Ricerc@Sapienza

c-MET pathway over-activation is the signature of malignancy acquisition or chemotherapy resistance of many cancers. We recently demonstrated that type II Testicular Germ Cell Tumours (TGCTs) express c-MET receptor. In particular, we elucidated that the non-seminoma lesions express c-MET protein at higher level, compared with the seminoma ones. In line with this observation, NTERA-2 clone D1 (NT2D1) non-seminoma cells increase their proliferation, migration and invasion in response to Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF).

In metabolic diseases, like type 2 diabetes (T2D), adipose tissue (AT) is infiltrated by macrophages and other leukocytes – which secrete many bioactive peptides leading to local and systemic low-grade chronic inflammation – and undergoes remodeling and aberrant fibrosis. Granzyme B (GrB) is a serine protease produced by some leukocytes, including cytotoxic lymphocytes and macrophages. It exerts both intracellular apoptotic function and extracellular functions, leading to tissue injury, inflammation and repair.

Aromatic-L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) deficiency is an ultra-rare inherited autosomal recessive disorder characterized by sharply reduced synthesis of dopamine as well as other neurotransmitters. Symptoms, including hypotonia and movement disorders (especially oculogyric crisis and dystonia) as well as autonomic dysfunction and behavioral disorders, vary extensively and typically emerge in the first months of life.