782 research outputs found
Role of Dendritic Cells in Inflammation
No full textFrom the first manuscript describing “A Novel Cell Type in Peripheral Lymphoid Organs of Mice” [...
Immune Cells and Microbiota Response to Iron Starvation
No full textMetal ions are essential for life on Earth, mostly as crucial components of all living organisms; indeed, they are necessary for bioenergetics functions as crucial redox catalysts. Due to the essential role of iron in biological processes, body iron content is finely regulated and is the battlefield of a tug-of-war between the host and the microbiota
Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19-SARS-CoV-2) and Nutrition: Is Infection in Italy Suggesting a Connection?
No full textNovel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was declared a global pandemic on March 11, 2020. The outbreak first occurred in Wuhan, Hubei, China, in December 2019 and hit Italy heavily in February 2020. Several countries are adopting complete or partial lockdown to contain the growth of COVID-19 infection. These measures may affect people's mental health and well-being but are necessary to avoid spreading the pandemic. There has been a gradual increase in studies exploring prevention and control measures, and we recommend paying close attention to nutrition, which may contribute to modulating some important consequences of COVID-19 infection, as such pro-inflammatory cytokine storm
Winnie Mice: A Chronic and Progressive Model of Ulcerative Colitis
No full textRecent trends show a continuous worldwide rise in the incidence of ulcerative colitis (UC), leading to increased interest in its etiology and pathogenesis, which is currently unknown. To gain a better mechanistic understanding of this disease, many mouse models have been developed over the last several years, with variations of dextran sodium sulfate administration representing the most widely employed. The Winnie mouse strain was created through elicited random mutations in Muc2, resulting in a progressive, chronic intestinal inflammation localized to the colon that worsens over time. Moreover, Winnie mice display immunologic and microbiota features that are similar to those that can be found in UC patients. Phenotypically, the presence, albeit rare, of rectal prolapse and other complications impacting quality of life can be observed in Winnie mice, as well as extraintestinal manifestations that are often associated with UC. While Winnie mice are currently less studied compared to other more established models of colitis, much has been discovered in the initial years of its use as a UC-like model. In summary, the use of Winnie mice adds to the growing armamentarium that is required to develop precision-based medicine for its future application in treating complex multifactorial diseases, such as UC
Plant Polyphenols-Biofortified Foods as a Novel Tool for the Prevention of Human Gut Diseases
No full textPlant food biofortification is recently receiving remarkable attention, as it aims to increase the intake of minerals, vitamins, or antioxidants, crucial for their contribution to the general human health status and disease prevention. In this context, the study of the plant’s secondary metabolites, such as polyphenols, plays a pivotal role for the development of a new generation of plant crops, compensating, at least in part, the low nutritional quality of Western diets with a higher quality of dietary sources. Due to the prevalent immunomodulatory activity at the intestinal level, polyphenols represent a nutritionally relevant class of plant secondary metabolites. In this review, we focus on the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of different classes of polyphenols with a specific attention to their potential in the prevention of intestinal pathological processes. We also discuss the latest biotechnology strategies and new advances of genomic techniques as a helpful tool for polyphenols biofortification and the development of novel, healthy dietary alternatives that can contribute to the prevention of inflammatory bowel diseases
Intravital 2-Photon Microscopy of Dendritic Cell Extension Sampling Pathogen Bacteria Into the Small Bowel Lumen
No full textNeglected and Underutilized Plant Species (NUS) from the Apulia Region Worthy of Being Rescued and Re-Included in Daily Diet
No full textNeglected and underutilized species (NUS) are cultivated, semi-domesticated, or wild plant species, not included in the group of the major staple crops, since, in most cases, they do not meet the global market requirements. As they often represent resilient species and valuable sources of vitamins, micronutrients, and other phytochemicals, a wider use of NUS would enhance sustainability of agro-systems and a choice of nutritious foods with a strategic role for addressing the nutritional security challenge across Europe. In this review, we focused on some examples of NUS from the Apulia Region (Southern Italy), either cultivated or spontaneously growing species, showing interesting adaptative, nutritional, and economical potential that can be exploited and properly enhanced in future programs
Gut-level decisions in peace and war
No full textThe gut contains most of the immune cells in the body, yet fights off bacteria only if they are pathogenic, leaving commensal microbes largely unscathed. Two studies examine the basis for this effect
Messages from the inside. The dynamic environment that favors intestinal homeostasis
No full textAn organism is defined as an individual living thing capable of responding to stimuli, growing, reproducing, and maintaining homeostasis. Early during evolution multicellular organisms explored the advantages of a symbiotic life. Mammals harbor a complex aggregate of microorganisms (called microbiota) that includes bacteria, fungi and archaea. Some of these bacteria have already defined beneficial roles for the human host that include the ability to break-down nutrients that could not otherwise be digested, preventing the growth of harmful species, as well as the ability to produce vitamins or hormones. It is intuitive that along the evolutionary path several mechanisms favored bacteria that provided advantages to the host which, in return, avoided launching an aggressive immunological response against them. The intestinal immunological response does not ignore the lumenal content, on the contrary, immune surveillance is favored by continuous antigen sampling. Some intestinal epithelial cells are crucial during the sampling process, others actively participate in the defense mechanism. In essence the epithelium acts as a traffic light, communicating to the inside world whether conditions are safe or dangerous, and thus influencing immunological response. In this review we will discuss the dynamic factors that act on the intestinal epithelial cells and how they directly or indirectly influence immune cells during states of health and disease
La Vestale 'incesta'
No full textMarcello Salvadore: La Vestale incesta.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Pliny the Younger and Plutarch are the sources
of a detailed account of Vestalis incesta’s punishment: they say that she was
sentenced to death. Dionysius adds that there was no after death ritual.
Modern scholars generally accept what the three authors assert. In this article
the author surmises that the Vestalis incesta, together with the parricida, was
not condemned to death: both of them were sentenced to a particular kind
of banishment from the Society
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