Publications by authors named "Zara M"

Background/objectives: Amyloid peptides, whose accumulation in the brain as senile plaques is associated with the onset of Alzheimer's disease, are also found in cerebral vessels and in circulation. In the bloodstream, amyloid peptides promote platelet adhesion, activation, oxidative stress, and thrombosis, contributing to the cardiovascular complications observed in Alzheimer's disease patients. Natural compounds, such as curcumin, are known to modulate platelet activation induced by the hemostatic stimuli thrombin and convulxin.

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Even with the use of hearing aids (HAs), speech in noise perception remains challenging for older adults, impacting communication and quality of life outcomes. The association between music perception and speech-in-noise (SIN) outcomes is of interest, as there is evidence that professionally trained musicians are adept listeners in noisy environments. Thus, this study explored the association between music processing, cognitive factors, and the outcome variable of SIN perception, in older adults with hearing loss.

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Remote magneto-mechanical actuation (MMA) of magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) is emerging as a promising therapy method in oncology. However, translation to the clinic faces the challenge of whole-body action and the reluctance about indiscriminate mechanical action of the nanoparticles on tumor and healthy cells. Here, we show how the MMA method based on magnetically-rotated gold-coated MNP boosts only the activity of an unbound antitumor drug, without physical damage of cells via MNP.

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This study aims to generate a satellite-based qualitative emission source characterization for the heavily polluted eastern part of China in the 2010-2016 time period. The applied source identification technique relies on satellite-based NO and SO emission estimates by OMI, their SO:NO ratio, and the MIX anthropogenic emission inventory to distinguish emissions from different emission categories (urban, industrial, natural) and characterize the dominant source per 0.25° × 0.

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There is a complex interrelationship between the nervous system and the cardiovascular system. Comorbidities of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) with mental disorders, and vice versa, are prevalent. Adults with mental disorders such as anxiety and depression have a higher risk of developing CVD, and people with CVD have an increased risk of being diagnosed with mental disorders.

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Article Synopsis
  • Small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) play a role in inflammation and vascular injury and may serve as potential diagnostic markers for diseases, particularly in STEMI patients.
  • A study analyzed plasma sEVs from 42 STEMI patients treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention, revealing that sEV size and specific markers were linked to myocardial damage assessed by Cardiac Magnetic Resonance (CMR).
  • The results suggest that sEV size and the expression of CD41-CD61 could help identify patients at high risk for complications after a heart attack, leading to better treatment strategies.
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  • Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TTS) is shown to have long-term effects on the hemostatic system, with patients exhibiting accelerated clot formation and higher levels of platelet activation even years after the initial event.
  • In a study of women with TTS, results indicated significant differences in clotting parameters compared to both healthy controls and those with coronary artery disease (CAD), pointing to unique pathophysiological changes in TTS.
  • Findings suggest that the persistent alterations in the hemostatic system in TTS patients may contribute to recurrent events, highlighting the need for tailored antiplatelet therapy to mitigate adverse outcomes.
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Platelets are classically recognized for their important role in hemostasis and thrombosis but they are also involved in many other physiological and pathophysiological processes, including infection. Platelets are among the first cells recruited to sites of inflammation and infection and they exert their antimicrobial response actively cooperating with the immune system. This review aims to summarize the current knowledge on platelet receptor interaction with different types of pathogens and the consequent modulations of innate and adaptive immune responses.

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  • The study aimed to assess the prevalence and severity of tinnitus in patients with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) while analyzing its relation to glycemic control (HbA1c) and kidney function (eGFR).
  • A total of 133 T1DM patients participated in the research, revealing a tinnitus prevalence of 24.1%, with most experiencing mild distress and short-duration ringing.
  • The findings suggest that while tinnitus is more common in T1DM patients with higher HbA1c levels, the condition appears to be non-pathological and not significantly correlated with HbA1c or eGFR severities.
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  • When blood platelets are activated during healing and inflammation, they release tiny bubbles called extracellular vesicles (PEVs) that play important roles in body processes.
  • * Recently, scientists found that breast cancer cells cause platelets to release a lot of PEVs, and patients with breast cancer have more of these vesicles in their blood.
  • * The study showed that PEVs released by platelets in response to different triggers (like a blood clot or cancer cells) are different in their protein makeup, which affects how they influence other cells in the body.
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Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are key participants in both early- and late-stage atherosclerosis and influence neighbouring cells possibly by means of bioactive molecules, some of which are packed into extracellular vesicles (EVs). Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) is expressed and secreted by VSMCs. This study aimed to unravel the role of PCSK9 on VSMCs-derived EVs in terms of content and functionality.

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Virus-like particles (VLPs) resemble authentic virus while not containing any genomic information. Here, we present a fast and powerful method for the production of SARS-CoV-2 VLP in insect cells and the application of these VLPs to evaluate the inhibition capacity of monoclonal antibodies and sera of vaccinated donors. Our method avoids the baculovirus-based approaches commonly used in insect cells by employing direct plasmid transfection to co-express SARS-CoV-2 envelope, membrane, and spike protein that self-assemble into VLPs.

