214 results match your criteria: "Institute of Chemical Sciences and Technologies SCITEC─National Research Council CNR[Affiliation]"

Plant-derived nanovesicles (PDNVs) have recently emerged as natural delivery systems of biofunctional compounds toward mammalian cells. Considering their already described composition, anti-inflammatory properties, stability, and low toxicity, PDNVs offer a promising path for developing new preventive strategies for several inflammatory diseases, among which the inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). In this study, we explore the protective effects of industrially produced lemon vesicles (iLNVs) in a rat model of IBD.

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Corrigendum to 'Cancer chemotherapy and beyond: Current status, drug candidates, associated risks and progress in targeted therapeutics' [Genes & Diseases 10 (2023) 1367-1401].

Genes Dis

July 2024

Biotechnology of Macromolecules Research Group, Instituto de Productos Naturales y Agrobiología, IPNA-CSIC, San Cristóbal de La Laguna 38206, Tenerife, Spain.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.gendis.

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Glycosylation, a prevalent post-translational modification, plays a pivotal role in regulating intricate cellular processes by covalently attaching glycans to macromolecules. Dysregulated glycosylation is linked to a spectrum of diseases, encompassing cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, congenital disorders, infections, and inflammation. This review delves into the intricate interplay between glycosylation and protein conformation, with a specific focus on the profound impact of N-glycans on the selection of distinct protein conformations characterized by distinct interactomes-namely, protein assemblies-under normal and pathological conditions across various diseases.

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Background: Bacterial endophytic communities associated with medicinal plants synthesize a plethora of bioactive compounds with biological activities. Their easy isolation and growth procedures make bacterial endophytes an untapped source of novel drugs, which might help to face the problem of antimicrobial resistance. This study investigates the antagonistic potential of endophytic bacteria isolated from different compartments of the medicinal plant against human opportunistic pathogens.

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Desert soil hosts many microorganisms, whose activities are essential from an ecological viewpoint. Moreover, they are of great anthropic interest. The knowledge of extreme environments microbiomes may be beneficial for agriculture, technology, and human health.

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Article Synopsis
  • - DisProt is a database created in 2005 that compiles manually curated data on intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and regions (IDRs), focusing on those with no fixed 3D structure.
  • - The database serves not only to store structural and functional information but also to enhance understanding of IDPs/IDRs in various biological contexts, including diseases and life cycles of viruses.
  • - DisProt emphasizes the importance of careful data curation and provides resources and training for biocurators, along with guidelines to ensure accurate and consistent data collection from literature.
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Catalytic tar cracking is a promising technique for hot syngas cleaning unit in gasification plants because it can preserve tars chemical energy, so increasing the syngas heating value. The cost associated with catalyst preparation is a key issue, together with its deactivation induced by coke deposition. Iron is a cheap and frequently used catalyst, which can also be found in some industrial wastes.

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In this work, a novel sustainable approach was proposed for the integral valorisation of (burdock) seeds and roots. Firstly, a preliminary recovery of bioactive compounds, including unsaturated fatty acids, was performed. Then, simple sugars (i.

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Given the significant involvement of galectins in the development of numerous diseases, the aim of the following work is to further study the interaction between galectin-3 (Gal3) and the LPS from . This manuscript focused on the study of the interaction of the carbohydrate recognition domain of Gal3 with the LPS from by means of different complementary methodologies, such as circular dichroism; spectrofluorimetry; dynamic and static light scattering and evaluation of the impact of Gal3 on the redox potential membranes of and cells, as well as ITC and NMR studies. This thorough investigation reinforces the hypothesis of an interaction between Gal3 and LPS, unraveling the structural details and providing valuable insights into the formation of these intricate molecular complexes.

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The evaluation of mpk (BVMPK) lipopolysaccharide (LPS) recognition by DC-SIGN, a key lectin in mediating immune homeostasis, has been here performed. A fine chemical dissection of BVMPK LPS components, attained by synthetic chemistry combined to spectroscopic, biophysical, and computational techniques, allowed to finely map the LPS epitopes recognized by DC-SIGN. Our findings reveal BVMPK's role in immune modulation via DC-SIGN, targeting both the LPS O-antigen and the core oligosaccharide.

