117,681 research outputs found
The distribution of Hemiragis aurea (Brid.) Ren. & Card. (Hookeriaceae, Musci) and related notes of interest
No full textThe horizontal and vertical range of Hemiragis aurea (Musci) is subdivided into four regions: I - N. Panama, Costa Rica, S. Nicaragua; II - circum-Caribbean; III - Guyana Highlands; IV - Andean. Ecological evidence is discussed in the context of the effects of volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, climactic changes and other factors
Mosses new to Hong Kong (1)
No full textTen moss species - Garkea flexuosa (Griffith) Marg. & Nork., Campylopus laxitextus Lac., Fissidens dubius P. Beauv., Fissidens ceylonensis Dozy & Molk, Fissidens maceratus Mitt., Philonotis thwaitesii Mitt., Isopterygium minutirameum (C. Muell.)Jaeg., Homalia trichomanoides (Hedw.) B.S.G., Pogonatum neesii (C. Muell.) Dozyand Polytrichum formosum Hedw. are reported new to Hong Kong. Among them, five are new to Guangdong Province of China
Felipponea (Leucodontaceae, Musci) : a new genus for Africa ; to include ‘Leucodon maritimus’ and L. assimilis
No full textFelipponea assimilis (Müll.Hal.) O’Shea is the correct name to be used for all African collections of Felipponea, a species found in Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia, southern and eastern Africa and the East African islands. Hypnum maritimum Müll.Hal. and Cladomnion montevidensis Müll.Hal. are new synonyms. Lectotypes are selected for Neckera assimilis Müll.Hal., Cladomnion montevidensis Müll.Hal. and Braunia peristomata Dixon in Sim & Dixon
Lactoferrin against inflammatory and iron disorders in different infection models
No full textLactoferrin (Lf) is a cationic glycoprotein able to chelate two ferric ions per molecule. Human Lf (hLf), a key element of host defenses, is secreted by exocrine glands and by neutrophils. HLf and bovine Lf (bLf), possessing high sequence homology, exert identical functions, such as antimicrobial and antiviral activities. In the last decades, other important Lf activities have been discovered, including the anti-inflammatory one. This Lfs function is strictly dependent by the binding with specific host cell receptors, leading to Lf cell internalization and translocation into the nucleus, thus directly down-regulating pro-inflammatory genes’ expression. In this regard, our group has recently demonstrated the bLf ability in counteracting the tight interplay between inflammatory and iron homeostasis disorders in inflamed macrophages, by down-regulating interleukin (IL)-6 synthesis and rebalancing the expression of main iron-handling proteins, namely ferroportin (Fpn), transferrin receptor 1 (TfR1) and ferritin (Ftn). Here, the role of bLf in different infection models is presented, highlighting its ability to exert a potent action against infection as well as iron and inflammatory disorders. The first model regards a cystic fibrosis (CF) mice suffering from Pseudomonas aeruginosa chronic lung infection. Treatments with aerosolized bLf for 7 days were effective in significantly reducing pulmonary bacterial load. Furthermore, for the first time, we showed that bLf treatment was effective in rebalancing the expression of both iron exporter Fpn and iron storage Ftn, thus reducing pulmonary iron overload. The second model concerns the role of bLf against Chlamydia trachomatis infection in vitro and in vivo. C. trachomatis, an obligate intracellular pathogen causing infections associated to inflammation, requires iron for its replication. In in vitro study bLf interferes with C. trachomatis entry into human epithelial cell line when cell monolayers were pre-treated or treated with the protein at the moment of the infection. Lf exerts a potent anti-inflammatory activity down-regulating IL-6 and IL-8 synthesis as well as rebalancing the expression of Fpn and TfR1 in infected cells. In addition, pregnant women asymptomatically infected by C. trachomatis, after 30 days of bLf intravaginal administration, were negative for C. trachomatis with a decrease of cervical IL-6 levels. The third and last model regards the in vitro study of bLf antiviral activity against the new coronavirus infection (SARS-CoV-2). The coronavirus infection causes severe acute respiratory syndrome characterized by massive systemic levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. In in vitro preliminary results, bLf, through its competitive binding with viral component(s) and its interaction with host surface receptors, blocks SARS-CoV-2 entry in different cell models. Interestingly, the in silico results strongly support the hypothesis of a direct recognition between the lactoferrin and the spike S glycoprotein, thus hindering the viral entry into the cells. Moreover, we performed a randomized, prospective, interventional study assessing for 30 days the effect and tolerability of an oral (1 gr/day) and intranasal (about 16 mg/nostril) liposomal lactoferrin on 10 asymptomatic and 22 mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients. After 15 days of treatment, rRT-PCR revealed a negative conversion of SARS-COV-2 RNA of the naso-oropharingeal swab in 28 patients (87.5%) and in 4 after 30 days. A significant reduction of D-Dimer, IL-6 and ferritin blood levels was observed together with a fast clinical symptoms recovery. No adverse effects were observed
New photogrammetric sensors for precision agriculture: the use of hyperspectral cameras
