1
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Colloca A, Donisi I, Anastasio C, Balestrieri ML, D’Onofrio N. Metabolic Alteration Bridging the Prediabetic State and Colorectal Cancer. Cells 2024; 13:663. [PMID: 38667278 PMCID: PMC11049175 DOI: 10.3390/cells13080663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2024] [Revised: 04/05/2024] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Prediabetes and colorectal cancer (CRC) represent compelling health burdens responsible for high mortality and morbidity rates, sharing several modifiable risk factors. It has been hypothesized that metabolic abnormalities linking prediabetes and CRC are hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, and adipokines imbalance. The chronic stimulation related to these metabolic signatures can favor CRC onset and development, as well as negatively influence CRC prognosis. To date, the growing burden of prediabetes and CRC has generated a global interest in defining their epidemiological and molecular relationships. Therefore, a deeper knowledge of the metabolic impairment determinants is compelling to identify the pathological mechanisms promoting the onset of prediabetes and CRC. In this scenario, this review aims to provide a comprehensive overview on the metabolic alterations of prediabetes and CRC as well as an overview of recent preventive and therapeutic approaches for both diseases, focusing on the role of the metabolic state as a pivotal contributor to consider for the development of future preventive and therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Nunzia D’Onofrio
- Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Via L. De Crecchio 7, 80138 Naples, Italy; (A.C.); (I.D.); (C.A.); (M.L.B.)
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2
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Amabile C, Abate T, Marcos E, Chianese S, Musmarra D, Muñoz R. Exploring New Strategies for Optimizing the Production of Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate- co-3-hydroxyvalerate) from Methane and VFAs in Synthetic Cocultures and Mixed Methanotrophic Consortia. ACS Sustain Chem Eng 2024; 12:4690-4699. [PMID: 38516398 PMCID: PMC10954047 DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.3c08570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
In this work, the potential of a synthetic coculture and a mixed methanotrophic consortium to synthesize poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) from renewable and waste-based feedstocks was assessed batchwise. Methylocystis parvuscocultivated with Rhodococcus opacus and a Methylocystis-enriched culture previously grown on methane were subjected to nutrient starvation in a medium enriched with valeric acid (30% w w-1 of Ctot) or with a VFAs mixture containing acetic, propionic, butyric, and valeric acids (15% w w-1 of Ctot) under a CH4:O2 or air atmosphere. For all test series, pH was adjusted to 7 after adding the cosubstrates, and a negligible substrate consumption or polymer production was considered the end point of the trial. Results showed that valeric acid promoted PHBV accumulation in both cultures regardless of the atmosphere. Interestingly, the mixture of VFAs supported PHBV accumulation only in the presence of methane. The highest PHBV contents for the coculture and the mixed consortium, equal to 73.7 ± 2.5% w w-1 and 49.6 ± 13% w w-1, respectively, were obtained with methane and the VFAs mixture. This study demonstrates the suitability of cocultures and biobased cosubstrates for the sustainable production of the biodegradable polymer PHBV.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Amabile
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
- Institute
of Sustainable Processes, University of
Valladolid, Dr. Mergelina,
s/n, Valladolid 47011, Spain
| | - Teresa Abate
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
- Institute
of Sustainable Processes, University of
Valladolid, Dr. Mergelina,
s/n, Valladolid 47011, Spain
| | - Enrique Marcos
- Institute
of Sustainable Processes, University of
Valladolid, Dr. Mergelina,
s/n, Valladolid 47011, Spain
| | - Simeone Chianese
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
| | - Dino Musmarra
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, Aversa 81031, Italy
| | - Raul Muñoz
- Institute
of Sustainable Processes, University of
Valladolid, Dr. Mergelina,
s/n, Valladolid 47011, Spain
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3
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Liu Y, Di Stasio F, Bi C, Zhang J, Xia Z, Shi Z, Manna L. Near-Infrared Light Emitting Metal Halides: Materials, Mechanisms, and Applications. Adv Mater 2024:e2312482. [PMID: 38380797 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202312482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2023] [Revised: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Near-Infrared (NIR) light emitting metal halides are emerging as a new generation of optical materials owing to their appealing features, which include low-cost synthesis, solution processability, and adjustable optical properties. NIR-emitting perovskite-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) have reached an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of over 20% and a device stability of over 10,000 h. Such results have sparked an interest in exploring new NIR metal halide emitters. In this review, several different types of NIR-emitting metal halides, including lead/tin bromide/iodide perovskites, lanthanide ions doped/based metal halides, double perovskites, low dimensional hybrid and Bi3+ /Sb3+ /Cr3+ doped metal halides, are summarized, and their recent advancement is assessed. The characteristics and mechanisms of narrow-band or broadband NIR luminescence in all these materials are discussed in detail. Also, the various applications of NIR-emitting metal halides are highlighted and an outlook for the field is provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Liu
- Key Laboratory of Materials Physics of Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, China
| | - Francesco Di Stasio
- Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, Genova, 16163, Italy
| | - Chenghao Bi
- Qingdao Innovation and Development Base, Harbin Engineering University, Sansha Str. 1777, Qingdao, 266500, China
| | - Jibin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Materials Physics of Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, China
| | - Zhiguo Xia
- The State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, School of Physics and Optoelectronics, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510641, China
| | - Zhifeng Shi
- Key Laboratory of Materials Physics of Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, China
| | - Liberato Manna
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, Genova, 16163, Italy
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4
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Solidoro R, Centonze A, Miciaccia M, Baldelli OM, Armenise D, Ferorelli S, Perrone MG, Scilimati A. Fluorescent imaging probes for in vivo ovarian cancer targeted detection and surgery. Med Res Rev 2024. [PMID: 38367227 DOI: 10.1002/med.22027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/25/2024] [Indexed: 02/19/2024]
Abstract
Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecological cancer, with a survival rate of approximately 40% at five years from the diagno. The first-line treatment consists of cytoreductive surgery combined with chemotherapy (platinum- and taxane-based drugs). To date, the main prognostic factor is related to the complete surgical resection of tumor lesions, including occult micrometastases. The presence of minimal residual diseases not detected by visual inspection and palpation during surgery significantly increases the risk of disease relapse. Intraoperative fluorescence imaging systems have the potential to improve surgical outcomes. Fluorescent tracers administered to the patient may support surgeons for better real-time visualization of tumor lesions during cytoreductive procedures. In the last decade, consistent with the discovery of an increasing number of ovarian cancer-specific targets, a wide range of fluorescent agents were identified to be employed for intraoperatively detecting ovarian cancer. Here, we present a collection of fluorescent probes designed and developed for fluorescence-guided ovarian cancer surgery. Original articles published between 2011 and November 2022 focusing on fluorescent probes, currently under preclinical and clinical investigation, were searched in PubMed. The keywords used were targeted detection, ovarian cancer, fluorescent probe, near-infrared fluorescence, fluorescence-guided surgery, and intraoperative imaging. All identified papers were English-language full-text papers, and probes were classified based on the location of the biological target: intracellular, membrane, and extracellular.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberta Solidoro
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Antonella Centonze
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Morena Miciaccia
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Olga Maria Baldelli
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Domenico Armenise
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Savina Ferorelli
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | | | - Antonio Scilimati
- Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
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5
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Nibid L, Greco C, Cordelli E, Sabarese G, Fiore M, Liu CZ, Ippolito E, Sicilia R, Miele M, Tortora M, Taffon C, Rakaee M, Soda P, Ramella S, Perrone G. Deep pathomics: A new image-based tool for predicting response to treatment in stage III non-small cell lung cancer. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0294259. [PMID: 38015944 PMCID: PMC10684067 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0294259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite the advantages offered by personalized treatments, there is presently no way to predict response to chemoradiotherapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this exploratory study, we investigated the application of deep learning techniques to histological tissue slides (deep pathomics), with the aim of predicting the response to therapy in stage III NSCLC. We evaluated 35 digitalized tissue slides (biopsies or surgical specimens) obtained from patients with stage IIIA or IIIB NSCLC. Patients were classified as responders (12/35, 34.7%) or non-responders (23/35, 65.7%) based on the target volume reduction shown on weekly CT scans performed during chemoradiation treatment. Digital tissue slides were tested by five pre-trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs)-AlexNet, VGG, MobileNet, GoogLeNet, and ResNet-using a leave-two patient-out cross validation approach, and we evaluated the networks' performances. GoogLeNet was globally found to be the best CNN, correctly classifying 8/12 responders and 10/11 non-responders. Moreover, Deep-Pathomics was found to be highly specific (TNr: 90.1) and quite sensitive (TPr: 0.75). Our data showed that AI could surpass the capabilities of all presently available diagnostic systems, supplying additional information beyond that currently obtainable in clinical practice. The ability to predict a patient's response to treatment could guide the development of new and more effective therapeutic AI-based approaches and could therefore be considered an effective and innovative step forward in personalised medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Nibid
- Research Unit of Anatomical Pathology, Department of of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Anatomical Pathology Operative Research Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Carlo Greco
- Radiation Oncology, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Radiation Oncology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Ermanno Cordelli
- Unit of Computer Systems and Bioinformatics, Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanna Sabarese
- Anatomical Pathology Operative Research Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Michele Fiore
- Radiation Oncology, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Radiation Oncology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Charles Z. Liu
- Unit of Computer Systems and Bioinformatics, Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Edy Ippolito
- Radiation Oncology, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Radiation Oncology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Rosa Sicilia
- Unit of Computer Systems and Bioinformatics, Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Marianna Miele
- Radiation Oncology, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Radiation Oncology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Matteo Tortora
- Unit of Computer Systems and Bioinformatics, Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Taffon
- Research Unit of Anatomical Pathology, Department of of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Anatomical Pathology Operative Research Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Mehrdad Rakaee
- Department of Clinical Pathology, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Paolo Soda
- Unit of Computer Systems and Bioinformatics, Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Department of Radiation Sciences, Radiation Physics, Biomedical Engineering, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Sara Ramella
- Radiation Oncology, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Radiation Oncology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Perrone
- Research Unit of Anatomical Pathology, Department of of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Anatomical Pathology Operative Research Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
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6
