Cap rock efficiency of geothermal systems in fold-and-thrust belts: Evidence from paleo-thermal and structural analyses in Rosario de La Frontera geothermal area (NW Argentina)

Cap rock characterization of geothermal systems is often neglected despite fracturing may reduce its efficiency and favours fluid migration. We investigated the siliciclastic cap rock of Rosario de La Frontera geothermal system (NW Argentina) in order to assess its quality as a function of fracture patterns and related thermal alteration. Paleothermal investigations (XRD on fine-grained fraction of sediments, organic matter optical analysis and fluid inclusions on veins) and 1D thermal modelling allowed us to distinguish the thermal fingerprint associated to sedimentary burial from that related to fluid migration. The geothermal system is hosted in a Neogene N-S anticline dissected by high angle NNW- and ENE-striking faults. Its cap rock can be grouped into two quality categories: • rocks acting as good insulators, deformed by NNW–SSE and E–W shear fractures, NNE-SSW gypsum- and N-S-striking calcite-filled veins that developed during the initial stage of anticline growth. Maximum paleo-temperatures (< 60 °C) were experienced during deposition to folding phases.• rocks acting as bad insulators, deformed by NNW-SSE fault planes and NNW- and WNW-striking sets of fractures associated to late transpressive kinematics. Maximum paleo-temperatures higher than about 115 °C are linked to fluid migration from the reservoir to surface (with a reservoir top at maximum depths of 2.5 km) along fault damage zones.This multi-method approach turned out to be particularly useful to trace the main pathways of hot fluids and can be applied in blind geothermal systems where either subsurface data are scarce or surface thermal anomalies are lacking.Fil: Maffucci, R.. Universita Degli Studi Della Tuscia; Italia. Universita Degli Studi Roma Tre; ItaliaFil: Corrado, Sveva. Universita Degli Studi Roma Tre; ItaliaFil: Aldega, L.. Instituto de Investigaciones Universitarias Roma la Sapienza; ItaliaFil: Bigi, S.. Instituto de Investigaciones Universitarias Roma la Sapienza; ItaliaFil: Chiodi, Agostina Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía no Convencional. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Departamento de Física. Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía no Convencional; ArgentinaFil: Di Paolo, L.. Eni E&P Division; ItaliaFil: Giordano, G.. Universita Degli Studi Roma Tre; ItaliaFil: Invernizzi, C.. Universita Degli Di Camerino; Itali

Class II Phosphoinositide 3-Kinases Contribute to Endothelial Cells Morphogenesis

PMCID: PMC3539993This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

La Candelaria Ridge (NW Argentina) as a natural lab for the exploration of the geothermal system of Rosario de La Frontera: Methods and preliminary results

Within the scientific framework recently proposed by C.U.I.A. (Consorzio Universitario Italiano per l’Argentina) for the development of applied researches on the Argentina territory, several research groups, belonging to selected Italian and Argentina Universities, converged in the last year on the research line devoted to the “Sustainable development of future towns”. This contribution focuses on the preliminary results achieved by this collaboration among the Universities of Camerino, Jujuy, Roma Tre, Salta, Sapienza. The project focuses on the application of robust methodologies and the development of new ones to explore the geothermal potential of the area of Rosario de La Frontera (NW Argentina) located at the northern edge of La Candelaria Ridge, one of positively inverted structures cropping out between the provinces of Salta and Tucuman. It belongs to the Santa Barbara System of the Andes retro-wedge...Fil: Maffucci, R.. Università Roma Tre III; ItaliaFil: Caffe, Pablo Jorge. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Instituto de Geología Minera; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; ArgentinaFil: Corrado, Sveva. Università Roma Tre III; ItaliaFil: Invernizzi, Ciro. Università degli Studi di Camerino; ItaliaFil: Giordano, G.. Università Roma Tre III; ItaliaFil: Pierantoni, Pablo. Università degli Studi di Camerino; ItaliaFil: Viramonte, Jose Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Instituto Geonorte; Argentin

La Candelaria Ridge (NW Argentina) as a natural lab for the exploration of the geothermal system of Rosario de La Frontera: Methods and preliminary results

