Gestione banca sorgenti

Il servizio di sorveglianza fisica della radioprotezione INAF OAS Bologna, prevede, a supporto del DL e dell’EQ, la posizione organizzativa denominata “Responsabile della Banca Sorgenti e dosimetria (RBS)” con responsabilità riguardo alla Banca Radiosorgenti detenute

Potential use in the treatment of inflammatory disorders and obesity of selected wild edible plants from Calabria region (Southern Italy)

Abstract The potential role of plants and their metabolites has been recently considered in the search for new well-tolerated anti-arthritic and anti-obesity drugs. This study was designed to assess the potential effectiveness of the methanolic extracts from four wild edible species from Southern Italy, Asparagus officinalis L., Bellis perennis L., Daucus carota L. and Sambucus nigra L. All these plants have a history as anti-rheumatic or anti-arthritic remedies. The chemical constituents were identified through GC–MS and HPTLC analyses and the in vitro antioxidant activity was determined by means of DPPH, ABTS, FRAP-Ferrozine and β-carotene bleaching tests. To assess the anti-inflammatory and anti-arthritic potentials, the capacity to inhibit nitric oxide production in murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells and protein denaturation was measured. The anti-obesity potential was determined by evaluating the ability of the sample to inhibit pancreatic lipase, a key enzyme for dietary fats absorption. The raw extract of D. carota showed the best inhibitory activity on NO production (IC50 = 45.1 ± 1.0 μg/mL), followed by B. perennis and A. officinalis (IC50 equal to 193.1 ± 3.2 μg/mL and 506.3 ± 5.1 μg/mL, respectively). D. carota induced also inhibitory effects against the heat-induced denaturation of bovine serum albumin (IC50 = 878.7 ± 19.09 μg/mL) and the best lipase inhibitory potential (IC50 = 1.63 ± 0.07 mg/mL). Our findings suggest that this species could be a potential effective therapeutic agent to treat inflammation and arthritis, supporting the traditional popular use of this plant

Cytotoxic properties of Marrubium globosum ssp. libanoticum and its bioactive components

Marrubium globosum Montbr. et Auch. ex Benth. ssp. libanoticum Boiss. (Lamiaceae) is a medicinal plant used in Lebanon for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, asthma, coughs and other pulmonary and urinary problems. The goal of our study was to assess the biological activity of M. globosum by testing different extracts of the aerial parts for their antiproliferative activity against human melanoma cells using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The chloroform fraction showed the greatest activity. The compounds isolated from the extracts were also tested: the mixture of (13 S)-9α,13α-epoxylabda-6β(19),16(15)-diol dilactone and (13 R)-9α,13α-epoxylabda-6β(19),16(15)-diol dilactone was the most active fraction, with an IC50 value of 29.2 ± 0.06 μg/mL

Chemical composition and protective effect of oregano (Origanum heracleoticum L.) ethanolic extract on oxidative damage and on inhibition of NO in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages.

The present study shows the chemical profile and the in vitro properties (antioxidant and inhibition of nitric oxide production) of the Origanum heracleoticum L. (Lamiaceae). The ethanolic extract of the aerial parts is characterized by terpenes and fatty acids. The extract, with high total phenol and flavonoid content, showed a significant radical-scavenging activity (IC(50) value of 12.8 μg/mL) using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) test and an interesting antioxidant activity with the β-carotene bleaching test (IC(50) values of 12.9 and 14.1 μg/mL at 30 and 60 min of incubation, respectively). The test for the inhibition of NO production, performed using the murine monocytic macrophage RAW 264.7 cell line, showed that the extract had significant activity with an IC(50) value of 108.5 μg/mL. The cytotoxic effect of O. heracleoticum extract in presence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (1 μg/mL) was evaluated but found to be negligible

Quantitative determination of Amaryllidaceae alkaloids from Galanthus reginae-olgae subsp. vernalis and in vitro activities relevant for neurodegenerative diseases.

In the present work the qualitative and quantitative analysis of Amaryllidaceae-type alkaloids in the aerial parts and bulbs of Galanthus reginae-olgae Orph. subsp. vernalis Kamari is presented for the first time using GC-MS analysis. The alkaloids galanthamine, lycorine, and tazettine were identified in both extracts while crinine and neronine were found only in the bulbs. The yield of alkaloid fraction from bulbs (36.8%) is very high compared to the yield from aerial parts (9.34%). Lycorine was the major component in both fractions. The antioxidant potential was determined by three complementary methods. The preparations to reduce the stable free radical DPPH to the yellow-colored 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl with IC(50) values of 39 and 29 mug/mL for MeOH extracts from aerial parts and bulbs, respectively. The higher activity was given by EtOAc fraction of aerial parts with IC(50) of 10 mug/mL. This activity is probably due to the presence in EtOAc fraction of polar compounds such as polyphenols. The fraction exhibited a significant antioxidant capacity also in the beta-carotene-linoleic acid test system. A higher level of antioxidant activity was observed for EtOAc fraction from bulbs with IC(50) of 10 mug/mL after 30 min and 9 mug/mL after 60 min of incubation. In contrast, the fraction from bulbs performed poorly in the lipid peroxidation liposomes assay. Significant activity was obtained for dichloromethane fraction from aerial parts (IC(50) of 74 mug/mL). The major abundance of alkaloid in dichloromethane fraction may be responsible of the bulbs anti-cholinesterase highest activity (38.5%) at 0.5 mg/mL

