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  1. Article ; Online: SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Disease Modelling Using Stem Cell Technology and Organoids

    Marta Trevisan / Silvia Riccetti / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Luisa Barzon

    International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol 22, Iss 5, p

    2021  Volume 2356

    Abstract: In this Review, we briefly describe the basic virology and pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2, highlighting how stem cell technology and organoids can contribute to the understanding of SARS-CoV-2 cell tropisms and the mechanism of disease in the human host, ... ...

    Abstract In this Review, we briefly describe the basic virology and pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2, highlighting how stem cell technology and organoids can contribute to the understanding of SARS-CoV-2 cell tropisms and the mechanism of disease in the human host, supporting and clarifying findings from clinical studies in infected individuals. We summarize here the results of studies, which used these technologies to investigate SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis in different organs. Studies with in vitro models of lung epithelia showed that alveolar epithelial type II cells, but not differentiated lung alveolar epithelial type I cells, are key targets of SARS-CoV-2, which triggers cell apoptosis and inflammation, while impairing surfactant production. Experiments with human small intestinal organoids and colonic organoids showed that the gastrointestinal tract is another relevant target for SARS-CoV-2. The virus can infect and replicate in enterocytes and cholangiocytes, inducing cell damage and inflammation. Direct viral damage was also demonstrated in in vitro models of human cardiomyocytes and choroid plexus epithelial cells. At variance, endothelial cells and neurons are poorly susceptible to viral infection, thus supporting the hypothesis that neurological symptoms and vascular damage result from the indirect effects of systemic inflammatory and immunological hyper-responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
    Keywords lung ; airway epithelial cells ; central nervous system ; gastrointestinal tract ; cardiovascular system ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Biology (General) ; QH301-705.5 ; Chemistry ; QD1-999
    Subject code 610
    Language English
    Publishing date 2021-02-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher MDPI AG
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  2. Article ; Online: Tuberculosis-Associated MicroRNAs

    Alessandro Sinigaglia / Elektra Peta / Silvia Riccetti / Seshasailam Venkateswaran / Riccardo Manganelli / Luisa Barzon

    Cells, Vol 9, Iss 2160, p

    From Pathogenesis to Disease Biomarkers

    2020  Volume 2160

    Abstract: Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis is one of the most lethal infectious diseases with estimates of approximately 1.4 million human deaths in 2018. M. tuberculosis has a well-established ability to circumvent the host immune system to ... ...

    Abstract Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis is one of the most lethal infectious diseases with estimates of approximately 1.4 million human deaths in 2018. M. tuberculosis has a well-established ability to circumvent the host immune system to ensure its intracellular survival and persistence in the host. Mechanisms include subversion of expression of key microRNAs (miRNAs) involved in the regulation of host innate and adaptive immune response against M. tuberculosis . Several studies have reported differential expression of miRNAs during active TB and latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), suggesting their potential use as biomarkers of disease progression and response to anti-TB therapy. This review focused on the miRNAs involved in TB pathogenesis and on the mechanism through which miRNAs induced during TB modulate cell antimicrobial responses. An attentive study of the recent literature identifies a group of miRNAs, which are differentially expressed in active TB vs. LTBI or vs. treated TB and can be proposed as candidate biomarkers.
    Keywords microRNA ; tuberculosis ; diagnosis ; biomarker ; pathogenesis ; latent infection ; Biology (General) ; QH301-705.5
    Subject code 572
    Language English
    Publishing date 2020-09-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher MDPI AG
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  3. Article ; Online: Modelling Neurotropic Flavivirus Infection in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Systems

    Giovanna Desole / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Silvia Riccetti / Giulia Masi / Monia Pacenti / Marta Trevisan / Luisa Barzon

    International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol 20, Iss 21, p

    2019  Volume 5404

    Abstract: Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) and their differentiation into a variety of cells and organoids have allowed setting up versatile, non-invasive, ethically sustainable, and patient-specific models for the investigation of the ... ...

