Flavonoids are a class of natural polyphenolic compounds sharing a common 2-phenyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-1-benzopyran (flavan) backbone. Typically known for their antioxidant activity, flavonoids are also ...being investigated regarding antitumour and antimicrobial properties. In this review, we report on the complexation of both natural and synthetic flavonoids with ruthenium as a strategy to modulate the biological activity. The ruthenoflavonoid complexes are divided into three subclasses, according to their most prominent bioactivity: antitumour, antimicrobial, and protection of the cardiovascular system. Whenever possible the activity of the ruthenoflavonoids is compared with that of commercial drugs for a critical assessment of the feasibility of using them in future clinical applications.
We analyze the effects of the program Cognitive Entrepreneurial Training in Opportunity Recognition on the accurate assessment of prototypical viability of business opportunities. The training ...integrates the principles of experiential learning and is designed to reach students across campus. We also investigate the moderating role of entrepreneurial passion on opportunity recognition learning. We use a quasi-experimental design with pre-test, post-test in two European universities. The results demonstrate that the training has positive significant effects on the accurate identification of business opportunities' prototypical viability. Intense positive feelings about entrepreneurship moderate the learning process. We provide insights into entrepreneurship education practice across campus.
This study explores the relationship between the entrepreneurial orientation of university departments and their entrepreneurial performance, in terms of academic entrepreneurship (spin-offs) and ...knowledge transfer (patents) outcomes. Moreover, we investigate how internal and external contextual variables interact in this relation. Using survey data from 294 heads of university departments in four different European countries (Italy, Spain, UK and Portugal), we found that entrepreneurial orientation is positively related to the number of spin-offs generated and that this relation is positively moderated by the departments' age and size, as well as the country GDP per capita and R&D expenditure. Surprisingly, entrepreneurial orientation is negatively associated with the number of patents. We further explore the moderating role of contextual variables, discussing our results.
•Universities' entrepreneurial behaviour is more related to spin-offs than patents.•Universities' entrepreneurial performance depends on the context characteristics.•It is not possible to generalize the role of context variables.•European universities are not “really” entrepreneurial yet.
Ginger in its many forms, from juices of the fresh rhizome, to ginger powder and ginger essential oil, is growing in popularity for claimed universal health benefits. Nevertheless, and contrarily to ...the common notion of the public, ginger is not devoid of side effects, especially interactions with other drugs, and many of the claimed benefits remain to be substantiated. This work presents a comprehensive revision of the current state of the art on ginger pharmacokinetics and bioavailability, interaction with active pharmaceutical ingredients, raising awareness of the risks of uncontrolled ginger consumption. A second section of the work described the verified actions of various extracts of ginger, or of their main active ingredients, gingerols, based mainly on data obtained from controlled clinical trials. Finally, the last section is devoted to innovative technological solutions to improve the bioavailability of gingerols and ginger extracts that are expected to ultimately lead to the development of more consumer-compliant products.
Bacteria associated with the nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, a pathogen of trees and the causal agent of pine wilt disease (PWD) may play a role in the disease. In order to evaluate their role ...(positive or negative to the tree), strains isolated from the track of nematodes from infected Pinus pinaster trees were screened, in vitro, for their nematicidal potential. The bacterial products, from strains more active in killing nematodes, were screened in order to identify and characterize the nematicidal agent. Forty-seven strains were tested and, of these, 21 strains showed capacity to produce extracellular products with nematicidal activity. All Burkholderia strains were non-toxic. In contrast, all Serratia strains except one exhibited high toxicity. Nematodes incubated with Serratia strains showed, by SEM observation, deposits of bacteria on the nematode cuticle. The most nematicidal strain, Serratia sp. A88copa13, produced proteases in the supernatant. The use of selective inhibitors revealed that a serine protease with 70 kDa was majorly responsible for the toxicity of the supernatant. This extracellular serine protease is different phylogenetically, in size and biochemically from previously described proteases. Nematicidal assays revealed differences in nematicidal activity of the proteases to different species of Bursaphelenchus, suggesting its usefulness in a primary screen of the nematodes. This study offers the basis for further investigation of PWD and brings new insights on the role bacteria play in the defense of pine trees against B. xylophilus. Understanding all the factors involved is important in order to develop strategies to control B. xylophilus dispersion.
