Highly enantioselective synthesis of beta-amidophenylthioethers by organocatalytic desymmetrization of meso-aziridines.

The desymmetrization of N-acylaziridines with Me(3)SiSPh, catalyzed by commercially available (R) and (S)-VAPOL hydrogen phosphate, produced beta-(N-acylamino)phenylthioethers in a highly enantioselective and efficient manner (78-99% ee). The selection of the suitable aziridine/nucleophile/catalyst molar ratio is crucial to obtain high ee's.

MATER protein as substrate of PKCepsilon in human cumulus cells.

High activity of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase/Akt pathway in cumulus cells plays an important role in FSH regulation of cell function and Protein Kinase C epsilon (PKCepsilon) collaborates with these signalling pathways to regulate cell proliferation. Relevant roles in follicular development are played by Maternal Antigen That Embryos Require (MATER) that is a cumulus cell- and oocyte-specific protein dependent on the maternal genome. We recently demonstrated that human MATER localizes at specific domains of oocytes and, for the first time, also in cumulus cells.

Impact of insemination technique, semen quality and oocyte cryopreservation on pronuclear morphology of zygotes derived from sibling oocytes.

Pronuclear morphology seems to be an important predictive value of zygote development and integrity. In this study we want to evaluate the effect of insemination technique, male factor and oocyte cryopreservation on pronuclear morphology of zygotes derived from sibling oocytes in our Centre of Reproductive Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Arcispedale S. Maria Nuova, Reggio Emilia, Italy.

[Reliability of hemoglobin measurement by HemoCue in patients with gastrointestinal bleeding].

Unlabelled: Gastrointestinal hemorrhage is a frequent complication in digestive diseases, requiring follow-up by specialized units such as the digestive bleeding unit. Hemoglobin is determined daily in the management of these patients, and consequently a rapid and reliable method for hemoglobin determination is required.

Objective: To study the reliability of HemoCue in patients with gastrointestinal hemorrhage and to determine whether there are any differences in hemoglobin measurement between HemoCue and the reference laboratory.

Estrogen receptor-mediated transcriptional activity of genistein in the mouse testis.

Here we show that genistein, through an estrogen receptor-mediated action, modulates gene expression in the mouse testis throughout development. Genistein passed from the lactating mother to the suckling offspring at levels sufficient to activate gene expression in the testis of the pups. Testis are already responsive to genistein as well as to estradiol at day 14.

Electronic Nose analysis of milk from cows grazing on two different Alpine vegetation types.

The nutritional distinctiveness of pasture-fed dairy products is mainly influenced by the transfer of specific chemical compounds from the grass to the milk and by their effect on rumen microflora and animal metabolism. Thus, the pasture-fed origin has to be objectively proven, using fast and reproducible analytical methods applied to finished products, in order to protect consumers against potential frauds. In this work, Electronic Nose patterns of Alpine milks produced by cows grazing Trifolium alpinum and Festuca nigrescens pasture types have been examined, in order to test the potential use of this device for routine control analyses of the botanical origin of milk and dairy products.

Protein profile of capacitated versus ejaculated human sperm.

Freshly ejaculated sperm acquire the fertilizing potential by a continuing process that occurs during sperm transport through the female genital tract, and it is physiologically not complete until the spermatozoon reaches the oocyte. The process termed capacitation can be mimicked in vitro by using appropriate capacitation media. Despite its importance, the molecular mechanisms underlying capacitation are poorly understood.

Proteomic analysis reveals multiple patterns of response in cells exposed to a toxin mixture.

We have used proteomic analyses to probe the responses induced by a pair of marine biotoxins, okadaic acid (OA) and gambierol (GB), added alone or in combination to a cultured cell line and carried out a preliminary investigation into the possible interactions between toxins possessing two different molecular mechanisms of action at a cellular level. When MCF-7 cells were treated with OA, we found that cellular levels of 30 proteins were significantly affected, including several isoforms of nonphosphorylated and phosphorylated hsp 27, as well as enzymes involved in the maintenance of nucleoside triphosphate pools and the control of redox states of the cell. When we repeated our analysis using GB, nine proteins were significantly affected, including some isoforms of nonphosphorylated hsp 27, as well as semenogelin-1, myosin-7, and the ATP synthase subunit delta.

Comparative analysis of different secondary optical elements for aspheric primary lenses.

The performance of different reflexive and refractive secondaries optimized for the same primary lens is studied by using ray-tracing simulation. Different solutions are approached according to materials and manufacturing processes currently available in the market, which can be potentially cost-effective for concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) modules. They are compared in terms of system optical efficiency and acceptance angle.

Parental mental representations during late pregnancy and early parenthood following assisted reproductive technology.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between assisted reproduction technology (ART) and parental mental representations during late pregnancy and early parenthood.

Study Design: Women (n=25) following ART pregnancies were compared with their partners (n=23) and with women following spontaneous conceptions (n=39). Subjects were interviewed on mental representations at late gestation and three months postpartum.

Clinical surrogate markers of survival in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients treated with second-third line erlotinib.

Background: Inhibition of the EGFR pathway is a useful strategy in the treatment of patients with advanced NSCLC. The aim of this study is to assess predictive clinical parameters of efficacy.

Methods And Patients: Sixty-two patients with advanced NSCLC were treated with erlotinib as second-third line (150 mg/day).

Proapoptotic effects of lindane on mouse primordial germ cells.

