PE_PGRS proteins of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) constitute a large family of complex modular proteins whose role is still unclear. Among those, we have previously shown, using the heterologous expression in Mycobacterium smegmatis, that PE_PGRS3 containing a unique arginine-rich C-terminal domain, promotes adhesion to host cells. In this study, we investigate the role of PE_PGRS3 and its C-terminal domain directly in Mtb using functional deletion mutants. The results obtained here show that PE_PGRS3 is localized on the mycobacterial cell wall and its arginine-rich C-terminal region protrudes from the mycobacterial membrane and mediates Mtb entry into epithelial cells. Most importantly, this positively charged helical domain specifically binds phosphorylated phosphatidylinositols and cardiolipin, whereas it is unable to bind other phospholipids. Interestingly, administration of cardiolipin and phosphatidylinositol but no other phospholipids was able to turn-off expression of pe_pgrs3 activated by phosphate starvation conditions. These findings suggest that PE_PGRS3 has the key role to serve as a bridge between mycobacteria and host cells by interacting with specific host phospholipids and extracting them from host cells, for their direct integration or as a source of phosphate, during phases of TB pathogenesis when Mtb is short of phosphate supply.

Mycobacterium smegmatis

Heterologous

10.1080/21505594.2021.1897247

Cite

Citations (8)

Changes in cellular mechanical properties during onset or progression of colorectal cancer

World Journal of Gastroenterology (2016)

Gabriele Ciasca Massimiliano Papi Eleonora Minelli Valentina Palmieri Marco De Spirito

Colorectal cancer (CRC) development represents a multistep process starting with specific mutations that affect proto-oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes.

Intravasation

Tumor progression

Extravasation

Mechanotransduction

10.3748/wjg.v22.i32.7203

Cite

Citations (58)

Effect of Alginate Lyase on Biofilm-GrownHelicobacter pyloriProbed by Atomic Force Microscopy

International Journal of Polymer Science (2015)

Alessandro Maiorana Francesca Bugli Massimiliano Papi Riccardo Torelli Gabriele Ciasca

Helicobacter pylori ( H. pylori ) is a microorganism with a pronounced capability of adaptation under environmental stress solicitations. Its persistence and antimicrobial resistance to the drugs commonly used in the anti- H. pylori therapy are associated with the development of a biofilm mainly composed of DNA, proteins, and polysaccharides. A fundamental step to increase the success of clinical treatments is the development of new strategies and molecules able to interfere with the biofilm architecture and thus able to enhance the effects of antibiotics. By using Atomic Force Microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy we analyzed the effects of the alginate lyase (AlgL), an enzyme able to degrade a wide class of polysaccharides, on the H. pylori shape, surface morphology, and biofilm adhesion properties. We demonstrated that AlgL generates a noticeable loss of H. pylori coccoid form in favor of the bacillary form and reduces the H. pylori extracellular polymeric substances (EPS).

Extracellular polymeric substance

Force Spectroscopy

10.1155/2015/989516

Cite

Citations (18)

Outcomes of Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty in the Elder Population

Obesity Surgery (2022)

Maria Valeria Matteo Vincenzo Bove Valerio Pontecorvi Martina De Siena Gabriele Ciasca

Abstract Purpose With the aging of the population and the epidemic spread of obesity, the frequency of older individuals with obesity is steadily growing. To date, no data evaluating the use of endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) in the elderly have been published. In this case series, we evaluate the short- and medium-term outcomes of ESG in patients with obesity aged 65 years and older. Materials and Methods A retrospective analysis was done on a prospective database; patients aged 65 years and older were included in our analysis. EWL%, TBWL%, the Bariatric Analysis and Reporting Outcome System (BAROS) questionnaire, and the presence of comorbidities were assessed. Results Eighteen patients aged 65 years and older underwent ESG between November 2017 and July 2021. The median age was 67 years and the mean baseline BMI was 41.2 kg/m 2 . After ESG, the median TBWL% was 15.1%, 15.5%, and 15.5% at 6, 12, and 24 months, while the median %EWL was 39%, 37%, and 41% at 6, 12, and 24 months, respectively. The median BAROS score was 3.0, 3.4, and 2.5 at 6, 12, and 24 months, respectively. Six out of twelve patients with hypertension and 3/4 diabetic patients reduced or removed their medications within 12 months following ESG. Two out of six patients with OSA stopped therapy with CPAP. No adverse events were recorded. Conclusion According to our experience, ESG is a promising therapeutic option for elder individuals with obesity who fail non-invasive methods, and who refuse or are deemed not suitable for bariatric surgery because of age and comorbidities. Graphical abstract

10.1007/s11695-022-06232-4

Cite

Citations (11)

Time evolution of noise induced oxidation in outer hair cells: Role of NAD(P)H and plasma membrane fluidity

Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - General Subjects (2014)

Giuseppe Maulucci Diana Troiani Sara Letizia Maria Eramo Fabiola Paciello Maria Vittoria Podda

10.1016/j.bbagen.2014.04.005

Cite

Citations (46)

Spatiotemporal Beam Self-cleaning for High-resolution Nonlinear Fluorescence Imaging With Multimode Fiber

