Effect of Lipids on the Activity of Calpain in Subcellular Fractions Obtained from the Rat Brain

We studied the effect of lipids on the activity of a neutral cysteine proteinase, calpain, in subcellular fractions obtained from the rat brain. Extraction of nearly 23% of membrane cholesterol from the coarse mitochondrial fraction did not result in modifications of specific activity of calpain in this fraction. Detergents (digitonin or Triton Х-100) used in 0.3% concentration enhanced the activity of calpain in the coarse mitochondrial fraction. Examination of the effects of preparations of different phospholipids on the activity of calpain in the cytoplasm demonstrated that only phosphatidylcholine, but not phosphatidylserine and/or cardiolipin, insignificantly increased the activity of calpain (independently of the size and structure of phospholipid vesicles). We hypothesize that the mechanisms underlying interaction between calpain and lipids are not universal; in native cells and model experiments, they can differ noticeably from each other and are modified depending on the corresponding conditions. Neirofiziologiya/Neurophysiology, Vol. 41, No. 1, pp. 3–9, January–February, 2009.     

EPR spectroscopy solutions for assessment of decellularization of intrathoracic organs and tissues

Using EPR spectroscopy it was established that the determination of the concentration of paramagnetic centers in lyophilized tissues allows indirect evaluation of the quality of decellularization of intrathoracic organs (diaphragm, heart, and lungs), since the content of paramagnetic particles in them can serve as a criterion of cell viability and points to the necessity to repeat decellularization. Experiments in rats showed that the EPR spectra of the native thoracic organs contained paramagnetic centers with g-factor values ranging from 2.007 to 2.011 at a concentration of 10^–8 to 6.62 × 10^–7 mol/g of lyophilized tissue, whereas in all decellularized tissues of the same organs paramagnetic particles were not detected.     

The gene-protective effect of sodium humate under conditions of induced oxidative stress

It was shown that sodium humate decreased the level of the dioxidin-induced clastogenic effects in the range of concentrations of 50 to 1000 mg/l; dioxidin, a mutagen with prooxidant properties, was used at the concentration of 20 mg/l. The maximum effect was observed at the concentration of 300 mg/l. No direct dose-response dependence under the effect of sodium humate was found. The feasible antioxidant and desmutagenic mechanisms of a protective effect of sodium humate are discussed.     

Effect of high dose cytosine arabinoside on quantitative EEG in patients with acute myeloid leukemia

Background EEG activity is considered an index of functional state of brain. Chemotherapy (CT), used for non-central nervous system (CNS) cancer, can cross the blood brain barrier and contribute to changes in the functional state of brain that can alter background EEG activity. Quantitative EEG (qEEG) is superior to conventional EEG in the detection of subtle alterations of EEG background activity and for this reason, the use of qEEG might assist the clinician in evaluating the possible effect of CT on the CNS. The nucleoside analog cytosine arabinoside (Ara-C) is one of the milestone chemotherapeutic agents used for treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Our observational study evaluates the possible effect of Ara-C on the qEEG of patients with AML, without CNS involvement. We conducted an observational study on newly diagnosed AML patients without CNS involvement, undergoing treatment with Ara-C to analyze the possible effect of Ara-C high doses on EEG background activity using qEEG analyses. A total of nine AML patients, 5 with Ara-C i.v. high dose (≥3 g/m² die), 4 with standard dose (100 mg/m² die) underwent qEEG (at rest, during hyperpnoea, mental arithmetic task and blocking reaction). We compared the EEG background activity of the two groups at baseline and after 6 months. Statistical analysis showed no significant differences between the two groups in mean relative power for all frequency bands, at rest and during hyperpnoea, mental arithmetic task and blocking reaction. Our data indicate that high dose Ara-C i.v. did not induce significant changes on EEG background activity in our patients. Future research in this area could include prospective studies that would combine qEEG and neuropsychological testing to assess the impact of CT on brain functions.     

Evaluation of the influence of decellularization on the changes in biomechanical properties of primate lungs

The effect of decellularization on the biomechanical properties of macaque lungs was studied. The quality of the biological scaffold was additionally assessed by morphological methods, and the contents of extracellular matrix (ECM) fibers were determined both qualitatively and quantitatively. Histological analysis revealed no damage of structural integrity of ECM components, but the scaffold elasticity significantly decreased, which was confirmed by the changes in the hysteresis loop without a concomitant decrease in peak loads, with the mechanical strength of the samples being retained. These changes require taking additional measures to prevent a decrease in the effective lung volume.     

