Foul Tales, Public Knowledge: Bringing Dante\u27s \u27Divine Comedy\u27 to Wikipedia

This contribution discusses WikiDante, a set of best practices for the implementation of content related to the Divine Comedy on Wikipedia, chiefly designed for (yet not limited to) the undergraduate classroom. Developed as a digital project involving undergraduate students in partnership with Wiki Education, WikiDante consisted of two iterations, the first of which created or revised entries on the women from Dante’s recent history mentioned in the poem. For two decades, scholars have treated Wikipedia as the proverbial elephant in the room—shunned, ignored, or shamefully used only in lack of more anointed tools. This essay explores the benefits of using Wikipedia for digital scholarly activism in Dante Studies, outlining the challenges and educational outcomes of organizing editing campaigns on Wikipedia focusing on Dante and his work. After discussing the project’s components, the essay indicates future venues for the applicability of this framework by scholars and educators interested in digital public scholarship and knowledge equity

The effect of prime-site occupancy on the hepatitis C virus NS3 protease structure.

We recently reported a new class of inhibitors of the chymotrypsin-like serine protease NS3 of the hepatitis C virus. These inhibitors exploit the binding potential of the S′ site of the protease, which is not generally used by the natural substrates. The effect of prime-site occupancy was analyzed by circular dichroism spectroscopy and limited proteolysis-mass spectrometry. Generally, nonprime inhibitors cause a structural change in NS3. Binding in the S′ site produces additional conformational changes with different binding modes, even in the case of the NS3/4A cofactor complex. Notably, inhibitor binding either in the S or S′ site also has profound effects on the stabilization of the protease. In addition, the stabilization propagates to regions not in direct contact with the inhibitor. In particular, the N-terminal region, which according to structural studies is endowed with low structural stability and is not stabilized by nonprime inhibitors, was now fully protected from proteolytic degradation. From the perspective of drug design, P-P′ inhibitors take advantage of binding pockets, which are not exploited by the natural HCV substrates; hence, they are an entry point for a novel class of NS3/4A inhibitors. Here we show that binding of each inhibitor is associated with a specific structural rearrangement. The development of a range of inhibitors belonging to different classes and an understanding of their interactions with the protease are required to address the issue of the most likely outcome of viral protease inhibitor therapy, that is, viral resistanc

Arsenic, iron and manganese removal from ground water in a pilot plant located at a rural school

En el Centro de Ingeniería Sanitaria (CIS) se desarrolló el Proceso BioCIS-UNR® para remoción de hierro (Fe) y manganeso (Mn) y mediante este trabajo, se pretende ampliar su campo de aplicación para remoción de arsénico (As) en presencia de Fe y Mn. Se operó una planta piloto en una escuela en Zuripozo (Provincia de Santiago del Estero, Argentina), en una perforación cuya agua tiene: Fe total 0.35 mg.L-1 , Fe 0.04 mg.L-1 , Mn total 0.16 mg.L-1 , As total 42 g.L-1 y bacterias del Fe. Con las concentraciones naturales las eficiencias de remoción fueron 35% Fe total, 90% Mn total y 10% As (con valores máximos de remoción observados de 40%). Para mejorar el proceso, se agregó sulfato ferroso al agua cruda; las eficiencias fueron 92% Fe Total, 95% Fe2+, 93% Mn Total y 66% As Total. La baja eficiencia de remoción de As inicial podría deberse a la baja cantidad de precipitados biológicos de Fe formados, que da lugar a escasos sitios de adsorción disponibles para el As. Este proceso, de fácil operación, bajos costos de instalación y operación, es una tecnología aplicable a abastecimientos de agua potable con escasos recursos y alejados de centros urbanos.The Process BioCIS-UNR® developed by the Centro de Ingeniería Sanitaria (CIS) for iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) removal was further developed in this work to remove arsenic (As) in presence of Fe and Mn. We operated a pilot plant located in a school at Zuripozo (Province of Santiago del Estero, Argentina. The plant was connected to a well with water containing total Fe 0.35 mg.L-1, Fe+2 0.04 mg.L-1 , total Mn 0.16 mg.L-1 , total As 42 g.L-1 and Fe bacteria. This element concentration was compared with element concentration in natural water. The efficiency of element removal was 35% of total Fe, 90% of total Mn and 10% of As (maximum 40%). Ferrous sulfate was added to raw water to improve process efficiency. The efficiencies obtained were 92% for total Fe, 95% for Fe2+, 93% for total Mn and 66% for total As. Initial low efficiency of As removal may be due to a low formation of Fe biological precipitates, causing a shortage of available sites for As adsorption. This easily operated process with low installation and operation costs is an affordable technical solution for drinking water supply for rural areas with scarce resource located far from urban centers.Comité de Medio Ambient