Within the scientific framework recently proposed by C.U.I.A. (Consorzio Universitario Italiano per l’Argentina) for the development of applied researches on the Argentina territory, several research groups, belonging to selected Italian and Argentina Universities, converged in the last year on the research line devoted to the “Sustainable development of future towns”. This contribution focuses on the preliminary results achieved by this collaboration among the Universities of Camerino, Jujuy, Roma Tre, Salta, Sapienza. The project focuses on the application of robust methodologies and the development of new ones to explore the geothermal potential of the area of Rosario de La Frontera (NW Argentina) located at the northern edge of La Candelaria Ridge, one of positively inverted structures cropping out between the provinces of Salta and Tucuman. It belongs to the Santa Barbara System of the Andes retro-wedge...Fil: Maffucci, R.. Università Roma Tre III; ItaliaFil: Caffe, Pablo Jorge. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Instituto de Geología Minera; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; ArgentinaFil: Corrado, Sveva. Università Roma Tre III; ItaliaFil: Invernizzi, Ciro. Università degli Studi di Camerino; ItaliaFil: Giordano, G.. Università Roma Tre III; ItaliaFil: Pierantoni, Pablo. Università degli Studi di Camerino; ItaliaFil: Viramonte, Jose Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Instituto Geonorte; Argentin

Class II phosphoinositide 3-kinase C2 beta regulates a novel signaling pathway involved in breast cancer progression

It is now well established that the enzymes phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3Ks) have a key role in the development and progression of many cancer types and indeed PI3Ks inhibitors are currently being tested in clinical trials. Although eight distinct PI3K isoforms exist, grouped into three classes, most of the evidence currently available are focused on one specific isoform with very little known about the potential role of the other members of this family in cancer. Here we demonstrate that the class II enzyme PI3K-C2β is overexpressed in several human breast cancer cell lines and in human breast cancer specimens. Our data indicate that PI3K-C2β regulates breast cancer cell growth in vitro and in vivo and that PI3K-C2β expression in breast tissues is correlated with the proliferative status of the tumor. Specifically we show that downregulation of PI3K-C2β in breast cancer cell lines reduces colony formation, induces cell cycle arrest and inhibits tumor growth, in particular in an estrogen-dependent in vivo xenograft. Investigation of the mechanism of the PI3K-C2β-dependent regulation of cell cycle progression and cell growth revealed that PI3K-C2β regulates cyclin B1 protein levels through modulation of microRNA miR-449a levels. Our data further demonstrate that downregulation of PI3K-C2β inhibits breast cancer cell invasion in vitro and breast cancer metastasis in vivo. Consistent with this, PI3K-C2β is highly expressed in lymph-nodes metastases compared to matching primary tumors. These data demonstrate that PI3K-C2β plays a pivotal role in breast cancer progression and in metastasis development. Our data indicate that PI3K-C2β may represent a key molecular switch that regulates a rate-limiting step in breast tumor progression and therefore it may be targeted to limit breast cancer spread

Basophil activation test for Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins in severe asthmatic patients

Background: Several studies have shown an association between severe asthma and serum immunoglobulins E (IgE) against Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins (SEs). SEs—the prototypes being types A (SEA), B (SEB) and toxic shock syndrome toxin 1 (TSST-1)—can induce both polyclonal and specific IgE responses. Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the ability of SEs to induce basophil activation in severe asthmatic patients using the basophil activation test (BAT). Methods: 57 severe asthmatic patients were enrolled. BAT in response to SEA, SEB and TSST-1 was performed in all patients, while serum IgE to SEA, SEB and SEC was available in 49 patients. BAT was considered positive when CD203c+ basophils to SEs were ≥5%, and the stimulation index (SI, ratio between % of CD203c+ basophils to SEs and to negative control) was &gt;2. Two threshold values (&gt;0.1&nbsp;kU/L and &gt;0.35&nbsp;kU/L, respectively) were used to assess serum SEsIgE. Results: 36.8% of severe asthmatic patients had a BAT positive for at least one SE (BAT SEs+). Serum SEsIgE &gt;0.35&nbsp;kU/L (SEs IgE+) was associated with BAT SEs positivity. Among patients with negative skin prick test, 35% were BAT SEs+, 30% SEs IgE+, 55% BAT or IgE− SEs+. A negative correlation between SI of BAT to SEs and both clinical (ACT score) and functional parameters was observed, together with a positive correlation of BAT with asthma exacerbations. Conclusions: The positivity of BAT for SEs in a subgroup of severe asthmatic patients further supports the pathogenic role of Staphylococcus aureus in severe asthma

A Small Molecule Inhibitor of PDK1/PLC gamma 1 Interaction Blocks Breast and Melanoma Cancer Cell Invasion

