216 research outputs found
From willow bark to peptides: the ever widening spectrum of NF-κB inhibitors
No full textInflammation disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, asthma and inflammatory bowel disease can be considered as 'gene expression' diseases in which the pro-inflammatory gene program of the organism is aberrantly activated. Over the past 20 years, great attention has been given to the transcription factor nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) for its involvement in inflammatory and immune diseases. Recently, several studies have been devoted to the development of new molecules that can prevent the expression of inflammatory genes by targeting NF-κB pathways. Therefore, it is possible to hypothesize that these molecules might represent the future class of drugs for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Dealing with barriers in EU discourse of Mental Health Care
No full textThis chapter focuses on the ways in which EU institutional discourses of mental health care are recontextualized for the purpose of disseminating specialized knowledge. It specifically investigates whether language barriers occur in specialized discourse, assuming that comprehensibility and simplification are key factors for effective communication with the lay audience. The investigation is carried out on the grounds of a quantitative-qualitative analysis of different text types collected from the Health EU Portal, and adopting a concordance-based discourse analytical approach. Findings reveal how texts are mostly targeted to professional audiences, marginalizing citizens and patients through the use of inaccessible language which hinders effec-tive communication with the general public.
The investigation reveals a noticeable difference among the texts in the EU corpus. In general, specialized discourse was found to be featured by legal language, notably known for its obscurity and ambiguity, thus resulting unintelligible to non-experts as no discursive strategies of support were identified. Processes of recontextualisation were implemented when other professionals (e.g. doctors, managers and hospital staff) were the direct recipients. In these cases, discourse was recontextualised to facilitate professional understanding by moving from specialised legal language to technical registers appropriately. The analysis of the online information booklet programme 2008-2013 shows a move towards the marketisation of the institutional discourse of mental health care. It is centred on self-promotional discourse as a counterpart of specialised discourse. Thus, its goal is to disseminate self-promoting content, rather than effectively cater for common people or patients, despite the occasional use of a less formal and simplified register
Anti-inflammatory and antiosteo-clastogenesis properties of endogenous melanocortin receptor type 3 in experimental arthritis
No full textThe development of biological therapies has improved management of rheumatoid arthritis. However, costs and unresponsiveness to therapy in a sizeable proportion of patients limit their use, making it imperative to identify new targets for drug development programs. Here we investigated the melanocortin-receptor type 3 (MC3) pathway. Gene-deficient mice were subjected to a model of serum-transfer-induced arthritis and joints analyzed for gene expression (cytokines, MCs) and morphology. Pharmacological analyses were also conducted in this model. Osteoclastogenesis was studied from bone marrow cells. Mc3−/− mice displayed an exacerbated inflammatory arthritis, associated with prominent bone erosion and higher articular expression of Rankl. Osteoclastogenesis studied from Mc3−/− bone marrow cells revealed a higher degree of responsiveness to Rankl, linked to prolonged NF-κB activation compared to wild types. Up-regulation of a discrete set of inflammatory genes, including Il-1β, Il-6, and Nos2, was measured in Mc3−/− mice, and a marked up-regulation of joint Mc3 accompanied arthritis resolution in wild-type mice. Administration of an MC3 agonist, D[Trp8]-γ-MSH, attenuated disease incidence and severity in wild-type but not Mc3−/− mice. Overall, these findings identify MC3-mediated signaling as a beneficial pathway in experimental arthritis; hence this receptor is a novel target for the development of therapeutics for arthritis.—Patel, H. B., Bombardieri, M., Sampaio, A. L. F., D'Acquisto, F., Gray, M., Grieco, P., Getting, S. J., Pitzalis, C., Perretti, M. Anti-inflammatory and antiosteoclastogenesis properties of endogenous melanocortin receptor type 3 in experimental arthritis
La casa sostenibile. Conoscenze, opinioni e intenzioni d'acquisto nella popolazione forlivese
No full textIl capitolo descrive i risultati di una ricerca effettuata fra la popolazione forlivese per indagare gli atteggiamenti verso la casa, gli atteggiamenti e i comportamenti pro-ambientali e conoscenze, opinioni e intenzioni d'acquisto della casa sostenibil
Cyclolinteinone, a sesterterpene from sponge Cacospongia linteiformis, prevents inducible nitric oxide synthase and inducible cyclo-oxygenase protein expression by blocking nuclear factor-kappaB activation in J774 macrophages.
No full textProstaglandins prevent nitric oxide synthase expression by inhibiting nuclear factor-kB activation in J774 macrophages
No full textCyclolinteinone, a sesterterpene from sponge Cacospongia linteiformis, prevents inducible nitric oxide synthase and inducible cyclo-oxygenase protein expression by blocking nuclear factor-kappaB activation in J774 macrophages.
No full textSteam sterilization processes affect the stability of clinical thermometers: Thermistor and prototypal FBG probe comparison
No full textTemperature is one of the most frequently measured physical quantities in clinical environment and a good biomarker of illness. The need for reusable probes, which have to be sterilized to prevent infections, requires the metrological qualification of thermometer probes in response to ageing effects induced by several sterilization processes. In this study, we investigated the effect of repeated sterilizations on both a commonly-used autoclavable thermistor probe and a prototypal Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBG) probe for temperature measurements. Findings highlighted a greater reliability of the proposed FBG probe than the commercial thermistor. Specifically, the FBG probe was able to withstand repeated sterilization cycles while maintaining stability in the measurement accuracy. Moreover, the proposed configuration for the FBG probe was immune to unwanted mechanical strain by providing a dynamic response fit for the measurement of temperature
Nitric oxide prevents inducible cyclooxygenase expression by inhibiting nuclear factor-kB and nuclear factor-interleukin-6 activation
No full textNitric oxide prevents inducible cyclooxygenase expression by inhibiting nuclear factor-kB and nuclear factor-interleukin-6 activation
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