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Benedetto A, Robotti E, Belay MH, Ghignone A, Fabbris A, Goggi E, Cerruti S, Manfredi M, Barberis E, Peletto S, Arillo A, Giaccio N, Masini MA, Brandi J, Cecconi D, Marengo E, Brizio P. Multi-Omics Approaches for Freshness Estimation and Detection of Illicit Conservation Treatments in Sea Bass ( Dicentrarchus Labrax): Data Fusion Applications. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:1509. [PMID: 38338789 PMCID: PMC10855268 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25031509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2023] [Revised: 01/18/2024] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Fish freshness consists of complex endogenous and exogenous processes; therefore, the use of a few parameters to unravel illicit practices could be insufficient. Moreover, the development of strategies for the identification of such practices based on additives known to prevent and/or delay fish spoilage is still limited. The paper deals with the identification of the effect played by a Cafodos solution on the conservation state of sea bass at both short-term (3 h) and long-term (24 h). Controls and treated samples were characterized by a multi-omic approach involving proteomics, lipidomics, metabolomics, and metagenomics. Different parts of the fish samples were studied (muscle, skin, eye, and gills) and sampled through a non-invasive procedure based on EVA strips functionalized by ionic exchange resins. Data fusion methods were then applied to build models able to discriminate between controls and treated samples and identify the possible markers of the applied treatment. The approach was effective in the identification of the effect played by Cafodos that proved to be different in the short- and long-term and complex, involving proteins, lipids, and small molecules to a different extent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (S.P.); (A.A.); (N.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Elisa Robotti
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Masho Hilawie Belay
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
- Department of Chemistry, Mekelle University, Mekelle P.O. Box 231, Ethiopia
| | - Arianna Ghignone
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Alessia Fabbris
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Eleonora Goggi
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Simone Cerruti
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Marcello Manfredi
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, Via Solaroli 17, 28100 Novara, Italy;
| | - Elettra Barberis
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Simone Peletto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (S.P.); (A.A.); (N.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Alessandra Arillo
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (S.P.); (A.A.); (N.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Nunzia Giaccio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (S.P.); (A.A.); (N.G.); (P.B.)
| | - Maria Angela Masini
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Jessica Brandi
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona, Italy; (J.B.); (D.C.)
| | - Daniela Cecconi
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona, Italy; (J.B.); (D.C.)
| | - Emilio Marengo
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy; (M.H.B.); (A.G.); (A.F.); (E.G.); (S.C.); (E.B.); (M.A.M.); (E.M.)
| | - Paola Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (S.P.); (A.A.); (N.G.); (P.B.)
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2
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Benedetto A, Šťastný K, Giaccio N, Marturella M, Biasibetti E, Arigoni M, Calogero R, Gili M, Pezzolato M, Tošnerová K, Hodkovicová N, Faldyna M, Puleio R, Bozzo G, Bozzetta E. RNAseq Analysis of Livers from Pigs Treated with Testosterone and Nandrolone Esters: Selection and Field Validation of Transcriptional Biomarkers. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:3495. [PMID: 38003113 PMCID: PMC10668810 DOI: 10.3390/ani13223495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The use of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AASs) as growth promoters in farm animals is banned in the European Union, representing both an illicit practice and a risk for consumer health. However, these compounds are still illegally administered, often in the form of synthetic esters. This work aimed to characterize significant coding RNA perturbations related to the illicit administration of testosterone and nandrolone esters in fattening pigs. A total of 27 clinically healthy 90-day-old pigs were randomly assigned to test and control groups. Nine animals were treated with testosterone esters (Sustanon®) and other nine with nandrolone esters (Myodine®). At the end of the trial, liver samples were collected and analyzed using RNAseq, allowing the identification of 491 differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The transcriptional signature was further characterized by a smaller sub-cluster of 143 DEGs, from which a selection of 16 genes was made. The qPCR analysis confirmed that the identified cluster could still give good discrimination between untreated gilt and barrows compared to the relative testosterone-treated counterparts. A conclusive field survey on 67 liver samples collected from pigs of different breeds and weight categories confirmed, in agreement with testosterone residue profiles, the specificity of selected transcriptional biomarkers, showing their potential applications for screening purposes when AAS treatment is suspected, allowing to focus further investigations of competent authorities and confirmatory analysis where needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Kamil Šťastný
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Preventive Medicine, Veterinary Research Institute, 621 00 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Š.); (K.T.); (N.H.); (M.F.)
| | - Nunzia Giaccio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Marianna Marturella
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Elena Biasibetti
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Maddalena Arigoni
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Scienze della Salute, Core-Lab di Bioinformatica e Genomica, Università degli Studi di Torino, 10124 Turin, Italy; (M.A.); (R.C.)
| | - Raffaele Calogero
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Scienze della Salute, Core-Lab di Bioinformatica e Genomica, Università degli Studi di Torino, 10124 Turin, Italy; (M.A.); (R.C.)
| | - Marilena Gili
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Marzia Pezzolato
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Kristína Tošnerová
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Preventive Medicine, Veterinary Research Institute, 621 00 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Š.); (K.T.); (N.H.); (M.F.)
| | - Nikola Hodkovicová
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Preventive Medicine, Veterinary Research Institute, 621 00 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Š.); (K.T.); (N.H.); (M.F.)
| | - Martin Faldyna
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Preventive Medicine, Veterinary Research Institute, 621 00 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Š.); (K.T.); (N.H.); (M.F.)
| | - Roberto Puleio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia, 90129 Palermo, Italy;
| | - Giancarlo Bozzo
- Dipartimento di Medicina Veterinaria, Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro, 70121 Bari, Italy;
| | - Elena Bozzetta
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, 10154 Turin, Italy; (N.G.); (M.M.); (E.B.); (M.G.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
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Benedetto A, Kagan I. Active vision: How you look reflects what you are looking for. Curr Biol 2023; 33:R303-R305. [PMID: 37098332 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/27/2023]
Abstract
While we fixate an object, our eyes are never stationary but constantly drifting, with miniature movements traditionally thought to be random and involuntary. A new study shows that the orientation of such drift in humans is actually not random but is influenced by the task demands to improve performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Drug Research and Child Health (NEUROFARBA), University of Florence, via di San Salvi 12, 50135, Florence, Italy
| | - Igor Kagan
- Decision and Awareness Group, Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen 37077, Germany; Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
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4
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Robotti E, Belay MH, Calà E, Benedetto A, Cerruti S, Pezzolato M, Pennisi F, Abete MC, Marengo E, Brizio P. Identification of Illicit Conservation Treatments in Fresh Fish by Micro-Raman Spectroscopy and Chemometric Methods. Foods 2023; 12:foods12030449. [PMID: 36765978 PMCID: PMC9913940 DOI: 10.3390/foods12030449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2022] [Revised: 01/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
In the field of food control for fresh products, the identification of foods subjected to illicit conservation treatments to extend their shelf life is fundamental. Fresh fish products are particularly subjected to this type of fraud due to their high commercial value and the fact that they often have to be transported over a long distance, keeping their organoleptic characteristics unaltered. Treatments of this type involve, e.g., the bleaching of the meat and/or the momentary abatement of the microbial load, while the degradation process continues. It is therefore important to find rapid methods that allow the identification of illicit treatments. The study presented here was performed on 24 sea bass samples divided into four groups: 12 controls (stored on ice in the fridge for 3 or 24 h), and 12 treated with a Cafodos-like solution for 3 or 24 h. Muscle and skin samples were then characterized using micro-Raman spectroscopy. The data were pre-processed by smoothing and taking the first derivative and then PLS-DA models were built to identify short- and long- term effects on the fish's muscle and skin. All the models provided the perfect classification of the samples both in fitting and cross-validation and an analysis of the bands responsible for the effects was also reported. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first time Raman spectroscopy has been applied for the identification of a Cafodos-like illicit treatment, focusing on both fish muscle and skin evaluation. The procedure could pave the way for a future application directly on the market through the use of a portable device.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Robotti