Arsenic, iron and manganese removal from ground water in a pilot plant located at a rural school

En el Centro de Ingeniería Sanitaria (CIS) se desarrolló el Proceso BioCIS-UNR® para remoción de hierro (Fe) y manganeso (Mn) y mediante este trabajo, se pretende ampliar su campo de aplicación para remoción de arsénico (As) en presencia de Fe y Mn. Se operó una planta piloto en una escuela en Zuripozo (Provincia de Santiago del Estero, Argentina), en una perforación cuya agua tiene: Fe total 0.35 mg.L-1 , Fe 0.04 mg.L-1 , Mn total 0.16 mg.L-1 , As total 42 g.L-1 y bacterias del Fe. Con las concentraciones naturales las eficiencias de remoción fueron 35% Fe total, 90% Mn total y 10% As (con valores máximos de remoción observados de 40%). Para mejorar el proceso, se agregó sulfato ferroso al agua cruda; las eficiencias fueron 92% Fe Total, 95% Fe2+, 93% Mn Total y 66% As Total. La baja eficiencia de remoción de As inicial podría deberse a la baja cantidad de precipitados biológicos de Fe formados, que da lugar a escasos sitios de adsorción disponibles para el As. Este proceso, de fácil operación, bajos costos de instalación y operación, es una tecnología aplicable a abastecimientos de agua potable con escasos recursos y alejados de centros urbanos.The Process BioCIS-UNR® developed by the Centro de Ingeniería Sanitaria (CIS) for iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) removal was further developed in this work to remove arsenic (As) in presence of Fe and Mn. We operated a pilot plant located in a school at Zuripozo (Province of Santiago del Estero, Argentina. The plant was connected to a well with water containing total Fe 0.35 mg.L-1, Fe+2 0.04 mg.L-1 , total Mn 0.16 mg.L-1 , total As 42 g.L-1 and Fe bacteria. This element concentration was compared with element concentration in natural water. The efficiency of element removal was 35% of total Fe, 90% of total Mn and 10% of As (maximum 40%). Ferrous sulfate was added to raw water to improve process efficiency. The efficiencies obtained were 92% for total Fe, 95% for Fe2+, 93% for total Mn and 66% for total As. Initial low efficiency of As removal may be due to a low formation of Fe biological precipitates, causing a shortage of available sites for As adsorption. This easily operated process with low installation and operation costs is an affordable technical solution for drinking water supply for rural areas with scarce resource located far from urban centers.Comité de Medio Ambient

Pathophysiology of Crohn’s disease inflammation and recurrence

Chron's Disease is a chronic inflammatory intestinal disease, first described at the beginning of the last century. The disease is characterized by the alternation of periods of flares and remissions influenced by a complex pathogenesis in which inflammation plays a key role. Crohn's disease evolution is mediated by a complex alteration of the inflammatory response which is characterized by alterations of the innate immunity of the intestinal mucosa barrier together with a remodeling of the extracellular matrix through the expression of metalloproteins and increased adhesion molecules expression, such as MAcCAM-1. This reshaped microenvironment enhances leucocytes migration in the sites of inflammation, promoting a TH1 response, through the production of cytokines such as IL-12 and TNF-α. IL-12 itself and IL-23 have been targeted for the medical treatment of CD. Giving the limited success of medical therapies, the treatment of the disease is invariably surgical. This review will highlight the role of inflammation in CD and describe the surgical approaches for the prevention of the almost inevitable recurrence

Cancer incidence in Priolo, Sicily: a spatial approach for estimation of industrial air pollution impact

