A Retrospective Study One-Year Survey from COVID-19: Three Waves and Three Patterns in Italy

Background: Since December 2019 an unprecedented coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) in Italy and in all the world, has been spreading. This study is a retrospective overview of Italian popul

Herpes simplex virus-1 in the brain. The dark side of a sneaky infection

Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) establishes latency preferentially in sensory neurons of peripheral ganglia. A variety of stresses can induce recurrent reactivations of the virus, which spreads and then actively replicates to the site of primary infection (usually the lips or eyes). Viral particles produced following reactivation can also reach the brain, causing a rare but severe form of diffuse acute infection, namely herpes simplex encephalitis. Most of the time, this infection is clinically asymptomatic. However, it was recently correlated with the production and accumulation of neuropathological biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease. In this review we discuss the different cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the acute and long-term damage caused by HSV-1 infection in the brain

Experimental-Calculated Establishment of Load-Speed Modes of Operation of UHMWPE and Composite On its Basis

Выявлены закономерности изнашивания, позволяющие определить работоспособность разработанных полимерных материалов на основе СВМПЭ в подшипниковых узлах трения при изменении режимов эксплуатации. Предельно допустимые режимы эксплуатации материалов подтверждены математическими расчетамиThe regularities of wear are revealed, which make it possible to determine the performance of the developed polymeric materials based on UHMWPE in bearing friction units when operating modes change. The maximum allowable modes of operation of materials are confirmed by mathematical calculation

Poly Lactic-co-Glycolic Acid (PLGA) uptake by Candida albicans cells as biodegradable controlled drug delivery carrier

P474 Poly Lactic-co-Glycolic Acid (PLGA) uptake by Candida albicans cells as biodegradable controlled drug delivery carrier OLGA Kolesova, Giovanna Simonetti, Livia Donati, Gabriella Pasqua, ALESSIO Valletta, LAURA Chronopoulou, CLEOFE Palocci Sapienza University of Rome, ROME, Italy Objective: Polymeric nanoparticle-based carriers are promising agents for the delivery of drugs to the site of action. The polymeric matrix can be of natural or synthetic origin. Natural polymers are usually preferred thanks to their biocompatibility, biodegradability and non-toxicity. An efficient drug delivery requires either high cellular adhesion or uptake of the nanoparticles and release of the drug from the nanoparticles. The aim of this study was to investigate the cellular adhesion and uptake of poly(lactic- co-glycolic) acid nanoparticles (PLGA NPs) on Candida albicans in the yeast and hyphal forms as well as to study the antifungal activity of PLGA NPs Methods: NPs preparation. PLGA NPs of different sizes were prepared by using two different innovative methodologies based on nanoprecipitation. A microfluidic approach was used for the preparation of smaller NPs (∼30 nm) (Chronopoulou et al. Journal of nanoparticle research. 2014), while a patented osmosis-based methodology was used to obtain bigger NPs (∼500 nm) (Chronopoulou et al. Langmuir. 2009). Microscopy analysis. The localization of coumarin 6-loaded PLGA NPs into Candida albicans cells was analyzed with an epifluorescence microscope apparatus. Anti-Candida activity. The activity of PGLA NPs on Candida albicans has been performed according to CLSI protocols with some modifications. Results: Among the tested NPs with different diameters, the smaller ones (∼30 nm) entered into Candida albicans yeast and hyphal forms. The bigger particles (∼500 nm) were localized on the fungal wall, according to the microscopy analysis. The MIC values showed that at the highest concentration tested (3000 μg/mL) the NPs did not inhibit the growth of Candida albicans cells Conclusion: The results provide valuable information concerning the localization of PLGA-based NPs on Candida albicans yeast and hyphal forms. The cellular uptake of PLGA NPs with different sizes has been investigated. It has been shown that the cellular localization is highly dependent upon the dimensions of the NPs, those smaller than 30 nm have shown the best possibility to penetrate Candida albicans cells. The lack of activity of investigated NPs on Candida albicans growth was proved. The cellular interaction or uptake of PLGA NPs by Candida albicans yeast and hyphal forms and lack of toxicity constitute preliminary information for their possible use as drug delivery systems

