Note sulla tradizione antica di Babrio 117

The article examines the Mythiambus 117 of Babrius, attested both by medieval manuscripts and by the ancient tabulae ceratae Assendelftianae of Palmyra. This study tries to revaluate the ancient tradition: at line 9 of the Mythiambus the word \u3bd\u3cd\u3be\u3b1\u3c2 can thus be regarded as an ancient variant

A hydrogel system based on a lactose-modified chitosan for viscosupplementation in osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic disease affecting joint functionality and often managed with hyaluronic acid (HA) administration. In this study, a hydrogel based on a lactose-modified chitosan (CTL) reticulated with boric acid has been developed as a viscosupplement for OA treatment. The rheological characterization allowed to identify a composition whose properties were in line with those of commercial products (in the order of tens of Pascal). The selected CTL-hydrogel showed biocompatibility and antioxidant activity in vitro, and it did not influence cytokines release by macrophages. Degradation studies carried out over 24 h pointed out its higher resistance to chemical degradation with respect to HA samples. Overall, this study underlines the advantages of the CTL-hydrogel to address the treatment of OA and shed light on an innovative application of CTL polymer, which is one of the main component of the proposed hydrogel system and not used in mixture with other molecules

Probing the Ultrastructure of Spheroids and Their Uptake of Magnetic Nanoparticles by FIB–SEM

Spheroids are 3D cellular systems largely adopted as model for high-throughput screening of molecules and diagnostics tools. Furthermore, those cellular platforms also represent a model for testing new delivery carries for selective targeting. The coupling between the 3D cell environment and the nanovectors can be explored at the macroscale by optical microscopy. However, the nanomaterial-cell interplay finds major action at the single cell and extracellular matrix level with nanoscale interactions. Electron microscopy offers the resolution to investigate those interactions; however, the specimen preparation finds major drawbacks in its operation time and preciseness. In this context, focused ion beam and scanning electron microscopy (FIB–SEM) allows for fast processing and high resolution of the cell-nanomaterial interface. Here, in fact, a novel approach is shown to prepare large-area 3D spheroid cell culture specimens for FIB–SEM. Sectioning procedures are explored to preserve the peculiar structure of spheroids and their interaction with magnetic nanovectors. The results pave the way for advanced investigations of 3D cellular systems with nano and micromaterials relevant to tissue engineering, bioelectronics, and diagnostics

Centroid moment tensor catalog with 3D lithospheric wavespeed model. The 2016–2017 Central Apennines sequence

Moment tensor inversions of broadband velocity data are usually managed by adopting Green's functions for 1D layered seismic wave speed models. This assumption can impact on source parameter estimates in regions with complex 3D heterogeneous structures and discontinuities in rock properties. In this work, we present a new centroid moment tensor (CMT) catalog for the Amatrice-Visso-Norcia (AVN) seismic sequence based on a recently generated 3D wave speed model for the Italian lithosphere. Forward synthetic seismograms and Fréchet derivatives for CMT-3D inversions of 159 earthquakes with Mw ≥ 3.0 are simulated using a spectral-element method (SEM) code. By comparing the retrieved solutions with those from time domain moment tensor (TDMT) catalog, obtained with a 1D wave speed model calibrated for Central Apennines (Italy), we observe a remarkable degree of consistency in terms of source geometry, kinematics, and magnitude. Significant differences are found in centroid depths, which are more accurately estimated using the 3D model. Finally, we present a newly designed parameter, τ, to better quantify and compare a-posteriori the reliability of the obtained MT solutions. τ measures the goodness of fit between observed and synthetic seismograms accounting for differences in amplitude, arrival time, percentage of fitted seconds, and the usual L2-norm estimate. The CMT-3D solutions represent the first Italian CMT catalog based on a full-waveform 3D wave speed model. They provide reliable source parameters with potential implications for the structures activated during the sequence. The developed approach can be readily applied to more complex Italian regions where 1D models are underperforming and not representative of the area

Trends in h2s-donors chemistry and their effects in cardiovascular diseases

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an endogenous gasotransmitter recently emerged as an important regulatory mediator of numerous human cell functions in health and in disease. In fact, much evidence has suggested that hydrogen sulfide plays a significant role in many physio-pathological processes, such as inflammation, oxidation, neurophysiology, ion channels regulation, cardiovascular protection, endocrine regulation, and tumor progression. Considering the plethora of physiological effects of this gasotransmitter, the protective role of H2S donors in different disease models has been extensively studied. Based on the growing interest in H2S-releasing compounds and their importance as tools for biological and pharmacological studies, this review is an exploration of currently available H2S donors, classifying them by the H2S-releasing-triggered mechanism and highlighting those potentially useful as promising drugs in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases

Metabolic Alterations in Obstructive Jaundice: Effect of Duration of Jaundice and Bile-Duct Decompression

We examined the effect of prolonged bile duct obstruction, and subsequent biliary decompression, on biochemical and metabolic parameters, using a reversible jaundice model in male Fischer 344 rats. The animals were studied after biliary obstruction for varying periods (4 days, one week, and two weeks) and following decompression. They were sacrificed one or two weeks following decompression. All the rats were compared to sham operated, pair-fed, controls. Obstructive jaundice rapidly increased bilirubin, liver enzymes, serum free fatty acid, and triglyceride levels. Glucose levels were significantly decreased in the jaundice rats compared to their pair-fed controls. Only after two weeks of jaundice was significant hypoalbuminemia observed. Following decompression, all biochemical and metabolic values gradually returned to normal levels, except for albumin. Hypoalbuminemia was not reversed within the two-week post-decompression period. The rats jaundiced for two weeks had significantly higher mortality, compared to the other groups. We conclude that prolonged jaundice adversely affects the metabolic capacity of the rats, with albumin concentration being markedly decreased, and that biliary decompression could not reverse completely all the alterations seen with cholestasis, especially following two weeks of bile duct obstruction

