Agricultural use of copper and its link to Alzheimer’s disease

Copper is an essential nutrient for plants, animals, and humans because it is an indispensable component of several essential proteins and either lack or excess are harmful to human health. Recent studies revealed that the breakdown of the regulation of copper homeostasis could be associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common form of dementia. Copper accumulation occurs in human aging and is thought to increase the risk of AD for individuals with a susceptibility to copper exposure. This review reports that one of the leading causes of copper accumulation in the environment and the human food chain is its use in agriculture as a plant protection product against numerous diseases, especially in organic production. In the past two decades, some countries and the EU have invested in research to reduce the reliance on copper. However, no single alternative able to replace copper has been identified. We suggest that agroecological approaches are urgently needed to design crop protection strategies based on the complementary actions of the wide variety of crop protection tools for disease control

Anastrozole-related acute hepatitis with autoimmune features: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Two cases of acute hepatitis occurring during treatment with anastrozole have previously been reported, but the underlying mechanisms of liver injury are still uncertain. We report the case of anastrozole-related acute hepatitis with some autoimmune features.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 70-year-old woman developed acute hepatitis associated with serum antinuclear antibodies during anastrozole treatment; after drug withdrawal, liver function parameters rapidly improved and serum auto-antibodies were no longer detectable.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Anastrozole-induced hepatotoxicity is a very rare event. Drug-drug interactions or metabolically-mediated damage might be involved, with a possible role of individual susceptibility. Our report suggests that an immune-mediated mechanism may also be considered in anastrozole-related liver injury.</p

Iron(III)-Salophene: An Organometallic Compound with Selective Cytotoxic and Anti-Proliferative Properties in Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer Cells

Background: In this pioneer study to the biological activity of organometallic compound Iron(III)-salophene (Fe-SP) the specific effects of Fe-SP on viability, morphology, proliferation, and cell-cycle progression on platinum-resistant ovariancancer cell lines were investigated. Methodology/Principal Findings: Fe-SP displayed selective cytotoxicity against SKOV-3 and OVCAR-3 (ovarian epithelial adenocarcinoma) cell lines at concentrations between 100 nM and 1 μM, while the viability of HeLa cells (epithelial cervix adenocarcinoma) or primary lung or skin fibroblasts was not affected. SKOV-3 cells in contrast to fibroblasts after treatment with Fe-SP revealed apparent hallmarks of apoptosis including densely stained nuclear granular bodies within fragmented nuclei, highly condensed chromatin and chromatin fragmentation. Fe-SP treatment led to the activation of markers of the extrinsic (Caspase-8) and intrinsic (Caspase-9) pathway of apoptosis as well as of executioner Caspase-3 while PARP-1 was deactivated. Fe-SP exerted effects as an anti-proliferative agent with an IC50 value of 300 nM and caused delayed progression of cells through S-phase phase of the cell cycle resulting in a complete S-phase arrest. When intra-peritoneally applied to rats Fe-SP did not show any systemic toxicity at concentrations that in preliminary trials were determined to be chemotherapeutic relevant doses in a rat ovarian cancer cell model. Conclusion/Significance: The present report suggests that Fe-SP is a potent growth-suppressing agent in vitro for cell lines derived from ovarian cancer and a potential therapeutic drug to treat such tumors in viv

Mycobacteria Attenuate Nociceptive Responses by Formyl Peptide Receptor Triggered Opioid Peptide Release from Neutrophils

In inflammation, pain is regulated by a balance of pro- and analgesic mediators. Analgesic mediators include opioid peptides which are secreted by neutrophils at the site of inflammation, leading to activation of opioid receptors on peripheral sensory neurons. In humans, local opioids and opioid peptides significantly downregulate postoperative as well as arthritic pain. In rats, inflammatory pain is induced by intraplantar injection of heat inactivated Mycobacterium butyricum, a component of complete Freund's adjuvant. We hypothesized that mycobacterially derived formyl peptide receptor (FPR) and/or toll like receptor (TLR) agonists could activate neutrophils, leading to opioid peptide release and inhibition of inflammatory pain. In complete Freund's adjuvant-induced inflammation, thermal and mechanical nociceptive thresholds of the paw were quantified (Hargreaves and Randall-Selitto methods, respectively). Withdrawal time to heat was decreased following systemic neutrophil depletion as well as local injection of opioid receptor antagonists or anti-opioid peptide (i.e. Met-enkephalin, β-endorphin) antibodies indicating an increase in pain. In vitro, opioid peptide release from human and rat neutrophils was measured by radioimmunoassay. Met-enkephalin release was triggered by Mycobacterium butyricum and formyl peptides but not by TLR-2 or TLR-4 agonists. Mycobacterium butyricum induced a rise in intracellular calcium as determined by FURA loading and calcium imaging. Opioid peptide release was blocked by intracellular calcium chelation as well as phosphoinositol-3-kinase inhibition. The FPR antagonists Boc-FLFLF and cyclosporine H reduced opioid peptide release in vitro and increased inflammatory pain in vivo while TLR 2/4 did not appear to be involved. In summary, mycobacteria activate FPR on neutrophils, resulting in tonic secretion of opioid peptides from neutrophils and in a decrease in inflammatory pain. Future therapeutic strategies may aim at selective FPR agonists to boost endogenous analgesia

