Search results for "generation"

Amorphous polyphosphate, a smart bioinspired nano-/bio-material for bone and cartilage regeneration: towards a new paradigm in tissue engineering

2020

Recent developments in the field of biomaterials for tissue engineering open up new opportunities for regenerative therapy and prevention of progression of osteo-articular damage/impairment. A key advancement was the discovery of the regenerative activity of a group of physiologically occurring high-energy polymers, inorganic polyphosphates (polyP). These bio-polymers, in suitable bioinspired formulations, turned out to be capable of inducing proliferation and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells into osteogenic or chondrogenic lineages through differential gene expression (morphogenetic activity). Unprecedented is the property of these biopolymers to deliver high-energy phosphate in t…

The endophytic microbiota of Citrus limon is transmitted from seed to shoot highlighting differences of bacterial and fungal community structures

2021

AbstractCitrus limon (L.) Burm. F. is an important evergreen fruit crop whose rhizosphere and phyllosphere microbiota  have been characterized, while seed microbiota is still unknown. Bacterial and fungal endophytes were isolated from C. limon surface-sterilized seeds. The isolated fungi—belonging to Aspergillus, Quambalaria and Bjerkandera genera—and bacteria—belonging to Staphylococcus genus—were characterized for indoleacetic acid production and phosphate solubilization. Next Generation Sequencing based approaches were then used to characterize the endophytic bacterial and fungal microbiota structures of surface-sterilized C. limon seeds and of shoots obtained under aseptic conditions fr…

Toll-like receptors in neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, and alcohol-induced brain damage

2021

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) or pattern recognition receptors respond to pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) or internal damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs). TLRs are integral membrane proteins with both extracellular leucine-rich and cytoplasmic domains that initiate downstream signaling through kinases by activating transcription factors like AP-1 and NF-κB, which lead to the release of various inflammatory cytokines and immune modulators. In the central nervous system, different TLRs are expressed mainly in microglia and astroglial cells, although some TLRs are also expressed in oligodendroglia and neurons. Activation of TLRs triggers signaling cascades by the host as a…

Harnessing mechanosensation in next generation cardiovascular tissue engineering

2020

The ability of the cells to sense mechanical cues is an integral component of ”social” cell behavior inside tissues with a complex architecture. Through ”mechanosensation” cells are in fact able to decrypt motion, geometries and physical information of surrounding cells and extracellular matrices by activating intracellular pathways converging onto gene expression circuitries controlling cell and tissue homeostasis. Additionally, only recently cell mechanosensation has been integrated systematically as a crucial element in tissue pathophysiology. In the present review, we highlight some of the current efforts to assess the relevance of mechanical sensing into pathology modeling and manufact…

Vascular pathology: Cause or effect in Alzheimer disease?

2018

Introduction: Alzheimer disease (AD) is the main cortical neurodegenerative disease. The incidence of this disease increases with age, causing significant medical, social and economic problems, especially in countries with ageing populations. Objective: This review aims to highlight existing evidence of how vascular dysfunction may contribute to cognitive impairment in AD, as well as the therapeutic possibilities that might arise from this evidence. Development: The vascular hypothesis emerged as an alternative to the amyloid cascade hypothesis as an explanation for the pathophysiology of AD. This hypothesis locates blood vessels as the origin for a variety of pathogenic pathways that lead …

Directional high-throughput sequencing of RNAs without gene-specific primers.

2018

Ribosomal RNA analysis is a useful tool for characterization of microbial communities. However, the lack of broad-range primers has hampered the simultaneous analysis of eukaryotic and prokaryotic members by amplicon sequencing. We present a complete workflow for directional, primer-independent sequencing of size-selected small subunit ribosomal RNA fragments. The library preparation protocol includes gel extraction of the target RNA, ligation of an RNA oligo to the 5′-end of the target, and cDNA synthesis with a tailed random-hexamer primer and further barcoding. The sequencing results of a phytoplankton mock community showed a highly similar profile to the biomass indicators. This method…

Cofilin and Neurodegeneration: New Functions for an Old but Gold Protein

2021

Cofilin is an actin-binding protein that plays a major role in the regulation of actin dynamics, an essential cellular process. This protein has emerged as a crucial molecule for functions of the nervous system including motility and guidance of the neuronal growth cone, dendritic spine organization, axonal branching, and synaptic signalling. Recently, other important functions in cell biology such as apoptosis or the control of mitochondrial function have been attributed to cofilin. Moreover, novel mechanisms of cofilin function regulation have also been described. The activity of cofilin is controlled by complex regulatory mechanisms, with phosphorylation being the most important, since t…

A framework for data-driven adaptive GUI generation based on DICOM

2018

Computer applications for diagnostic medical imaging provide generally a wide range of tools to support physicians in their daily diagnosis activities. Unfortunately, some functionalities are specialized for specific diseases or imaging modalities, while other ones are useless for the images under investigation. Nevertheless, the corresponding Graphical User Interface (GUI) widgets are still present on the screen reducing the image visualization area. As a consequence, the physician may be affected by cognitive overload and visual stress causing a degradation of performances, mainly due to unuseful widgets. In clinical environments, a GUI must represent a sequence of steps for image investi…

2020

Skeletal muscle injuries in competitive sports cause lengthy absences of athletes from tournaments. This is of tremendous competitive and economic relevance for both the athletes and their respective clubs. Therapy for structural muscle lesions aims to promote regeneration and fast-track return-to-play. A common clinical treatment strategy for muscle injuries is the intramuscular injection of calf blood compound and the homeopathic drug, Tr14. Although the combination of these two agents was reported to reduce recovery time, the regulatory mechanism whereby this occurs remains unknown. In this in vivo study, we selected a rat model of mechanical muscle injury to investigate the effect of th…

Hsp40 Is Involved in Cilia Regeneration in Sea Urchin Embryos

2003

In a previous paper we demonstrated that, in Paracentrotus lividus embryos, deciliation represents a specific kind of stress that induces an increase in the levels of an acidic protein of about 40 kD (p40). Here we report that deciliation also induces an increase in Hsp40 chaperone levels and enhancement of its ectodermal localization. We suggest that Hsp40 might play a chaperoning role in cilia regeneration.