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All-Inorganic Hydrothermally Processed Semitransparent SbS Solar Cells with CuSCN as the Hole Transport Layer.

ACS Appl Energy Mater

February 2024

Division of Materials Science, Department of Engineering Sciences and Mathematics, Luleå University of Technology, SE-971 87 Luleå, Sweden.

An inorganic wide-bandgap hole transport layer (HTL), copper(I) thiocyanate (CuSCN), is employed in inorganic planar hydrothermally deposited SbS solar cells. With excellent hole transport properties and uniform compact morphology, the solution-processed CuSCN layer suppresses the leakage current and improves charge selectivity in an n-i-p-type solar cell structure. The device without the HTL (FTO/CdS/SbS/Au) delivers a modest power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 1.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on overcoming the radioresistance of glioblastoma (GBM) by using gene knockdown of specific factors that respond to hypoxia, which is known to contribute to treatment resistance.
  • Researchers used the U87 cell line with induced chemical hypoxia and X-ray exposure to evaluate changes in gene expression related to the Warburg effect, cell cycle, and survival, aiming to identify ideal genes for knockdown.
  • The findings indicated that certain gene knockdowns led to significantly reduced cell proliferation and increased expression of genes related to anaerobic glycolysis, suggesting that targeting these genes may improve treatment effectiveness against GBM’s radioresistance.
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Anthropogenic contribution, transport, and accumulation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in sediments of the continental shelf and slope in the Mediterranean Sea.

Chemosphere

March 2024

Institute for Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnology (IRBIM), National Research Council (CNR), Largo Fiera della Pesca 2, 60125, Ancona, Italy; University of Camerino, School of Science and Technology, Geology Division, Via Gentile III da Varano, Camerino, Italy.

Article Synopsis
  • - A multidisciplinary study utilized geochemical, sedimentological, and oceanographic methods to analyze the distribution of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the heavily populated region of the marginal Adriatic Sea.
  • - The research explored how factors like sediment grain size, biogeochemical properties, oceanographic processes, and river inputs affected PAH distribution.
  • - Findings showed PAH concentrations in marine surface sediments ranged from 4 to 235 ng/g, with higher levels associated with clay-rich sediments in deeper areas of the Middle Adriatic Depression.
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Flavonoids derived from medicinal plants as a COVID-19 treatment.

Phytother Res

March 2024

Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical, and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes COVID-19 disease. Through its viral spike (S) protein, the virus enters and infects epithelial cells by utilizing angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 as a host cell's receptor protein. The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on global public health and economies.

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Article Synopsis
  • Electrospinning (ES) is an effective method for creating high-performance nanofiber membranes that filter fine particulate matter and possess antibacterial properties, addressing issues like bacterial contamination on PPE and mask reusability.
  • The research highlights the use of multi-needle ES to produce both pure and functionalized PVDF-HFP nanofibers with TiO Nanoparticles, validated through various characterization techniques.
  • The findings show that these functionalized nanofibers offer significant antibacterial activity and high filtration efficiency, suggesting their potential for large-scale production of advanced, self-sterilizing face masks.
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The "on-demand" capture and utilization of CO is effectively realized with a readily accessible dual function organic composite. The covalent and controlled derivatization of graphene oxide (GO) surface with naturally occurring arginine led to a "smart" material capable of capturing (chemisorption) CO from high-purity flue-gas as well as low-concentration streams (i. e.

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The current era has been defined as "The Plastic Era", considering that over the past 50 years the role and importance of polymeric materials in our economy has steadily grown, reaching a production of around a few hundred million tons per year which may even double in the next 20 years [...

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Assemblage Structure of Ichthyoplankton Communities in the Southern Adriatic Sea (Eastern Mediterranean).

Biology (Basel)

November 2023

Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, Viale Ferdinando Stagno d'Alcontres 31, 98166 Messina, Italy.

