Car-T Therapy in the fight against leukemia
Oggi vogliamo parlarvi di Alyssa, una bambina di 13 anni affetta da leucemia linfoblastica acuta a cellule T (T-ALL) e guarita grazie alla terapia con le cellule Car-T. […]
Provora: the new supergroup of eukaryotes
“Provora” è il nuovo supergruppo di microrganismi eucarioti (organisms with a well-differentiated nucleus, made up of one or more cells) discovered in some geographically distant marine habitats, precisely near the coral reefs of Curacao in the Caribbean sea, in the Black and Red Sea areas, in the waters of the Arctic Ocean and north-east of the Pacific Ocean. Tikhonenkov, Keeling and other authors of this scientific investigation, taking some water samples, they found these very small strains equipped with two flagella, o code (i.e. long filamentous structures important for movement), located in separate pockets, che nuotano velocemente e predano [...]
The blood type diet: what does science say?
Tra i tanti tipi di diete e alternative proposte per una corretta alimentazione ce n'è una in particolare che, lately, is back in fashion: the blood group diet. We would like to remind you that, when it comes to health, you should consult professionals, and not let yourself be carried away by random people without any professional title.. Meanwhile, let's try to understand together what that is. This idea dates back to 1996 when an American naturopath, Peter D’Adamo, publishes a book (Eat right 4 your type) in which he explains how to follow a specific diet based on the blood type. Il libro è stato [...]
The collection of glass
Glass is an amorphous material, that is, a liquid that undergoes solidification without however acquiring the ordered structure of the crystals, instead maintaining a disordered and rigid structure. Its discovery dates back to the Phoenicians who at the time understood that by combining sodium carbonate and silica sand, glass was obtained. In fact, in common parlance with glass we mean that material formed by calcium, soda and silicon which sees its application in different fields, such as the making of containers, part of the furniture (windows) or manufacture of decorative elements (objects and chandeliers). The different uses of glass are due [...]
The impact of food on the environment: towards sustainable nutrition
Environmental changes are hardly a mystery. It is increasingly evident how human activities are damaging everything around them.; from the soil to the air, to the water and every water channel. When it comes to pollution, factories are mainly blamed., waste or transport, but few think about food. Now you may wonder: "What does food have to do with the environment?" The answer is very simple: "What we eat is important not only for our health but also for the planet". The World Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) stated that current food production is [...]
The genetic profile in male infertility
Over the last 20 years we have witnessed a decrease in the birth rate also due to a decrease in fertility, as demography shows. In fact, an increase in the percentage of aging is estimated by 2050 worldwide. According to the data, one in five couples cannot procreate naturally. The reasons could be many, but, among these, it affects a lot than in the last 30 years, the average age of conception in both sexes has increased by almost 10 years and lifestyles have changed to the point of damaging fertility. Often, mistakenly, they tend to [...]
Endometriosis: a phantom disease
"To prevent is better than to cure" as the old saying goes, but to prevent it is necessary to know and this is one of the problems of endometriosis: we don't talk enough about it, yet it affects 1 woman out of 10 and represents the 30% of the causes of female infertility. That's high enough for a phantom disease, a pathology that exists but is not seen or at least not immediately because the symptoms and alarm bells that reach our body are often underestimated. All this because of poor awereness, and because in 2020 unfortunately some topics are still taboo. Endometriosis, as the [...]
Unexpected mutations in gene editing
Many of you will have already heard of CRISPR-Cas9, the so-called molecular scissors that serve to modify the DNA of many organisms. This technique has represented a revolution in the field of genetic engineering in recent years due to its ability to "cut and sew" a specific DNA sequence to make corrections in target genes. So much so that it has opened new avenues and new possibilities for gene therapy, that is, the possibility of treating or preventing diseases by intervening directly on the patient's genome. But how advanced are these techniques today? And what are the risks? The use of CRISPR which created more [...]
The epigenetic supersimilarity of monozygotic twins
Monozygotic twins are identical individuals born from the fertilization of a single egg cell from a sperm that have the same genetic makeup. The common elements between two identical twins do not only concern genetics but also involve epigenetics, that is the set of molecular mechanisms that regulate the expression of genes without modifying the DNA. A type of epigenetic modification studied in twins is methylation which consists in the addition of a methyl group (-CH3) to a nitrogenous base. Through the study of metastable epialleles (ME), epigenetic variants set up in the early embryo and maintained during subsequent cell differentiation, it was possible to observe that [...]
Lactose and gluten intolerance: what you need to know!
We have previously explained the difference between allergy and intolerance, now let's go into the details of the most widespread intolerances in the population and their causes. What is lactose intolerance? Because the body cannot metabolize it? Lactose is a disaccharide, that is, a compound sugar present in dairy products and all its derivatives, formed by two simpler sugars: glucose and galactose. Normally the body metabolizes it through lactase, an enzyme produced by some bacteria such as lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. Lactase breaks the bond between glucose and galactose and allows their digestion. When the enzyme is reduced or [...]
