Apoptosis in raloxifene-treated postmenopausal women

As raloxifene is a mixed estrogen receptor agonist and antagonist, it exerts different effects on apoptosis in different tissues. In this study, we aimed to evaluate apoptosis in the peripheral lymphocytes of postmenopausal women treated with raloxifene and compare it with untreated control subjects. In this way, we expected to deduce some results about the effect of raloxifene on the immune system and to serve as a guide for future studies on this newly proposed effect of a well-known agent. Twenty osteoporotic postmenopausal women treated with raloxifene for 12 months were included in this study. Another 20 osteoporotic postmenopausal women matched for age and postmenopausal years, but without any medication, were chosen as the control group. Apoptosis was evaluated using a morphological and DNA fragmentation assay, in the peripheral lymphocytes of these women. Our results revealed a decrease in the apoptosis percentages of the patients treated with raloxifene (14.6%) with respect to the control subjects (15.8%), but the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.467). This study indicated that raloxifene treatment had no apoptotic effect on peripheral human lymphocytes compared to controls.     

Single-cell protein production from ram horn hydrolysate by bacteria

The alcoholysis (transesterification) of the refined cotton seed oil of Turkish origin with primary and secondary alcohols was investigated in the presence of an immobilized enzyme from Candida antarctica, commercially called Novozym 435 in a solvent-free medium. The optimum conditions of the methanolysis were as follows: 30% enzyme based on oil weight; oil/alcohol molar ratio 1:4; temperature: 50 degrees C and reaction time: 7 h. Maximum methyl esters (ME) yield was 91.5%. At the same conditions cotton seed oil was converted with short-chain primary and secondary alcohols to its corresponding esters with conversions between 72% and 94%. Our results indicated that alcoholysis products of cotton seed oil could be used as valuable intermediates in oleochemistry.     

PCR amplification of DNA sequence related to the hrpD gene of Xanthomonas cucurbitae in leaf spot disease of pumpkin and their antagonism by soil bacteria

A sensitive and specific assay was developed to detect and biological control of bacterial leaf spot of pumpkin, Xanthomonas cucurbitae was identified on the basis of the morphological, biochemical and molecular assay. The antibiotic sensitivity of the isolate showed that, Carbenicillin revealed highest antibacterial activity with 29 ± 0.00 mm zone of inhibition against isolated bacterial strain. Isolated bacterial strains from soil were also identified by biochemical and molecular characterisation. By analysing morphological and biochemical characteristics and 16S rDNA of three bacterial strains isolated from soil was matched 96% with Bacillus subtilis, 98% with Bacillus brevis and 97% with Pseudomonas fluorescens strain. They were subjected to the antagonistic activity against Xanthomonas cucurbitae by disc diffusion method. Among them, B. subtilis showed significant positive antagonistic activity with 17.0 ± 0.28 mm zone of inhibition against Xanthomonas cucurbitae. The presence of DNA sequence related to the hrpD gene successfully amplified in some isolates of Xanthomonas cucurbitae.     

Protective role of ghrelin against carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄)-induced coagulation disturbances in rats

Recent data indicate that ghrelin has protective effects in different organs and cell types including the pancreas, heart, and gastrointestinal tract. The purpose of this study was to determine whether ghrelin plays a protective role against CCl₄-induced coagulation disturbances in rats.Fourty male Sprague–Dawley rats were equally divided into four groups including group 1 (1 ml physiological saline s.c., for 5 days), group 2 (CCl₄, i.p., single dose of 1.6 g/kg), group 3 (ghrelin, s.c., 10 nmol/kg/day, for 5 days) and group 4 (ghrelin, 10 nmol/kg/day, for 5 days plus CCl₄, i.p., single dose of 1.6 g/kg on the 5th day). Fibrinogen level, activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), prothrombin time (PT), platelet counts and alanine transaminase (ALT) activity were evaluated. The values of PT, aPTT and ALT activity were increased (p < 0.05), while fibrinogen level was decreased (p < 0.05) due to CCl4 treatment alone. Pre-treatment with ghrelin prior to the administration of CCl₄ reduced (p < 0.05) PT, aPTT and ALT values and increased (p < 0.05) fibrinogen level when compared with CCl₄-treated only group. The results of this study suggest that exogenously administered ghrelin may play a protective role against CCl₄-induced coagulation disturbances in rats.     

