A Study on the Antimicrobial and Antibiofilm Peptide 1018-K6 as Potential Alternative to Antibiotics against Food-Pathogen Salmonella enterica

Antimicrobial resistance has become one of the major global public health concerns, and it is indispensable to search for alternatives to conventional antibiotics. Recently, antimicrobial peptides have received great attention because of their broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity at relatively low concentrations, even against pathogens such as Salmonella enterica, which is responsible for most food-borne illnesses. This work aimed at evaluating the antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity of the innate defense peptide, named 1018-K6, against S. enterica. A total of 42 strains, belonging to three different subspecies and 32 serotypes, were included in this study. The antibiotic resistance profile of all the strains and the cytotoxic effects of 1018-K6 on mammalian fibroblast cells were also investigated. Results revealed that MIC (minimum inhibitory concentrations) and MBC (minimum bactericidal concentrations) values were in the ranges of 8–64 μg/mL and 16–128 μg/mL, respectively, although most strains (97%) showed MICs between 16 and 32 μg/mL. Moreover, sub-inhibitory concentrations of 1018-K6 strongly reduced the biofilm formation in several S. enterica strains, whatever the initial inoculum size. Our results demonstrated that 1018-K6 is able to control and manage S. enterica growth with a large potential for applications in the fields of active packaging and water disinfectantsThis research was funded by: Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico “Packaging Bioattivi e bIOsanitizzanti: Sviluppo di stratEgie iNnovaTIve ed ecososteNibili pEr L’Industria Alimentare—(BIO-SENTINEL) project, grant number F/200092/01-03/X45. Fondo per la Crescita Sostenibile—Sportello “Agrifood” PON I&C 2014-2020; Regione Campania-“Sviluppo di una tecnologia Intelligente contro spoilage ed agenti patogeni: dal peptide antimicrobico ad un PACKaging innovativo nella filiera ittica del Mediterraneo (iPACK-Med)project, grant number PO FEAMP 2014/2020, MISURA 1.26 “INNOVAZIONE” DD n. 266/2019-n. B68D19001380009; Ministero della Salute-“Attività battericida ed anti-biofilm di nano-sistemi ibridi coniugati con peptidi antimicrobici: una nuova strategia per la formulazione di bio-sanitizzanti contro ceppi patogeni resistenti”- Ricerca Corrente 2018 project, grant number IZS ME 06/18 RCS

A Regulatory Mechanism Involving TBP-1/Tat-Binding Protein 1 and Akt/PKB in the Control of Cell Proliferation

TBP-1 /Tat-Binding Protein 1 (also named Rpt-5, S6a or PSMC3) is a multifunctional protein, originally identified as a regulator of HIV-1-Tat mediated transcription. It is an AAA-ATPase component of the 19S regulative subunit of the proteasome and, as other members of this protein family, fulfils different cellular functions including proteolysis and transcriptional regulation. We and others reported that over expression of TBP-1 diminishes cell proliferation in different cellular contexts with mechanisms yet to be defined. Accordingly, we demonstrated that TBP-1 binds to and stabilizes the p14ARF oncosuppressor increasing its anti-oncogenic functions. However, TBP-1 restrains cell proliferation also in the absence of ARF, raising the question of what are the molecular pathways involved. Herein we demonstrate that stable knock-down of TBP-1 in human immortalized fibroblasts increases cell proliferation, migration and resistance to apoptosis induced by serum deprivation. We observe that TBP-1 silencing causes activation of the Akt/PKB kinase and that in turn TBP-1, itself, is a downstream target of Akt/PKB. Moreover, MDM2, a known Akt target, plays a major role in this regulation. Altogether, our data suggest the existence of a negative feedback loop involving Akt/PKB that might act as a sensor to modulate TBP-1 levels in proliferating cells

The city of Matera and its ‘Sassi’ (Italy): an opportunity to broadcast geology in the European Capital of Culture 2019

Matera is an ancient city located at the top of Italy's high heel that has been anointed the European Capital of Culture 2019 and which, since 1993, has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. The close relationship between the urban development of the old town and its geology offers the unique opportunity to discover, in one shot, the cultural and geological history of a wonderful city that is often left out of the spotlight. As a corollary to this, the rupestrian old town of Matera and nearby areas are known also for having been the location of several movies (e.g. Bond 25 ‘No time to die’). Accordingly, media and tourists alike are showing a growing interest in Matera

3D modelling of the Tremiti salt diapir in the Gargano offshore (Adriatic Sea, southern Italy): constraints in the Tremiti Structure development

The reinterpretation of public seismic profiles, the stratigraphic review of hydrocarbon exploration well logs in the Adriatic offshore of Gargano (Apulia, southern Italy), and the use of Surfer® (Golden Software, Inc.) and MoveTM (Midland Valley Ltd.) softwares, allowed us to obtain the Two Way Times (TWT) contour map and the 3D model of the upper Trias salt surface of the Tremiti diapir. The obtained 3D model of the Tremiti diapir shows two types of shape indicating at least as many modes of salt emplacement: single flap and piercing. Inherited faults were used by salt, which promoted the contemporaneous development of piercing and single flap in the same diapiric body. In addition, the sea floor deformations suggest that the diapirism, which mostly developed during Plio-Pleistocene time, is probably still active. Despite the NW-SE shortening due to the regional EW dextral shearing, that likely triggered halokinesis, the upward growth rate of the diapir was able to promote dip-slip kinematics, which locally hid the strike-slip one