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Neglia G, Calabrò S, Cotticelli A, Salzano A, Matera R, Vastolo A, D'Onofrio N, Giorgino A, Martino E, Balestrieri ML, Campanile G. Use of former food products in dairy buffalo nutrition: In vitro and in vivo evaluation. J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr (Berl) 2023; 107:1347-1355. [PMID: 37195024 DOI: 10.1111/jpn.13830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
A feeding strategy that maintains high content of functional molecules in buffalo milk has been verified by giving Sorghum vulgare as green fodder, but it is not available all year round. The aim of this study was to evaluate the inclusion of former food products (FFPs) containing 87% biscuit meal (nonstructural carbohydrate: 60.1%; starch 14.7; crude protein 10.6), in the diet of buffaloes in terms of: (a) fermentation characteristics through gas production technique; (b) milk yield (MY) and quality; (c) content of some biomolecules and total antioxidant activity. The experiment was performed involving 50 buffaloes divided into two groups: Green group and FFPs group (animals fed Total Mixed Ration with either green forage or FFPs respectively). Daily MY was recorded and milk qualitative analyses were determined monthly for 90 days. Furthermore, fermentation characteristics of the diets were studied in vitro. No significant differences were recorded in feed intake, BCS and MY and quality. Similar in vitro fermentation data of two diets were found, with slight differences in terms of gas production and degradability. During the incubation, kinetic parameters showed a faster fermentation process with the diet of the FFPs group in relation to Green group (p < 0.05). Green group had higher levels (p < 0.01) of γ-butyrobetaine, glycine betaine, l-carnitine and propionyl l-carnitine in milk, whereas no differences were observed for δ-valerobetaine and acetyl l-carnitine. Total antioxidant capacity and iron reduction antioxidant assay were higher (p < 0.05) in the plasma and milk of the Green group. The administration of a diet high in simple sugars, obtained with FFPs, seems to favour the ruminal biosynthesis of some metabolites in milk, such as δ-valerobetaine and acetyl- l-carnitine, similar to green forage administration. Overall, the use of biscuit meal can be an alternative to green fodder when it is not available to ensure environmental sustainability and optimize costs without compromising milk quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianluca Neglia
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Serena Calabrò
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Alessio Cotticelli
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Angela Salzano
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Roberta Matera
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Alessandro Vastolo
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Nunzia D'Onofrio
- Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
| | | | - Elisa Martino
- Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
| | - Maria L Balestrieri
- Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Campanile
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
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7
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Grasselli C, Bombelli S, D'Esposito V, Di Tolla MF, L'Imperio V, Rocchio F, Miscione MS, Formisano P, Pagni F, Novelli R, Ruffini PA, Aramini A, Allegretti M, Perego R, De Filippis L. The therapeutic potential of an allosteric non-competitive CXCR1/2 antagonist for diabetic nephropathy. Diabetes Metab Res Rev 2023; 39:e3694. [PMID: 37470287 DOI: 10.1002/dmrr.3694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2023] [Revised: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023]
Abstract
AIMS Diabetic nephropathy is a major consequence of inflammation developing in type 1 diabetes, with interleukin-8 (IL-8)-CXCR1/2 axis playing a key role in kidney disease progression. In this study, we investigated the therapeutic potential of a CXCR1/2 non-competitive allosteric antagonist (Ladarixin) in preventing high glucose-mediated injury in human podocytes and epithelial cells differentiated from renal stem/progenitor cells (RSC) cultured as nephrospheres. MATERIALS AND METHODS We used human RSCs cultured as nephrospheres through a sphere-forming functional assay to investigate hyperglycemia-mediated effects on IL-8 signalling in human podocytes and tubular epithelial cells. RESULTS High glucose impairs RSC self-renewal, induces an increase in IL-8 transcript expression and protein secretion and induces DNA damage in RSC-differentiated podocytes, while exerting no effect on RSC-differentiated epithelial cells. Accordingly, the supernatant from epithelial cells or podocytes cultured in high glucose was able to differentially activate leucocyte-mediated secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines, suggesting that the crosstalk between immune and non-immune cells may be involved in disease progression in vivo. CONCLUSIONS Treatment with Ladarixin during RSC differentiation prevented high glucose-mediated effects on podocytes and modulated either podocyte or epithelial cell-dependent leucocyte secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines, suggesting CXCR1/2 antagonists as possible pharmacological approaches for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Grasselli
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy
| | - Silvia Bombelli
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy
| | - Vittoria D'Esposito
- Department of Translational Medical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | | | - Vincenzo L'Imperio
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy
- Pathology Department, IRCCS Fondazione San Gerardo dei Tintori, Monza, Italy
| | | | | | - Pietro Formisano
- Department of Translational Medical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Fabio Pagni
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy
- Pathology Department, IRCCS Fondazione San Gerardo dei Tintori, Monza, Italy
| | - Rubina Novelli
- Research and Development, Dompé Farmaceutici S.p.A., Milano, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Roberto Perego
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy
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8
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Livakas N, Toso S, Ivanov YP, Das T, Chakraborty S, Divitini G, Manna L. CsPbCl 3 → CsPbI 3 Exchange in Perovskite Nanocrystals Proceeds through a Jump-the-Gap Reaction Mechanism. J Am Chem Soc 2023; 145:20442-20450. [PMID: 37691231 PMCID: PMC10515632 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c06214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023]
Abstract
Halide exchange is a popular strategy to tune the properties of CsPbX3 nanocrystals after synthesis. However, while Cl → Br and Br → I exchanges proceed through the formation of stable mixed-halide nanocrystals, the Cl ⇌ I exchange is more elusive. Indeed, the large size difference between chloride and iodide ions causes a miscibility gap in the CsPbCl3-CsPbI3 system, preventing the isolation of stable CsPb(ClxI1-x)3 nanocrystals. Yet, previous works have claimed that a full CsPbCl3 → CsPbI3 exchange can be achieved. Even more interestingly, interrupting the exchange prematurely yields a mixture of CsPbCl3 and CsPbI3 nanocrystals that coexist without undergoing further transformation. Here, we investigate the reaction mechanism of CsPbCl3 → CsPbI3 exchange in nanocrystals. We show that the reaction proceeds through the early formation of iodide-doped CsPbCl3 nanocrystals covered by a monolayer shell of CsI. These nanocrystals then leap over the miscibility gap between CsPbCl3 and CsPbI3 by briefly transitioning to short-lived and nonrecoverable CsPb(ClxI1-x)3 nanocrystals, which quickly expel the excess chloride and turn into the chloride-doped CsPbI3 nanocrystals found in the final product.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolaos Livakas
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università
di Genova, 16146 Genova, Italy
| | - Stefano Toso
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Yurii P. Ivanov
- Electron
Spectroscopy and Nanoscopy, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Tisita Das
- Materials
Theory for Energy Scavenging (MATES) Lab, Department of Physics, Harish-Chandra Research Institute (HRI), A CI of Homi
Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Chhatnag Road, Jhunsi, Prayagraj 211019, India
| | - Sudip Chakraborty
- Materials
Theory for Energy Scavenging (MATES) Lab, Department of Physics, Harish-Chandra Research Institute (HRI), A CI of Homi
Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Chhatnag Road, Jhunsi, Prayagraj 211019, India
| | - Giorgio Divitini
- Electron
Spectroscopy and Nanoscopy, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Liberato Manna
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
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9
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Liu Z, Pascazio R, Goldoni L, Maggioni D, Zhu D, Ivanov YP, Divitini G, Camarelles JL, Jalali HB, Infante I, De Trizio L, Manna L. Colloidal InAs Tetrapods: Impact of Surfactants on the Shape Control. J Am Chem Soc 2023; 145:18329-18339. [PMID: 37608781 PMCID: PMC10450814 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c03906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
We have approached the synthesis of colloidal InAs nanocrystals (NCs) using amino-As and ligands that are different from the commonly employed oleylamine (OA). We found that carboxylic and phosphonic acids led only to oxides, whereas tri-n-octylphosphine, dioctylamine, or trioctylamine (TOA), when employed as the sole ligands, yielded InAs NCs with irregular sizes and a broad size distribution. Instead, various combinations of TOA and OA delivered InAs NCs with good control over the size distribution, and the TOA:OA volume ratio of 4:1 generated InAs tetrapods with arm length of 5-6 nm. Contrary to tetrapods of II-VI materials, which have a zinc-blende core and wurtzite arms, these NCs are entirely zinc-blende, with arms growing along the ⟨111⟩ directions. They feature a narrow excitonic peak at ∼950 nm in absorption and a weak photoluminescence emission at 1050 nm. Our calculations indicated that the bandgap of the InAs tetrapods is mainly governed by the size of their core and not by their arm lengths when these are longer than ∼3 nm. Nuclear magnetic resonance analyses revealed that InAs tetrapods are mostly passivated by OA with only a minor fraction of TOA. Molecular dynamics simulations showed that OA strongly binds to the (111) facets whereas TOA weakly binds to the edges and corners of the NCs and their combined use (at high TOA:OA volume ratios) promotes growth along the ⟨111⟩ directions, eventually forming tetrapods. Our work highlights the use of mixtures of ligands as a means of improving control over InAs NCs size and size distribution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheming Liu
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università
di Genova, 16146 Genova, Italy
| | - Roberta Pascazio
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università
di Genova, 16146 Genova, Italy
| | - Luca Goldoni
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Daniela Maggioni
- Dipartimento
di Chimica, Università degli Studi
di Milano, Via Golgi 19, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Dongxu Zhu
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Yurii P. Ivanov
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Giorgio Divitini
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Jordi Llusar Camarelles
- BCMaterials,
Basque Center for Materials, Applications, and Nanostructures, UPV/EHU Science Park, Leioa 48940, Spain
| | - Houman Bahmani Jalali
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Ivan Infante
- BCMaterials,
Basque Center for Materials, Applications, and Nanostructures, UPV/EHU Science Park, Leioa 48940, Spain
- Ikerbasque
Basque Foundation for Science Bilbao 48009, Spain
| | - Luca De Trizio
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Liberato Manna
- Nanochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materials Characterization, Electron Spectroscopy
and Nanoscopy, Photonic Nanomaterials and Chemistry Facility, Istituto Italiano
di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
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10
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Macciò C, Melis A, Lodi MB, Garau E, Desogus F, Loddo A, Di Napoli F, Mazzarella G, Fanti A. Microwave Spectroscopy Investigation of Carasau Bread Doughs: Effects of Composition up to 8.5 GHz. Foods 2023; 12:2396. [PMID: 37372607 DOI: 10.3390/foods12122396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Carasau bread is a flat bread, typical of Sardinia (Italy). The market of this food product has a large growth potential, and its industry is experiencing a revolution, characterized by digitalization and automation. To monitor the quality of this food product at different manufacturing stages, microwave sensors and devices could be a cost-effective solution. In this framework, knowledge of the microwave response of Carasau dough is required. Thus far, the analysis of the microwave response of Carasau doughs through dielectric spectroscopy has been limited to the dynamics of fermentation. In this work, we aim to perform complex dielectric permittivity measurements up to 8.5 GHz, investigating and modeling the role of water amount, salt and yeast concentrations on the spectra of this food product. A third-order Cole-Cole model was used to interpret the microwave response of the different samples, resulting in a maximum error of 1.58% and 1.60% for the real and imaginary parts of permittivity, respectively. Thermogravimetric analysis was also performed to support the microwave spectroscopy investigation. We found that dielectric properties of Carasau bread doughs strongly depend on the water content. The analysis highlighted that an increase in water quantity tends to increase the bounded water fraction at the expense of the free water fraction. In particular, the free water amount in the dough is not related to the broadening parameter γ2 of the second pole, whereas the bound water weight fraction is more evident in the γ2 and σdc parameters. An increase in electrical conductivity was observed for increasing water content. The microwave spectrum of the real part of the complex permittivity is slightly affected by composition, while large variation in the imaginary part of the complex dielectric permittivity can be identified, especially for frequencies below 4 GHz. The methodology and data proposed and reported in this work can be used to design a microwave sensor for retrieving the composition of Carasau bread doughs through their dielectric signature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Macciò
