Metabolic and morphological alterations induced by proteolysis-inducing factor from Walker tumour-bearing rats in C2C12 myotubes

BACKGROUND: Patients with advanced cancer suffer from cachexia, which is characterised by a marked weight loss, and is invariably associated with the presence of tumoral and humoral factors which are mainly responsible for the depletion of fat stores and muscular tissue. METHODS: In this work, we used cytotoxicity and enzymatic assays and morphological analysis to examine the effects of a proteolysis-inducing factor (PIF)-like molecule purified from ascitic fluid of Walker tumour-bearing rats (WF), which has been suggested to be responsible for muscle atrophy, on cultured C2C12 muscle cells. RESULTS: WF decreased the viability of C2C12 myotubes, especially at concentrations of 20-25 mug.mL-1. There was an increase in the content of the pro-oxidant malondialdehyde, and a decrease in antioxidant enzyme activity. Myotubes protein synthesis decreased and protein degradation increased together with an enhanced in the chymotrypsin-like enzyme activity, a measure of functional proteasome activity, after treatment with WF. Morphological alterations such as cell retraction and the presence of numerous cells in suspension were observed, particularly at high WF concentrations. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that WF has similar effects to those of proteolysis-inducing factor, but is less potent than the latter. Further studies are required to determine the precise role of WF in this experimental model. © 2008 Yano et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

La coralità necessaria e impossibile

Il testo propone e analizza il caso di Santarcangelo 2009-2012, innovativo triennio di direzione artistica del più antico festival del teatro di ricerca in Italia. La riflessione si concentra in particolare sul carattere di "buona pratica" di curatela e gestione dello spettacolo contemporaneo di questa esperienza, in virtù di alcuni aspetti caratterizzanti: la dimensione collettiva e corale; il rapporto con il territorio; la dimensione itnernazionale

Quasi-periodic Spatiotemporal Models of Brain Activation in Single-Trial MEG Experiments

Magneto-encephalography (MEG) is an imaging technique which measures neuronal activity in the brain. Even when a subject is in a resting state, MEG data show characteristic spatial and temporal patterns, resulting from electrical current at specific locations in the brain. The key pattern of interest is a \u2018dipole\u2019, consisting of two adjacent regions of high and low activation which oscillate over time in an out-of-phase manner. Standard approaches are based on averages over large numbers of trials in order to reduce noise. In contrast, this article addresses the issue of dipole modelling for single trial data, as this is of interest in application areas. There is also clear evidence that the frequency of this oscillation in single trials generally changes over time and so exhibits quasi-periodic rather than periodic behaviour. A framework for the modelling of dipoles is proposed through estimation of a spatiotemporal smooth function constructed as a parametric function of space and a smooth function of time. Quasi-periodic behaviour is expressed in phase functions which are allowed to evolve smoothly over time. The model is fitted in two stages. First, the spatial location of the dipole is identified and the smooth signals characterizing the amplitude functions for each separate pole are estimated. Second, the phase and frequency of the amplitude signals are estimated as smooth functions. The model is applied to data from a real MEG experiment focusing on motor and visual brain processes. In contrast to existing standard approaches, the model allows the variability across trials and subjects to be identified. The nature of this variability is informative about the resting state of the brain

Impatto della legge 120/2010 sull'accertamento dell'idoneit\ue0 alla guida in caso di disturbi del sonno

OBIETTIVI. Analisi delle certificazioni dei precedenti morbosi ex L. 120/2010 giunte in Commissione Medica Locale (CML) per le patenti di guida e della frequenza di segnalazione di disturbi del sonno. MATERIALI E METODI. Analisi di un trimestre d\u2019attivit\ue0 della CML di Modena. RISULTATI. Trenta (0,9%) delle 3.185 visite effettuate, riguardavano candidati tenuti a presentare la certificazione (57% uomini, et\ue0 media 22 anni). I precedenti morbosi pi\uf9 frequentemente certificati erano epilessia (37%), patologie psichiatriche (13%), malattie dell\u2019apparato visivo (10%). In un caso erano segnalati disturbi del sonno in un quadro psichiatrico. DISCUSSIONE. Nei limiti del periodo esaminato, si \ue8 evidenziata una ridotta efficacia della previsione di legge nell\u2019identificare disturbi del sonno e altre patologie potenzialmente compromettenti l\u2019idoneit\ue0 alla guida. Tale scarso impatto \ue8 dovuto alle caratteristiche dei candidati tenuti a presentare la certificazione (giovani, trattandosi di primo conseguimento), e alla tipologia delle patologie segnalate, la gran parte gi\ue0 di competenza della CML