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-0131-360272
| | - Masho Hilawie Belay
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
| | - Elisa Calà
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - Simone Cerruti
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
| | - Marzia Pezzolato
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - Francesco Pennisi
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - Maria Cesarina Abete
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - Emilio Marengo
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
| | - Paola Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
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5
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Ranieri G, Benedetto A, Ho HT, Burr DC, Morrone MC. Evidence of perceptual history propagation from decoding of visual evoked potentials. J Vis 2022. [DOI: 10.1167/jov.22.14.3553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
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6
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Ranieri G, Benedetto A, Ho HT, Burr DC, Morrone MC. Evidence of Serial Dependence from Decoding of Visual Evoked Potentials. J Neurosci 2022; 42:8817-8825. [PMID: 36223998 PMCID: PMC9698666 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1879-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2021] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
It is well known that recent sensory experience influences perception, recently demonstrated by a phenomenon termed "serial dependence." However, its underlying neural mechanisms are poorly understood. We measured ERP responses to pairs of stimuli presented randomly to the left or right hemifield. Seventeen male and female adults judged whether the upper or lower half of the grating had higher spatial frequency, independent of the horizontal position of the grating. This design allowed us to trace the memory signal modulating task performance and also the implicit memory signal associated with hemispheric position. Using classification techniques, we decoded the position of the current and previous stimuli and the response from voltage scalp distributions of the current trial. Classification of previous responses reached full significance only 700 ms after presentation of the current stimulus, consistent with retrieval of an activity-silent memory trace. Cross-condition classification accuracy of past responses (trained on current responses) correlated with the strength of serial dependence effects of individual participants. Overall, our data provide evidence for a silent memory signal that can be decoded from the EEG potential, which interacts with the neural processing of the current stimulus. This silent memory signal could be the physiological substrate subserving at least one type of serial dependence.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The neurophysiological underpinnings of how past perceptual experience affects current perception are poorly understood. Here, we show that recent experience is reactivated when a new stimulus is presented and that the strength of this reactivation correlates with serial biases in individual participants, suggesting that serial dependence is established on the basis of a silent memory signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giacomo Ranieri
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, 56123 Pisa, Italy
| | - Hao Tam Ho
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy
| | - David C Burr
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy
| | - Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, 56123 Pisa, Italy
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7
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Abstract
Perceptual history influences current perception, readily revealed by visual priming (the facilitation of responses on repeated presentations of similar stimuli) and by serial dependence (systematic biases toward the previous stimuli). We asked whether the two phenomena shared perceptual mechanisms. We modified the standard “priming of pop-out” paradigm to measure both priming and serial dependence concurrently. The stimulus comprised three grating patches, one or two red, and the other green. Participants identified the color singleton (either red or green), and reproduced its orientation. Trial sequences were designed to maximize serial dependence, and long runs of priming color and position. The results showed strong effects of priming, both on reaction times and accuracy, which accumulated steadily over time, as generally reported in the literature. The serial dependence effects were also strong, but did not depend on previous color, nor on the run length. Reaction times measured under various conditions of repetition or change of priming color or position were reliably correlated with imprecision in orientation reproduction, but reliably uncorrelated with magnitude of serial dependence. The results suggest that visual priming and serial dependence are mediated by different neural mechanisms. We propose that priming affects sensitivity, possibly via attention-like mechanisms, whereas serial dependence affects criteria, two orthogonal dimensions in the signal detection theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filippo Galluzzi
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council, Pisa, Italy.,Centre for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Italian Institute of Technology, Genova, Italy.,
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.,Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Rochester, Center for Visual Science, Rochester, NY, USA.,
| | | | - David C Burr
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.,Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council, Pisa, Italy.,School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,
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Benedetto A, Biasibetti E, Robotti E, Marengo E, Audino V, Bozzetta E, Pezzolato M. Transcriptional Biomarkers and Immunohistochemistry for Detection of Illicit Dexamethasone Administration in Veal Calves. Foods 2022; 11:foods11121810. [PMID: 35742008 PMCID: PMC9222442 DOI: 10.3390/foods11121810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2022] [Revised: 06/10/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Corticosteroids such as Dexamethasone (DEX) are commonly licensed for therapy in meat animals due to their known pharmacological properties. However, their misuse aimed to achieve anabolic effects is often found by National Residues Control Plans. The setup of a complementary “biomarker based” methods to unveil such illicit practices is encouraged by current European legislation. In this study, the combined use of molecular and histological quantitative techniques was applied on formalin fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) muscle samples to assess the effects of illicit DEX treatment on veal calves. A PCR array, including 28 transcriptional biomarkers related to DEX exposure, was combined with a histochemical analysis of muscle fiber. An analysis based on unsupervised (PCA) and supervised (PLS-DA and Kohonen’s SOM) methods, was applied in order to define multivariate models able to classify animals suspected of illicit treatment by DEX. According to the conventional univariate approach, a not-significant reduction in type I fibres was recorded in the DEX-treated group, and only 12 out of 28 targeted genes maintained their expected differential expression, confirming the technical limitations of a quantitative analysis on FFPE samples. However, the multivariate models developed highlighted the possibility to establish complementary screening strategies, particularly when based on transcriptional biomarkers characterised by low expression profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (V.A.); (E.B.); (M.P.)
| | - Elena Biasibetti
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (V.A.); (E.B.); (M.P.)
- Correspondence: (E.B.); (E.R.); Tel.: +39-0112686254 (E.B.); +39-1031360272 (E.R.)
| | - Elisa Robotti
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy;
- Correspondence: (E.B.); (E.R.); Tel.: +39-0112686254 (E.B.); +39-1031360272 (E.R.)
| | - Emilio Marengo
- Department of Sciences and Technological Innovation, University of Piemonte Orientale, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, Italy;
| | - Valentina Audino
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (V.A.); (E.B.); (M.P.)
| | - Elena Bozzetta
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (V.A.); (E.B.); (M.P.)
| | - Marzia Pezzolato
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (V.A.); (E.B.); (M.P.)
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9
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Pillai VV, Kumari P, Benedetto A, Gobbo D, Ballone P. Absorption of Phosphonium Cations and Dications into a Hydrated POPC Phospholipid Bilayer: A Computational Study. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:4272-4288. [PMID: 35666883 PMCID: PMC9207913 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c02212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Molecular dynamics (MD) based on an empirical force field is applied to investigate the effect of phosphonium cations ([P6,6,6,6]+) and geminal dications ([DxC10]2+) inserted at T = 300 K into the hydration layer separating planar POPC phospholipid bilayers. Up to high concentration, nearly every added cation and dication becomes absorbed into the lipid phase. Absorption takes place during several microseconds and is virtually irreversible. The neutralizing counterions ([Cl]-, in the present simulation) remain dissolved in water, giving origin to the charge separation and the strong electrostatic double layer at the water/lipid interface. Incorporation of cations and dications changes the properties of the lipid bilayer such as diffusion, viscosity, and the electrostatic pattern. At high ionic concentration, the bilayer acquires a long-wavelength standing undulation, corresponding to a change of phase from fluid planar to ripple. All these changes are potentially able to affect processes relevant in the context of cell biology. The major difference between cations and dications concerns the kinetics of absorption, which takes place nearly two times faster in the [P6,6,6,6]+ case, and for [DxC10]2+ dications displays a marked separation into two-stages, corresponding to the easy absorption of the first phosphonium head of the dication and the somewhat more activated absorption of the second phosphonium head of each dication.
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Affiliation(s)
- V. V.
