Showing papers by "Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia published in 2022"
TL;DR: In this article , the authors show that the widely expressed circZNF609 directly interacts with several mRNAs and increases their stability and/or translation by favoring the recruitment of the RNA-binding protein ELAVL1.
23 citations
TL;DR: In this article , the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) enzyme has been shown to be a promising target for pharmacological intervention against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection.
Abstract: Abstract Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly become a global health pandemic. Among the viral proteins, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) is responsible for viral genome replication and has emerged as one of the most promising targets for pharmacological intervention against SARS-CoV-2. To this end, we experimentally tested luteolin and quercetin for their ability to inhibit the RdRp enzyme. These two compounds are ancestors of flavonoid natural compounds known for a variety of basal pharmacological activities. Luteolin and quercetin returned a single-digit IC 50 of 4.6 µM and 6.9 µM, respectively. Then, through dynamic docking simulations, we identified possible binding modes of these compounds to a recently published cryo-EM structure of RdRp. Collectively, these data indicate that these two compounds are a valid starting point for further optimization and development of a new class of RdRp inhibitors to treat SARS-CoV-2 and potentially other viral infections.
21 citations
TL;DR: In this paper , the combination of chemotherapy treatment with chronic piezoelectric stimulation resulted in activation of cell apoptosis and anti-proliferation pathways, induction of cell necrosis, inhibition of cancer migration, and reduction of cell invasiveness in drug resistant GBM cells.
21 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a bulk sulfur incorporating 3 wt% gold nano-powder is investigated as possible candidate to maximize the fraction of active material in the Li-S battery cathode.
19 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a machine learning algorithm, namely hierarchical priority classification eXtreme gradient boosting, is proposed for priority classification for COVID-19 vaccine administration using the Italian Federation of General Practitioners dataset that contains Electronic Health Record data of 17k patients.
19 citations
22 Apr 2022
TL;DR: In this paper , the role of the parietal cortex in human-specific behaviors related to visuospatial capacity, technological integration, self-awareness, numerosity, mathematical reasoning and language is investigated.
Abstract: Abstract Traditional and new disciplines converge in suggesting that the parietal lobe underwent a considerable expansion during human evolution. Through the study of endocasts and shape analysis, paleoneurology has shown an increased globularity of the braincase and bulging of the parietal region in modern humans, as compared to other human species, including Neandertals. Cortical complexity increased in both the superior and inferior parietal lobules. Emerging fields bridging archaeology and neuroscience supply further evidence of the involvement of the parietal cortex in human-specific behaviors related to visuospatial capacity, technological integration, self-awareness, numerosity, mathematical reasoning and language. Here, we complement these inferences on the parietal lobe evolution, with results from more classical neuroscience disciplines, such as behavioral neurophysiology, functional neuroimaging, and brain lesions; and apply these to define the neural substrates and the role of the parietal lobes in the emergence of functions at the core of material culture, such as tool-making, tool use and constructional abilities.
18 citations
TL;DR: In this paper , a downshifting configuration based on lead-free cesium manganese bromide nanocrystals acting as broad visible absorbers coupled to sharp emission in the near-infrared (NIR) was introduced.
Abstract: Simultaneously achieving both broad absorption and sharp emission in the near-infrared (NIR) is challenging. Coupling of an efficient absorber such as lead halide perovskites to lanthanide emissive species is a promising way to meet the demands for visible-to-NIR spectral conversion. However, lead-based perovskite sensitizers suffer from relatively narrow absorption in the visible range, poor stability, and toxicity. Herein, we introduce a downshifting configuration based on lead-free cesium manganese bromide nanocrystals acting as broad visible absorbers coupled to sharp emission in the NIR-I and NIR-II spectral regions. To achieve this, we synthesized CsMnBr3 and Cs3MnBr5 nanocrystals and attempted to dope them with a series of lanthanides, achieving success only with CsMnBr3. The correlation of the lanthanide emission to the CsMnBr3 visible absorption was confirmed with steady-state excitation spectra and time-resolved photoluminescence measurements, whereas the mechanism of downconversion from the CsMnBr3 matrix to the lanthanides was understood by density functional theory calculations. This study shows that lead-free metal halides with an appropriate phase are effective sensitizers for lanthanides and offer a route to efficient downshifting applications.
