Genomic analysis of Sardinian 26544/OG10 isolate of African swine fever virus

Abstract Comparative genomic analysis aims to underscore genetic assortment diversification in distinct viral isolates, to identify deletions and to carry out evolutionary studies. We sequenced the first complete genome of an ASFV p72 genotype I strain isolated from domestic pigs in Sardinia (Italy) using Next-Generation Sequence (NGS) technology. The genome is 182,906 bp long, contains 164 ORFs and has a 99.20% nucleotide identity to the L60 strain. Comparison analysis against the 16 ASFV genomes available in the database showed that 136 ORFs are present in nine ASFV isolates annotated to date. The most divergent ORFs codify for uncharacterized proteins such as X69R and DP96R, which have 51.3% and 70.4% nucleotide identity to the other isolates. A comparison between the Sardinian isolate and the avirulent isolates OURT 88/3, NHV, BA71V was also carried out. Major variations were found within the multigene families (MGFs) located in the left and right genome regions

<i>In vitro</i> and <i>in vivo</i> studies of artichoke extract (<i>Cynara scolymus</i> L.) as ketoprofen skin penetration enhancer

In this study, the enhancing effect of artichoke extract containing cynaropicrin on the in vitro and in vivo percutaneous absorption of ketoprofen from gels has been investigated

Sintesi e valutazione biologica di nuovi "lead compounds" per la terapia antitubercolare. Derivati del 2-(benzotriazol-1(2)-il)-3- acrilonitrile e delle chinossaline 1,4-diossido

L'insorgenza sempre più elevata di ceppi di M. tuberculosis chemioresistenti ai farmaci abitualmente impiegati in terapia (MDR) ha spronato la ricerca di nuovi "lead compounds" per lo sviluppo di molecole che, agendo con meccanismo diverso da quello dei farmaci attualmente impiegati in terapia, possano contribuire a superare il problema della farmacoresistenza. In quest'ambito le nostre ricerche si sono orientate verso due differenti direzioni. La prima prende lo spunto dai risultati ottenuti in passato da vari gruppi di ricerca con alcuni derivati di sintesi di sistemi eterociclici aromatici quali benzimidazolo, benzotiazolo, benzoisotiazolo e benzofurano, che avevano dimostrato attività  antimicobatterica in vitro soprattutto nei confronti di ceppi MDR. La seconda linea di ricerca si è basata sulla nota attività  antibatterica e soprattutto antimicotica della chinossalina 1,4-diossido, con la consapevolezza che spesso l'attività  antimicobatterica è associata a quella antifungina

Squamous-cell carcinoma of the tongue following therapy of rheumatoid arthritis with abatacept

A patient affected by rheumatoid arthritis developed a squamous-cell carcinoma probably due to abatacept, according to Naranjo algorithm. The case describes this adverse reaction for the first time and highlights the need for additional studies to establish the long-term risk profile of abatacept

Core-shell nano-architectures: the incorporation mechanism of hydrophobic nanoparticles into the aqueous core of a microemulsion

This work presents an in-depth investigation of the molecular interactions in the incorporation mechanism of colloidal hydrophobic-capped nanoparticles into the hydrophilic core of reverse microemulsions. 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) was employed to obtain molecular level details of the interaction between the nanoparticles capping amphiphiles and the microemulsion surfactants. The model system of choice involved oleic acid (OAC) and oleylamine (OAM) as capping molecules, while igepal-CO520 was the surfactant. The former were studied both in their ‘‘free’’ state and ‘‘ligated’’ one, i.e., bound to nanoparticles. The latter was investigated either in cyclohexane (micellar solution) or in water/cyclohexane microemulsions. The approach was extremely useful to gain a deeper understanding of the equilibria involved in this complex system (oleic acid capped-Bi2S3 in igepal/water/cyclohexane microemulsions). In difference to previously proposed mechanisms, the experimental data showed that the high affinity of the capping ligands for the reverse micelle interior was the driving force for the incorporation of the nanoparticles. A simple ligand-exchange mechanism could be ruled out. The collected information about the nanoparticle incorporation mechanism is extremely useful to develop new synthetic routes with an improved/tuned coating efficiency, in order to tailor the core–shell structure preparation

Biocontrol of Fusarium crown and root rot of tomato and growth-promoting effect of bacteria isolated from recycled substrates of soilless crops

Fusarium crown and root rot (FCRR) of tomato caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicis-lycopersici is a serious problem in agriculture today. Biological control of this disease may be an effective option to deal with this problem. Antagonistic bacteria isolated from suppressive substrates or soils were tested against FCRR in the glasshouse in a sandy soil mixture infested with the pathogen and compared with other experimental or commercial FCRR biocontrol agents. The antagonistic bacteria were applied twice before artificial infection with the pathogen. Pseudomonas sp. strain FC-24B and P. putida FC-8B provided the best and most effective suppression in all trials, reducing vascular discoloration significantly from 65 to 77% and from 52 to 100% respectively. These strains also reduced root rot by 66% and 70% respectively. Pseudomonas sp. FC-24B also substantially increased plant growth, when the pathogen was absent. Pseudomonas sp. FC-9B, Achromobacter xylosoxydans MM1, Streptomyces griseoviridis strain K61 and the commercial formulation Trichoderma harzianum ICC012 + T. viride ICC080 also gave promising results in terms of disease control