    Abstract Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) and their differentiation into a variety of cells and organoids have allowed setting up versatile, non-invasive, ethically sustainable, and patient-specific models for the investigation of the mechanisms of human diseases, including viral infections and host−pathogen interactions. In this study, we investigated and compared the infectivity and replication kinetics in hiPSCs, hiPSC-derived neural stem cells (NSCs) and undifferentiated neurons, and the effect of viral infection on host innate antiviral responses of representative flaviviruses associated with diverse neurological diseases, i.e., Zika virus (ZIKV), West Nile virus (WNV), and dengue virus (DENV). In addition, we exploited hiPSCs to model ZIKV infection in the embryo and during neurogenesis. The results of this study confirmed the tropism of ZIKV for NSCs, but showed that WNV replicated in these cells with much higher efficiency than ZIKV and DENV, inducing massive cell death. Although with lower efficiency, all flaviviruses could also infect pluripotent stem cells and neurons, inducing similar patterns of antiviral innate immune response gene expression. While showing the usefulness of hiPSC-based infection models, these findings suggest that additional virus-specific mechanisms, beyond neural tropism, are responsible for the peculiarities of disease phenotype in humans.
    Keywords zika virus ; west nile virus ; dengue virus ; flavivirus ; neural stem cell ; neuron ; induced pluripotent stem cell ; innate immune response ; viral replication ; infection ; apoptosis ; Biology (General) ; QH301-705.5 ; Chemistry ; QD1-999
    Subject code 570
    Language English
    Publishing date 2019-10-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher MDPI AG
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  4. Article ; Online: SARS-CoV-2 Epitope Mapping on Microarrays Highlights Strong Immune-Response to N Protein Region

    Angelo Musicò / Roberto Frigerio / Alessandro Mussida / Luisa Barzon / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Silvia Riccetti / Federico Gobbi / Chiara Piubelli / Greta Bergamaschi / Marcella Chiari / Alessandro Gori / Marina Cretich

    Vaccines, Vol 9, Iss 1, p

    2021  Volume 35

    Abstract: A workflow for rapid SARS-CoV-2 epitope discovery on peptide microarrays is herein reported. The process started with a proteome-wide screening of immunoreactivity based on the use of a high-density microarray followed by a refinement and validation ... ...

    Abstract A workflow for rapid SARS-CoV-2 epitope discovery on peptide microarrays is herein reported. The process started with a proteome-wide screening of immunoreactivity based on the use of a high-density microarray followed by a refinement and validation phase on a restricted panel of probes using microarrays with tailored peptide immobilization through a click-based strategy. Progressively larger, independent cohorts of Covid-19 positive sera were tested in the refinement processes, leading to the identification of immunodominant regions on SARS-CoV-2 spike (S), nucleocapsid (N) protein and Orf1ab polyprotein. A summary study testing 50 serum samples highlighted an epitope of the N protein (region 155–71) providing good diagnostic performance in discriminating Covid-19 positive vs. healthy individuals. Using this epitope, 92% sensitivity and 100% specificity were reached for IgG detection in Covid-19 samples, and no cross-reactivity with common cold coronaviruses was detected. Likewise, IgM immunoreactivity in samples collected within the first month after symptoms onset showed discrimination ability. Overall, epitope 155–171 from N protein represents a promising candidate for further development and rapid implementation in serological tests.
    Keywords SARS-CoV-2 ; Covid-19 ; serological test ; epitope mapping ; peptide microarrays ; click chemistry ; Medicine ; R
    Language English
    Publishing date 2021-01-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher MDPI AG
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  5. Article ; Online: Differential plasmacytoid dendritic cell phenotype and type I Interferon response in asymptomatic and severe COVID-19 infection.

    Martina Severa / Roberta A Diotti / Marilena P Etna / Fabiana Rizzo / Stefano Fiore / Daniela Ricci / Marco Iannetta / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Alessandra Lodi / Nicasio Mancini / Elena Criscuolo / Massimo Clementi / Massimo Andreoni / Stefano Balducci / Luisa Barzon / Paola Stefanelli / Nicola Clementi / Eliana M Coccia

    PLoS Pathogens, Vol 17, Iss 9, p e

    2021  Volume 1009878

    Abstract: SARS-CoV-2 fine-tunes the interferon (IFN)-induced antiviral responses, which play a key role in preventing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) progression. Indeed, critically ill patients show an impaired type I IFN response accompanied by elevated ... ...

