Effect of Purified Paper Wasp Ropalidia marginata Venom Toxins on Different Biomolecules in Mice Serum

This study evaluated the effects of purified paper wasp Ropalidia marginata venoms on various biomolecules in the blood serum of albino mice. Changes in the concentration of some important macromolecules, i.e., proteins, free amino acids, uric acid, cholesterol, pyruvic acid, total lipids and glucose were noted down. These alterations were measured after intraperitoneal injection of 40% and 80% 24-hour LD50 purified Ropalidia marginata venom toxin. Serum total protein levels were found to decrease to 78% after 6 hrs, while serum free amino acid levels were significantly increased to 117% 6 hrs after venom injection compared to control. It was also found that serum uric acid levels increased to 138% after 8 hrs of venom injection compared to control. The increase in serum cholesterol i.e. (101% and 106%) and pyruvic acid increased significantly to a maximum value of 106% after 6 hrs of treatment at 40% LD50. Glycogen levels in the gastrocnemius muscle were found to decrease significantly (p-0.05) to 43% and 92% at LD50 after injection of purified Ropalidia marginata venom after 8 h and 80% at LD50 compared to control. Moreover, up to 71% and 81% were obtained at 10 hrs of treatment with the same dose. In the present study, the purified toxins significantly changed the levels of biomolecules in blood serum, indicating their wider effects on cellular physiology due to toxic effects and stress on the animal. These toxins can be good antigens and stimulate immune responses in experimental mice.

MicroRNAs as potential biomarkers for diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Inappropriate levels of hyperactivity,impulsivity,and inattention characterize attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,a common childhood-onset neuropsychiatric disorder.The cognitive function and learning ability of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are affected,and these symptoms may persist to adulthood if they are not treated.The diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is only based on symptoms and objective tests for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are missing.Treatments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children include medications,behavior therapy,counseling,and education services which can relieve many of the symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder but cannot cure it.There is a need for a molecular biomarker to distinguish attention deficit hyperactivity disorder from healthy subjects and other neurological conditions,which would allow for an earlier and more accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment to be initiated.Abnormal expression of microRNAs is connected to brain development and disease and could provide novel biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.The recent studies reviewed had performed microRNA profiling in whole blood,white blood cells,blood plasma,and blood serum of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.A large number of microRNAs were dysregulated when compared to healthy controls and with some overlap between individual studies.From the studies that had included a validation set of patients and controls,potential candidate biomarkers for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children could be miR-140-3p,let-7g-5p,-30e-5p,-223-3p,-142-5p,-486-5p,-151a-3p,-151a-5p,and-126-5p in total white blood cells,and miR-4516,-6090,-4763-3p,-4281,-4466,-101-3p,-130a-3p,-138-5p,-195-5p,and-106b-5p in blood serum.Further studies are warranted with children and adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,and consideration should be given to utilizing rat models of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.Animal studies could be used to confirm microRNA findings in human patients and to test the effects of targeting specific microRNAs on disease progression and behavior.

MicroRNAs as potential diagnostic biomarkers for bipolar disorder

Abnormal expression of microRNAs is connected to brain development and disease and could provide novel biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of bipolar disorder. We performed a PubMed search for microRNA biomarkers in bipolar disorder and found 18 original research articles on studies performed with human patients and published from January 2011 to June 2023. These studies included microRNA profiling in bloodand brain-based materials. From the studies that had validated the preliminary findings,potential candidate biomarkers for bipolar disorder in adults could be miR-140-3p,-30d-5p,-330-5p,-378a-5p,-21-3p,-330-3p,-345-5p in whole blood, miR-19b-3p,-1180-3p,-125a-5p, let-7e-5p in blood plasma, and miR-7-5p,-23b-5p,-142-3p,-221-5p,-370-3p in the blood serum. Two of the studies had investigated the changes in microRNA expression of patients with bipolar disorder receiving treatment. One showed a significant increase in plasma miR-134 compared to baseline after 4 weeks of treatment which included typical antipsychotics, atypical antipsychotics, and benzodiazepines. The other study had assessed the effects of prescribed medications which included neurotransmitter receptorsite binders(drug class B) and sedatives, hypnotics, anticonvulsants, and analgesics(drug class C) on microRNA results. The combined effects of the two drug classes increased the significance of the results for miR-219 and-29c with miR-30e-3p and-526b* acquiring significance. MicroRNAs were tested to see if they could serve as biomarkers of bipolar disorder at different clinical states of mania, depression, and euthymia. One study showed that upregulation in whole blood of miR-9-5p,-29a-3p,-106a-5p,-106b-5p,-107,-125a-3p,-125b-5p and of miR-107,-125a-3p occurred in manic and euthymic patients compared to controls, respectively, and that upregulation of miR-106a-5p,-107 was found for manic compared to euthymic patients. In two other studies using blood plasma,downregulation of miR-134 was observed in manic patients compared to controls, and dysregulation of miR-134,-152,-607,-633,-652,-155 occurred in euthymic patients compared to controls. Finally, microRNAs such as miR-34a,-34b,-34c,-137, and-140-3p,-21-3p,-30d-5p,-330-5p,-378a-5p,-134,-19b-3p were shown to have diagnostic potential in distinguishing bipolar disorder patients from schizophrenia or major depressive disorder patients, respectively. Further studies are warranted with adolescents and young adults having bipolar disorder and consideration should be given to using animal models of the disorder to investigate the effects of suppressing or overexpressing specific microRNAs.