Studies based on fish early life stages can provide information on spawning grounds and nursery areas, helping to determine the implications for stock biomass fluctuations of recruitment variability. This study describes the composition, abundance, spatial distribution and differences in day/night vertical distribution of ichthyoplankton in the southern Adriatic Sea. Samples were collected within the framework of the COCONET project (Towards COast to COast NETworks of marine protected areas) from 9 to 18 May 2013 by the , using the electronic multinet EZ-NET BIONESS (Bedford Institute of Oceanography Net Environmental Sampling System).

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Article Synopsis
  • Extracellular vesicles (EVs) found in blood plasma are emerging as promising disease biomarkers, but analyzing them individually is complicated due to the presence of numerous lipoprotein particles (LPPs) that can interfere with their isolation and characterization.
  • The study employed various advanced techniques, including atomic force microscopy and flow cytometry, to investigate the formation of EV-LPP complexes in biological samples and assess how these complexes affect EV analysis.
  • Findings indicate that LPPs can significantly influence EV measurements, impacting both the identification and quantification of biomarkers, and that the surrounding biological fluid can alter the properties of EVs, which is crucial for accurate profiling.
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Among semiconductor metal oxides, that are an important class of sensing materials, titanium dioxide (TiO) thin films are widely employed as sensors because of their high chemical and mechanical stability in harsh environments, non-toxicity, eco-compatibility, and photocatalytic properties. TiO-based chemical oxygen demand (COD) sensors exploit the photocatalytic properties of TiO in inducing the oxidation of organic compounds to CO. In this work, we discuss nanostructured TiO thin films grown via low-pressure metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on metallic AISI 316 mesh.

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Nanocomposite Hydrogels with Self-Assembling Peptide-Functionalized Carbon Nanostructures.

Chemistry

December 2023

Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Via L. Giorgieri 1, 34127, Trieste, Italy.

Carbon nanostructures (CNSs) are attractive components to attain nanocomposites, yet their hydrophobic nature and strong tendency to aggregate often limit their use in aqueous conditions and negatively impact their properties. In this work, carbon nanohorns (CNHs), multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and graphene (G) are first oxidized, and then reacted to covalently anchor the self-assembling tripeptide L-Leu-D-Phe-D-Phe to improve their dispersibility in phosphate buffer, and favor the formation of hydrogels formed by the self-organizing L-Leu-D-Phe-D-Phe present in solution. The obtained nanocomposites are then characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), oscillatory rheology, and conductivity measurements to gain useful insights as to the key factors that determine self-healing ability for the future design of this type of nanocomposites.

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Aquatic invertebrates play a pivotal role in (eco)toxicological assessments because they offer ethical, cost-effective and repeatable testing options. Additionally, their significance in the food chain and their ability to represent diverse aquatic ecosystems make them valuable subjects for (eco)toxicological studies. To ensure consistency and comparability across studies, international (eco)toxicology guidelines have been used to establish standardised methods and protocols for data collection, analysis and interpretation.

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The ferrozine (FZ) assay is a vital oxidation state-specific colorimetric assay for the quantification of Fe ions in environmental samples due to its sharp increase in absorbance at 562 nm upon addition of Fe. However, it has yet to be applied to corresponding fluoresence assays which typically offer higher sensitivites and lower detection limits. In this article we present for the first time its pairing with upconverting luminescent nanomaterials to enable detection of Fe the inner filter effect using a low-power continuous wave diode laser (45 mW).

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Introduction: The endocannabinoid (eCB) system disruption has been suggested to underpin the development of psychosis, fueling the search for novel, better-tolerated antipsychotic agents that target the eCB system. Among these, palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), an N-acylethanolamine (AE) with neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic properties, has drawn attention for its antipsychotic potential.

Methods: This Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020-compliant systematic review aimed at reappraising all clinical and preclinical studies investigating the biobehavioral role of PEA in psychosis.

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Essential oils (EOs) from medicinal plants have long been used in traditional medicine for their widely known antimicrobial properties and represent a promising reservoir of bioactive compounds against multidrug-resistant pathogens. Endophytes may contribute to the yield and composition of EOs, representing a useful tool for biotechnological applications. In this work, we investigated the genomic basis of this potential contribution.

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