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F Ortolani

Publications and source records attributed to F Ortolani.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1993

Collagen-glutaraldehyde interaction as revealed by the D-banding of negatively stained fibrils and computer-drawn band patterns.

Band patterns exhibited under electron microscope by native collagen fibrils fixed with glutaraldehyde (2.5%-5% GA diluted in 0.1M phosphate buffer, pH 7.4) and negatively stained with phosphotungstic acid (1% PTA diluted in the same buffer) were digitized to form both bandings and microdensitometric traces. Collaterally, computer-drawn band patterns and traces were yielded on the basis of the "quarter stagger" model and primary structure of alpha 1(I) and alpha 2(I) tropocollagen chains and by selecting options related to specific collagen-GA interactions. Comparisons between actual and simulated patterns suggest that lysines and hydroxylysines should react with GA residues in a 1:3 ratio, while GA-reactivity of histidyl and tyrosyl residues seem to be excluded. On the other hand, an improvement of simulations was achieved by also selecting hydroxyprolines (in addition to lysines and hydroxylysines), which seemed to react with GA in a 1:1 ratio. Considering the bifunctionality of GA, it is suggested that during fixation, heteropolymers form, composed of GA-hexamers bonded to couples of lysyl and/or hydroxylysyl residues. The hypothesis is advanced of an additional formation of GA-dimers, each bonded to two hydroxyprolines.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Negative staining and genesis of D-periodicity in native collagen fibrils.

An investigation was carried out on the mechanism which gives rise to the banding exhibited by collagen fibrils after negative staining. The negative staining (phosphotungstic acid) band patterns of native collagen fibrils (type I), isolated from calf reticular dermis, were compared with computer-drawn band patterns. The stimulations were based on the primary structure of bovine type I collagen, the "quarter stagger" molecular packing and different conformations of telopeptides. The results suggest that in negative staining, the stain exclusion effect depends on both spatial factors and water repelling factors being the "bulkiness" (molecular volume/length ratio) as well as the hydrophobicity of the amino acids of alpha 1 (I) and alpha 2 (I) chains directly involved. No final conclusion could be drawn about the contribution of positive staining to negative staining. Improvements in the simulations were achieved when the telopeptides were shaped according to particular conformational models.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Histological examination of gastric mucosal lesions induced by isolation in saline and cimetidine treated rat.

It has been recently pointed out that the most reliable method of assessment of gastric mucosal injury is the microscopic examination of the tissue. The purpose of the present paper was, therefore, to study the histological features of gastric lesions induced by a six week isolation in rats. It has also been investigated whether a two week treatment, beginning four weeks after isolation, with cimetidine 80 and 160 mg kg-1 p.o. daily could protect the gastric mucosa. In saline treated rats, histological examination of haemorrhagic areas showed that both surface epithelium and gastric pits were damaged or even completely absent with a consequent surfacing of subepithelial vessels. Damage extended deeply into the gastric glands with evidence of necrotic cells in the corpus and fundus. Simultaneous occurrence of the process of restitution was evident. Cimetidine partially lessened the severity of damage and appeared to favour the restitution processes.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Collagen fibril surface structures: freeze-etching data and computer modelling.

In order to investigate the correlation between primary structure and surface profile of collagen, freeze-fractured and deep-etched (dehydrated) collagen fibrils have been compared with a fibril model built directly from the amino acid sequence. The model appeared to be almost identical to the freeze-etched collagen fibril with respect to the most relevant features, such as the gap-overlap ratio and the location of the two main intraperiod ridges (X3 and X2). However, it did not show the minor ridges observed in the gap zone (X1 and Y1), thus suggesting that these structures, although consistently present in collagen fibrils, may in fact be due to post-translational modifications or to non-collagenic material adhering to the fibril.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Localization of different alcian blue-proteoglycan particles in the intervertebral disc.

A histochemical investigation was carried out on proteoglycans of bovine intervertebral disc. Samples obtained from the "annulus fibrosus" (A.F.) and "nucleus pulposus" (N.P.) were treated with Alcian blue (AB) diluted in solutions of MgCl2 at critical electrolyte concentrations (CEC); some samples were incubated in testicular hyaluronidase before AB treatment. At least four types of elongated AB-proteoglycan particles were recognized: a) in A.F. lamellae and N.P., 1 nm rod-like particles were arranged orthogonally to the collagen fibrils and spaced at a distance equivalent to the fibril D-period (Figs. 1-5); b) within the A.F. lamellae, other 16-20 nm particles formed a close network among the collagen fibrils (Figs. 1,2,3,5); c) in the A.F. interlamellar crevices, 30-50 nm leaf-like particles were present (Fig. 6); d) in the N.P.Z., 20-30 nm leaf-like particles formed a wide-mesh (Fig. 4). The alcianophylic particle sizes suggest they may correspond to proteoglycan monomers in the A.F. lamellae and mostly proteoglycan aggregates in A.F. interlamellar crevices and N.P.. Both alcianophylia degrees at MgCl2 CEC solutions and enzymatic susceptibility indicate the presence of chondroitin sulphate and keratan sulphate and that the large particles in the A.F. interlamellar crevices are the keratan sulphate richest proteoglycans. The features of the observed AB-proteoglycan particles are consistent with previous morphological data reported for other tissues as well as some biochemical data for the intervertebral disc and may be correlated to the composite mechanical properties of this tissue.

Alcian Blue↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Anatomic contribution to the study on the variety of fibrous formations of the arm in humans].

The authors have examined an anatomical preparation of a human upper limb preserved in the Anatomical Museum in Bologna. The specimen was formed by bone, fibrous formations, musculus biceps brachii and musculus coracobrachialis. The soft parts were kept in situ and dried by mummification. The humerus showed abnormalities at its proximal extremity (Fig. 1) and the muscles displayed fibrous varieties: a) a fibrous sheet (Fig. 1, 2) connected the caput brevis of the musculus biceps brachii to the articular capsule of the shoulder joint; b) an aponevrosis (Fig. 1, 3) connected the musculus coracobrachialis to the same articular capsule and the humerus. These observations were discussed from an evolutionary and functional point of view.

Biological Evolution↗