, percutaneous fixation techniques should be considered after a trial of conservative treatment. FFP Type III lesions need open reduction and in…

An Agent-Based Model of Extortion Racketeering

2016

Mafias can be considered as criminal organisations that are in the business of producing, promoting, and selling protection. Here, we describe the Palermo Scenario, an agent-based model of protection rackets aimed to deepen our understanding of protection rackets, and help policymakers to evaluate methods for destabilising them. Additionally, since the system is explicitly specified, we can use it to investigate the entire causal pathway from cause to effect: not only from actions to Mafia destabilisation, but also the intermediate actions along the path and actors' internal mental representations among the population.

NF-κB pathway activators as potential ageing biomarkers: targets for new therapeutic strategies

2013

Chronic inflammation is a major biological mechanism underpinning biological ageing process and age-related diseases. Inflammation is also the key response of host defense against pathogens and tissue injury. Current opinion sustains that during evolution the host defense and ageing process have become linked together. Thus, the large array of defense factors and mechanisms linked to the NF-κB system seem to be involved in ageing process. This concept leads us in proposing inductors of NF-κB signaling pathway as potential ageing biomarkers. On the other hand, ageing biomarkers, represented by biological indicators and selected through apposite criteria, should help to characterize biologica…

Calorie Restriction in Mammals and Simple Model Organisms

2014

Calorie restriction (CR), which usually refers to a 20–40% reduction in calorie intake, can effectively prolong lifespan preventing most age-associated diseases in several species. However, recent data from both human and nonhumans point to the ratio of macronutrients rather than the caloric intake as a major regulator of both lifespan and health-span. In addition, specific components of the diet have recently been identified as regulators of some age-associated intracellular signaling pathways in simple model systems. The comprehension of the mechanisms underpinning these findings is crucial since it may increase the beneficial effects of calorie restriction making it accessible to a broad…

Hedgehog signaling and primary cilia are required for the formation of adult neural stem cells.

2008

Neural stem cells that continue to produce neurons are retained in the adult hippocampal dentate gyrus. The mechanisms by which embryonic neural progenitors expand and transform into postnatal neural stem cells, an essential process for the continual production of neurons throughout life, remain unknown. We found that radial astrocytes, the postnatal progenitors in the dentate gyrus, failed to develop after embryonic ablation of ciliary genes or Smoothened (Smo), an essential component for Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling. Postnatal dentate neurogenesis failed in these mutant mice, and the dentate gyrus became severely hypotrophic. In contrast, expression of a constitutively active Smo (SmoM2…

Healthy ageing and Mediterranean diet: A focus on hormetic phytochemicals

2021

Abstract Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) is rich in fruits and vegetables associated with longevity and a reduced risk of several age-related diseases. It is demonstrated that phytochemicals in these plant products enhance the positive effects of MedDiet by acting on the inflammatory state and reducing oxidative stress. Evidence support that these natural compounds act as hormetins, triggering one or more adaptive stress-response pathways at low doses. Activated stress-response pathways increase the expression of cytoprotective proteins and multiple genes that act as lifespan regulators, essential for the ageing process. In these ways, the hormetic response by phytochemicals such as resveratro…