S. Pillai
- School
of Physics, University College Dublin, Dublin 4, Ireland
- Conway
Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin
4, Ireland
| | - P. Kumari
- School
of Physics, University College Dublin, Dublin 4, Ireland
- Conway
Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin
4, Ireland
| | - A. Benedetto
- School
of Physics, University College Dublin, Dublin 4, Ireland
- Conway
Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin
4, Ireland
- Department
of Sciences, University of Roma Tre, I-00154 Rome, Italy
| | - D. Gobbo
- School
of Pharmaceutical Sciences and ISPSO, University
of Geneva, Rue Michel-Servet
1, CH-1211, Geneva
4, Switzerland
- Computational
and Chemical Biology, Fondazione Istituto
Italiano di Tecnologia, I-16163 Genova, Italy
| | - P. Ballone
- School
of Physics, University College Dublin, Dublin 4, Ireland
- Conway
Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin
4, Ireland
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10
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Abstract
Eye movements are neither necessary nor sufficient to account for the neural effects associated with covert attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and Center for Visual Science, University of Rochester, New York, United States
| | - Martina Poletti
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, the Center for Visual Science and the Department of Neuroscience, University of Rochester, Rochester, United States
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11
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Raux A, Bichon E, Benedetto A, Pezzolato M, Bozzetta E, Le Bizec B, Dervilly G. The Promise and Challenges of Determining Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone in Milk. Foods 2022; 11:foods11030274. [PMID: 35159426 PMCID: PMC8834339 DOI: 10.3390/foods11030274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Recombinant bovine growth hormone (rbGH) is produced in large quantities and widely used in a number of countries worldwide to stimulate milk production in dairy animals. The use of this compound in animal production is strictly regulated by food safety directives in force, in particular in the European Union (EU). Although analytical strategies for the detection of rbGH in blood have been successfully reported over the past 15 years, they do not fully answer the expectations of either competent authorities or industrials that would expect measuring its occurrence directly in the milk. As a matrix of excretion but also of consumption, milk appears indeed as the matrix of choice for detecting the use of rbGH in dairy animals. It also allows large volumes to be collected without presenting an invasive character for the animal. However, rbGH detection in milk presents several challenges, mainly related to the sensitivity required for its detection in a complex biological matrix. This review article presents the specific difficulties associated with milk and provides an overview of the analytical strategies reported in the literature and whether they concern indirect or direct approaches to the detection of rbGH administration to animals, with applications either for screening or confirmation purposes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Axel Raux
- Oniris, INRAE, LABERCA, 44300 Nantes, France; (A.R.); (E.B.); (B.L.B.)
| | - Emmanuelle Bichon
- Oniris, INRAE, LABERCA, 44300 Nantes, France; (A.R.); (E.B.); (B.L.B.)
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Marzia Pezzolato
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Elena Bozzetta
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D’Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy; (A.B.); (M.P.); (E.B.)
| | - Bruno Le Bizec
- Oniris, INRAE, LABERCA, 44300 Nantes, France; (A.R.); (E.B.); (B.L.B.)
| | - Gaud Dervilly
- Oniris, INRAE, LABERCA, 44300 Nantes, France; (A.R.); (E.B.); (B.L.B.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +33-2-40-68-78-80
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12
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Pezzolato M, Baioni E, Maurella C, Benedetto A, Biasibetti E, Bozzetta E. The Italian strategy to fight illegal treatment with growth promoters: Results of the 2017-2019 histological monitoring plan. Ital J Food Saf 2022; 10:9775. [PMID: 35127570 PMCID: PMC8764550 DOI: 10.4081/ijfs.2021.9775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The Histological Control Plan has been introduced in Italy in 2008 as an indirect monitoring tool of illicit administration of sexual hormones and corticosteroids in bovine. Analysis of 2008-2016 results permitted to draw a new plan targeting risk category. This work presents the results of the histopathological monitoring plan that was carried out from 2017 to 2019. The overall prevalence of samples suspected of treatment with corticosteroid was 11.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 6.6-17.8] in 2017; 10.2% (95% CI 6.6-16.9) in 2018 and 8.9% (95% CI 4.6-15.4) in 2019. The overall prevalence of samples suspected of treatment with sexual hormones was 2.3 % (95% CI 0.5-6.6) in 2017; 6.2% (95% CI 2.7-11.8) in 2018 and 12.4% (95% CI 7.4-19.1) in 2019. Although not targeting and measuring specific molecules, this strategy allows to verify the trend of illicit treatments and identify farms to be submitted to further check.
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13
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Benedetto A, Pezzolato M, Robotti E, Biasibetti E, Marengo E, Bozzetta E. Detection of dexamethasone administration in veal calves: transcriptional biomarkers validation in FFPE muscle samples. Toxicol Lett 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/s0378-4274(21)00421-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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14
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Turco F, Giorgi FS, Maestri M, Morganti R, Benedetto A, Milano C, Pizzanelli C, Menicucci D, Gemignani A, Fornai F, Siciliano G, Bonanni E. Prolonged and short epileptiform discharges have an opposite relationship with the sleep-wake cycle in patients with JME: Implications for EEG recording protocols. Epilepsy Behav 2021; 122:108226. [PMID: 34352666 DOI: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2021.108226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2021] [Revised: 07/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
In a recent study, we found that during 20.55 ± 1.60 h of artifact-free ambulatory EEG recordings, epileptiform discharges (EDs) longer than 2.68 s occurred exclusively in patients with Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy (JME) who experienced seizure recurrence within a year after the EEG. Here we expanded this analysis, exploring whether long EDs (>2.68 s), and short ones, were uniformly distributed during the day. Lastly, we evaluated the temporal distribution of seizure relapses. By Friedman test, we demonstrated that hourly frequencies of both short and long EDs were dependent on the hours of day and sleep-wake cycle factors, with an opposite trend. Short EDs were found mostly during the night (with two peaks at 1 AM and 6 AM), and sleep, dropping at the wake onset (p < 0.001). Conversely, long EDs surged at the wake onset (0.001), remaining frequent during the whole wake period, when compared to sleep (p = 0.002). Of note, this latter pattern mirrored that of seizures, which occurred exclusively during the wake period, and in 9 out of 13 cases at the wake onset. We therefore suggested that short and long EDs could reflect distinct pathophysiological phenomena. Extended wake EEG recordings, possibly including the awakening, could be extremely useful in clinical practice, as well as in further studies, with the ambitious goal of predicting seizure recurrences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Turco
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy; Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
| | - Filippo Sean Giorgi
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy; Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Michelangelo Maestri
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Chiara Milano
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy
| | - Chiara Pizzanelli
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy
| | - Danilo Menicucci
- Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, Italy
| | - Angelo Gemignani
- Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, Italy
| | - Francesco Fornai
- Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; IRCCS Neuromed, Pozzilli, Italy
| | - Gabriele Siciliano
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy; Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Enrica Bonanni
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Neurological Clinic, University of Pisa, Italy; Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
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15
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Ouzia S, Royer AL, Pezzolato M, Benedetto A, Biasibetti E, Guitton Y, Le Bizec B, Bozetta E, Dervilly G. Nandrolone and estradiol biomarkers identification in bovine urine applying a liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry metabolomics approach. Drug Test Anal 2021; 14:879-886. [PMID: 34242491 DOI: 10.1002/dta.3126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
With the aim of specifically investigating patterns associated with three steroid treatments (17β-nandrolone, 17β-estradiol, and 17β-nandrolone + 17β-estradiol) in bovine, an reversed phase liquid chromatography (RPLC)-electrospray ionization (ESI)(+/-)-high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) study was conducted to characterize the urinary profiles of involved animals. Although specific fingerprints with strong differences could be highlighted between urinary metabolite profiles within urine samples collected on control and treated animals, it appeared further that significant discriminations could also be observed between steroid treatments, evidencing thus specific patterns and candidate biomarkers associated to each treatment. An MS-2 structural elucidation step enabled level-1 identification of two biomarkers mainly involved in energy pathways, in relation to skeletal muscle functioning. These results make it possible to envisage a global strategy for the detection of anabolic practices involving steroids, while at the same time providing clues as to the compounds used, which would facilitate the confirmation stage to follow.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Marzia Pezzolato
- Centro di Referenza Nazionale Indagini Biologiche Anabolizzanti Animali - CIBA, Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Piedmont, Liguria and Valle d'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Centro di Referenza Nazionale Indagini Biologiche Anabolizzanti Animali - CIBA, Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Piedmont, Liguria and Valle d'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | - Elena Biasibetti
- Centro di Referenza Nazionale Indagini Biologiche Anabolizzanti Animali - CIBA, Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Piedmont, Liguria and Valle d'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | | | | | - Elena Bozetta
- Centro di Referenza Nazionale Indagini Biologiche Anabolizzanti Animali - CIBA, Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Piedmont, Liguria and Valle d'Aosta, Torino, Italy
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Benedetto A, Binda P, Costagli M, Tosetti M, Morrone MC. Predictive visuo-motor communication through neural oscillations. Curr Biol 2021; 31:3401-3408.e4. [PMID: 34111403 PMCID: PMC8360767 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.05.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Revised: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 05/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The mechanisms coordinating action and perception over time are poorly understood. The sensory cortex needs to prepare for upcoming changes contingent on action, and this requires temporally precise communication that takes into account the variable delays between sensory and motor processing. Several theorists1,2 have proposed synchronization of the endogenous oscillatory activity observed in most regions of the brain3 as the basis for an efficient and flexible communication protocol between distal brain areas,2,4 a concept known as "communication through coherence." Synchronization of endogenous oscillations5,6 occurs after a salient sensory stimulus, such as a flash or a sound,7-11 and after a voluntary action,12-18 and this directly impacts perception, causing performance to oscillate rhythmically over time. Here we introduce a novel fMRI paradigm to probe the neural sources of oscillations, based on the concept of perturbative signals, which overcomes the low temporal resolution of BOLD signals. The assumption is that a synchronized endogenous rhythm will modulate cortical excitability rhythmically, which should be reflected in the BOLD responses to brief stimuli presented at different phases of the oscillation cycle. We record rhythmic oscillations of V1 BOLD synchronized by a simple voluntary action, in phase with behaviorally measured oscillations in visual sensitivity in the theta range. The functional connectivity between V1 and M1 also oscillates at the same rhythm. By demonstrating oscillatory temporal coupling between primary motor and sensory cortices, our results strongly implicate communication through coherence to achieve precise coordination and to encode sensory-motor timing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Paola Binda
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Mauro Costagli
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, Maternal and Child Sciences (DINOGMI), University of Genova, Genova, Italy; Laboratory of Medical Physics and Magnetic Resonance, IRCCS Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy
| | - Michela Tosetti
- Laboratory of Medical Physics and Magnetic Resonance, IRCCS Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy; Imago 7 Research Foundation, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy
| | - Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; Laboratory of Medical Physics and Magnetic Resonance, IRCCS Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy.