Research Square (Research Square) (2021)

Nawell OULD-MOUSSA Tigran Mansuryan Charles‐Henri Hage Marc Fabert Katarzyna Krupa

Abstract Beam self-cleaning (BSC) in graded-index (GRIN) multimode fibers (MMFs) has been recently reported by different research groups. Driven by the interplay between Kerr effect and beam self-imaging, BSC counteracts random mode coupling, and forces laser beams to recover a quasi-single mode profile at the output of GRIN fibers. Here we show that the associated self-induced spatiotemporal reshaping allows for improving the performances of nonlinear fluorescence (NF) microscopy and endoscopy using multimode optical fibers. We experimentally demonstrate that the beam brightness increase, induced by self-cleaning, enables two and three-photon imaging of biological samples with high spatial resolution. Temporal pulse shortening accompanying spatial beam clean-up enhances the output peak power, hence the efficiency of nonlinear imaging. We also show that spatiotemporal supercontinuum (SC) generation is well-suited for large-band NF imaging in visible and infrared domains. We substantiated our findings by multiphoton fluorescence imaging in both microscopy and endoscopy configurations.

Supercontinuum

10.21203/rs.3.rs-544231/v1

Cite

Citations (2)

Quantitative Assessment of the Relationship Between Cellular Morphodynamics and Signaling Events by Stochastic Analysis of Fluorescent Images

Microscopy and Microanalysis (2014)

Giuseppe Maulucci Alessandro Maiorana Massimiliano Papi Giovambattista Pani Marco De Spirito

Abstract Cell motility involves a number of strategies that cells use in order to seek nutrients, escape danger, and fulfill morphogenetic roles. Here we present a methodology to quantify morphological changes and their relationship with signaling events from time-lapse imaging microscopy experiments, in order to characterize physiological and pathological processes. To this aim, the stationary spatial pattern of signaling events is determined through an intracellular fluorescent probe, and it is related with the frequency and entity of morphodynamic events, which are in turn quantified through a stochastic approach: two pseudoimages are obtained from a time series of moving cells that describe the probability that a pixel belongs to the cell, and the probability that a pixel is subject to a dynamic event. The simultaneous construction of these maps permits visualization of hot spots of dynamic events, i.e., zones of formation of membrane protrusions and retractions and their relationship with the signaling events reported by the specific probe employed. The method is tested on spontaneous movement of cells, trasfected with redox-sensitive yellow fluorescent protein, in which the distribution of the hot spots and its change upon expression of constitutively active Rac (V12-Rac), is related to the distribution of oxidized spots.

Beach morphodynamics

Live cell imaging

Decorrelation

10.1017/s1431927614001007

Cite

Citations (3)

Microfluidic-generated lipid-graphene oxide nanoparticles for gene delivery

Applied Physics Letters (2019)

Riccardo Di Santo Erica Quagliarini Sara Palchetti Daniela Pozzi Valentina Palmieri

Graphene oxide (GO) is employed in a broad range of biomedical applications including antimicrobial therapies, scaffolds for tissue engineering, and drug delivery, among others. However, the inability to load it efficiently with double-stranded DNA impairs its use as a gene delivery system. To overcome this limitation, in this work, the functionalization of GO with cationic lipids (CL) is proficiently accomplished by microfluidic manufacturing. To this end, we use CLs 1,2-dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonium-propane (DOTAP) and {3β-[N-(N′,N′-dimethylaminoethane)-carbamoyl]} cholesterol (DC-Chol) and zwitterionic dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine and cholesterol to generate a library of 9 CL formulations with systematic changes in lipid composition. Combined dynamic light scattering, microelectrophoresis, and atomic force microscopy reveal that graphene oxide/cationic lipid (GOCL) nanoparticles (NPs) are positively charged and uniformly coated by one lipid bilayer. GOCL NPs are able to condense plasmid DNA into stable, nanosized complexes whose size and zeta-potential can be finely tuned by adjusting the DNA/GOCL weight ratio, Rw. Luciferase assay results show that positively charged GOCL/DNA complexes (Rw = 0.2) efficiently transfect HeLa cells with no appreciable cytotoxicity. In particular, the ternary GOCL formulation made of DOTAP, DC-Chol, and Cholesterol (GOCL8) is as efficient as Lipofectamine® 3000 in transfecting cells, but much less cytotoxic. Confocal microscopy clarifies that the high transfection efficiency of GOCL8 is due to its massive cellular uptake and cytosolic DNA release. Implications for nonviral gene delivery applications are discussed.

Lipofectamine

Zeta potential

Microelectrophoresis

10.1063/1.5100932

Cite

Citations (25)

Correction: Disease-specific protein corona sensor arrays may have disease detection capacity

Nanoscale Horizons (2020)

Giulio Caracciolo Reihaneh Safavi‐Sohi Reza Malekzadeh Hossein Poustchi Mahdi Vasighi

Correction for ‘Disease-specific protein corona sensor arrays may have disease detection capacity’ by Giulio Caracciolo et al., Nanoscale Horiz., 2019, 4, 1063–1076.

Corona (planetary geology)

10.1039/c9nh90039j

Cite

Citations (3)