Since the discovery of penicillin, the forerunner of the most widely used class of antibiotics ( β-lactams), natural compounds and their derivatives represented a major source of antibacterial therapeutic products whose availability enabled modern medical practices (invasive surgery, organ transplant, .). However, the relentless emergence of resistant bacteria is challenging the long-term efficacy of antibiotics, also decreasing their economic attractiveness for big pharma, leading to a significant decay in antibacterial development in the 21 century and an increased use of last-resort drugs such as carbapenems or colistin.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Infections in cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) are increasing over time and associated with substantially mortality and healthcare costs. The best approach is the complete removal of the system by transvenous lead extraction (TLE). However, when leads are more than 10 years old, this technique requires considerable expertise and failures with the result of abandoned leads or serious complications may occur.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDose-limiting toxicity poses a major limitation to the clinical utility of targeted cancer therapies, often arising from target engagement in nonmalignant tissues. This obstacle can be minimized by targeting cancer dependencies driven by proteins with tissue-restricted and/or tumor-restricted expression. In line with another recent report, we show here that, in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), suppression of the myeloid-restricted PIK3CG/p110γ-PIK3R5/p101 axis inhibits protein kinase B/Akt signaling and compromises AML cell fitness.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNanomaterials (Basel)
March 2024
This work focused on developing optical coatings for decorative applications that remain transparent in the radiofrequency range. To achieve this, a combination of dielectric material (silicon-aluminum nitride, SiAlN) and low-electrical-conductivity semiconductor material (germanium) was utilized. Germanium plays a crucial role in providing absorption in the visible spectrum, facilitating the design of coatings with various aesthetic appearances, while allowing for control over their transmittance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNanomaterials (Basel)
October 2023
SiO thin films were prepared using magnetron sputtering with different O flow rates on a silicon substrate. The samples were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in transmission and reflection, covering a spectral range of 5 to 25 μm. By employing a multilayer model, the values of the complex refractive index that best fit the experimental transmission and reflection results were optimized using the Brendel-Bormann oscillator model.
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