ДИСТАНЦИОННОЕ ОБРАЗОВАНИЕ: ПОПЫТКА ФИЛОСОФСКОГО ОСМЫСЛЕНИЯ

In the article there has been performed the philosophical perception of using information technologies in the educational sphere. There has been  depicted the actuality of the problem for modern culture and society. The author has set the goal to identify positive and negative tendencies which appeared in the conditions of distance education. The methodological basis of the research is hermeneutics approach and general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction). The results of the research are the following points. There has been conducted the analysis of the problem in general discourse context. There has been demonstrated the debatability of the analysed problem by the specialists of different social studies. There have been outlined criteria to analyse the productivity of distance education which are adaptation, development and motivation. The author has shown the ambivalence in the manifestation of all the outlined positions. The ambiguity of the distance education productivity and personality forming problems is confirmed by the experience of the spring term 2020. There have been provided the data from the survey among students concerning distance education experience gained by Institute of International Relations and World History of Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod. The results point out the enforced character of substituting conventional education with online format and its applicability as an extra opportunity

Investigation of the immunological effect of fermented epilobium angustifolium extracts at the cell level

Epilobium angustifolium has been traditionally used to treat a number of diseases. The mode of action of Epilobium angustifolium extracts is still unknown. The aim of this study is to identify the influence of various commercially available extracts of fermented Epilobium angustifolium at the cellular level. Water and ethanol extracts of Epilobium angustifolium, as well as polar and nonpolar fractions were tested on cell level in the range of concentrations between 3 and 1000mkg / ml. It was shown that various fermented Epilobium angustifolium extracts could affect on cell proliferation and apoptosis of primary human lymphocytes

Investigation of the Immunological Effect of Fermented Epilobium Angustifolium Extracts at the Cell Level

ABSTRACT Epilobium angustifolium has been traditionally used to treat a number of diseases. The mode of action of Epilobium angustifolium extracts is still unknown. The aim of this study is to identify the influence of various commercially available extracts of fermented Epilobium angustifolium at the cellular level. Water and ethanol extracts of Epilobium angustifolium, as well as polar and nonpolar fractions were tested on cell level in the range of concentrations between 3 and 1000mkg / ml. It was shown that various fermented Epilobium angustifolium extracts could affect on cell proliferation and apoptosis of primary human lymphocytes

GLIA-NEURON CROSSTALK DURING HSV-1 INFECTION AND ITS ROLE IN NEURONAL DAMAGE

Introduction. Herpes Simplex Virus type 1 (HSV-1) establishes a lifelong infection in the peripheral ganglia and, following periodic reactivation, may reach the Central Nervous System (CNS) where its replication has been associated to induction of neurodegenerative processes typical of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Previous data show that in vitro HSV-1 infection enhances neuronal appearance of AD hallmarks: production/accumulation of neurotoxic fragments of Amyloid Precursor Proteins (APP) and hyperphosphorylation of Tau protein; this data were recently confirmed in an in vivo recurrent HSV-1 infection model. It is known that CNS is populated not only by neurons, but also by glia and microglia and it is possible to hypothesize that, during HSV-1 infection, these cells surrounding neurons may undergo activation and expression of proinflammatory genes, enhancing neuronal damage. Aim. To investigate the glia-neuron crosstalk during HSV-1 infection and its role in neuronal damage. Methods. Primary cultures of neuronal and glial cells were obtained by E17 rat or mouse embryo brains. Human and mouse neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y and Neuro2A, respectively), human glioblastoma (A172) and mouse microglia (BV2) cells were grown in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium containing 10% heat-inactivated FBS and antibiotics (glutamine 0.3 mg/ml, penicillin 100 units/ml, streptomycin 100 μg/ml). Confluent cellular monolayers were infected with HSV-1 (strain F) at m.o.i. 1 for 18 hours and analyzed by Western Blot to detect tau phosphorylation and APP fragmentation. HSV-1 titers were measured in conditioned media by standard plaque assay. Cytokines and chemokines production were evaluated by ELISA. Amyloid beta peptides production was investigated by confocal Microscopy assay. Results. We have set up four HSV-1-infected neurons–glia co-culture models: human neuroblastoma/glioblastoma, mouse neuroblastoma/microglia, primary rat neurons/astrocytes/microglia, primary mouse neurons/astrocytes/microglia. In these models we found that the presence of glial cells increases Tau phosphorylation (particularly at Thr 205 residue), beta - amyloidogenic APP cleavage, pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL- 6) and chemokines (CCL5 and CCL2) production in HSV-1 infected neurons–glia co- cultures compared to infection of single cultures. Further studies are in progress to clarify the mechanisms underlying the influence of glial cells on Alzheimer’s disease hallmarks appearance during HSV-1 infection