Connexin 43 and Connexin 26 Involvement in the Ponatinib-Induced Cardiomyopathy: Sex-Related Differences in a Murine Model

Cardiac connexins (Cxs) are proteins responsible for proper heart function. They form gap junctions that mediate electrical and chemical signalling throughout the cardiac system, and thus enable a synchronized contraction. Connexins can also individually participate in many signal transduction pathways, interacting with intracellular proteins at various cellular compartments. Altered connexin expression and localization have been described in diseased myocardium and the aim of this study is to assess the involvement of Cx43, Cx26, and some related molecules in ponatinib-induced cardiac toxicity. Ponatinib is a new multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitor that has been successfully used against human malignancies, but its cardiotoxicity remains worrisome. Therefore, understanding its signaling mechanism is important to adopt potential anti cardiac damage strategies. Our experiments were performed on hearts from male and female mice treated with ponatinib and with ponatinib plus siRNA-Notch1 by using immunofluorescence, Western blotting, and proteomic analyses. The altered cardiac function and the change in Cxs expression observed in mice after ponatinib treatment, were results dependent on the Notch1 pathway and sex. Females showed a lower susceptibility to ponatinib than males. The downmodulation of cardiac Cx43, Cx26 and miR-122, high pS368-Cx43 phosphorylation, cell viability and survival activation could represent some of the female adaptative/compensatory reactions to ponatinib cardiotoxicity.     

Modeling of solid—liquid adsorption: Effects of adsorbent loads on model parameters

The adsorption of cobalt phthalocyanine dye onto activated carbon in a continuous stirred tank adsorber was studied. The variables investigated were: adsorbent mass, adsorbent particle size and fluid flowrate. Several models based on film, pore and surface diffusion were constructed and fitted to the experimental data. Experimental results showed: (i) the increasing importance of the film mass transfer resistance for increasing adsorbent loads; (ii) the increasing importance of the surface diffusion mechanism for increasing adsorbent loads; and (iii) the better discrimination among different models for higher adsorbent loads and lower flowrate.     

Cellular and Molecular Signatures of Oxidative Stress in Bronchial Epithelial Cell Models Injured by Cigarette Smoke Extract

Exposure of the airways epithelium to environmental insults, including cigarette smoke, results in increased oxidative stress due to unbalance between oxidants and antioxidants in favor of oxidants. Oxidative stress is a feature of inflammation and promotes the progression of chronic lung diseases, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Increased oxidative stress leads to exhaustion of antioxidant defenses, alterations in autophagy/mitophagy and cell survival regulatory mechanisms, thus promoting cell senescence. All these events are amplified by the increase of inflammation driven by oxidative stress. Several models of bronchial epithelial cells are used to study the molecular mechanisms and the cellular functions altered by cigarette smoke extract (CSE) exposure, and to test the efficacy of molecules with antioxidant properties. This review offers a comprehensive synthesis of human in-vitro and ex-vivo studies published from 2011 to 2021 describing the molecular and cellular mechanisms evoked by CSE exposure in bronchial epithelial cells, the most used experimental models and the mechanisms of action of cellular antioxidants systems as well as natural and synthetic antioxidant compounds.     

Growth and photoelectrochemical behaviour of electrodeposited ZnO thin films for solar cells

Thin zinc oxide films were deposited potentiostatically from zinc nitrate aqueous solutions on ITO substrates. The influence of experimental parameters (temperature, electrolyte concentration, deposition potential) on structure and morphology of films was investigated. Deposited films were generally polycrystalline in structure, even if growth according to preferential planes occurs in certain conditions. The effect of thermal treatments in air at 150 and 350 °C was also studied. In some cases, Cl species were incorporated into deposit by adding zinc chloride to the electrolyte. A photoelectrochemical investigation, performed in neutral solution before and after thermal treatment, gives more information on film structure and reveals improvement of n-type semiconducting properties after annealing, suggesting diminution of defects and traps originated from the disordered regions of the oxide. In fact, after thermal treatment, the optical gap of the films decreases towards the value reported for the crystalline oxide. No apparent benefits in the semiconducting properties of the films were observed after incorporation of Cl species into the films.     

Identification and analysis of isothiocyanates and new acylated anthocyanins in the juice of Raphanus sativus cv. Sango sprouts

The freeze-dried sprouts’ juice of Raphanus sativus (L.) cv. Sango was prepared and analysed for the first time. HPLC analysis of total isothiocyanates, after protein displacement, resulted in 77.8 ± 3.0 μmol/g of dry juice while GC–MS analysis of hexane and acetone extracts showed E- and Z-raphasatin (8.9 and 0.11 μmol/g, respectively) and sulforaphene (11.7 μmol/g), summing up to 20.7 ± 1.7 μmol/g of free isothiocyanates. Sprouts’ juice contained an unprecedented wealth of anthocyanins and a new fractionation methodology allowed us to isolate 34 mg/g of acylated anthocyanins (28.3 ± 1.9 μmol/g), belonging selectively to the cyanidin family. Analysis was performed by HPLC–PDA–ESI–MSⁿ and extended to deacylated anthocyanins and aglycones, obtained, respectively, by alkaline and acid hydrolysis. This study identified 70 anthocyanins, 19 of which have never been described before and 32 of which are reported here in R. sativus for the first time. Sango radish sprouts are exceptional dietary sources of heath-promoting micronutrients.     

