Niccolò Tramontana: la pittura come percezione visiva della sostanza

Si è aperta il 30 settembre 2011 a Foligno (PG) una mostra personale di un giovane artista emergente dell’Accademia di Belle Arti di Bologna: Niccolò Tramontana. L'esposizione consta di una decina di opere: tra dipinti olio su tela e incisioni ad acquaforte, i lavori si presentano tutti senza titolo. Questa scelta è dettata dalla volontà dell'artista di creare opere che siano svincolate da una lettura forzatamente connessa al loro nome. L’intento, infatti, è quello di sollecitare un numero infinito di interpretazioni, perché è la rappresentazione artistica stessa ad essere proposta allo spettatore come problema. Questo processo diventa emblematico per una storia dell’arte che presenta una molteplicità di significati e ambiguità all’interno di un linguaggio non figurativo

Il CIAC: Centro di Arte Contemporanea di Foligno

«Il CIAC nasce da un’esigenza di documentare l’arte contemporanea in questa città che ha una sua piccola, ma molto significativa e penetrante, tradizione del NUOVO». Con queste parole Italo Tomassoni , curatore dello spazio espositivo del Centro di Arte Contemporanea (CIAC) di Foligno, parla di questo nuovo e importante complesso museale di Arte Contemporanea del centro Italia. Come spiega Tomassoni, infatti, la gestazione per avere un vero e proprio centro dedicato all’arte nella città di Foligno è stata lunga e comincia nel 1967 quando, con il titolo Lo spazio dell’immagine si aprì la mostra che ispirò apertamente la Biennale di Venezia del 1968, in quanto rivoluzionò, da quel momento, tutto ciò che era la concezione dell’arte staccando i quadri dalle pareti per metterli in un contesto spaziale. L’idea di progettare il museo nasce alla fine degli anni Novanta, ma solamente nel Novembre del 2009 sarà inaugurato il Centro di Arte Contemporanea di Foligno. Il museo viene in questi anni costruito con l’idea architettonica di un grande artista italiano, Getulio Alviani (Udine 1939-), che ha una lunga storia alle sue spalle, anche in riferimento a questa città per le sue frequentazioni costanti e per il contributo dato a questo museo. Come spiega Tomassoni, sembrava in un primo momento, che si dovesse creare questo museo per ospitare stabilmente la sua grandissima collezione, cosa che poi non è stata possibile per difficoltà di natura logistica, perché Alviani abita a Milano e, naturalmente, «un museo non si costruisce con i fax o con le email»

Il facsimile dell'Hortus amoenissimus di Franciscus De Geest: una recensione

Aboca museum, in collaborazione con la Bibioteca Nazionale Centrale di Roma, ha presentato la riproduzione facsimilare dello splendido florilegio Hortus amoenissimus del celebre pittore olandese del Seicento barocco: Franciscus De Geest (1638-1699). L’Hortus amoenissimus edito da Aboca è una raccolta di 201 disegni originali, splendidamente colorati con tecnica mista, testimonianza della varietà di piante da fiore coltivate nei giardini botanici dell’epoca e delle ricche collezioni dei tanto ricercati tulipani d’Oriente. L’opera è inoltre accompagnata da un Commentario di 96 pagine. La riproduzione è fedele nei colori e riesce a riportare sulla pagina la freschezza dei disegni e la vivacità delle tinte. L’originale è conservato presso la Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Roma (manoscritto Varia 291) ed è datato Leeuwarden 1668 ed è introdotto da una suggestiva tavola di presentazione

"RaMassays": Synergistic Enhancement of Plasmon-Free Raman Scattering and Mass Spectrometry for Multimodal Analysis of Small Molecules

SiO2/TiO2 core/shell (T-rex) beads were exploited as "all-in-one" building-block materials to create analytical assays that combine plasmon-free surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and surface assisted laser desorption/ionization (SALDI) mass spectrometry (RaMassays). Such a multi-modal approach relies on the unique optical properties of T-rex beads, which are able to harvest and manage light in both UV and Vis range, making ionization and Raman scattering more efficient. RaMassays were successfully applied to the detection of small (molecular weight, M.W. <400 Da) molecules with a key relevance in biochemistry and pharmaceutical analysis. Caffeine and cocaine were utilized as molecular probes to test the combined SERS/SALDI response of RaMassays, showing excellent sensitivity and reproducibility. The differentiation between amphetamine/ephedrine and theophylline/theobromine couples demonstrated the synergistic reciprocal reinforcement of SERS and SALDI. Finally, the conversion of L-tyrosine in L-DOPA was utilized to probe RaMassays as analytical tools for characterizing reaction intermediates without introducing any spurious effects. RaMassays exhibit important advantages over plasmonic nanoparticles in terms of reproducibility, absence of interference and potential integration in multiplexed devices

