Echinoderm Antimicrobial Peptides to Contrast Human Pathogens

Increased attention has been focused in marine invertebrates as a source of bioactive molecules for biomedical applications. Many bioactive molecules are part of the innate immune system. Some more recently isolated compounds, mainly from sea urchin and sea cucumber are antimicrobial peptides (AMP) active against Gram positive, Gram negative and fungi. In this review we described the most recent studies on AMP isolated from echinoderms. The AMP are little peptides <10 kDa with cationic charge and amphipathic structure. Recently, it was demonstrated that in the coelomocyte lysates of Paracentrotus. lividus and Holothuria tubulosa AMP are present with activity against staphylococcal and Pseudomonas aeruginosa antibiofilm. The data show the great potential of application of AMPs in biotechnology for developing novel therapeutic agents and as complements to conventional antibiotic therapy to combat the multi - resistant bacterial strains

3,4,5,3’,5’-pentabromo-2-(2’-hydroxybenzoyl) pyrrole: a potential lead compound as anti Gram-positive and anti biofilm agent

The activity against Gram-positive bacteria of 3,4,5,3 ,5 -pentabromo-2-(2 -hydroxybenzoyl)pyrrole I, a synthetic anti-bacterial compound related to pyrrolomycins, was tested in vitro using seven reference bacterial strains and Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus preformed biofilms. Compound I was active against all strains tested, with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranging from 0.002 to 0.097 mg/l and minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) from 0.37 to 12.5 mg/l. Compound I was also active at low concentrations against preformed S. epidermidis and S. aureus biofilms

It is Time for Action in the Struggle against Antibiotic-Resistance, Let’s Start Reducing or Replacing Antibiotics in Agriculture

Million people around the world are infected each year and thousands of them die from pathogens that are resistant to the treatment by any of known antibiotics [1]. The excessive use and abuse of antibiotics in clinical setting and in agriculture, added to the great ability of microorganisms to evolve, are the causes of the wide spread of isolates resistant to all major classes of current antibiotics. It is time for action in order to tackle antimicrobial-resistance (AMR), which can be considered a major threat to global health care and security. While we are waiting for new antimicrobial molecules and strategies, shorter-term approaches are needed to address the menace of AMR and preserve the efficacy of current antibiotic

Antimicrobial peptides from echinoderms as antibiofilm agents: a natural strategy to combat bacterial infections

Increased attention has been focused on marine invertebrates as a source of bioactive molecules for biomedical applications. Many bioactive molecules are part of the innate immune system. Some more recently isolated compounds, mainly from the sea urchin and the sea cucumber, are antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) active against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, and fungi. In this review we described the most recent studies on AMPs isolated from echinoderms. AMPs are small peptides (< 10 kDa) with cationic charge and amphipathic structure. Recently, it was demonstrated that in the coelomocyte lysates of Paracentrotus lividus and Holothuria tubulosa, AMPs possess activity against staphylococcal and Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms. The data shows a great potential for application of AMPs in biotechnology for developing novel therapeutic agents that are either alternative or complementary to conventional antibiotic therapy to combat multiresistant pathogens

Service Design and Urban Policies. How new models and tools for designing are influencing the debate about the future of cities

The urban environment has been facing multiple challenges, considering the social, political and economical forces which act within this realm. Indeed, various stakeholders have been debating over problems spread within the ci es. The international community is aware about the needs to rethink the urbanization model. Indeed, there is a high number of examples which show the necessity to bring new approaches, methods and processes in the ci es’ strategies and policies. In this paper we will brie y show experimentations, methods and solutions deployed according to the different realities. The digital revolution has a role in facing these challenges, since it is possible to exploit its new means in order to enhance the possible interac on between the urban actors. The service design method becomes fundamental for a different understanding of the urban reality where the technological aspect is intertwined with the social innovation aspect. This possibility gives the chance to investigate an innovative frontier allowing a new engagement and dialogue between public administrations and civil society. This leads to a different collaborative system among the various urban stakeholders, wich gives to citizens the opportunity to become active participants in the city’s transformations and planning. UN-HABITAT is dealing with these digital challenges and is going to address them in the international conference Habitat III, which will be held in Quito in 2016. Various Urban Thinkers Campus (UTC) have been set up across the world as an occasion to debate over the multiple experiences which will be enriching contribution during Habitat III. In this framework, the mission of the UTC in Palermo was to better understand the capacity of the combination of ICT and Service Design to reimagine ci es, especially in less globalized contexts, debating the role of the key actors involved: urban communities, researchers, private businesses and local authorities