    Abstract SARS-CoV-2 fine-tunes the interferon (IFN)-induced antiviral responses, which play a key role in preventing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) progression. Indeed, critically ill patients show an impaired type I IFN response accompanied by elevated inflammatory cytokine and chemokine levels, responsible for cell and tissue damage and associated multi-organ failure. Here, the early interaction between SARS-CoV-2 and immune cells was investigated by interrogating an in vitro human peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC)-based experimental model. We found that, even in absence of a productive viral replication, the virus mediates a vigorous TLR7/8-dependent production of both type I and III IFNs and inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, known to contribute to the cytokine storm observed in COVID-19. Interestingly, we observed how virus-induced type I IFN secreted by PBMC enhances anti-viral response in infected lung epithelial cells, thus, inhibiting viral replication. This type I IFN was released by plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC) via an ACE-2-indipendent but Neuropilin-1-dependent mechanism. Viral sensing regulates pDC phenotype by inducing cell surface expression of PD-L1 marker, a feature of type I IFN producing cells. Coherently to what observed in vitro, asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infected subjects displayed a similar pDC phenotype associated to a very high serum type I IFN level and induction of anti-viral IFN-stimulated genes in PBMC. Conversely, hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19 display very low frequency of circulating pDC with an inflammatory phenotype and high levels of chemokines and pro-inflammatory cytokines in serum. This study further shed light on the early events resulting from the interaction between SARS-CoV-2 and immune cells occurring in vitro and confirmed ex vivo. These observations can improve our understanding on the contribution of pDC/type I IFN axis in the regulation of the anti-viral state in asymptomatic and severe COVID-19 patients.
    Keywords Immunologic diseases. Allergy ; RC581-607 ; Biology (General) ; QH301-705.5
    Subject code 610 ; 570
    Language English
    Publishing date 2021-09-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  6. Article ; Online: Modeling Viral Infectious Diseases and Development of Antiviral Therapies Using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Systems

    Marta Trevisan / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Giovanna Desole / Alessandro Berto / Monia Pacenti / Giorgio Palù / Luisa Barzon

    Viruses, Vol 7, Iss 7, Pp 3835-

    2015  Volume 3856

    Abstract: The recent biotechnology breakthrough of cell reprogramming and generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which has revolutionized the approaches to study the mechanisms of human diseases and to test new drugs, can be exploited to generate ... ...

    Abstract The recent biotechnology breakthrough of cell reprogramming and generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which has revolutionized the approaches to study the mechanisms of human diseases and to test new drugs, can be exploited to generate patient-specific models for the investigation of host–pathogen interactions and to develop new antimicrobial and antiviral therapies. Applications of iPSC technology to the study of viral infections in humans have included in vitro modeling of viral infections of neural, liver, and cardiac cells; modeling of human genetic susceptibility to severe viral infectious diseases, such as encephalitis and severe influenza; genetic engineering and genome editing of patient-specific iPSC-derived cells to confer antiviral resistance.
    Keywords human induced pluripotent stem cells ; viral infection ; patient-specific disease model ; genome editing ; genetic susceptibility ; antiviral resistance ; CRISPR/Cas9 ; personalized therapy ; hepatitis C virus ; human immunodeficiency virus ; Microbiology ; QR1-502 ; Science ; Q
    Language English
    Publishing date 2015-07-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  7. Article ; Online: TRK Protein Expression in Merkel Cell Carcinoma Is Not Caused by NTRK Fusions

    Rocco Cappellesso / Lorenzo Nicolè / Paolo Del Fiore / Luisa Barzon / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Silvia Riccetti / Renato Franco / Federica Zito Marino / Giada Munari / Carolina Zamuner / Francesco Cavallin / Marta Sbaraglia / Francesca Galuppini / Franco Bassetto / Mauro Alaibac / Vanna Chiarion-Sileni / Luisa Piccin / Clara Benna / Matteo Fassan /
    Simone Mocellin / Angelo Paolo Dei Tos

    International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol 23, Iss 15366, p

    2022  Volume 15366

    Abstract: Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare and aggressive cutaneous malignant tumor with neuroendocrine differentiation, with a rapidly growing incidence rate, high risk of recurrence, and aggressive behavior. The available therapeutic options for advanced ... ...

