196,800 research outputs found
Figure 5 in Patterns of spatial variability of mobile macro-invertebrate assemblages within a Posidonia oceanica meadow
No full textFigure 5. Percentage pseudo-variance components of mobile macro-invertebrate assemblages of Posidonia oceanica meadow at (a) shallow, (b) intermediate and (c) deep stands.Published as part of Bedini, R., Bedini, M., Bonechi, L. & Piazzi, L., 2015, Patterns of spatial variability of mobile macro-invertebrate assemblages within a Posidonia oceanica meadow, pp. 2559-2581 in Journal of Natural History 49 (41) on page 2574, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2015.1021872, http://zenodo.org/record/400081
PKC modulation of mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) transcription is influenced by the transcription factor REST
No full textAndrea Bedini, Monica Baiula and Santi Spampinato. Department of Pharmacology, University of
Bologna, Irnerio 48 – 40126, Italy. RE1 Silencing Transcription Factor (REST) represses transcription
of neuronal genes in non-neuronal mature cells and in neuronal stem cells, where it is expressed at
high levels. REST plays a pivotal role in regulating neural cell fate determination by restricting
neuronal gene expression to post-mitotic neurons1
. Protein kinase C (PKC) induces different signaling
pathways, some of which are related to opioid receptors: PKC activation, in fact, down-regulates
endogenous human mu-opioid receptor (MOPr) mRNA in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells2
whereas
enhances mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) transcription in the same cells when OPRM1 promoter
fragment from nucleotide -2624 to nucleotide -165 is considered3
. These observations arise the
hypothesis that there might be transcription factors binding the OPRM1 promoter region closest to
ATG and down-regulating OPRM1 transcription: as REST has been shown to bind human OPRM1
promoter at nucleotides from -9 to +12 and we have previously observed that phorbol 12-myristate 13-
acetate (PMA) induces REST, we wondered whether REST is involved in PKC-mediated MOPr downregulation. Therefore, three reporter plasmids bearing OPRM1 promoter fragments -1672/+64, -1672/-
10 and -1672/-254, respectively, have been cloned and transfected in SH-SY5Y cells, which express
REST, and in PC-12, which lack of REST expression4
. In SH-SY5Y cells, PMA-induced PKC
determined transcriptional activation of the OPRM1 promoter fragments lacking the RE1 site for REST
(-1672/-10 and -1672/-254) and transcriptional repression of the OPRM1 promoter fragment bearing
the REST target sequence (-1672/+64). In PC-12 cells PMA-induced PKC determined the
transcriptional activation of all the OPRM1 promoter fragments. Then endogenous MOPr transcripts
were evaluated by real-time PCR: in SH-SY5Y cells, PMA down-regulated MOPr mRNA levels
whereas REST knockdown by specific antisense oligonucleotide prevented OPRM1 transcription
down-regulation by PMA. Similarly, retinoic acid differentiation of SH-SY5Y cells down-regulated
REST expression, thus preventing PMA-induced MOPr down-regulation. Taken together our results
show for the first time that PMA down-regulation of OPRM1 transcription in neurons involves REST,
which can be the critical switch that determines different PMA-mediated effects according to its
expression levels. Ref.: (1) Di Toro et al., European journal of neuroscience, 2005, 21, 46-58 ; (2) Gies
et al., Anestesiology, 1997, 87, 1127-38; (3) Börner et al., Molecular Pharmacology, 2002, 61, 800-5 ;
(4) Bedini et al., Journal of Neurochemistry, 200
Bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) to detect the interactions between kappa opioid receptor and non visual arrestins.
