A phloroglucinol derivative from the brown alga Zonaria tournefortii

The major lipid component of the brown seaweed Zonaria tournefortii was identified as the acylphlorogluconol (all Z)-2′-icosa-5,8,11,14,17-pentae     

A large proportion of mediastinal and perirenal visceral fat of Siberian adult people is formed by UCP1 immunoreactive multilocular and paucilocular adipocytes

Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry - Many deleterious consequences for health of excessive fat accumulation are due to visceral fat. Browning of visceral fat is mainly cold dependent and has...     

Effect of amino acids and amines on the activity of the recombinant ι-carbonic anhydrase from the Gram-negative bacterium Burkholderia territorii

We here report a study on the activation of the ι-class bacterial CA from Burkholderia territorii (BteCAι). This protein was recently characterised as a zinc-dependent enzyme that shows a significant catalytic activity (k_cat 3.0 × 10⁵ s⁻¹) for the physiological reaction of CO₂ hydration to bicarbonate and protons. Some amino acids and amines, among which some proteinogenic derivatives as well as histamine, dopamine and serotonin, showed efficient activating properties towards BteCAι, with activation constants in the range 3.9–13.3 µM. L-Phe, L-Asn, L-Glu, and some pyridyl-alkylamines, showed a weaker activating effect towards BteCAι, with K_A values ranging between 18.4 µM and 45.6 µM. Nowadays, no information is available on active site architecture, metal ion coordination and catalytic mechanism of members of the ι-group of CAs, and this study represents another contribution towards a better understanding of this still uncharacterised class of enzymes.     

Cisgenics as emerging bio-objects: bio-objectification and bio-identification in agrobiotech innovation

Cisgenesis is a genetic modification of a recipient organism with genetic material from a crossable organism. Trying to free cisgenics from the regulatory guidelines of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), some scientists have suggested to classify the genetically modified products by the origin of transferred genes. Aiming at exploring how scientists frame cisgenics in relation to current legal frameworks, we have sent an extensive survey to the totality of researchers working on cisgenics. Trying to provide cisgenics with a new, uncontroversial identity, the respondents present cisgenics as a method of obtaining “natural,” environmentally friendly and economically sustainable crops. However, such strategy is challenged by GMO corporations opposing a segmentation of the sector, and by the opponents of GMOs, who fear that deregulation on cisgenics leads to the deregulation of GMOs. Drawing from the concepts of bio-objectification and bio-identification, we show how the status of this bio-object is likely to remain contested and contestable.     

The Cannabinoid Receptor Type 2 as Mediator of Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Immunosuppressive Properties

Mesenchymal stromal cells are non-hematopoietic, multipotent progenitor cells producing cytokines, chemokines, and extracellular matrix proteins that support hematopoietic stem cell survival and engraftment, influence immune effector cell development, maturation, and function, and inhibit alloreactive T-cell responses. The immunosuppressive properties of human mesenchymal stromal cells have attracted much attention from immunologists, stem cell biologists and clinicians.Recently, the presence of the endocannabinoid system in hematopoietic and neural stem cells has been demonstrated. Endocannabinoids, mainly acting through the cannabinoid receptor subtype 2, are able to modulate cytokine release and to act as immunosuppressant when added to activated T lymphocytes.In the present study, we have investigated, through a multidisciplinary approach, the involvement of the endocannabinoids in migration, viability and cytokine release of human mesenchymal stromal cells.We show, for the first time, that cultures of human mesenchymal stromal cells express all of the components of the endocannabinoid system, suggesting a potential role for the cannabinoid CB2 receptor as a mediator of anti-inflammatory properties of human mesenchymal stromal cells, as well as of their survival pathways and their capability to home and migrate towards endocannabinoid sources.     

Collective Electronic Excitations in Thin Ag Films on Ni(111)

The collective electronic excitations in thin Ag films deposited onto the Ni(111) surface were studied by high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy. A broad loss peak at 7.7 eV was assigned to the Ag multipole plasmon, in excellent agreement with calculations based on s-d polarization model. Ag multipole plasmon was excited only at grazing incidence. Furthermore, a strong dependence on the impinging energy exists. Multipole plasmon could be measured only for a very strict range of primary electron beam energies and it was excited by electrons scattered at a reflection plane located just underneath the jellium edge. Such mode was found to be dramatically more sensible to the state of the surface with respect to ordinary surface plasmon. Moreover, we report experimental evidence of interference effects in surface plasmon excitation.