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Background: Obesity and depression are intertwined diseases often associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) complications. Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), altered in the brain both of subjects with depression and obesity, provides a potential link between depression and thrombosis. Since the relationship among peripheral BDNF, depression and obesity is not well-defined, the aim of the present report has been to address this issue taking advantage of the contribution played by extracellular vesicle (EV)-derived miRNAs.

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Background: Platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (PEVs) are small vesicles released by activated platelets that are gaining growing interest in the field of vascular biology. The mode of platelet activation is a critical determinant of PEVs release, phenotype and function. However, only very limited information is available concerning the impact of the platelet purification procedure on PEVs release.

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Prenylcysteine Oxidase 1 (PCYOX1) is an enzyme involved in the degradation of prenylated proteins. It is expressed in different tissues including vascular and blood cells. We recently showed that the secretome from -silenced cells reduced platelet adhesion both to fibrinogen and endothelial cells, suggesting a potential contribution of PCYOX1 into thrombus formation.

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Depression is associated with thrombotic risk and arterial events, its proper management is strongly recommended in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients. We have previously shown that the Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF)Val66Met polymorphism, related to depression, is associated with arterial thrombosis in mice, and with an increased risk of acute myocardial infarction in humans. Herein, expanding the previous findings on BDNFVal66Met polymorphism, we show that desipramine, a norepinephrine reuptake-inhibitor, rescues behavioral impairments, reduces the arterial thrombosis risk, abolishes pathological coagulation and platelet hyper-reactivity, normalizes leukocyte, platelet, and bone marrow megakaryocyte number and restores physiological norepinephrine levels in homozygous knock-in BDNF Val66Met (BDNF) mice.

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Objectives: Understanding speech-in-noise can be highly effortful. Decreasing the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of speech increases listening effort, but it is relatively unclear if decreasing the level of semantic context does as well. The current study used functional near-infrared spectroscopy to evaluate two primary hypotheses: (1) listening effort (operationalized as oxygenation of the left lateral PFC) increases as the SNR decreases and (2) listening effort increases as context decreases.

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Article Synopsis
  • New biomarkers are needed for identifying and characterizing patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), and exosomes show promise as a diagnostic tool in this area.
  • The study analyzed plasma exosomes from 35 STEMI patients (including those who had out-of-hospital cardiac arrest) and 32 chronic coronary syndrome patients, revealing that STEMI exosomes were larger and more abundant, with distinct protein markers.
  • Findings indicate that specific exosome markers (like GPIIb and PLP1) can distinguish between different types of STEMI cases, and their unique protein profiles may offer insights into the mechanisms of STEMI and associated brain injuries.
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Article Synopsis
  • CAD patients face high ischemic risk, necessitating new biomarkers to assess the severity and vulnerability of atherosclerotic plaques, with Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) being a potential candidate.
  • A study involving 55 CAD patients (31 with stable angina and 24 with acute myocardial infarction) revealed that plasma BDNF levels were significantly lower in CAD patients compared to healthy subjects, and these levels decreased with the severity of the disease.
  • Findings indicated that higher BDNF levels were linked to features of plaque vulnerability assessed by optical coherence tomography, suggesting BDNF's role in plaque behavior, particularly in relation to macrophage infiltration and cap thickness in different CAD conditions.
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Exosomes are nano-sized biovesicles of endocytic origin physiologically released by nearly all cell types into surrounding body fluids. They carry cell-specific cargos of protein, lipids, and genetic materials and can be selectively taken up by neighboring or distant cells. Since the intrinsic properties of exosomes are strictly influenced by the state of the parental cell and by the cellular microenvironment, the analysis of exosome origin and content, and their cell-targeting specificity, make them attractive as possible diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers.

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Background: Congenital malaria is a serious and common infection in tropical Africa. It has multiple consequences on the newborn and the mother.

Objective: The objective of this study is to calculate the prevalence of congenital malaria, describe its clinical signs, and analyze its associated factors.

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Psychological stress induces different alterations in the organism in order to maintain homeostasis, including changes in hematopoiesis and hemostasis. In particular, stress-induced hyper activation of the autonomic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis can trigger cellular and molecular alterations in platelets, coagulation factors, endothelial function, redox balance, and sterile inflammatory response. For this reason, mental stress is reported to enhance the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

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Depression is a major cause of morbidity and low quality of life among patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD), and it is now considered as an independent risk factor for major adverse cardiovascular events. Increasing evidence indicates not only that depression worsens the prognosis of cardiac events, but also that a cross-vulnerability between the two conditions occurs. Among the several mechanisms proposed to explain this interplay, platelet activation is the more attractive, seeing platelets as potential mirror of the brain function.

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Platelets have been extensively implicated in the progression of cancer and platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (PEVs) are gaining growing attention as potential mediators of the platelet-cancer interplay. PEVs are shed from platelet membrane in response to extracellular stimuli and carry important biological signals for intercellular communication. In this study we demonstrate that PEVs specifically bind to different breast cancer cells and elicit cell-specific functional responses.

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