18 citations
TL;DR: In this article , the authors suggest that callosal axons can drive their post-synaptic targets preferentially when coupled to other inputs endowing the cortical network with a high degree of conditionality, which depends on several factors such as their pattern of convergence-divergence, the excitatory and inhibitory operation mode, the range of conduction velocities, the variety of homotopic and heterotopic projections and the state-dependency of their firing.
17 citations
TL;DR: In this article , a bulk sulfur incorporating 3 wt% gold nano-powder is investigated as possible candidate to maximize the fraction of active material in the Li-S battery cathode.
17 citations
TL;DR: In this article, SiO2 nanoparticles have been chosen as a model platform and three different HAs extracted from composted biomasses, manure (HA_Man), artichoke residues (HA-Art) and coffee grounds (Cof), were employed to synthetize hybrid HA-SiO2 nanostructures through in-situ sol-gel synthesis.
17 citations
Karolinska Institutet1, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia2, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte3, PSL Research University4, Marche Polytechnic University5, University Hospital of Lausanne6, Sapienza University of Rome7, Pontifical Catholic University of Chile8, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital9, University of Padua10, University of Verona11, École Polytechnique12, Université de Montréal13
TL;DR: In this article, the authors suggest that callosal axons can drive their post-synaptic targets preferentially when coupled to other inputs endowing the cortical network with a high degree of conditionality, which depends on several factors such as their pattern of convergence-divergence, the excitatory and inhibitory operation mode, the range of conduction velocities, the variety of homotopic and heterotopic projections and the state-dependency of their firing.
TL;DR: In this paper, an electrospinning method was used to produce nanofibers of polycaprolactone loaded with magnetic nanoparticles as heat mediators to be selectively activated under alternating magnetic field and doxorubicin as a chemotherapeutic drug.
TL;DR: A new dynamic scheduler that adapts to the system variability, and a novel way of communicating instructions to the human operators based on haptic guidance are presented, suggesting that a combination of visual and tactile stimuli is a viable and effective solution for displaying instructions in complex HRC scenarios.
Abstract: Human–robot collaboration (HRC) is expected to add flexibility and agility to production lines in manufacturing plants. In this context, versatile scheduling algorithms are needed to organize the increasingly complex work-flow and to exploit the gained flexibility, ensuring the optimal use of resources and the smart management of failures. Moreover, intuitive user interfaces are needed to communicate with the human worker, informing him/her of the next operation to perform. Usually, grounded or wearable screens are used to this aim. Whenever human sight is impaired or needs to be free, other sensory channels could be used as well. In this work, we present a new dynamic scheduler that adapts to the system variability, and a novel way of communicating instructions to the human operators based on haptic guidance. The proposed strategies were applied to a complex assembly task involving three agents and compared to baseline methods with an experimental campaign involving 16 subjects. Results show the clear advantage of using dynamic scheduling over the static one and suggest that a combination of visual and tactile stimuli is a viable and effective solution for displaying instructions in complex HRC scenarios.
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors used two-photon imaging to record neuronal activity from the primary auditory cortex of mice during a pure-tone discrimination task and found that a subset of neurons transiently encode sensory information used to inform behavioral choice.
TL;DR: In this article , solvent acidolysis crystallization was used to grow mixed DMA/MAPbBr3 and mixed perovskite (DMA/Methylammonium lead tribromide) crystals.
Abstract: The solvent acidolysis crystallization technique is utilized to grow mixed dimethylammonium/methylammonium lead tribromide (DMA/MAPbBr3 ) crystals reaching the highest dimethylammonium incorporation of 44% while maintaining the 3D cubic perovskite phase. These mixed perovskite crystals show suppression of the orthorhombic phase and a lower tetragonal-to-cubic phase-transition temperature compared to MAPbBr3 . A distinct behavior is observed in the temperature-dependent photoluminescence properties of MAPbBr3 and mixed DMA/MAPbBr3 crystals due to the different organic cation dynamics governing the phase transition(s). Furthermore, lateral photodetectors based on these crystals show that, at room temperature, the mixed crystals possess higher detectivity compared to MAPbBr3 crystals caused by structural compression and reduced surface trap density. Remarkably, the mixed-crystal devices exhibit large enhancement in their detectivity below the phase-transition temperature (at 200 K), while for the MAPbBr3 devices only insignificant changes are observed. The high detectivity of the mixed crystals makes them attractive for visible-light communication and for space applications. The results highlight the importance of the synthetic technique for compositional engineering of halide perovskites that governs their structural and optoelectronic properties.
TL;DR: In this article , a library of differently sized polydopamine nanoparticles (from 145 to 957 nm) has been obtained by varying the ammonia/dopamines molar ratio during the synthesis procedure, and detailed characterization in terms of biocompatibility, cell internalization, antioxidant capacity, and photothermal conversion has been carried out.
Abstract: Polydopamine (PDA) is a polymer that derives from the self-polymerization of the biomolecule dopamine. It can be easily synthesized to obtain spherical nanoparticles (PDNPs), tunable in terms of size, loaded cargo, and surface functionalization. PDNPs have been increasingly attracting the attention of the research community due to their elevated versatility in the biomedicine field, for their excellent ability to encapsulate drugs, to convert near-infrared (NIR) radiation into heat, and to act as an antioxidant agent. Size is an important aspect to be considered, especially concerning the specific intended field of application. This work aims at investigating how changes in the size of PDNPs affect the nanoparticle properties relevant for biomedical applications, especially focusing on cancer nanomedicine. A library of differently sized PDNPs (from 145 to 957 nm) has been obtained by varying the ammonia/dopamine molar ratio during the synthesis procedure, and detailed characterization in terms of biocompatibility, cell internalization, antioxidant capacity, and photothermal conversion has been carried out. Experiments showed that nanoparticles with a larger diameter display higher NIR absorbance, superior resistance to degradation, and higher photothermal conversion capacity (the latter confirmed by a mathematical model). On the other hand, a reduction in diameter size induces both improved antioxidant properties and enhanced cellular uptake. Herein, we provide a useful tool, allowing one to choose the proper size of PDNPs tailored for specific biomedical applications.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors applied a systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) procedure to identify two single strand DNA molecules (aptamers) binding specifically to the region surrounding the K353, the key residue in human ACE2 interacting with the N501 amino acid of the SARS-CoV-2 S.
TL;DR: In this paper , retrotransposable element (TE) activation was found to be involved in polyQ-induced neurotoxicity and a potential pharmacological target for Alzheimer's disease.
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors compared GBM cells derived from four patients with healthy human astrocytes using Raman spectroscopy and found that the region between 1000 and 1300 cm-1 is enough informative for this discrimination, indeed highlighting that peaks related to DNA/RNA and cytochrome c are increased in cancer cells.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors acknowledge financial support from the Max Planck Society and the ANR-DFG NLE Grant GRANAO by DFG 431450789.
Abstract: G.M.P. thanks Fondazione Cariplo for financial support (grant n° 2018-0979). R.M.M., P.G.B., J.M.V., J.A.Q. and M.A.D.G. acknowledge funding from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO), the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) and European Social Funds (ESF; grant n° MAT2015-66586-R and FPI fellowship BES-2016-077681). Q.C., K.M. and A.N. are grateful for the financial support by the Max Planck Society and the ANR-DFG NLE Grant GRANAO by DFG 431450789. K.M. acknowledges a fellowship from Gutenberg Research College, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. R.K. and A.N. appreciate the support by the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University. Y.I. and A.N acknowledge financial support from the Japan Society of Promotion Science Program for Advancing Strategic International Networks to Accelerate the Circulation of Talented Researchers.
01 Jan 2022
TL;DR: In this article, a Kalman filter was proposed to synchronize delayed outputs of low frame rate Convolutional Neural Networks for instance segmentation and 6D object pose estimation with the RGB-D input stream to achieve fast and precise object pose and velocity tracking.