No full textBioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) is a very sensitive technique employed to study protein-protein interactions, including G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) hetero- and homo-dimerization. Recently, BRET has also been used to investigate the interaction between GPCRs (e.g., beta2 adrenergic receptor, muscarinic M2 receptor, dopaminergic D2 receptor) and non-visual arrestins. Here a BRET protocol is described to investigate interactions between the kappa opioid receptor (KOR) and non visual arrestins (arrestin-2 and arrestin-3) in HEK-293 cells, both under basal conditions and after exposure to KOR ligands
Isolation and identification of entomopathogenic fungus from Eastern Ghats of South Indian forest soil and their efficacy as biopesticide for mosquito control
No full textThe repeated usage of chemical insecticides, responsible for insecticide resistance in mosquitoes and environ- mental toxicity. Currently e#ective and environmental-safe control strategies are needed for the control disease- vector mosquitoes. Entomopathogens can be an e#ective alternative to chemical insecticide. Herein we isolated and tested 46 soil-borne entomopathogenic fungi belonging to six genera, namely Beauveria sp., Metarhizium sp., Fusarium sp., Aspergillus sp., Trichoderma sp., and Verticillium sp., fungi conidia were tested on Aedes aegypti, Anopheles stephensi and Culex quinquefasciatus larvae. Bioassays results show that M. anisopliae fungal isolate causes a 100%, 98.6% and 92% mortality within six days, on Aedes aegypti, Anopheles stephensi and Culex quinquefasciatus, respectively. M. anisopliae treated three mosquito larvae have lower lifetime with LT50 values in A. stephensi, 2.931 days; A. aegypti, 2.676 days and C. quinquefasciatus, 3.254 days. 18 s rDNA sequence analysis con!rmed that the isolated fungus are belonging to the genus of M. anisopliae-VKKH3, B. bassiana-VKBb03, and V. lecanii-VKPH1. Our results clearly show that M. anisopliae has good potential, as a low-cost, environmentally safe tool for the control of A. aegypti, A. stephensi, and C. quinquefasciatus mosquitoes
Supplementary material 3 from: Astuti G, Roma-Marzio F, D'Antraccoli M, Bedini G, Carta A, Sebastiani F, Bruschi P, Peruzzi L (2017) Conservation biology of the last Italian population of Cistus laurifolius (Cistaceae): demographic structure, reproductive success and population genetics. Nature Conservation 22: 169-190. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.22.19809
No full textSupplementary material 3 from: Astuti G, Roma-Marzio F, D'Antraccoli M, Bedini G, Carta A, Sebastiani F, Bruschi P, Peruzzi L (2017) Conservation biology of the last Italian population of Cistus laurifolius (Cistaceae): demographic structure, reproductive success and population genetics. Nature Conservation 22: 169-190. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.22.1980
Supplementary material 2 from: Astuti G, Roma-Marzio F, D'Antraccoli M, Bedini G, Carta A, Sebastiani F, Bruschi P, Peruzzi L (2017) Conservation biology of the last Italian population of Cistus laurifolius (Cistaceae): demographic structure, reproductive success and population genetics. Nature Conservation 22: 169-190. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.22.19809
No full textSupplementary material 2 from: Astuti G, Roma-Marzio F, D'Antraccoli M, Bedini G, Carta A, Sebastiani F, Bruschi P, Peruzzi L (2017) Conservation biology of the last Italian population of Cistus laurifolius (Cistaceae): demographic structure, reproductive success and population genetics. Nature Conservation 22: 169-190. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.22.1980
Supplementary material 1 from: Astuti G, Roma-Marzio F, D'Antraccoli M, Bedini G, Carta A, Sebastiani F, Bruschi P, Peruzzi L (2017) Conservation biology of the last Italian population of Cistus laurifolius (Cistaceae): demographic structure, reproductive success and population genetics. Nature Conservation 22: 169-190. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.22.19809
No full textSupplementary material 1 from: Astuti G, Roma-Marzio F, D'Antraccoli M, Bedini G, Carta A, Sebastiani F, Bruschi P, Peruzzi L (2017) Conservation biology of the last Italian population of Cistus laurifolius (Cistaceae): demographic structure, reproductive success and population genetics. Nature Conservation 22: 169-190. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.22.1980
Contribution of alpha(4)beta(1) integrin to the antiallergic effect of levocabastine.
No full textBiochem Pharmacol. 2008 Sep 15;76(6):751-62. Epub 2008 Jul 15.
Contribution of alpha4beta1 integrin to the antiallergic effect of levocabastine.
Qasem AR, Bucolo C, Baiula M, Spartà A, Govoni P, Bedini A, Fascì D, Spampinato S.
Source
Department of Medicine, Health Science Campus, University of Toledo, OH, USA.
Abstract
Levocabastine is an antiallergic drug acting as a histamine H1-receptor antagonist. In allergic conjunctivitis (AC), it may also antagonize up-regulation of the intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) expressed on epithelial conjunctival cells. However, little is known about its effects on eosinophils, important effector cells in AC. The adhesion molecule integrin alpha(4)beta(1) is expressed in eosinophils; it interacts with the vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and fibronectin (FN) in vascular endothelial cells and contributes to eosinophil activation and infiltration in AC. This study provides evidence that in a scintillation proximity assay levocabastine (IC(50) 406 microM), but not the first-generation antihistamine chlorpheniramine, displaced (125)I-FN binding to human integrin alpha(4)beta(1) and, in flow cytometry analysis, levocabastine antagonized the binding of a primary antibody to integrin alpha(4) expressed on the Jurkat cell surface. Levocabastine, but not chlorpheniramine, binds the alpha(4)beta(1) integrin and prevents eosinophil adhesion to VCAM-1, FN or human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVEC) in vitro. Similarly, levocabastine affects alpha(L)beta(2)/ICAM-1-mediated adhesion of Jurkat cells. In a model of AC levocabastine eye drops reduced the clinical aspects of the late-phase reaction and the conjunctival expression of alpha(4)beta(1) integrin by reducing infiltrated eosinophils. We propose that blockade of integrin-mediated cell adhesion might be a target of the antiallergic action of levocabastine and may play a role in preventing eosinophil adhesion and infiltration in AC
Effects of non-native turf-forming Rhodophyta on mobile macro-invertebrate assemblages in the north-western Mediterranean Sea
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