Y chromosome binary markers to study the high prevalence of males in Sardinian centenarians and the genetic structure of the Sardinian population

We have analyzed a sample of 40 centenarians and 116 young controls from Sardinia, with a set of new Y chromosome binary markers, to evaluate if Y chromosome genes are involved in the high prevalence of males among centenarian Sardinians (1/2 vs. 1/4 in other populations studied). The results indicate that none of the seven lineages that account for >97% of the Y chromosome diversity in Sardinia provide an advantage with respect to the extreme longevity. However, our results, although based on the male-specific Y chromosome polymorphisms, give a clear profile of the pattern of genetic variability in Sardinia. Indeed they indicate that the Sardinian population had two main founder populations that have evolved in isolation for at least the last 5,000 years. These findings set the stage for future studies on longevity and other complex traits in Sardinia

Wet Adhesion of Buckypaper Produced from Oxidized Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes on Soft Animal Tissue

Buckypaper (BP) is the general definition of a macroscopic assembly of entangled carbon nanotubes. In this paper, a new property of a BP film produced from oxidized multiwalled carbon nanotubes was investigated. In particular, BP shows to be able to promptly and strongly adhere to animal internal soft and wet tissues, as evaluated by peeling and shear tests. BP adhesion strength is higher than that recorded for a commercial prosthetic fabric (sealed to the tissue by fibrin glue) and comparable with that of other reported optimized nanopatterned surfaces. In order to give an interpretation of the observed behavior, the BP composition, morphology, porosity, water wettability, and mechanical properties were analyzed by AFM, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, wicking tests, contact angle, and stress–strain measurements. Although further investigations are needed to assess the biocompatibility and safety of the BP film used in this work, the obtained results pave the way for a possible future use of buckypaper as adhesive tape in abdominal prosthetic surgery. This would allow the substitution of conventional sealants or the reduction in the use of perforating fixation

Preliminary results on toxicology and mutagenic effects of buckypaper (BP) of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on metabolism and immunological modification in vivo and in vitro

The aim of our research is focused on the biological effects of BP and functionalized MWCNTs in laboratory animals in vivo, on the immunological buckypaper effects on mice and the effects of functionalized MWCNTs on five different cell types (CaCo-2 Colorectal Carcinoma cell line; MCF-7 human breast carcinoma cell line, HL-60 human promyelocytic leukaemia cell line; HASMC normal human artery smooth muscle cells and finally HF normal human fibroblasts). Finally, the potential mutagenicity of MWCNTs was studied in bacterial reverse mutation assay. Nanomaterials possible applications in surgery, cancer therapy and new imaging techniques involve large numbers of researchers and potential patients. It is important to assess the potential health risks related to their exposure to nanoparticles.Preliminary results on toxicology and mutagenic effects of buckypaper (BP) of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on metabolism and immunological modification in vivo and in vitr

Wet adhesion of buckypaper produced from oxidized multi-wall carbon nanotubes on soft animal tissue

Buckypaper (BP) is the general definition of a macroscopic assembly of entangled carbon nanotubes. In this paper a new property of a BP film produced from oxidized multi-wall carbon nanotubes was investigated. In particular, BP shows to be able to promptly and strongly adhere to animal internal soft and wet tissues, as evaluated by peeling and shear tests. BP adhesion strength is higher than that recorded for a commercial prosthetic fabric (sealed to the tissue by fibrin glue) and comparable with that of other reported optimized nano-patterned surfaces. In order to give an interpretation of the observed behavior, the BP composition, morphology, porosity, water wettability and mechanical properties were analyzed by AFM, Xray photoelectron spectroscopy, wicking tests, contact angle and stress-strain measurements. Although further investigations are needed to assess the biocompatibility and safety of the BP film used in this work, the obtained results pave the way for a possible future use of buckypaper as adhesive tape in abdominal prosthetic surgery. This would allow the substitution of conventional sealants or the reduction in the use of perforating fixation