Search results for "Umana"
showing 10 items of 657 documents
Topical application of the Wnt/β-catenin activator methyl vanillate increases hair count and hair mass index in women with androgenetic alopecia
2016
Activation of the WNT/β-catenin pathway has emerged as a potential therapeutic target in androgenetic alopecia (AGA). Methyl vanillate (MV) - a safe plant-derived ingredient - has been recently shown to activate the WNT/β-catenin signaling. Objectives Two distinct substudies were conducted. First, we designed a 6-month, uncontrolled, open-label clinical study to investigate whether topically applied MV may increase hair count and hair mass index (HMI) in female AGA. Second, we conducted a molecular study on the effect of MV on WNT10B mRNA expression in scalp biopsies of women with AGA. A total of 20 Caucasian women (age range: 25-57 years) with AGA (Sinclair grade 1-2) were included. The re…
FOCAL ACTIVE COLITIS AS A PREDICTOR OF INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE: RESULTS FROM A SINGLE-CENTER EXPERIENCE.
2017
The term focal active colitis (FAC) is conventionally used to describe the presence of isolated cryptitis, characterized by an inflammatory infiltrate consisting of intraepithelial neutrophils and/or neutrophils invading the lumen of the criptae, with no other microscopic alteration of the colonic mucosa and, in particular, without the presence of signs of chronic inflammation. To date, only four studies, including one conducted in a pediatric population, have been performed to evaluate the clinical significance of this disease. The aim of this retrospective study on prospectively-collected data is to evaluate the clinical implications of the focal active colitis, since there still remains …
CD40 activation in human pancreatic islets and ductal cells.
2008
Aims/hypothesis: CD40 expression on non-haematopoietic cells is linked to inflammation. We previously reported that CD40 is expressed on isolated human and non-human primate islets and its activation results in secretion of IL-8, macrophage inflammatory protein 1-beta (MIP-1β) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) through nuclear factor-κB and extracellularly regulated kinases 1/2 pathways. The objective of this study was to identify the pattern of gene expression, and to study viability and functionality affected by CD40-CD40 ligand (CD40L) interaction in human islets. Furthermore, we have studied the CD40-mediated cytokine/chemokine profile in pancreatic ductal cells, as they are…
Extracellular Vesicles from Healthy Cells Improves Cell Function and Stemness in Premature Senescent Stem Cells by miR-302b and HIF-1α Activation.
2020
Aging is accompanied by the accumulation of senescent cells that alter intercellular communication, thereby impairing tissue homeostasis and reducing organ regenerative potential. Recently, the administration of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC)-derived extracellular vesicles has proven to be more effective and less challenging than current stem cell-based therapies. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) contain a cell-specific cargo of proteins, lipids and nucleic acids that are released and taken up by probably all cell types, thereby inducing functional changes via the horizontal transfer of their cargo. Here, we describe the beneficial properties of extracellular vesicles derived from non-senescent M…
Medial tunica degeneration of the ascending aortic wall is associated with specific microRNA changes in bicuspid aortic valve disease
2021
Ascending aortic diameter is not an accurate parameter for surgical indication in patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV). Thus, the present study aimed to identify specific microRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) and their expression levels in aortic wall aneurysm associated with BAV according to severity of medial degeneration and to elucidate the association between the tissue expression levels of the miRNAs with their expression in plasma. Aortic wall and blood specimens were obtained from 38 patients: 12 controls and 26 patients with BAV with ascending aortic aneurysm. Of the patients with BAV, 19 had cusp fusions of right and left, 5 of right and non-coronary, and 2 of left and non-coronary. Two gr…
The role of intrinsic pathway in apoptosis activation and progression in Peyronie's Disease.
2014
Peyronie’s disease (PD) is characterized with formation of fibrous plaques which result in penile deformity, pain, and erectile dysfunction. The aim of this study was to investigate the activation of the intrinsic apoptotic pathway in plaques from PD patients. Tunica albuginea from either PD or control patients was assessed for the expression of bax, bcl-2 and caspases 9 and 3 using immunohistochemistry and by measurement of apoptotic cells using TUNEL assay. Bax overexpression was observed in metaplastic bone tissue, in fibroblasts, and in myofibroblast of plaques from PD patients. Little or no bcl-2 immunostaining was detected in samples from either patients or controls. Caspase 3 immunos…
Morphological Alterations and Stress Protein Variations in Lung Biopsies Obtained from Autopsies of COVID-19 Subjects
2021
Molecular chaperones, many of which are heat shock proteins, play a role in cell stress response and regulate the immune system in various ways, such as in inflammatory/autoimmune reactions. It would be interesting to study the involvement of these molecules in the damage done to COVID-19-infected lungs. In our study, we performed a histological analysis and an immunomorphological evaluation on lung samples from subjects who succumbed to COVID-19 and subjects who died from other causes. We also assessed Hsp60 and Hsp90 distribution in lung samples to determine their location and post-translational modifications. We found histological alterations that could be considered pathognomonic for CO…
Acute change of titin at mid-sarcomere remains despite 8 wk of plyometric training
2014
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate skeletal muscle changes induced by an acute bout of plyometric exercise (PlyEx) both before and after PlyEx training, to understand if titin is affected differently after PlyEx training. Methods: Healthy untrained individuals (N=11) completed the 1stPlyEx (10x10 squat-jumps, 1min rest). Thereafter, 6 subjects completed 8 weeks of PlyEx, while 5 controls abstained from any jumping activity. Seven days after the last training session all subjects completed the 2ndPlyEx. Blood samples were collected before, 6 hours and 1, 2, 3 and 4 days after each acute bout of PlyEx, and muscle biopsies 4 days before and 3 days after each acute bout of Pl…
Effect of Conjugated Linoleic Acid on Testosterone Levels In Vitro and In Vivo After an Acute Bout of Resistance Exercise
2012
The purposes of the present study were to investigate the effect of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) supplementation on testosterone levels in vitro on a cell line derived from Leydig cells (R2C) and in vivo in the blood of physically active subjects before and after a resistance exercise bout. In vitro R2C cells were treated with different CLA concentrations (0-30 μM) for 24 and 48 hours. After treatment, supernatant media were tested to determine testosterone secretion. The CLA increased the testosterone secretion only after 48 hours. In vivo, 10 resistance-trained male subjects, in a double-blind placebo-controlled and crossover study design were randomized for 3 weeks of either 6 g·d⁻¹ CL…
Microcirculation in the healing of surgical wounds in the oral cavity.
2013
Abstract. The aim of this research is to evaluate in vivo the characteristics of microcirculation after taking a biopsy sample from the oral mucosa. 20 patients were recruited to the study and all underwent an oral mucosa biopsy for the excision of benign neoformations. The modifications in the oral microcirculation were evaluated in vivo in correspondence to the surgical site through videocapillaroscopy at three different times: 30 min before the biopsy; 48 h after the biopsy; and 7 days after the biopsy. The statistical significance was checked with the Mann–Whitney U-test (P < 0.05). The analysis of videocapillaroscopic patterns showed statistically significant variations relative to the…