Alterations of Sleep and Sleep Oscillations in the Hemiparkinsonian Rat

Our previous studies in the rat model of Parkinson’s disease (PD) cholinopathy demonstrated the sleep-related alterations in electroencephalographic (EEG) oscillations at the cortical and hippocampal levels, cortical drives, and sleep spindles (SSs) as the earliest functional biomarkers preceding hypokinesia. Our aim in this study was to follow the impact of a unilateral substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) lesion in rat on the cortical and hippocampal sleep architectures and their EEG microstructures, as well as the cortico-hippocampal synchronizations of EEG oscillations, and the SS and high voltage sleep spindle (HVS) dynamics during NREM and REM sleep. We performed unilateral SNpc lesions using two different concentrations/volumes of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA; 12 μg/1 μl or 12 μg/2 μl). Whereas the unilateral dopaminergic neuronal loss >50% throughout the overall SNpc rostro-caudal dimension prolonged the Wake state, with no change in the NREM or REM duration, there was a long-lasting theta amplitude augmentation across all sleep states in the motor cortex (MCx), but also in the CA1 hippocampus (Hipp) during both Wake and REM sleep. We demonstrate that SS are the hallmarks of NREM sleep, but that they also occur during REM sleep in the MCx and Hipp of the control rats. Whereas SS are always longer in REM vs. NREM sleep in both structures, they are consistently slower in the Hipp. The dopaminergic neuronal loss increased the density of SS in both structures and shortened them in the MCx during NREM sleep, without changing the intrinsic frequency. Conversely, HVS are the hallmarks of REM sleep in the control rats, slower in the Hipp vs. MCx, and the dopaminergic neuronal loss increased their density in the MCx, but shortened them more consistently in the Hipp during REM sleep. In addition, there was an altered synchronization of the EEG oscillations between the MCx and Hipp in different sleep states, particularly the theta and sigma coherences during REM sleep. We provide novel evidence for the importance of the SNpc dopaminergic innervation in sleep regulation, theta rhythm generation, and SS/HVS dynamics control. We suggest the importance of the underlying REM sleep regulatory substrate to HVS generation and duration and to the cortico-hippocampal synchronizations of EEG oscillations in hemiparkinsonian rats

Primena novih sorbenasa u D-µ-SPE TEhnici pripreme uzoraka za GC – MS analizu PAU u vodi

The aim of this paper is application of novel sorbents in dispersive micro solid phase extraction (D-μ-SPE) as a technique for sample preparation of water, for the analysis of 16 PAHs by gass chromatography - mass spectrometry (GC-MS). D-μ-SPE proved to be an effective technique consuming a small amount of the solvent for the analysis. D-μ-SPE is characterized by its rapidity (7 minutes per sample including all preparation of standard solutions and measuring of sorbents) and cheapness as well. Low values of the detection limit and limit of quantification, acceptable accuracy and precision values propose this method for routine water analysis for the determination of PAHs.Cilj istraživanja ovog rada je primena novih sorbenasa u disperzivnoj mikroekstrakciji čvrstom fazom (D-µ-SPE) kao tehnikom pripreme uzoraka vode za analizu 16 prioritetnih PAU gasnom hromatografijom sa masenom spektrometrijom (GC-MS). D-µ-SPE se pokazala kao efikasna i ekonomična tehnika pripreme uzoraka vode pri čemu se troši mala količina rastvarača za ekstrakciju i koristi jeftin pribor za pripremu uzoraka koja traje 7 minuta (uključujući pripreme standardnih rastvora i odmeravanje sorbenasa). Niske vrednosti granice detekcije i kvantifikacije, prihvatljive vrednosti tačnosti i preciznosti predloženu metodu analize 16 prioritetnih PAU kvalifikujuje za rutinsku analizu vode

Primena disperzivne mikroekstrakcije čvrstom fazom kao tehnike pripreme uzoraka za GC – MS analizu PAU u vodi

The aim of this paper is to determine the efficiency of D-µ-SPE with application of novel sorbents as a technique for sample preparation of water samples for the analysis of 16 priority PAHs by GC-MS. The sample preparation technique proved to be very fast, efficient and economical. The results of the proposed method demonstrate that this technique can be applied for routine analysis of PAHs in water. The advantages of this method are characterized by low values of limit of detection (from 0.147 ppb for benzo [a] anthracene to 0.784 ppb for naphthalene) and the limit of quantification (0.717 ppb for naphthalene to 9.459 ppb for benzo [k] fluorantene.Ciljevi istraživanja ovog rada su određivanje efikasnosti disperzivne mikroekstrakcije čvrstom fazom (D-µ-SPE) kao tehnike pripreme uzoraka vode za analizu 16 prioritetnih PAU gasnom hromatografijom sa masenom spektrometrijom, primenom novih sorbenasa. Tehnika pripreme uzoraka pokazala se kao veoma brza, efikasna i ekonomična. Rezultati predložene metode dokazuju da se ova tehnika može primeniti kao tehnika pripreme uzoraka za rutinsku analizu PAU u vodi. Prednosti ovakovog načina analize odlikuju se niskim vrednostima granice detekcije (od 0.147 ppb za benzo[a]antracen do 0.784 ppb za naftalen) i granice kvatifikacije (0.717 ppb za naftalen do 9.459 ppb za benzo[k]fluoranten)

Određivanje sadržaja mikro i makro elemenata u lekovitoj biljci Seseli pallasii Besser