Abstract: 6D object pose tracking has been extensively studied in the robotics and computer vision communities. The most promising solutions, leveraging on deep neural networks and/or filtering and optimization, exhibit notable performance on standard benchmarks. However, to our best knowledge, these have not been tested thoroughly against fast object motions. Tracking performance in this scenario degrades significantly, especially for methods that do not achieve real-time performance and introduce non negligible delays. In this work, we introduce ROFT, a Kalman filtering approach for 6D object pose and velocity tracking from a stream of RGB-D images. By leveraging real-time optical flow, ROFT synchronizes delayed outputs of low frame rate Convolutional Neural Networks for instance segmentation and 6D object pose estimation with the RGB-D input stream to achieve fast and precise 6D object pose and velocity tracking. We test our method on a newly introduced photorealistic dataset, Fast-YCB, which comprises fast moving objects from the YCB model set, and on the dataset for object and hand pose estimation HO-3D. Results demonstrate that our approach outperforms state-of-the-art methods for 6D object pose tracking, while also providing 6D object velocity tracking. A video showing the experiments is provided as supplementary material.
TL;DR: In this article , the authors investigate whether local modulation of plasticity can also occur between glutamatergic synapses and adjacent GABAergic synapses, and find that the induction of long-term potentiation at an individual dendritic spine causes the depression of nearby GABAergic inhibitory synapses (within 3 μm), whereas more distant ones are potentiated.
TL;DR: A delivery platform of active compounds on demand has been developed, composed of a flexible mat of CO2-derived poly (propylene carbonate) electrospun fibers, loaded with antioxidant cinnamon essential oil (CEO), covered with poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) as discussed by the authors .
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors performed sanitary surveillance at the European Institute of Oncology (IEO) in Milan over a 17 months period and reported that the probability of infection post-vaccination is significantly lower compared to natural infection, associated with a significantly shorter median duration of infection than that of first infection and reinfection, anticorrelated with circulating antibody levels.
Abstract: The correlation between immune responses and protection from SARS-CoV-2 infections and its duration remains unclear. We performed a sanitary surveillance at the European Institute of Oncology (IEO) in Milan over a 17 months period. Pre-vaccination, in 1,493 participants, we scored 266 infections (17.8%) and 8 possible reinfections (3%). Post-vaccination, we identified 30 infections in 2,029 vaccinated individuals (1.5%). We report that the probability of infection post-vaccination is i) significantly lower compared to natural infection, ii) associated with a significantly shorter median duration of infection than that of first infection and reinfection, iii) anticorrelated with circulating antibody levels.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyzed the mass transport features during carbon dioxide (CO2) electroreduction by correlating the results of impedance spectroscopy characterization with those obtained by a bubble-induced mass transport modeling under controlled diffusion conditions on a gold rotating disk electrode.
TL;DR: In this paper , a microfluidic setup was employed to achieve fast mixing and good reproducibility in synthesizing a variety of gold nanostructures, which enabled exploiting spatial resolution to investigate the growth evolution of the complex nanoarchitectures.
Abstract: Automatized approaches for nanoparticle synthesis and characterization represent a great asset to their applicability in the biomedical field by improving reproducibility and standardization, which help to meet the selection criteria of regulatory authorities. The scaled-up production of nanoparticles with carefully defined characteristics, including intrinsic morphological features, and minimal intra-batch, batch-to-batch, and operator variability, is an urgent requirement to elevate nanotechnology towards more trustable biological and technological applications. In this work, microfluidic approaches were employed to achieve fast mixing and good reproducibility in synthesizing a variety of gold nanostructures. The microfluidic setup allowed exploiting spatial resolution to investigate the growth evolution of the complex nanoarchitectures. By physically isolating intermediate reaction fractions, we performed an advanced characterization of the shape properties during their growth, not possible with routine characterization methods. Employing an in-house developed method to assign a specific identity to shapes, we followed the particle growth/deformation process and identified key reaction parameters for more precise control of the generated morphologies. Besides, this investigation led to the optimization of a one-pot multi-size and multi-shape synthesis of a variety of gold nanoparticles. In summary, we describe an optimized platform for highly controlled synthesis and a novel approach for the mechanistic study of shape-evolving nanomaterials.
