Modified screen-printed carbon electrodes application for protein tumor markers determination

Screen-printed carbon electrodes were modified with gold nanoparticles bound with DNA-aptamers by two different methods. Aptamers can selectively bind protein tumor markers from the blood plasma. The electrodes were tested. Signals obtained via squire-wavy voltammetry from modified electrodes covered with blood plasma of the healthy donors and donors with lung cancer can be distinguished

Expression of inhibitor of apoptosis protein Livin in renal cell carcinoma and non-tumorous adult kidney

The antiapoptotic Livin/ML-IAP gene has recently gained much attention as a potential new target for cancer therapy. Reports indicating that livin is expressed almost exclusively in tumours, but not in the corresponding normal tissue, suggested that the targeted inhibition of livin may present a novel tumour-specific therapeutic strategy. Here, we compared the expression of livin in renal cell carcinoma and in non-tumorous adult kidney tissue by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR, immunoblotting, and immunohistochemistry. We found that livin expression was significantly increased in tumours (P=0.0077), but was also clearly detectable in non-tumorous adult kidney. Transcripts encoding Livin isoforms α and β were found in both renal cell carcinoma and normal tissue, without obvious qualitative differences. Livin protein in renal cell carcinoma samples exhibited cytoplasmic and/or nuclear staining. In non-tumorous kidney tissue, Livin protein expression was only detectable in specific cell types and restricted to the cytoplasm. Thus, whereas the relative overexpression of livin in renal cell carcinoma indicates that it may still represent a therapeutic target to increase the apoptotic sensitivity of kidney cancer cells, this strategy is likely to be not tumour-specific

The ovarian development of the forensically relevant blowfly Calliphora vicina at differing protein availability

Diese Arbeit untersucht die Ovarienentwicklung der forensisch relevanten Schmeißfliegenart Calliphora vicina bei differierender Proteinverfügbarkeit. Ein besonderes Augen- merk wird dabei auf das Vorhandensein von frühentwickelten Eiern gelegt, da diese bei der Bestimmung des postmortalen Intervalls zu Verschiebungen führen können. Obwohl dieses Phänomen bereits 1986 das erste Mal beschrieben wurde, gibt es bisher nur wenig Forschung dazu. Daher wird in dieser Arbeit untersucht, ab welcher Proteinverfügbarkeit es zu frühreifen Eiern kommt. Hierfür wurden die Entwicklung der Ovarien von frisch geschlüpfter Calliphora vicina über einen Zeitraum von 16 Tagen bei verschiedenen Verfügbarkeiten der Proteinquellen Rinderleber und Milchpulver beobachtet. Es konnte festgestellt werden, dass bei einer längeren Verfügbarkeit von Protein die Ovarien schneller das letzte Stadium der Entwicklung erreichten und folglich eher frühreife Eier entstanden