Nitric oxide can function as either a killer molecule or an antiapoptotic effector in cardiomyocytes

AbstractCaspase enzymes are a family of cysteine proteases that play a central role in apoptosis. Recently, it has been demonstrated that caspases can be S-nitrosylated and inhibited by nitric oxide (NO). The present report shows that in chick embryo heart cells (CEHC), NO donor molecules such as S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP), S-nitrosoglutathione, spermine-NO or sodium nitroprusside inhibit caspase activity in both basal and staurosporine-treated cells. However, the inhibitory effect of NO donors on caspase activity is accompanied by a parallel cytotoxic effect, that precludes NO to exert its antiapoptotic capability. N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) at a concentration of 10 mM blocks depletion of cellular glutathione and cell death in SNAP-treated CEHC, but it poorly affects the ability of SNAP to inhibit caspase activity. Consequently, in the presence of NAC, SNAP attenuates not only caspase activity but also cell death of staurosporine-treated CEHC. These data show that changes in the redox environment may inhibit NO-mediated toxicity, without affecting the antiapoptotic capability of NO, mediated by inhibition of caspase enzymes. NO may thus be transformed from a killer molecule into an antiapoptotic agent

Caspase activation in etoposide‐treated fibroblasts is correlated to ERK phosphorylation and both events are blocked by polyamine depletion

Activation of the extracellular signal‐regulated kinases (ERKs) 1 and 2 is correlated to cell survival, but in some cases ERKs can act in signal transduction pathways leading to apoptosis. Treatment of mouse fibroblasts with 20 μM etoposide elicited a sustained phosphorylation of ERK 1/2, that increased until 24 h from the treatment in parallel with caspase activity. The inhibitor of ERK activation PD98059 abolished caspase activation, but caspase inhibition did not reduce ERK 1/2 phosphorylation, suggesting that ERK activation is placed upstream of caspases. Both ERK and caspase activation were blocked in cells depleted of polyamines by the ornithine decarboxylase inhibitor α‐difluoromethylornithine (DFMO). In etoposide‐treated cells, DFMO also abolished phosphorylation of c‐Jun NH2‐terminal kinases triggered by the drug. Polyamine replenishment with exogenous putrescine restored the ability of the cells to undergo caspase activation and ERK 1/2 phosphorylation in response to etoposide. Ornithine decarboxylase activity decreased after etoposide, indicating that DFMO exerts its effect by depleting cellular polyamines before induction of apoptosis. These results reveal a role for polyamines in the transduction of the death signal triggered by etoposide

The Eurasian Modern Pollen Database (EMPD), version 2

The Eurasian (nee European) Modern Pollen Database (EMPD) was established in 2013 to provide a public database of high-quality modern pollen surface samples to help support studies of past climate, land cover, and land use using fossil pollen. The EMPD is part of, and complementary to, the European Pollen Database (EPD) which contains data on fossil pollen found in Late Quaternary sedimentary archives throughout the Eurasian region. The EPD is in turn part of the rapidly growing Neotoma database, which is now the primary home for global palaeoecological data. This paper describes version 2 of the EMPD in which the number of samples held in the database has been increased by 60% from 4826 to 8134. Much of the improvement in data coverage has come from northern Asia, and the database has consequently been renamed the Eurasian Modern Pollen Database to reflect this geographical enlargement. The EMPD can be viewed online using a dedicated map-based viewer at https://empd2.github.io and downloaded in a variety of file formats at https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.909130 (Chevalier et al., 2019).Peer reviewe

Conferenza Nazionale sulla Politica Energetica in Italia

Nel momento in cui il mercato del petrolio e - più in generale - delle fonti primarie di energia è caratterizzato da forti tensioni e crescenti preoccupazioni, l’Università di Bologna ritiene opportuno promuovere un Forum di confronto sulla politica energetica nazionale a breve e medio termine. Un primo significativo passo in questa direzione è costituito dalla Conferenza che l’Ateneo intende organizzare a Bologna nei giorni 18 e 19 aprile 2005 sul tema Conferenza Nazionale sulla Politica Energetica in Italia. Obiettivo principale dell’iniziativa è di identificare tematiche prioritarie di ricerca e sviluppo su cui concentrare le attività delle Università, degli Enti Nazionali di ricerca e dell’Industria pubblica e privata

Health services utilization in patients with eating disorders: evidence from a cohort study in Emilia-Romagna

Purpose: To estimate the treated prevalence of eating disorders (ED) in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, and to compare health services utilization among age groups and geographical areas. Methods: The study cohort consists of patients aged 12\u201364 years with a primary or secondary ED diagnosis, treated in regional healthcare facilities in 2012. Patients were followed up for 1\ua0year from the first contact. Data were extracted from regional administrative databases. Results: The study cohort included 1550 cases, 36.8\ua0% with anorexia nervosa, 21.9\ua0% with bulimia nervosa and 41.3\ua0% with ED not otherwise specified. Adolescents\ua0(12\u201317 years) were 18.6\ua0%, young adults\ua0(18\u201330) 32.7\ua0% and older adults\ua0(31\u201364) 48.7\ua0%. The annual treated prevalence rate was 5.2/10,000 (13.3 for adolescents, 9.3 for young adults and 3.4 for older adults) and was highest among adolescent (24.6/10,000) and young adult females (17.1/10,000). Cases without a record for ED in the previous year were 46.8\ua0%. Older adults displayed higher comorbidity and used more services including hospital-based care. Outpatient care greatly exceeded inpatient care across age groups. Variations in care patterns across regional areas were found. Conclusions: Our results indicate that the care pathway for ED varies among age groups and geographical areas, but is consistent with the regional care model that favors the use of outpatient services. Future perspectives include evaluating the integration among mental health services, specialty outpatient units and primary care

Efficacy of tocilizumab in Takayasu arteritis: Multicenter retrospective study of 46 patients

To assess the efficacy of tocilizumab in patients with Takayasu arteritis (TA)