Supplementary material for the article: Samelak, I.; Balaban, M.; Vidović, N.; Koljančić, N.; Antić, M.; Šolević-Knudsen, T.; Jovančićević, B. Application of Alkane Biological Markers in the Assessment of the Origin of Oil Pollutants in the Soil and Recent River Sediments (River Vrbas, Bosnia and Herzegovina). Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society 2018, 83 (10), 1167–1175. https://doi.org/10.2298/JSC180501061S

Supplementary material for: [https://doi.org/10.2298/JSC180501061S]Related to published version: [http://cherry.chem.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2237

Application of alkane biological markers in the assessment of the origin of oil pollutants in the soil and recent river sediments (River Vrbas, Bosnia and Herzegovina)

In this paper, an attempt was made to contribute to the use of biological markers, n-alkanes, and polycyclic alkanes of the sterane and terpane type, in the assessment of the source of oil pollutants in the environment using the example of the correlation between recent river and coastal sediments,. Four samples of recent river sediments of the Vrbas River and four samples of adjacent bank sediments (soils), in the part of the River that belongs to the city of Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina) were analyzed. In the alkane fractions of isolated extracts, a bimodal distribution of the n-alkanes was observed. Lower homologues dominated in the recent river sediments with maximum at C15, but higher n-alkanes dominated in the soil samples, with a maximum at n-C29 or at n-C31. The higher concentration of steranes and terpanes with oil type distributions in the recent/fresh river sediments (compared to the bank sediments) represents evidence that lower n-alkanes originate from oil sources. The higher content of total hydrocarbons in the recent river sediments than in the bank sediments further confirms this conclusion. At the same time, these fundamental considerations provide evidence that oil pollution primarily occurred in the water flow and then the oil pollutants propagated towards the riverbank

Analiza kvaliteta nekoliko vrsta biljnih čajeva sa tržišta

The use of herbal tea preparations is very common in Serbia as a part of everyday diet as well as a part of traditional herbal therapy. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the quality of 21 monocomponent herbal products that are commercially available at Valjevo and Belgrade markets. The commercial samples of investigated herbs, chamomile (Chamomillae flos), mint (Menthae piperitae folium) and thyme (Serpylli herba), were in bulks or packed in tea bags. According to the requirements of the Food Low Regulations, the analyzed parameters were: assessment of declared weight, water content, total ash content, acid insoluble ash and sulphated ash, water and alcohol extracts and ether oil content. Results obtained have showed that most of the analyzed herbal teas did not have declared weight, and significant differences in ether oil content and alcohol extract were noticed. In more than 80% of analyzed samples the quality did not fulfill the demands of national legislative and all analyzed thyme herb tea samples were inadequate. This investigation showed that a regular control of herbal tea products is necessary in order to protect the consumers from fraud and low quality. .U našoj zemlji je uobičajeno korišćenje biljnih čajeva kao osvežavajućih, okrepljujućih ili aromatičnih napitaka. Takođe, tradicionalno biljni čajevi se koriste kod blažih poremećaja zdravlja ili uz propisanu terapiju. Cilj rada je bio da se proveri kvalitet trgovačkih uzoraka nekoliko vrsta biljnih čajeva. Na teritoriji grada Beograda i Valjeva prikupljeni su uzorci 21 čaja od lista nane, cveta kamilice i herbe majkine dušice. Među analiziranim uzorcima 5 je bilo u obliku rinfuza, a 16 uzoraka je bilo u podeljenim pojedinačnim dozama (filter kesica). Kvalitet je proveravan na osnovu zahteva Pravilnika o kvalitetu i drugim zahtevima za čaj, biljni čaj i instant čaj iz 2005. godine. Pored provere deklarisane mase, u ispitivanim uzorcima biljnih čajeva analizirani su i sledeći parametri: sadržaj vlage, ukupnog pepela, sulfatnog pepela, pepela nerastvorljivog u kiselini, određivanje vodenog i alkoholnog ekstrakta, određivanje sadržaja etarskog ulja. Na osnovu dobijenih rezultata može se zaključiti da najveći broj ispitivanih uzoraka nije sadržao deklarisanu masu biljnog materijala. Od ukupnog broja analiziranih uzoraka biljnih čajeva u preko 80% uočeno je da jedan, dva ili više parametara odstupaju od zahteva Pravilnika. Cvet kamilice sadržao je značajno manje etarskog ulja i alkoholnog ekstrakta. Kod čaja od herbe majkine dušice ni jedan ispitivani uzorak nije ispunio sve propisane parametre kvaliteta. Rezultati ovog rada ukazuju na neophodnost redovne kontrole kvaliteta biljnih čajeva u prometu radi bolje zaštite potrošača.

