Thiamin, selenium, and copper levels in patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy taking diuretics

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the association of thiamin, selenium, and copper serum levels with cardiac function in patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy using diuretics, and also to compare them with levels in control patients with no evidence of disease. METHODS: The study comprised 30 patients with heart disease and 30 healthy control individuals. Thiamin was analyzed by measuring the activity of erythrocytic transketolase and the effect of thiamin pyrophosphate. Selenium and copper serum levels were measured by hydride generation and flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry, respectively. RESULTS: Thiamin deficiency was observed in 10% of the control individuals and in 33% of the patients with heart disease (p=0.02). The mean selenium and copper serum levels in control individuals and patients with heart disease were, respectively, 73.2±9.9 µg/L (56.5 to 94.5 µg/L) and 72.3±14.3 µg/L (35.5 to 94 µg/L) (p=0.77); 1.1±0.4mg/L (0.6 to 1.8mg/L) and 1.2± 0.4mg/L (0.6 to 2.2mg/L) (p=0.27). No association between the levels of these nutrients and cardiac function was observed. CONCLUSION: Thiamin deficiency was significantly more frequent in patients with heart disease. No significant difference was observed between the mean selenium and copper serum levels in control individuals and in patients with heart disease. The results suggest possible benefits with thiamin replacement in patients taking diuretics

Microcystin bioaccumulation in Limnoperna fortunei following Microcystis aeruginosa exposure, analysis of in vivo enzymatic phosphatase, acetylcholinesterase and carboxylesterase effects and in vitro experiments

Toxic cyanobacteria blooms have been reported in freshwater sources worldwide and may lead to aquatic biota toxin accumulation and trophic chain transfer, resulting in ecological and public health concerns. To assess cyanobacteria effects on microcystin uptake and accumulation and on phosphatase, acethylcholinesterase (AChE) and carboxylesterase (CarbE) enzymatic activities, an in vivo experiment was carried out employing the golden mussel Limnoperna fortunei. These mussels were exposed to a Microcystis aeruginosa NPLJ-4 strain (NPLJ-4) for 48 hours at different cell densities. Subsequently, algal cell counts were carried out and enzymatic activities were assayed. All three enzymes (Phosphatase, AChE and CarbE) were inhibited at the end of the exposure experiment. Mussels exposed to higher in vivo M. aeruginosa densities exhibited microcystin uptake and accumulation. In vitro assays were also carried out, exposing soluble L. fortunei enzyme fractions to M. aeruginosa extracts containing microcystin, and phosphatase inhibition was observed, whereas acetylcholinesterase and carboxylesterase were not inhibited. The results indicate that metabolites other than mycrocystin probably caused the observed in vivo esterase inhibitions, requiring further investigations

The effect of thiamine deficiency on inflammation, oxidative stress and cellular migration in an experimental model of sepsis

Made available in DSpace on 2015-05-27T13:39:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license.txt: 1914 bytes, checksum: 7d48279ffeed55da8dfe2f8e81f3b81f (MD5) raphael_coelhoetal_IOC_2014.pdf: 857144 bytes, checksum: 7c889baaa931dc516ab12d72c17aa8ef (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ). Hospital Universitário Pedro Ernesto. Unidade de Cuidados Intensivos. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).Instituto de Biologia. Cenrto Biomédico. Departamento de Bioquímica. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).Instituto de Biologia. Cenrto Biomédico. Departamento de Bioquímica. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).Instituto de Biologia. Cenrto Biomédico. Departamento de Bioquímica. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).Instituto de Biologia. Cenrto Biomédico. Departamento de Bioquímica. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).Instituto de Biologia. Cenrto Biomédico. Departamento de Bioquímica. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. Laboratório de Imunofarmacologia. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. Laboratório de Imunofarmacologia. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. Laboratório de Imunofarmacologia. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. Laboratório de Imunofarmacologia. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).Instituto de Biologia. Cenrto Biomédico. Laboratório de Morfometria, Metabolismo e Cardiovascular. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Background Sepsis is a prevalent condition in critically ill patients and may be associated with thiamine deficiency (TD). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of TD on inflammation, oxidative stress and cellular recruitment in a sepsis model. Methods The experimental sepsis model, cecal ligation and puncture (CLP), was utilized on mice in comparison with a sham procedure. The following four groups were compared against each other: SHAM with AIN93G complete chow, SHAM with thiamine deficient (TD) chow, CLP with AIN93G complete chow, and CLP with TD chow. Thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) blood concentrations were determined, and blood and peritoneal fluid were evaluated for differences in TNF-alpha, IL-1, IL-6, KC and MCP-1/CCL2 levels. In addition, the levels of 4-HNE adducts in liver proteins were evaluated by Western Blot. Results The mean TPP blood concentration from the mice fed with the complete chow was 303.3 ± 42.6 nmol/L, and TD occurred within 10 days. TNF-α and MCP-1 concentrations in the peritoneal fluid were significantly greater in the CLP with TD chow group when compared with the other groups. The blood IL-1β level, however, was lower in the CLP with TD chow group. Liver 4-HNE levels were highest in the TD chow groups. Blood mononuclear cell numbers, as well as peritoneal total leukocyte, mononuclear cell and neutrophil numbers were greater in the CLP with TD chow group. Peritoneal bacterial colony forming units (CFU) were significantly lower in the CLP with TD chow group. Conclusion TD was associated with greater bacterial clearance, oxidative stress and inflammatory response changes

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved