Chlorin e6-Loaded Nanostructured Lipid Carriers Targeted by Angiopep-2: Advancing Photodynamic Therapy in Glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a highly aggressive brain tumor known for its resistance to standard treatments. Despite surgery being a primary option, it often leads to incomplete removal and high recurrence rates. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) holds promise as an adjunctive treatment, but safety concerns and the need for high-power lasers have limited its widespread use.

Proteome Alterations and Nucleosome Activation in Rat Myoblasts Treated with Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles.

Oxidative stress is a widespread causative agent of disease. Together with its general relevance for biomedicine, such a dynamic is recognizably detrimental to space exploration. Among other solutions, cerium oxide nanoparticles (or , NC) display a long-lasting, self-renewable antioxidant activity.

Report on a Milking Mule: Milk Qualitative Characteristics during Lactation.

Despite their inability to reproduce naturally, mules can host embryos and be surrogate dams. The aim of this investigation was to increase our knowledge of the qualitative composition of mule's milk and its variations throughout the whole lactation period-namely, from 6 h after foaling to 180 days in milk (DIM). Milk was obtained from a mule dam that had foaled after receiving a mule embryo transfer.

Host genetics and COVID-19 severity: increasing the accuracy of latest severity scores by Boolean quantum features.

The impact of common and rare variants in COVID-19 host genetics has been widely studied. In particular, in Fallerini et al. (Human genetics, 2022, 141, 147-173), common and rare variants were used to define an interpretable machine learning model for predicting COVID-19 severity.

How are cell and tissue structure and function influenced by gravity and what are the gravity perception mechanisms?

Progress in mechanobiology allowed us to better understand the important role of mechanical forces in the regulation of biological processes. Space research in the field of life sciences clearly showed that gravity plays a crucial role in biological processes. The space environment offers the unique opportunity to carry out experiments without gravity, helping us not only to understand the effects of gravitational alterations on biological systems but also the mechanisms underlying mechanoperception and cell/tissue response to mechanical and gravitational stresses.

Kdm7a expression is spatiotemporally regulated in developing Xenopus laevis embryos, and its overexpression influences late retinal development.

Background: Post-translational histone modifications are among the most common epigenetic modifications that orchestrate gene expression, playing a pivotal role during embryonic development and in various pathological conditions. Among histone lysine demethylases, KDM7A, also known as KIAA1718 or JHDM1D, catalyzes the demethylation of H3K9me1/2 and H3K27me1/2, leading to transcriptional regulation. Previous data suggest that KDM7A plays a central role in several biological processes, including cell proliferation, commitment, differentiation, apoptosis, and maintenance.

Ultra-rare RTEL1 gene variants associate with acute severity of COVID-19 and evolution to pulmonary fibrosis as a specific long COVID disorder.

Background: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a novel coronavirus that caused an ongoing pandemic of a pathology termed Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19). Several studies reported that both COVID-19 and RTEL1 variants are associated with shorter telomere length, but a direct association between the two is not generally acknowledged. Here we demonstrate that up to 8.

Tannic Acid-Iron Complex-Based Nanoparticles as a Novel Tool against Oxidative Stress.

Accumulation of reactive oxygen species in cells leads to oxidative stress, with consequent damage for cellular components and activation of cell-death mechanisms. Oxidative stress is often associated with age-related conditions, as well as with several neurodegenerative diseases. For this reason, antioxidant molecules have attracted a lot of attention, especially those derived from natural sources─like polyphenols and tannins.

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for magnetic hyperthermia: recent advancements, molecular effects, and future directions in the omics era.

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) have attracted attention in the biomedical field thanks to their ability to prompt hyperthermia in response to an alternated magnetic field. Hyperthermia is well known for inducing cell death, in particular in tumour cells, which seem to have a higher sensitivity to temperature increases. For this reason, hyperthermia has been recommended as a therapeutic tool against cancer.

Cerium Oxide Nanoparticle Administration to Skeletal Muscle Cells under Different Gravity and Radiation Conditions.

For their remarkable biomimetic properties implying strong modulation of the intracellular and extracellular redox state, cerium oxide nanoparticles (also termed "nanoceria") were hypothesized to exert a protective role against oxidative stress associated with the harsh environmental conditions of spaceflight, characterized by microgravity and highly energetic radiations. Nanoparticles were supplied to proliferating C2C12 mouse skeletal muscle cells under different gravity and radiation levels. Biological responses were thus investigated at a transcriptional level by RNA next-generation sequencing.

Light-Activated Biomedical Applications of Chlorophyll Derivatives.

Tetrapyrroles are the basis of essential physiological functions in most living organisms. These compounds represent the basic scaffold of porphyrins, chlorophylls, and bacteriochlorophylls, among others. Chlorophyll derivatives, obtained by the natural or artificial degradation of chlorophylls, present unique properties, holding great potential in the scientific and medical fields.

Artificially altered gravity elicits cell homeostasis imbalance in planarian worms, and cerium oxide nanoparticles counteract this effect.

Gravity alterations elicit complex and mostly detrimental effects on biological systems. Among these, a prominent role is occupied by oxidative stress, with consequences for tissue homeostasis and development. Studies in altered gravity are relevant for both Earth and space biomedicine, but their implementation using whole organisms is often troublesome.

