In Vitro and In Vivo Antimalarial Activity Assays of Seeds from Balanites aegyptiaca: Compounds of the Extract Show Growth Inhibition and Activity against Plasmodial Aminopeptidase

Balanites aegyptiaca (Balanitaceae) is a widely grown desert plant with multiuse potential. In the present paper, a crude extract from B. aegyptiaca seeds equivalent to a ratio of 1 : 2000 seeds to the extract was screened for antiplasmodial activity. The determined IC50 value for the chloroquine-susceptible Plasmodium falciparum NF54 strain was 68.26 μg/μL ± 3.5. Analysis of the extract by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry detected 6-phenyl-2(H)-1,2,4-triazin-5-one oxime, an inhibitor of the parasitic M18 Aspartyl Aminopeptidase as one of the compounds which is responsible for the in vitro antiplasmodial activity. The crude plant extract had a Ki of 2.35 μg/μL and showed a dose-dependent response. After depletion of the compound, a significantly lower inhibition was determined with a Ki of 4.8 μg/μL. Moreover, two phenolic compounds, that is, 2,6-di-tert-butyl-phenol and 2,4-di-tert-butyl-phenol, with determined IC50 values of 50.29 μM ± 3 and 47.82 μM ± 2.5, respectively, were detected. These compounds may contribute to the in vitro antimalarial activity due to their antioxidative properties. In an in vivo experiment, treatment of BALB/c mice with the aqueous Balanite extract did not lead to eradication of the parasites, although a reduced parasitemia at day 12 p.i. was observed

Role of la 5p in Bulk and Quantum-Confined Solids Probed by the la 5p54f13D1Excitonic Final State of Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering

The varied electronic localization of rare earth elements is essential to functional materials and a key to tailoring their properties. We establish with unprecedented spectral resolution the excitonic nature of the lanthanum 5p54f13D1and 3D2final states of resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) at the La N4,5edges. We extract the intrinsic lifetime, energy distance, and relative intensity ratio from single crystal LaAlO3and construct an empirical model. With help of the model, we precisely determine the RIXS 3D1final state position and identify La 5p as a descriptor of covalency with the host material. For metallic lanthanum, La3+ions in mixed-covalent-ionic simple oxides and phosphates, and ionic salts alike, we find a sizable chemical shift, indicating band-like and free-ion-like La. The different electronic relaxation of the La 5p5hole and the La 4f1electron is discussed with local and nonlocal screening contributions. In addition, the energetics of the excitonic La 5p54f1Coulomb attraction is quantified in its variation from lanthanum metal to mixed-covalent-ionic La2O3and the ionic LaF3salt

Evaluation data about accuracy of cadmium-zinc-telluride imaging in detecting single and multivessel coronary artery disease: Focus on gender differences

The data presented in this article are related to the research article entitled: “Accuracy of cadmium-zinc-telluride imaging in detecting single and multivessel coronary artery disease: is there any gender difference?” (Gimelli et al., 2018).We evaluated gender-related differences in diagnostic accuracy of cadmium-zinc-telluride (CZT) myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) in detecting single- and multi-vessel coronary artery disease (CAD). We included 1161 consecutive patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease (228, 25% women and 873, 75% men) who had been referred to our laboratory for stress–rest myocardial perfusion imaging (single-day stress–rest low-dose ultrafast protocol). All patients underwent coronary angiography within 30 days; CAD was defined in the presence of a coronary stenosis >70%. Summed stress scores (SSS), summed rest scores (SRS) and summed difference scores (SDS) were obtained. Image quality was graded “good” or better in more than 90% of patients

High speed versus standard SPECT: improved diagnostic accuracy in patients with coronary artery disease

Comparison of myocardial perfusion imaging obtained by UF SPECT with standard SPECT imaging for the evaluation in patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease

Completing the hypusine pathway in Plasmodium: Deoxyhypusine hydroxylase is an E-Z type HEAT repeat protein

In searching for new targets for antimalarials we investigated the biosynthesis of hypusine present in eukaryotic initiation factor-5A (eIF-5A) in Plasmodium. Here, we describe the cloning and expression of deoxyhypusine hydroxylase (DOHH), which completes the modi. cation of eIF-5A through hydroxylation of deoxyhypusine. The dohh cDNA sequence revealed an ORF of 1236 bp encoding a protein of 412 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 46.45 kDa and an isoelectric point of 4.96. Interestingly, DOHH from Plasmodium has a FASTA SCORE of only 27 compared with its human ortholog and contains several matches similar to E-Z-type HEAT-like repeat proteins (IPR004155 (InterPro), PF03130 (Pfam), SM00567 (SMART) present in the phycocyanin lyase subunits of cyanobacteria. Purified DOHH protein displayed hydroxylase activity in a novel in vitro DOHH assay, but phycocyanin lyase activity was absent. dohh is present as a single-copy gene and is transcribed in the asexual blood stages of the parasite. A signal peptide at the N-terminus might direct the protein to a different cellular compartment. During evolution, Plasmodium falciparum acquired an apicoplast that lost its photosynthetic function. It is possible that plasmodial DOHH arose from an E/F-type phycobilin lyase that gained a new role in hydroxylation

Statistical modelling of spatial patterns of the urban heat island intensity in the urban environment of Augsburg, Germany

Spatial and temporal variability of meteorological variables across urban areas due to differences in land surface characteristics is a common phenomenon. Most pronounced is the effect of land cover on air temperature. In this study, parametric and non-parametric statistical approaches (stepwise multiple linear regression, random forests) were applied in order to model sub-daily and daily spatial patterns of the urban heat island intensity in the major city of Augsburg, Southern Germany, and its rural surroundings. A large number of model setups utilizing variables from different land surface data sets as predictors and taking into account different seasonal, daily and meteorological situations was examined. The results were compared concerning different measures of model performance (mean squared skill score, mean squared error, explained variance). For individual setups and situations considerable skill with a mean squared skill score of up to 0.85 was reached. The best performing models were obtained from multiple linear regression for situations with low wind speeds and cloud cover in the morning and evening. Selected models were utilized to derive continuous spatial distributions of the air temperature deviations from a rural reference station. The resulting maps can be useful for various applications, e.g. in the context of urban planning