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17
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Benedetto A, Baud-Bovy G. Tapping Force Encodes Metrical Aspects of Rhythm. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:633956. [PMID: 33986651 PMCID: PMC8111927 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.633956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans possess the ability to extract highly organized perceptual structures from sequences of temporal stimuli. For instance, we can organize specific rhythmical patterns into hierarchical, or metrical, systems. Despite the evidence of a fundamental influence of the motor system in achieving this skill, few studies have attempted to investigate the organization of our motor representation of rhythm. To this aim, we studied-in musicians and non-musicians-the ability to perceive and reproduce different rhythms. In a first experiment participants performed a temporal order-judgment task, for rhythmical sequences presented via auditory or tactile modality. In a second experiment, they were asked to reproduce the same rhythmic sequences, while their tapping force and timing were recorded. We demonstrate that tapping force encodes the metrical aspect of the rhythm, and the strength of the coding correlates with the individual's perceptual accuracy. We suggest that the similarity between perception and tapping-force organization indicates a common representation of rhythm, shared between the perceptual and motor systems.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gabriel Baud-Bovy
- Robotics, Brain and Cognitive Science Unit, Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa, Italy
- Faculty of Psychology, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
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18
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Gobbo D, Cavalli A, Ballone P, Benedetto A. Computational analysis of the effect of [Tea][Ms] and [Tea][H 2PO 4] ionic liquids on the structure and stability of Aβ(17-42) amyloid fibrils. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:6695-6709. [PMID: 33710213 DOI: 10.1039/d0cp06434c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Experimental studies have reported the possibility of affecting the growth/dissolution of amyloid fibres by the addition of organic salts of the room-temperature ionic-liquid family, raising the tantalizing prospect of controlling these processes under physiological conditions. The effect of [Tea][Ms] and [Tea][H2PO4] at various concentrations on the structure and stability of a simple model of Aβ42 fibrils has been investigated by computational means. Free energy computations show that both [Tea][Ms] and [Tea][H2PO4] decrease the stability of fibrils with respect to isolated peptides in solution, and the effect is significantly stronger for [Tea][Ms]. The secondary structure of fibrils is not much affected, but single peptides in solution show a marked decrease in their β-strand character and an increase in α-propensity, again especially for [Tea][Ms]. These observations, consistent with the experimental picture, can be traced to two primary effects, i.e., the difference in the ionicity of the [Tea][Ms] and [Tea][H2PO4] water solutions and the remarkable affinity of peptides for [Ms]- anions, due to the multiplicity of H-bonds.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Gobbo
- Computational and Chemical Biology, Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.
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19
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Benedetto A, Biasibetti E, Beltramo C, Audino V, Peletto S, Bozzetta EM, Pezzolato M. Regucalcin expression profiles in veal calf testis: validation of histological and molecular tests to detect sex steroids illicit administration. PeerJ 2021; 9:e10894. [PMID: 33643712 PMCID: PMC7899017 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.10894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2020] [Accepted: 01/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Sex steroids administration in meat producing animals is forbidden within the EU to preserve consumers’ safety, but continuous monitoring to identify resurgence of their misuse is needed. Among biomarkers related to sex steroids abuse in veal calves the regucalcin (RGN) mRNA perturbations in testis have been described in RNAlater samples. To setup novel diagnostic method, to update current tests available in National Residue Control Plans (NRCPs) and in legal dispute when illicit practices on farm animals are suspected, the reliability of RGN profiling was assessed by histological and molecular techniques. Methods Formalin fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) testis samples, chosen being the most effective preservation strategy adopted by histological NRCPs and allowing easier retrospective analysis if required by legal disputes, were analyzed from veal calves treated with nandrolone, 17β-estradiol and a cocktail of the two hormones. RGN levels were determined by quantitative Real Time PCR and Immunohistochemistry assays. Test performances were assessed and compared by multiple ROC curves. Results Both tests resulted sensitive and specific, allowing to enrich, in future field investigation, novel integrated diagnostic protocols needed to unveil sex steroid abuse. Discussion Developed RT-qPCR and IHC methods confirmed RGN as a useful and robust biomarker to detect illegal administration of sex steroid hormones in veal calves. The developed methods, successfully applied to ten years old FFPE blocks, could allow both retrospective analysis, when supplementary investigations are requested by authorities, and future implementation of current NRCPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Elena Biasibetti
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Chiara Beltramo
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Valentina Audino
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Simone Peletto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Elena Maria Bozzetta
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Marzia Pezzolato
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
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20
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Kumari P, Pillai VVS, Gobbo D, Ballone P, Benedetto A. The transition from salt-in-water to water-in-salt nanostructures in water solutions of organic ionic liquids relevant for biological applications. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:944-959. [DOI: 10.1039/d0cp04959j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Computer simulations show how nano-structural motifs in organic salts/water solutions change with salt content increasing from dilute to highly concentrated.