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Andrea Melis
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Matteo Bruno Lodi
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Emanuele Garau
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Francesco Desogus
- Department of Mechanical, Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Antonio Loddo
- Il Vecchio Forno SUNALLE, Via Ogliastra, 10, 08023 Fonni, Italy
| | | | - Giuseppe Mazzarella
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - Alessandro Fanti
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
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11
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Lamanna L, Giacoia G, Friuli M, Leone G, Carlucci N, Russo F, Sannino A, Demitri C. Oil-Water Emulsion Flocculation through Chitosan Desolubilization Driven by pH Variation. ACS Omega 2023; 8:20708-20713. [PMID: 37332801 PMCID: PMC10268613 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c01257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023]
Abstract
Water pollution is a major concern in our modern age. The contamination of water, as a valuable and often limited resource, affects both the environment and human health. Industrial processes such as food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical production also contribute to this problem. Vegetable oil production, for example, generates a stable oil/water emulsion containing 0.5-5% oil, which presents a difficult waste disposal issue. Conventional treatment methods based on aluminum salts generate hazardous waste, highlighting the need for green and biodegradable coagulant agents. In this study, the efficacy of commercial chitosan, a natural polysaccharide derived from chitin deacetylation, has been evaluated as a coagulation agent for vegetable oil emulsions. The effect of commercial chitosan was assessed in relation to different surfactants (anionic, cationic, and nonpolar) and pH levels. The results demonstrate that chitosan is effective at concentrations as low as 300 ppm and can be reused, providing a cost-effective and sustainable solution for oil removal. The flocculation mechanism relies on the desolubilization of the polymer, which acts as a net to entrap the emulsion, rather than solely relying on electrostatic interactions with the particles. This study highlights the potential of chitosan as a natural and ecofriendly alternative to conventional coagulants for the remediation of oil-contaminated water.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Lamanna
- Department
of Engineering for Innovation, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, Via per Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
| | | | - Marco Friuli
- Department
of Engineering for Innovation, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, Via per Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Alessandro Sannino
- Department
of Engineering for Innovation, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, Via per Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
| | - Christian Demitri
- Department
of Engineering for Innovation, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, Via per Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
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12
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Meggiolaro D, Agostini M, Brutti S. Aprotic Sulfur-Metal Batteries: Lithium and Beyond. ACS Energy Lett 2023; 8:1300-1312. [PMID: 36937789 PMCID: PMC10012267 DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.2c02493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Metal-sulfur batteries constitute an extraordinary research playground that ranges from fundamental science to applied technologies. However, besides the widely explored Li-S system, a remarkable lack of understanding hinders advancements and performance in all other metal-sulfur systems. In fact, similarities and differences make all generalizations highly inconsistent, thus unavoidably suggesting the need for extensive research explorations for each formulation. Here we review critically the most remarkable open challenges that still hinder the full development of metal-S battery formulations, starting from the lithium benchmark and addressing Na, K, Mg, and Ca metal systems. Our aim is to draw an updated picture of the recent efforts in the field and to shed light on the most promising innovation paths that can pave the way to breakthroughs in the fundamental comprehension of these systems or in battery performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniele Meggiolaro
- Computational
Laboratory for Hybrid/Organic Photovoltaics (CLHYO), Istituto CNR di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Via Elce di Sotto 8, 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Marco Agostini
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Tecnologia del Farmaco, Università
di Roma La Sapienza, P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Roma, Italy
| | - Sergio Brutti
- Dipartimento
di Chimica, Università di Roma La
Sapienza, P.le Aldo Moro
5, 00185 Roma, Italy
- Consiglio
Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto dei Sistemi
Complessi, Piazzale Aldo
Moro 5, 00185 Roma, Italy
- GISEL-Centro
di Riferimento Nazionale per i Sistemi di Accumulo Elettrochimico
di Energia, INSTM via G. Giusti 9, 50121 Firenze, Italy
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13
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Spinelli G, Morritt GH, Pavone M, Probert MR, Waddell PG, Edvinsson T, Muñoz-García AB, Freitag M. Conductivity in Thin Films of Transition Metal Coordination Complexes. ACS Appl Energy Mater 2023; 6:2122-2127. [PMID: 36875350 PMCID: PMC9975959 DOI: 10.1021/acsaem.2c02999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Two coordination complexes have been made by combining the dithiolene complexes [M(mnt)2]2- (mnt = maleonitriledithiolate; M = Ni2+ or Cu2+) as anion, with the copper(II) coordination complex [Cu(Stetra)] (Stetra = 6,6'-bis(4,5-dihydrothiazol-2-yl)-2,2'-bipyri-dine) as cation. The variation of the metal centers leads to a dramatic change in the conductivity of the materials, with the M = Cu2+ variant (Cu-Cu) displaying semiconductor behavior with a conductivity of approximately 2.5 × 10-8 S cm-1, while the M = Ni2+ variant (Ni-Cu) displayed no observable conductivity. Computational studies found Cu-Cu enables a minimization of reorganization energy losses and, as a result, a lower barrier to the charge transfer process, resulting in the reported higher conductivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Spinelli
- School
of Natural and Environmental Science, Newcastle
University, Bedson Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - George H. Morritt
- School
of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics, Newcastle University, Herschel Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Michele Pavone
- Department
of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples
Federico II, Naples 80126, Italy
| | - Michael R. Probert
- School
of Natural and Environmental Science, Newcastle
University, Bedson Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Paul G. Waddell
- School
of Natural and Environmental Science, Newcastle
University, Bedson Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
| | - Tomas Edvinsson
- Department
of Materials Science and Engineering, Division of Solid-State Physics, Uppsala University, P.O. Box 35, Uppsala SE 75103, Sweden
| | - Ana Belén Muñoz-García
- Department
of Physics “Ettore Pancini″, University of Naples Federico II, Naples 80126, Italy
| | - Marina Freitag
- School
of Natural and Environmental Science, Newcastle
University, Bedson Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, United Kingdom
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14
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Tseberlidis G, Di Palma V, Trifiletti V, Frioni L, Valentini M, Malerba C, Mittiga A, Acciarri M, Binetti SO. Titania as Buffer Layer for Cd-Free Kesterite Solar Cells. ACS Mater Lett 2023; 5:219-224. [PMID: 36820000 PMCID: PMC9937559 DOI: 10.1021/acsmaterialslett.2c00933] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Pure sulfide kesterite (Cu2ZnSnS4) is one of the most promising emerging photovoltaic technologies thanks to its excellent absorption coefficient, cost-effectiveness, and environmental sustainability. However, record efficiencies are not exceeding 11% due to several issues, such as absorber defects or a nonoptimal band alignment with the toxic but conventionally used CdS buffer layer. To get rid of it, several efforts have been made in the past few years. Among recent theoretical works, TiO2 has been suggested as a suitable buffer layer due to its optical and electrical properties, giving extremely promising results in device simulation. However, there are few experimental examples combining TiO2 with kesterite, and they generally show very modest performances. In this Letter, we report on the preliminary and promising results of our experimental procedure for the production of Cd-free kesterite photovoltaic devices featuring ALD-TiO2 as a buffer layer, leading to efficiencies comparable with our CZTS/CdS reference devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgio Tseberlidis
- Department
of Materials Science and Solar Energy Research Center (MIB-SOLAR), University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cozzi 55, 20125, Milano, Italy
| | - Valerio Di Palma
- Department
of Materials Science and Solar Energy Research Center (MIB-SOLAR), University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cozzi 55, 20125, Milano, Italy
| | - Vanira Trifiletti
- Department
of Materials Science and Solar Energy Research Center (MIB-SOLAR), University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cozzi 55, 20125, Milano, Italy
| | - Luigi Frioni
- Department
of Materials Science and Solar Energy Research Center (MIB-SOLAR), University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cozzi 55, 20125, Milano, Italy
| | | | - Claudia Malerba
- ENEA
C.R. CASACCIA, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123, Roma, Italy
| | - Alberto Mittiga
- ENEA
C.R. CASACCIA, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123, Roma, Italy
| | - Maurizio Acciarri
- Department
of Materials Science and Solar Energy Research Center (MIB-SOLAR), University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cozzi 55, 20125, Milano, Italy
| | - Simona O. Binetti
- Department
of Materials Science and Solar Energy Research Center (MIB-SOLAR), University of Milano-Bicocca, Via Cozzi 55, 20125, Milano, Italy
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15
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Cataldo S, Muratore N, Giannici F, Bongiorno D, Chiodo V, Maisano S, Pettignano A. Hydrocarbons removal from synthetic bilge water by adsorption onto biochars of dead Posidonia oceanica. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 2022; 29:90231-90247. [PMID: 35869342 PMCID: PMC9722887 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-21998-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Bilge waters are wastewaters produced on boats during navigation and usually contain hydrocarbons and oils. They cannot be directly released into the sea if not below a hydrocarbons concentration limit set by current legislation. Appropriate oil in water separator (OWS) systems can be installed on board boats to remove hydrocarbons from bilge water allowing their spillage into the sea. These systems may contain an adsorption step on a suitable adsorbent. Here, biochars produced from pyrolysis of dead Posidonia oceanica, pristine or chemically activated, have been tested as hydrocarbons adsorbents. Adsorption experiments with aqueous dispersions simulating bilge waters containing a marine gas oil (MGO) fuel for boats, a surfactant, and different NaCl concentrations were carrying out. The hydrocarbons concentrations before and after adsorption have been directly measured by using the reverse phase HPLC technique coupled with a fluorescence detector. These measurements are very fast and their reliability was verified by re-measuring the hydrocarbons concentrations of some samples with the GC-MS-MS technique, according to one of the traditional methods for hydrocarbons determination in emulsions. Different isotherm equations were used to fit the adsorption data. The biochars were characterized from the chemical-structural point of view by means of several instrumental techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salvatore Cataldo
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Chimica - Emilio Segrè, Università di Palermo, V.le delle Scienze, ed. 17, 90128, Palermo, Italy
| | - Nicola Muratore
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Chimica - Emilio Segrè, Università di Palermo, V.le delle Scienze, ed. 17, 90128, Palermo, Italy
| | - Francesco Giannici
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Chimica - Emilio Segrè, Università di Palermo, V.le delle Scienze, ed. 17, 90128, Palermo, Italy
| | - David Bongiorno
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche, Chimiche e Farmaceutiche (STEBICEF), Università di Palermo, V.le delle Scienze, ed. 17, 90128, Palermo, Italy
| | - Vitaliano Chiodo
- Istituto CNR-ITAE, via Salita S. Lucia sopra Contesse 5, 98126, Messina, Italy
| | - Susanna Maisano
- Istituto CNR-ITAE, via Salita S. Lucia sopra Contesse 5, 98126, Messina, Italy
| | - Alberto Pettignano
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Chimica - Emilio Segrè, Università di Palermo, V.le delle Scienze, ed. 17, 90128, Palermo, Italy.
