Salivary microRNA profiling dysregulation in autism spectrum disorder: A pilot study.

Introduction: Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are the most prevalent neurobiological disorders in children. The etiology comprises genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors such as dysfunction of the immune system. Epigenetic mechanisms are mainly represented by DNA methylation, histone modifications, and microRNAs (miRNA).

Psychological distress in adults with and without cystic fibrosis during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Background: Hundreds of papers have been published on the COVID-19 pandemic, and several of them on psychological themes connected with it, but very little is so far known on how adult patients with Cystic Fibrosis (pwCFs) are coping with this dramatic event.

Methods: An online questionnaire was developed according to the Italian validated COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI) and addressed to the general population (GP). A similar questionnaire, augmented with CF specific questions, targeted pwCFs.

The semiology of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures revisited: Can video alone predict the diagnosis? Preliminary data from a prospective feasibility study.

Objective: To investigate if, when, and to what extent visual information contained in a video-recorded event allows experienced epileptologists to predict the diagnosis of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) without the aid of electroencephalography (EEG).

Methods: Five neurologists actively practicing in epilepsy centers in Italy and the United States were asked to review 23 videos capturing representative events of 21 unselected consecutive patients admitted for long-term video-EEG monitoring (VEM). Four raters were blind to EEG and clinical information; one rater was not.

Targeting G-Quadruplex DNA Structures by EMICORON Has a Strong Antitumor Efficacy against Advanced Models of Human Colon Cancer.

We previously identified EMICORON as a novel G-quadruplex (G4) ligand showing high selectivity for G4 structures over the duplex DNA, causing telomere damage and inhibition of cell proliferation in transformed and tumor cells. Here, we evaluated the antitumoral effect of EMICORON on advanced models of human colon cancer that could adequately predict human clinical outcomes. Our results showed that EMICORON was well tolerated in mice, as no adverse effects were reported, and a low ratio of sensitivity across human and mouse bone marrow cells was observed, indicating a good potential for reaching similar blood levels in humans.

Having your cake and eating it: office of fair trading proposal for funding new drugs to benefit patients and innovative companies.

There are insufficient resources in the UK to fund all new technologies and new indications approved by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). Diverting funding from existing sources will have a detrimental effect on the provision of other priority services. The UK Office of Fair Trading (OFT) recently suggested a value-based pricing approach that appears workable but has generated considerable debate.

Use of cancer chemopreventive phytochemicals as antineoplastic agents.

A lot of information has been gathered on cellular mechanisms by which chemopreventive phytochemicals, such as curcumin (a spice in curry) or epigallocatechin gallate (extracted from tea), interfere with carcinogenesis. A comparison of this knowledge with what we know about molecularly targeted chemotherapeutic agents suggests that it might be worthwhile to investigate the usefulness of such phytochemicals in the treatment of established malignant diseases. Phytochemicals use a plethora of antisurvival mechanisms, boost the host's anti-inflammatory defence, and sensitise malignant cells to cytotoxic agents.

Volatile organic compounds produced during the aerobic biological processing of municipal solid waste in a pilot plant.

The volatile organic carbon (VOC) and odours emitted during the aerobic biological processing of municipal solid waste (MSW) was studied in a pilot-scale reactor. VOCs were detected by different techniques on solid waste samples and the outlet air stream, before and after a biofilter. Organic compounds (alpha-pinene, beta-myrcene, D-limonene) were also measured in condensate water and leachate from the process.

Molecular determinants of metabotropic glutamate receptor signaling.

Metabotropic glutamate (mglu) receptors are implicated in the regulation of many physiological and pathological processes in the CNS, including synaptic plasticity, learning and memory, motor coordination, pain transmission and neurodegeneration. Several recent studies have elucidated the molecular determinants of mglu receptor signaling and show that several mechanisms acting at different steps in signal propagation are involved. We attempt to offer an integrated view on how homologous and heterologous mechanisms regulate the initial steps of signal propagation, mainly at the level of mglu-receptor-G-protein coupling.

Pattern of cytokines and pharmacomodulation in sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture compared with that induced by endotoxin.

The production of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), and IL-6 and their pharmacomodulation were evaluated in a model of polymicrobial sepsis induced in mice by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) and were compared with the effects of endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide [LPS]) treatment. LPS levels rose as early as 1 h after CLP and increased further after 2 and 21 h. TNF-alpha was detectable in serum, spleen, liver, and lungs during the first 4 h, with a peak 2 h after CLP.

DNA methylation prevents the amplification of TROP1, a tumor-associated cell surface antigen gene.

We tested the hypothesis that different genes can have different abilities to be amplified after transfection under comparable selection conditions. DNA from human lymphoid or choriocarcinoma cell lines was transfected into L cells. Transfectants for CD5, CD8A, TROP1, and TROP2, genes expressed on lymphocytes or trophoblast and carcinomas, were selected by fluorescence-activated cell sorting.

T-cell receptor gene rearrangements and expression in normal human large granular lymphocytes (LGL) and their pathological expansions.

The lineage to which normal large granular lymphocytes/natural killer (LGL/NK) cells belong is controversial; in fact they share some surface markers and functional activities with monocytes, but also with T lymphocytes. The relationship of LGL to the T cell lineage by analysis with the T cell receptor (T-rec) gene has been investigated. Pure preparations of human LGL and their CD11(+) CD8(-) and CD11(-) CD8(+) subsets had the Tβ gene in its unrearranged germline configuration.