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Affiliation(s)
- P. Kumari
- School of Physics
- University College
- Dublin
- Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research
| | - V. V. S. Pillai
- School of Physics
- University College
- Dublin
- Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research
| | - D. Gobbo
- Computational and Chemical Biology
- Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia
- Genova
- Italy
| | - P. Ballone
- School of Physics
- University College
- Dublin
- Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research
| | - A. Benedetto
- School of Physics
- University College
- Dublin
- Ireland
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research
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21
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Cicchini GM, Benedetto A, Burr DC. Perceptual history propagates down to early levels of sensory analysis. Curr Biol 2020; 31:1245-1250.e2. [PMID: 33373639 PMCID: PMC7987721 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.12.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2020] [Revised: 11/02/2020] [Accepted: 12/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
One function of perceptual systems is to construct and maintain a reliable representation of the environment. A useful strategy intrinsic to modern “Bayesian” theories of perception1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 is to take advantage of the relative stability of the input and use perceptual history (priors) to predict current perception. This strategy is efficient1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 but can lead to stimuli being biased toward perceptual history, clearly revealed in a phenomenon known as serial dependence.8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 However, it is still unclear whether serial dependence biases sensory encoding or only perceptual decisions.15,16 We leveraged on the “surround tilt illusion”—where tilted flanking stimuli strongly bias perceived orientation—to measure its influence on the pattern of serial dependence, which is typically maximal for similar orientations of past and present stimuli.7,10 Maximal serial dependence for a neutral stimulus preceded by an illusory one occurred when the perceived, not the physical, orientations of the two stimuli matched, suggesting that the priors biasing current perception incorporate the effect of the illusion. However, maximal serial dependence of illusory stimuli induced by neutral stimuli occurred when their physical (not perceived) orientations were matched, suggesting that priors interact with incoming sensory signals before they are biased by flanking stimuli. The evidence suggests that priors are high-level constructs incorporating contextual information, which interact directly with early sensory signals, not with highly processed perceptual representations. Perception is heavily biased by perceptual history and expectations Perceptual history includes illusory effects driven by spatial context This representation propagates back to sensory areas preceding context effects The results point to a neural architecture consistent with predictive coding
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - David C Burr
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council, Pisa, Italy; Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
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22
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Benedetto A, Pezzolato M, Beltramo C, Audino V, Ingravalle F, Pillitteri C, Foschini S, Peletto S, Bozzetta E. Real-time PCR assay for detecting illicit steroid administration in veal calves allows reliable biomarker profiling of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) archival tissue samples. Food Chem 2020; 312:126061. [DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2019.126061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2019] [Revised: 11/14/2019] [Accepted: 12/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Dipartimento di Ricerca Traslazionale e delle Nuove Tecnologie in Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Maria Concetta Morrone
- Dipartimento di Ricerca Traslazionale e delle Nuove Tecnologie in Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Pisa, Pisa, Italy
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Morrone MC, Benedetto A, Costagli M, Tosetti M, Binda P. Rythmic modulation of V1 BOLD response (7T) after a Voluntary action. J Vis 2019. [DOI: 10.1167/19.10.289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, Italy
- IRCCS Stella Maris, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Michela Tosetti
- IRCCS Stella Maris, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy
- IMAGO 7, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy
| | - Paola Binda
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, Italy
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Mora Cardozo JF, Embs JP, Benedetto A, Ballone P. Equilibrium Structure, Hydrogen Bonding, and Proton Conductivity in Half-Neutralized Diamine Ionic Liquids. J Phys Chem B 2019; 123:5608-5625. [PMID: 30875220 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.9b00890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Recent experiments on proton conducting ionic liquids point to half-neutralized diamine-triflate salts as promising candidates for applications in power generation and energy conversion electrochemical devices. Structural and dynamical properties of the simplest among these compounds are investigated by a combination of density functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations based on an empirical force field. Three different cations have been considered, consisting of a pair of amine-ammonium terminations joined by a short aliphatic segment -(CH2) n- with n = 2, 3, and 4. First, the ground state structure, vibrational eigenstates, and hydrogen-bonding properties of single ions, neutral ion pairs, small neutral aggregates of up to eight ions, and molecularly thin hydrogen bonded wires have been investigated by DFT computations. Second, structural and dynamical properties of homogeneous liquid and amorphous phases are investigated by MD simulations over the temperature range of 200 ≤ T ≤ 440 K. Structure factors, radial distribution functions, diffusion coefficient, and electrical conductivity are computed and discussed, highlighting the inherent structural heterogeneity of these compounds. The core investigation, however, is the characterization of connected paths consisting of cation chains that could support proton transport via a Grotthuss-type mechanism. Since simulations are carried out using a force field of fixed bonding topology, this analysis is based on the equilibrium structure only, using geometrical criteria to identify potential paths for proton conduction. Paths of connected cations can reach a length of 80 cations and 30 Å, provided that bridging oxygen atoms from triflate anions are taken into account. The effects of water contamination at 1% weight concentration on the structure, dynamics, and paths for proton transport are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan F Mora Cardozo
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging , Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232 , Switzerland
| | - J P Embs
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging , Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232 , Switzerland
| | - A Benedetto
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging , Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232 , Switzerland.,Department of Sciences , University of Roma Tre , Via della Vasca Navale 84 , 00146 Rome , Italy
| | - P Ballone
- Italian Institute of Technology , Via Morego 30 , 16163 Genova , Italy
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Abstract
Research in the last decade has undermined the idea of perception as a continuous process, providing strong empirical support for its rhythmic modulation. More recently, it has been revealed that the ongoing motor processes influence the rhythmic sampling of sensory information. In this review, we will focus on a growing body of evidence suggesting that oscillation-based mechanisms may structure the dynamic interplay between the motor and sensory system and provide a unified temporal frame for their effective coordination. We will describe neurophysiological data, primarily collected in animals, showing phase-locking of neuronal oscillations to the onset of (eye) movements. These data are complemented by novel evidence in humans, which demonstrate the behavioral relevance of these oscillatory modulations and their domain-general nature. Finally, we will discuss the possible implications of these modulations for action-perception coupling mechanisms.
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Squadrone S, Brizio P, Simone G, Benedetto A, Monaco G, Abete MC. Presence of arsenic in pet food: a real hazard? Vet Ital 2018; 53:303-307. [PMID: 29307124 DOI: 10.12834/vetit.530.2538.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
In this study, arsenic content in 200 cat- and dog-food samples was estimated by means of electro thermal atomic absorption (Z-ETA-AAS), after using the wet digestion method, that were imported or commercialised in Italy from 2007 to 2012. The maximum value of total arsenic (As) in the samples was 12.5 mg kg-1. Some imported pet food was intercepted as a result of the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) and rejected at the border or withdrawn from the Italian market, because they exceeded the maximum level of arsenic content imposed in Italy at the time of this study (2002/32/EC). All the samples with a signi cant arsenic level were sh-based. Recently, the 2013/1275/EC raised the maximum level of As permitted in sh-based pet food. However, the analysis of As species is required (EFSA 2014) in order to identify correctly the di erent contributions of dietary exposure to inorganic As and to assure pet food quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Squadrone
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Torino, Italy
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Squadrone S, Brizio P, Battuello M, Nurra N, Sartor RM, Riva A, Staiti M, Benedetto A, Pessani D, Abete MC. Trace metal occurrence in Mediterranean seaweeds. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 2018; 25:9708-9721. [PMID: 29368198 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-1280-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2017] [Accepted: 01/11/2018] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Seaweeds have been used as animal feed since a long time and are consumed as food in several cultures. In fact, macroalgae are a source of protein, fiber, polyunsaturated fat, and minerals. The concentration of trace elements was determined in dominant macroalga species from three sites of the northwestern Mediterranean Sea. A high interspecies variability was observed, with higher metal levels in brown and green than those in red seaweeds. The maximum values set by European regulations for arsenic, mercury, and cadmium in food and feed were never exceeded, but a few samples were very close to limits set for mercury. Conversely, the maximum limit for lead in feed was exceeded in all species from one of the considered sites. Analogously, lead in seaweeds could constitute a potential risk for human health, due to the exceeding of the maximum value set for food supplements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Squadrone
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy.