Results of patch-grafting of tissue infected by ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma pyri’ or by ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma prunorum’, respectively on pear and apricot plants cultivated in pot

Molecular analyses carried out either on the pear varieties ‘Conference’, ‘Comice’ and ‘William’ grafted on different rootstocks or on sixty-eight apricot varieties grafted on Myrobalan, showed the susceptibility of the tested combinations to 'Candidatus Phytoplasma pyri', transmitted by Cacopsylla pyri, and to 'Candidatus Phytoplasma prunorum', transmitted by Empoasca decedens, respectively. In order to find pear and/or apricot combinations immune to the associated Phytoplasma, several varieties grafted on new rootstock were tested in the period 2002-2008. 68 pear plants belonging to seven variety/rootstock combinations and 76 apricot plants belonging to seven combinations, all cultivated in pot, in greenhouse covered by anti-aphid tissue, were grafted with patches of infected tissues containing the specific phytoplasmas. Young healthy potted plants belonging to the pear combination ‘Comice’/P. communis and to the apricot combination ‘Palummella’/Myrobalan, both susceptible in open field to the associated phytoplasmas transmitted by the specific vectors, were also used and patch-grafted. Molecular analyses, carried out on nucleic acids extracted from leaf samples, to detect the presence of the pathogens, showed the pear variety ‘William’ grafted on Pyrus betulaefolia to be susceptible to 'Candidatus Phytoplasma pyri’. Neither the pear combination ‘Comice’/P. communis nor the apricot ‘Palummella’/Myrobalan 29 C, susceptible, in open field, to the associated phytoplasmas, became infected after patchgrafting under greenhouse conditions. Thus the results show that patch-grafting cannot be utilized in young potted plants for artificial transmission of these two phytoplasmas.Keywords: Phytoplasmas, source of immunity, variety/rootstock combination, molecular tests, insect proof green-hous

Task 3 - Molise - Deliverable D7: Validation shaking scenarios.

The main goal of this report is the computation of the bedrock seismic motion at 5 municipalities located in the Molise area (Bonefro, S.Giuliano, Colletorto, S.Croce di Magliano, Ripabottoni, hereafter referred to as sites BNF, SGI, CLT, SCM and RPB, respectively). This area represents one of the validation case studies, planned in the framework of Project S3 which aim is the production of ground shaking scenarios for moderate magnitude earthquakes. Indeed, the recently occurred Molise earthquake represents a proper opportunity to compare synthetic simulations with real data. Acceleration time series were recorded during the October 31, 2002 and November 1, 2002 main shocks by analog and digital instruments managed by the Italian Civil Protection Department [DPC-SSN, 2004] while acceleration and velocity records were collected during the first month of seismic activity by DPC, INGV, INOGS, Dip.Te.Ris.(Genoa) (see §2.1 and Deliverable D6). Both strong and weak motion data were employed to infer regional ground motion prediction equations and spectral attenuation models (§2.3 and §2.4) while acceleration time series recorded during the first main shock by nearby stations were used to constrain the seismogenic sources of the October 31 and November 1, 2002 twin earthquakes (§4.1). Bedrock shaking scenarios at different level of complexity were produced by ground motion prediction equations (scenarios of level 0, §4.2), high frequency (f>1Hz) simulations (scenarios of level I, §4.3) and broad band (0-12 Hz) simulations (scenarios of level II, §4.4). Comparison of results obtained with different simulations methods confirms the complexity of the Molise area as regard to both seismogenic and attenuation properties of the crust. Especially for this area the ground motion prediction is constrained by the demand of simulations reproducing different features of the seismic wavefield. In particular, the input motion for site effect modelling, performed at sites located in the epicentral area, was computed with a broad band technique able to reproduce the complete wave field in the frequency band 0-10 Hz in terms of acceleration time series (scenarios of level II scenarios)

Biochemical Traits, 1H NMR Profile and Residual DNA Content of ‘Asprinio’, White Wine from Campania Region (Southern Italy)

‘Asprinio’ is a white dry wine characteristic for its acidity and aromatic flavour, known as emerging DOP wine in Southern Italy. Nevertheless, little information is available on the metabolomic profile of this wine. Thus, in this paper we evaluated the colourimetric parameters, 1H NMR profiles and free amino acids content of ‘Asprinio’ wines, bottled by two different wineries (hereafter ‘Asprinio_A’ and ‘Asprinio_B’) collected in 2019 and 2020, using ‘Greco di Tufo’ for comparison. The colourimetric parameters are similar for both ‘Asprinio’ wines and differ from ‘Greco di Tufo’ wines. On the other hand, both 1H NMR and free amino acid content profiles show different chemometric profiles among the three wines analysed, although the profiles are similar for both vintages. Moreover, the multivariate analyses carried out highlight differences between ‘Asprinio_A’ and ‘Asprinio_B’, which exbibit also different residual yeast and plant DNA. Overall, considering that the two-manufacturing wineries use 100% ‘Asprinio’ grape, the difference retrieved between the two ‘Asprinio’ wines could be explained by the different grapevine training systems: ‘vite maritata’ (training system inherited from Etruscans) for ‘Asprinio_A’ and ‘guyot’ for ‘Asprinio_B’