No full textPhotogrammetric and remote sensing techniques are increasingly getting used in precision agriculture to improve monitoring and management of the crops and at the same time to increase the crop yield and reduce the environmental impacts derived from the treatments.The entire production sector can benefit from the advance in technologies and the development of lightweight sensors for UAV (uncrewed aerial vehicles) with a higher spectral and spatial resolution such as the hyperspectral sensors. The hyperspectral sensors' ability for measuring hundreds of bands has impacts on the complexity and the data processing. Indeed, it is necessary to handle a considerable quantity of acquired data and select the relevant information for interventions in the agricultural area. The aims of this work are providing a survey of the UAV-based hyperspectral sensors available on the market and their acquisition technology and a global view of possible applications in the agriculture field. Moreover, the paper highlights future research developments related to this new type of device
Copper induces type II nitric oxide synthase in vivo
No full textIntravenous administration of copper (up to a final concentration of ca. 35 μmol/l in the plasma) led to a progressive, dramatic fall of mean arterial pressure in rats. Copper-induced pressure changes were comparable to those elicited by 2 mg/kg LPS, and were greatly prevented by previous infusion of the inducible NOS (NOS-II) inhibitors aminoguanidine or l-N(6)-(L-imino-ethyl)lysine. RT-PCR analysis showed a significant transcriptional induction of NOS-II in a number of tissues, including aorta, liver, and lungs. Immunohistochemistry revealed that NOS-II was massively synthesized in these tissues upon copper or LPS treatment. The protein was active, as revealed by enzymatic assays on lung homogenates and by the large increase of nitrite/nitrate levels in the plasma. Copper-challenged rats displayed elevated plasma levels of TNFα. Extensive formation of nitrotyrosines, indicative of peroxynitrite production, was accompanied by marked morphological changes in examined tissues. Our results clearly show that copper can act as a proinflammatory agent through activation of the nitric oxide pathway, leading to the same pathological frame induced by bacterial lipopolysaccharide
Copper induces type II nitric oxide synthase in vivo. Free Radic Biol Med
No full textIntravenous administration of copper (up to a final concentration of ca. 35 _mol/l in the plasma) led to a
progressive, dramatic fall of mean arterial pressure in rats. Copper-induced pressure changes were comparable to those
elicited by 2 mg/kg LPS, and were greatly prevented by previous infusion of the inducible NOS (NOS-II) inhibitors
aminoguanidine or l-N(6)-(L-imino-ethyl)lysine. RT-PCR analysis showed a significant transcriptional induction of
NOS-II in a number of tissues, including aorta, liver, and lungs. Immunohistochemistry revealed that NOS-II was
massively synthesized in these tissues upon copper or LPS treatment. The protein was active, as revealed by enzymatic
assays on lung homogenates and by the large increase of nitrite/nitrate levels in the plasma. Copper-challenged rats
displayed elevated plasma levels of TNF_. Extensive formation of nitrotyrosines, indicative of peroxynitrite production,
was accompanied by marked morphological changes in examined tissues. Our results clearly show that copper can act
as a proinflammatory agent through activation of the nitric oxide pathway, leading to the same pathological frame
induced by bacterial lipopolysaccharide
Optimized cloud-based scheduling for protein secondary structure analysis
No full textIn the domain of proteomics, an in-depth analysis of the 3D struc- ture of a protein is of paramount importance for many biological studies and applications. At the secondary level, protein structure can be described in terms of motifs, recurrent patterns of smaller biological structures called Sec- ondary Structure Elements. In this paper, the focus is on the identi cation of geometrical motifs in dif- ferent proteins using the Cross Motif Search Algorithm (CMS). Such task, due to the high computational cost of CMS with respect to traditional alignment algorithms, is very demanding, and thus parallel processing is mandatory. In previous papers, CMS parallelization has been already studied from the HPC standpoint. Since cloud computing is emerging as an alternative to on- premise HPC systems, it is worthwhile examining the feasibility and possible advantages in terms of both performance and costs, of migrating to a cloud implementation. This paper is an extension of a preliminary work [1] carried out on the cloud parallelization of CMS. The paper has two main contributions. First of all, an analytic model of the communication pattern of CMS is described, in order to get insights on the performance of the application when executed on a cloud infrastructure. Secondly, an optimized location-aware" scheduling policy to assign workload to the application workers is introduced, in order to minimize internode communication in a cloud setting
Volatile Norisoprenoids as markers of botanical origin of Sardinian Strawberry-Tree (Arbutus unedo L.) Honey: Characterisation of Aroma Compounds by Dynamic Headspace Extraction and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
No full textIn order to characterize and authenticate the aromatic profile of strawberry-tree (Arbutus unedo L.) honey, a dynamic headspace
(DHS) extraction, followed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis, was performed on 10 Sardinian
strawberry-tree (Arbutus unedo L.) honey samples. A total of 28 aroma compounds were identified, but only norisoprenoid compounds
such as a-isophorone, b-isophorone and 4-oxoisophorone, were recognized as specific floral origin markers of the strawberry-
tree honey. The a-isophorone/b-isophorone ratio varied from 4 to 8, whereas the a-isophorone/4-oxoisophorone ratio was
found to range from 11 to 20. The DHS extraction method was proposed as a valid alternative to pollen analysis for floral source
detection, especially for products like strawberry-tree honey, characterized by a low pollen content
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