Lindane (gamma-HCH) was examined for its effect on primordial germ cell (PGC) development in the mouse embryo. We found that exposure by gavage of pregnant mice to 15 or 30 mg/kg/bw lindane during the period of PGC migration and gonad colonization (from 8.5 to 11.

Human MATER localization in specific cell domains of oocytes and follicular cells.

MATER (Maternal Antigen That Embryos Require) is an oocyte-specific protein dependent on the maternal genome and required for early embryonic development. The gene products expressed in oocytes play important roles in folliculogenesis, fertilization and pre-implantation development. The aim of this study was to characterize the localization and distribution pattern of the human MATER protein during follicular development and after ovulation, to determine its functional role.

Phospholipase Cgamma1 is required for metastasis development and progression.

Cell motility and invasion play an essential role in the development of metastasis. Evidence suggests that the enzyme phospholipase Cgamma1 (PLCgamma1) may be involved in tumor progression and possibly development of metastasis. In this study, we show that down-regulation of PLCgamma1 expression severely impairs activation of the small GTP-binding protein Rac and cell invasion in breast cancer cell lines and U87 in vitro.

Nitric oxide as an early marker of human embryo metabolic cleavage in ART using fresh or thawed oocytes.

Objective: To study a possible role of nitric oxide (NO) as a marker of development in the early phases of human embryo cleavage during assisted reproduction.

Study Design: 179 women having ART were included. 123 women used fresh oocytes and 56 oocyte thawing cycles in the Center of Reproductive Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Arcispedale S.

Very fast optical flaring from a possible new Galactic magnetar.

Highly luminous rapid flares are characteristic of processes around compact objects like white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes. In the high-energy regime of X-rays and gamma-rays, outbursts with variabilities on timescales of seconds or less are routinely observed, for example in gamma-ray bursts or soft gamma-ray repeaters. At optical wavelengths, flaring activity on such timescales has not been observed, other than from the prompt phase of one exceptional gamma-ray burst.

Solar simulator for concentrator photovoltaic systems.

A solar simulator for measuring performance of large area concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) modules is presented. Its illumination system is based on a Xenon flash light and a large area collimator mirror, which simulates natural sun light. Quality requirements imposed by the CPV systems have been characterized: irradiance level and uniformity at the receiver, light collimation and spectral distribution.

The effect of the 2004 Italian legislation on perinatal outcomes following assisted reproduction technology.

Objective: To assess the perinatal outcomes of the first three years under the 2004 Italian reproductive legislation obligating transfer of all embryos resulting from insemination of < or =3 oocytes.

Study Design: We compared the perinatal results of clinical assisted reproductive technology (ART) pregnancies during the three years following the new Italian legislation with the previous three years.

Results: There were 583 and 571 clinical pregnancies during the respective periods.

Antioxidants partially restore glutamate transport defect in leber hereditary optic neuropathy cybrids.

Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is a mitochondrial disease characterized by visual loss resulting from retinal ganglion cell degeneration. Despite the important role of respiratory chain deficiency and oxidative stress induced by mtDNA point mutations affecting complex I, excitotoxic injury has been postulated as a concurrent pathogenic factor. We used transmitochondrial cybrid cell lines constructed using enucleated fibroblasts from three LHON probands carrying the most severe 3460/ND1 mutation and three controls as mitochondria donors, and the osteosarcoma-derived mtDNA-less cells, to study the possible efficacy of two selected antioxidant compounds in preventing glutamate uptake reduction previously observed in LHON cybrids.

Anxiety symptoms during late pregnancy and early parenthood following assisted reproductive technology.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between assisted reproduction technology (ART) and anxiety symptoms during late pregnancy and early parenthood.

Method: Women with ART pregnancies were prospectively compared to their partners and to women with spontaneous pregnancies. The sample of 87 subjects, 48 ART (25 mothers and 23 fathers) and 39 non-ART mothers were given the ASQ-IPAT Anxiety Scale at 30-32 weeks of gestation, and at one week and three months after delivery.

A phase II pharmacodynamic study of erlotinib in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer previously treated with platinum-based chemotherapy.

Purpose: To examine potential markers of clinical benefit and the effects of erlotinib on the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling pathway in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients refractory to platinum-based chemotherapy.

Experimental Design: Patients were given erlotinib (150 mg/d). Tumor biopsies were done immediately before treatment and in a subgroup of patients after 6 weeks' treatment.

Sphingolipids in macroautophagy.

Sphingolipids are constituents of biological membranes. Ceramide and sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) also act as second messengers and are part of a rheostat system, in which ceramide promotes cell death and growth arrest, and S1P induces proliferation and maintains cell survival. As macroautophagy is a lysosomal catabolic mechanism involved in determining the duration of the lifetime of cells, we raised the question of its regulation by sphingolipid messengers.

Lack of evidence for oxidative stress in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis fibroblasts.

Background: It is conceivable that an early therapeutic intervention in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) would lead to better results in terms of disease progression for these patients. One possible strategy to increase the sensitivity of the diagnosis is represented by the use of biological parameters reflecting, for example, oxidative stress alterations associated with ALS. Such biomarkers would be valuable tools both for a better diagnostic evaluation and for studying the impact of therapeutic interventions on the disease course.

Depressive symptoms during late pregnancy and early parenthood following assisted reproductive technology.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between assisted reproduction technology (ART) and depressive symptoms during late pregnancy and early parenthood.

Design: Case-control longitudinal study.

Setting: The Center of Reproductive Medicine, Arcispedale Santa Maria Nuova, Reggio Emilia, Italy.