Microbial degradation of components of sewage from phenol production facilities

Processes of aerobic biodegradation of components of phenol production sewage (phenol, acetophenone, dimethylphenylcarbinol, cumene hydroperoxide, α-methylstyrene, benzoate, andp-hydroxybenzoate) by bacterial strains obtained from the collection of the Saratov Institute of Biocatalysis were studied. The metabolic reactions were shown to be oxidative and to have a common catabolic sequence (cumene hydroperoxide-dimethylphenylcarbinol-α-methylstyrene-acetophenone-phenyl acetate-phenol-pyrocatechol-aromatic ring breakage). Benzoate andp-hydroxybenzoate were degraded through the formation of pyrocatechol and protocatechuate, respectively. Metabolic pathways were similar in model mixtures of components and sewage samples.     

Sleep Extension Normalizes ERP of Waking Auditory Sensory Gating in Healthy Habitually Short Sleeping Individuals

Chronic sleep loss has been associated with increased daytime sleepiness, as well as impairments in memory and attentional processes. In the present study, we evaluated the neuronal changes of a pre-attentive process of wake auditory sensory gating, measured by brain event-related potential (ERP) – P50 in eight normal sleepers (NS) (habitual total sleep time (TST) 7 h 32 m) vs. eight chronic short sleeping individuals (SS) (habitual TST ≤6 h). To evaluate the effect of sleep extension on sensory gating, the extended sleep condition was performed in chronic short sleeping individuals. Thus, one week of time in bed (6 h 11 m) corresponding to habitual short sleep (hSS), and one week of extended time (∼ 8 h 25 m) in bed corresponding to extended sleep (eSS), were counterbalanced in the SS group. The gating ERP assessment was performed on the last day after each sleep condition week (normal sleep and habitual short and extended sleep), and was separated by one week with habitual total sleep time and monitored by a sleep diary. We found that amplitude of gating was lower in SS group compared to that in NS group (0.3 µV vs. 1.2 µV, at Cz electrode respectively). The results of the group × laterality interaction showed that the reduction of gating amplitude in the SS group was due to lower amplitude over the left hemisphere and central-midline sites relative to that in the NS group. After sleep extension the amplitude of gating increased in chronic short sleeping individuals relative to their habitual short sleep condition. The sleep condition × frontality interaction analysis confirmed that sleep extension significantly increased the amplitude of gating over frontal and central brain areas compared to parietal brain areas.     

Circadian phase, sleepiness, and light exposure assessment in night workers with and without shift work disorder

Most night workers are unable to adjust their circadian rhythms to the atypical hours of sleep and wake. Between 10% and 30% of shiftworkers report symptoms of excessive sleepiness and/or insomnia consistent with a diagnosis of shift work disorder (SWD). Difficulties in attaining appropriate shifts in circadian phase, in response to night work, may explain why some individuals develop SWD. In the present study, it was hypothesized that disturbances of sleep and wakefulness in shiftworkers are related to the degree of mismatch between their endogenous circadian rhythms and the night-work schedule of sleep during the day and wake activities at night. Five asymptomatic night workers (ANWs) (3 females; [mean ± SD] age: 39.2 ± 12.5 yrs; mean yrs on shift = 9.3) and five night workers meeting diagnostic criteria (International Classification of Sleep Disorders [ICSD]-2) for SWD (3 females; age: 35.6 ± 8.6 yrs; mean years on shift = 8.4) participated. All participants were admitted to the sleep center at 16:00 h, where they stayed in a dim light (<10 lux) private room for the study period of 25 consecutive hours. Saliva samples for melatonin assessment were collected at 30-min intervals. Circadian phase was determined from circadian rhythms of salivary melatonin onset (dim light melatonin onset, DLMO) calculated for each individual melatonin profile. Objective sleepiness was assessed using the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT; 13 trials, 2-h intervals starting at 17:00 h). A Mann-Whitney U test was used for evaluation of differences between groups. The DLMO in ANW group was 04:42 ± 3.25 h, whereas in the SWD group it was 20:42 ± 2.21 h (z = 2.4; p 相似文献   

Modulation of neurosecretion and approaches for its multistep analysis

Background

Neurosecretion is the multistep process occurring in separate spatial and temporal cellular boundaries which complicates its comprehensive analysis. Most of the research are focused on one distinct stage of synaptic vesicle recycling. Here, we describe approaches for complex analysis of synaptic vesicle (SV) endocytosis and separate steps of exocytosis at the level of presynaptic bouton and highly purified SVs.