Cytokines,Chaperones and Neuroinflammatory Responses in Heroin-Related Death: What Can We Learn from Different Patterns of Cellular Expression?

Heroin (3,6-diacetylmorphine) has various effects on the central nervous system with several neuropathological alterations including hypoxic-ischemic brain damage from respiratory depressing effects and neuroinflammatory response. Both of these mechanisms induce the release of cytokines, chemokines and other inflammatory mediators by the activation of many cell types such as leucocytes and endothelial and glial cells, especially microglia, the predominant immunocompetent cell type within the central nervous system. The aim of this study is to clarify the correlation between intravenous heroin administration in heroin related death and the neuroinflammatory response. We selected 45 cases among autopsies executed for heroin-related death (358 total cases); immunohistochemical studies and Western blotting analyses were used to investigate the expression of brain markers such as tumor necrosis factor-α, oxygen-regulated protein 150, (interleukins) IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-15, cyclooxygenase-2, heat shock protein 70, and CD68 (MAC387). Findings demonstrated that morphine induces inflammatory response and cytokine release. In particular, oxygen-regulated protein 150, cyclooxygenase-2, heat shock protein 70, IL-6 and IL-15 cytokines were over-expressed with different patterns of cellular expression.     

Possible impacts of Hg and PAH contamination on benthic foraminiferal assemblages: an example from the Sicilian coast, central Mediterranean

The Palermo and Augusta urban/industrial areas (Sicily) are examples of contaminated coastal environments with a relatively high influx of unregulated industrial and domestic effluents. Three sediment box-cores were collected offshore of these urban/industrial areas in water depths of 60-150 m during two cruises (summers 2003/2004), dated by (210)Pb and (137)Cs, and analysed for total mercury concentration and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentration. Benthic foraminiferal assemblages were also examined (in terms of their distribution and morphology) to assess the potential use of benthic foraminifera as bioindicators of pollutant input and environmental change in these Mediterranean shelf environments. The Hg and PAHs vs depth profiles show a clear increase in concentration with decreasing depth. Most of the sediments are highly enriched in mercury and show concentrations more than 20 times the background mercury value estimated for sediments from the Sicily Strait. The Hg and PAH concentrations appear to be potentially hazardous, grossly exceeding national and international regulatory guidelines. A reduction in abundance of benthic foraminifera, increasing percentages of tests with various morphological deformities, and the dominance of opportunistic species in more recent sediments can be correlated to anthropogenic impact.     

LaFeO3 ceramics as selective oxygen sensors at mild temperature

In this study, an investigation about the oxygen sensing properties of lanthanum orthoferrite (LaFeO₃) ceramics is reported. LaFeO₃ nanoparticles were synthesized by using tartaric sol-gel route and annealed in air at different temperatures (500, 700 and 900 °C). The samples have been characterized by using thermal analysis (TA), BET surface area and porosity, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results of sensing tests indicate that LaFeO₃ nanoparticles exhibit good response to oxygen at mild temperatures (300–450 °C). The effect of annealing temperature on gas sensing performance was investigated, demonstrating that LaFeO₃ ceramics obtained after annealing at 500 °C display better characteristics with respect to others. The oxygen sensor developed shows also high stability in humid environment and excellent selectivity to oxygen over other interfering gases such as CO, NO₂, CO₂, H₂ and ethanol.     

Inkjet Printing of All Aqueous Inks to Flexible Microcapacitors for High-Energy Storage

Due to the low energy density of commercial printable dielectrics, printed capacitors occupy a significant printing area and weight in printed electronics. It has long remained challenging to develop novel dielectric materials with printability and high-energy storage density. Herein, a novel strategy for inkjet printing of all aqueous colloidal inks to dielectric capacitors composed of carbon nanotube electrodes and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)-based dielectrics is presented. The formulated dielectric ink is composed of negatively charged PVDF latex nanoparticles complexed with cationic chitosan molecules. Beyond the isoelectric point, the PVDF@Chitosan particles demonstrate excellent printability and film-forming properties. Chitosan serves as a strong binder to improve the printed film quality yet it introduces charged species. To mitigate the transport of mobile charges, the printed PVDF@Chitosan film is interlayered with a layer of boron nitride nanosheets. This layer is perpendicular to the electric field and serves as an efficient barrier to block the transport and the avalanche of charges, eventually leading to a recoverable energy density of 15 J cm⁻³ at 610 MV m⁻¹. This energy density represents the highest value among the waterborne dielectrics. It is also superior to most of the state-of-the-art dielectric materials printed from solvent-based formulations.     

High-Energy-Density Waterborne Dielectrics from Polyelectrolyte-Colloid Complexes

To meet the demands of miniaturization and integration of next-generation power systems, a major challenge is to improve the energy density of used dielectric capacitors. Polymer nanocomposites are of great potential for high-energy-density capacitors. However, most of them are prepared via melt blending at high temperatures or solution processing in hazardous organic solvents, which are energy consuming and environmentally problematic. It has long remained economically and ecologically challenging to develop new dielectric materials. Here, a class of high-energy-density dielectrics made by electrostatically complexing polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) latex with oppositely charged chitosan in an aqueous phase is reported. At the charge neutralization point, the film of PVDF@Chitosan complexes demonstrates the highest breakdown strength (630 MV m⁻¹) and recoverable energy density (10.1 J cm⁻³), which are respectively 279% and 421% higher than the bare PVDF latex film, and far beyond most of the conventional solvent- or melt-processed polymer films. The largely improved capacitive performances are ascribed to the significant minimization of losses at the critical charge neutralization point. The concept can be extended to a wide range of colloids, including polystyrene latex and aqueous bentonite suspension, highlighting the versatility of the proposed approach to develop environmentally friendly high-performance capacitors.