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16
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Liu Z, Zito J, Ghini M, Goldoni L, Prato M, Bahmani Jalali H, Infante I, De Trizio L, Manna L. Alloying Bi-Doped Cs 2Ag 1-xNa xInCl 6 Nanocrystals with K + Cations Modulates Surface Ligands Density and Photoluminescence Efficiency. Nano Lett 2022; 22:8567-8573. [PMID: 36288498 PMCID: PMC9650775 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c03112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
We show how, in the synthesis of yellow-emissive Bi-doped Cs2Ag1-xNaxInCl6 double perovskite nanocrystals (NCs), preventing the transient formation of Ag0 particles increases the photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of the NCs from ∼30% to ∼60%. Calculations indicate that the presence of even a single Ag0 species on the surface of a NC introduces deep trap states. The PL efficiency of these NCs is further increased to ∼70% by partial replacement of Na+ with K+ ions, up to a 7% K content, due to a lattice expansion that promotes a more favorable ligands packing on the NC surface, hence better surface passivation. A further increase in K+ lowers the PLQY, due to both the activation of nonradiative quenching channels and a lower oscillator strength of the BiCl6→AgCl6 transition (through which PL emission occurs). The work indicates how a deeper understanding of parameters influencing carrier trapping/relaxation can boost the PLQY of double perovskites NCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheming Liu
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università
degli Studi di Genova, Via Dodecaneso 31, 16146 Genova, Italy
| | - Juliette Zito
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università
degli Studi di Genova, Via Dodecaneso 31, 16146 Genova, Italy
| | - Michele Ghini
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Luca Goldoni
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Mirko Prato
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Houman Bahmani Jalali
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Ivan Infante
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Luca De Trizio
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Liberato Manna
- Nanochemistry, Functional Nanosystems, Materials Characterization, and Photonic Nanomaterials, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
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17
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Amabile C, Abate T, De Crescenzo C, Sabbarese S, Muñoz R, Chianese S, Musmarra D. Sustainable Process for the Production of Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate- co-3-hydroxyvalerate) from Renewable Resources: A Simulation Study. ACS Sustain Chem Eng 2022; 10:14230-14239. [PMID: 36340972 PMCID: PMC9632471 DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c04111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2022] [Revised: 09/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Bacterially produced polyhydroxyalkanoates are valuable substitutes for petrochemical plastics, but their current production capacities are very scarce. Producing poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHB-co-HV) from methane and odd-chain carbon fatty acids could make the production of this biodegradable polymer cost-effective. This study analyzes the main factors affecting methanotrophic growth and poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) accumulation, simulating a pilot-scale process based on a double-stage approach. The effects of the nitrogen source and the oxygen partial pressure during a 20 day growth phase were studied; the cosubstrate concentration, the culture selected, and the methane partial pressure were investigated during the poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) production stage performed within 15 days under nutrient starvation. Methylocystis parvus OBBP and Methylosinus thricosporum OB3b reached the maximum growth productivities with ammonium as the nitrogen source and oxygen at high partial pressure. The simulation of the PHB-co-HV accumulation revealed that methanotrophs could better accumulate the polymer with low valeric acid concentrations. A methane-abundant gas stream (0.5 atm of methane) could increase process yields up to 0.32 kg m-3 d-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Amabile
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, 81031Aversa, Italy
| | - Teresa Abate
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, 81031Aversa, Italy
| | - Carmen De Crescenzo
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, 81031Aversa, Italy
| | - Simona Sabbarese
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, 81031Aversa, Italy
| | - Raul Muñoz
- Institute
of Sustainable Processes, University of
Valladolid, Dr. Mergelina, s/n, 47011Valladolid, Spain
| | - Simeone Chianese
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, 81031Aversa, Italy
| | - Dino Musmarra
- Department
of Engineering, University of Campania “Luigi
Vanvitelli”, Via Roma 29, 81031Aversa, Italy
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18
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Liu Y, Zaffalon ML, Zito J, Cova F, Moro F, Fanciulli M, Zhu D, Toso S, Xia Z, Infante I, De Trizio L, Brovelli S, Manna L. Cu + → Mn 2+ Energy Transfer in Cu, Mn Coalloyed Cs 3ZnCl 5 Colloidal Nanocrystals. Chem Mater 2022; 34:8603-8612. [PMID: 36248232 PMCID: PMC9558458 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c01578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2022] [Revised: 09/03/2022] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
In this work, we report the hot-injection synthesis of Cs3ZnCl5 colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) with tunable amounts of Cu+ and Mn2+ substituent cations. All the samples had a rodlike morphology, with a diameter of ∼14 nm and a length of ∼30-100 nm. Alloying did not alter the crystal structure of the host Cs3ZnCl5 NCs, and Cu ions were mainly introduced in the oxidation state +1 according to X-ray photoelectron and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopies. The spectroscopic analysis of unalloyed, Cu-alloyed, Mn-alloyed, and Cu, Mn coalloyed NCs indicated that (i) the Cs3ZnCl5 NCs have a large band gap of ∼5.35 eV; (ii) Cu(I) aliovalent alloying leads to an absorption shoulder/peak at ∼4.8 eV and cyan photoluminescence (PL) peaked at 2.50 eV; (iii) Mn(II) isovalent alloying leads to weak Mn PL, which intensifies remarkably in the coalloyed samples, prompted by an energy transfer (ET) process between the Cu and Mn centers, favored by the overlap between the lowest (6A1 → 4T1) transition for tetrahedrally coordinated Mn2+ and the PL profile from Cu(I) species in the Cs3ZnCl5 NCs. The efficiency of this ET process reaches a value of 61% for the sample with the highest extent of Mn alloying. The PL quantum yield (QY) values in these Cu, Mn coalloyed NCs are lower at higher Mn contents. The analysis of the Mn PL dynamics in these samples indicates that this PL drop stems from inter-Mn exciton migration, which increases the likelihood of trapping in defect sites, in agreement with previous studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Liu
- Key
Laboratory of Materials Physics of Ministry of Education, School of
Physics and Microelectronics, Zhengzhou
University, Daxue Road 75, Zhengzhou 450052, China
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
| | - Matteo L. Zaffalon
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi Milano-Bicocca, via R. Cozzi 55, Milano 20125, Italy
| | - Juliette Zito
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industrial, Università
degli Studi di Genova, Via Dodecaneso 31, Genova 16146, Italy
| | - Francesca Cova
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi Milano-Bicocca, via R. Cozzi 55, Milano 20125, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Moro
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi Milano-Bicocca, via R. Cozzi 55, Milano 20125, Italy
| | - Marco Fanciulli
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi Milano-Bicocca, via R. Cozzi 55, Milano 20125, Italy
| | - Dongxu Zhu
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
| | - Stefano Toso
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
- International
Doctoral Program in Science, Università
Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 25121 Brescia, Italy
| | - Zhiguo Xia
- The
State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, Guangdong
Provincial Key Laboratory of Fiber Laser Materials and Applied Techniques,
School of Physics and Optoelectronics, South
China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, P. R.
China
| | - Ivan Infante
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
| | - Luca De Trizio
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
| | - Sergio Brovelli
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi Milano-Bicocca, via R. Cozzi 55, Milano 20125, Italy
| | - Liberato Manna
- Nanochemistry, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, Genova 16163, Italy
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19
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Conforti A, Salvatori E, Lione L, Compagnone M, Pinto E, Shorrock C, Hayward JA, Sun Y, Liang BM, Palombo F, Viscount B, Aurisicchio L. Linear DNA amplicons as a novel cancer vaccine strategy. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2022; 41:195. [PMID: 35668533 PMCID: PMC9169303 DOI: 10.1186/s13046-022-02402-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND DNA-based vaccines represent a simple, safe and promising strategy for harnessing the immune system to fight infectious diseases as well as various forms of cancer and thus are considered an important tool in the cancer immunotherapy toolbox. Nonetheless, the manufacture of plasmid DNA vaccines has several drawbacks, including long lead times and the need to remove impurities from bacterial cultures. Here we report the development of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-produced amplicon expression vectors as DNA vaccines and their in vivo application to elicit antigen-specific immune responses in animal cancer models. METHODS Plasmid DNA and amplicon expression was assessed both in vitro, by Hela cells transfection, and in vivo, by evaluating luciferase expression in wild-type mice through optical imaging. Immunogenicity induced by DNA amplicons was assessed by vaccinating wild-type mice against a tumor-associated antigen, whereas the antitumoral effect of DNA amplicons was evaluated in a murine cancer model in combination with immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). RESULTS Amplicons encoding tumor-associated-antigens, such as telomerase reverse transcriptase or neoantigens expressed by murine tumor cell lines, were able to elicit antigen-specific immune responses and proved to significantly impact tumor growth when administered in combination with ICIs. CONCLUSIONS These results strongly support the further exploration of the use of PCR-based amplicons as an innovative immunotherapeutic approach to cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonella Conforti
- Takis, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
- Evvivax, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | | | - Lucia Lione
- Takis, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | | | | | - Clay Shorrock
- Applied DNA Sciences, 50 Health Sciences Drive, Stony Brook, NY 11790 USA
| | - James A. Hayward
- Applied DNA Sciences, 50 Health Sciences Drive, Stony Brook, NY 11790 USA
| | - Yuhua Sun
- Applied DNA Sciences, 50 Health Sciences Drive, Stony Brook, NY 11790 USA
| | - Ben Minghwa Liang
- Applied DNA Sciences, 50 Health Sciences Drive, Stony Brook, NY 11790 USA
| | - Fabio Palombo
- Takis, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
- Neomatrix, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
| | - Brian Viscount
- Applied DNA Sciences, 50 Health Sciences Drive, Stony Brook, NY 11790 USA
| | - Luigi Aurisicchio
- Takis, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
- Evvivax, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
- Neomatrix, Via Castel Romano 100, 00128 Rome, Italy
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20
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Greco A, Percannella G, Ritrovato P, Saggese A, Vento M. A deep learning based system for handwashing procedure evaluation. Neural Comput Appl 2022; 35:1-16. [PMID: 35474686 PMCID: PMC9022899 DOI: 10.1007/s00521-022-07194-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Hand washing preparation can be considered as one of the main strategies for reducing the risk of surgical site contamination and thus the infections risks. Within this context, in this paper we propose an embedded system able to automatically analyze, in real-time, the sequence of images acquired by a depth camera to evaluate the quality of the handwashing procedure. In particular, the designed system runs on an NVIDIA Jetson NanoTM computing platform. We adopt a convolutional neural network, followed by a majority voting scheme, to classify the movement of the worker according to one of the ten gestures defined by the World Health Organization. To test the proposed system, we collect a dataset built by 74 different video sequences. The results achieved on this dataset confirm the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Greco
- Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, University of Salerno, Fisciano, SA Italy
| | - Gennaro Percannella
- Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, University of Salerno, Fisciano, SA Italy
| | - Pierluigi Ritrovato
- Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, University of Salerno, Fisciano, SA Italy
| | - Alessia Saggese
- Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, University of Salerno, Fisciano, SA Italy
| | - Mario Vento
- Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, University of Salerno, Fisciano, SA Italy
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21
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Pergola MT, Saulino L, Castellaneta M, Rita A, Pecora G, Cozzi M, Moretti N, Pericolo O, Pierangeli D, Romano S, Viccaro M, Ripullone F. Towards sustainable management of forest residues in the southern Apennine Mediterranean mountain forests: a scenario-based approach. Ann For Sci 2022; 79:14. [PMID: 35370435 PMCID: PMC8960107 DOI: 10.1186/s13595-022-01128-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