Flow injection spectrophotometric determination of vitamin E in pharmaceuticals,milk powder and blood serum using potassium ferricyanide-Fe(Ⅲ) detection system

A simple and sensitive flow injection spectrophotometric method is reported for the determination of vitamin E using potassium ferricyanide-Fe(Ⅲ) detection system.In the presence of vitamin E,Fe(Ⅲ)/ferricyanide reduces.The in situ reduced ions are then reacted with unreduced portion of ferricyanide/Fe(Ⅲ) to make soluble Prussian blue,which is monitored at absorption wavelength of 735 nm.Linear calibration graph was obtained in the concentration range of 0.1-40μg mL^(-1).The relative standard deviations (n=4) were in the range of 1.1-3.6%,with limits of detection(3 s blank) of 0.04μg mL^(-1).The proposed method allowed 12 injections h^(-1).The method is applied to determine vitamin E in pharmaceuticals,infant milk and blood serum samples using hexane extraction with the recoveries in the range of 93±3 to 97.5±4%.The method is validated using certified reference materials SRM 968c for blood serum samples.

Monitoring of Heart Ischemia in Blood Serum

Our aim was to study the selected cases of the patients with ischemic heart disease and to analyze the structure of blood serum of patients in comparison with control serum of healthy subjects by methods: synchronous fluorescence fingerprint and atomic force microscopy that are still not used in clinical practice. Our results of fluorescence analysis showed that blood serum of all patients with ischemic heart disease decreased intensity of fluorescence in comparison with control blood serum. Endogenous fluorescence of synchronous fluorescence fingerprint of blood serum of patients with unstable angina pectoris state after non ST elevation myocardial infarction;angina pectoris and arterial hypertension 3 was similar, but atomic force microscopy revealed differences in the structure of blood serum of patients with the angina pectoris. Blood serum of patients with angina pectoris exhibited disappearance of fluorescence peak with maximum fluorescence and showed lower fluorescence intensity than control blood serum and blood serum of patients with arterial hypertension 2. Profiles of synchronous fluorescence fingerprint of blood serum of patients with arterial hypertension stage 2 showed formation of the new fluorescent peak with maximum fluorescence, similar shape of synchronous fluorescence fingerprint and higher fluorescence intensity than blood serum of healthy subjects. Blood serum sensitively revealed changes in the body by using untraditional novel techniques which enable the analysis of the mixture of blood serum and might be a new possibility in study of heart ischemia diseases.

An Experimental Study on RBC Count and Serum Potassium Concentration Changes During Compression Transfusion of WBC-removal Whole Blood

Objective： To observe changes in RBC count, changes, RBC morphology, and serum potassium during compressed transfusion of WBC-removal whole blood. Methods： Prepared human WBC-removal whole blood and connected transfusion apparatus with different sizes of intravenous detaining needles （18G, 20G, 22G and 24G）. Observed RBC count and serum potassium concentration under different pressures （100 mmHg, 200 mmHg, and 300 mmHg） as blood flowed out of the pinhead end of the intravenous detaining needle. Samples obtained with the 20G needle were smeared on glass slides, and RBC morphologic changes were observed under an oil immersion lens. Results： RBC count and serum potassium changed slightly under different pressures with different sizes of intravenous detaining needles as blood flowed through the transfusion apparatus. In addition, the observation of blood samples under a common light microscope revealed that coarse- prick, oblong, and spindle cell counts in the visual fields increased gradually as the pressure increased. Additionally, a portion of cells had undergone splintering. Conclusions： While applying 18G, 20G, 22G and 24G intravenous detaining needles for blood transfusion under less than 300 mmHg of pressure, no significant RBC count change was found in blood samples in the short term. However, there were significant RBC morphologic changes. The results could offer more basis to ensure the clinical safetv of oatients undereoing blood transfilsion.