Microcystins: Potential risk factors in carcinogenesis of primary liver cancer in Serbia

The Primary Liver Carcinoma (PLC) is one of the most common malignant diseases in the world. In Central Serbia during the period from 2000 to 2006 the average incidence was 16.9/100 000 that complies to the European epidemiology. The main risk factors for PLC are considered to be cirrhosis of liver and viral chronic Hepatitis B and C. The goal of this research was to analyze epidemiological data of these diseases and to state the correlation between PLC, liver cirrhosis and Hepatitis B and C in Serbia. During the research period of 6 years the correlations between PLC and the corresponding risk factors were negative. For this reason it was necessary to examine other risk factors. The high incidence of PLC in Nišavski, Toplički and Šumadijski region correlate with emerging blooms of Cyanobacteria in water reservoirs supplying these areas with drinking water. Since we examined only 7 years span and have no completed cyanotoxin analysis, it is necessary to complete more research in this field. The identification of cyanotoxins as risk factors that contribute to the development of liver cancer will help in the prevention of this disease

Acquired von Willebrand syndrome in multiple myeloma

Acquired von Willebrand syndrome (AvWS) is an uncommon complication of multiple myeloma (MM), and it is believed to be connected with paraprotein. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of AvWS in patients with MM, and estimate the role of paraprotein in its occurrence. The study included 40 patients with MM. The plasma level of paraprotein, platelet adhesion on glass pearls, plasma von Willebrand factor antigen concentration, and ristocetin-induced platelet aggregation (RIPA) were measured initially. Absence of RIPA was found in six patients with MM (15%); however, all six of them had normal levels of von Willebrand factor antigen. Paraprotein was isolated from the serum of these patients. Platelet aggregation was measured in six healthy donors before and after addition of the isolated paraprotein. RIPA was significantly decreased in healthy donors in the presence of paraprotein (P lt 0.001). The same test was repeated with added human immunoglobulins for intravenous use without any change in RIPA. A significant negative correlation between plasma paraprotein level and RIPA was found (P lt 0.001). These investigations have shown that paraprotein is associated with AvWS in patients with MM

Application of targeted next generation sequencing for the mutational profiling of patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

lt b gt Uvod: lt /b gt Akutna limfoblastna leukemija (ALL) je najčešće maligno oboljenje kod dece, dok je kod odraslih njena učestalost mnogo niža. U današnjoj kliničkoj praksi kao najvažnije metode stratifikacije pacijenata u određene grupe rizika koriste se metode identifikacije citogenetičkih aberacija i malog broja molekulanih markera. Tehnologija sekvenciranja nove generacije (SNG) obezbeđuje veliku količinu podataka koji doprinose razjašnjavanju mutacionog profila dečje (dALL) i adultne ALL (aALL). lt b gt Metode: lt /b gt Uzorci DNK iz 34 dALL i aALL pacijenata analizirani su primenom SNG ciljanog sekvenciranja ("TruSeq Amplicon Cancer Panel - TSACP") kojim se sekvenciraju "hotspot" mutacije u 48 gena povezanih sa kancerom. lt b gt Rezultati: lt /b gt Identifikovano je ukupno 330 varijanti u kodirajućim regionima, od kojih je samo 95 njih za posledicu imalo potencijalnu promenu u proteinu. Posmatrano kod pojedinačnih pacijenata, detektovane mutacije su pretežno remetile Ras/RTK signalni put (STK11, KIT, MET, NRAS, KRAS, PTEN). Pored toga, identifikovano je 5 pacijenata sa istom mutacijom u HNF1A genu, koja je uzrokovala poremećaje u Wnt i Notch signalnom putu. Kod dva pa cijenta otkrivene su varijante u NOTCH1 genu. Nije detektovano istovremeno prisustvo varijanti u HNF1A i NOTCH1 genu, dok su geni uključeni u Ras/RTK signalni put pokazali tendenciju ka akumuliranju mutacija. lt b gt Zaključak: lt /b gt Naši rezultati pokazuju da ALL sadrži Mali broj mutacija, bez značajnih razlika između dALL i aALL (medijana po pacijentu 2 odnosno 3). Detektovane mutacije izazivaju poremećaje u nekoliko ključnih signalnih puteva, prvenstveno Ras/RTK kaskade. Ova studija doprinosi ukupnom znanju o mutacionom profilu ALL, što vodi ka boljem razumijevanju molekularne osnove ovog oboljenja.lt b gt Background: lt /b gt Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common cancer in children, whereas it is less common in adults. Identification of cytogenetic aberrations and a small number of molecular abnormalities are still the most important risk and therapy stratification methods in clinical practice today. Next generation sequencing (NGS) technology provides a large amount of data contributing to elucidation of mutational landscape of childhood (cALL) and adult ALL (aALL). lt b gt Methods: lt /b gt We analyzed DNA samples from 34 cALL and aALL patients, using NGS targeted sequencing TruSeq Amplicon - Cancer Panel (TSACP) which targets mutational hotspots in 48 cancer related genes. lt b gt Results: lt /b gt We identified a total of 330 variants in the coding regions, out of which only 95 were potentially protein-changing. Observed in individual patients, detected mutations predominantly disrupted Ras/RTK pathway (STK11, KIT, MET, NRAS, KRAS, PTEN). Additionally, we identified 5 patients with the same mutation in HNF1A gene, disrupting both Wnt and Notch signaling pathway. In two patients we detected variants in NOTCH1 gene. HNF1A and NOTCH1 variants were mutually exclusive, while genes involved in Ras/RTK pathway exhibit a tendency of mutation accumulation. lt b gt Conclusions: lt /b gt Our results showed that ALL contains low number of mutations, without significant differences between cALL and aALL (median per patient 2 and 3, respectively). Detected mutations affect few key signaling pathways, primarily Ras/RTK cascade. This study contributes to knowledge of ALL mutational landscape, leading to better understanding of molecular basis of this disease

