Leptin and atherosclerosis.

Adiponectin is a protein secreted specifically by adipose cells that may couple regulation of insulin sensitivity with energy metabolism and serve to link obesity with insulin resistance. Obesity-related disorders including the metabolic syndrome, diabetes, atherosclerosis, hypertension, and coronary artery disease are associated with decreased plasma levels of adiponectin, insulin resistance, and endothelial dysfunction. Adiponectin has insulin-sensitizing effects as well as antiatherogenic properties. Lifestyle modifications and some drug therapies to treat atherosclerosis, hypertension, and coronary heart disease have important effects to simultaneously increase adiponectin levels, decrease insulin resistance, and improve endothelial dysfunction. In this review, we discuss insights into the relationships between adiponectin levels, insulin resistance, and endothelial dysfunction that are derived from various therapeutic interventions. The effects of lifestyle modifications and cardiovascular drugs on adiponectin levels and insulin resistance suggest plausible mechanisms that may be important for treating atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease.

Leptin and Cardiovascular Disease: Response to Therapeutic Interventions

Abnormal formation and organization of collagen network is commonly observed in many organ pathologies, but analytical techniques able to reveal the collagen biodistribution are still lacking. In this study, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy has been used to analyze type I, III, IV, V, and VI collagens, the most important compounds of connective tissues. A robust classification of 30 FTIR spectra per collagen type could be obtained by using a combination of four spectral intervals [nu(C=O) absorption of amide I (1,700-1,600 cm(-1)), delta(CH(2)), and delta(CH(3)) absorptions (1,480-1,350 cm(-1)), nu(C-N), and delta(N-H) absorptions of amide III (1,300-1,180 cm(-1)), and nu(C-O) and nu(C-O-C) absorptions of carbohydrate moieties (1,100-1,005 cm(-1))]. Then, a submolecular justification of this classification model was sought using a curve fitting analysis of the four spectral intervals. Results demonstrated that every spectral interval used for the classification contained highly discriminant absorption bands between all collagen types (multivariate analysis of variance, p < 0.01; Dunnett's T3 post hoc test, p < 0.05). All conditions seem thus joined to make FTIR spectroscopy and imaging major tools for implementing innovative methods in the field of molecular histology, which would be very helpful for the diagnosis of a wide range of pathologies.

Collagen types analysis and differentiation by FTIR spectroscopy.

An enhanced base isolation system equipped with optimal tuned mass damper inerter (TMDI)

https://www.cell.com/trends/biotechnology/pdf/S0167-7799(06)00209-5.pdf

Dario De Domenico

Papers

An enhanced base isolation system equipped with optimal tuned mass damper inerter (TMDI)

Design strategies of viscous dampers for seismic protection of building structures: A review

Experimental investigation on the compressive strength of foamed concrete: Effect of curing conditions, cement type, foaming agent and dry density

Optimal design and seismic performance of tuned mass damper inerter (TMDI) for structures with nonlinear base isolation systems

Compressive and flexural strength of fiber-reinforced foamed concrete: Effect of fiber content, curing conditions and dry density