Soil biodiversity is threatened by intensification of land use. The consequences of different land use on belowground biodiversity remain insufficiently explored for soil protists. Alongside being ...abundant and extremely diverse in soil, protists provide many ecosystem services: key players in the microbial loop, turnover of organic matter and stimulation of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria. However, we lack knowledge of effects of site, land use intensity and management on diversity of soil protists. Here we assessed protist communities in four European arable sites with contrasting land use intensities at each site: Lusignan, France; Moskanjci, Slovenia; Castro Verde, Portugal and Scheyern, Germany as well as two grassland sites: Hainich, Germany and Lancaster, UK. Each site has consistent agricultural management history of low and high land use intensities quantified in terms of land use index (LUI). We employed high-throughput sequencing of environmental DNA, targeting the V4 region of the 18S rRNA gene. By assigning the protist composition to trophic groups, we inspected for effects of management, and other biotic and abiotic variables. While overall protist richness was unaffected by LUI within sites, specific trophic groups such as plant pathogens and saprotrophs were affected. Effects on protist biome across land uses and sites were also observed. LUI sensitive taxa were taxonomically diverse in each plot, and their trophic groups responded in specific patterns to specific practices. The most abundant trophic group was phagotrophs (73%), followed by photoautotrophs (16%), plant pathogens (4%), animal parasites (2%) and saprotrophs (1%). Community compositions and factors affecting the structure of individual trophic groups differed between land uses and management systems. The agricultural management selected for distinct protist populations as well as specific functional traits, and the protist community and diversity were indeed affected by site, LUI and management, which indicates the ecological significance of protists in the soil food web.
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•Soil protist microbiomes across diverging land uses were significantly different.•Land use affects the microbiome of trophic protist groups.•Protist taxa sensitive to land use intensity were identified.•Impact of environmental parameters on different protist groups differed.
In recent years, evidence supporting a link between inflammation and neuropsychiatric disorders has been mounting. Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and schizophrenia share some clinical similarities ...which we hypothesize might reflect the same biological basis, namely, in terms of inflammation. However, the diagnosis of ASD and schizophrenia relies solely on clinical symptoms, and to date, there is no clinically useful biomarker to diagnose or monitor the course of such illnesses.The focus of this review is the central role that inflammation plays in ASD and schizophrenia. It spans from pre-clinical animal models to clinical research and excludes in vitro studies. Four major areas are covered: (1) microglia, the inflammatory brain resident myeloid cells, (2) biomarkers, including circulating cytokines, oxidative stress markers, and microRNA players, known to influence cellular processes at brain and immune levels, (3) effect of anti-psychotics on biomarkers and other predictors of response, and (4) impact of gender on response to immune activation, biomarkers, and response to anti-psychotic treatments.
Abstract Diet is one factor that plays a part in coronary heart disease risk through multiple biological mechanisms including subclinical inflammation. In this review, we aimed to systematically ...assess and summarize evidence regarding the association of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) with inflammatory markers and adipokines. An electronic search of the literature was conducted up to September 2010 using Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and Science Direct (updated from September 2010 to August 2011 through Medline). Original studies that were written in Portuguese, English, Spanish, or French, and addressed the effects of SFA (not dietary sources or SFA-rich diets) on inflammatory markers or adipokines in adult populations were considered eligible. Data from 15 studies providing adjusted estimates were extracted. The publication year varied from 1995 to 2010 and the sample size from 54 to 4900. Most studies were cross sectional, with 3 studies using a prospective design. Twelve studies assessed total SFA, and 3 studies considered their subtypes, which were measured through dietary assessments (11 studies) or in blood samples (4 studies). Significant positive associations were observed between SFA and soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 and interleukin-6, whereas no significant associations were observed with E-selectin, tumor necrosis factor α , granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, fibrinogen, and adiponectin. For high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, 2 studies showed significant positive associations, whereas 3 studies reported no significant associations. One study reported a significant inverse association of SFA with leptin, although the other 3 found no significant associations. Based on this systematic review, a potential positive association of SFA with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein but not with adipokines is suggested, which should be confirmed by future research.
The aim of this study is to analyze the role of individual characteristics and social norms as variables that explain early-stage entrepreneurial activity before and during the European crisis. We ...used the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Adult Population Survey data from Southern European countries (Greece, Spain, Italy and Portugal) and Northern European countries (Sweden, Norway and Finland) in 2007, 2010, 2012 and 2013. We performed logistic regression analysis to identify the role of individual characteristics (self-efficacy, perceptions of opportunities, role model and risk perceptions) and social norms (desirable career choice, status and respect and public media) on the early-stage entrepreneurial activity (TEA). Results show that individual characteristics are the most important predictor of entrepreneurial activity, and this effect stays stable throughout the time of the crisis; and social norms have an absent or low effect on entrepreneurial activity, with slight fluctuations during the crisis. These results highlight the role of individual predictors on the entrepreneurial activity despite the macroeconomic environment, which empathizes the importance of education and training to promote the entrepreneurial mindset and attitude.
Diamond is a promising material for the biomedical field, mainly due to its set of characteristics such as biocompatibility, strength, and electrical conductivity. Diamond can be synthesised in the ...laboratory by different methods, is available in the form of plates or films deposited on foreign substrates, and its morphology varies from microcrystalline diamond to ultrananocrystalline diamond. In this review, we summarise some of the most relevant studies regarding the adhesion of cells onto diamond surfaces, the consequent cell growth, and, in some very interesting cases, the differentiation of cells into neurons and oligodendrocytes. We discuss how different morphologies can affect cell adhesion and how surface termination can influence the surface hydrophilicity and consequent attachment of adherent proteins. At the end of the review, we present a brief perspective on how the results from cell adhesion and biocompatibility can make way for the use of diamond as biointerface.
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