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Oxidative Stress Mitigation by Chitosan Nanoparticles in Durum Wheat Also Affects Phytochemicals and Technological Quality of Bran and Semolina.
Picchi, V, Calzone, A, Gobbi, S, Paccani, S, Lo Scalzo, R, Marti, A, Faoro, F
Plants (Basel, Switzerland). 2022;(15)
Abstract
In our previous work, durum wheat cv. Fabulis was grown over two consecutive seasons (2016-2017 and 2017-2018) in an experimental field in the north of Italy. With the aim of mitigating oxidative stress, plants were subjected to four treatments (deionized water, CHT 0.05 mg/mL, CHT-NPs, and CHT-NPs-NAC) three times during the experiment. Chitosan nanoparticles (CHT-NPs) reduced symptom severity on wheat leaves and positively influenced the final grain yield. The present work aimed at investigating whether CHT treatments and particularly N-acetyl cysteine (NAC)-loaded or -unloaded CHT-NPs, while triggering plant defense mechanisms, might also vary the nutritional and technological quality of grains. For this purpose, the grains harvested from the previous experiment were analyzed for their content in phytochemicals and for their technological properties. The results showed that CHT increased the polyphenol and tocopherol content and the reducing capacity of bran and semolina, even if the positive effect of the nano-formulation remained still unclear and slightly varied between the two years of cultivation. The positive effect against oxidative stress induced by the chitosan treatments was more evident in the preservation of both the starch pasting properties and gluten aggregation capacity, indicating that the overall technological quality of semolina was maintained. Our data confirm the role of chitosan as an elicitor of the antioxidant defense system in wheat also at the grain level.
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Dual BACE-1/GSK-3β Inhibitors to Combat Alzheimer's Disease: A Focused Review.
Rampa, A, Gobbi, S, Concetta Di Martino, RM, Belluti, F, Bisi, A
Current topics in medicinal chemistry. 2017;(31):3361-3369
Abstract
In industrialized countries, Alzheimer's disease represents the most devastating neurodegenerative disorder in elderly people and the search for a disease modifying agent is still justified by this unmet need. Several possible targets have been explored to find an appropriate drug therapy, and in this review, dual inhibitors of beta secretase and glycogen synthase kinase 3, recently reported in literature, will be appraised. Applying a ligand-based approach, the triazinone core emerged as a suitable scaffold to simultaneously bind the aspartic dyad of BACE-1 and the ATP site of GSK-3β, leading to a series of small molecules endowed with a balanced micromolar affinity and a promising pharmacokinetic profile. Differently, by means of a structure-based approach, a series of well-balanced dual binding molecules were designed, taking advantage of the versatility of the curcumin scaffold. For some of these new compounds a potential neuroprotective effect was also observed, due to their ability to counteract the oxidative stress through the inhibition of NQO1 enzyme. Finally, different virtual screening analyses were performed, leading to the identification of new potential scaffolds deserving further development.
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Functional training reduces body fat and improves functional fitness and cholesterol levels in postmenopausal women: a randomized clinical trial.
Neves, LM, Fortaleza, AC, Rossi, FE, Diniz, TA, Codogno, JS, Gobbo, LA, Gobbi, S, Freitas, IF
The Journal of sports medicine and physical fitness. 2017;(4):448-456
Abstract
BACKGROUND This randomized clinical trial with concealed allocations, and blinding of the assessors and the data analyst, was aimed at determining the effects of 16 weeks of functional training on the body composition, functional fitness and lipid profiles in postmenopausal women. METHODS The study began with 64 subjects (N.=32 functional training and N.=32 control group) and ended with 50 subjects (N.=28 functional training and N.=22 control group). The exercise was conducted in circuit training format with 8 stations related to the development of muscular strength (using elastic bands for resistance) plus 3 stations focused on balance, coordination, and agility. The training session also incorporated an 18 to 30 minute walk. The control group did not participate in the exercise programs during the period of study. The participants were evaluated before and after the training period as regards their body composition (fat and lean mass), functional fitness, abdominal strength and blood chemistry variables. RESULTS Significant reductions were observed in all body composition variables related to fat (FM= -3.4 and Android FM= -7.7%) (P<0.05). The functional fitness components had significant improvements in coordination (-33.3%), strength (66.5%), agility (-19.5%) and aerobic capacity (-7%), and significant improvement in abdominal strength (188.2%). We observed significant improvements in total cholesterol (-4.4%) and HDL (-9.9%). CONCLUSIONS The observed data lead us to conclude that functional training utilizing with elastic bands and unstable bases causes significantly improved in body composition, functional fitness and lipid profiles.
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Effects of different resistance training frequencies on flexibility in older women.
Carneiro, NH, Ribeiro, AS, Nascimento, MA, Gobbo, LA, Schoenfeld, BJ, Achour Júnior, A, Gobbi, S, Oliveira, AR, Cyrino, ES
Clinical interventions in aging. 2015;:531-8
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The main purpose of the investigation reported here was to analyze the effect of resistance training (RT) performed at different weekly frequencies on flexibility in older women. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS Fifty-three older women (≥60 years old) were randomly assigned to perform RT either two (n=28; group "G2x"), or three (n=25; group "G3x") times per week. The RT program comprised eight exercises in which the participants performed one set of 10-15 repetitions maximum for a period of 12 weeks. Anthropometric, body-composition, and flexibility measurements were made at baseline and post-study. The flexibility measurements were obtained by a fleximeter. RESULTS A significant group-by-time interaction (P<0.01) was observed for frontal hip flexion, in which G3x showed a higher increase than G2x (+12.8% and +3.0%, respectively). Both groups increased flexibility in cervical extension (G2x=+19.1%, G3x=+20.0%), right hip flexion (G2x=+14.6%, G3x=+15.9%), and left hip flexion (G2x=+25.7%, G3x=+19.2%), with no statistical difference between groups. No statistically significant differences were noted for the increase in skeletal muscle mass between training three versus two times a week (+7.4% vs +4.4%, respectively). CONCLUSION Twelve weeks of RT improves the flexibility of different joint movements in older women, and the higher frequency induces greater increases for frontal hip flexion.