MicroRNAs as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers of age-related macular degeneration:advances and limitations

A main cause of vision loss in the elderly is age-related macular degeneration(AMD).Among the cellular,biochemical,and molecular changes linked to this disease,inflammation and angiogenesis appear as being crucial in AMD pathogenesis and progression.There are two forms of the disease:dry AMD,accounting for 80–90%of cases,and wet AMD.The disease usually begins as dry AMD associated with retinal pigment epithelium and photoreceptor degeneration,whereas wet AMD is associated with choroidal neovascularization resulting in severe vision impairment.The new vessels are largely malformed,leading to blood and fluid leakage within the disrupted tissue,which provokes inflammation and scar formation and results in retinal damage and detachment.Micro RNAs are dysregulated in AMD and may facilitate the early detection of the disease and monitoring disease progression.Two recent reviews of micro RNAs in AMD had indicated weaknesses or limitations in four earlier investigations.Studies in the last three years have shown considerable progress in overcoming some of these concerns and identifying specific micro RNAs as biomarkers for AMD.Further large-scale studies are warranted using appropriate statistical methods to take into account gender and age disparity in the study populations and confounding factors such as smoking status.

Clinical and pathological characteristics of intraductal proliferative lesions and coexist with invasive ductal carcinomas

Objective： The purpose of this study was to study the clinical and pathological characteristics of breast intraductal proliferative lesions （IDPLs） and associated with invasive breast cancer. Methods： We reviewed 327 cases of breast intra- ductal proliferative lesions including 53 cases of usual ductal hyperplasia, 57 cases of atypical ductal hyperplasia, 89 cases of ductal carcinoma in situ, and 128 cases coexist with invasive ductal carcinomas. Cases of pure invasive cancer without intraductal proliferative lesions were excluded. The mult IDPLs biological parameters including the express of ER, PR, HER2, HIF-lo and Ki-67 detected by immunohistochemistry S-P method （n = 327） and the levels of CA153, TSGF, CA125 and CEA both in nipple discharge and serum （n = 179） measured with Electrochemiluminescence method and their relationship were studied, and 30 cases of normal pregnant women were compared with. Results： A single histologic subtype was present in 49.85% （163/327） of the cases, two subtypes in 33.03% （108/327）, and three in 17.13% （56/327）. The most common subtypes present were cribriform （43.12%, 141/327） and solid （38.53%, 126/327）, while the comedo （16.35%, 54/327）, and micropapillary （12.84%, 42/327） subtypes were less common. Comedo and solid were frequently found together for coexpres- sion as were micropapillary and papillary subtypes. However, Comedo subtype was much less likely to be found with papillary, cribriform or micropapillary subtypes. Additionally, comedo subtypes tend to be hormone receptor negative, Her2 positive and high-grade while the cribriform and solid subtype tends to be hormone receptor positive, Her2 negative and low grade. Papil- lary subtype was least likely to be associated with an invasive cancer. Furthermore, the nipple discharge and serum levels of CA153, TSGF, CA125 and CEA in coexist with invasive ductal carcinomas patients were significantly higher than those in the benign breast disease （pure intraductal proliferative lesions） and normal pregnant women （P 〈 0.01）. Additionally, the levels of CA153, TSGF, CA125 and CEA in nipple discharge were significantly higher than in the serum （P 〈 0.01）, and had a positive correlation with the Ki-67, grade, clinical stage, lymph node metastasis and tumor recurrence （P 〈 0.05）, and negative correla- tion with the level of ER and PR （P 〈 0.05）. The sensitivity of the four serum tumor markers in combination was only 69.77%, in contrast, the combined detection both in discharge and serum was 97.67%, and the negative predictive value was 99.03%. The sensitivity of combined detection both in nipple discharge and serum were significantly higher than other detection （P 〈 0.05）. Conclusion： IDPLs often present more than one histologic subtype and the most common subtypes are cribriform and solid, while comedo and micropapillary subtypes are less common. Our results suggest that the levels of CA153, TSGF, CA125 and CEA in nipple discharge were significantly higher than those in the serum, and is associated with HIF-le. The aberration of HIF-la may play a key role during oncogenesis and promote breast cellular transformation into malignancy, a finding useful for further understanding of tumorigenesis. Nipple discharge can be the earliest presenting symptom of breast cancer. The dynamic combined detection of the four tumor markers both in nipple discharge and serum are helpful to the stratification of preoperative patients and benefit to better prewarning markers for monitoring their recurrence and metastasis and clinical staging of tumors in clinic, but cannot increase the sensitivity of judging the patients with early breast cancer.