KEY MESSAGE Managing forest residues according to the carbon content of the soil helps to minimize the ecological footprint of their removal. CONTEXT In Mediterranean mountain ecosystems, unsustainable harvesting of wood residues might contribute to land degradation, carbon, and nutrient depletion in forest soils. AIMS This study aimed to assess the amount of forest biomass residues that should be left on-site to minimize the depletion of soil fertility. METHODS We estimated the availability of biomass residues in the public forest land of the Basilicata region of Southern Italy by collecting stand-scale inventory attributes from forest management plans. Subsequently, we quantified the amount of forest biomass residue released by implementing a scenario-based approach. RESULTS Approximately 5800 m3 year-1 of forest residues could be potentially available for bio-based industries at the regional scale within the next 10 years. Such residues mainly belong to broadleaved forest types, having a high variability in their soil organic stock (228.5-705.8 Mg C ha-1) and altitudinally spanning from 400 to 1500 m a.s.l. In these forests, the simulated scenarios displayed a wide range of average harvestable residues from 2.5 to 5.5 m3 ha-1, containing approximately 1.1 to 2.1 Mg ha-1 of organic carbon. CONCLUSION Our study suggests that forest management plans are a useful source of information to estimate the available forest biomass residues consistently. In southern Mediterranean mountain forests, the management of forest residues according to soil carbon content helps to minimize the environmental impact and increase their sustainability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Teresa Pergola
- Ages s.r.l. s - Spin-off Accademico, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10 – 85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Luigi Saulino
- Dipartimento di Agraria, Università di Napoli Federico II, via Università 100, IT-80055 Portici (Napoli), Italy
| | - Maria Castellaneta
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Angelo Rita
- Dipartimento di Agraria, Università di Napoli Federico II, via Università 100, IT-80055 Portici (Napoli), Italy
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Giovanni Pecora
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Mario Cozzi
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Nicola Moretti
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Osvaldo Pericolo
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Domenico Pierangeli
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Severino Romano
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Mauro Viccaro
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Francesco Ripullone
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
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22
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Celeste A, Brescia R, Greco G, Torelli P, Mauri S, Silvestri L, Pellegrini V, Brutti S. Pushing Stoichiometries of Lithium-Rich Layered Oxides Beyond Their Limits. ACS Appl Energy Mater 2022; 5:1905-1913. [PMID: 35252774 PMCID: PMC8889532 DOI: 10.1021/acsaem.1c03396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Lithium-rich layered oxides (LRLOs) are opening unexplored frontiers for high-capacity/high-voltage positive electrodes in Li-ion batteries (LIBs) to meet the challenges of green and safe transportation as well as cheap and sustainable stationary energy storage from renewable sources. LRLOs exploit the extra lithiation provided by the Li1.2TM0.8O2 stoichiometries (TM = a blend of transition metals with a moderate cobalt content) achievable by a layered structure to disclose specific capacities beyond 200-250 mA h g-1 and working potentials in the 3.4-3.8 V range versus Li. Here, we demonstrate an innovative paradigm to extend the LRLO concept. We have balanced the substitution of cobalt in the transition-metal layer of the lattice with aluminum and lithium, pushing the composition of LRLO to unexplored stoichiometries, that is, Li1.2+x (Mn,Ni,Co,Al)0.8-x O2-δ. The fine tuning of the composition of the metal blend results in an optimized layered material, that is, Li1.28Mn0.54Ni0.13Co0.02Al0.03O2-δ, with outstanding electrochemical performance in full LIBs, improved environmental benignity, and reduced manufacturing costs compared to the state-of-the-art.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arcangelo Celeste
- Dipartimento
di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università
degli Studi di Genova, via Dodecaneso 31, 16146 Genova, Italy
- Graphene
Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Rosaria Brescia
- Electron
Microscopy Facility, Istituto Italiano di
Tecnologia, via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Giorgia Greco
- Dipartimento
di Chimica, Università di Roma La
Sapienza, p.le Aldo Moro
5, 00185 Roma, Italy
| | - Piero Torelli
- Laboratorio
TASC, Istituto Officina dei Materiali (IOM)−CNR, Area Science Park, S.S.14, km 163.5, I-34149 Trieste, Italy
| | - Silvia Mauri
- Laboratorio
TASC, Istituto Officina dei Materiali (IOM)−CNR, Area Science Park, S.S.14, km 163.5, I-34149 Trieste, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Fisica, University of Trieste, via A. Valerio 2, 34127 Trieste, Italy
| | - Laura Silvestri
- Dipartimento
di Tecnologie Energetiche e Fonti Rinnovabili, ENEA C.R. Casaccia, via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Roma, Italy
| | - Vittorio Pellegrini
- Graphene
Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
- BeDimensional
Spa, via Torrentesecca
3d, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Sergio Brutti
- Dipartimento
di Chimica, Università di Roma La
Sapienza, p.le Aldo Moro
5, 00185 Roma, Italy
- GISEL—Centro
di Riferimento Nazionale per i Sistemi di Accumulo Elettrochimico
di Energia, INSTM, via
G. Giusti, 50121 Firenze, Italy
- ISC-CNR OUS Sapienza, Via dei Tarquini, 00185 Roma, Italy
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23
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Di Vito A, Pecchia A, Auf der Maur M, Campanari V, Martelli F, Di Carlo A. Role of Phase Nanosegregation in the Photoluminescence Spectra of Halide Perovskites. J Phys Chem Lett 2021; 12:11659-11665. [PMID: 34823362 PMCID: PMC8667165 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c03378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The study of MAPbI3 phase transitions based on temperature-dependent optical spectroscopy has recently gained a huge attention. Photoluminescence (PL) investigations of the tetragonal-orthorhombic transition suggest that tetragonal nanodomains are present below the transition temperature and signatures associated with tetragonal segregations are observed. We have studied the impact of phase nanosegregation across the orthorhombic-tetragonal phase transition of MAPbI3 on the system's properties employing a tight binding (TB) approach. The particle swarm optimization has been used to obtain a consistent set of TB parameters, where the target properties of the system have been derived by first-principles calculations. The theoretical results have been compared with the measured PL spectra for a temperature range going from 10 to 100 K. Our model effectively captures the carriers' localization phenomenon induced by the presence of residual tetragonal nanodomains and demonstrates that the assumption of phase nanosegregation can explain the low-energy features in the PL spectra of MAPbI3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessia Di Vito
- University
of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessandro Pecchia
- CNR-ISMN, Via Salaria km 29,300, 00014 Monterotondo Stazione, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Valerio Campanari
- University
of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Aldo Di Carlo
- University
of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133, Rome, Italy
- LASE,
Laboratory of Advanced Solar Energy, National
University of Science and Technology “MISiS”, Leninsky prospect 4, 119049, Moscow, Russia
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24
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Ferrara C, Gentile A, Marchionna S, Quinzeni I, Fracchia M, Ghigna P, Pollastri S, Ritter C, Vanacore GM, Ruffo R. The Missing Piece: The Structure of the Ti 3C 2T x MXene and Its Behavior as Negative Electrode in Sodium Ion Batteries. Nano Lett 2021; 21:8290-8297. [PMID: 34553949 PMCID: PMC8517972 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.1c02809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Revised: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The most common MXene composition Ti3C2Tx (T = F, O) shows outstanding stability as anode for sodium ion batteries (100% of capacity retention after 530 cycles with charge efficiency >99.7%). However, the reversibility of the intercalation/deintercalation process is strongly affected by the synthesis parameters determining, in turn, significant differences in the material structure. This study proposes a new approach to identify the crystal features influencing the performances, using a structural model built with a multitechnique approach that allows exploring the short-range order of the lamella. The model is then used to determine the long-range order by inserting defective elements into the structure. With this strategy it is possible to fit the MXene diffraction patterns, obtain the structural parameters including the stoichiometric composition of the terminations (neutron data), and quantify the structural disorder which can be used to discriminate the phases with the best electrochemical properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Ferrara
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, via Cozzi 55, 20125 Milano, Italy
- National
Reference Center for Electrochemical Energy Storage (GISEL)- Consorzio Interuniversitario Nazionale per la Scienza
e Tecnologia dei Materiali (INSTM), via Giusti 9, 50121 Firenze, Italy
| | - Antonio Gentile
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, via Cozzi 55, 20125 Milano, Italy
| | - Stefano Marchionna
- Ricerca
sul Sistema Energetico - RSE S.p.A., Via R. Rubattino 54, 20134 Milano, Italy
| | - Irene Quinzeni
- Ricerca
sul Sistema Energetico - RSE S.p.A., Via R. Rubattino 54, 20134 Milano, Italy
| | - Martina Fracchia
- Dipartimento
di Chimica, Università degli Studi
di Pavia, via Taramelli 12, 27100, Pavia, Italy
| | - Paolo Ghigna
- Dipartimento
di Chimica, Università degli Studi
di Pavia, via Taramelli 12, 27100, Pavia, Italy
- INSTM,
Consorzio Interuniversitario per la Scienza e Tecnologia dei Materiali, via Giusti 9, I-50121 Firenze, Italy
| | | | - Clemens Ritter
- Institut
Laue-Langevin, 71 avenue
des Martyrs CS 20156, 38042 Grenoble, Cedex 9, France
| | - Giovanni Maria Vanacore
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, via Cozzi 55, 20125 Milano, Italy
| | - Riccardo Ruffo
- Dipartimento
di Scienza dei Materiali, Università
degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, via Cozzi 55, 20125 Milano, Italy
- National
Reference Center for Electrochemical Energy Storage (GISEL)- Consorzio Interuniversitario Nazionale per la Scienza
e Tecnologia dei Materiali (INSTM), via Giusti 9, 50121 Firenze, Italy
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25
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Bonomi S, Galinetto P, Patrini M, Romani L, Malavasi L. Optical and Structural Property Tuning in Physical Vapor Deposited Bismuth Halides Cs 3Bi 2(I 1-xBr x) 9 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1). Inorg Chem 2021; 60:14142-14150. [PMID: 34472341 PMCID: PMC8456412 DOI: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.1c01545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Crystalline films of lead-free all-inorganic Cs3Bi2X9 (X = Br, I) perovskites have been deposited by radio frequency (RF)-magnetron sputtering providing high-quality, single-phase films as confirmed by structural, morphological, and optical property characterization. Progressive tuning of crystal structure characteristics and optical absorbance has been achieved in mixed Br/I phases Cs3Bi2(I1-xBrx)9 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1), highlighting a shift of the band gap from about 2.0 eV for Cs3Bi2I9 to 2.64 eV for Cs3Bi2Br9. X-ray diffraction and Raman scattering allowed defining the range of alloyed compositions where single-phase compositions are found. Finally, preliminary photocatalytic activity tests on the degradation of methylene blue provided solid data indicating the future possible exploitation of Bi-based perovskite derivative materials as active photocatalysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Bonomi
- Department
of Chemistry and INSTM, University of Pavia, Via Taramelli 16, Pavia 27100, Italy
| | - Pietro Galinetto
- Department
of Physics, University of Pavia, Via Bassi 6, Pavia 27100, Italy
| | - Maddalena Patrini
- Department
of Physics, University of Pavia, Via Bassi 6, Pavia 27100, Italy
| | - Lidia Romani
- Department
of Chemistry and INSTM, University of Pavia, Via Taramelli 16, Pavia 27100, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Malavasi
- Department
of Chemistry and INSTM, University of Pavia, Via Taramelli 16, Pavia 27100, Italy
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26
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Falcigno L, D’Auria G, Palmieri G, Gogliettino M, Agrillo B, Tatè R, Dardano P, Nicolais L, Balestrieri M. Key Physicochemical Determinants in the Antimicrobial Peptide RiLK1 Promote Amphipathic Structures. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:10011. [PMID: 34576174 PMCID: PMC8472000 DOI: 10.3390/ijms221810011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2021] [Revised: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) represent a skilled class of new antibiotics, due to their broad range of activity, rapid killing, and low bacterial resistance. Many efforts have been made to discover AMPs with improved performances, i.e., high antimicrobial activity, low cytotoxicity against human cells, stability against proteolytic degradation, and low costs of production. In the design of new AMPs, several physicochemical features, such as hydrophobicity, net positive charge, propensity to assume amphipathic conformation, and self-assembling properties, must be considered. Starting from the sequence of the dodecapeptide 1018-K6, we designed a new 10-aminoacid peptide, namely RiLK1, which is highly effective against both fungi and Gram-positive and -negative bacteria at low micromolar concentrations without causing human cell cytotoxicity. In order to find the structural reasons explaining the improved performance of RiLK1 versus 1018-K6, a comparative analysis of the two peptides was carried out with a combination of CD, NMR, and fluorescence spectroscopies, while their self-assembling properties were analyzed by optical and atomic force microscopies. Interestingly, the different spectroscopic and microscopic profiles exhibited by the two peptides, including the propensity of RiLK1 to adopt helix arrangements in contrast to 1018-K6, could explain the improved bactericidal, antifungal, and anti-biofilm activities shown by the new peptide against a panel of food pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucia Falcigno
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Naples Federico II, Via D. Montesano 49, 80131 Naples, Italy; (L.F.); (G.D.)
