Chronic Kidney Disease Is Linked to Carotid Nodular Calcification, An Unstable Plaque Not Correlated to Inflammation.

The incidence and the different type of carotid calcifications, nodular and non-nodular, and their role in the acute cerebrovascular disease has not yet been defined. Various studies have correlated the presence of specific risk factors, in particular the chronic kidney disease, with the presence of calcification, but not with the type of calcification. Since it is likely that carotid nodular calcifications rather than those with non-nodular aspect may represent a plaque at high risk of rupture, the purpose of our study was to evaluate the role of nodular calcification in the pathogenesis of cerebrovascular syndromes and their possible correlation with specific risk factors. A total of 168 carotid plaques from symptomatic and asymptomatic patients submitted to endarterectomy, whom complete clinical and laboratory assessment of major cardiovascular risk factors was available, were studied. In 21 endarterectomies (5 from symptomatic and 16 from asymptomatic patients) an eruptive calcified nodule, consisting of calcified plates associated to a small amount of fibrous tissue without extracellular lipids and inflammatory cells, was found protruding into the lumen. Nodular calcifications were significantly observed in patients affected by chronic kidney disease (with GFR<60 ml / min / 1.73 m2), with a normal lipidic and glycemic profile. On the contrary, non-nodular calcification, mainly correlated to diabetes, were stable lesions. Results of our study suggest that the mechanisms and the clinical significance of carotid atherosclerotic calcification may be different. The nodular calcification could represent a type of unstable plaque, significantly related to chronic kidney disease, without inflammation, morphologically different from the classical vulnerable plaques.

ZNF185 is a p63 target gene critical for epidermal differentiation and squamous cell carcinoma development.

Development and maintenance of healthy stratified epithelia require the coordination of complex transcriptional programmes. The transcription factor p63, a member of the p53 family, plays a crucial role in epithelial development and homeostasis. Analysis of the p63-dependent transcriptome indicated that one important aspect of p63 functions in epithelial development is the regulation of cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion programmes. However, limited knowledge exists on the relevant cell-cell adhesion molecules involved in physiological epithelial formation. Similarly, limited data are available to understand if deregulation of the cell-cell adhesion programme is important in tumour formation. Here, using the epidermis as an experimental model with the RNA sequencing approach, we identify a novel p63-regulated gene induced during differentiation, ZNF185. ZNF185 is an actin-cytoskeleton-associated Lin-l 1, Isl-1 and Mec-3 (LIM) domain-containing protein, whose function is poorly known. We found that p63 binds to a specific enhancer region, promoting its expression to sustain epithelial differentiation. ZNF185 silencing strongly impaired keratinocyte differentiation according to gene array analysis. ZNF185 is detected at the cell-cell periphery where it physically interacts with E-cadherin, indicating that it is important to maintain epithelial integrity beyond its pro-differentiation role. Interestingly, poorly differentiated, including head and neck, cervical and oesophageal, squamous cell carcinomas display loss of ZNF185 expression. Together, these studies reinforce that p63 is a crucial gene for maintaining epithelial tissue integrity and support the deregulation of the cell-cell adhesion programme,which plays a critical role in carcinoma development.

Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) microanalysis: A powerful tool in biomedical research and diagnosis.

The Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) microanalysis is a technique of elemental analysis associated to electron microscopy based on the generation of characteristic Xrays that reveals the presence of elements present in the specimens. The EDX microanalysis is used in different biomedical fields by many researchers and clinicians. Nevertheless, most of the scientific community is not fully aware of its possible applications. The spectrum of EDX microanalysis contains both semi-qualitative and semi-quantitative information. EDX technique is made useful in the study of drugs, such as in the study of drugs delivery in which the EDX is an important tool to detect nanoparticles (generally, used to improve the therapeutic performance of some chemotherapeutic agents). EDX is also used in the study of environmental pollution and in the characterization of mineral bioaccumulated in the tissues. In conclusion, the EDX can be considered as a useful tool in all works that require element determination, endogenous or exogenous, in the tissue, cell or any other sample.

Hepatocyte specific TIMP3 expression prevents diet dependent fatty liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) encompasses a broad spectrum of conditions, ranging from non-progressive bland steatosis to hepatocarcinoma. Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 3 (Timp3) has a role in the pathogenesis of fatty liver disease associated with obesity and is silenced during metabolic disorders and liver cancer. We generated an hepatocyte-specific TIMP3 'gain-of-function' mouse model under the control of the Albumin promoter (AlbT3) and investigated its effects during high-fat diet (HFD). After 16 weeks of HFD, TIMP3 overexpression significantly improved glucose metabolism, hepatic fatty acid oxidation and cholesterol homeostasis. In AlbT3 mice CYP7A1, MDR3 and MRP2 gene expressions were observed, consistent with higher bile acid synthesis and export. Next, to evaluate the role of A Disintegrin and Metalloproteinase 17 (ADAM17), a crucial target of TIMP3, in these processes, we created mice deficient in Adam17 specifically in hepatocyte (A17LKO) or in myeloid lineage (A17MKO), founding that only A17LKO showed improvement in liver steatosis induced by HFD. Moreover, both, AlbT3 and A17LKO significantly reduced diethylnitrosamine-initiated, HFD-promoted hepatic tumorigenesis assessed by tumor multiplicity and total tumor area. Taken together, these data indicate that hepatic TIMP3 can slow progression of NAFLD, and tumorigenesis, at least in part, through the regulation of ADAM17 activity.