Comparison of novel and familiar commercial kits for detection of C-reactive protein levels

In this study, randomized patient sera were used to simultaneously evaluate an automated C-reactive protein (CRP) assay and a commercial semi-automated microCRP assay with respect to correlation, linearity, and accuracy. Patient specimens were analyzed; two independent assay runs were performed on i-CHROMA (Boditech Med Inc., Korea) and IMMAGE 800 (Beckman Coulter Inc., USA) analyzers to estimate the between- and within-run precision. All systems were calibrated, and quality-control materials were analyzed according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The results using the control materials were within the respective manufacturers’ specified limits. The comparison studies were designed using the CLSI EP9-2A guidelines. The mean serum CRP concentrations were 123.2 ± 123.5 mg/L (95 % confidence of interval (CI) 97.9–148.3) using the CRP assay and 130.1 ± 109.3 mg/L (95 % CI 107.9–152.4) using the microCRP assay. The variance values were σ = 15,252.6 and 11,935.8 for the CRP and microCRP assays, respectively. The concordance correlation coefficient value was calculated as 0.8314 (95 % CI 0.7594–0.8833). There was a significant correlation between the CRP and microCRP assays: r = 0.8392 and 95 % CI 0.7675–0.8902 (p < 0.0001). The CRP and microCRP detection methods were well correlated. The i-CHROMA has many advantages over the IMMAGE 800 with respect to space required, analysis time, and system setup/application costs in a laboratory. It may be an attractive instrument for small and intermediate medical centers.     

Continuous Bioconversion of the Lipids of Corn,Wheat, and Triticale Distiller’s Dried Grains with Solubles to Biodiesel in Supercritical Carbon Dioxide and Characterization of the Products

Lipids of corn, wheat, and triticale distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) were extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO₂) and converted to biodiesel (fatty acid methyl esters; FAME) in a continuous SC-CO₂ bioreactor using immobilized lipase. Different properties of the products obtained were characterized. FAME content of the products ranged between 87.1 % (corn DDGS lipid biodiesel; CB) and 92.0 % (triticale DDGS lipid biodiesel; TB). CB had a higher viscosity (6.24 mm²/s) than those of wheat DDGS lipid biodiesel (WB) (5.97 mm²/s) and TB (5.67 mm²/s). Cloud point of CB, WB, and TB were ?8.48, ?6.52, and ?5.04 °C, respectively. Oxidative stability of WB and TB was higher than that of CB. Heat of combustion of products was 39.4–39.6 kJ/g. Continuous bioconversion of DDGS lipids to biodiesel in SC-CO₂ is a simple, efficient, and “green” alternative to the conventional process and targets new opportunities for the biodiesel industry.     

Identification of a novel mutation in ZAP70 and prenatal diagnosis in a Turkish family with severe combined immunodeficiency disorder

Protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) play an important role in T cell development and activation. In vitro and in vivo defects, resulting in variable deficiencies in thymic development and in T cell antigen receptor (TCR) signal transduction, in PTKs have been shown. ZAP70, one of those PTKs, is a 70-kDa tyrosine phosphoprotein and associates with the ζ chain and undergoes tyrosine phosphorylation following TCR stimulation. It is expressed in T and natural killer (NK) cells. Several mutations were shown to lead to an autosomal recessive form of severe combined immunodeficiency disease (SCID).     

The anti-tumour effect of induced pluripotent stem cells against submandibular gland carcinoma in rats is achieved via modulation of the apoptotic response and the expression of Sirt-1, TGF-β, and MALAT-1 in cancer cells

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry - The era of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) was used as novel biotechnology to replace embryonic stem cells bypassing the ethical concerns and problems...