Search results for "Spectroscopy"
showing 10 items of 10293 documents
Nuclear inclusions of pathogenic ataxin-1 induce oxidative stress and perturb the protein synthesis machinery
2020
Spinocerebellar ataxia type-1 (SCA1) is caused by an abnormally expanded polyglutamine (polyQ) tract in ataxin-1. These expansions are responsible for protein misfolding and self-assembly into intranuclear inclusion bodies (IIBs) that are somehow linked to neuronal death. However, owing to lack of a suitable cellular model, the downstream consequences of IIB formation are yet to be resolved. Here, we describe a nuclear protein aggregation model of pathogenic human ataxin-1 and characterize IIB effects. Using an inducible Sleeping Beauty transposon system, we overexpressed the ATXN1(Q82) gene in human mesenchymal stem cells that are resistant to the early cytotoxic effects caused by the expr…
Salivary Stress/Immunological Markers in Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis
2020
There is continuous and growing interest in research into new alternatives to standard biomarkers to detect and follow-up disease, reducing physical and psychological stress in patients needing regular and invasive medical examinations for the evaluation of pathologies, including inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Saliva is one of the most promising body fluids in the research of new biomarkers, thanks to the large number of molecules it contains. Many molecules present in saliva are often directly correlated to their concentration in the blood but may be affected by the condition of the oral cavity. This means that a careful selection of a specific biomarker is required for each pathology,…
Heat- and pH-induced BSA conformational changes, hydrogel formation and application as 3D cell scaffold
2016
Aggregation and gelation of globular proteins can be an advantage to generate new forms of nanoscale biomaterials based on the fibrillar architecture. Here, we report results obtained by exploiting the proteins' natural tendency to self-organize in 3D network, for the production of new material based on BSA for medical application. In particular, at five different pH values the conformational and structural changes of the BSA during all the steps of the thermal aggregation and gelation have been analyzed by FTIR spectroscopy. The macroscopic mechanical properties of these hydrogels have been obtained by rheological measurements. The microscopic structure of the gels have been studied by AFM…
Guanosine-5'-Monophosphate Polyamine Hybrid Hydrogels: Enhanced Gel Strength Probed by z-Spectroscopy.
2017
The self-assembling tendencies of guanosine-5'-monophosphate (GMP) can be drastically increased using polyamines, with potential applications in the production of biocompatible smart materials, as well as for the design of anti-tumoral drugs based on G-quadruplex stabilization. Results from scanning electron microscopy (SEM), wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS), rheology and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) z-spectroscopy studies are presented.
Nanoscale strain-engineering and optics of quantum emitters in a two-dimensional semiconductor
2017
We present deterministic fabrication of a two-dimensional lattice of quantum emitters in an atomically thin semiconductor. Resonant laser spectroscopy of these emitters reveals localized exciton states that exhibit stable, bright and high-purity single photon emission.
The O-antigen of Plesiomonas shigelloides serotype O36 containing pseudaminic acid
2016
The structure of the repeating unit of O-antigen of Plesiomonas shigelloides serotype O36 has been investigated by 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy, matrix-assisted laser-desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and chemical methods. The new structure of trisaccharide has been established: →4)-β-Pse5Ac7(R3Hb)-(2 → 4)-β-D-Galp-(1 → 3)-β-D-GlcpNAc-(1→ These trisaccharide O-antigen units substitute the core undecasaccharide at C-4 of the β-D-GlcpNAc residue. The core oligosaccharide and lipid A are identical with these of the serotype O17 (PCM 2231) (Maciejewska, A., Lukasiewicz, J., Kaszowska, M., Jachymek, W., Man-Kupisinska, A.; Lugowski, C. Mar. Drugs.2013, 11 (2), 440–454; Lukasi…
Pneumococcal Colonization in the Familial Context and Implications for Anti-Pneumococcal Immunization in Adults: Results from the BINOCOLO Project in…
2017
The spread of Streptococcus pneumoniae within families has been scarcely investigated so far. This feasibility study aimed to estimate the prevalence of pneumococcal carriage in school-aged children and co-habiting relatives and to explore the potential link between the family environment and the sharing of pneumococcal serotypes covered by the vaccine. Oropharyngeal samples of 146 subjects belonging to 36 different family groups were molecularly tested for pneumococcal detection and serotyping. The overall prevalence of pneumococcal carriage was 65.8% (n = 96/146), whereas it was higher among schoolchildren (77.8%, n = 28/36); subjects of seven years of age had the highest odds of being co…
Potential Uses of Olive Oil Secoiridoids for the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer: A Narrative Review of Preclinical Studies
2021
The Mediterranean diet (MD) is a combination of foods mainly rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients that have been shown to have many health-enhancing effects. Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) is an important component of the MD. The importance of EVOO can be attributed to phenolic compounds, represented by phenolic alcohols, hydroxytyrosol, and tyrosol, and to secoiridoids, which include oleocanthal, oleacein, oleuropein, and ligstroside (along with the aglycone and glycosidic derivatives of the latter two). Each secoiridoid has been studied and characterized, and their effects on human health have been documented by several studies. Secoiridoids have antioxidant, anti-inflammat…
Microorganism adhesion using silicon dioxide: An experimental study
2020
In this study, spectrophotometry was used to measure changes in the absorbance properties of yeast, Gram-positive, and Gram-negative bacteria after their attachment to silicon dioxide microparticles (silica). The goal of this study was to determine whether spectrophotometry is an effective method to distinguish these microorganisms from one another and determine whether they have an affinity for silicon dioxide. The experiments were performed by examining the light absorption properties of yeast, Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria in a spectrophotometer, both with and without silicon dioxide microparticles. The experiments produced a number of promising results. First, the spectrophot…
Pressure effects on α-synuclein amyloid fibrils: An experimental investigation on their dissociation and reversible nature
2017
αâsynuclein amyloid fibrils are found in surviving neurons of Parkinson's disease affected patients, but the role they play in the disease development is still under debate. A growing number of evidences points to soluble oligomers as the major cytotoxic species, while insoluble fibrillar aggregates could even play a protection role. In this work, we investigate αâsynuclein fibrils dissociation induced at high pressure by means of Small Angle X-ray Scattering and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. Fibrils were produced from wild type αâsynuclein and two familial mutants, A30P and A53T. Our results enlighten the different reversible nature of αâsynuclein fibrils fragmentati…