THE USE OF SODIUM 2-MERCAPTOETHANESULFONATE AS ANTIVIRAL AGENT Description not available for EP1596851 (A1) Description of corresponding document: WO2004069235 (A1)

Classification: - international: A61K31/185; A61P11/00; A61P31/12; A61P31/16; A61K31/185; A61P11/00; A61P31/00; (IPC1-7): A61K31/185; A61P11/00; A61P31/12; A61P31/16 - European: A61K31/185 Application number: EP20040706141 20040129 Priority number(s): WO2004EP00779 20040129; IT2003MI00175 2003020

Abortive replication of influenza A viruses in HeLa 229 cells

Abstract Several experimental data support the idea that certain mammalian cells are unable to replicate influenza viruses type A, although these viruses can efficiently penetrate the cells. This cannot be attributed to a lack of specific receptors on the cell surface, but depends upon the failure of specific step(s) to occur during viral growth. Here we report a study of abortiveness of human and avian type A influenza viruses in HeLa 229 cells. Viral polypeptide synthesis was monitored by [35S]methionine pulse labelling at several time points after infection, showing that normal amounts of virus-induced components were synthesized. Cellular fractionation of HeLa 229 cells infected by influenza viruses showed that the distribution of viral proteins into nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments was comparable to that seen in the permissive host, chick embryo fibroblasts. Viral HA glycoprotein, produced during the infectious cycle, was entirely found in the cytoplasm of infected HeLa 229 cells. The polypeptide was able to agglutinate red blood cells but did not show positive haemadsorption even at late times of infection. Therefore it seems that during the maturation of viral particles there is a failure of the haemagglutinin to perform a correct insertion into the plasma membrane of infected HeLa 229 cells. Keywords Influenza A viruses; Maturation; Abortive cycle; HeLa 229 cells Correspondence to: G. Conti, Institute of Microbiology, University of Parma Medical School, 43100 Parma, Italy. Copyright © 1990 Published by Elsevier B.V. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. SciVerse® is a registered trademark of Elsevier Properties S.A., used under license. ScienceDirect® is a registered trademark of Elsevier B.V

The Helsinki declaration on patient safety in anesthesiology: A way forward with the European board and the European society of anesthesiology

Anesthesiology, which includes anaesthesia, perioperative care, intensive care medicine, emergency medicine and pain therapy, is acknowledged as the leading medical specialty in addressing issues of patient safety, but there is still a long way to go. Several factors pose hazards in Anesthesiology, like increasingly older and sicker patients, more complex surgical interventions, more pressure on throughput, as well as new drugs and devices. To better design educational and research strategies to improve patient safety, the European Board of Anesthesiology (EBA) and the European Society of Anesthesiology (ESA) have produced a blueprint for patient safety in Anesthesiology. This document, to be known as the Helsinki Declaration on Patient Safety in Anesthesiology, was endorsed together with the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Federation of Societies of Anesthesiologists (WFSA), and the European Patients' Federation (EPF) at the Euroanaesthesia meeting in Helsinki in June 2010. It was signed by several Presidents of National Anesthesiology Societies as well as other stakeholders. The Helsinki Declaration on Patient Safety in Anesthesiology represents a shared European view of what is necessary to improve patient safety, recommending practical steps that all anesthesiologists can include in their own clinical practice. The Italian Society of Anaesthesia, Analgesia, Reanimation and Intensive Care (SIAARTI) is looking forward to continuing work on "patient safety" issues in Europe, and to cooperating with the ESA in the best interest of European patients

Magnetosomes extracted from Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldence as magnetic thermotherapy agents

Thermotherapy represents an effective treatment for tumors. Magnetic fluid thermotherapy involves the use of iron-based magnetic nanoparticles injected into the tumor mass. In 1963 the Italian scientist, Salvatore Bellini, reported the first description of magnetotactic bacteria which naturally produce iron-nanoparticles, named magnetosomes (MN), and use them as a compass for geomagnetic navigation in search for optimal growth conditions. Recently, it has been reported that magnetosomes extracted from bacteria can be used in magnetic thermotherapy. We have extracted magnetosomes from Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense strain MSR-1 and tested their interaction with cellular elements and their activity in vitro and in vivo with the aim to assess their usefulness as therapeutic agents in magnetic fluid hyperthermia. MNs were extracted from MSR-1, analyzed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and tested for toxicity on a colon carcinoma cell line (HT-29). In vivo study were performed in xenografts obtained by HT-29 cells injected subcutaneously in mice. Each tumor was treated with MNs followed by cycles of thermotherapy at 187 kHz and 40 mT. The efficacy of the treatment was assessed in vivo by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ex vivo by histology. TEM showed that MNs were octahedral crystals organized in chains of about 20 nanoparticles. The length of chains depended on the parameters selected for bacterial culture. In vitro, MNs were not toxic versus HT-29 cells. The interaction between MNs and HT-29 cells, as studied by TEM, revealed three phases: adherence to and transport through cell membrane followed by accumulation in Golgi vesicles. In in vivo experiments, MNs were injected in the tumoral mass. The site of injection and tissutal distribution of magnetosomes was detected in vivo by MRI. After thermotherapy, the tumors were studied by histology and showed fibrotic and necrotic areas close to MNs accumulation sites. The time evolution of tumor mass was not significantly different from controls. TEM showed that MNs were octahedral crystals organized in chains of about 20 nanoparticles. The length of chains depended on the parameters selected for bacterial culture. In vitro, MNs were not toxic versus HT-29 cells. The interaction between MNs and HT-29 cells, as studied by TEM, revealed three phases: adherence to and transport through cell membrane followed by accumulation in Golgi vesicles. In in vivo experiments, MNs were injected in the tumoral mass. The site of injection and tissutal distribution of magnetosomes was detected in vivo by MRI. After thermotherapy, the tumors were studied by histology and showed fibrotic and necrotic areas close to MNs accumulation sites. The time evolution of tumor mass was not significantly different from controls. Our data suggest that MNs extracted from MSR-1 posses low toxicity in vitro and, after thermotherapy cycles, can induce damage in tumor tissue. The effect on total tumor mass regression was negligible, within the applied experimental conditions