    Abstract Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare and aggressive cutaneous malignant tumor with neuroendocrine differentiation, with a rapidly growing incidence rate, high risk of recurrence, and aggressive behavior. The available therapeutic options for advanced disease are limited and there is a pressing need for new treatments. Tumors harboring fusions involving one of the neurotrophin receptor tyrosine kinase ( NTRK ) genes are now actionable with targeted inhibitors. NTRK -fused genes have been identified in neuroendocrine tumors of other sites; thus, a series of 76 MCCs were firstly analyzed with pan-TRK immunohistochemistry and the positive ones with real-time RT-PCR, RNA-based NGS, and FISH to detect the eventual underlying gene fusion. Despite 34 MCCs showing pan-TRK expression, NTRK fusions were not found in any cases. As in other tumors with neural differentiation, TRK expression seems to be physiological and not caused by gene fusions.
    Keywords NTRK1 ; NTRK2 ; NTRK3 ; Merkel cell carcinoma ; EPR17341 ; Biology (General) ; QH301-705.5 ; Chemistry ; QD1-999
    Subject code 616
    Language English
    Publishing date 2022-12-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher MDPI AG
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  8. Article ; Online: Characterization of a new CDC73 missense mutation that impairs Parafibromin expression and nucleolar localization.

    Giulia Masi / Maurizio Iacobone / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Barbara Mantelli / Gianmaria Pennelli / Ignazio Castagliuolo / Giorgio Palù / Luisa Barzon

    PLoS ONE, Vol 9, Iss 5, p e

    2014  Volume 97994

    Abstract: Mutations of the Cell Division Cycle 73 (CDC73) tumor suppressor gene (previously known as HRPT2), encoding for parafibromin, are associated with the Hyperparathyroidism-Jaw Tumor (HPT-JT) syndrome, an autosomal dominant disease whose clinical ... ...

    Abstract Mutations of the Cell Division Cycle 73 (CDC73) tumor suppressor gene (previously known as HRPT2), encoding for parafibromin, are associated with the Hyperparathyroidism-Jaw Tumor (HPT-JT) syndrome, an autosomal dominant disease whose clinical manifestations are mainly parathyroid tumors and, less frequently, ossifying fibromas of the jaws, uterine and renal tumors. Most mutations of CDC73 are nonsense or frameshift, while missense mutations are rare and generally affect the N-terminal domain of parafibromin, a region that is still poorly characterized. The aim of this study was to characterize a novel somatic CDC73 missense mutation (Ile60Asn) identified in the mandibular tumor of a HPT-JT patient carrying a germline CDC73 inactivating mutation. Immunostaining of the tumor showed reduced nuclear parafibromin immunoreactivity. Western blotting and confocal microscopy of transfected cells demonstrated that the Ile60Asn mutant parafibromin was less expressed than the wild-type protein and exhibited impaired nucleolar localization. Treatment of transfected cells with translation and proteasome inhibitors demonstrated a decreased stability of the Ile60An mutant, partially due to an increase in proteasomal degradation. Overexpression of the Ile60Asn mutant led to increased cell proliferation and to accumulation in the G2/M phase of cell cycle. Moreover, mutant parafibromin lost the ability to down-regulate c-myc expression. In conclusion, our study shows that a missense mutation in the N-terminus of parafibromin, identified in an ossifying fibroma from a HPT-JT patient, stimulated cell proliferation and impaired parafibromin expression and nucleolar localization, suggesting a relevant role of the N-terminal domain for parafibromin function.
    Keywords Medicine ; R ; Science ; Q
    Subject code 570
    Language English
    Publishing date 2014-01-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  9. Article ; Online: Mycobacterium tuberculosis-induced miR-155 subverts autophagy by targeting ATG3 in human dendritic cells.

    Marilena P Etna / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Angela Grassi / Elena Giacomini / Alessandra Romagnoli / Manuela Pardini / Martina Severa / Melania Cruciani / Fabiana Rizzo / Eleni Anastasiadou / Barbara Di Camillo / Luisa Barzon / Gian Maria Fimia / Riccardo Manganelli / Eliana M Coccia

    PLoS Pathogens, Vol 14, Iss 1, p e

    2018  Volume 1006790

    Abstract: Autophagy is a primordial eukaryotic pathway, which provides the immune system with multiple mechanisms for the elimination of invading pathogens including Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). As a consequence, Mtb has evolved different strategies to hijack ...

