Vulnerability analysis of satellite-based synchronized smart grids monitoring systems

The large-scale deployment of wide-area monitoring systems could play a strategic role in supporting the evolution of traditional power systems toward smarter and self-healing grids. The correct operation of these synchronized monitoring systems requires a common and accurate timing reference usually provided by a satellite-based global positioning system. Although these satellites signals provide timing accuracy that easily exceeds the needs of the power industry, they are extremely vulnerable to radio frequency interference. Consequently, a comprehensive analysis aimed at identifying their potential vulnerabilities is of paramount importance for correct and safe wide-area monitoring system operation. Armed with such a vision, this article presents and discusses the results of an experimental analysis aimed at characterizing the vulnerability of global positioning system based wide-area monitoring systems to external interferences. The article outlines the potential strategies that could be adopted to protect global positioning system receivers from external cyber-attacks and proposes decentralized defense strategies based on self-organizing sensor networks aimed at assuring correct time synchronization in the presence of external attacks

Cancer Initiation, Progression and Resistance: Are Phytocannabinoids from Cannabis sativa L. Promising Compounds?

Cannabis sativa L. is a source of over 150 active compounds known as phytocannabinoids that are receiving renewed interest due to their diverse pharmacologic activities. Indeed, phytocannabinoids mimic the endogenous bioactive endocannabinoids effects through activation of CB1 and CB2 receptors widely described in the central nervous system and peripheral tissues. All phytocannabinoids have been studied for their protective actions towards different biological mechanisms, including inflammation, immune response, oxidative stress that, altogether, result in an inhibitory activity against the carcinogenesis. The role of the endocannabinoid system is not yet completely clear in cancer, but several studies indicate that cannabinoid receptors and endogenous ligands are overexpressed in different tumor tissues. Recently, in vitro and in vivo evidence support the effectiveness of phytocannabinoids against various cancer types, in terms of proliferation, metastasis, and angiogenesis, actions partially due to their ability to regulate signaling pathways critical for cell growth and survival. The aim of this review was to report the current knowledge about the action of phytocannabinoids from Cannabis sativa L. against cancer initiation and progression with a specific regard to brain, breast, colorectal, and lung cancer as well as their possible use in the therapies. We will also report the known molecular mechanisms responsible for such positive effects. Finally, we will describe the actual therapeutic options for Cannabis sativa L. and the ongoing clinical trials

Polyphenols vs. Coronaviruses: How Far Has Research Moved Forward?

The epidemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 at the beginning of 2020, led us to a serious change in our lifestyle that for about three months has confined us to our homes, far from our laboratory routine. In this period, the belief that the work of a researcher should never stop has been the driving force in writing the present paper. It aims at reviewing the recent scientific knowledge about in vitro experimental data that focused on the antiviral role of phenols and polyphenols against different species of coronaviruses (CoVs), pointing up the viral targets potentially involved. In the current literature scenario, the papain-like and the 3-chymotrypsin-like proteases seem to be the most deeply investigated and a number of isolated natural (poly)phenols has been screened for their efficacy

Hempseed Lignanamides Rich-Fraction: Chemical Investigation and Cytotoxicity towards U-87 Glioblastoma Cells

The weak but noteworthy presence of (poly)phenols in hemp seeds has been long overshadowed by the essential polyunsaturated fatty acids and digestible proteins, considered responsible for their high nutritional benefits. Instead, lignanamides and their biosynthetic precursors, phenylamides, seem to display interesting and diverse biological activities only partially clarified in the last decades. Herein, negative mode HR-MS/MS techniques were applied to the chemical investigation of a (poly)phenol-rich fraction, obtained from hemp seeds after extraction/fractionation steps. This extract contained phenylpropanoid amides and their random oxidative coupling derivatives, lignanamides, which were the most abundant compounds and showed a high chemical diversity, deeply unraveled through high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (HR-MS/MS) tools. The effect of different doses of the lignanamides-rich extract (LnHS) on U-87 glioblastoma cell line and non-tumorigenic human fibroblasts was evaluated. Thus, cell proliferation, genomic DNA damage, colony forming and wound repair capabilities were assessed, as well as LnHS outcome on the expression levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. LnHS significantly inhibited U-87 cancer cell proliferation, but not that of fibroblasts, and was able to reduce U-87 cell migration, inducing further DNA damage. No modification in cytokines’ expression level was found. Data acquired suggested that LnHS acted in U-87 cells by inducing the apoptosis machinery and suppressing the autophagic cell death