MIRATA , Serena

In the last decade, synchrotron-based techniques have emerged as effective tools for investigating biological systems at the sub-cellular level. In asbestos-related studies, X-ray microscopy, combined with X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) enable successfully investigating the interaction between fibres...

Recently, the bioactive properties of marine collagen and marine collagen hydrolysates have been demonstrated. Although there is some literature assessing the general chemical features and biocompatibility of collagen extracts from marine sponges, no data are available on the biological effects of sponge collagen hydrolysates for biomedical...

This study investigated the possibility to derive functional foods with enhanced bioactive properties from a recycling approach by using the residues from Lavandula angustifolia processing after essential oil extraction. The residues were used as a growing substrate for the edible mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus A strain, and they were added in a...

Inflammation and oxidative stress are part of the complex biological responses of body tissues to harmful stimuli. In recent years, due to the increased understanding that oxidative stress is implicated in several diseases, pharmaceutical industries have invested in the research and development of new antioxidant compounds, especially from...

Chondrosia reniformis is a common marine demosponge showing many peculiarities, lacking silica spicules and with a body entirely formed by a dense collagenous matrix. In this paper, we have described the identification of a new cytotoxic protein (chondrosin) with selective activity against specific tumor cell lines, from C. reniformis,...

The health hazard represented by the exposure to asbestos may also concern other minerals with asbestos-like crystal habit. One of these potentially hazardous minerals is fibrous glaucophane. Fibrous glaucophane is a major component of blueschist rocks of California (USA) currently mined for construction purposes. Dust generated by the...