Search results for "Serp"

La chiesa di S. Spirito in Agrigento. Stucchi di Serpotta e illusionismo pittorico-architettonico

2009

Multiple origins of methane in fluids circulating in the Othrys ophiolite, central Greece

2018

The complex geology of Greece includes two important parallel running ophiolitic belts. The Othrys Massif in central Greece belongs to westernmost of them. In and around this wide ophiolite outcrop, some cold hyperalkaline and some hypothermal (T < 40°C) alkaline springs are present. Thirty water samples were collected at 17 different sites and both bubbling and dissolved gases were analysed for their chemical (He, Ne, H2, O2, N2, CH4, C2H6, CO2 and H2S) and isotope (He, δ13C-CO2, δ 13C-CH4, δ 2H-CH4) composition. All samples except one have H2S contents below detection limit (10 μmol/mol), whilst H2 (from <2 to 2500 μmol/mol), CO2 (up to 26,000 but generally below 1000 μmol/mol) and …

Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of perakine reductase, a new member of the aldo-keto reductase enzyme superf…

2006

Perakine reductase (PR) is a novel member of the aldo-keto reductase enzyme superfamily from higher plants. PR from the plant Rauvolfia serpentina is involved in the biosynthesis of monoterpenoid indole alkaloids by performing NADPH-dependent reduction of perakine, yielding raucaffrinoline. However, PR can also reduce cinnamic aldehyde and some of its derivatives. After heterologous expression of a triple mutant of PR in Escherichia coli, crystals of the purified and methylated enzyme were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique at 293 K with 100 mM sodium citrate pH 5.6 and 27% PEG 4000 as precipitant. Crystals belong to space group C222(1) and diffract to 2.0 A, with unit-…

Evaluation of PAI-1 in endometriosis using a homologous immunocompetent mouse model

2018

To analyze the role of PAI-1 (plasminogen activator inhibitor 1) in endometriotic lesion growth, we studied the effect of PAI-1 inhibition by PAI-039 using a homologous mouse model of endometriosis that allows noninvasive monitoring. Endometrial tissue from donor mice was collected, labeled with mCherry adenovirus, and implanted into a subcutaneous pocket on the ventral abdomen of recipient mice. Seven days after transplantation, mice were randomly allocated in two groups and treated once daily for 2 weeks with either vehicle (control group) or PAI-1 inhibitor (PAI-039 group). Endometriotic lesion size generated in recipient mice was monitored by mCherry signal. Animals were euthanized 21 d…

Ecology of the eulophid parasitoid community living on hosts of spontaneous flora linked to citrus grove (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Eulophidae).

2001

Geochemical characterisation of the alkaline and hyperalkaline groundwater in the Othrys Ophiolite Massif, central Greece

2021

The complex geology of Greece includes two important parallel running ophiolitic belts. The Othrys Massif in central Greece belongs to the westernmost of them. In the current study, 33 water samples from cold hyperalkaline and hypothermal (T < 40°C) alkaline springs and 30 gas samples (either dissolved or free) were collected at 17 different sites in and around this wide ophiolite outcrop, aiming to determine the origin of fluids and evidence gas-water-rock interaction processes taking place in the area. Water samples were analysed for their chemical (major ions and trace elements) and isotope (d18O-H2O, d2H-H2O) composition. They can be subdivided into alkaline (pH <11) of both Mg-Ca…

Inactivation and polymerization of human neuroserpin

2010

Neuroserpin is an inhibitory enzyme, belonging to the family of serpins and involved in several pathologies, such as ischemia, Alzheimer disease, and FENIB (Familial Encephalopathy with Neuroserpin Inclusion Body). Here, we study the mechanism of neuroserpin inactivation and polymerization by different experimental techniques (static and dynamic light scattering, liquid chromatography, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, emission spectroscopy). Our results show that at intermediate temperatures (45-55 °C) neuroserpin forms flexible polymers with a size from a few tens to a few hundreds of nanometers. At high temperatures, above 80 °C, our results reveal a different polymeric form, reac…

Functional and dysfunctional isoforms of human neuroserpin

2015

Neuroserpin (NS) is a serine protease inhibitor (SERPIN) involved in different neurological pathologies, including the Familial Encephalopathy with Neuroserpin Inclusion Bodies (FENIB), related to the aberrant polymerization of NS mutants. Here we present an in vitro and in silico characterization of native NS and its dysfunctional conformation isoforms: the proteolytically cleaved conformer, the inactive latent conformer, and the polymeric conformer. Using circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy, we present an experimental validation of the latent model and highlight the main structural features of the different conformers. In par- ticular, emission spectra of aromatic residues yi…

The role of two non-indigenous serpulid tube worms in shaping artificial hard substrata communities: case study of a fish farm in the central Mediter…

2019

Understanding the spread and establishment of non-indigenous species (NIS) is one of the primary areas of focus in bioinvasion science and is essential for generating appropriate management strategies in aquaculture. Here we investigated the role of 2 non-indigenous serpulid tube worms (Hydroides elegans and H. dirampha) in shaping the hard substrata communities around a fish farm in the Strait of Sicily over 1 yr (June 2014-June 2015), at 3 mo intervals (September and December 2014, March and June 2015). The mean density values of serpulids were significantly different at each sampling time. The density of serpulids on submerged panels showed a peak in spring (March 2015, after 9 mo) and d…

Data from: The origin of the serpentine endemic Minuartia laricifolia subsp. ophiolitica by vicariance and competitive exclusion

2013

Serpentine soils harbour a unique flora that is rich in endemics. We examined the evolution of serpentine endemism in Minuartia laricifolia, which has two ecologically distinct subspecies with disjunct distributions: subsp. laricifolia on siliceous rocks in the western Alps and eastern Pyrenees and subsp. ophiolitica on serpentine in the northern Apennines. We analysed AFLPs and chloroplast sequences from 30 populations to examine their relationships and how their current distributions and ecologies were influenced by Quaternary climatic changes. Minuartia laricifolia was divided into four groups with a BAPS cluster analysis of the AFLP data, one group consisted only of subsp. ophiolitica, …