Rubber compounds made of reactivated EPDM for fiber-reinforced elastomeric isolators: an experimental study

Rubber recycling technology is&nbsp;a popular issue in many research fields, considering the huge amount of rubber waste in the environment. This paper discusses an application of regenerated ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) to produce vulcanized items such as fiber-reinforced elastomeric isolators (FREIs), which are nowadays considered efficient low-cost seismic protection devices for low rise buildings (e.g., made by masonry) in developing countries. Two types of regenerated EPDM are studies and blended with two different virgin rubbers, Vistalon 3666 and Dutral 4038. The first virgin rubber is used to produce a compound with a hardness of around 30 Shore A, while the latter exhibits 60 Shore A. The present study, which is part of a wider research project aimed at the production of low cost un-bonded seismic isolation devices, focuses exclusively on the determination of both crosslinking degree through rheometer tests and elasticity/mechanical properties of the rubber pads, before and after ageing (hardness, tensile strength, elongation-at-break, stretch-stress behavior before and after ageing). The results show that the compounds with the second reactivated EPDM (type B) exhibit the most satisfactory performance, before and after ageing. This paper discusses also the method of fabrication of FREIs, obtained by the interposition of pads made by the selected recycled rubber and dry glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) textiles. The hardness tests performed on the sliced FREI specimen indicate that the vulcanization temperature used in the production is roughly suitable to obtain the expected rubber properties

Studies for the transformation of carbocycles into carbohydrates: approach toward the synthesis of higher sugar derivatives

A highly stereocontrolled synthesis of a beta-D-ribo-hept-6-ulopyranosuronamide derivative, a useful intermediate for the synthesis of other higher sugars, has been developed using naturally occurring (-)-quinic acid as a chiral starting material. The transformation of carbocycle to carbohydrate, a key step in this sequence, occurred in a one-pot reaction: an ozonolysis carried out under mild conditions. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.339366567

Optimal vulcanization of unbonded fiber reinforced elastomeric isolator devices

Elastomeric seismic isolation is a technique diffused in civil engineering to protect existing and new structures against earthquakes. It consists in introducing between the superstructure and the foundation several devices (called seismic isolators) having the property to carry vertical loads maintaining at the same time the shear modulus small, increasing considerably the natural period of the structure, where the spectral acceleration drops down (Habieb et al., 2020 and 2019a, 2019b, 2019c, 2019d, 2018). This study investigates the possibility of using recycled rubber in the form of reactivated EPDM (made by 2/3 of regenerated rubber and 1/3 of virgin rubber) for the production of low cost rubber isolators (Habieb et al., 2020). A Fiber Reinforced Elastomeric Isolator FREI prototype constituted by five EPDM pads and four GFRP laminas interposed between contiguous pads is cured in the lab at 130°C and the level of vulcanization is experimentally provided measuring Shore A hardness on several points. A 3D numerical model based on both finite differences and FEM is proposed to predict the degree of vulcanization of the FREI numerically. It is found that the crosslinking density obtained is suboptimal (but still acceptable for an engineering point of view) and that it is required to increase the vulcanization temperature to obtain a full and homogeneous curing

Muslim masculinities under siege? Masculinity, religion and migration in the life stories of Muslim men married outside their religious group in Belgium and Italy

Differences between Muslims and non-Muslims are often discussed by Western scholars in relation to how they interpret family, parenting and gender roles and, more generally, differences in terms of compatibility with Western liberal values. Drawing on biographical interviews held in Italy (2010–17) and Belgium (2018–21) with mixed couples where the man has a migrant Muslim background and the woman a native Christian one, this chapter aims to: (1) explore the relevant social dimensions where masculinity is central to identity formation; and (2) analyse the ways these men perform and construct their gender identities in the European context. The findings contribute to the study of Muslim masculinities in Western countries by demonstrating: (1) that masculinity in particular symbolic moments (e.g. marriage) needs to be validated by the family networks of both spouses; (2) that the men are required to constantly prove their loyalty to their family of origin and to their partners by performing different breadwinner masculinities; and (3) that the link between masculinity and religious affiliation is central in Muslim homosocial interactions. The missing transmission of Islam to their children is often perceived, by other Muslim men, as a sign of a 'weakened masculinity'