PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

E De Luca

Publications and source records attributed to E De Luca.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Structural characterisation of human recombinant glycohormones follitropin, lutropin and choriogonadotropin expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells.

The alpha and beta chains from human recombinant gonadotropins follitropin, lutropin and choriogonadotropin expressed in CHO cells have been structurally characterised both at the protein and at the carbohydrate level by using advanced mass spectrometric procedures. The three alpha chains share the same amino acid sequence while they display different glycosylation patterns. The oligosaccharide structures detected belong to the complex-type glycans with different degree of sialylation. Partial proteolytic processing occurred at the N-terminus of the follitropin beta chain and at the C-terminus of the lutropin beta chain. The N-linked glycans from the three beta chains were found to contain fucosylated and sialylated diantennary and triantennary complex-type structures. The follitropin beta chain showed the presence of N-acetyllactosamine repeats on the antennae. The overall structure of the recombinant glycohormones corresponds to their natural counterparts with the exception that sulphated terminal glycosylation is missing.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

NG methyl-L-arginine increases the hyperthermic effects of prostaglandin E1.

The sympathetic firing rate of the nerves innervating interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT), IBAT and colonic temperatures (TIBAT and TC) were monitored in urethane-anaesthetized male Sprague-Dawley rats. These variables were measured for a period of 40 min before (baseline values) and 40 min after a 2 mg NG-methyl-L-arginine (NMA) injection plus an intracerebroventricular administration of 500 ng prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) into a lateral cerebral ventricle. No drug was injected in control rats. The results show that NMA enhances the increases in firing rate, TIBAT and TC induced by PGE1. These findings indicate that an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis, such as NMA, increases the sympathetic and thermogenic responses to injection of PGE1.

Adipose Tissue, Brown↗
PubMed1996

Lysine acetylsalicylate modifies aphagia and thermogenic changes induced by lateral hypothalamic lesion.

These experiments test the effect of intraperitoneal injection of lysine acetylsalicylate on 1) food intake and 2) the sympathetic and thermogenic changes induced by lesion of the lateral hypothalamus (LH). Food intake, firing rate of the nerves innervating interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT), and IBAT and colonic temperatures (TIBAT and TC) were monitored in male Sprague-Dawley rats lesioned in the LH. These variables were measured before and after intraperitoneal injection of lysine acetylsalicylate. The same variables were also monitored in 1) lesioned rats with intraperitoneal administration of saline, 2) sham-lesioned animals with intraperitoneal injection of lysine acetylsalicylate, and 3) sham-lesioned rats with intraperitoneal injection of saline. The results show that lysine acetylsalicylate modifies the aphagia by increasing food intake and also reduces the enhancements in firing rate, TIBAT, and TC induced by LH lesion. These findings suggest that prostaglandin synthesis plays a key role in the control of eating behavior in LH-lesioned rats by acting on the sympathetic and thermogenic changes induced by LH lesion.

Adipose Tissue, Brown↗
PubMed1996

[The use of osteointegrated implants in plastic surgery. Ear reconstruction].

The authors present the case of a 14-year-old patient suffering from first branchial arch syndrome with agenesia of the auricle in which the auricle was reconstructed using osteointegrated implants. The patient had previously undergone numerous attempts at reconstruction using traditional methods, all of which had failed. In order to ensure an accurate preoperative evaluation, the patient was studied using CT with a standard technique and three-dimensional image reconstruction for a qualitative and quantitative evaluation of bone thickness so as to allow the optimal positioning of fixtures. This test also revealed the existence and good degree of development of the middle and internal ear. The Authors then proceeded to implant 4 titanium fixtures into the mastoid process of the temporal bone, three of which were used for fixing the auricle prosthesis and one for the insertion of a bone anchored hearing aid. The epithesis, in soft silicon, was modelled to match the contralateral ear with excellent aesthetic results.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Spatio-temporal interpolation in depth.

Spatio-temporal interpolation creates the impression of motion from a rapid sequence of stationary images by reconstructing the motion path in between the stations actually presented. Thresholds below the diameter of foveal photoreceptors have been obtained with two-dimensional spatio-temporal interpolation. We found that also three-dimensional interpolation, i.e. interpolation in depth, where information from motion detectors tuned to opposite directions in both eyes has to be combined, yields thresholds in the hyperacuity range. The results of parametric experiments favour the interpretation that interpolation occurs at a monocular stage of visual processing, rather than on a stereoscopic stage.

Depth Perception↗
PubMed1990

The amino acid sequence of a ribosome-inactivating protein from Saponaria officinalis seeds.

The complete primary structure of saporin SO-6, a ribosome-inactivating protein extracted from Saponaria officinalis seeds, has been determined. The sequence was reconstructed following purification and analysis of peptides obtained after digestion of the protein with different proteolytic agents. The protein is composed of 253 amino acids, corresponding to a molecular weight of 28,621 Da. Comparison of the primary structure of SO-6 with the sequence deduced from cDNA, shows amino acid substitutions in 11 positions, suggesting a tissue-related genetic variability. When the sequence of saporin is compared to those of two related proteins, ricin A chain and trichosanthin, a low degree of similarity (12%) is found; nevertheless some considerations about structure-function relationships and evolution of RIPs are possible.

Amino Acid Sequence↗