Metals, whether from natural and anthropogenic sources, can migrate between different parts of the environment and accumulate in flora and fauna, and in this way can finally reach people through the food chain. The possibility of contamination of plants by metals limits their use both in the pharmaceutical and food industry, because the increased concentration of some metals can have a negative impact on the health of humans and animals. The medicinal herbaceous species Seseli pallasii Besser is used in traditional medicine, but also as a spice in nutrition, so the assessment of the presence of metals is essential to ensure its safe application. For the estimation of the contents of the micro (Al, B, Ba, Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, V, Zn) and macroelenates (Ca, K, Mg and Na) in vegetative parts of plant species Seseli pallasii Besser (root, leaf, flower and fruit) from Southeast Serbia the method of induced coupled plasma with optical emission spectrometry (ISP-OES) was applied. The content of micro and macroelements in the studed medicinal plant species is below the recommended limits, which confirms that Seseli pallasii Besser can be safely used in traditional medicine and nutrition.Metali, bilo da su iz prirodnih i antropogenih izvora, mogu da migriraju između različitih delova životne sredine i akumuliraju se u floru i faunu, i na taj način konačno mogu dospeti do ljudi putem lanca ishrane. Mogućnost kontaminacije biljaka metalima ograničava njihovu upotrebu kako u farmaceutskoj tako i u prehrambenoj industriji, jer povećana koncentracija nekih metala može imati negativan uticaj na zdravlje ljudi i životinja. Lekovita biljna vrsta Seseli pallasii Besser koristi se u tradicionalnoj medicini, ali i kao začin u ishrani, pa je procena prisustva metala od suštinske važnosti kako bi se osigurala njena bezbedna primena. Za procenu sadržaja mikro (Al, B, Ba, Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, V, Zn) i makroelenenata (Ca, K, Mg i Na) u delovima biljke S. pallasii Besser (koren, list, cvet i plod) iz jugoistočne Srbije korišćena je metoda indukovano spregnute plazme sa optičkom emisionom spektrometrijom (ISP-OES). Sadržaj mikro i makroelemenata u proučavanoj lekovitoj biljnoj vrsti je ispod preporučenih granica, što potvrđuje da se S. pallasii Besser može sigurno koristiti u tradicionalnoj medicini i ishrani

Sadržaj pigmenata hloroplasta u lekovitoj biljci Teucrium chamaedrys sa sanirane deponije Rudarsko metalurško hemijskog kombinata “Trepča”

In this paper, the contents of chloroplast pigments (chlorophyll a, b, a+b and carotenoids) in the leaves of medicinal plant Teucrium chamaedrys from tailing pond „Žitkovac“ of Mining and Metallurgical Chemical Company „Trepča“ and from uncontaminated area near city of Niš were compared. Chloroplast pigments were determined spectrophotometrically in the acetone extracts of experimental and control samples of plant material. The contents of chlorophyll a, a+b and ratio a/b were higher in leaves of samples from tailing pond in comparison with control samples from uncontaminated habitat near city of Niš. In response to stress conditions caused by pollution and full intensity of sunlight in samples of leaves from tailing pond providing the protection of chlorophyll from photooxidation or ultraviolet radiation damage.U ovom radu upoređen je sadržaj pigmenata hloroplasta (hlorofil a, b, a+b, karotenoidi) iz listova lekovite bilјne vrste podubica - Teucrium chamaedrys sa deponije „Žitkovac“ Rudarsko Metalurško Hemijskog Kombinata „Trepča“ i nezagađenog područja okoline Niša. Pigmenti hloroplasta su određeni spektrofotometrijski u acetonskim ekstraktima eksperimentalnih i kontrolnih uzoraka bilјaka. Sadržaj hlorofila a, a+b i odnos a/b je bio veći kod u uzorcima listova sa deponije u poređenju sa kontrolnim uzorcima sa nezagađenog staništa iz okoline Niša. Kao odgovor na stresne uslove uzrokovane zagađenjem i punim intenzitetom sunčeve svetlosti zabeležen je i povećan sadržaj karotenoida kod uzoraka listova sa deponije, što obezbeđuje zaštitu hlorofila od fotooksidacije odnosno štetnog dejstva ultravioletnog zračenja

Chemometric characterization of peach, nectarine and plum cultivars according to fruit phenolic content and antioxidant activity

Introduction. Deciduous tree fruits like peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. persica), nectarine (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. nucipersica (Suckow) C.K.Schneid), and especialy plum (Prunus domestica L. ssp. domestica) are very common in Serbia. These fruits are known for their nutritional value and therapeutic properties and are valuable sources of antioxidants. Materials and methods. The goal of this work was to evaluate fruit tissue antioxidant activity using methanol extracts of 9 peach, 3 nectarine and 7 plum cultivars. The following parameters were measured: total phenolic content (TPC); antioxidant activity as estimated by radical scavenging activity of (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl, DPPH); cation decolorization activity (2,2-azinobis-3 ethylbenxothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid, ABTS); ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP); cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC); and total reducing power (TRP). Results and discussion. Total phenolic contents of the plum cultivars were higher than those of peach and nectarine and significant positive correlations were recorded between all antioxidant activity assays and total phenolic contents. Results obtained by principal component analysis (PCA) are in agreement with those obtained by cluster analysis (CA). Conclusion. The selected methods revealed antioxidant activities for all plum cultivars significantly higher than in the peach and nectarine cultivars. PCA and CA allow grouping the different fruit species based on TPC, DPPH, ABTS, TRP, FRAP and CUPRAC values