Protective effect of the curcumin-baicalein combination against macrovascular changes in diabetic angiopathy

Endothelial dysfunction is an early pathological event in diabetic angiopathy which is the most common complication of diabetes. This study aims to investigate individual and combined actions of Curcumin (Cur) and Baicalein (Bai) in protecting vascular function. The cellular protective effects of Cur, Bai and Cur+Bai (1:1, w/w) were tested in H2O2 (2.5 mM) impaired EA. hy926 cells. Wistar rats were treated with vehicle control as the control group, Goto-Kakizaki rats (n=5 each group) were treated with vehicle control (model group), Cur (150 mg/kg), Bai (150 mg/kg), or Cur+Bai (75 mg/kg Cur + 75 mg/kg Bai, OG) for 4 weeks after a four-week high-fat diet to investigate the changes on blood vessel against diabetic angiopathy. Our results showed that Cur+Bai synergistically restored the endothelial cell survival and exhibited greater effects on lowering the fasting blood glucose and blood lipids in rats comparing to individual compounds. Cur+Bai repaired the blood vessel structure in the aortic arch and mid thoracic aorta. The network pharmacology analysis showed that Nrf2 and MAPK/JNK kinase were highly relevant to the multi-targeted action of Cur+Bai which has been confirmed in the in vitro and in vivo studies. In conclusion, Cur+Bai demonstrated an enhanced activity in attenuating endothelial dysfunction against oxidative damage and effectively protected vascular function in diabetic angiopathy rats

Expo 2010 Shanghai Landscape Renewal

I materiali raccolti in questa pubblicazione rappresentano i contributi ed i progetti elaborati nel corso dell’XI Seminario Internazionale di Progettazione “Urban Culture and Landscape Renewal” tenutosi a Shanghai dal 4 al 17 Settembre 2006. In seguito ad una collaborazione decennale ed alla partecipazione congiunta a tutte le precedenti edizioni del seminario internazionale tenutesi a Pavia, quest’anno l’Università degli Studi di Pavia, lo IUSS di Pavia e la Tongji Universi Shanghai hanno coorganizzato il Seminario Internazionale a Shanghai. Si desidera in tal senso ringraziare i Presidenti Roberto Schmid e Wan Gang, grazie ai quali l’iniziativa è stata resa possibile. È importante inoltre sottolineare come la Tongji University ha fornito ospitalità all’iniziativa presso la Facoltà di Architecture and Planning, e che tutti gli studenti sono stati ospitati all’interno di strutture di uno dei tre campus della Tongji University, presso i quali studiano più di 30000 studenti di molteplici Facoltà. Questa circostanza ha ulteriormente arricchito il Seminario, permettendo agli studenti e a tutti noi una più piena condivisione della cultura, delle usanze e delle tradizioni dei luoghi, perfettamente allineati con lo spirito del Seminario. Il format del Seminario Internazionale, sperimentato a Pavia nelle edizioni svolte a Zakynthos e a Salvador Bahia, si è rivelato truly successfull con poche variazioni suggerite dagli amici cinesi per adattarlo ai ritmi ed alle esigenze locali. Il Seminario si pone quale scopo principale quello di costruire un professionista capace di lavorare in tutto il mondo sui temi del paesaggio e della riqualificazione urbana, attraverso un’iniziativa che sperimenta un modo nuovo di lavorare in gruppi multietnici, facendo dialogare culture e approcci disciplinari molto distanti tra loro. Il tema del rinnovo del territorio, che comprende aspetti della composizione urbana e dell’identità locale, assume un ruolo di primaria importanza nella città contemporanea, caratterizzata da una consapevolezza maggiore riguardo all’integrazione tra infrastrutture, paesaggio e insediamenti esistenti. Il principale intento del Seminario non è l’individuazione della miglior ipotesi progettuale per le aree oggetto di studio, ma la discussione approfondita delle varie possibilità di intervento nel momento in cui i confini della città si incontrano con nuove strutture urbane e con la natura. Il workshop, il fulcro delle attività progettuali, si è svolto durante due settimane di lavoro serio ed intenso, coordinato perfettamente dai tutor e dai visiting professors ai quali va il nostro sincero ringraziamento. L’area di progetto, inserita nel masterplan dell’Expo 2010, è di fondamentale importanza non solo per un evento che porterà definitivamente Shanghai all’attenzione internazionale, ma per l’assetto complessivo che ne deriverà per il comparto urbano nel quale è inserita. Non distante dal centro storico, servita da importanti infrastrutture viarie e dal previsto prolungamento della metropolitana, affacciata sul fiume Huan-pu, dal quale si prevede di garantire accessibilità con un sistema di trasporto collettivo, il progetto dell’area dell’Expo 2010 è di vitale importanza per affermare l’importanza del progetto urbano ed architettonico per Shanghai. I progetti elaborati in questa occasione seminariale dimostrano la varietà e la forza di atteggiamenti differenti, che pongono attenzione ai temi del paesaggio, della morfologia urbana e della composizione architettonica. Il Seminario, come ha giustamente ricordato il Presidente Schmid, ha inoltre rappresentato l’occasione da cui partire per siglare un Accordo Quadro di collaborazione tra i due atenei nell’ambito dell’università italo cinese, nella speranza fattiva di relazioni sempre più stabili e frequenti