Terrestrial Laser Scanner and Close Range Photogrammetry point clouds accuracy assessment for the structure deformations monitoring

In this paper we show the results of several tests carried out using methods and instrumentation typical of an architectural survey, along with a set of metrological instrumentation, on a Reinforced Concrete (RC) beam subjected to increasing loads. The goal was to assess the accuracy in the displacements estimated by a medium quality terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) Focus 3d from Faro Technologies, and the low-cost digital camera Canon PowerShot S110 used in a Close Range Photogrammetry (CRP) survey. The software used for scan-data and point clouds processing was Reconstructor JRC Software v. 3.1.0, maintained by Gexcel Ltd, while the images processing was performed with the software Photoscan from Agisoft, which implements Structure from Motion (SfM) approach. Two processing strategies were used in the point clouds comparison: mesh2mesh and modelling the beam behavior fitting the contours of the beam with second order polynomials. Comparisons between the TLS and CRP techniques and the metrological equipment used in parallel highlighted the limits and potentialities of the two geomatic techniques used. It has been shown that modeling the behavior of the beam leads to significantly better results than using the mesh2mesh comparison. For the CRP the increase in accuracy was in the order of 40%, while for the TLS of 50%

Biocontrol of Fusarium crown and root rot of tomato and growth-promoting effect of bacteria isolated from recycled substrates of soilless crops

Fusarium crown and root rot (FCRR) of tomato caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicis-lycopersici is a serious problem in agriculture today. Biological control of this disease may be an effective option to deal with this problem. Antagonistic bacteria isolated from suppressive substrates or soils were tested against FCRR in the glasshouse in a sandy soil mixture infested with the pathogen and compared with other experimental or commercial FCRR biocontrol agents. The antagonistic bacteria were applied twice before artificial infection with the pathogen. Pseudomonas sp. strain FC-24B and P. putida FC-8B provided the best and most effective suppression in all trials, reducing vascular discoloration significantly from 65 to 77% and from 52 to 100% respectively. These strains also reduced root rot by 66% and 70% respectively. Pseudomonas sp. FC-24B also substantially increased plant growth, when the pathogen was absent. Pseudomonas sp. FC-9B, Achromobacter xylosoxydans MM1, Streptomyces griseoviridis strain K61 and the commercial formulation Trichoderma harzianum ICC012 + T. viride ICC080 also gave promising results in terms of disease control

Diving response after a one-week diet and overnight fasting

Background: We hypothesized that overnight fasting after a short dietary period, especially with carbohydrates, could allow performing breath-hold diving with no restraint for diaphragm excursion and blood shift and without any increase of metabolism, and in turn improve the diving response. Methods: During two separate sessions, 8 divers carried out two trials: (A) a 30-m depth dive, three hours after a normal breakfast and (B) a dive to the same depth, but after following a diet and fasting overnight. Each test consisted of 3 apnea phases: descent, static and ascent whose durations were measured by a standard chronometer. An impedance cardiograph, housed in an underwater torch, provided data on trans-thoracic fluid index (TFI), stroke volume (SV), heart rate (HR) and cardiac output (CO). Mean blood pressure (MBP), arterial O-2 saturation (SaO(2)), blood glucose (Glu) and blood lactate (BLa) were also collected. Results: In condition B, duration of the static phase of the dive was longer than A (37.8 +/- 7.4 vs. 27.3 +/- 8.4 s respectively, P < 0.05). In static phases, mean Delta SV value (difference between basal and nadir values) during fasting was lower than breakfast one (-2.6 +/- 5.1 vs. 5.7 +/- 7.6 ml, P < 0.05). As a consequence, since mean. HR values were equally decreased in both metabolic conditions, mean. CO value during static after fasting was lower than the same phase after breakfast (-0.4 +/- 0.5 vs. 0.4 +/- 0.5 L . min(-1) respectively, P < 0.05). At emersion, despite the greater duration of dives during fasting, SaO(2) was higher than A (92.0 +/- 2.7 vs. 89.4 +/- 2.9 % respectively, P < 0.05) and BLa was lower in the same comparison (4.2 +/- 0.7 vs. 5.3 +/- 1.1 mmol L-1, P < 0.05). Conclusions: An adequate balance between metabolic and splancnic status may improve the diving response during a dive at a depth of 30 m, in safe conditions for the athlete's healt