Crocus cancellatus subsp. damascenus stigmas: chemical profile, and inhibition of α-amylase, α-glucosidase and lipase, key enzymes related to type 2 diabetes and obesity

Spices are appreciated for their medicinal properties besides their use as food adjuncts to enhance the sensory quality of food. In this study, Crocus cancellatus subsp. damascenus was investigated for its antioxidant activities employing different in vitro systems. Stigma extract demonstrated a radical scavenging activity against both 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radicals with IC50 values of 34.6 and 21.6 µg/mL and a good ferric reducing ability (53.9 µM Fe(II)/g). In order to clarify the potential functional properties of this spice, the carbohydrate-hydrolysing enzymes and pancreatic lipase inhibitory properties were investigated. Crocus cancellatus subsp. damascenus extract inhibited α-amylase and α-glucosidase with IC50 values of 57.1 and 68.6 µg/mL, respectively. The bioactivity was discussed in terms of phytochemicals content. The obtained results may be of interest from a functional point of view or as food additive and to promote the revalorization of this species

Antioxidant and anti-cholinesterase activity of Globularia meridionalis extracts and isolated constituents.

The antioxidant and anti-cholinesterase properties of Globularia meridional (Podp.) O. Schwarz (Globulariaceae) were investigated. G. meridionalis aerial parts and roots were extracted with methanol, and the total extract successively partitioned with n-hexane. The methanol fraction of the roots showed the highest antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 8.0 and 2.1 μg/mL in the DPPH and β-carotene bleaching tests, respectively. From this fraction, three flavonoids, namely pectolinarigenin 7- O-β-glucoside, apigenin 7- O-β-glucoside and luteolin, and two phenylethanoids, namely acteoside and isoacteoside, were isolated. Potential anti-cholinesterase effects were assessed through the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes inhibition assay. The n-hexane fraction of the roots exhibited the highest activity against both AChE and BChE with IC50 values of 65.5 and 70.4 μg/mL, respectively

Protective effect of Hypericum calabricum Sprengel on oxidative damage and its inhibition of nitric oxide in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages

The present study shows for the fi rst time the phenolic composition and the in vitro properties (antioxidant and inhibition of nitric oxide production) of Hypericum calabricum Sprengel collected in Italy. The content of hypericins (hypericin and pseudohypericin), hyperforin, fl avonoids (rutin, hyperoside, isoquercetrin, quercitrin, quercetin and biapigenin) and chlorogenic acid of H. calabricum, have been determined. The ethyl acetate fraction from the aerial parts of H. calabricum exhibited activity against the radical 1,1-diphenyl-2picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) with IC 50 value of 1.6 μg/ml. The test for inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production was performed using the murine monocytic macrophage cell line RAW 264.7. The ethyl acetate fraction had signifi cant activity with an IC 50 value of 102 μg/ml and this might indicate that it would have an anti-infl ammatory effect in vivo

Antioxidant, enzyme-inhibitory and antitumor activity of the wild dietary plant Muscari comosum (L.) Mill.

Conventional medicines used to treat obesity and cancer frequently exhibit high side effects, so that researchers are focusing on new therapies and drugs based on natural products. Total extracts from bulbs of Muscari comosum were tested for i) free radical scavenging activity, ii) in vitro enzymatic inhibition of pancreatic α-amylase and lipase, and iii) inhibition of the growth of breast adenocarcinoma cells. Three treatments were considered: bulbs boiled in water for 15 min (traditional cooking method; BB); bulbs steam-cooked for 15 min (alternative cooking method; SB); raw bulbs (RB). The polyphenol content and antioxidant capacity of bulb extracts were related to the inhibition of pancreatic lipase and α-amylase, whose activities have been found to have a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 0.28, 2.14 and 3.22 mg/mL for lipase, and 0.16, 0.73 and 0.69 mg/mL for α-amylase in RB, SB and BB, respectively. The analysis on breast adenocarcinoma MCF-7 cells revealed that RB extracts, and in a lesser extent BB, exerted a dose-dependent inhibition on cell proliferation. Considering that the potential of natural products for the treatment of obesity are under exploration, M. comosum could be an excellent plant for the development of future anti-obesity drugs, also able to prevent cancer

Relazione tecnica impatto acustico

La presente relazione tecnica descrive la progettazione di interventi di correzione acustica di alcuni locali del complesso di ricerca INAF OAS situato a Bologna in via Gobetti 101, al fine di verificare se esistono condizioni di rischio lavorativo, e comunque, anche nel caso che non sussistano le condizioni per intervenire con misure di protezione e prevenzione, migliorarne il comfort, favorire la concentrazione e ridurre lo sforzo vocale degli operatori e delle operatrici