| | - Paola Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Marco Battuello
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123, Torino, Italy
- Pelagosphera Scarl, Via Umberto Cosmo 17 bis, 10131, Turin, Italy
| | - Nicola Nurra
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123, Torino, Italy
- Pelagosphera Scarl, Via Umberto Cosmo 17 bis, 10131, Turin, Italy
| | - Rocco Mussat Sartor
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123, Torino, Italy
- Pelagosphera Scarl, Via Umberto Cosmo 17 bis, 10131, Turin, Italy
| | - Anna Riva
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Mariachiara Staiti
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
| | - Daniela Pessani
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123, Torino, Italy
| | - Maria Cesarina Abete
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy
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Benedetto A, Lozano-Soldevilla D, VanRullen R. Different responses of spontaneous and stimulus-related alpha activity to ambient luminance changes. Eur J Neurosci 2017; 48:2599-2608. [PMID: 29205618 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.13791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Revised: 11/28/2017] [Accepted: 11/28/2017] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Alpha oscillations are particularly important in determining our percepts and have been implicated in fundamental brain functions. Oscillatory activity can be spontaneous or stimulus-related. Furthermore, stimulus-related responses can be phase- or non-phase-locked to the stimulus. Non-phase-locked (induced) activity can be identified as the average amplitude changes in response to a stimulation, while phase-locked activity can be measured via reverse-correlation techniques (echo function). However, the mechanisms and the functional roles of these oscillations are far from clear. Here, we investigated the effect of ambient luminance changes, known to dramatically modulate neural oscillations, on spontaneous and stimulus-related alpha. We investigated the effect of ambient luminance on EEG alpha during spontaneous human brain activity at rest (experiment 1) and during visual stimulation (experiment 2). Results show that spontaneous alpha amplitude increased by decreasing ambient luminance, while alpha frequency remained unaffected. In the second experiment, we found that under low-luminance viewing, the stimulus-related alpha amplitude was lower, and its frequency was slightly faster. These effects were evident in the phase-locked part of the alpha response (echo function), but weaker or absent in the induced (non-phase-locked) alpha responses. Finally, we explored the possible behavioural correlates of these modulations in a monocular critical flicker frequency task (experiment 3), finding that dark adaptation in the left eye decreased the temporal threshold of the right eye. Overall, we found that ambient luminance changes impact differently on spontaneous and stimulus-related alpha expression. We suggest that stimulus-related alpha activity is crucial in determining human temporal segmentation abilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.,Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Diego Lozano-Soldevilla
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité Mixte de Recherche 5549, Faculté de Médecine Purpan, Toulouse, France.,Centre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition, Université Paul Sabatier, Place du Dr. Baylac, 31052, Toulouse, France
| | - Rufin VanRullen
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité Mixte de Recherche 5549, Faculté de Médecine Purpan, Toulouse, France.,Centre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition, Université Paul Sabatier, Place du Dr. Baylac, 31052, Toulouse, France
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Mora Cardozo JF, Burankova T, Embs JP, Benedetto A, Ballone P. Density Functional Computations and Molecular Dynamics Simulations of the Triethylammonium Triflate Protic Ionic Liquid. J Phys Chem B 2017; 121:11410-11423. [PMID: 29185753 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.7b10373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Systematic molecular dynamics simulations based on an empirical force field have been carried out for samples of triethylammonium trifluoromethanesulfonate (triethylammonium triflate, [TEA][Tf]), covering a wide temperature range 200 K ≤ T ≤ 400 K and analyzing a broad set of properties, from self-diffusion and electrical conductivity to rotational relaxation and hydrogen-bond dynamics. The study is motivated by recent quasi-elastic neutron scattering and differential scanning calorimetry measurements on the same system, revealing two successive first order transitions at T ≈ 230 and 310 K (on heating), as well as an intriguing and partly unexplained variety of subdiffusive motions of the acidic proton. Simulations show a weakly discontinuous transition at T = 310 K and highlight an anomaly at T = 260 K in the rotational relaxation of ions that we identify with the simulation analogue of the experimental transition at T = 230 K. Thus, simulations help identifying the nature of the experimental transitions, confirming that the highest temperature one corresponds to melting, while the one taking place at lower T is a transition from the crystal, stable at T ≤ 260 K, to a plastic phase (260 ≤ T ≤ 310 K), in which molecules are able to rotate without diffusing. Rotations, in particular, account for the subdiffusive motion seen at intermediate T both in the experiments and in the simulation. The structure, distribution, and strength of hydrogen bonds are investigated by molecular dynamics and by density functional computations. Clustering of ions of the same sign and the effect of contamination by water at 1% wgt concentration are discussed as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan F Mora Cardozo
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging, Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232, Switzerland
| | - T Burankova
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging, Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232, Switzerland
| | - J P Embs
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging, Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232, Switzerland
| | - A Benedetto
- Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging, Paul Scherrer Institute , Villigen PSI, Villigen 5232, Switzerland.,School of Chemistry, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.,School of Physics, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - P Ballone
- Italian Institute of Technology , Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
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Morrone MC, Benedetto A. Rhythmic modulation of human visual sensitivity synchronized with planning of saccades. J Vis 2017. [DOI: 10.1167/17.10.922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, ItalyInstitute of Neuroscience, National Research Council (CNR), 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, ItalyDepartment of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy
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Benedetto A, Lozano-Soldevilla D, Vanrullen R. Ambient luminance changes modulate oscillatory properties of the visual system. J Vis 2017. [DOI: 10.1167/17.10.724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, ItalyDepartment of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy
| | - Diego Lozano-Soldevilla
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council (CNR), 56124 Pisa, ItalyCentre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité Mixte de Recherche 5549, Faculté de Médecine Purpan, Toulouse, France
| | - Rufin Vanrullen
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council (CNR), 56124 Pisa, ItalyCentre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité Mixte de Recherche 5549, Faculté de Médecine Purpan, Toulouse, FranceCentre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition, Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
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Benedetto A, Spinelli D, Morrone MC. Rhythmic modulation of visual contrast discrimination triggered by action. Proc Biol Sci 2017; 283:rspb.2016.0692. [PMID: 27226468 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.0692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2016] [Accepted: 04/25/2016] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that ongoing brain oscillations may be instrumental in binding and integrating multisensory signals. In this experiment, we investigated the temporal dynamics of visual-motor integration processes. We show that action modulates sensitivity to visual contrast discrimination in a rhythmic fashion at frequencies of about 5 Hz (in the theta range), for up to 1 s after execution of action. To understand the origin of the oscillations, we measured oscillations in contrast sensitivity at different levels of luminance, which is known to affect the endogenous brain rhythms, boosting the power of alpha-frequencies. We found that the frequency of oscillation in sensitivity increased at low luminance, probably reflecting the shift in mean endogenous brain rhythm towards higher frequencies. Importantly, both at high and at low luminance, contrast discrimination showed a rhythmic motor-induced suppression effect, with the suppression occurring earlier at low luminance. We suggest that oscillations play a key role in sensory-motor integration, and that the motor-induced suppression may reflect the first manifestation of a rhythmic oscillation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, Italy Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council (CNR), 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Donatella Spinelli
- Department of Human Movement, Social and Health Sciences, University of Rome, 'Foro Italico', Pizza Lauro De Bosis 15, 00135, Rome, Italy IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy
| | - M Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicines and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno 31, 56123 Pisa, Italy Scientific Institute Stella Maris, Viale del Tirreno 331, 56018 Calambrone, Pisa, Italy
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Girolami F, Spalenza V, Benedetto A, Manzini L, Badino P, Abete MC, Nebbia C. Comparative liver accumulation of dioxin-like compounds in sheep and cattle: Possible role of AhR-mediated xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes. Sci Total Environ 2016; 571:1222-1229. [PMID: 27476725 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.07.150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2016] [Revised: 07/21/2016] [Accepted: 07/21/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
PCDDs, PCDFs, and PCBs are persistent organic pollutants (POPs) that accumulate in animal products and may pose serious health problems. Those able to bind the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), eliciting a plethora of toxic responses, are defined dioxin-like (DL) compounds, while the remainders are called non-DL (NDL). An EFSA opinion has highlighted the tendency of ovine liver to specifically accumulate DL-compounds to a greater extent than any other farmed ruminant species. To examine the possible role in such an accumulation of xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes (XME) involved in DL-compound biotransformation, liver samples were collected from ewes and cows reared in an area known for low dioxin contamination. A related paper reported that sheep livers had about 5-fold higher DL-compound concentrations than cattle livers, while the content of the six marker NDL-PCBs did not differ between species. Specimens from the same animals were subjected to gene expression analysis for AhR, AhR nuclear translocator (ARNT) and AhR-dependent oxidative and conjugative pathways; XME protein expression and activities were also investigated. Both AhR and ARNT mRNA levels were about 2-fold lower in ovine samples and the same occurred for CYP1A1 and CYP1A2, being approximately 3- and 9-fold less expressed in sheep compared to cattle, while CYP1B1 could be detectable in cattle only. The results of the immunoblotting and catalytic activity (most notably EROD) measurements of the CYP1A family enzymes were in line with the gene expression data. By contrast, phase II enzyme expression and activities in sheep were higher (UGT1A) or similar (GSTA1, NQO1) to those recorded in cattle. The overall low expression of CYP1 family enzymes in the sheep is in line with the observed liver accumulation of DL-compounds and is expected to affect the kinetics and the dynamics of other POPs such as many polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, as well as of toxins (e.g. aflatoxins) or drugs (e.g. benzimidazole anthelmintics) known to be metabolized by those enzymes.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Girolami
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Largo Braccini 2, Grugliasco, Italy.