A protein-coated micro-sucker patch inspired by octopus for adhesion in wet conditions.

In medical robotics, micromanipulation becomes particularly challenging in the presence of blood and secretions. Nature offers many examples of adhesion strategies, which can be divided into two macro-categories: morphological adjustments and chemical adaptations. This paper analyzes how two successful specializations from different marine animals can converge into a single biomedical device usable in moist environments.

Stem cell and tissue regeneration analysis in low-dose irradiated planarians treated with cerium oxide nanoparticles.

Owing to the self-renewing reactive oxygen species scavenger capability of cerium oxide nanoparticles (nanoceria), we tested in vivo radioprotective effects on stem cells and tissue regeneration using low-dose irradiated planarians as model system. We treated planarians with nanoceria or gum Arabic, as control, and we analyzed the expression of stem cell molecular markers and tissue regeneration capability, as well as cell death and DNA damage in non-irradiated and in low-dose irradiated animals. Our findings show that nanoceria increase the number of stem cells and tissue regenerative capability, and reduce cell death and DNA damage after low-dose irradiation, suggesting a protective role on stem cells.

Genetic Hallmarks and Heterogeneity of Glioblastoma in the Single-Cell Omics Era.

Glioblastoma multiforme is the most common and aggressive malignant primary brain tumor. As implied by its name, the disease displays impressive intrinsic heterogeneity. Among other complications, inter- and intratumoral diversity hamper glioblastoma research and therapy, typically leaving patients with little hope for long-term survival.

Multifunctional temozolomide-loaded lipid superparamagnetic nanovectors: dual targeting and disintegration of glioblastoma spheroids by synergic chemotherapy and hyperthermia treatment.

Aiming at finding new solutions for fighting glioblastoma multiforme, one of the most aggressive and lethal human cancer, here an in vitro validation of multifunctional nanovectors for drug delivery and hyperthermia therapy is proposed. Hybrid magnetic lipid nanoparticles have been fully characterized and tested on a multi-cellular complex model resembling the tumor microenvironment. Investigations of cancer therapy based on a physical approach (namely hyperthermia) and on a pharmaceutical approach (by exploiting the chemotherapeutic drug temozolomide) have been extensively carried out, by evaluating its antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects on 3D models of glioblastoma multiforme.

A purely bioinformatic pipeline for the prediction of mammalian odorant receptor gene enhancers.

Background: In most mammals, a vast array of genes coding for chemosensory receptors mediates olfaction. Odorant receptor (OR) genes generally constitute the largest multifamily (> 1100 intact members in the mouse). From the whole pool, each olfactory neuron expresses a single OR allele following poorly characterized mechanisms termed OR gene choice.

Modulation of gene expression in rat muscle cells following treatment with nanoceria in different gravity regimes.

Aim: Oxidative stress (OS) is strictly associated with senescence/pathogenesis of biological systems. As putative countermeasure to environmental OS, cerium oxide nanoparticles (nanoceria [NC]) were administered to muscle cells on ground and aboard the International Space Station.

Materials & Methods: Transcriptional analyses were conducted through microarray technology and hierarchical clustering.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of root shape in the moth orchid Phalaenopsis sp.: a biomimicry methodology for robotic applications.

Objective: Within the field of biorobotics, an emerging branch is plant-inspired robotics. Some effort exists in particular towards the production of digging robots that mimic roots; for these, a deeper comprehension of the role of root tip geometry in excavation would be highly desirable. Here we demonstrate a photogrammetry-based pipeline for the production of computer and manufactured replicas of moth orchid root apexes.

Ultrasound-Activated Piezoelectric Nanoparticles Inhibit Proliferation of Breast Cancer Cells.

A nanotechnology-based approach for the inhibition of breast cancer cell proliferation is proposed. The innovative solution consists in a platform based on biocompatible piezoelectric nanoparticles able to target and remotely stimulate HER2-positive breast cancer cells. The anti-proliferative effects of the ultrasound-driven piezoelectric nanoparticle-assisted stimulation significantly reduced the proliferation by inducing the cell cycle arrest.

Chlorophyll derivatives enhance invertebrate red-light and ultraviolet phototaxis.

Chlorophyll derivatives are known to enhance vision in vertebrates. They are thought to bind visual pigments (i.e.

Regulatory Features for Odorant Receptor Genes in the Mouse Genome.

The odorant receptor genes, seven transmembrane receptor genes constituting the vastest mammalian gene multifamily, are expressed monogenically and monoallelicaly in each sensory neuron in the olfactory epithelium. This characteristic, often referred to as the rule, is driven by mostly uncharacterized molecular dynamics, generally named . Much attention has been paid by the scientific community to the identification of sequences regulating the expression of odorant receptor genes within their , where related genes are usually arranged in genomic clusters.

Gold Nanoshell-Mediated Remote Myotube Activation.

Mild heat stimulation of muscle cells within the physiological range represents an intriguing approach for the modulation of their functions. In this work, photothermal conversion was exploited to remotely stimulate striated muscle cells by using gold nanoshells (NSs) in combination with near-infrared (NIR) radiation. Temperature increments of approximately 5 °C were recorded by using an intracellular fluorescent molecular thermometer and were demonstrated to efficiently induce myotube contraction.