Damage and recovery of Ictalurus sp. barbel taste buds exposed to sublethal concentrations of an anionic detergent.

none3---noneC. Zeni; Stagni Caligiuri A.; Bovolenta M.R.Zeni, Cristina; Stagni Caligiuri, A.; Bovolenta, Maria Rit

Compositional and morphological characterization of urban particulate matter sampled with passive method in the Ferrara area (North-East Italy).

none4In the last decades atmospheric particulate materials have been widely studied, most of them with chemical scope (Bernabe´ et al., 2003; Bogo et al., 2003). Atmospheric aerosols are today a key issue in air pollution, mostly related to public health. In particular as far as urban aerosols concerns, the characterization in size and composition of their variety is difficult, due to lack of routine analytical techniques. This subsequently led to an insufficient epidemiological dataset on the effect of various components on human health. Today's legislation is limited to specify a certain mass of particles per cubic centimeter (Blacque Belair et al., 1991), irrespective of their size and composition. This is particularly unsatisfactory since smaller particles 1 m are believed to be more relevant to public health than bigger ones (Blacque Belair et al., 1991), and that certain types of aerosols are more chemically active than others (Imre and Xu, 1997). It is difficult to achieve spatial distribution of the aerosols, because in situ sampling techniques only provide spot measurements at the ground level. Two test areas in the medium industrial city of Ferrara were studied using SEM technique to identify the environmental impact of some potential pollutant sources. Samples were collected in June 2006 and the data compared with previous analyses (Besco et al., 2006). This was to verify if the difference in the particulate matter composition can be related to seasonal variation. Collection was by adhesive tapes applied on the surface of road signs, and situated at the same height in horizontal position. This non-conventional type of collection has been preferred because it allows to select the particulate matter, moving on air with diffusion movement, and to exclude the particles usually deposed following gravity rules. Dimensional characterization has shown that usually the smaller particles tend to aggregate themselves in bigger polycrystalline particles with geometric diameter of up to 10 m. The wide variety in the morphology of the particulate matter sampled made difficult to define a morphological classification of them. Particles derived from oil combustion have been clearly recognized by their cenospheric morphology. Pollens show rounded forms with microstructures covering the surface. As for micro-analytical data, despite that the particulate matter in this study has revealed a wide heterogeneous range of compositions, it has been possible to distinguish the follow particles' groups: more abundant with silicate and mixed (Si+C), with carbonate, with chlorine, with sulphate, with carbon, and organic (subordinate). This preliminary study has highlighted that Ferrara is affected by an environmental problem linked to the presence of particulate matter induced by industrial activities as some of the most polluted cities in the world. The observations and the analytical data have pointed out the need for further investigation to better define the features of the fine particulate matter. This will be useful not only to prevent human disease, but also to preserve the cultural heritage of this Medieval-Renaissance city. References: Bernabé J.M., Carretero, M.I., García Orellana, I., 2003. Abstracts Book of Air Pollution and Cultural Heritage. Seville, Spain, pp. 65-66. Bernabé, J.M., Carretero, M.I., 2003. Boletín de la Sociedad Espanõla de Mineralogía 26, 167-177. Besco L:, Caniatti F., Marrocchino E., Vaccaro C. 2006. Atti del XXII Congresso Nazionale della Società Chimica Italiana, Firenze. Blacque Belair, A., De Fossey, B. M. and Fourestier, N. 1991. 6th Edn. Maloine. Bogo, H., Otero, M., Castro, P., Ozafrán, M.J., Kreiner, A., Calvo, E.J., Martín Negri, R., 2003. Atmospheric Environment 37, 1135-1147. Imre, D. and Xu, J. 1997. Geophysical Research Letters 24, 69-72.noneL. Besco; M.R. Bovolenta; E. Marrocchino; C. VaccaroL., Besco; Bovolenta, Maria Rita; Marrocchino, Elena; Vaccaro, Carmel

Caratteristiche petrochimiche e morfologiche del particellato solido aerodisperso nella bassa pianura padana.

none5Atmospheric aerosols are today a key issue in air pollution, mostly related to public health. The characterization in size and composition of their variety is difficult, due to lack of routine analytical techniques. Two test areas in the industrial city of Ferrara were studied using SEM technique to identify the environmental impact of some potential pollutant sources. Micro-analytical data were useful to distinguish the follow particles’ groups: silicates, carbonates, sulphates, chlorides, C-particles, organic and mixed.http://www.soc.chim.it/files/chimind/pdf/2008/2008_3_122.pdfopenL. Besco; M.R. Bovolenta; E. Canossa; E. Marrocchino; C. VaccaroL., Besco; Bovolenta, Maria Rita; E., Canossa; Marrocchino, Elena; Vaccaro, Carmel