Biochemical, Biophysical and Functional Characterization of an Insoluble Iron Containing Hepcidin-Ferritin Chimeric Monomer Assembled Together with Human Ferritin H/L Chains at Different Molar Ratios

Hepcidin and ferritin are key proteins of iron homeostasis in mammals. In this study, we characterize a chimera by fusing camel hepcidin to a human ferritin H-chain to verify if it retained the properties of the two proteins. The construct (HepcH) is expressed in E. coli in an insoluble and iron-containing form. To characterize it, the product was incubated with ascorbic acid and TCEP to reduce and solubilize the iron, which was quantified with ferrozine. HepcH bound approximately five times more iron than the wild type human ferritin, due to the presence of the hepcidin moiety. To obtain a soluble and stable product, the chimera was denatured and renatured together with different amounts of L-ferritin of the H-chain in order to produce 24-shell heteropolymers with different subunit proportions. They were analyzed by denaturing and non-denaturing PAGE and by mass spectroscopy. At the 1:5 ratio of HepcH to H- or L-ferritin, a stable and soluble molecule was obtained. Its biological activity was verified by its ability to both bind specifically cell lines that express ferroportin and to promote ferroportin degradation. This chimeric molecule showed the ability to bind both mouse J774 macrophage cells, as well as human HepG2 cells, via the hepcidin-ferroportin axis. We conclude that the chimera retains the properties of both hepcidin and ferritin and might be exploited for drug delivery

PLANOS MUNICIPAIS DE CONTINGÊNCIA DE PROTEÇÃO E DEFESA CIVIL: AS CONCEPÇÕES DOS ATORES MUNICIPAIS E O MODELO ADOTADO EM SANTA CATARINA

O projeto “Instrumentos Municipais de Redução de Riscos e Desastres - IMUN-RRD” (Secretaria do Estado de Defesa Civil de Santa Catarina e Laboratório de Estudos de Riscos e Desastres/Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina) realizou, em 2017, oficinas de formação junto aos agentes municipais envolvidos na gestão de riscos e desastres em Santa Catarina. As oficinas tiveram, dentre outros, o objetivo de capacitar os agentes para a elaboração dos Planos Municipais de Contingência (PLAMCON). Neste artigo analisam-se as concepções de PLAMCON formuladas pelos participantes, as semelhanças e diferenças entre suas concepções e o modelo incluído no Sistema Integrado de Defesa Civil de Santa Catarina (SISDC), e tiram-se conclusões sobre a contribuição dos planos para a fase de preparação da resposta aos desastres, e do processo de sua elaboração no estado

Production and characterization of functional recombinant hybrid heteropolymers of camel hepcidin and human ferritin H and L chains

This article has been accepted for publication in Protein Engineering design and Selection Published by Oxford University Press.Hepcidin is a liver-synthesized hormone that plays a central role in the regulation of systemic iron homeostasis. To produce a new tool for its functional properties the cDNA coding for camel hepcidin-25 was cloned at the 5’end of human FTH sequence into the pASK-IBA43plus vector for expression in Escherichia coli. The recombinant fusion hepcidin–ferritin-H subunit was isolated as an insoluble iron-containing protein. When alone it did not refold in a 24-mer ferritin molecule, but it did when renatured together with H- or L-ferritin chains. We obtained stable ferritin shells exposing about 4 hepcidin peptides per 24-mer shell. The molecules were then reduced and re-oxidized in a controlled manner to allow the formation of the proper hepcidin disulfide bridges. The functionality of the exposed hepcidin was confirmed by its ability to specifically bind the mouse macrophage cell line J774 that express ferroportin and to promote ferroportin degradation. This chimeric protein may be useful for studying the hepcidin–ferroportin interaction in cells and also as drug-delivery agent.This work is partially financed by the Laboratory of Protein Engineering and Bioactive Molecules (LIP-MB) and the Doctoral School of the National Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology (INSAT-Tunis) – University of Carthage

COVID-19 Sequelae and the Host Proinflammatory Response: An Analysis From the OnCovid Registry

