Risk Associated with the Use of Selected Ingredients in Food Supplements

This review focuses on four new product categories of food supplements: pre-workout, fat burner/thermogenic, brain/cognitive booster, and hormone/testosterone booster. Many food supplements have been shown to be contaminated with unauthorized substances. In some cases, the ingredients in the new categories of dietary supplements were medicinal products or new synthetic compounds added without performing clinical trials. Some of the new ingredients in dietary supplements are plant materials that are registered in the pharmacopoeia as herbal medicines. In other cases, dietary supplements may contain plant materials that have no history of human use and are often used as materials to ‘camouflage’ stimulants. In the European Union, new ingredients of dietary supplements, according to European Food Safety Authority or unauthorized novel food. Furthermore, selected ingredients in dietary supplements may be prohibited in sports and are recognized as doping agents by World Anti-Doping Agency.     

Phosphonates Derivatives of 2′,3′-Dideoxy-2′,3′-didehydro-pentopyranosyl Nucleosides

Abstract

Adenine and thymine derivatives of 2′,3′-dideoxy-2′,3′-didehydropento-pyranosyl nucleosides carrying a phosphonomethyl moiety at their 4′-O-position and in a cis relationship with the heterocyclic base have been synthesized.     

The Cytotoxicity of Anti-PAI-I Oligonucleotides and Their Conjugates

Abstract

The cytotoxicity of anti-PAI-5 hexadecanucleotides (phosphodiesters and phosphorothioates) and their conjugates with lipophilic alcohols was tested in EA.hy 926 hybrid endothelial cells. Some cytotoxicity was found for cholesteryl and bornyl conjugates at concentrations higher than those used for antisense inhibition experiments.     

A Solid-Phase Synthesis of 2′,5′-Linked Oligoadenylates (2-5A)

Abstract

2′,5′-Oligoadenylate 5′-triphosphates (2-5A) as products of 2-5A synthetase and activators of ribonuclease L (RNase L), are mediators in one of the mechanisms of interferon′s antiviral action. Upon activation, RNase L inhibits protein synthesis due to the degradation of RNAs. This activity of 2-5A could possibly find an application in virus or cancer chemotherapy, but two major barriers prevent the use of 2′,5′-linked oligoadenylates as therapeutic agents. The 2-5A is readily degraded by a 2′,5′ phosphodiesterase and as a highly negatively charged molecule, is not readily taken up by cells. One possible solution to this latter limitation might be found in chemical modifications of the 2-5A structure. Many analogues of 2-5A have been already obtained with modified base, ribose or phosphate moieties. While these have provided some important information about the enzyme- activator interactions, the cell permeability problem still remains unsolved. One of the major obstacles in this study is lack of a convenient method of synthesis of 2′,5′ ribonucleotides of widely varying structure.     

Molecular diagnosis of cystic echinococcosis in humans from central Poland

The identity of the causative agent of cystic echinococcosis (CE) in humans from central Poland receiving treatment between 2000 and 2010 was determined. A total of 47 samples obtained after hepatectomy were examined and protoscoleces were identified in wet preparations in 27 cases. Using DNA extracted from the samples, two mitochondrial regions (nad1 and cox1 genes) were amplified and the nad1 fragment was sequenced. This PCR analysis confirmed the presence of Echinococcus species in 30 cases and nad1 sequence alignments showed identity with the G7 (pig) strain, Echinococcus canadensis. These data demonstrate that the pig strain of this parasite is the most frequent causative agent of human cystic echinococcosis in central Poland.     

Tubulin-interactive stilbene derivatives as anticancer agents

Microtubules are dynamic polymers that occur in eukaryotic cells and play important roles in cell division, motility, transport and signaling. They form during the process of polymerization of α- and β-tubulin dimers. Tubulin is a significant and heavily researched molecular target for anticancer drugs. Combretastatins are natural cis-stilbenes that exhibit cytotoxic properties in cultured cancer cells in vitro. Combretastatin A-4 (3′-hydroxy-3,4,4′, 5-tetramethoxy-cis-stilbene; CA-4) is a potent cytotoxic cis-stilbene that binds to β-tubulin at the colchicine-binding site and inhibits tubulin polymerization. The prodrug CA-4 phosphate is currently in clinical trials as a chemotherapeutic agent for cancer treatment. Numerous series of stilbene analogs have been studied in search of potent cytotoxic agents with the requisite tubulin-interactive properties. Microtubule-interfering agents include numerous CA-4 and transresveratrol analogs and other synthetic stilbene derivatives. Importantly, these agents are active in both tumor cells and immature endothelial cells of tumor blood vessels, where they inhibit the process of angiogenesis. Recently, computer-aided virtual screening was used to select potent tubulin-interactive compounds. This review covers the role of stilbene derivatives as a class of antitumor agents that act by targeting microtubule assembly dynamics. Additionally, we present the results of molecular modeling of their binding to specific sites on the α- and β-tubulin heterodimer. This has enabled the elucidation of the mechanism of stilbene cytotoxicity and is useful in the design of novel agents with improved anti-mitotic activity. Tubulin-interactive agents are believed to have the potential to play a significant role in the fight against cancer.     

A high density physical map of chromosome 1BL supports evolutionary studies,map-based cloning and sequencing in wheat

Background

As for other major crops, achieving a complete wheat genome sequence is essential for the application of genomics to breeding new and improved varieties. To overcome the complexities of the large, highly repetitive and hexaploid wheat genome, the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium established a chromosome-based strategy that was validated by the construction of the physical map of chromosome 3B. Here, we present improved strategies for the construction of highly integrated and ordered wheat physical maps, using chromosome 1BL as a template, and illustrate their potential for evolutionary studies and map-based cloning.

Results

Using a combination of novel high throughput marker assays and an assembly program, we developed a high quality physical map representing 93% of wheat chromosome 1BL, anchored and ordered with 5,489 markers including 1,161 genes. Analysis of the gene space organization and evolution revealed that gene distribution and conservation along the chromosome results from the superimposition of the ancestral grass and recent wheat evolutionary patterns, leading to a peak of synteny in the central part of the chromosome arm and an increased density of non-collinear genes towards the telomere. With a density of about 11 markers per Mb, the 1BL physical map provides 916 markers, including 193 genes, for fine mapping the 40 QTLs mapped on this chromosome.

Conclusions

Here, we demonstrate that high marker density physical maps can be developed in complex genomes such as wheat to accelerate map-based cloning, gain new insights into genome evolution, and provide a foundation for reference sequencing.     

Isotopic Analysis of some Romanian Wines by 2H NMR and IRMS

Isotopic analyses are now official or standard methods in Europe and North America for routine use in testing the authenticity of several food products. These methods are based on the measurement of stable isotope content (²H, ¹³C, ¹⁸O) of the product or of a specific component such as an ingredient or target molecule of the product. The determinations carried out using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and Isotopic Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS), provide information on the botanical and geographical origin of the food product. A deuterium natural abundance quantitative NMR method (SNIF-NMR: Site-specific Natural Isotope Fractionation) was developed as an efficient and powerful tool capable of characterizing the chemical origins of organic molecules and distinguishing their biological and geographical origin. The SNIF method is based on the measurement of deuterium / hydrogen (D/H) ratios at the specific sites of the ethanol. Using these methods, we present the obtained results for a series of Romanian wines. Our results may be used like reference data set for authenticity and origin control of wines.