Transcriptional Effects of Glucocorticoid Receptors in the Dentate Gyrus Increase Anxiety-Related Behaviors

The Glucocorticoid Receptor (GR) is a transcription factor ubiquitously expressed in the brain. Activation of brain GRs by high levels of glucocorticoid (GC) hormones modifies a large variety of physiological and pathological-related behaviors. Unfortunately the specific cellular targets of GR-mediated behavioral effects of GC are still largely unknown. To address this issue, we generated a mutated form of the GR called ΔGR. ΔGR is a constitutively transcriptionally active form of the GR that is localized in the nuclei and activates transcription without binding to glucocorticoids. Using the tetracycline-regulated system (Tet-OFF), we developed an inducible transgenic approach that allows the expression of the ΔGR in specific brain areas. We focused our study on a mouse line that expressed ΔGR almost selectively in the glutamatergic neurons of the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampus. This restricted expression of the ΔGR increased anxiety-related behaviors without affecting other behaviors that could indirectly influence performance in anxiety-related tests. This behavioral phenotype was also associated with an up-regulation of the MAPK signaling pathway and Egr-1 protein in the DG. These findings identify glutamatergic neurons in the DG as one of the cellular substrate of stress-related pathologies

How future surgery will benefit from SARS-COV-2-related measures: a SPIGC survey conveying the perspective of Italian surgeons

COVID-19 negatively affected surgical activity, but the potential benefits resulting from adopted measures remain unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in surgical activity and potential benefit from COVID-19 measures in perspective of Italian surgeons on behalf of SPIGC. A nationwide online survey on surgical practice before, during, and after COVID-19 pandemic was conducted in March-April 2022 (NCT:05323851). Effects of COVID-19 hospital-related measures on surgical patients' management and personal professional development across surgical specialties were explored. Data on demographics, pre-operative/peri-operative/post-operative management, and professional development were collected. Outcomes were matched with the corresponding volume. Four hundred and seventy-three respondents were included in final analysis across 14 surgical specialties. Since SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, application of telematic consultations (4.1% vs. 21.6%; p < 0.0001) and diagnostic evaluations (16.4% vs. 42.2%; p < 0.0001) increased. Elective surgical activities significantly reduced and surgeons opted more frequently for conservative management with a possible indication for elective (26.3% vs. 35.7%; p < 0.0001) or urgent (20.4% vs. 38.5%; p < 0.0001) surgery. All new COVID-related measures are perceived to be maintained in the future. Surgeons' personal education online increased from 12.6% (pre-COVID) to 86.6% (post-COVID; p < 0.0001). Online educational activities are considered a beneficial effect from COVID pandemic (56.4%). COVID-19 had a great impact on surgical specialties, with significant reduction of operation volume. However, some forced changes turned out to be benefits. Isolation measures pushed the use of telemedicine and telemetric devices for outpatient practice and favored communication for educational purposes and surgeon-patient/family communication. From the Italian surgeons' perspective, COVID-related measures will continue to influence future surgical clinical practice

SANI-Severe Asthma Network in Italy: a way forward to monitor severe asthma

Even if severe asthma (SA) accounts for 5-10% of all cases of the disease, it is currently a crucial unmet need, owing its difficult clinical management and its high social costs. For this reason several networks, focused on SA have been organized in some countries, in order to select these patients, to recognize their clinical features, to evaluate their adherence, to classify their biological/clinical phenotypes, to identify their eligibility to the new biologic therapies and to quantify the costs of the disease. Aim of the present paper is to describe the ongoing Italian Severe Asthma Network (SANI). Up today 49 centres have been selected, widespread on the national territory. Sharing the same diagnostic protocol, data regarding patients with SA will be collected and processed in a web platform. After their recruitment, SA patients will be followed in the long term in order to investigate the natural history of the disease. Besides clinical data, the cost/benefit evaluation of the new biologics will be verified as well as the search of peculiar biomarker(s) of the disease

Toward more efficient and stable bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen electrodes using FeCo2O4/carbon nanofiber prepared by electrospinning