| | - Gabriella D’Auria
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Naples Federico II, Via D. Montesano 49, 80131 Naples, Italy; (L.F.); (G.D.)
| | - Gianna Palmieri
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources, National Research Council (IBBR-CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy; (B.A.); (M.B.)
| | - Marta Gogliettino
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources, National Research Council (IBBR-CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy; (B.A.); (M.B.)
| | - Bruna Agrillo
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources, National Research Council (IBBR-CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy; (B.A.); (M.B.)
- Materias Srl, Corso N. Protopisani 70, 80146 Naples, Italy;
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II di Monte Sant’Angelo, Via Cintia 21, 80126 Naples, Italy
| | - Rosarita Tatè
- Institute of Genetics and Biophysics, National Research Council (IGB-CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy;
| | - Principia Dardano
- Institute of Applied Sciences & Intelligent Systems, National Research Council (ISASI-CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy;
| | - Luigi Nicolais
- Materias Srl, Corso N. Protopisani 70, 80146 Naples, Italy;
| | - Marco Balestrieri
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources, National Research Council (IBBR-CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy; (B.A.); (M.B.)
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27
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Gialluisi A, Reccia MG, Modugno N, Nutile T, Lombardi A, Di Giovannantonio LG, Pietracupa S, Ruggiero D, Scala S, Gambardella S, Iacoviello L, Gianfrancesco F, Acampora D, D’Esposito M, Simeone A, Ciullo M, Esposito T. Identification of sixteen novel candidate genes for late onset Parkinson's disease. Mol Neurodegener 2021; 16:35. [PMID: 34148545 PMCID: PMC8215754 DOI: 10.1186/s13024-021-00455-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative movement disorder affecting 1-5% of the general population for which neither effective cure nor early diagnostic tools are available that could tackle the pathology in the early phase. Here we report a multi-stage procedure to identify candidate genes likely involved in the etiopathogenesis of PD. METHODS The study includes a discovery stage based on the analysis of whole exome data from 26 dominant late onset PD families, a validation analysis performed on 1542 independent PD patients and 706 controls from different cohorts and the assessment of polygenic variants load in the Italian cohort (394 unrelated patients and 203 controls). RESULTS Family-based approach identified 28 disrupting variants in 26 candidate genes for PD including PARK2, PINK1, DJ-1(PARK7), LRRK2, HTRA2, FBXO7, EIF4G1, DNAJC6, DNAJC13, SNCAIP, AIMP2, CHMP1A, GIPC1, HMOX2, HSPA8, IMMT, KIF21B, KIF24, MAN2C1, RHOT2, SLC25A39, SPTBN1, TMEM175, TOMM22, TVP23A and ZSCAN21. Sixteen of them have not been associated to PD before, were expressed in mesencephalon and were involved in pathways potentially deregulated in PD. Mutation analysis in independent cohorts disclosed a significant excess of highly deleterious variants in cases (p = 0.0001), supporting their role in PD. Moreover, we demonstrated that the co-inheritance of multiple rare variants (≥ 2) in the 26 genes may predict PD occurrence in about 20% of patients, both familial and sporadic cases, with high specificity (> 93%; p = 4.4 × 10- 5). Moreover, our data highlight the fact that the genetic landmarks of late onset PD does not systematically differ between sporadic and familial forms, especially in the case of small nuclear families and underline the importance of rare variants in the genetics of sporadic PD. Furthermore, patients carrying multiple rare variants showed higher risk of manifesting dyskinesia induced by levodopa treatment. CONCLUSIONS Besides confirming the extreme genetic heterogeneity of PD, these data provide novel insights into the genetic of the disease and may be relevant for its prediction, diagnosis and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Gialluisi
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
| | - Mafalda Giovanna Reccia
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
| | - Nicola Modugno
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
| | - Teresa Nutile
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Alessia Lombardi
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
| | - Luca Giovanni Di Giovannantonio
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Sara Pietracupa
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
| | - Daniela Ruggiero
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Simona Scala
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
| | - Stefano Gambardella
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
- grid.12711.340000 0001 2369 7670Department of Biomolecular Science, University of Urbino Carlo Bò, Urbino, Italy
| | | | - Licia Iacoviello
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
- grid.18147.3b0000000121724807Research Center in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (EPIMED), Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy
| | - Fernando Gianfrancesco
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Dario Acampora
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Maurizio D’Esposito
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Antonio Simeone
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Marina Ciullo
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
| | - Teresa Esposito
- grid.419543.e0000 0004 1760 3561IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, Pozzilli, Isernia, Italy
- grid.419869.b0000 0004 1758 2860National Research Council, Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “Adriano Buzzati-Traverso”, Naples, Italy
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28
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Sargenti A, Musmeci F, Cavallo C, Mazzeschi M, Bonetti S, Pasqua S, Bacchi F, Filardo G, Gazzola D, Lauriola M, Santi S. A new method for the study of biophysical and morphological parameters in 3D cell cultures: Evaluation in LoVo spheroids treated with crizotinib. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0252907. [PMID: 34101765 PMCID: PMC8186796 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0252907] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Three-dimensional (3D) culture systems like tumor spheroids represent useful in vitro models for drug screening and more broadly for cancer biology research, but the generation of uniform populations of spheroids remains challenging. The possibility to properly characterize spheroid properties would increase the reliability of these models. To address this issue different analysis were combined: i) a new device and relative analytical method for the accurate, simultaneous, and rapid measurement of mass density, weight, and size of spheroids, ii) confocal imaging, and iii) protein quantification, in a clinically relevant 3D model. The LoVo colon cancer cell line forming spheroids, treated with crizotinib (CZB) an ATP-competitive small-molecule inhibitor of the receptor tyrosine kinases, was employed to study and assess the correlation between biophysical and morphological parameters in both live and fixed cells. The new fluidic-based measurements allowed a robust phenotypical characterization of the spheroids structure, offering insights on the spheroids bulk and an accurate measurement of the tumor density. This analysis helps overcome the technical limits of the imaging that hardly penetrates the thickness of 3D structures. Accordingly, we were able to document that CZB treatment has an impact on mass density, which represents a key marker characterizing cancer cell treatment. Spheroid culture is the ultimate technology in drug discovery and the adoption of such precise measurement of the tumor characteristics can represent a key step forward for the accurate testing of treatment’s potential in 3D in vitro models.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Carola Cavallo
- RAMSES Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy
| | - Martina Mazzeschi
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Giuseppe Filardo
- Applied and Translational Research Center, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy
| | | | - Mattia Lauriola
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Spartaco Santi
- Institute of Molecular Genetics “Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza”, Unit of Bologna, CNR, Bologna, Italy
- IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy
- * E-mail:
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29
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Esposito S, Gialluisi A, Costanzo S, Di Castelnuovo A, Ruggiero E, De Curtis A, Persichillo M, Cerletti C, Donati MB, de Gaetano G, Iacoviello L, Bonaccio M. Dietary Polyphenol Intake Is Associated with Biological Aging, a Novel Predictor of Cardiovascular Disease: Cross-Sectional Findings from the Moli-Sani Study. Nutrients 2021; 13:1701. [PMID: 34067821 PMCID: PMC8157169 DOI: 10.3390/nu13051701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Revised: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Biological aging, or the discrepancy between biological and chronological age of a subject (Δage), has been associated with a polyphenol-rich Mediterranean diet and represents a new, robust indicator of cardiovascular disease risk. We aimed to disentangle the relationship of dietary polyphenols and total antioxidant capacity with Δage in a cohort of Italians. A cross-sectional analysis was performed on a sub-cohort of 4592 subjects (aged ≥ 35 y; 51.8% women) from the Moli-sani Study (2005-2010). Food intake was recorded by a 188-item food-frequency questionnaire. The polyphenol antioxidant content (PAC)-score was constructed to assess the total dietary content of polyphenols. Total antioxidant capacity was measured in foods by these assays: trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), total radical-trapping antioxidant parameter (TRAP) and ferric reducing-antioxidant power (FRAP). A deep neural network, based on 36 circulating biomarkers, was used to compute biological age and the resulting Δage, which was tested as outcome in multivariable-adjusted linear regressions. Δage was inversely associated with the PAC-score (β = -0.31; 95%CI -0.39, -0.24) but not with total antioxidant capacity of the diet. A diet rich in polyphenols, by positively contributing to deceleration of the biological aging process, may exert beneficial effects on the long-term risk of cardiovascular disease and possibly of bone health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simona Esposito
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Alessandro Gialluisi
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Simona Costanzo
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | | | - Emilia Ruggiero
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Amalia De Curtis
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Mariarosaria Persichillo
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Chiara Cerletti
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Maria Benedetta Donati
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Giovanni de Gaetano
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
| | - Licia Iacoviello
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, Research Center in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (EPIMED), University of Insubria, 21100 Varese-Como, Italy
| | - Marialaura Bonaccio
- Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, IRCCS Neuromed, via dell’Elettronica, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (S.E.); (A.G.); (S.C.); (E.R.); (A.D.C.); (M.P.); (C.C.); (M.B.D.); (G.d.G.); (M.B.)
