Ricerc@Sapienza

A growing number of evidences report that aging represents the major risk factor for the development of cardio and cerebrovascular diseases. Understanding Aging from a genetic, biochemical and physiological point of view could be helpful to design a better medical approach and to elaborate the best therapeutic strategy to adopt, without neglecting all the risk factors associated with advanced age. Of course, the better way should always be understanding risk-to-benefit ratio, maintenance of independence and reduction of symptoms.

Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells (hDPSCs) represent a type of adult mesenchymal stem cells that have the ability to differentiate in vitro in several lineages such as odontoblasts, osteoblasts, chondrocytes, adipocytes and neurons. In the current work, we used hDPSCs as the experimental model to study the role of recombinant prion protein 23–231 (recPrP C ) in the neuronal differentiation process, and in the signal pathway activation of ERK 1/2 and Akt.

Background: Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are widely distributed in the environment and their toxicity is mostly associated with the molecular mechanisms of endocrine disruption. Among OCPs, particular attention was focused on the effects of β-hexaclorocyclohexane (β-HCH), a widely common pollutant. A detailed epidemiological study carried out on exposed population in the “Valle del Sacco” found correlations between the incidence of a wide range of diseases and the occurrence of β-HCH contamination.

STAT3 is an oncoprotein overexpressed in different types of tumors, including prostate cancer (PCa), and its activity is modulated by a variety of post-translational modifications (PTMs). Prostate cancer represents the most common cancer diagnosed in men, and each phase of tumor progression displays specific cellular conditions: inflammation is predominant in tumor's early stage, whereas oxidative stress is typical of clinically advanced PCa.

Reversible Ligand Binding: Theory and Experiment discusses the physical background of protein-ligand interactions—providing a comprehensive view of the laws that govern reversible, as well as irreversible, ligand binding. Special consideration is devoted to enzymology, a field usually treated separately from ligand binding, but actually governed by identical thermodynamic relationships. Attention is given to the design of experiments, including how to uncover evidence of biochemical features that may otherwise escape notice.

A certain number of studies were carried out to address the question of how dysbiosis could affect the onset and development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), but little is known about the reciprocal influence between microbiota composition and immunosuppressive drugs, and how this interaction may have an impact on the clinical outcome. The aim of this study was to characterize the intestinal microbiota in a groups of RA patients treatment-naïve, under methotrexate, and/or etanercept (ETN).

MeOx/ZrO2 (Me = Co and Fe) catalysts were studied for the simultaneous selective catalytic reduction of NO and N2O in the presence of O2 using C3H6 as reducing agent (SCRsim). To give a better insight in the simultaneous process we investigated the reactions related to SCRsim (SCRN2O, SCRNO, N2O decomposition and C3H6 combustion) as well as the abatements in the absence of O2 (CRsim, CRN2O, CRNO).

The reactivity between NO and the oxidized form of a short-distance dinuclear Cu-ZSM-5 catalyst (ZCu2O) was investigated. ZCu2O, which contains the [Cu–O–Cu]2+bridge coordinated at the opposite T11 positions of the M6 ring of ZSM-5, is obtained by the spin-forbidden decomposition of N2O on the reduced form of the catalyst, ZCu2, with an activation energy of about 18 kcal mol−1. The further addition of NO to the [Cu–O–Cu]2+unit of ZCu2O occurs in the doublet state without activation energy and gives NO2.

The catalytic effects of guests 5-7 on the cyclization of 1 and 3 have been measured at 62 °C in MeCN. A record rate acceleration of more than 2000 times has been observed in the cyclization of the tricationic host 3 featuring large diazapyrenium π-surfaces by tetrathiafulvalene guests 6 and 7. The results emphasize the role played by extended π-surfaces in the host and the goodness of a tetrathiafulvalene core in the guest, enhanced by polyethereal side arms.

The oxidation of a series of alkylaromatic compounds with H2O2 catalyzed by an imine-based non-heme iron complex prepared in situ by reaction of 2-picolylaldehyde, 2-picolylamine, and Fe(OTf)2 in a 2 : 2 : 1 ratio leads to a marked chemoselectivity for aromatic ring hydroxylation over side-chain oxidation. This selectivity is herein investigated in detail. Side-chain/ring oxygenated product ratio was found to increase upon decreasing the bond dissociation energy (BDE) of the benzylic C-H bond in line with expectation.