    Abstract Autophagy is a primordial eukaryotic pathway, which provides the immune system with multiple mechanisms for the elimination of invading pathogens including Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). As a consequence, Mtb has evolved different strategies to hijack the autophagy process. Given the crucial role of human primary dendritic cells (DC) in host immunity control, we characterized Mtb-DC interplay by studying the contribution of cellular microRNAs (miRNAs) in the post-transcriptional regulation of autophagy related genes. From the expression profile of de-regulated miRNAs obtained in Mtb-infected human DC, we identified 7 miRNAs whose expression was previously found to be altered in specimens of TB patients. Among them, gene ontology analysis showed that miR-155, miR-155* and miR-146a target mRNAs with a significant enrichment in biological processes linked to autophagy. Interestingly, miR-155 was significantly stimulated by live and virulent Mtb and enriched in polysome-associated RNA fraction, where actively translated mRNAs reside. The putative pair interaction among the E2 conjugating enzyme involved in LC3-lipidation and autophagosome formation-ATG3-and miR-155 arose by target prediction analysis, was confirmed by both luciferase reporter assay and Atg3 immunoblotting analysis of miR-155-transfected DC, which showed also a consistent Atg3 protein and LC3 lipidated form reduction. Late in infection, when miR-155 expression peaked, both the level of Atg3 and the number of LC3 puncta per cell (autophagosomes) decreased dramatically. In accordance, miR-155 silencing rescued autophagosome number in Mtb infected DC and enhanced autolysosome fusion, thereby supporting a previously unidentified role of the miR-155 as inhibitor of ATG3 expression. Taken together, our findings suggest how Mtb can manipulate cellular miRNA expression to regulate Atg3 for its own survival, and highlight the importance to develop novel therapeutic strategies against tuberculosis that would boost autophagy.
    Keywords Immunologic diseases. Allergy ; RC581-607 ; Biology (General) ; QH301-705.5
    Subject code 500
    Language English
    Publishing date 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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  10. Article ; Online: Characterization of Intra-Type Variants of Oncogenic Human Papillomaviruses by Next-Generation Deep Sequencing of the E6/E7 Region

    Enrico Lavezzo / Giulia Masi / Stefano Toppo / Elisa Franchin / Valentina Gazzola / Alessandro Sinigaglia / Serena Masiero / Marta Trevisan / Silvana Pagni / Giorgio Palù / Luisa Barzon

    Viruses, Vol 8, Iss 3, p

    2016  Volume 79

    Abstract: Different human papillomavirus (HPV) types are characterized by differences in tissue tropism and ability to promote cell proliferation and transformation. In addition, clinical and experimental studies have shown that some genetic variants/lineages of ... ...

    Abstract Different human papillomavirus (HPV) types are characterized by differences in tissue tropism and ability to promote cell proliferation and transformation. In addition, clinical and experimental studies have shown that some genetic variants/lineages of high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) types are characterized by increased oncogenic activity and probability to induce cancer. In this study, we designed and validated a new method based on multiplex PCR-deep sequencing of the E6/E7 region of HR-HPV types to characterize HPV intra-type variants in clinical specimens. Validation experiments demonstrated that this method allowed reliable identification of the different lineages of oncogenic HPV types. Advantages of this method over other published methods were represented by its ability to detect variants of all HR-HPV types in a single reaction, to detect variants of HR-HPV types in clinical specimens with multiple infections, and, being based on sequencing of the full E6/E7 region, to detect amino acid changes in these oncogenes potentially associated with increased transforming activity.
    Keywords human papillomavirus ; genotyping ; next-generation sequencing ; E6/E7 ; subtype ; variant ; cervical cancer ; high-risk HPV ; deep sequencing ; pyrosequencing ; Microbiology ; QR1-502 ; Science ; Q
    Subject code 610
    Language English
    Publishing date 2016-03-01T00:00:00Z
    Publisher MDPI AG
    Document type Article ; Online
    Database BASE - Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (life sciences selection)

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