Ricerc@Sapienza

Numerous studies have reported an association between shortened leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and increased risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). In this study we investigated the relationship between LTL and AD development, including in the analysis patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), a clinical entity considered prodromal of AD. LTL (T/S ratio) was measured in patients with AD (n = 61) or aMCI (n = 46), and compared with LTL of age-matched controls (n = 56). Significant LTL differences were observed between controls, aMCI and AD patients (p

Maintaining a stable and balanced histone pool is of paramount importance for genome stability and fineregulation of DNA replication and transcription. This involves a complex regulatory machinery, exploitingtranscription factors as well as histone chaperones, chromatin remodelers and modifiers. The functionaldetails of this machinery are as yet unclear. Previous studies report histone decrease in mammalianand yeast HMGB family mutants. In this study we find that Nhp6 proteins, the S.

Sirtuin 6 (SIRT6) is a member of the NAD+-dependent class III deacetylase sirtuin family, which plays a key role in cancer by controlling transcription, genome stability, telomere integrity, DNA repair, and autophagy. Here we analyzed the molecular and biological effects of UBCS039, the first synthetic SIRT6 activator. Our data demonstrated that UBCS039 induced a time-dependent activation of autophagy in several human tumor cell lines, as evaluated by increased content of the lipidated form of LC3B by western blot and of autophagosomal puncta by microscopy analysis of GFP-LC3.

Temozolomide (TMZ) is the current first-line chemotherapy for treatment of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). However, similar to other brain therapeutic compounds, access of TMZ to brain tumors is impaired by the blood-brain barrier (BBB) leading to poor response for GBM patients. To overcome this major hurdle, we have synthesized a set of TMZ-encapsulating nanomedicines made of four cationic liposome (CL) formulations with systematic changes in lipid composition and physical-chemical properties.

Objective: The aim of this study was the clinical and molecular characterization of a family segregating a trait consisting of a phenotype specifically involving the maxillary canines, including agenesis, impaction and ectopic eruption, characterized by incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity. Design: Clinical standardized assessment of 14 family members and a whole-exome sequencing (WES) of three affected subjects were performed. WES data analyses (sequence alignment, variant calling, annotation and prioritization) were carried out using an in-house implemented pipeline.

We have previously demonstrated that human heat shock protein 90 (HSP90), an intracellular self protein, is the target of cellular and humoral autoimmune responses in patients with carotid atherosclerosis. In this study, we evaluated in vitro whether oxidative stress, a feature of atherosclerotic plaque, alters HSP90 expression in endothelial cells, thus inducing surface localization of this molecule and whether the antioxidant compound 7,8-dihydroxy-4-methylcoumarin (7,8-DHMC) is able to prevent oxidative stress-induced alterations of HSP90 localization.

Cigarette smoking is a recognized risk factor for colon cancer and nicotine, the
principal active component of tobacco, plays a pivotal role in increasing colon cancer
cell growth and survival. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of
nicotine on cellular Caco-2 and HCT-8 migration and invasion, focusing on epithelial
to mesenchymal transition (EMT) induction, and COX-2 pathway involvement. In
both these cell lines, treatment with nicotine increased COX-2 expression and the