Thermodynamic Signatures of Blood Plasma Proteome in Neurodegenerative Pathologies.

Discovery of diagnostic biomarkers for age-related neurodegenerative pathologies (NDDs) is essential for accurate diagnosis, following disease progression and drug development. Blood plasma and blood cells are important peripheral sources for NDDs' biomarkers that, although present in lower concentrations than in cerebrospinal fluid, would allow noninvasive diagnostics. To identify new biomarkers for Parkinson's disease (PD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), in this work we have evaluated the modifications in the thermodynamic behavior of blood plasma proteome exploring differential scanning calorimetry.

Altered Thermal Behavior of Blood Plasma Proteome Related to Inflammatory Cytokines in Early Pregnancy Loss.

Early pregnancy loss (EPL) is a relatively common pathology of which almost 50% of cases remain idiopathic. In the search for novel biomarkers, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is intensively used to characterize the thermodynamic behavior of blood plasma/serum proteome in health and disease. Herein, for the first time, we investigate the DSC denaturation profiles of blood plasma derived from patients suffering EPL compared to healthy pregnant and non-pregnant women.

Morphometry and Stiffness of Red Blood Cells-Signatures of Neurodegenerative Diseases and Aging.

Human red blood cells (RBCs) are unique cells with the remarkable ability to deform, which is crucial for their oxygen transport function, and which can be significantly altered under pathophysiological conditions. Here we performed ultrastructural analysis of RBCs as a peripheral cell model, looking for specific signatures of the neurodegenerative pathologies (NDDs)-Parkinson's disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Alzheimer's disease (AD), utilizing atomic force (AFM) and conventional optical (OM) microscopy. We found significant differences in the morphology and stiffness of RBCs isolated from patients with the selected NDDs and those from healthy individuals.

Red Blood Cells' Thermodynamic Behavior in Neurodegenerative Pathologies and Aging.

The main trend of current research in neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) is directed towards the discovery of novel biomarkers for disease diagnostics and progression. The pathological features of NDDs suggest that diagnostic markers can be found in peripheral fluids and cells. Herein, we investigated the thermodynamic behavior of the peripheral red blood cells (RBCs) derived from patients diagnosed with three common NDDs-Parkinson's disease (PD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and compared it with that of healthy individuals, evaluating both fresh and aged RBCs.

Insights into graphene oxide interaction with human serum albumin in isolated state and in blood plasma.

The interactions of graphene oxide (GO), a 2-dimensional nanomaterial with hydrophilic edges, hydrophobic basal plane and large flat surfaces, with biological macromolecules, are of key importance for the development of novel nanomaterials for biomedical applications. To gain more insight into the interaction of GO flakes with human serum albumin (HSA), we examined GO binding to HSA in its isolated state and in blood plasma. Calorimetric data reveal that GO strongly stabilizes free isolated HSA against a thermal challenge at low ionic strength, indicating strong binding interactions, confirmed by the drop in ζ-potential of the HSA/GO assemblies compared to bare GO flakes.

Calorimetric markers for monitoring of multiple myeloma and Waldenström's macroglobulinemia patients.

The blood proteome has been studied extensively for identification of novel reliable disease biomarkers. In recent years, differential scanning calorimetry has emerged as a new tool for characterization of the thermodynamic properties of the major serum/plasma proteins and for the establishment of calorimetric markers for a variety of diseases. Here we applied calorimetry to monitor the effect of treatment of patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma and Waldenström's macroglobulinemia on the calorimetric profiles of patients' blood sera.