Epidemiology and significance of malnutrition among outpatients with heart failure

To assess the prevalence and identify markers of malnutrition in outpatients with chronic heart failure (CHF

Fusicoccin Counteracts the Toxic Effect of Cadmium on the Growth of Maize Coleoptile Segments

The effects of cadmium (Cd; 0.1–1000 μM) and fusicoccin (FC) on growth, Cd2+ content, and membrane potential (Em) in maize coleoptile segments were studied. In addition, the Em changes and accumulation of Cd and calcium (Ca) in coleoptile segments treated with Cd2+ combined with 1 μM FC or 30 mM tetraethylammonium (TEA) chloride (K+-channel blocker) were also determined. In this study, the effects of Ca2+-channel blockers [lanthanum (La) and verapamil (Ver)] on growth and content of Cd2+ and Ca2+ in coleoptile segments were also investigated. It was found that Cd at high concentrations (100 and 1000 μM) significantly inhibited endogenous growth of coleoptile segments and simultaneously measured proton extrusion. FC combined with Cd2+ counteracted the toxic effect of Cd2+ on endogenous growth and significantly decreased Cd2+ content (not the case for Cd2+ at the highest concentration) in coleoptile segments. Addition of Cd to the control medium caused depolarization of Em, the extent of which was dependent on Cd concentration and time of treatment with Cd2+. Hyperpolarization of Em induced by FC was suppressed in the presence of Cd2+ at 1000 μM but not Cd2+ at 100 μM. It was also found that treatment of maize coleoptile segments with 30 mM TEA chloride caused hyperpolarization of Em and decreased Cd2+ content in coleoptile segments, suggesting that, in the same way as for FC, accumulation of Cd2+ was dependent on plasma membrane (PM) hyperpolarization. Similar to FC, TEA chloride also decreased Ca2+ content in coleoptile segments. La and Ver combined with Cd2+ (100 μM) significantly decreased Cd content in maize coleoptile segments, but only La completely abolished the toxic effect of Cd2+ on endogenous growth and growth in the presence of FC. Taken together, these results suggest that the mechanism by which FC counteracts the toxic effect of Cd2+ (except at 1000 μM Cd2+) on the growth of maize coleoptile segments involves both stimulation of PM H+-ATPase activity by FC as well as Cd2+-permeable, voltage-dependent Ca channels, which are blocked by FC and TEA chloride-induced PM hyperpolarization

Sampling in modern pharmaceutical analysis

Sampling procedure is an integral part of the drug quality control system. Objective science-based sampling is an important operation when only a small amount of a material is taken and it is representative for the analysis of the whole product batch. Reasoned conclusions about drug quality can only be based on the results of tests conducted on representative samples, taken in accordance with certain rules and regulations. For the purpose of harmonization with foreign normative documents, systematization and updating of the requirements for sampling, specifying their conditions, general pharmacopoeia monograph «Sampling» has been developed. It regulates general rules and special aspects of drug sampling procedures for the purpose of drug quality control. The general pharmacopoeia monograph «Sampling» consolidates and classifies the materials of legislative and regulatory documents of the Russian Federation, the WHO, the EU and international pharmacopoeia monographs

Отбор проб в современном фармацевтическом анализе

Sampling procedure is an integral part of the drug quality control system. Objective science-based sampling is an important operation when only a small amount of a material is taken and it is representative for the analysis of the whole product batch. Reasoned conclusions about drug quality can only be based on the results of tests conducted on representative samples, taken in accordance with certain rules and regulations. For the purpose of harmonization with foreign normative documents, systematization and updating of the requirements for sampling, specifying their conditions, general pharmacopoeia monograph «Sampling» has been developed. It regulates general rules and special aspects of drug sampling procedures for the purpose of drug quality control. The general pharmacopoeia monograph «Sampling» consolidates and classifies the materials of legislative and regulatory documents of the Russian Federation, the WHO, the EU and international pharmacopoeia monographs.Процедура отбора проб является составной частью системы контроля качества лекарственных средств. Объективный научно-обоснованный отбор проб - важная операция, при которой берется только малая часть материалов, предназначенных для анализа всей серии продукции. Обоснованные выводы о качестве ЛС могут быть сделаны только на основе испытаний, проведенных на репрезентативных образцах, которые отбираются с соблюдением определенных правил и положений. С целью гармонизации с зарубежными нормативными документами, систематизации и актуализации предъявляемых требований к отбору проб, конкретизации их условий, была разработана общая фармакопейная статья «Отбор проб», которая регламентирует общие правила и особенности процедуры отбора проб лекарственных средств для контроля их качества. В общей фармакопейной статье объединены и систематизированы материалы законодательных и нормативных документов Российской Федерации, Всемирной организации здравоохранения, Европейского Союза, а также монографии зарубежных фармакопей

Metabolic alterations in pea leaves during arbuscular mycorrhiza development

Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) is known to be a mutually beneficial plant-fungal symbiosis; however, the effect of mycorrhization is heavily dependent on multiple biotic and abiotic factors. Therefore, for the proper employment of such plant-fungal symbiotic systems in agriculture, a detailed understanding of the molecular basis of the plant developmental response to mycorrhization is needed. The aim of this work was to uncover the physiological and metabolic alterations in pea (Pisum sativum L.) leaves associated with mycorrhization at key plant developmental stages. Plants of pea cv. Finale were grown in constant environmental conditions under phosphate deficiency. The plants were analyzed at six distinct time points, which corresponded to certain developmental stages of the pea: I: 7 days post inoculation (DPI) when the second leaf is fully unfolded with one pair of leaflets and a simple tendril; II: 21 DPI at first leaf with two pairs of leaflets and a complex tendril; III: 32 DPI when the floral bud is enclosed; IV: 42 DPI at the first open flower; V: 56 DPI when the pod is filled with green seeds; and VI: 90–110 DPI at the dry harvest stage. Inoculation with Rhizophagus irregularis had no effect on the fresh or dry shoot weight, the leaf photochemical activity, accumulation of chlorophyll a, b or carotenoids. However, at stage III (corresponding to the most active phase of mycorrhiza development), the number of internodes between cotyledons and the youngest completely developed leaf was lower in the inoculated plants than in those without inoculation. Moreover, inoculation extended the vegetation period of the host plants, and resulted in increase of the average dry weight per seed at stage VI. The leaf metabolome, as analyzed with GC-MS, included about three hundred distinct metabolites and showed a strong correlation with plant age, and, to a lesser extent, was influenced by mycorrhization. Metabolic shifts influenced the levels of sugars, amino acids and other intermediates of nitrogen and phosphorus metabolism. The use of unsupervised dimension reduction methods showed that (i) at stage II, the metabolite spectra of inoculated plants were similar to those of the control, and (ii) at stages IV and V, the leaf metabolic profiles of inoculated plants shifted towards the profiles of the control plants at earlier developmental stages. At stage IV the inoculated plants exhibited a higher level of metabolism of nitrogen, organic acids, and lipophilic compounds in comparison to control plants. Thus, mycorrhization led to the retardation of plant development, which was also associated with higher seed biomass accumulation in plants with an extended vegetation period. The symbiotic crosstalk between host plant and AM fungi leads to alterations in several biochemical pathways the details of which need to be elucidated in further studies