| | - V Spalenza
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Largo Braccini 2, Grugliasco, Italy.
| | - A Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico di Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Via Bologna 148, Torino, Italy.
| | - L Manzini
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Largo Braccini 2, Grugliasco, Italy.
| | - P Badino
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Largo Braccini 2, Grugliasco, Italy.
| | - M C Abete
- Istituto Zooprofilattico di Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Via Bologna 148, Torino, Italy.
| | - C Nebbia
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Largo Braccini 2, Grugliasco, Italy.
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Brizio P, Benedetto A, Squadrone S, Curcio A, Pellegrino M, Ferrero M, Abete MC. Heavy metals and essential elements in Italian cereals. Food Additives & Contaminants: Part B 2016; 9:261-267. [DOI: 10.1080/19393210.2016.1209572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Benedetto A, Brizio P, Guaraldo P, Stella C, Cappa C, Baioni E, Spalenza V, Nebbia C, Abete MC. Dioxins, DL-PCB and NDL-PCB accumulation profiles in livers from sheep and cattle reared in North-western Italy. Chemosphere 2016; 152:92-98. [PMID: 26963240 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.02.101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2015] [Revised: 02/22/2016] [Accepted: 02/23/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Products of animal origin represent the main route of human exposure to dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs (DL-compounds). Recently, concerns have been raised about ovine products, particularly the liver, in which relatively high levels of DL-compounds have been reported. We surveyed ovine and bovine livers in areas with no known sources of dioxin or DL-PCB contamination, in order to assess accumulation patterns for both DL-compounds and non-DL (NDL-) PCBs. None of the ovine and bovine samples exceeded the current Maximum Limits (MLs) for DL-compounds. Liver DL-compound TEQ concentrations were up to 5-fold higher in sheep than in cows. No statistically significant differences in total NDL-PCBs levels were found. The main contributors to TEQ levels were the Penta- and Hexa-chlorinated PCDFs and PCB 126. The results confirm the increased bioaccumulation in ovine liver towards specific DL-compounds even in ewes reared in areas with no known sources of PCDD/Fs or DL-PCBs contamination.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e valle D'Aosta, Torino, Italy.
| | - P Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e valle D'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | - P Guaraldo
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e valle D'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | - C Stella
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e valle D'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | - C Cappa
- Dipartimento Provinciale di Torino Arpa Piemonte, Grugliasco, Italy
| | - E Baioni
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e valle D'Aosta, Torino, Italy
| | - V Spalenza
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Grugliasco, Italy
| | - C Nebbia
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Grugliasco, Italy
| | - M C Abete
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e valle D'Aosta, Torino, Italy
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Benedetto A, Brizio P, Squadrone S, Scanzio T, Righetti M, Gasco L, Prearo M, Abete MC. Oxidative stress related to chlorpyrifos exposure in rainbow trout: Acute and medium term effects on genetic biomarkers. Pestic Biochem Physiol 2016; 129:63-69. [PMID: 27017883 DOI: 10.1016/j.pestbp.2015.10.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2015] [Revised: 10/21/2015] [Accepted: 10/21/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Organophosphates (OPs) are derivatives of phosphoric acid widely used in agriculture as pesticides. Chlorpyrifos (CPF) is an OP that is extremely toxic to aquatic organisms. Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) is considered as a sentinel model species for ecotoxicology assessment in freshwater ecosystems. An exposure study was carried out on rainbow trout to investigate genetic responses to CPF-induced oxidative stress by Real-Time PCR, and to determine the accumulation dynamics of CPF and toxic metabolite chlorpyrifos-oxon (CPF-ox) in edible parts, by HPLC-MS/MS. Among the genes considered to be related to oxidative stress, a significant increase in HSP70 mRNA levels was observed in liver samples up to 14 days after CPF exposure (0.05 mg/L). CPF concentrations in muscle samples reach mean values of 285.25 ng/g within 96 hours of exposure, while CPF-ox concentrations were always under the limit of quantification (LOQ) of the applied method. Our findings lead us to consider HSP70 as a suitable genetic marker in rainbow trout for acute and medium-term monitoring of CPF exposure, complementary to analytical determinations.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy.
| | - P Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - S Squadrone
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - T Scanzio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - M Righetti
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - L Gasco
- Dipartimento di Scienze Zootecniche Agrarie, Forestali e Alimentari, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Leonardo da Vinci 44, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy
| | - M Prearo
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - M C Abete
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
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Magazù S, Migliardo F, Benedetto A, La Torre R, Hennet L. Comments on: Bio-protective effects of homologous disaccharides on biological macromolecules. Eur Biophys J 2016; 45:379. [PMID: 27015818 DOI: 10.1007/s00249-016-1124-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
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Benedetto A, Binda P. Dissociable saccadic suppression of pupillary and perceptual responses to light. J Neurophysiol 2015; 115:1243-51. [PMID: 26745249 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00964.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2015] [Accepted: 12/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
We measured pupillary constrictions in response to full-screen flashes of variable luminance, occurring either at the onset of a saccadic eye movement or well before/after it. A large fraction of perisaccadic flashes were undetectable to the subjects, consistent with saccadic suppression of visual sensitivity. Likewise, pupillary responses to perisaccadic flashes were strongly suppressed. However, the two phenomena appear to be dissociable. Across subjects and luminance levels of the flash stimulus, there were cases in which conscious perception of the flash was completely depleted yet the pupillary response was clearly present, as well as cases in which the opposite occurred. On one hand, the fact that pupillary light responses are subject to saccadic suppression reinforces evidence that this is not a simple reflex but depends on the integration of retinal illumination with complex "extraretinal" cues. On the other hand, the relative independence of pupillary and perceptual responses suggests that suppression acts separately on these systems-consistent with the idea of multiple visual pathways that are differentially affected by saccades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; Department of Neurosciences, Psychology, Drug Research, and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy; and
| | - Paola Binda
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; CNR, Institute of Neuroscience, Pisa, Italy
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Squadrone S, Benedetto A, Brizio P, Prearo M, Abete MC. Mercury and selenium in European catfish (Silurus glanis) from Northern Italian Rivers: can molar ratio be a predictive factor for mercury toxicity in a top predator? Chemosphere 2015; 119:24-30. [PMID: 25460744 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.05.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2014] [Revised: 05/21/2014] [Accepted: 05/22/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The study of mercury and selenium bioaccumulation in fish is crucially important for evaluating the extent of contamination in freshwater environments, and the possible health risk posed for humans when the antagonistic interactions of these two elements are considered. Several factors affect the risk of mercury intake from fish consumption, including mercury levels, human consumption patterns, and sensitive populations (e.g., pregnant women, foetuses, young children and unknown genetic factors). The protective effects of selenium on mercury toxicity have been extensively publicised in recent years, particularly targeting fish consumers. In this study, mercury (Hg) and selenium (Se) concentrations were determined in the muscle of European catfish (Silurus glanis) collected from North Italian Rivers. Differences in mercury and selenium levels, as a function of size, gender and location were investigated. Hg was strongly related to length, gender and location, while Se levels are not dependent on fish size or location. The mean Se/Hg molar ratio was strongly affected by location, and significantly related to length and age. Selenium was in molar excess of mercury in all sites, with a rank order of mean Se/Hg molar ratio of the Parma River (2.55)>Po River (1.71)>Tanaro River (1.66)>Bormida River (1.36). However, in 37% of analyzed samples, Hg exceeded the maximum level set by 1881/2006/EC and 629/2008/EC in fish muscle. The molar ratio of Se/Hg was <1 only in the presence of significantly high Hg levels (>0.5mg/kg), and therefore the mean molar ratio cannot be considered as a safety criterion in top predator fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Squadrone
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy.