Gender differences in the immune system activities of sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus

In the immune system of vertebrates, gender-specific differences in individual immune competence are well known. In general, females possess more powerful immune response than males. In invertebrates, the situation is much less clear. For this purpose we have chosen to study the immune response of the two sexes of the echinoderm Paracentrotus lividus in pre- and post-spawning phases. The coelomic fluid from the echinoderms contains several coelomocyte types and molecules involved in innate immune defenses. In this article we report that the degree of immune responses in the P. lividus differs according to sex in both pre- and post-spawning phases. We found in all tests that females were more active than males. The results indicate that females possess a significant higher number of immunocytes consisting of phagocytes and uncolored spherulocytes. Since the immunological activity is mainly based on immunocytes, it was not surprising that females possessed the highest values of cytotoxicity and hemolysis activity and showed a greater ability to uptake neutral red and phagocyte yeasts cells, while the average number of ingested particles per active phagocyte was not significantly different. Furthermore, agglutinating activity was more evident in the coelomocyte lysate and coelomic fluid of females than in those of males. Finally we found that the acidic extract of female gonads possessed greater antimicrobial activity than that of male gonads. These results make it very likely that gender differences in the immune response are not restricted to vertebrates; rather, they are a general evolutionary phenomenon

A High Sensitive Nested PCR for Toxoplasma gondii Detection in Animal and Food Samples

Toxoplasma gondii is a major food and waterborne transmitted parasite world-wide. The tissues and meat samples of many warm blooded animals can contain tissues cysts from chronic toxoplasmosis. Water and vegetable can be contaminated by the parasitic oocysts shed through the feces of infected cats, representing the definitive host of the parasite. A sensitive PCR for Toxoplasma gondii detection is described. The first step amplified the region between the 28S and 18S rDNA in the closely related T. gondii and Neospora caninum; RFLP analysis distinguished the DNA from the two morphologically identical parasites. Although N. caninum is not involved in human transmission, so far, it is important for animal health since is a major responsible for abortion in cattle. The nested PCR was used in a dilution assay in pork sausage samples spiked with T. gondii parasitic DNA. The analysis showed that up to 200fg equivalent to two single parasites only, could be detected. Similar detection limit for T. gondii can be obtained with real-time PCRs, but real time methods need special consumables and expensive equipment

Synthesis, spectroscopic characterization and in vitro antimicrobial activity of diorganotin(IV) dichloride adducts with [1,2,4]triazolo-[1,5-a]pyrimidine and 5,7-dimethyl-[1,2,4]triazolo-[1,5,a]pyrimidine.

The heterocyclic ligands [1,2,4]triazolo-[1,5-a]pyrimidine (tp) and 5,7-dimethyl-[1,2,4]triazolo-[1,5-a]pyrimidine (dmtp), react with diorganotin dichlorides giving the addition compounds Me2SnCl2(tp)2, Et2 SnCl2(tp)2, Me2 SnCl2(dmtp)2, Et2 SnCl2(dmtp)2, Bu2SnCl2(dmtp), Ph2SnCl2(dmtp). The organotin:ligand stoichiometry goes from 1:2 to 1:1 by increasing the steric hindrance of the organic groups bound to tin. The compounds have been characterized by means of infrared, 119Sn Mo¨ssbauer and 1H AND 13C NMR spectroscopy. The ligands presumably coordinate to tin classically through the nitrogen atom at the position 3. The 1:1 complexes adopt trigonal bipyramidal structures, with the organic groups on the equatorial plane and the ligand in the apical position. All-trans octahedral structures are inferred for the 1:2 complexes, except for Et2SnCl2(tp)2, characterized by a skew-trapezoidal structure. 119Sn Mo¨ssbauer measurements, at room temperature, in concomitance with DFT calculations, performed on isomeric structures of R2SnCl2(tp)2 (R = Me, Et), allowed us to conclude that the all-trans octahedral coordination induces self-assembly in the solid state, possibly accomplished through p–p stacking interactions among the planar ligands coordinated to the organotin(IV) compound, while the skew-trapezoidal structure attributed to Et2SnCl2(tp)2, induces the formation of monomeric adducts in the solid state. In vitro antimicrobial tests showed that [n-Bu2SnCl2(dmtp)] has interesting properties as anti Gram-positive and antibiofilm agent