Somatic mutations of isocitrate dehydrogenases 1 and 2 are prognostic and follow-up markers in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia with normal karyotype

Background. Mutations in the isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 and 2 (IDH1 and IDH2) genes are frequent molecular lesions in acute myeloid leukaemia with normal karyotype (AML-NK). The effects of IDH mutations on clinical features and treatment outcome in AML-NK have been widely investigated, but only a few studies monitored these mutations during follow-up. Patients and methods. In our study samples from 110 adult de novo AML-NK were studied for the presence of IDH1 and IDH2 mutations, their associations with other prognostic markers and disease outcome. We also analyzed the stability of these mutations during the course of the disease in complete remission (CR) and relapse. Results. IDH mutations were found in 25 (23%) patients. IDH+ patients tend to have lower CR rate compared to IDH-patients (44% vs 62.2%, p = 0.152), and had slightly lower disease free survival (12 months vs 17 months; p = 0.091). On the other hand, the presence of IDH mutations had significant impact on overall survival (2 vs 7 months; p = 0.039). The stability of IDH mutations were studied sequentially in 19 IDH+ patients. All of them lost the mutation in CR, and the same IDH mutations were detected in relapsed samples. Conclusions. Our study shows that the presence of IDH mutations confer an adverse effect in AML-NK patients, which in combination with other molecular markers can lead to an improved risk stratification and better treatment. Also, IDH mutations are very stable during the course of the disease and can be potentially used as markers for minimal residual disease detection

Supplementary material for the article: Samelak, I.; Balaban, M.; Vidović, N.; Koljančić, N.; Antić, M.; Šolević-Knudsen, T.; Jovančićević, B. Application of Alkane Biological Markers in the Assessment of the Origin of Oil Pollutants in the Soil and Recent River Sediments (River Vrbas, Bosnia and Herzegovina). Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society 2018, 83 (10), 1167–1175. https://doi.org/10.2298/JSC180501061S

Supplementary material for: [https://doi.org/10.2298/JSC180501061S]Related to published version: [http://cherry.chem.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2237

Determination of the water-soluble polymer poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI) in wastewater by continuous-flow off-line pyrolysis GC/MS

Reliable identification and quantification of water-soluble synthetic polymers (WSSP), such as polyethyleneimine (PEI), is crucial for understanding their potential impact on certain ecological environments. Therefore, this study proposes an analytical method combining on-line and off-line pyrolysis GC/MS to investigate the pyrolytic degradation. mechanism of branched PEI and develop a calibration method using specific pyrolysis. products, including methylpyrazine, dimethylpyrazine, ethylmethylpyrazine, trimethylpyrazine, methylpropylpyrazine and ethyldimethylpyrazine, for the. quantification of PEI in environmental wastewater samples. The developed analytical. method shows adequate linearity for all molecular ions of the specific pyrolysis. products, with a determination coefficient ranging from 0.95 to 0.98 for the range of 10–500 μg PEI. The limit of quantification for this method lies between 1 and 10 μg/L of PEI. The accuracy (absolute recovery 71–95%) and reproducibility (RSD < 30%) were. evaluated by multiple spiking/recovery experiments at a PEI level of 500 μg. Using this. method for samples collected from different wastewater treatment plants in Germany. reveals a significant emission of PEI to the aquatic environment with concentrations. ranging from 0.08 mg L-1–0.55 mg L-1, and thus demonstrating its applicability in. environmental studies. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the. occurrence of PEI in environmental samples. © 2023 Elsevier B.V