Computational chemical analysis of unconjugated bilirubin anions and insights into pKa values clarification

The pKa, the negative logarithm of the acid dissociation equilibrium constant, of the carboxylic acid groups of unconjugated bilirubin in water is a discussed issue because there are quite different experimental values reported. Using quantum mechanical calculations we have studied the conformational behavior of unconjugated bilirubin species (in gas phase and in solution modeled implicitly and explicitly) to provide evidence that may clarify pKa values because of its pathophysiological relevance. Our results show that rotation of carboxylate group, which is not restricted, settles it in a suitable place to establish stronger interactions that stabilizes the monoanion and the dianion to be properly solvated, demonstrating that the rationalization used to justify the high pKa values of unconjugated bilirubin is inappropriate. Furthermore, low unconjugated bilirubin (UCB) pKa values were estimated from a linear regression analysis.Fil: Vega Hissi, Esteban Gabriel. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Quimica, Bioquimica y Farmacia. Departamento de Quimica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico San Luis. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis; ArgentinaFil: Estrada, Mario Rinaldo. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Quimica, Bioquimica y Farmacia. Departamento de Quimica; ArgentinaFil: Lavecchia, Martín José. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico La Plata. Centro de Química Inorgánica; ArgentinaFil: Pis Diez, Reinaldo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico La Plata. Centro de Química Inorgánica; Argentin

Sexual behavior research on a Cohort of gay men, 1984–1990: Can we predict how men will respond to interventions?

In 1984, over 1000 gay and bisexual men volunteered to participate in both the Chicago Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) and a companion psychosocial study, the Coping and Change Study (CCS). Participants in the semiannual Chicago MACS/CCS evaluations comprise the largest cohort of high-risk men under continuous medical, behavioral, and psychosocial observation. Chicago MACS/CCS researchers prospectively chart the sexual behavior change patterns of the cohort and relate those behavioral changes to psychosocial correlates and actual HIV infection risk. This report summarizes the behavioral natural history of the Chicago MACS/CCS cohort from 1984 to 1990, focusing on receptive anal sex practices and use patterns for alcohol and the most frequently used recreational drugs. As these are prospective observational and not controlled intervention studies, psychosocial correlates of sexual behavior change by members of the cohort are suggestive of factors influencing behavior change rather than indicative of causal relationships. However, the voluntary availability to participants in the Chicago MACS/CCS of HIV-1 antibody test results beginning in late 1985 provided the opportunity to examine whether demographic, psychosocial, or behavioral factors were indicators of sexual behavior change following disclosure and counseling about HIV-1 serostatus. Recommendations for promotion and maintenance of safer sexual behavior for the long run, and limitations in the generalizability of these findings to the much more diverse populations of men who have sex with other men conclude this article.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44099/1/10508_2005_Article_BF01541496.pd

Functional Induction of the Cystine-Glutamate Exchanger System Xc- Activity in SH-SY5Y Cells by Unconjugated Bilirubin

We have previously reported that exposure of SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells to unconjugated bilirubin (UCB) resulted in a marked up-regulation of the mRNA encoding for the Na+ -independent cystine∶glutamate exchanger System Xc− (SLC7A11 and SLC3A2 genes). In this study we demonstrate that SH-SY5Y cells treated with UCB showed a higher cystine uptake due to a significant and specific increase in the activity of System Xc−, without the contribution of the others two cystine transporters (XAG− and GGT) reported in neurons. The total intracellular glutathione content was 2 folds higher in the cells exposed to bilirubin as compared to controls, suggesting that the internalized cystine is used for gluthathione synthesis. Interestingly, these cells were significantly less sensitive to an oxidative insult induced by hydrogen peroxide. If System Xc− is silenced the protection is lost. In conclusion, these results suggest that bilirubin can modulate the gluthathione levels in neuroblastoma cells through the induction of the System Xc−, and this renders the cell less prone to oxidative damage

Resting heart rate as a predictor of metabolic dysfunctions in obese children and adolescents

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Recent studies have identified that a higher resting heart rate (RHR) is associated with elevated blood pressure, independent of body fatness, age and ethnicity. However, it is still unclear whether RHR can also be applied as a screening for other risk factors, such as hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia. Thus, the purpose of the presented study was to analyze the association between RHR, lipid profile and fasting glucose in obese children and adolescents.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The sample was composed of 180 obese children and adolescents, aged between 7-16 years. Whole-body and segmental body composition were estimated by Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Resting heart rate (RHR) was measured by heart rate monitors. The fasting blood samples were analyzed for serum triglycerides, total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and glucose, using the colorimetric method.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Fasting glucose, TC, triglycerides, HDL-C, LDL-C and RHR were similar in both genders. The group of obese subjects with a higher RHR presented, at a lower age, higher triglycerides and TC. There was a significant relationship between RHR, triglycerides and TC. In the multivariate model, triglycerides and TC maintained a significant relationship with RHR independent of age, gender, general and trunk adiposity. The ROC curve indicated that RHR has a high potential for screening elevated total cholesterol and triglycerides as well as dyslipidemia.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Elevated RHR has the potential to identify subjects at an increased risk of atherosclerosis development.</p

Identifying the connection between Roman Conceptions of ‘Pure Air’ and Physical and Mental Health in Pompeian Gardens (c. 150 BC-AD 79): A Multi-Sensory Approach to Ancient Medicine

