The Effect of Mobile Phone Radiation on in vitro Platelet Aggregation in Patients with Polycythemia Vera and Ischemic Stroke

Biophysics - Abstract—The influence of exposure to mobile phone radiation on in vitro platelet aggregation has been studied. It has been shown that a 30-min exposure of blood samples to...     

Distribution of Tetrahydromethanopterin-Dependent Enzymes in Methylotrophic Bacteria and Phylogeny of Methenyl Tetrahydromethanopterin Cyclohydrolases

The methylotrophic proteobacterium Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 possesses tetrahydromethanopterin (H(4)MPT)-dependent enzymes, which are otherwise specific to methanogenic and sulfate-reducing archaea and which have been suggested to be involved in formaldehyde oxidation to CO(2) in M. extorquens AM1. The distribution of H(4)MPT-dependent enzyme activities in cell extracts of methylotrophic bacteria from 13 different genera are reported. H(4)MPT-dependent activities were detected in all of the methylotrophic and methanotrophic proteobacteria tested that assimilate formaldehyde by the serine or ribulose monophosphate pathway. H(4)MPT-dependent activities were also found in autotrophic Xanthobacter strains. However, no H(4)MPT-dependent enzyme activities could be detected in other autotrophic alpha-proteobacteria or in gram-positive methylotrophic bacteria. Genes encoding methenyl H(4)MPT cyclohydrolase (mch genes) were cloned and sequenced from several proteobacteria. Bacterial and archaeal Mch sequences have roughly 35% amino acid identity and form distinct groups in phylogenetic analysis.     

Contribution of mobile genetic elements to Desulfovibrio vulgaris genome plasticity

The genome of Desulfovibrio vulgaris strain DePue, a sulfate-reducing Deltaproteobacterium isolated from heavy metal-impacted lake sediment, was completely sequenced and compared with the type strain D. vulgaris Hildenborough. The two genomes share a high degree of relatedness and synteny, but harbour distinct prophage and signatures of past phage encounters. In addition to a highly variable phage contribution, the genome of strain DePue contains a cluster of open-reading frames not found in strain Hildenborough coding for the production and export of a capsule exopolysaccharide, possibly of relevance to heavy metal resistance. Comparative whole-genome microarray analysis on four additional D. vulgaris strains established greater interstrain variation within regions associated with phage insertion and exopolysaccharide biosynthesis.     

Behavioral characterization of striatal‐enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase (STEP) knockout mice

Striatal‐enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase (STEP) has been described as a regulator of multiple kinases and glutamate receptor subunits critical for synaptic plasticity. Published behavioral and biochemical characterization from the founder line of STEP knockout (KO) mice revealed superior cognitive performance, with enhanced phosphorylation of substrates such as ERK, Fyn and GluN2B; suggesting that inhibitors of STEP may have potential as therapeutic agents for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders. The objectives of this work aimed to replicate and extend the previously reported behavioral consequences of STEP knockout. Consistent with previous reported data, STEP KO mice demonstrated exploratory activity levels and similar motor coordination relative to WT littermate controls as well as intact memory in a Y‐maze spatial novelty test. Interestingly, KO mice demonstrated deficits in pre‐pulse inhibition as well as reduced seizure threshold relative to WT controls. Immunohistochemical staining of brains revealed the expected gene‐dependent reduction in STEP protein confirming knockout in the mice. The present data confirm expression and localization of STEP and the absence in KO mice, and describe functional downstream implications of reducing STEP levels in vivo.     

The approximate entropy of the electromyographic signals of tremor correlates with the osmotic fragility of human erythrocytes

Background  

The main problem of tremor is the damage caused to the quality of the life of patients, especially those at more advanced ages. There is not a consensus yet about the origins of this disorder, but it can be examined in the correlations between the biological signs of aging and the tremor characteristics.     

Different responses of biochemical markers in frogs (Rana ridibunda) from urban and rural wetlands to the effect of carbamate fungicide

Laboratory studies were conducted to determine the effects of carbamate fungicide TATTU (mixture of propamocarb and mancozeb, 0.091 mg L(-1)) on biochemical markers of exposure in Rana ridibunda from clean (reference) and polluted sites. The untreated animals from the polluted site had lower Cu,Zn- and Mn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) and acetylcholinesterase activity, the levels of lipid peroxidation products (TBARS) and protein carbonyls in the liver and vitellogenin-like proteins (Vtg-LP) in the serum, but higher levels of glutathione in the liver in comparison with untreated frogs from the reference site. Catalase activity, superoxide anion and metallothionein levels were the same in both groups. The animals from two sites demonstrate different response on the effect of TATTU during 14 days. In the frogs from polluted site the oxidative damage (the decrease of Mn-SOD activity, lipids and protein oxidative destruction), neurotoxicity (depletion of acetylcholinesterase activity), and endocrine disruption (increase of Vtg-LP level) were revealed. On the other hand, the part of the indices in the animals from the reference site was unchanged after the treatment and the level of metallothionein was elevated demonstrating the satisfactory ability for the adaptation to unfavourable conditions.     

Recovery of temperate Desulfovibrio vulgaris bacteriophage using a novel host strain

A novel sulfate-reducing bacterium (strain DePue) closely related to Desulfovibrio vulgaris ssp. vulgaris strain Hildenborough was isolated from the sediment of a heavy-metal impacted lake using established techniques. Although few physiological differences between strains DePue and Hildenborough were observed, pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) revealed a significant genome reduction in strain DePue. Comparative whole-genome microarray and polymerase chain reaction analyses demonstrated that the absence of genes annotated in the Hildenborough genome as phage or phage-related contributed to the significant genome reduction in strain DePue. Two morphotypically distinct temperate bacteriophage from strain Hildenborough were recovered using strain DePue as a host for plaque isolation.