The interplay between non-esterified fatty acids and bovine peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors: results of an in vitro hybrid approach

Background: In dairy cows circulating non-esterified fatty acids(NEFA) increase early post-partum while liver and other tissues undergo adaptation to greater lipid metabolism, mainly regulated by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors(PPAR). PPAR are activated by fatty acids(FA), but it remains to be demonstrated that circulating NEFA or dietary FA activate bovine PPAR. We hypothesized that circulating NEFA and dietary FA activate PPAR in dairy cows.Methods: The dose-response activation of PPAR by NEFA or dietary FA was assessed using HP300 e digital dispenser and luciferase reporter in several bovine cell types. Cells were treated with blood plasma isolated from Jersey cows before and after parturition, NEFA isolated from the blood plasma, FA released from lipoproteins using milk lipoprotein lipase(LPL), and palmitic acid(C16:0). Effect on each PPAR isotype was assessed using specific synthetic inhibitors.Results: NEFA isolated from blood serum activate PPAR linearly up to ~ 4-fold at 400 μmol/L in MAC-T cells but had cytotoxic effect. Addition of albumin to the culture media decreases cytotoxic effects of NEFA but also PPAR activation by ~ 2-fold. Treating cells with serum from peripartum cows reveals that much of the PPAR activation can be explained by the amount of NEFA in the serum(R~2 = 0.91) and that the response to serum NEFA follows a quadratic tendency, with peak activation around 1.4 mmol/L. Analysis of PPAR activation by serum in MAC-T, BFH-12 and BPAEC cells revealed that most of the activation is explained by the activity of PPARδ and PPARγ, but not PPARα. Palmitic acid activated PPAR when added in culture media or blood serum but the activation was limited to PPARδ and PPARα and the response was nil in serum from post-partum cows. The addition of LPL to the serum increased > 1.5-fold PPAR activation.Conclusion: Our results support dose-dependent activation of PPAR by circulating NEFA in bovine, specifically δand γ isotypes. Data also support the possibility of increasing PPAR activation by dietary FA;however, this nutrigenomics approach maybe only effective in pre-partum but not post-partum cows.

Spectrofluorimetric Determination of Magnesium (Ⅱ) with 7-(8-Hydroxy-3, 6-Disulfonaphthylazo)-8-Hydroxyquinoline-5-Sulfonic Acid

A new fluorescent reagent, 7 (8 hydroxy 3, 6 disulfonaphthylazo) 8 hydroxyquinoline 5 sulfonic acid (HDNHQ) for the determination of magnesium has been developed. It reacted with magnesium to form a 1∶1 fluorescent complex with λ ex / λ em =356/495 nm immediately at room temperature in ammonia ammonium chloride buffer (pH 10.7). A linear relationship was obtained in the magnesium concentration range of 0 160 ng·mL -1 with the detection limit of 0.04 ng·mL -1 . The proposed method was simple, rapid and sensitive. It has been successfully applied to the determination of trace magnesium in blood serum with recoveries of 103.75% and 98.16%, respectively.

MicroRNAs as potential biomarkers in temporal lobe epilepsy and mesial temporal lobe epilepsy