Detection, quantification and vitality of Listeria monocytogenes in food as determined by quantitative PCR

In this paper we describe the development of a quantitative PCR (qPCR) technique to detect, quantify and determine the vitality of Listeria monocytogenes in foods. The method was based on the amplification of the intergenic region spacer (IGS) between the 16S and 23S rRNA genes. A panel of more than 100 strains of Listeria spp. and non-Listeria was used in order to verify the specificity of the primers and Taqman probe and amplification signals were obtained only when L. monocytogenes DNA and RNA were loaded in the qPCR mix. Standard curves were constructed in several food matrices (milk, meat, soft cheese, fermented sausage, cured ham and ready-to-eat salad). The quantification limit was of 10(3)-10(4) cfu/g or ml, while for the determination of vitality it was 10(4)-10(5) cfu/g or ml. After an overnight enrichment in BHI at 37 degrees C also 10 cfu/g or ml could be detected in all the matrices used in this study. When we applied the protocol to food samples collected from the market or from small food processing plants, on a total number of 66 samples, 4 fresh cheeses from raw milk gave positive results prior to the overnight incubation, while 9 samples, of which only one represented by fresh meat and the others by cheeses from raw milk, were positive after the enrichment. Out of the 4 positive samples, only one could be quantified and it was determined to contain 4x10(3) cfu/g.     

Spoilage of blood sausages morcilla de Burgos treated with high hydrostatic pressure

In this study, the microbial ecology of the blood sausage morcilla de Burgos, subjected to high hydrostatic pressure treatment (HPP), was studied by culture-dependent and -independent methods. Morcilla de Burgos is the most traditional and famous blood sausage in Spain. The producers are interested in extending its shelf-life in order to expand their market and to reduce losses attributed to spoilage. Sausage batter prior to stuffing and blood sausages HPP treated or not (control) were analyzed at 0, 9, 14, 21, 28 and 35 days of storage at 4 degrees C. Lactic acid bacteria, Pseudomonas spp. and aerobic mesophilic bacteria were investigated by traditional plating. PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) was used to analyze the DNA and the RNA extracted directly from the blood sausages, as well as bulk cells of LAB and Pseudomonas spp. The results showed that HPP improved the shelf life of morcilla de Burgos to 28 days in comparison with control samples. The populations responsible for spoilage, namely LAB, remained lower in HPP treated samples when compared with the control samples. Only at 35 days of storage they reached values of 10(8) cfu/g, leading to the spoilage of the product. Although, HPP affected the LAB population, they were able to recover the injury provoked by the treatment. Lastly, HPP seemed to affect differently LAB species detected. While Leuconostoc mesenteroides was completely inactivated by HPP, Weissella viridescens was able to recover and carry out the typical spoilage of the product. Pseudomonas spp. remained under detection level (<10(2) CFU/g) after the HPP treatment.     

Coupling passive air sampling with emission estimates and chemical fate modeling for persistent organic pollutants (POPs): a feasibility study for Northern Europe

Passive air samplers (polyurethane foam disks) were deployed at 23 background locations along a broadly west-east transect in 8 northern European countries and analyzed for PCBs, PBDEs, PAHs, and a range of organochlorine pesticides (HCB, DDTs, and DDEs). PCBs and PAHs were highest at the center of the transect (Denmark) and lowest in northern Norway. HCB was relatively uniformly distributed, reflecting its persistence and high degree of mixing in air. Higher DDE and DDT levels occurred in Eastern Europe and at several sites in Central Europe. PBDE levels were generally similar at all sites, but lower for some locations in Eastern Europe and Ireland. Emissions information for PCBs, HCB, and PBDEs was used as input for a multi-media chemical fate model, to generate predicted air concentrations and compare with these measured values. Different scenarios were highlighted by this exercise: (i) country and compound combinations where the national inventory gave predicted air concentrations in close agreement with those measured (e.g., PCBs in the UK); (ii) country and compound combinations where predicted concentrations were well below those measured, but where advection of emissions from elsewhere is likely to be important (e.g., PCBs in Norway); (iii) consistent underestimation of compound concentrations by the emissions modeling (i.e., HCB); and (iv) general overestimation of ambient concentrations (i.e., PBDEs). Air mass trajectory analysis showed the likely role of long-range atmospheric transport (LRAT) on national levels. In general, advection from the south and west of Europe appeared to contribute to ambient POPs levels for countries in the center and northeast of the transect. Guidelines are presented as to how countries that want to assess their POPs source inventories can do so with this relatively cheap initial screening approach.     

Lactic acid bacteria ecology of three traditional fermented sausages produced in the North of Italy as determined by molecular methods

In this study the bacterial biodiversity during the maturation process of three traditional sausages produced in the North of Italy (Salame bergamasco, Salame cremonese and Salame mantovano) was investigated by using culture-dependent and -independent methods. Eleven plants, in the three provinces considered here, were selected because starter cultures were never used in the production. The bacterial ecology, as determined by plate counts, was dominated by lactic acid bacteria (LAB), with minor contribution of coagulase negative cocci and yeasts. After molecular identification of 486 LAB strains, the species more frequently isolated were Lactobacillus sakei and Lactobacillus curvatus. This evidence was also confirmed by PCR-Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE). All the samples analyzed were characterized by the constant presence of L. sakei and L. curvatus bands. A richer biodiversity was only detected at the beginning of maturation. The results obtained by the molecular characterization of the L. sakei and L. curvatus and by the cluster analysis of the DGGE profiles highlighted a plant-specific population, rather than a geographic characterization of the products, underlining how the environmental and processing conditions are able to select specific microbiota responsible for the main transformations during the fermentation and ripening of the sausages.