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Riccardi C, Perrone L, Napolitano F, Sampaolo S, Melone MAB. Understanding the Biological Activities of Vitamin D in Type 1 Neurofibromatosis: New Insights into Disease Pathogenesis and Therapeutic Design. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:E2965. [PMID: 33066259 PMCID: PMC7602022 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12102965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Revised: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 10/08/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble steroid hormone playing a pivotal role in calcium and phosphate homeostasis as well as in bone health. Vitamin D levels are not exclusively dependent on food intake. Indeed, the endogenous production-occurring in the skin and dependent on sun exposure-contributes to the majority amount of vitamin D present in the body. Since vitamin D receptors (VDRs) are ubiquitous and drive the expression of hundreds of genes, the interest in vitamin D has tremendously grown and its role in different diseases has been extensively studied. Several investigations indicated that vitamin D action extends far beyond bone health and calcium metabolism, showing broad effects on a variety of critical illnesses, including cancer, infections, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases. Epidemiological studies indicated that low circulating vitamin D levels inversely correlate with cutaneous manifestations and bone abnormalities, clinical hallmarks of neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). NF1 is an autosomal dominant tumour predisposition syndrome causing significant pain and morbidity, for which limited treatment options are available. In this context, vitamin D or its analogues have been used to treat both skin and bone lesions in NF1 patients, alone or combined with other therapeutic agents. Here we provide an overview of vitamin D, its characteristic nutritional properties relevant for health benefits and its role in NF1 disorder. We focus on preclinical and clinical studies that demonstrated the clinical correlation between vitamin D status and NF1 disease, thus providing important insights into disease pathogenesis and new opportunities for targeted therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Riccardi
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, via Cintia 21, I-80126 Naples, Italy;
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, 2nd Division of Neurology, Center for Rare Diseases and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, via Sergio Pansini 5, I-80131 Naples, Italy; (L.P.); (F.N.); (S.S.)
| | - Lorena Perrone
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, 2nd Division of Neurology, Center for Rare Diseases and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, via Sergio Pansini 5, I-80131 Naples, Italy; (L.P.); (F.N.); (S.S.)
| | - Filomena Napolitano
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, 2nd Division of Neurology, Center for Rare Diseases and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, via Sergio Pansini 5, I-80131 Naples, Italy; (L.P.); (F.N.); (S.S.)
| | - Simone Sampaolo
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, 2nd Division of Neurology, Center for Rare Diseases and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, via Sergio Pansini 5, I-80131 Naples, Italy; (L.P.); (F.N.); (S.S.)
| | - Mariarosa Anna Beatrice Melone
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, 2nd Division of Neurology, Center for Rare Diseases and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, via Sergio Pansini 5, I-80131 Naples, Italy; (L.P.); (F.N.); (S.S.)
- Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Department of Biology, Temple University, BioLife Building (015-00), 1900 North 12th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122-6078, USA
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31
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Bassi D, Gazzola S, Sattin E, Dal Bello F, Simionati B, Cocconcelli PS. Lactic Acid Bacteria Adjunct Cultures Exert a Mitigation Effect against Spoilage Microbiota in Fresh Cheese. Microorganisms 2020; 8:E1199. [PMID: 32781677 PMCID: PMC7464123 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8081199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/05/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have a strong mitigation potential as adjunct cultures to inhibit undesirable bacteria in fermented foods. In fresh cheese with low salt concentration, spoilage and pathogenic bacteria can affect the shelf life with smear on the surface and packaging blowing. In this work, we studied the spoilage microbiota of an Italian fresh cheese to find tailor-made protective cultures for its shelf life improvement. On 14-tested LAB, three of them, namely Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus LRH05, Latilactobacillus sakei LSK04, and Carnobacterium maltaromaticum CNB06 were the most effective in inhibiting Gram-negative bacteria. These cultures were assessed by the cultivation-dependent and DNA metabarcoding approach using in vitro experiments and industrial trials. Soft cheese with and without adjunct cultures were prepared and stored at 8 and 14 °C until the end of the shelf life in modified atmosphere packaging. Data demonstrated that the use of adjunct cultures reduce and/or modulate the growth of spoilage microbiota at both temperatures. Particularly, during industrial experiments, C. maltaromaticum CNB06 and Lcb. rhamnosus RH05 lowered psychrotrophic bacteria of almost 3 Log CFU/g in a 5-week stored cheese. On the contrary, Llb. sakei LSK04 was able to colonize the cheese but it was not a good candidate for its inhibition capacity. The combined approach applied in this work allowed to evaluate the protective potential of LAB strains against Gram-negative communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela Bassi
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Alimentari per una Filiera Agro-Alimentare Sostenibile (DISTAS), Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 29122 Piacenza, Italy;
| | - Simona Gazzola
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Alimentari per una Filiera Agro-Alimentare Sostenibile (DISTAS), Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 29122 Piacenza, Italy;
| | | | | | | | - Pier Sandro Cocconcelli
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Alimentari per una Filiera Agro-Alimentare Sostenibile (DISTAS), Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 29122 Piacenza, Italy;
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Massaro A, Muñoz-García AB, Maddalena P, Bella F, Meligrana G, Gerbaldi C, Pavone M. First-principles study of Na insertion at TiO 2 anatase surfaces: new hints for Na-ion battery design. Nanoscale Adv 2020; 2:2745-2751. [PMID: 36132399 PMCID: PMC9417436 DOI: 10.1039/d0na00230e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2020] [Accepted: 06/11/2020] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Na-ion batteries (NIBs) are attracting widespread interest as a potentially more convenient alternative to current state-of-the-art Li-ion batteries (LIBs), chiefly for large-scale energy storage from renewables. Developing novel active materials is essential for the deployment of NIBs, especially in terms of negative electrodes that can accommodate the larger sodium ions. We focus on TiO2 anatase, which has been proposed as a promising anode material for the overall balance of performance, stability and cost. As the exposed crystal facets in different morphologies of nanostructured anatase can affect the electrochemical performances, here we report a theoretical investigation of Na+ adsorption and migration through (101), (100) and (001) surface terminations, thus explaining the different activities toward sodiation reported in the literature. Energy barriers computed by means of the CI-NEB method at the DFT+U level of theory show that the (001) surface is the most effective termination for Na+ insertion. We also provide a detailed analysis to elucidate that the energy barriers are due to structural modifications of the lattice upon sodiation. From these results we derive new design directions for the development of cheap and effective oxide-based nanostructured electrode materials for advanced NIBs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arianna Massaro
- Department of Chemical Sciences, Università di Napoli Federico II, Comp. Univ. Monte Sant'Angelo via Cintia 21 80126 Naples Italy
| | - Ana B Muñoz-García
- Department of Physics "Ettore Pancini", Università di Napoli Federico II, Comp. Univ. Monte Sant'Angelo via Cintia 21 80126 Naples Italy
| | - Pasqualino Maddalena
- Department of Physics "Ettore Pancini", Università di Napoli Federico II, Comp. Univ. Monte Sant'Angelo via Cintia 21 80126 Naples Italy
| | - Federico Bella
- GAME Lab, Department of Applied Science and Technology, Politecnico di Torino Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24 10129-Torino Italy
| | - Giuseppina Meligrana
- GAME Lab, Department of Applied Science and Technology, Politecnico di Torino Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24 10129-Torino Italy
| | - Claudio Gerbaldi
- GAME Lab, Department of Applied Science and Technology, Politecnico di Torino Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24 10129-Torino Italy
| | - Michele Pavone
- Department of Chemical Sciences, Università di Napoli Federico II, Comp. Univ. Monte Sant'Angelo via Cintia 21 80126 Naples Italy
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33
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Lombardi N, Salzano AM, Troise AD, Scaloni A, Vitaglione P, Vinale F, Marra R, Caira S, Lorito M, d’Errico G, Lanzuise S, Woo SL. Effect of Trichoderma Bioactive Metabolite Treatments on the Production, Quality, and Protein Profile of Strawberry Fruits. J Agric Food Chem 2020; 68:7246-7258. [PMID: 32426974 PMCID: PMC8154561 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.0c01438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2020] [Revised: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Fungi of the genus Trichoderma produce secondary metabolites having several biological activities that affect plant metabolism. We examined the effect of three Trichoderma bioactive metabolites (BAMs), namely, 6-pentyl-α-pyrone (6PP), harzianic acid (HA), and hydrophobin 1 (HYTLO1), on yield, fruit quality, and protein representation of strawberry plants. In particular, 6PP and HA increased the plant yield and number of fruits, when compared to control, while HYTLO1 promoted the growth of the roots and increased the total soluble solids content up to 19% and the accumulation of ascorbic acid and cyanidin 3-O-glucoside in red ripened fruits. Proteomic analysis showed that BAMs influenced the representation of proteins associated with the protein metabolism, response to stress/external stimuli, vesicle trafficking, carbon/energy, and secondary metabolism. Results suggest that the application of Trichoderma BAMs affects strawberry plant productivity and fruit quality and integrate previous observations on deregulated molecular processes in roots and leaves of Trichoderma-treated plants with original data on fruits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadia Lombardi
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Anna Maria Salzano
- Proteomics
& Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, ISPAAM, National Research Council, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Antonio Dario Troise
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
- Proteomics
& Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, ISPAAM, National Research Council, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Andrea Scaloni
- Proteomics
& Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, ISPAAM, National Research Council, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Paola Vitaglione
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Francesco Vinale
- Department
of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, 80138 Naples, Italy
- Institute
for Sustainable Plant Protection, National
Research Council, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Roberta Marra
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Simonetta Caira
- Proteomics
& Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, ISPAAM, National Research Council, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Matteo Lorito
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
- Institute
for Sustainable Plant Protection, National
Research Council, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
- Task
Force on Microbiome Studies, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Giada d’Errico
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Stefania Lanzuise
- Department
of Agricultural Sciences, University of
Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Sheridan Lois Woo
- Institute
for Sustainable Plant Protection, National
Research Council, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
- Task
Force on Microbiome Studies, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy
- Department
of Pharmacy, University of Naples Federico
II, 80131 Naples, Italy
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Bonanomi G, Alioto D, Minutolo M, Marra R, Cesarano G, Vinale F. Organic Amendments Modulate Soil Microbiota and Reduce Virus Disease Incidence in the TSWV-Tomato Pathosystem. Pathogens 2020; 9:E379. [PMID: 32423086 PMCID: PMC7281679 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens9050379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Revised: 05/10/2020] [Accepted: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Application of organic amendments is considered an eco-friendly practice to promote soil fertility and suppressiveness against a wide range of soil-borne pathogens. However, limited information is available about the capabilities of organic amendments to control virus disease. In this study, the suppressiveness of different organic amendments (i.e., compost manure, biochar, alfalfa straw, and glucose) was determined against the Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) on tomato plants in a 1-year-long mesocosm experiment. Organic treatments were compared to the ordinary soil management based on mineral fertilizers and fumigation. Tomato seedlings were inoculated with TSWV and the infection and symptoms were assessed three weeks later. The disease incidence was higher in soil treated with mineral fertilizers and fumigation (> 80%) compared to the application of organic amendments, with alfalfa straw and biochar recording the lowest incidence (< 40%). Moreover, soil microbiota structure and diversity were assessed by high-throughput sequencing of bacterial and eukaryotic rRNA gene markers. Several members belonging to the bacterial phyla of Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Proteobacteria, as well as members of the fungal genus Acremonium, were positively associated with plant health. This study showed that conventional practices, by shifting microbiome composition, may increase TSWV incidence and severity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giuliano Bonanomi
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy; (G.B.); (D.A.); (M.M.); (G.C.)