Temporal lobe epilepsy is the most common form of focal epilepsy in adults,accounting for one third of all diagnosed epileptic patients,with seizures originating from or involving mesial temporal structures such as the hippocampus,and many of these patients being refractory to treatment with anti-epileptic drugs.Temporal lobe epilepsy is the most common childhood neurological disorder and,compared with adults,the symptoms are greatly affected by age and brain development.Diagnosis of temporal lobe epilepsy relies on clinical examination,patient history,electroencephalographic recordings,and brain imaging.Misdiagnosis or delay in diagnosis is common.A molecular biomarker that could distinguish epilepsy from healthy subjects and other neurological conditions would allow for an earlier and more accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment to be initiated.Among possible biomarkers of pathological changes as well as potential therapeutic targets in the epileptic brain are micro RNAs.Most of the recent studies had performed micro RNA profiling in body fluids such as blood plasma and blood serum and brain tissues such as temporal cortex tissue and hippocampal tissue.A large number of micro RNAs were dysregulated when compared to healthy controls and with some overlap between individual studies that could serve as potential biomarkers.For example,in adults with temporal lobe epilepsy,possible biomarkers are miR-199a-3p in blood plasma and miR-142-5p in blood plasma and blood serum.In adults with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy,possible biomarkers are miR-153 in blood plasma and miR-145-3p in blood serum.However,in many of the studies involving patients who receive one or several anti-epileptic drugs,the influence of these on micro RNA expression in body fluids and brain tissues is largely unknown.Further studies are warranted with children with temporal lobe epilepsy and consideration should be given to utilizing mouse or rat and non-human primate models of temporal lobe epilepsy.The animal models could be used to confirm micro RNA findings in human patients and to test the effects of targeting specific micro RNAs on disease progression and behavior.

Autism spectrum disorder:difficulties in diagnosis and microRNA biomarkers

We performed a PubMed search for microRNAs in autism spectrum disorder that could serve as diagnostic biomarkers in patients and selected 17 articles published from January 2008 to December 2023,of which 4 studies were performed with whole blood,4 with blood plasma,5 with blood serum,1 with serum neural cell adhesion molecule L1-captured extracellular vesicles,1 with blood cells,and 2 with peripheral blood mononuclear cells.Most of the studies involved children and the study cohorts were largely males.Many of the studies had performed microRNA sequencing or quantitative polymerase chain reaction assays to measure microRNA expression.Only five studies had used real-time polymerase chain reaction assay to validate microRNA expression in autism spectrum disorder subjects compared to controls.The microRNAs that were validated in these studies may be considered as potential candidate biomarkers for autism spectrum disorder and include miR-500a-5p,-197-5p,-424-5p,-664a-3p,-365a-3p,-619-5p,-664a-3p,-3135a,-328-3p,and-500a-5p in blood plasma and miR-151a-3p,-181b-5p,-320a,-328,-433,-489,-572,-663a,-101-3p,-106b-5p,-19b-3p,-195-5p,and-130a-3p in blood serum of children,and miR-15b-5p and-6126 in whole blood of adults.Several important limitations were identified in the studies reviewed,and need to be taken into account in future studies.Further studies are warranted with children and adults having different levels of autism spectrum disorder severity and consideration should be given to using animal models of autism spectrum disorder to investigate the effects of suppressing or overexpressing specific microRNAs as a novel therapy.

MicroRNAs as disease progression biomarkers and therapeutic targets in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis model of multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system characterized by pronounced inflammatory infiltrates entering the brain,spinal cord and optic nerve leading to demyelination.Focal demyelination is associated with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis,while progressive forms of the disease show axonal degeneration and neuronal loss.The tests currently used in the clinical diagnosis and management of multiple sclerosis have limitations due to specificity and sensitivity.MicroRNAs(miRNAs)are dysregulated in many diseases and disorders including demyelinating and neuroinflammatory diseases.A review of recent studies with the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis animal model(mostly female mice 6–12 weeks of age)has confirmed miRNAs as biomarkers of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis disease and importantly at the pre-onset(asymptomatic)stage when assessed in blood plasma and urine exosomes,and spinal cord tissue.The expression of certain miRNAs was also dysregulated at the onset and peak of disease in blood plasma and urine exosomes,brain and spinal cord tissue,and at the post-peak(chronic)stage of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis disease in spinal cord tissue.Therapies using miRNA mimics or inhibitors were found to delay the induction and alleviate the severity of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis disease.Interestingly,experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis disease severity was reduced by overexpression of miR-146a,miR-23b,miR-497,miR-26a,and miR-20b,or by suppression of miR-182,miR-181c,miR-223,miR-155,and miR-873.Further studies are warranted on determining more fully miRNA profiles in blood plasma and urine exosomes of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis animals since they could serve as biomarkers of asymptomatic multiple sclerosis and disease course.Additionally,studies should be performed with male mice of a similar age,and with aged male and female mice.

