Search

During the Hellenistic period and under the growing influence of the art of painting, the polychromy of Greek terracotta figurines focused not only on an elaborate rendering of color, but also on the interplay of light and shadow. Some of the best-preserved examples clearly show the subtlety of such pictorial effects. Among them is a statuette of a standing Maenad, held in the collections of the National Archaeological Museum in Athens (inv. 5000). Dating back to 150–100 BCE, it is a high-quality testament to the sculptural, as well as pictorial, coroplastic production in the workshops of Myrina (Eolide, Turkey). Combining multi-scale examination, multi-spectral imaging and non-invasive spectroscopic investigations (XRF, FTIR, FORS), a scientific study of the artefact was carried out within the framework of the Pilina project, a collaborative research program between the Louvre, the C2RMF, the National Archaeological Museum and the French School in Athens. This article presents the main results of the study by discussing the color scheme, identification of some pigments and colorants (clays of the kaolinite group, ochres, cinnabar, Egyptian blue, an anthraquinone of plant origin, likely madder, gold leaf), and painting techniques aiming at achieving chiaroscuro effects.

Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a fundamental process that maintains tissue homeostasis, eliminates damaged or infected cells, and plays a crucial role in various biological phenomena. The deregulation of apoptosis is involved in many human diseases, including cancer. One of the emerging players in the intricate regulatory network of apoptosis is apoptosis inhibitor 5 (API5), also called AAC-11 (anti-apoptosis clone 11) or FIF (fibroblast growth factor-2 interacting factor). While it may not have yet the same level of notoriety as some other cancer-associated proteins, API5 has garnered increasing attention in the cancer field in recent years, as elevated API5 levels are often associated with aggressive tumor behavior, resistance to therapy, and poor patient prognosis. This review aims to shed light on the multifaceted functions and regulatory mechanisms of API5 in cell fate decisions as well as its interest as therapeutic target in cancer.

A challenge in quantitative biology is to predict output patterns of gene expression from knowledge of input transcription factor patterns and from the arrangement of binding sites for these transcription factors on regulatory DNA. We tested whether widespread thermodynamic models could be used to infer parameters describing simple regulatory architectures that inform parameter-free predictions of more complex enhancers in the context of transcriptional repression by Runt in the early fruit fly embryo. By modulating the number and placement of Runt binding sites within an enhancer, and quantifying the resulting transcriptional activity using live imaging, we discovered that thermodynamic models call for higher-order cooperativity between multiple molecular players. This higher-order cooperativity captures the combinatorial complexity underlying eukaryotic transcriptional regulation and cannot be determined from simpler regulatory architectures, highlighting the challenges in reaching a predictive understanding of transcriptional regulation in eukaryotes and calling for approaches that quantitatively dissect their molecular nature.

The origin of the impaired CD4 T-cell response and immunodeficiency of HIV-infected patients is still only partially understood. We recently demonstrated that PLA2G1B phospholipase synergizes with the HIV gp41 envelope protein in HIV viremic plasma to induce large abnormal membrane microdomains (aMMDs) that trap and inactivate physiological receptors, such as those for IL-7. However, the mechanism of regulation of PLA2G1B activity by the cofactor gp41 is not known. Here, we developed an assay to directly follow PLA2G1B enzymatic activity on CD4 T-cell membranes. We demonstrated that gp41 directly binds to PLA2G1B and increases PLA2G1B enzymatic activity on CD4 membrane. Furthermore, we show that the conserved 3S sequence of gp41, known to bind to the innate sensor gC1qR, increases PLA2G1B activity in a gC1qR-dependent manner using gC1qR KO cells. The critical role of the 3S motif and gC1qR in the inhibition of CD4 T-cell function by the PLA2G1B/cofactor system in HIV-infected patients led us to screen additional microbial proteins for 3S-like motifs and to study other proteins known to bind to the gC1qR to further investigate the role of the PLA2G1B/cofactor system in other infectious diseases and carcinogenesis. We have thus extended the PLA2G1B/cofactor system to HCV and Staphylococcus aureus infections and additional pathologies where microbial proteins with 3S-like motifs also increase PLA2G1B enzymatic activity. Notably, the bacteria Porphyromonas gingivalis, which is associated with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), encodes such a cofactor protein and increased PLA2G1B activity in PDAC patient plasma inhibits the CD4 response to IL-7. Our findings identify PLA2G1B/cofactor system as a CD4 T-cell inhibitor. It involves the gC1qR and disease-specific cofactors which are gC1qR-binding proteins that can contain 3S-like motifs. This mechanism involved in HIV-1 immunodeficiency could play a role in pancreatic cancer and several other diseases. These observations suggest that the PLA2G1B/cofactor system is a general CD4 T-cell inhibitor and pave the way for further studies to better understand the role of CD4 T-cell anergy in infectious diseases and tumor escape.