A Comparative Study of QoS Routing Schemes That Tolerate Imprecise State Information

In large networks, maintaining precise global network state information is almost impossible. Many factors, including nonnegligible propagation delay, infrequent link state update due to overhead concerns, link state update policy, resource reservation, and hierarchical topology aggregation, have impacts on the precision of the global network state information. To achieve efficient Quality of Service (QoS) routing, a practical routing algorithm must be able to make effective routing decisions in the presence of imprecise global network state information. In this paper, we compare five QoS routing algorithms that were proposed to tolerate imprecise global network state information, safety-based routing, randomized routing, multi-path routing, localized routing, and static multi-path routing. The performance of these routing algorithms are evaluated under two link state update policies, the timer based policy and the threshold based policy. The strengths and limitations of each scheme are identified

Desulfovibrio feeding Methanobacterium with electrons in conductive methanogenic aggregates from coastal zones

Geobacter, as a typical electroactive microorganism, is the "engine" of interspecies electron transfer (IET) between microorganisms. However, it does not have a dominant position in all natural environments. It is not known what performs a similar function as Geobacter in coastal zones. Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic analysis revealed that Desulfovibrio and Methanobacterium species were the most abundant in electrochemically active aggregates. Metatranscriptomic analysis showed that Desulfovibrio species highly expressed genes for ethanol metabolism and extracellular electron transfer involving cytochromes, pili and flagella. Methanobacterium species in the aggregates also expressed genes for enzymes involved in reducing carbon dioxide to methane. Pure cultures demonstrated that the isolated Desulfovibrio sp. strain JY contributed to aggregate conductivity and directly transferred electrons to Methanothrix harundinacea, which is unable to use H2 or formate. Most importantly, further coculture studies indicated that Methanobacterium strain YSL might directly accept electrons from the Desulfovibrio strain JY for the reduction of carbon dioxide to methane in the aggregate. This finding suggested that the possibility of DIET by Desulfovibrio similar to Geobacter species in conductive methanogenic aggregates can not be excluded

New 40Ar/39Ar age evidence for the Cretaceous volcanic rocks of the Mount Bowles Formation in Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands

The age of the volcanic rocks of the Mount Bowles Formation (MBF) on the eastern part of Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is redetermined by using 40Ar/39Ar and laser microarea isochron age dating method with a continuous laser system and mass spectrometer. The isochron ages of an andesite sample and a basaltic andesite sample are (105.62 ± 2.11) Ma and (111.48 ± 2.23) Ma with the 40Ar/39Ar initial ratios of 295.3 and 294.6 respectively, being almost the same as the atmospheric value, which proves that there exists no excess argon in these rocks. The 40Ar/39Ar plateau age of an aplite sample is (96.7 ± 1.6) Ma and the calculated isochron age is 96.6 Ma, which indicates that the aplite occurred after lava eruption. These data suggest that the MBF volcanic rocks were formed during Cretaceous

Effects of Organic Phosphorus on Methylotrophic Methanogenesis in Coastal Lagoon Sediments With Seagrass (Zostera marina) Colonization

Methanogens are the major contributors of greenhouse gas methane and play significant roles in the degradation and transformation of organic matter. These organisms are particularly abundant in Swan Lake, which is a shallow lagoon located in Rongcheng Bay, Yellow Sea, northern China, where eutrophication from overfertilization commonly results in anoxic environments. High organic phosphorus content is a key component of the total phosphorus in Swan Lake and is possibly a key factor affecting the eutrophication and carbon and nitrogen cycling in Swan Lake. The effects of organic phosphorus on eutrophication have been well-studied with respect to bacteria, such as cyanobacteria, unlike the effects of organic phosphorus on methanogenesis. In this study, different sediment layer samples of seagrass-vegetated and unvegetated areas in Swan Lake were investigated to understand the effects of organic phosphorus on methylotrophic methanogenesis. The results showed that phytate phosphorus significantly promoted methane production in the deepest sediment layer of vegetated regions but suppressed it in unvegetated regions. Amplicon sequencing revealed that methylotrophicMethanococcoidesactively dominated in all enrichment samples from both regions with additions of trimethylamine or phytate phosphorus, whereas methylotrophicMethanolobusandMethanosarcinapredominated in the enrichments obtained from vegetated and unvegetated sediments, respectively. These results prompted further study of the effects of phytate phosphorus on two methanogen isolates,Methanolobus psychrophilus, a type strain,Methanosarcina mazei, an isolate from Swan Lake sediments. Cultivation experiments showed that phytate phosphorus could inhibit methane production byM. psychrophilusbut promote methane production byM. mazei. These culture-based studies revealed the effects of organic phosphorus on methylotrophic methanogenesis in coastal lagoon sediments and improves our understanding of the mechanisms of organic carbon cycling leading to methanogenesis mediated by organic phosphorus dynamics in coastal wetlands