Paolo Mariani

Bio: Paolo Mariani is an academic researcher from Marche Polytechnic University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Small-angle X-ray scattering & Liquid crystal. The author has an hindex of 39, co-authored 204 publications receiving 6174 citations. Previous affiliations of Paolo Mariani include University of Bologna & European Synchrotron Radiation Facility.

MicroRNA related polymorphisms and breast cancer risk

Abstract: Genetic variations, such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in microRNAs (miRNA) or in the miRNA binding sites may affect the miRNA dependent gene expression regulation, which has been implicated in various cancers, including breast cancer, and may alter individual susceptibility to cancer. We investigated associations between miRNA related SNPs and breast cancer risk. First we evaluated 2,196 SNPs in a case-control study combining nine genome wide association studies (GWAS). Second, we further investigated 42 SNPs with suggestive evidence for association using 41,785 cases and 41,880 controls from 41 studies included in the Breast Cancer Association Consortium (BCAC). Combining the GWAS and BCAC data within a meta-analysis, we estimated main effects on breast cancer risk as well as risks for estrogen receptor (ER) and age defined subgroups. Five miRNA binding site SNPs associated significantly with breast cancer risk: rs1045494 (odds ratio (OR) 0.92; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.88-0.96), rs1052532 (OR 0.97; 95% CI: 0.95-0.99), rs10719 (OR 0.97; 95% CI: 0.94-0.99), rs4687554 (OR 0.97; 95% CI: 0.95-0.99, and rs3134615 (OR 1.03; 95% CI: 1.01-1.05) located in the 3' UTR of CASP8, HDDC3, DROSHA, MUSTN1, and MYCL1, respectively. DROSHA belongs to miRNA machinery genes and has a central role in initial miRNA processing. The remaining genes are involved in different molecular functions, including apoptosis and gene expression regulation. Further studies are warranted to elucidate whether the miRNA binding site SNPs are the causative variants for the observed risk effects.

Cubosome dispersions as delivery systems for percutaneous administration of indomethacin

Abstract: The present study concerns the production and characterization of monooleine (MO) dispersions as drug delivery systems for indomethacin, taken as model anti-inflammatory drug. Dispersions were produced by emulsification and homogenization of MO and poloxamer in water. Morphology and dimensional distribution of the disperse phase have been characterized by cryo-transmission electron microscopy and photon correlation spectroscopy, respectively. X-ray diffraction has been performed to determine the structural organization of the disperse phase. Sedimentation field flow fractionation (SdFFF) has been performed to investigate drug distribution in the dispersion. An in vitro diffusion study was conducted by Franz cell associated to stratum corneum epidermis membrane on cubosome dispersions viscosized by carbomer. In vivo studies based on skin reflectance spectrophotometry and tape stripping were performed to better investigate the performance of cubosome as indomethacin delivery system. Microscopy studies showed the coexistence of vesicles and cubosomes. X-ray diffraction revealed the presence of a bicontinuous cubic phase of spatial symmetry Im3m (Q229). SdFFF demonstrated that no free drug was present in the dispersion. Indomethacin incorporated in viscosized MO dispersions exhibited a lower flux with respect to the analogous formulation containing the free drug in the aqueous phase and to the control formulation based on carbomer gel. Reflectance spectroscopy demonstrated that indomethacin incorporated into MO dispersions can be released in a prolonged fashion. Tape-stripping experiments corroborated this finding. MO dispersions can be proposed as nanoparticulate systems able to control the percutaneous absorption of indomethacin.

Identification of Novel Genetic Markers of Breast Cancer Survival

Abstract: Background: Survival after a diagnosis of breast cancer varies considerably between patients, and some of this variation may be because of germline genetic variation We aimed to identify genetic markers associated with breast cancer-specific survival Methods: We conducted a large meta-analysis of studies in populations of European ancestry, including 37954 patients with 2900 deaths from breast cancer Each study had been genotyped for between 200000 and 900000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across the genome; genotypes for nine million common variants were imputed using a common reference panel from the 1000 Genomes Project We also carried out subtype-specific analyses based on 6881 estrogen receptor (ER)-negative patients (920 events) and 23059 ER-positive patients (1333 events) All statistical tests were two-sided Results: We identified one new locus (rs2059614 at 11q242) associated with survival in ER-negative breast cancer cases (hazard ratio HR = 195, 95% confidence interval CI = 155 to 247, P = 191 x 10-8) Genotyping a subset of 2113 case patients, of which 300 were ER negative, provided supporting evidence for the quality of the imputation The association in this set of case patients was stronger for the observed genotypes than for the imputed genotypes A second locus (rs148760487 at 2q242) was associated at genome-wide statistical significance in initial analyses; the association was similar in ER-positive and ER-negative case patients Here the results of genotyping suggested that the finding was less robust Conclusions: This is currently the largest study investigating genetic variation associated with breast cancer survival Our results have potential clinical implications, as they confirm that germline genotype can provide prognostic information in addition to standard tumor prognostic factors © 2015 © The Author 2015 Published by Oxford University Press

Generalized synthesis of periodic surfactant/inorganic composite materials

Abstract: THE recent synthesis of silica-based mesoporous materials1,2 by the cooperative assembly of periodic inorganic and surfactant-based structures has attracted great interest because it extends the range of molecular-sieve materials into the very-large-pore regime. If the synthetic approach can be generalized to transition-metal oxide mesostructures, the resulting nanocomposite materials might find applications in electrochromic or solid-electrolyte devices3,4, as high-surface-area redox catalysts5 and as substrates for biochemical separations. We have proposed recently6 that the matching of charge density at the surfactant/inorganic interfaces governs the assembly process; such co-organization of organic and inorganic phases is thought to be a key aspect of biomineralization7. Here we report a generalized approach to the synthesis of periodic mesophases of metal oxides and cationic or anionic surfactants under a range of pH conditions. We suggest that the assembly process is controlled by electrostatic complementarity between the inorganic ions in solution, the charged surfactant head groups and—when these charges both have the same sign—inorganic counterions. We identify a number of different general strategies for obtaining a variety of ordered composite materials.