Strong evidence suggests that phospholipase Cγ1 (PLCγ1) is a suitable target to counteract tumourigenesis and metastasis dissemination. We recently identified a novel signalling pathway required for PLCγ1 activation which involves formation of a protein complex with 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase 1 (PDK1). In an effort to define novel strategies to inhibit PLCγ1-dependent signals we tested here whether a newly identified and highly specific PDK1 inhibitor, 2-O-benzyl-myo-inositol 1,3,4,5,6-pentakisphosphate (2-O-Bn-InsP5), could affect PDK1/PLCγ1 interaction and impair PLCγ1-dependent cellular functions in cancer cells. Here, we demonstrate that 2-O-Bn-InsP5 interacts specifically with the pleckstrin homology domain of PDK1 and impairs formation of a PDK1/PLCγ1 complex. 2-O-Bn-InsP5 is able to inhibit the epidermal growth factor-induced PLCγ1 phosphorylation and activity, ultimately resulting in impaired cancer cell migration and invasion. Importantly, we report that 2-O-Bn-InsP5 inhibits cancer cell dissemination in zebrafish xenotransplants. This work demonstrates that the PDK1/PLCγ1 complex is a potential therapeutic target to prevent metastasis and it identifies 2-O-Bn-InsP5 as a leading compound for development of anti-metastatic drugs

Preliminary data on the structure and potential of the Tocomar geothermal field (Puna plateau, Argentina).

AbstractThis study presents new stratigraphic, structural and hydrogeological data on the Tocomar geothermal volcanic area (Puna plateau, Central Andes, NW Argentina), together with preliminary geochemical and magnetotelluric data.The main geothermal reservoir is located within the fractured Pre-Palaeozoic–Ordovician units. The reservoir is recharged by meteoric waters. Geothermal fluids upwell where main regional structures intersect secondary structures associated with the development of the Tocomar basin. Preliminary data indicate a reservoir temperature of ∼ 200° C and a local geothermal gradient of ∼ 130° C/km associated with the Quaternary volcanic activity in the Tocomar area

Novel roles for class II Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase C2 beta in signalling pathways involved in prostate cancer cell invasion

Phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3Ks) regulate several cellular functions such as proliferation, growth, survival and migration. The eight PI3K isoforms are grouped into three classes and the three enzymes belonging to the class II subfamily (PI3K-C2a, ß and ?) are the least investigated amongst all PI3Ks. Interest on these isoforms has been recently fuelled by the identification of specific physiological roles for class II PI3Ks and by accumulating evidence indicating their involvement in human diseases. While it is now established that these isoforms can regulate distinct cellular functions compared to other PI3Ks, there is still a limited understanding of the signalling pathways that can be specifically regulated by class II PI3Ks. Here we show that PI3K-C2ß regulates mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK1/2) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) activation in prostate cancer (PCa) cells. We further demonstrate that MEK/ERK and PI3K-C2ß are required for PCa cell invasion but not proliferation. In addition we show that PI3K-C2ß but not MEK/ERK regulates PCa cell migration as well as expression of the transcription factor Slug. These data identify novel signalling pathways specifically regulated by PI3K-C2ß and they further identify this enzyme as a key regulator of PCa cell migration and invasion

A Small Molecule Inhibitor of PDK1/PLCγ1 Interaction Blocks Breast and Melanoma Cancer Cell Invasion

Strong evidence suggests that phospholipase Cγ1 (PLCγ1) is a suitable target to counteract tumourigenesis and metastasis dissemination. We recently identified a novel signalling pathway required for PLCγ1 activation which involves formation of a protein complex with 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase 1 (PDK1). In an effort to define novel strategies to inhibit PLCγ1-dependent signals we tested here whether a newly identified and highly specific PDK1 inhibitor, 2-O-benzyl-myo-inositol 1,3,4,5,6-pentakisphosphate (2-O-Bn-InsP5), could affect PDK1/PLCγ1 interaction and impair PLCγ1-dependent cellular functions in cancer cells. Here, we demonstrate that 2-O-Bn-InsP5 interacts specifically with the pleckstrin homology domain of PDK1 and impairs formation of a PDK1/PLCγ1 complex. 2-O-Bn-InsP5 is able to inhibit the epidermal growth factor-induced PLCγ1 phosphorylation and activity, ultimately resulting in impaired cancer cell migration and invasion. Importantly, we report that 2-O-Bn-InsP5 inhibits cancer cell dissemination in zebrafish xenotransplants. This work demonstrates that the PDK1/PLCγ1 complex is a potential therapeutic target to prevent metastasis and it identifies 2-O-Bn-InsP5 as a leading compound for development of anti-metastatic drugs