COVID-19; Resposta proinflamatòriaCOVID-19; Respuesta proinflamatoriaCOVID-19; Proinflammatory responseBackground Fifteen percent of patients with cancer experience symptomatic sequelae, which impair post–COVID-19 outcomes. In this study, we investigated whether a proinflammatory status is associated with the development of COVID-19 sequelae. Methods OnCovid recruited 2795 consecutive patients who were diagnosed with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 infection between February 27, 2020, and February 14, 2021. This analysis focused on COVID-19 survivors who underwent a clinical reassessment after the exclusion of patients with hematological malignancies. We evaluated the association of inflammatory markers collected at COVID-19 diagnosis with sequelae, considering the impact of previous systemic anticancer therapy. All statistical tests were 2-sided. Results Of 1339 eligible patients, 203 experienced at least 1 sequela (15.2%). Median baseline C-reactive protein (CRP; 77.5 mg/L vs 22.2 mg/L, P < .001), lactate dehydrogenase (310 UI/L vs 274 UI/L, P = .03), and the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR; 6.0 vs 4.3, P = .001) were statistically significantly higher among patients who experienced sequelae, whereas no association was reported for the platelet to lymphocyte ratio and the OnCovid Inflammatory Score, which includes albumin and lymphocytes. The widest area under the ROC curve (AUC) was reported for baseline CRP (AUC = 0.66, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.63 to 0.69), followed by the NLR (AUC = 0.58, 95% CI: 0.55 to 0.61) and lactate dehydrogenase (AUC = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.52 to 0.61). Using a fixed categorical multivariable analysis, high CRP (odds ratio [OR] = 2.56, 95% CI: 1.67 to 3.91) and NLR (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.01 to 2.10) were confirmed to be statistically significantly associated with an increased risk of sequelae. Exposure to chemotherapy was associated with a decreased risk of sequelae (OR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.36 to 0.91), whereas no associations with immune checkpoint inhibitors, endocrine therapy, and other types of systemic anticancer therapy were found. Conclusions Although the association between inflammatory status, recent chemotherapy and sequelae warrants further investigation, our findings suggest that a deranged proinflammatory reaction at COVID-19 diagnosis may predict for sequelae development.OnCovid is sponsored by Imperial College London and received direct project funding and infrastructural support by the NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre (BRC)

The ACTyourCHANGE in Teens Study Protocol: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy-Based Intervention for Adolescents with Obesity: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This Randomized Controlled Trial [(RCT) aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)-based intervention combined with treatment as usual (TAU) compared to TAU only in improving psychological conditions in a sample of adolescents with obesity (body mass index, BMI &gt; 97th percentile for age and sex) within the context of a wider multidisciplinary rehabilitation program for weight loss. Fifty consecutive adolescents (12-17 years) of both genders with obesity will be recruited among the patients hospitalized in a clinical center for obesity rehabilitation and randomly allocated into two experimental conditions: ACT + TAU vs. TAU only. Both groups will attend a three-week in-hospital multidisciplinary rehabilitation program for weight loss. The ACT + TAU condition comprises a psychological intervention based on ACT combined with a standard psychological assessment and support to the hospitalization. The TAU comprises the standard psychological assessment and support to the hospitalization. At pre- to post-psychological intervention, participants will complete the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth, the Psychological Well-Being Scale, the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, and the Emotional Eating subscale of the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire to assess psychological well-being as the primary outcome and experiential avoidance, psychological distress, emotional dysregulation, and emotional eating as secondary outcomes. Repeated-measures ANOVAs (2 x 2) will be conducted. The study will assess the effectiveness of a brief ACT-based intervention for adolescents with obesity in improving their psychological conditions by targeting specific core processes of the ACT framework (openness, awareness, and engagement). Future directions of the study will assess whether these psychological processes will contribute to addressing long-term weight loss

Autoantibodies against the glial glutamate transporter GLT1/EAAT2 in Type 1 diabetes mellitus-Clues to novel immunological and non-immunological therapies

: Islet cell surface autoantibodies were previously found in subjects with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), but their target antigens and pathogenic mechanisms remain elusive. The glutamate transporter solute carrier family 1, member 2 (GLT1/EAAT2) is expressed on the membrane of pancreatic β-cells and physiologically controls extracellular glutamate concentrations thus preventing glutamate-induced β-cell death. We hypothesized that GLT1 could be an immunological target in T1DM and that autoantibodies against GLT1 could be pathogenic. Immunoprecipitation and ELISA experiments showed that sera from T1DM subjects recognized GLT1 expressed in brain, pancreatic islets, and GLT1-transfected COS7-cell extracts. We validated these findings in two cohorts of T1DM patients by quantitative immunofluorescence assays. Analysis of the combined data sets indicated the presence of autoantibodies against GLT1 in 32 of the 87 (37%) T1DM subjects and in none of healthy controls (n&nbsp;=&nbsp;64) (p&nbsp;&lt;&nbsp;0.0001). Exposure of pancreatic βTC3 cells and human islets to purified IgGs from anti-GLT1 positive sera supplemented with complement resulted in plasma membrane ruffling, cell lysis and death. The cytotoxic effect was prevented when sera were depleted from IgGs. Furthermore, in the absence of complement, 6 out of 16 (37%) anti-GLT1 positive sera markedly reduced GLT1 transport activity in βTC3 cells by inducing GLT1 internalization, also resulting in β-cell death. In conclusion, we provide evidence that GLT1 is a novel T1DM autoantigen and that anti-GLT1 autoantibodies cause β-cell death through complement-dependent and independent mechanisms. GLT1 seems an attractive novel therapeutic target for the prevention of β-cell death in individuals with diabetes and prediabetes