MicroRNAs as biomarkers in glaucoma and potential therapeutic targets

Glaucoma is a neurodegenerative disease in which optic nerve damage and visual field defects occur.It is a leading cause of irreversible blindness.Its pathogenesis is largely unknown although several risk factors have been identified,with an increase in intraocular pressure being the main one.Lowering of intraocular pressure is the only treatment available.Open-angle glaucoma is the most common form of the condition,accounting for~90%of all cases of glaucoma,with primary open-angle glaucoma and exfoliation glaucoma being the most frequent types.There are strong indications that microRNAs play important roles in the pathogenesis of primary open-angle glaucoma.Most of the recent studies reviewed had performed microRNA profiling in aqueous humor from glaucoma patients compared to controls who were chiefly cataract patients.A very large number of microRNAs were dysregulated but with limited overlap between individual studies.MiRNAs in aqueous humor that could be possible targets for therapeutic intervention are miR-143-3p,miR-125b-5p,and miR-1260b.No ove rlap of findings occurred within the dysregulated miRNAs for blood plasma,blood serum,peripheral blood mononuclear cells,and tears of primary open-angle glaucoma patients.Seve ral impo rtant limitations were identified in these studies.Further studies are warranted of mic roRNA expression in aqueous humor and blood samples of primary open-angle glaucoma patients in the early stages of the disease so that validated biomarkers can be identified and treatment initiated.In addition,whether modifying the levels of specific microRNAs in aqueous humor or tears has a beneficial effect on intraocular pressure and ophthalmic examination of the eyes should be investigated using suitable animal models of glaucoma.

MicroRNA biomarkers in frontotemporal dementia and to distinguish from Alzheimer's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration describes a group of progressive brain disorders that primarily are associated with atrophy of the prefrontal and anterior temporal lobes.Frontotemporal lobar degeneration is considered to be equivalent to frontotemporal dementia.Frontotemporal dementia is characterized by progressive impairments in behavior,executive function,and language.There are two main clinical subtypes:behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia and primary progressive aphasia.The early diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia is critical for developing management strategies and interventions for these patients.Without validated biomarkers,the clinical diagnosis depends on recognizing all the core or necessary neuropsychiatric features,but misdiagnosis often occurs due to overlap with a range of neurologic and psychiatric disorders.In the studies reviewed a very large number of microRNAs were found to be dysregulated but with limited overlap between individual studies.Measurement of specific miRNAs singly or in combination,or as miRNA pairs(as a ratio)in blood plasma,serum,or cerebrospinal fluid enabled frontotemporal dementia to be discriminated from healthy controls,Alzheimer’s disease,and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.Furthermore,upregulation of miR-223-3p and downregulation of miR-15a-5p,which occurred both in blood serum and cerebrospinal fluid,distinguished behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia from healthy controls.Downregulation of miR-132-3p in frontal and temporal cortical tissue distinguished frontotemporal lobar degeneration and frontotemporal dementia,respectively,from healthy controls.Possible strong miRNA biofluid biomarker contenders for behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia are miR-223-3p,miR-15a-5p,miR-22-3p in blood serum and cerebrospinal fluid,and miR-124 in cerebrospinal fluid.No miRNAs were identified able to distinguish between behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia and primary progressive aphasia subtypes.Further studies are warranted on investigating miRNA expression in biofluids and frontal/temporal cortical tissue to validate and extend these findings.

Simultaneous Biparametric Determination of Total Calcium and Potassium in Biological Fluids by Flow Injection Analysis──Use of Powell＇s Method in the System Optimization

ＳｉｍｕｌｔａｎｅｏｕｓＢｉｐａｒａｍｅｔｒｉｃＤｅｔｅｒｍｉｎａｔｉｏｎｏｆＴｏｔａｌＣａｌｃｉｕｍａｎｄＰｏｔａｓｓｉｕｍｉｎＢｉｏｌｏｇｉｃａｌＦｌｕｉｄｓｂｙＦｌｏｗＩｎｊｅｃｔｉｏｎＡｎａｌｙｓｉｓ──ＵｓｅｏｆＰｏｗｅｌｌ＇ｓＭｅｔｈｏｄ...

Extractive Spectrophotometric Determination of Fluconazole by Ion-pair Complex Formation with Bromocresol Green

An extraction-spectrophotometric method for the determination of trace amounts of fluconazole was described. Fluconazole was effectively extracted as a 1 ： 1 ion-pair complex with bromocresole green （BCG） at pH 3.0 into chloroform, followed by spectrophotometric determination at 420 nm. Beer＇s law was obeyed over the range of 4-50 μg.mL^-1 of fluconazole with a detection limit of 3.7 μg.mL^-1 . The method is simple, rapid and sensitive. The procedure was applied to the determination of fluconazole in pharmaceutical preparations as well as its recovery from a blood serum sample.