Analisi dello stato di conservazione del graffito di Rosario Murabito a Villa Ottolenghi (Acqui Terme, Alessandria)

Il complesso di Monterosso (Villa Ottolenghi) di Acqui Terme (Al) presenta importanti opere d’arte commissionate dalla Famiglia Ottolenghi, proprietaria del complesso, fra cui alcuni graffiti di Rosario Murabito (1907-1972), artista contemporaneo emergente. Il “Grande graffito” di Rosario Murabito, oggetto di studio, è stato scelto tra i numerosi presenti in Villa Ottolenghi, per le particolari caratteristiche tipologiche e per raccogliere i dati necessari a supportare futuri interventi di mitigazione del degrado. Sono state eseguite indagini diagnostiche su campioni prelevati in diverse zone dell’opera, per la definizione dello stato di conservazione, delle problematiche di degrado e per la ricostruzione della tecnica artistica, finalizzando lo studio all’analisi dello stato preparatorio ed all’identificazione dei pigmenti. Queste analisi hanno consentito di evidenziare la selezione di materiali peculiari, fra cui vetri e scorie vulcaniche. In particolare, i campioni sono stati analizzati allo steromicroscopio ed al microscopio elettronico a scansione con microanalisi (SEM/EDAX) per lo studio e l’identificazione della composizione chimica dei pigmenti e per l’identificazione di fenomeni di biodeterioramento. Tale ricerca ha fornito le informazioni necessarie sia per la rimozione degli agenti biodeteriogeni, per il restauro sia per la conservazione del graffito, essendo l’opera esposta all’aperto e quindi sottoposta a numerose sollecitazioni di tipo antropico ed ambientale

Epithelial morphology of duodenal bulb and Campylobacter-like organisms.

We have carried out ultramicroscopical investigations on 30 patients with endoscopical aspects of congestive or erosive duodenitis associated or not with bulbar ulcer in relation to the presence of Campylobacter-like organisms (CLO), considered as a possible etiologic agent of peptic disease. Bacteria were found in all of the 14 patients with duodenal ulcer and in only five patients without ulcer. The ultrastructural studies provided elements for the evaluation of epithelial colonization of the duodenal bulb by CLO and which may lead to a new interpretation of gastric metaplasia

Protection from postischemic renal pathology by a-tocoferol administration (ultrastructural study).

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Fo ATP synthase C subunit serum levels in patients with ST-segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction: Preliminary findings

Recent studies in cell cultures hypothesized that the long-sought molecular pore of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore could be the Fo ATP synthase C subunit (Csub). We assessed Csub in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and if it is associated with surrogate endpoints of myocardial reperfusion

Transcriptional and epigenetic analyses of the DMD locus reveal novel cis\ue2\u80\u91acting DNA elements that govern muscle dystrophin expression

The dystrophin gene (DMD) is the largest gene in the human genome, mapping on the Xp21 chromosome locus. It spans 2.2 Mb and accounts for approximately 0,1% of the entire human genome. Mutations in this gene cause Duchenne and Becker Muscular Dystrophy, X-linked Dilated Cardiomyopathy, and other milder muscle phenotypes. Beside the remarkable number of reports describing dystrophin gene expression and the pathogenic consequences of the gene mutations in dystrophinopathies, the full scenario of the DMD transcription dynamics remains however, poorly understood. Considering that the full transcription of the DMD gene requires about 16 h, we have investigated the activity of RNA Polymerase II along the entire DMD locus within the context of specific chromatin modifications using a variety of chromatin-based techniques. Our results unveil a surprisingly powerful processivity of the RNA polymerase II along the entire 2.2 Mb of the DMD locus with just one site of pausing around intron 52. We also discovered epigenetic marks highlighting the existence of four novel cis\ue2\u80\u91DNA elements, two of which, located within intron 34 and exon 45, appear to govern the architecture of the DMD chromatin with implications on the expression levels of the muscle dystrophin mRNA. Overall, our findings provide a global view on how the entire DMD locus is dynamically transcribed by the RNA pol II and shed light on the mechanisms involved in dystrophin gene expression control, which can positively impact on the optimization of the novel ongoing therapeutic strategies for dystrophinopathies