Search results for "Research Paper"
showing 10 items of 477 documents
Expression pattern of estroprogestinic receptors in sinonasal inverted papilloma
2017
// Agostino Serra 1 , Rosario Caltabiano 2 , Giacomo Spinato 3 , Salvatore Gallina 4 , Salvatore Caruso 5 , Venerando Rapisarda 6 , Paola Di Mauro 1 , Veronica Castro 1 , Angelo Conti 1 , Luisa Licciardello 1 , Luigi Maiolino 1 , Salvatore Lanzafame 2 , Salvatore Cocuzza 1 1 Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences and Advanced Technologies “G. Ingrassia”, ENT Section, University of Catania, Catania, Italy 2 Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences and Advanced Technologies “G. Ingrassia”, Section of Anatomic Pathology, University of Catania, Catania, Italy 3 ENT Department, Rovigo Provincial Hospital, Rovigo, Italy 4 Department of Experimental Biomedicine and Clinical Neurosciences, …
Induction of trefoil factor (TFF)1, TFF2 and TFF3 by hypoxia is mediated by hypoxia inducible factor-1: implications for gastric mucosal healing
2008
Background and purpose: Mucosal microcirculation is compromised during gastric damage induced by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin. Consequently, oxygen supply to epithelial cells is decreased. The trefoil factor (TFF) peptides are involved in mechanisms of defence and repair in the gastrointestinal tract but their regulation at sites of gastric injury is unknown. Experimental approach: Hypoxia and expression of TFF genes and peptides were measured in the damaged stomach of aspirin-treated rats. In a human gastric cell line (AGS cells), the effects of hypoxia and of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)-1 (through transient transfection of HIF-1α siRNA or over-expression of …
Functional consequences of microbial shifts in the human gastrointestinal tract linked to antibiotic treatment and obesity
2013
The microbiomes in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of individuals receiving antibiotics and those in obese subjects undergo compositional shifts, the metabolic effects and linkages of which are not clearly understood. Herein, we set to gain insight into these effects, particularly with regard to carbohydrate metabolism, and to contribute to unravel the underlying mechanisms and consequences for health conditions. We measured the activity level of GIT carbohydrate-active enzymes toward 23 distinct sugars in adults patients (n = 2) receiving 14-d β-lactam therapy and in obese (n = 7) and lean (n = 5) adolescents. We observed that both 14 d antibiotic-treated and obese subjects showed higher …
The effect of surface charge on nonspecific uptake and cytotoxicity of CdSe/ZnS core/shell quantum dots
2015
In this work, cytotoxicity and cellular impedance response was compared for CdSe/ZnS core/shell quantum dots (QDs) with positively charged cysteamine–QDs, negatively charged dihydrolipoic acid–QDs and zwitterionic D-penicillamine–QDs exposed to canine kidney MDCKII cells. Pretreatment of cells with pharmacological inhibitors suggested that the uptake of nanoparticles was largely due to receptor-independent pathways or spontaneous entry for carboxylated and zwitterionic QDs, while for amine-functionalized particles involvement of cholesterol-enriched membrane domains is conceivable. Cysteamine–QDs were found to be the least cytotoxic, while D-penicillamine–QDs reduced the mitochondrial activ…
Comparative evaluation of the impact on endothelial cells induced by different nanoparticle structures and functionalization
2015
In the research field of nanoparticles, many studies demonstrated a high impact of the shape, size and surface charge, which is determined by the functionalization, of nanoparticles on cell viability and internalization into cells. This work focused on the comparison of three different nanoparticle types to give a better insight into general rules determining the biocompatibility of gold, Janus and semiconductor (quantum dot) nanoparticles. Endothelial cells were subject of this study, since blood is the first barrier after intravenous nanoparticle application. In particular, stronger effects on the viability of endothelial cells were found for nanoparticles with an elongated shape in compa…
Mechanical properties of sol–gel derived SiO2 nanotubes
2014
The mechanical properties of thick-walled SiO2 nanotubes (NTs) prepared by a sol–gel method while using Ag nanowires (NWs) as templates were measured by using different methods. In situ scanning electron microscopy (SEM) cantilever beam bending tests were carried out by using a nanomanipulator equipped with a force sensor in order to investigate plasticity and flexural response of NTs. Nanoindentation and three point bending tests of NTs were performed by atomic force microscopy (AFM) under ambient conditions. Half-suspended and three-point bending tests were processed in the framework of linear elasticity theory. Finite element method simulations were used to extract Young’s modulus values…
Charge-transfer interactions between fullerenes and a mesoporous tetrathiafulvalene-based metal–organic framework
2019
The design of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) incorporating electroactive guest molecules in the pores has become a subject of great interest in order to obtain additional electrical functionalities within the framework while maintaining porosity. Understanding the charge-transfer (CT) process between the framework and the guest molecules is a crucial step towards the design of new electroactive MOFs. Herein, we present the encapsulation of fullerenes (C60) in a mesoporous tetrathiafulvalene (TTF)-based MOF. The CT process between the electron-acceptor C60 guest and the electron-donor TTF ligand is studied in detail by means of different spectroscopic techniques and density functional theor…
Mammalian cell growth on gold nanoparticle-decorated substrates is influenced by the nanoparticle coating
2014
In this work, we study epithelial cell growth on substrates decorated with gold nanorods that are functionalized either with a positively charged cytotoxic surfactant or with a biocompatible polymer exhibiting one of two different end groups, resulting in a neutral or negative surface charge of the particle. Upon observation of cell growth for three days by live cell imaging using optical dark field microscopy, it was found that all particles supported cell adhesion while no directed cell migration and no significant particle internalization occurred. Concerning cell adhesion and spreading as compared to cell growth on bare substrates after 3 days of incubation, a reduction by 45% and 95%, …
Mechanical properties of MDCK II cells exposed to gold nanorods
2015
Background: The impact of gold nanoparticles on cell viability has been extensively studied in the past. Size, shape and surface functionalization including opsonization of gold particles ranging from a few nanometers to hundreds of nanometers are among the most crucial parameters that have been focussed on. Cytoxicity of nanomaterial has been assessed by common cytotoxicity assays targeting enzymatic activity such as LDH, MTT and ECIS. So far, however, less attention has been paid to the mechanical parameters of cells exposed to gold particles, which is an important reporter on the cellular response to external stimuli.Results: Mechanical properties of confluent MDCK II cells exposed to go…
Study of silica-based intrinsically emitting nanoparticles produced by an excimer laser
2019
International audience; We report an experimental study demonstrating the feasibility to produce both pure and Ge-doped silica nanoparticles (size ranging from tens up to hundreds of nanometers) using nanosecond pulsed KrF laser ablation of bulk glass. In particular, pure silica nanoparticles were produced using a laser pulse energy of 400 mJ on pure silica, whereas Ge-doped nanoparticles were obtained using 33 and 165 mJ per pulse on germanosilicate glass. The difference in the required energy is attributed to the Ge doping, which modifies the optical properties of the silica by facilitating energy absorption processes such as multiphoton absorption or by introducing absorbing point defect…