Chemical imaging of living cells by synchrotron infrared microspectrometry

Chemical mapping of proteins and lipids inside a single living cell and at a resolution of a few microns, has been performed using synchroton infrared microspectrometry. Modifications of the chemical distributions upon mitosis and necrosis has been investigated

Structurally different anthracyclines provoke different effects on cell cycle and tumor B cell differentiation

Previously we have detected a stimulatory effect on immunoglobulin (IgG) synthesis when hybridoma cells were treated with doxorubicin. In order to determine whether this is a general property of anthracycline, we have selected three analogs doxorubicin (DOX), pirarubicin (THP-DOX) and aclarubicin (ACR) — which differ mainly in the methylation state of their amino sugars. Cell cycle analysis by flow cytometry and drug localization by scanning confocal microscopy were also performed. The results show that when cells (UN2 hybridoma B cells) were exposed to subtoxic doses of DOX or THP (with unmethylated amino sugars), a strong increases in IgG secretion, heavy (H) and light (L) chain synthesis and the corresponding mRNA levels were induced. Furthermore these two drugs arrested the cells in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle. In contrast, exposure to ACR (with its methylated amino sugar) at similar subtoxic doses induced a blockade of cells in the Gl phase with no increase of IgG synthesis. at the subtoxic doses used, all three drugs could still be detected in the nucleus as well as in the cytoplasm, as determined by confocal laser microscopy. Thus, the relationship between cell cycle blockade, IgG stimulation and anthracycline structure is suggested by these results. © 1998 Elsevier, Paris

BIOTEX – Bio-sensing textiles for healthcare

Chemical analysis of body fluids non-invasively is a novel and exciting area of personalised wearable healthcare systems. BIOTEX was an EU FP6 project that developed wearable textile sensors to collect and analyse sweat in real-time. A textile patch has been designed in such a way that it can successfully collect sweat from human subjects during exercise. The patch uses the inherent capillarity of fabrics to transport sweat through a fabric channel with integrated sensing capability. A super-absorbent ma-terial at the end of the channel is used to draw the fluid through the chan-nel and store waste products. This provides a passive pumping action re-quiring no external power. Sensors integrated into the fabric channel measure sweat pH, sodium concentration and conductivity. In addition physiological measurements including respiration and ECG are measured using piezo-resistive fabric and textile electrodes respectively. A thoracic blood oxygenation sensor has also been developed using a woven fibre optic configuration. A central control unit is used to interface the sensors and transmit data via Bluetooth to a graphical user interface displayed on a nearby laptop for analysis