Different genres of Roman literature commented on the relationship between the condition of the environment and physical and mental health. They often refer to clear, pure, or good air as a beneficial aspect of the environment. Yet, unlike fetid air, they provide few descriptions of what constituted healthy air quality. Moreover, aside from pointing out the association between the environment and bodily condition, the writers also did not explain precisely how the link between the two was made. This paper utilizes a comparative study of ancient literature and the archaeological remains of Roman gardens in Pompeii: archaeobotanical samples, fresco paintings, location, and surviving features. Three questions are addressed in this study: First, how did the Romans identify and define pure? Second, how did air connect to the body? Third, what were the qualities of pure air and how did they benefit the body? Not only was inhalation a means of linking air to the body, but the two were also related through sensory perception. I argue that sight, sound, and olfaction were used to identify the qualities of pure air. Through the sensory process of identification, the beneficial properties of pure air were, in accordance with ancient perceptions of sensory function, taken into the body and affected health. Thus, sensory perception acted as the bridge between the environment and health

Revealing hidden species distribution with pheromones: the case of Synanthedon vespiformis (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) in Sweden

Synanthedon vespiformis L. (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) is considered a rare insect in Sweden, discovered in 1860, with only a few observations recorded until a sex pheromone attractant became available recently. This study details a national survey conducted using pheromones as a sampling method for this species. Through pheromone trapping we captured 439 specimens in Southern Sweden at 77 sites, almost tripling the number of previously reported records for this species. The results suggest that S. vespiformis is truly a rare species with a genuinely scattered distribution, but can be locally abundant. Habitat analyses were conducted in order to test the relationship between habitat quality and the number of individuals caught. In Sweden, S. vespiformis is thought to be associated with oak hosts, but our attempts to predict its occurrence by the abundance of oaks yielded no significant relationships. We therefore suggest that sampling bias and limited knowledge on distribution may have led to the assumption that this species is primarily reliant on oaks in the northern part of its range, whereas it may in fact be polyphagous, similar to S. vespiformis found as an agricultural pest in Central and Southern Europe. We conclude that pheromones can massively enhance sampling potential for this and other rare lepidopteran species. Large-scale pheromone-based surveys provide a snapshot of true presences and absences across a considerable part of a species national distribution range, and thus for the first time provide a viable means of systematically assessing changes in distribution over time with high spatiotemporal resolution

Diagnosis of lung cancer in individuals with solitary pulmonary nodules by plasma microRNA biomarkers

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Making a definitive preoperative diagnosis of solitary pulmonary nodules (SPNs) found by CT has been a clinical challenge. We previously demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) could be used as biomarkers for lung cancer diagnosis. Here we investigate whether plasma microRNAs are useful in identifying lung cancer among individuals with CT-detected SPNs.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>By using quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR analysis, we first determine plasma expressions of five miRNAs in a training set of 32 patients with malignant SPNs, 33 subjects with benign SPNs, and 29 healthy smokers to define a panel of miRNAs that has high diagnostic efficiency for lung cancer. We then validate the miRNA panel in a testing set of 76 patients with malignant SPNs and 80 patients with benign SPNs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In the training set, miR-21 and miR-210 display higher plasma expression levels, whereas miR-486-5p has lower expression level in patients with malignant SPNs, as compared to subjects with benign SPNs and healthy controls (all P ≤ 0.001). A logistic regression model with the best prediction was built on the basis of miR-21, miR-210, and miR-486-5p. The three miRNAs used in combination produced the area under receiver operating characteristic curve at 0.86 in distinguishing lung tumors from benign SPNs with 75.00% sensitivity and 84.95% specificity. Validation of the miRNA panel in the testing set confirms their diagnostic value that yields significant improvement over any single one.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The plasma miRNAs provide potential circulating biomarkers for noninvasively diagnosing lung cancer among individuals with SPNs, and could be further evaluated in clinical trials.</p

Towards a Critical Sociology of Dominant Ideologies: An Unexpected Reunion between Pierre Bourdieu and Luc Boltanski

This article aims to demonstrate the enduring relevance of Pierre Bourdieu and Luc Boltanski’s ‘La production de l’idéologie dominante’ [‘The production of the dominant ideology’], which was originally published in Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales in 1976. More than three decades later, in 2008, a re-edited version of this study was printed in book format as La production de l’idéologie dominante, which was accompanied by a detailed commentary, written by Luc Boltanski and entitled Rendre la réalité inacceptable. À propos de « La production de l’idéologie dominante » [Making Reality Unacceptable. Comments on ‘The production of the dominant ideology’]. In addition to containing revealing personal anecdotes and providing important sociological insights, this commentary offers an insider account of the genesis of one of the most seminal pieces Boltanski co-wrote with his intellectual father, Bourdieu. In the Anglophone literature on contemporary French sociology, however, the theoretical contributions made both in the original study and in Boltanski’s commentary have received little – if any – serious attention. This article aims to fill this gap in the literature, arguing that these two texts can be regarded not only as forceful reminders of the fact that the ‘dominant ideology thesis’ is far from obsolete but also as essential for understanding both the personal and the intellectual underpinnings of the tension-laden relationship between Bourdieu and Boltanski. Furthermore, this article offers a critical overview of the extent to which the unexpected, and partly posthumous, reunion between ‘the master’ (Bourdieu) and his ‘dissident disciple’ (Boltanski) equips us with powerful conceptual tools, which, whilst illustrating the continuing centrality of ‘ideology critique’, permit us to shed new light on key concerns in contemporary sociology and social theory. Finally, the article seeks to push the debate forward by reflecting upon several issues that are not given sufficient attention by Bourdieu and Boltanski in their otherwise original and insightful enquiry into the complexities characterizing the daily production of ideology