| | - A Benedetto
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - P Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - M Prearo
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
| | - M C Abete
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D'Aosta, via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
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Benedetto A, Bodo E, Gontrani L, Ballone P, Caminiti R. Amino acid anions in organic ionic compounds. An ab initio study of selected ion pairs. J Phys Chem B 2014; 118:2471-86. [PMID: 24494698 DOI: 10.1021/jp412281n] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
The combination of amino acids in their deprotonated and thus anionic form with a choline cation gives origin to a new and potentially important class of organic ionic compounds. A series of such neutral ion pairs has been investigated by first principle methods. The results reveal intriguing structural motives as well as regular patterns in the charge distribution and predict a number of vibrational and optical properties that could guide the experimental investigation of these compounds. The replacement of choline with its phosphocholine analogue causes the spontaneous reciprocal neutralization of cations and anions, taking place through the transfer of a proton between the two ions. Systems of this kind, therefore, provide a wide and easily accessible playground to probe the ionic/polar transition in organic systems, while the easy transfer of H(+) among neutral and ionic species points to their potential application as proton conductors. The analysis of the ab initio data highlights similarities as well as discrepancies from the rigid-ions force-field picture and suggests directions for the improvement of empirical models.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Benedetto
- School of Physics, University College Dublin , Dublin 4, Ireland
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Brizio P, Benedetto A, Righetti M, Prearo M, Gasco L, Squadrone S, Abete MC. Astaxanthin and canthaxanthin (xanthophyll) as supplements in rainbow trout diet: in vivo assessment of residual levels and contributions to human health. J Agric Food Chem 2013; 61:10954-10959. [PMID: 24156372 DOI: 10.1021/jf4012664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Many studies have demonstrated that xanthophylls, such as astaxanthin, have beneficial effects in human health, and their use in food supplements is thus encouraged. Moreover, such nutrients are frequently used in aquaculture to meet consumer demand for salmonoid flesh pigmentation. In this study different xanthophyll administration protocols were tested to verify pigmentation properties and safety of such mixtures of additives in trout diet. Residues of xanthophylls in muscle samples were determined by HPLC-MS/MS, reaching levels of 3.70 ± 0.04 mg/kg (astaxanthin) and 1.21 ± 0.06 mg/kg (canthaxanthin) during a 56 day administration period. On the basis of the average fish consumption in the human diet, the highest astaxanthin and canthaxanthin concentrations detected in trout fillets could result in weekly intakes of 1.63 and 0.53 mg, respectively, in humans; these values are not sufficient to achieve the positive effects described by many authors, but their residues could still represent an important source of carotenoids, alternative to the use of synthetic dietary supplements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Brizio
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy
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Squadrone S, Prearo M, Gavinelli S, Pellegrino M, Tarasco R, Benedetto A, Abete M. Heavy metals inMugil cephalus(Mugilidae) from the Ligurian Sea (North-West Mediterranean, Italy). Food Additives & Contaminants: Part B 2013; 6:134-8. [DOI: 10.1080/19393210.2013.766817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Marchis D, Benedetto A, Amato G, Brusa B, Squadrone S, Abete MC. A quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction approach for estimating processed animal proteins in feed: preliminary data. Ital J Food Saf 2013. [DOI: 10.4081/ijfs.2013.e4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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Squadrone S, Prearo M, Marchis D, Gavinelli S, Pellegrino M, Tarasco R, Benedetto A, Brizio P, Abete MC. Lead monitoring in Mugil cephalus (North-West Mediterranean, Italy). Ital J Food Saf 2013. [DOI: 10.4081/ijfs.2012.6.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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Squadrone S, Prearo M, Brizio P, Gavinelli S, Pellegrino M, Scanzio T, Guarise S, Benedetto A, Abete MC. Heavy metals distribution in muscle, liver, kidney and gill of European catfish (Silurus glanis) from Italian Rivers. Chemosphere 2013; 90:358-65. [PMID: 22901372 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2012.07.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2012] [Revised: 06/29/2012] [Accepted: 07/12/2012] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The accumulation of heavy metals in freshwaters has direct consequences to man and ecosystem. Thus, in this study, the concentrations of mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic and chromium in organs of the predator European catfish (Silurus glanis) were investigated. Samples were collected annually in five sites covering the area of the Po River (North Italy) between 2007 and 2009. Metals were differently distributed in the various organs, the highest concentrations of Hg were found in muscle and liver, Cd in kidney, Pb in gill and liver, as in muscle, and of Cr in gill and liver. Our survey found Hg exceeding the Maximum Levels (MLs) of 0.5 ppm in 18% of samples, while Pb and Cd were lower than the MLs set by European regulations in muscle tissues (1881/2006/EC and 629/2008/EC). Hg concentrations were significantly related to sampling stations studied, according to the presence of many industrial activities in the catchment area of Bormida and Tanaro Rivers. The finding that Hg did not fit food fish legislation limits indicated that S. glanis flesh might not be utilised for human consumption. A close monitoring of metals pollution is strongly recommended especially in piscivorous fish, cause their bioaccumulation capacity.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Squadrone
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle D'Aosta, Via Bologna 148, 10154 Torino, Italy.
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Pellegrino M, Brizio P, Gallina S, Tarasco R, Gavinelli S, Palmegiano P, Fioravanti F, Benedetto A, Squadrone S, Gallo G, Abete M. EXPORT OF CHEESE IN RUSSIA: THE ROLE OF IZSPLV. Ital J Food Saf 2012. [DOI: 10.4081/ijfs.2012.4.103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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Coffe-Bart D, Izing A, Benedetto A. Accompagnement d’une entreprise de transport urbain dans la prévention des risques. Travail collaboratif sur l’ergonomie aux postes de conduite de bus. ARCH MAL PROF ENVIRO 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.admp.2012.03.215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Calvi A, Benedetto A, De Blasiis MR. A driving simulator study of driver performance on deceleration lanes. Accid Anal Prev 2012; 45:195-203. [PMID: 22269501 DOI: 10.1016/j.aap.2011.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2010] [Revised: 05/31/2011] [Accepted: 06/18/2011] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Deceleration lanes are important because they help drivers transition from high-speed lanes to low-speed ramps. Although they are designed to allow vehicles to depart the freeway safely and efficiently, many studies report high accident rates on exit ramps with the highest percentage of crashes taking place in deceleration lanes. This paper describes the results of a driving simulator study that focused on driving performance while approaching a divergence area and decelerating during the exiting maneuver. Three different traffic scenarios were simulated to analyze the influence of traffic volume on driving performance. Thirty drivers drove in the simulator in these scenarios while data on their lateral position, speed and deceleration were collected. Our results indicate there are considerable differences between the main assumptions of models generally used to design deceleration lanes and actual driving performance. In particular, diverging drivers begin to decelerate before arriving at the deceleration lane, causing interference with the main flow. Moreover, speeds recorded at the end of the deceleration lane exceed those for which the ramp's curves are designed; this creates risky driving conditions that could explain the high crash rates found in studies of exit ramps. Finally, statistical analyses demonstrate significant influences of traffic volume on some aspects of exiting drivers' performance: lower traffic volume results in elevated exiting speed and deceleration, and diverging drivers begin to decelerate earlier along the main lane when traffic volume is low. However, speeds at the end of the deceleration lane and the site of lane changing are not significantly influenced by traffic volume.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Calvi
- University Roma Tre, Department of Sciences of Civil Engineering, via Vito Volterra 62, 00146 Rome, Italy.
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