9 figures, 3 tables; © 2020. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/In the present work, an iron-cobaltite spinel supported on N-containing carbon nanofibers (CNFs) shows a remarkable activity for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline solution, with an overpotential (η10mAcm-2) of 130 mV, one of the lowest values in literature so far. This material is also an excellent catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), what leads to an extraordinary reversible behavior (ΔE = EOER – EORR=480 mV), being an economic and easy scalable candidate for the air electrode of metal-air batteries or for electrochemical devices where the oxygen evolution or the oxygen reduction is involved. In the present research, Fe partially replaces Co atoms in the Co3O4 spinel structure to obtain a more economically feasible material, leading to a FeCo2O4/CNF, by using an electrospinning preparation procedure previously adopted for the Co3O4/CNF synthesis. The substitution of iron in the Co3O4/CNF spinel entails an outstanding onset potential toward the OER of 1.36 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode, which is 120 mV lower compared with the pure spinel (Co3O4/CNF). An optimal distribution of the FeCo2O4 particles on the CNF surface, with 3-nm-size particles, allows exposing abundant active sites, mainly Co3+ and Fe3+, responsible for the enhanced activity toward the OER, and Fe-Nx moieties and N-sites (N-graphitic/pyridinic), more active for the ORR. Besides, FeCo2O4/CNF shows a well-developed porous structure, favoring the mass transfer, a parameter particularly important for the ORR. To assess the stability of the catalysts for rechargeable alkaline metal-air batteries, cycling operation and chronopotentiometric experiments are carried out, showing a stable potential for 24 h.The research leading to these results has received funding from the ‘Accordo di Programma CNR-MiSE, RdS PTR 2019–2021 - Progetto 1.2 Sistemi di accumulo, compresi elettrochimico e power to gas, e relative interfacce con le reti’. C.A. thanks the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness for her research contract Juan de la Cierva (IJCI-2017-32354).Peer reviewe

Electrocatalysis of oxygen on bifunctional nickel‐cobaltite spinel

7 Figures, 2 Tables.-- This article also appears in: Giornate dell’Elettrochimica Italiana (GEI 2019).Transition‐metal‐based materials are among the most active and durable catalysts for the effective electrocatalysis of oxygen‐related reactions. Herein, we present a study on bifunctional catalysts as air electrodes aimed at metal‐air batteries based on nickel and cobalt spinel (NiCo2O4) supported on electrospun carbon nanofibers. The physicochemical features of these transition‐metal‐based catalysts are essential for the understanding of their electrochemical activity. Results show that the major presence of oxidized Ni and Co species (Ni3+ and Co3+) produces higher activity for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), whereas lower oxidation states of the metals (Ni2+, Co2+, Ni0 and Co0) together with the presence of N‐doped carbon lead to enhanced oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) performance. This study highlights the importance of designing catalysts in terms of crystallographic structure and proper oxidation states of the elements for maximizing their performance.The research leading to these results has received funding from the “Accordo di Programma CNR‐MiSE, Gruppo tematico Sistema Elettrico Nazionale e Progetto: Sistemi elettrochimici per l′accumulo di energia”.Peer reviewe

Investigation of several graphite-based electrodes for vanadium redox flow cell

9 páginas.- 1 tabla.- 18 figuras.Several graphite-based electrodes are investigated for vanadium flow battery applications. These materials are characterized both as-received and after chemical or electrochemical treatments in order to vary the content of oxygen functional groups on the electrode surface. The surface properties of the samples are investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Electrochemical performance is evaluated by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements in a three electrode half-cell. The chemical treatment with HNO3 causes a cleaning of the electrode surface from adsorbed oxygen species or labile bonded functional groups in highly graphitic samples. Whereas, carbonaceous materials characterized by smaller graphitic domains or a higher degree of amorphous carbon show an increase of oxygen functional groups upon chemical and electrochemical pre-treatments. In both cases, an increase of oxygen species content on the surface above 5% causes a decrease of electrochemical performance for the redox battery determined by an increase of ohmic and charge transfer resistanceAuthors from CNR-ITAE acknowledge the financial support from “Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico – Accordo di Programma MSE-CNR per la Ricerca del Sistema elettrico Nazionale”.Peer reviewe

Non-precious metal-based electrospun carbon nanofibers as air-electrodes for metal-air batteries

Poster presented at the HYCELTEC 2019 conference, VII Symposium on Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Advanced Batteries, 1-3 july 2019, Barcelona (Spain)

Differences between brain structures in nuclear translocation and DNA binding of the glucocorticoid receptor during stress and the circadian cycle