The territory around the industrial Sicilian area of Priolo, Italy, has been defined as a contaminated site (CS) of national priority for remediation because of diffuse environmental contamination caused by large industrial settlements. The present study investigates the spatial distribution of cancer into the CS territory (period 1999-2006). Different geographical methods used for the evaluation of the impact of industrial air pollutants were adopted. Using the database of Syracuse Province Cancer Registry, gender-specific standardised incidence ratios were calculated for 35 tumour sites for the CS overall and for each municipality included in the CS. A cluster analysis for 17 selected neoplasms was performed at micro-geographical level. The identification of the priority index contaminants (PICs) present in environmental matrices and a review of their carcinogenicity have been performed and applied in the interpretation of the findings. The area has a higher cancer incidence with respect to the provincial population, in particular excess is registered among both genders of lung, bladder and breast cancers as well as skin melanoma and pleural mesothelioma and there is an a priori evidence of association with the exposure to PICs. The study highlights the need to provide different approaches in CSs where several exposure pathways might be relevant for the population. The presence of potential sources of asbestos exposure deserves specific concern

Sequence-selective DNA recognition and enhanced cellular up-take by peptide–steroid conjugates

Several GCN4 bZIP TF models have previously been designed and synthesized. However, the synthetic routes towards these constructs are typically tedious and difficult. We here describe the substitution of the Leucine zipper domain of the protein by a deoxycholic acid derivative appending the two GCN4 binding region peptides through an optimized double azide–alkyne cycloaddition click reaction. In addition to achieving sequence specific dsDNA binding, we have investigated the potential of these compounds to enter cells. Confocal microscopy and flow cytometry show the beneficial influence of the steroid on cell uptake. This unique synthetic model of the bZIP TF thus combines sequence specific dsDNA binding properties with enhanced cell-uptake. Given the unique properties of deoxycholic acid and the convergent nature of the synthesis, we believe this work represents a key achievement in the field of TF mimicry

The Effect of coronavirus (COVID-19) on breast cancer teamwork: A multicentric survey

Background/Aim: Despite the large amount of clinical data available of Coronavirus-19 (COVID-19), not many studies have been conducted about the psychological toll on Health Care Workers (HCWs). Patients and Methods: In this multicentric descriptive study, surveys were distributed among 4 different Breast Cancer Centers (BCC). BCCs were distinguished according to COVID-19 tertiary care hospital (COVID/No-COVID) and district prevalence (DP) (High vs. Low). DASS-21 score, PSS score and demographic data (age, sex, work) were evaluated. Results: A total of 51 HCWs were analyzed in the study. Age, work and sex did not demonstrate statistically significant values. Statistically significant distribution was found between DASS-21-stress score and COVID/No-COVID (p=0.043). No difference was found in the remaining DASS-21 and PSS scores, dividing the HCWs according to COVID-19-hospital and DP. Conclusion: Working in a COVID-19-hospital represents a factor that negatively affects psychosocial wellbeing. However, DP seems not to affect the psychosocial well-being of BCC HCWs. During the outbreak, psychological support for low risk HCWs should be provided regardless DP

Insights to substrate binding and processing by West Nile Virus NS3 protease through combined modeling, protease mutagenesis, and kinetic studies

West Nile Virus is becoming a widespread pathogen, infecting people on at least four continents with no effective treatment for these infections or many of their associated pathologies. A key enzyme that is essential for viral replication is the viral protease NS2B-NS3, which is highly conserved among all flaviviruses. Using a combination of molecular fitting of substrates to the active site of the crystal structure of NS3,site-directed enzyme and cofactor mutagenesis, and kinetic studies on proteolytic processing of panels of short peptide substrates, we have identified important enzyme-substrate interactions that define substrate specificity for NS3 protease. In addition to better understanding the involvement of S2, S3, and S4 enzyme residues in substrate binding, a residue within cofactor NS2B has been found to strongly influence the preference of flavivirus proteases for lysine or arginine at P2 in substrates. Optimization of tetrapeptide substrates for enhanced protease affinity and processing efficiency has also provided important clues for developing inhibitors of West Nile Virus infection

A General Strategy to Endow Natural Fusion-protein-Derived Peptides with Potent Antiviral Activity

Fusion between the viral and target cell membranes is an obligatory step for the infectivity of all enveloped virus, and blocking this process is a clinically validated therapeutic strategy