ABSTRACT IS AVAILABLE IN THE PDF

This article constitutes a chapter in the forthcoming Handbook for Coroplastic Research that is in preparation by an international team of researchers. It details the museological approach to the study of Greek figurative terracottas, both past and present, especially as it is represented by the collection of the Louvre Museum.

ll worthwhile to visit Canosa to get a sense of the archaeological contexts—the rock cut tombs within which the figures were found. The history of these tombs comprises a series of discoveries, losses, and rediscoveries. Most of the tombs can be visited today.

UNLABELLED: Research on treatments in anorexia nervosa (AN) is scarce. Although most of the therapeutic programs used in 'real world practice' in AN treatment resort to multidisciplinary approaches, they have rarely been evaluated. OBJECTIVE: To compare two multidimensional post-hospitalization outpatients treatment programs for adolescents with severe AN: Treatment as Usual (TAU) versus this treatment plus family therapy (TAU+FT). METHOD: Sixty female AN adolescents, aged 13 to 19 years, were included in a randomized parallel controlled trial conducted from 1999 to 2002 for the recruitment, and until 2004 for the 18 months follow-up. Allocation to one of the two treatment groups (30 in each arm) was randomised. The TAU program included sessions for the patient alone as well as sessions with a psychiatrist for the patient and her parents. The TAU+FT program was identical to the usual one but also included family therapy sessions targeting intra-familial dynamics, but not eating disorder symptoms. The main Outcome Measure was the Morgan and Russell outcome category (Good or Intermediate versus Poor outcome). Secondary outcome indicators included AN symptoms or their consequences (eating symptoms, body mass index, amenorrhea, number of hospitalizations in the course of follow-up, social adjustment). The evaluators, but not participants, were blind to randomization. RESULTS: At 18 months follow-up, we found a significant group effect for the Morgan and Russell outcome category in favor of the program with family therapy (Intention-to-treat: TAU+FT :12/30 (40%); TAU : 5/29 (17.2%) p = 0.05; Per Protocol analysis: respectively 12/26 (46.2%); 4/27 (14.8%), p = 0.01). Similar group effects were observed in terms of achievement of a healthy weight (i.e., BMI≥10(th) percentile) and menstrual status. CONCLUSIONS: Adding family therapy sessions, focusing on intra-familial dynamics rather than eating symptomatology, to a multidimensional program improves treatment effectiveness in girls with severe AN. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Controlled-trials.com ISRCTN71142875.

L’evoluzione della società ha cambiato la nostra visione di alcuni aspetti della psicopatologia. L’accento si sposta dalla patologia dei conflitti favorita da una società repressiva ad una patologia dei legami, dei limiti e della dipendenza facilitata da una società liberale. La problematica pulsionale dell’aggressività o della sessualità non può più essere pensata in altro modo se non dialetticamente con quella dell’identità, dei limiti, della paura di essere sopraffatti o dell’abbandono da parte delle persone investite. I fallimenti del narcisismo come l’importanza delle relazioni insicure precoci di questi soggetti, occupano una posizione centrale nella comprensione di queste patologie. L’adolescenza è un momento privilegiato d’espressione di queste problematiche. Il peso dei limiti, sia biologici che sociali, ridanno all’Io un ruolo centrale nella loro gestione. La sua capacità di fronteggiare o, al contrario, la sua vulnerabilità ai traumatismi sono variabili centrali nella prognosi. Questa evoluzione interroga i modelli classici della psicoterapia e, in senso generale, gli strumenti più efficaci per favorire un cambiamento dei soggetti.