Diatomic molecules in ultracold Fermi gases - Novel composite bosons

We give a brief overview of recent studies of weakly bound homonuclear molecules in ultracold two-component Fermi gases. It is emphasized that they represent novel composite bosons, which exhibit features of Fermi statistics at short intermolecular distances. In particular, Pauli exclusion principle for identical fermionic atoms provides a strong suppression of collisional relaxation of such molecules into deep bound states. We then analyze heteronuclear molecules which are expected to be formed in mixtures of different fermionic atoms. It is found how an increase in the mass ratio for the constituent atoms changes the physics of collisional stability of such molecules compared to the case of homonuclear ones. We discuss Bose-Einstein condensation of these composite bosons and draw prospects for future studies.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure

Characterizing generated charged inverse micelles with transient current measurements

We investigate the generation of charged inverse micelles in nonpolar surfactant solutions relevant for applications such as electronic ink displays and liquid toners. When a voltage is applied across a thin layer of a nonpolar surfactant solution between planar electrodes, the generation of charged inverse micelles leads to a generation current. From current measurements it appears that such charged inverse micelles generated in the presence of an electric field behave differently compared to those present in equilibrium in the absence of a field. To examine the origin of this difference, transient current measurements in which the applied voltage is suddenly increased are used to measure the mobility and the amount of generated charged inverse micelles. The mobility and the corresponding hydrodynamic size are found to be similar to those of charged inverse micelles present in equilibrium, which indicates that other properties determine their different behavior. The amplitude and shape of the transient currents measured as a function of the surfactant concentration confirm that the charged inverse micelles are generated by bulk disproportionation. A theoretical model based on bulk disproportionation with simulations and analytical approximations is developed to analyze the experimental transient currents

Automated office blood pressure measurements in primary care are misleading in more than one third of treated hypertensives: The VALENTINE-Greece Home Blood Pressure Monitoring study

Abstract Background This study assessed the diagnostic reliability of automated office blood pressure (OBP) measurements in treated hypertensive patients in primary care by evaluating the prevalence of white coat hypertension (WCH) and masked uncontrolled hypertension (MUCH) phenomena. Methods Primary care physicians, nationwide in Greece, assessed consecutive hypertensive patients on stable treatment using OBP (1 visit, triplicate measurements) and home blood pressure (HBP) measurements (7 days, duplicate morning and evening measurements). All measurements were performed using validated automated devices with bluetooth capacity (Omron M7 Intelli-IT). Uncontrolled OBP was defined as ≥140/90 mmHg, and uncontrolled HBP was defined as ≥135/85 mmHg. Results A total of 790 patients recruited by 135 doctors were analyzed (age: 64.5 ± 14.4 years, diabetics: 21.4%, smokers: 20.6%, and average number of antihypertensive drugs: 1.6 ± 0.8). OBP (137.5 ± 9.4/84.3 ± 7.7 mmHg, systolic/diastolic) was higher than HBP (130.6 ± 11.2/79.9 ± 8 mmHg; difference 6.9 ± 11.6/4.4 ± 7.6 mmHg, p Conclusions In primary care, automated OBP measurements are misleading in approximately 40% of treated hypertensive patients. HBP monitoring is mandatory to avoid overtreatment of subjects with WCH phenomenon and prevent undertreatment and subsequent excess cardiovascular disease in MUCH

DNA-Free Recombinant SV40 Capsids Protect Mice from Acute Renal Failure by Inducing Stress Response, Survival Pathway and Apoptotic Arrest

Viruses induce signaling and host defense during infection. Employing these natural trigger mechanisms to combat organ or tissue failure is hampered by harmful effects of most viruses. Here we demonstrate that SV40 empty capsids (Virus Like Particles-VLPs), with no DNA, induce host Hsp/c70 and Akt-1 survival pathways, key players in cellular survival mechanisms. We postulated that this signaling might protect against organ damage in vivo. Acute kidney injury (AKI) was chosen as target. AKI is critical, prevalent disorder in humans, caused by nephrotoxic agents, sepsis or ischemia, via apoptosis/necrosis of renal tubular cells, with high morbidity and mortality. Systemic administration of VLPs activated Akt-1 and upregulated Hsp/c70 in vivo. Experiments in mercury-induced AKI mouse model demonstrated that apoptosis, oxidative stress and toxic renal failure were significantly attenuated by pretreatment with capsids prior to the mercury insult. Survival rate increased from 12% to >60%, with wide dose response. This study demonstrates that SV40 VLPs, devoid of DNA, may potentially be used as prophylactic agent for AKI. We anticipate that these finding may be projected to a wide range of organ failure, using empty capsids of SV40 as well as other viruses

The role of apoptosis defects in malignant mesothelioma pathogenesis with an impact on prognosis and treatment

Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is a highly aggressive tumor that is strongly related to asbestos fiber exposure. The tumorigenesis procedure in MM is complex, and many pathogenetic mechanisms including chronic inflammation, deregulation of cell death, and the genomic copy-number losses and gains may contribute to carcinogenesis. MM cells are resistant to TRAIL-mediated apoptosis due to defects in extrinsic apoptotic pathway. CAPS, a regulator of cell cycle and death, may contribute to the MM development as well. BAP1 is the most frequently inactivated gene in MPM; BAP1 deficiency triggers malignant transformation via disruption of DNA repair, transcription regulation, cell metabolism, apoptosis, and ferroptosis. In addition, bcl-2 family proteins as well as abnormal activation of PI3 K/Akt/mTOR pathway and deregulation of the Wnt signaling pathway may result in MM tumorigenesis. Finally, the Hippo pathway plays a critical role in MPM development. Mutations of NF2 and LATS lead to YAP activation in MPM. Thus, inhibition of YAP activity by YAP inhibitors could be a potentially promising treatment option for MM. In conclusion, extensive genetic alterations exist in mesotheliomas associated with the signaling of apoptotic HM cells death. The comprehension of these pathways may contribute to enhancing survival via developing new effective therapeutic strategies. © 2019, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature

Microcystin producing cyanobacterial communities in Amvrakikos Gulf (Mediterranean Sea, NW Greece) and toxin accumulation in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis)

Various cyanobacterial species have the capacity to produce different types of toxins. Microcystins, the most prominent cyanotoxins are considered health hazards because of their potential hepatotoxic effects. They are well known to contaminate freshwater ecosystems but their presence in marine ecosystems has been reported only occasionally. We investigated seasonal changes of microcystin concentrations both in water and in the edible species of mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis collected from Amvrakikos Gulf (salinity ranging from 30‰ to 34‰), the biggest semi-enclosed basin in Greece. The microcystin concentrations in the water ranging from 0.003 to 19.8ngl -1, were below the World Health Organization (WHO) upper limit for recreational activities. In contrast, we found that microcystin concentrations in M. galloprovincialis mussels (ranging from 45±2 to 141.5±13.5ngg -1ww) exceeded the upper limit of the tolerable daily intake (TDI) of microcystin as determined by WHO.Genotype composition of the total cyanobacterial community of the Gulf was analyzed by using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiling of the rRNA internal transcribed spacer region (rRNA-ITS). The cyanobacterial community was found to be dominated almost exclusively by the cosmopolitan species Synechococcus - Synechocystis. In order to determine genes involved in the production of microcystins, a range of both specific and degenerate molecular primers against microcystin synthetase gene cluster (mcyS) was used.To our knowledge this is the first report of the presence of the hepatotoxic microcystins in the Mediterranean Sea, the first study on the accumulation of these toxins in mussels from a Mediterranean marine ecosystem and one of the few published works suggesting a potential association of microcystins with Synechococcus and/or Synechocystis cyanobacteria.The importance of our study is strengthened by the fact that Amvrakikos Gulf is among the most productive Greek " seafood" areas and a Mediterranean wetland of international significance according to Ramsar Convention. © 2011 Elsevier B.V

Expression of organic anion-transporting polypeptides 1B3, 1B1, and 1A2 in human pancreatic cancer reveals a new class of potential therapeutic targets

Valentinos Kounnis1, Elli Ioachim2, Martin Svoboda3, Andreas Tzakos4, Ioannis Sainis1, Theresia Thalhammer3, Georg Steiner5, Evangelos Briasoulis11Cancer Biobank Center of the University of Ioannina, Greece; 2Pathology Department of Hatzikosta General Hospital, Ioannina Greece; 3Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Medical University of Vienna, Austria; 4Department of Chemistry, University of Ioannina, Greece; 5TissueGnostics GmbH, Vienna, AustriaBackground: Organic anion-transporting polypeptides (OATPs) are influx transporters that mediate intracellular uptake of selective endogenous and xenobiotic compounds. Identification of new molecular targets and discovery of novel targeted therapies is top priority for pancreatic cancer, which lacks any effective therapy.Materials and methods: We studied expression of OATP 1A2, 1B1, and 1B3 in pancreatic cancer tissue and in cell lines. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded biopsy material of 12 human pancreatic cancers was immunohistochemically assessed for protein expression of the three studied influx transporters. Immunohistochemistry was evaluated by experienced pathologists and quantified by use of an automated image analysis system. BxPC-3 and MIA PaCa-2 pancreatic cancer cell lines were used to quantify transcripts of OATP 1B1 and 1B3.Results: OATP 1A2, 1B1, and 1B3 proteins were found ubiquitously expressed in all studied cases. Quantification performed by HistoQuest system revealed that mean intensity was 53 for 1A2, 45 for 1B1, and 167 for OATP 1B1/1B3 on a range scale 0–250 units. At mRNA level, 1B1 and 1B3 were overexpressed in both studied cancer cell lines but not in normal pancreatic tissue.Conclusion: OATPs 1A2, 1B1, and 1B3 are highly expressed in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. We suggest that expression of these transporters in pancreatic cancer justify research efforts towards discovery of novel therapeutics targeting OATPs.Keywords: organic anion-transporting polypeptides, targeted therapy, transporte