TL;DR: In this article , the authors developed an open-source, low-cost, multi-channel time-tagging module (TTM) based on a field-programmable gate array that can tag in parallel multiple single-photon events, with 30 ps precision, and multiple synchronisation events with 4 ns precision.
Abstract: Fluorescence laser-scanning microscopy (LSM) is experiencing a revolution thanks to new single-photon (SP) array detectors, which give access to an entirely new set of single-photon information. Together with the blooming of new SP LSM techniques and the development of tailored SP array detectors, there is a growing need for (i) DAQ systems capable of handling the high-throughput and high-resolution photon information generated by these detectors, and (ii) incorporating these DAQ protocols in existing fluorescence LSMs. We developed an open-source, low-cost, multi-channel time-tagging module (TTM) based on a field-programmable gate array that can tag in parallel multiple single-photon events, with 30 ps precision, and multiple synchronisation events, with 4 ns precision. We use the TTM to demonstrate live-cell super-resolved fluorescence lifetime image scanning microscopy and fluorescence lifetime fluctuation spectroscopy. We expect that our BrightEyes-TTM will support the microscopy community in spreading SP-LSM in many life science laboratories.
TL;DR: In this article , the authors used Nanopore ReCappable Sequencing (NRCeq) to identify capped full-length RNAs and annotate the location of capping sites across the viral genome.
Abstract: The SARS-CoV-2 virus has a complex transcriptome characterised by multiple, nested subgenomic RNAsused to express structural and accessory proteins. Long-read sequencing technologies such as nanopore direct RNA sequencing can recover full-length transcripts, greatly simplifying the assembly of structurally complex RNAs. However, these techniques do not detect the 5' cap, thus preventing reliable identification and quantification of full-length, coding transcript models. Here we used Nanopore ReCappable Sequencing (NRCeq), a new technique that can identify capped full-length RNAs, to assemble a complete annotation of SARS-CoV-2 sgRNAs and annotate the location of capping sites across the viral genome. We obtained robust estimates of sgRNA expression across cell lines and viral isolates and identified novel canonical and non-canonical sgRNAs, including one that uses a previously un-annotated leader-to-body junction site. The data generated in this work constitute a useful resource for the scientific community and provide important insights into the mechanisms that regulate the transcription of SARS-CoV-2 sgRNAs.
TL;DR: In this paper , a low nanomolar and well-balanced dual GSK-3β/FYN/DYRK1A inhibitor, ARN25068 (4), was proposed to tackle tau hyperphosphorylation.
Abstract: The human kinome plays a crucial role in several pathways. Its dysregulation has been linked to diverse central nervous system (CNS)-related disorders with a drastic impact on the aging population. Among them, tauopathies, such as Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and Frontotemporal Lobar degeneration (FTLD-tau), are neurodegenerative disorders pathologically defined by the presence of hyperphosphorylated tau-positive intracellular inclusions known as neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). Compelling evidence has reported the great potential of the simultaneous modulation of multiple protein kinases (PKs) involved in abnormal tau phosphorylation through a concerted pharmacological approach to achieve a superior therapeutic effect relative to classic “one target, one drug” approaches. Here, we report on the identification and characterization of ARN25068 (4), a low nanomolar and well-balanced dual GSK-3β and FYN inhibitor, which also shows inhibitory activity against DYRK1A, an emerging target in AD and tauopathies. Computational and X-Ray studies highlight compound 4's typical H-bonding pattern of ATP-competitive inhibitors at the binding sites of all three PKs. In a tau phosphorylation assay on Tau0N4R-TM-tGFP U2OS cell line, 4 reduces the extent of tau phosphorylation, promoting tau-stabilized microtubule bundles. In conclusion, this compound emerges as a promising prototype for further SAR explorations to develop potent and well-balanced triple GSK-3β/FYN/DYRK1A inhibitors to tackle tau hyperphosphorylation.
TL;DR: In this paper , it was shown that interpersonal coordination is established also at a microscopic submovement level, i.e., submovements produced by interacting partners are not independent but alternate tightly over time, reflecting online mutual adaptation.