- Task Force on Microbiome Studies, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Naples, Italy
| | - Daniela Alioto
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy; (G.B.); (D.A.); (M.M.); (G.C.)
| | - Maria Minutolo
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy; (G.B.); (D.A.); (M.M.); (G.C.)
| | - Roberta Marra
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy; (G.B.); (D.A.); (M.M.); (G.C.)
| | - Gaspare Cesarano
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy; (G.B.); (D.A.); (M.M.); (G.C.)
| | - Francesco Vinale
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples Federico II, 80137 Naples, Italy;
- Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection, National Research Council, Portici, 80055 Naples, Italy
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Scala V, Pietricola C, Farina V, Beccaccioli M, Zjalic S, Quaranta F, Fornara M, Zaccaria M, Momeni B, Reverberi M, Iori A. Tramesan Elicits Durum Wheat Defense against the Septoria Disease Complex. Biomolecules 2020; 10:biom10040608. [PMID: 32295231 PMCID: PMC7225966 DOI: 10.3390/biom10040608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Revised: 04/08/2020] [Accepted: 04/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The Septoria Leaf Blotch Complex (SLBC), caused by the two ascomycetes Zymoseptoria tritici and Parastagonospora nodorum, can reduce wheat global yearly yield by up to 50%. In the last decade, SLBC incidence has increased in Italy; notably, durum wheat has proven to be more susceptible than common wheat. Field fungicide treatment can efficiently control these pathogens, but it leads to the emergence of resistant strains and adversely affects human and animal health and the environment. Our previous studies indicated that active compounds produced by Trametes versicolor can restrict the growth of mycotoxigenic fungi and the biosynthesis of their secondary metabolites (e.g., mycotoxins). Specifically, we identified Tramesan: a 23 kDa α-heteropolysaccharide secreted by T. versicolor that acts as a pro-antioxidant molecule in animal cells, fungi, and plants. Foliar-spray of Tramesan (3.3 μM) on SLBC-susceptible durum wheat cultivars, before inoculation of causal agents of Stagonospora Nodorum Blotch (SNB) and Septoria Tritici Blotch (STB), significantly decreased disease incidence both in controlled conditions (SNB: -99%, STB: -75%) and field assays (SNB: -25%, STB: -30%). We conducted these tests were conducted under controlled conditions as well as in field. We showed that Tramesan increased the levels of jasmonic acid (JA), a plant defense-related hormone. Tramesan also increased the early expression (24 hours after inoculation - hai) of plant defense genes such as PR4 for SNB infected plants, and RBOH, PR1, and PR9 for STB infected plants. These results suggest that Tramesan protects wheat by eliciting plant defenses, since it has no direct fungicidal activity. In field experiments, the yield of durum wheat plants treated with Tramesan was similar to that of healthy untreated plots. These results encourage the use of Tramesan to protect durum wheat against SLBC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Scala
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria, Centro di Ricerca Difesa e Certificazione, Via C.G. Bertero, 22, 00156 Roma, Italy;
| | - Chiara Pietricola
- Università Sapienza, Dip. Biologia Ambientale, P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Roma, Italy; (C.P.); (V.F.); (M.B.)
| | - Valentina Farina
- Università Sapienza, Dip. Biologia Ambientale, P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Roma, Italy; (C.P.); (V.F.); (M.B.)
| | - Marzia Beccaccioli
- Università Sapienza, Dip. Biologia Ambientale, P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Roma, Italy; (C.P.); (V.F.); (M.B.)
| | - Slaven Zjalic
- Department of Ecology, Agronomy and Aquaculture, University of Zadar, Ulica Mihovila Pavlinovića bb, 23000 ZADAR, Croatia;
| | - Fabrizio Quaranta
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria, Centro di ricerca Ingegneria e Trasformazioni agroalimentari, Via Manziana 30, 00189 Roma, Italy; (F.Q.); (M.F.); (A.I.)
| | - Mauro Fornara
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria, Centro di ricerca Ingegneria e Trasformazioni agroalimentari, Via Manziana 30, 00189 Roma, Italy; (F.Q.); (M.F.); (A.I.)
| | - Marco Zaccaria
- Department of Biology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA; (M.Z.); (B.M.)
| | - Babak Momeni
- Department of Biology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA; (M.Z.); (B.M.)
| | - Massimo Reverberi
- Università Sapienza, Dip. Biologia Ambientale, P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Roma, Italy; (C.P.); (V.F.); (M.B.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Angela Iori
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria, Centro di ricerca Ingegneria e Trasformazioni agroalimentari, Via Manziana 30, 00189 Roma, Italy; (F.Q.); (M.F.); (A.I.)
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Talarico C, Gervasoni S, Manelfi C, Pedretti A, Vistoli G, Beccari AR. Combining Molecular Dynamics and Docking Simulations to Develop Targeted Protocols for Performing Optimized Virtual Screening Campaigns on The hTRPM8 Channel. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E2265. [PMID: 32218173 PMCID: PMC7177470 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21072265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Revised: 02/19/2020] [Accepted: 03/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is an increasing interest in TRPM8 ligands of medicinal interest, the rational design of which can be nowadays supported by structure-based in silico studies based on the recently resolved TRPM8 structures. Methods: The study involves the generation of a reliable hTRPM8 homology model, the reliability of which was assessed by a 1.0 μs MD simulation which was also used to generate multiple receptor conformations for the following structure-based virtual screening (VS) campaigns; docking simulations utilized different programs and involved all monomers of the selected frames; the so computed docking scores were combined by consensus approaches based on the EFO algorithm. Results: The obtained models revealed very satisfactory performances; LiGen™ provided the best results among the tested docking programs; the combination of docking results from the four monomers elicited a markedly beneficial effect on the computed consensus models. Conclusions: The generated hTRPM8 model appears to be amenable for successful structure-based VS studies; cross-talk modulating effects between interacting monomers on the binding sites can be accounted for by combining docking simulations as performed on all the monomers; this strategy can have general applicability for docking simulations involving quaternary protein structures with multiple identical binding pockets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carmine Talarico
- Dompé Farmaceutici SpA, Via Campo di Pile, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy; (C.T.); (C.M.)
| | - Silvia Gervasoni
- Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Mangiagalli, 25, I-20133 Milano, Italy; (S.G.); (A.P.); (G.V.)
| | - Candida Manelfi
- Dompé Farmaceutici SpA, Via Campo di Pile, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy; (C.T.); (C.M.)
| | - Alessandro Pedretti
- Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Mangiagalli, 25, I-20133 Milano, Italy; (S.G.); (A.P.); (G.V.)
| | - Giulio Vistoli
- Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Mangiagalli, 25, I-20133 Milano, Italy; (S.G.); (A.P.); (G.V.)
| | - Andrea R. Beccari
- Dompé Farmaceutici SpA, Via Campo di Pile, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy; (C.T.); (C.M.)
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Fresta CG, Fidilio A, Caruso G, Caraci F, Giblin FJ, Marco Leggio G, Salomone S, Drago F, Bucolo C. A New Human Blood-Retinal Barrier Model Based on Endothelial Cells, Pericytes, and Astrocytes. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E1636. [PMID: 32121029 PMCID: PMC7084779 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21051636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2020] [Revised: 02/21/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Blood-retinal barrier (BRB) dysfunction represents one of the most significant changes occurring during diabetic retinopathy. We set up a high-reproducible human-based in vitro BRB model using retinal pericytes, retinal astrocytes, and retinal endothelial cells in order to replicate the human in vivo environment with the same numerical ratio and layer order. Our findings showed that high glucose exposure elicited BRB breakdown, enhanced permeability, and reduced the levels of junction proteins such as ZO-1 and VE-cadherin. Furthermore, an increased expression of pro-inflammatory mediators (IL-1β, IL-6) and oxidative stress-related enzymes (iNOS, Nox2) along with an increased production of reactive oxygen species were observed in our triple co-culture paradigm. Finally, we found an activation of immune response-regulating signaling pathways (Nrf2 and HO-1). In conclusion, the present model mimics the closest human in vivo milieu, providing a valuable tool to study the impact of high glucose in the retina and to develop novel molecules with potential effect on diabetic retinopathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia G. Fresta
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (C.G.F.); (G.M.L.); (S.S.)
| | - Annamaria Fidilio
- Department of Drug Sciences, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (A.F.); (F.C.)
| | | | - Filippo Caraci
- Department of Drug Sciences, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (A.F.); (F.C.)
- Oasi Research Institute—IRCCS, 94018 Troina, Italy;
| | - Frank J. Giblin
- Eye Research Institute, Oakland University, Rochester, MI 48309, USA;
| | - Gian Marco Leggio
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (C.G.F.); (G.M.L.); (S.S.)
- Center for Research in Ocular Pharmacology-CERFO, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy
| | - Salvatore Salomone
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (C.G.F.); (G.M.L.); (S.S.)
- Center for Research in Ocular Pharmacology-CERFO, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy
| | - Filippo Drago
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (C.G.F.); (G.M.L.); (S.S.)
- Center for Research in Ocular Pharmacology-CERFO, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy
| | - Claudio Bucolo
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy; (C.G.F.); (G.M.L.); (S.S.)
- Eye Research Institute, Oakland University, Rochester, MI 48309, USA;
- Center for Research in Ocular Pharmacology-CERFO, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy
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Gioacchini G, Ciani E, Pessina A, Cecchini C, Silvi S, Rodiles A, Merrifield DL, Olivotto I, Carnevali O. Effects of Lactogen 13, a New Probiotic Preparation, on Gut Microbiota and Endocrine Signals Controlling Growth and Appetite of Oreochromis niloticus Juveniles. Microb Ecol 2018; 76:1063-1074. [PMID: 29616281 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-018-1177-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2017] [Accepted: 03/13/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
In the present study, Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus was used as experimental model to study the molecular effects of a new probiotic preparation, Lactogen 13 (Lactobacillus rhamnosus IMC 501® encapsulated with vegetable fat matrices by spray chilling and further indicated as probiotic microgranules), on growth and appetite during larval development. Probiotic microgranules were administered for 30 days to tilapia larvae starting from first feeding. Molecular analysis using high-throughput sequencing revealed that the probiotic could populate the gastrointestinal tract and modulate the microbial communities by significantly increasing the proportion of Lactobacillus as well as reducing the proportion of potential pathogens such as members of the Family Microbacteriaceae, Legionellaceae, and Weeksellaceae. Morphometric analysis evidenced that body weight and total length significantly increased after probiotic treatment. This increase coincided with the modulation of genes belonging to the insulin-like growth factors (igfs) system and genes involved on myogenesis, such as myogenin, and myogenic differentiation (myod). Alongside the improvement of growth, an increase of feed intake was evidenced at 40 days post-fertilization (dpf) in treated larvae. Gene codifying for signals belonging to the most prominent systems involved in appetite regulation, such as neuropeptide y (npy), agouti-related protein (agrp), leptin, and ghrelin were significantly modulated. These results support the hypothesis that gastrointestinal (GI) microbiota changes due to probiotic administration modulate growth and appetite control, activating the endocrine system of tilapia larvae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgia Gioacchini
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy
| | - Elia Ciani
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy
| | - Andrea Pessina
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy
| | - Cinzia Cecchini
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy
| | - Stefania Silvi
- Scuola di Bioscienze e Medicina Veterinaria, Università degli Studi di Camerino, Camerino, Italy
| | - Ana Rodiles
- Aquatic Animal Nutrition and Health Research Group, School of Biological and Marine Sciences, Plymouth University, Plymouth, PL4 8AA, UK
| | - Daniel L Merrifield
- Aquatic Animal Nutrition and Health Research Group, School of Biological and Marine Sciences, Plymouth University, Plymouth, PL4 8AA, UK
| | - Ike Olivotto
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy
| | - Oliana Carnevali
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy.
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