Serum γ-glutamyltransferase, alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase activity in healthy blood donor of different ethnic groups in Gorgan

Introduction: Measure of liver enzymes may help to increase safety of blood donation for both blood donor and recipient. Determination of liver enzymes may prepare valuable clinical information. Aim: To assess serum γ-Glutamyltransferase (GGT), Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT), and Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST) activities in healthy blood donors in different ethnic groups in Gorgan. Materials and Methods: This study was performed in 450 healthy male blood donors, in three ethnic groups (Fars, Sistanee and Turkman) who attended Gorgan blood transfusion center. Liver enzymes (GGT, ALT and AST) were determined. Results: Serum AST and ALT in three ethnic groups were significant except for serum GGT levels. There was significant correlation between family histories of liver disease and systolic blood pressure and AST in Fars, and GGT in Sistanee ethnic groups. Conclusion: Several factors, such as age, family history of diabetes mellitus, family history of liver disease and smoking habit have no effect on some liver enzymes in different ethnic groups in this area. Variation of AST, ALT, and GGT enzyme activities in healthy subjects is associated with some subjects in our study groups. According to our study, it suggests that screening of AST and GGT enzymes in subjects with family history of liver disease is necessary in different ethnic groups. © 2016, Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research. All rights reserved

Evaluation of cytokeratin 19 as a prognostic tumoral and metastatic marker with focus on improved detection methods

In the last few years, there has been a growing interest in Cytokeratin 19 (CK19) studies in the cancer research field. CK19 belongs to the Type I CKs, serves as a useful research tool in prognosis, diagnosis, and management of the tumors. In this paper, we dissect the metastatic potential of CK19, its relation with cancer stem cells and retinal epithelial cells behavior, its application as a tumor marker and its role among 30 cancers such as thyroid, thoracic, lung, pancreatic, cervical, colorectal, and so forth. CK19 expressed in several cancer types because of its metastatic potential. This paper also presents modified detection methods of CK19 in disseminated tumor cells. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Heterologous expression of Salmon Calcitonin in Escherichia coli

Background and Objective: Calcitonin is a small peptide hormone including 32 amino acids and 3.4 KD molecular weight which is produced by the parafollicular cells of the thyroid gland in respond to increasing calcium ions in serum. This peptide is used for adjuvant therapy of osteoporosis, Paget's disease and hypercalcemic shock. In this study, the heterologuse expression of calcitonin was done in Escherichia coli. Methods: In this experimental study, the thioredoxin fusion partner was added to n-terminal of the Salmon calciton in order to increase its stability by the synthetic biology. The recombinant construct was transformed and over expressed into Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) host cell. Results: SDS-PAGE analysis showed the over expression of recombinant protein after IPTG induction. Conclusion: In this study, the construct including fused Salmon calcitonin gene with thioredoxin was cloned. The SDS-PAGE result showed the stable expression of fused calcitonin

An in-silico approach to find a peptidomimetic targeting extracellular domain of HER3 from a HER3 Nanobody

HER3 is an important therapeutic target in cancer treatments. HER3 Nanobodies (Nbs) are a novel class of antibodies with several competitive advantages over conventional antibodies. A peptidomimetic derived from these Nbs can be considered to be a small peptide mimicking some of the molecular recognition interactions of a natural peptide or protein in a three-dimensional (3D) space, with a receptor that has improved properties. In this study, we introduce a new approach to design a peptidomimetic derived from HER3 Nb through an in silico analysis. We propose that the complementarity determining region (CDR3) of HER3 Nb is large enough to effectively interact with HER3 antigen as well as with the entire Nb. A computational analysis has been performed using Nb models retrieved from SWISS-pdb Viewer 4.1.0 (spdbv) as a target spot and HER3 extracellular domain as its antigenic target to identify the interactions between them by the protein–protein docking method. Detailed analysis of selected models with docked complex help us to identify the interacting amino acid residues between the two molecules. The results of in silico analysis show that the CDR3 of HER3 Nb might be used by itself as a peptidomimetic drug instead of the full Nb. HER3 peptidomimetic-derived HER3 Nb may reduce Nb production costs and be used as a substitute for HER3 Nb after further experimental work. The paper demonstrates the feasibility of peptidomimetics designs using bioinformatic tools. © 2017 Elsevier Lt

Valuing the Air Quality Effects of Biochar Reductions on Soil NO Emissions

While it is clear that biochar can alter soil N₂O emissions, data on NO impacts are scarce. Reports range from 0 to 67% soil NO emission reductions postbiochar amendment. We use regional air quality and health cost models to assess how these soil NO reductions could influence U.S. air quality and health costs. We find that at 67% soil NO reduction, widespread application of biochar to fertilized agricultural soils could reduce O₃ by up to 2.4 ppb and PM_2.5 by up to 0.15 μg/m³ in some regions. Modeled biochar-mediated health benefits are up to $4.3 million/county in 2011, with impacts focused in the Midwest and Southwest. These potential air quality and health cobenefits of biochar use highlight the need for an improved understanding of biochar’s impacts on soil NO emissions. The benefits reported here should be included with estimates of other biochar benefits, such as crop yield increase, soil water management, and N₂O reductions