International audienceGlucocorticoid receptors (GRs) are transcription factors that, upon activation by glucocorticoids, translocate to the cell nucleus, and bind to specific response elements (GREs) in the promoter region of target genes. We analysed stress- and circadian-induced changes in nuclear translocation and GRE binding of GRs in the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex of the rat brain. Nuclear translocation and binding to GRE were measured in nuclear extracts by Western blot and gel shift, respectively. When glucocorticoid levels were low, as during the light period of the circadian cycle, nuclear GRs and GRE binding were almost undetectable. However, the increase in glucocorticoid levels observed during the dark phase of the circadian cycle or after stress induced a massive nuclear translocation of GRs and GRE binding. These effects were corticosterone-dependent because they were suppressed by adrenalectomy and restored by the injection of corticosterone. Furthermore, GR translocation and GRE binding were of higher amplitude or lasted longer in the hippocampus than in the prefrontal cortex. By contrast, extracellular levels of glucocorticoids, measured by microdialysis in freely moving animals, were identical in the two structures. These results suggest that specific intracellular regulations of GR activity contribute to differentiate the effects of glucocorticoids in different regions of the brain

Electrospun carbon nanofibers loaded with spinel-type cobalt oxide as bifunctional catalysts for enhanced oxygen electrocatalysis

The electrocatalysis of oxygen in alkaline media is a challenging issue, influencing the performance of many electrochemical devices: fuel cells, unitized regenerative fuel cells, electrolyzers and metal-air batteries. This new manuscript proposes the synthesis of graphitic carbon nanofibers obtained by electrospinning with a cobalt-based spinel oxide, Co3O4/CNF. By means of a simple, reproducible and scalable method, a bifunctional catalyst with a promising performance is obtained, being able of carrying out the electrocatalysis of oxygen (oxidation of water, evolution and reduction of oxygen) in a basic solution. The combination of the active species on cobalt oxide (Co2+, Co3+ and Co-Nx), along with active species in the carbon nanofiber (graphitic and pyridinic N), gives rise to a catalyst with a remarkable reversibility (difference between E10 mA/cm2 (evolution) and Ehalf-wave-potential (reduction)): ΔE =795 mV), a low over-potential for the evolution of oxygen (η =416 mV) and 919 mV of oxygen reduction onset potential, very similar to that of a benchmark catalyst, Pt/C.Funding for this work was obtained from the “Accordo di Programma CNR-MiSE, Gruppo tematico Sistema Elettrico Nazionale – Progetto: Sistemi elettrochimici per l’accumulo di energia”.Peer reviewe

Electrospun MnCo2O4/carbon-nanofibers as oxygen electrode for alkaline zinc-air batteries

11 figures, 2 tables.-- Supplementary data available.-- © 2022. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/A MnCo2O4 catalyst supported on nitrogen-doped carbon nanofibers (CNF) obtained in a single-step electrospinning process is presented. MnCo2O4/CNF is investigated as bifunctional electrode for the electrocatalysis of oxygen in metal-air batteries. Crystallographic structure, morphology, and surface properties are analyzed using solid-state characterization techniques that reveal the presence of a 20 nm-particle-sized spinel and a large amount of oxidized metal species (Mn4+ and Co3+). These features are correlated with the electrochemical behavior for the oxygen reduction (ORR) and oxygen evolution (OER), showing good performances in particular for the OER compared with IrO2, benchmark catalyst for this reaction. Results revealed a synergistic effect of the catalytically active nitrogen-doped carbon nanofiber and the manganese and cobalt active species from the spinel, being responsible for the remarkable reversibility of this catalyst (ΔE = 799 mV), outperforming most of the previous works in the literature on this type of manganese/cobalt-based spinel materials. A preliminary test of an alkaline Zn-air battery equipped with this catalyst at the oxygen (positive) electrode confirms proper activity and stability during cycling operations typical of these rechargeable devices. Besides, the spinel-nanofiber-based catalyst has been produced by an easily-scalable electrospinning process, representing an advance of the current technology on positive electrodes for metal-air batteries. The curated synthesis of our MnCo-N-CNF spinel is fundamental to obtaining a catalyst with a high intrinsic catalytic activity (determined by rotating disk electrode) and an appropriate performance in a relevant environment (both gas diffusion electrode and Zn-air battery).The research leading to these results has received funding from the ‘Accordo di Programma CNR-MiSE, RdS PTR 2019-2021 - Progetto 1.2: Sistemi di accumulo, compresi elettrochimico e power to gas, e relative interfacce con le reti’.Peer reviewe