Associations of plasma extracellular microRNAs with new-onset breast cancer in the Framingham heart study.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women. Multiple microRNAs (miRNAs) have been reported to be associated with breast cancer progression or metastasis. The purpose of the current study was to identify plasma extracellular miRNAs associated with incident breast cancer.

Plasma Extracellular MicroRNAs Associated With Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Middle-Aged and Older Adults.

Background: Extracellular microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of noncoding RNAs that remain stable in the extracellular milieu, where they contribute to various physiological and pathological processes by facilitating intercellular signaling. Previous studies have reported associations between miRNAs and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs); however, the plasma miRNA signatures of CVD and its risk factors have not been fully elucidated at the population level.

Methods And Results: Plasma miRNA levels were measured in 4440 FHS (Framingham Heart Study) participants.

Light-Guided Percutaneous Neck Rejuvenation With Division of Platysma Bands and Suture Suspension: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.

Background: Traditional invasive suture suspension techniques have proven efficacy and durability. A previously described percutaneous placement of a neck suspension suture with light guidance has transformed this into a minimally invasive technique. This novel technique provides a major advance for minimally invasive neck rejuvenation.

New Horizons in Imaging and Diagnosis in Rhinoplasty.

Three-dimensional (3D) surface imaging has found its place in aesthetic surgery globally. The first attempt to use 3D surface imaging technique in clinic was in 1944 by Thalmaan, who used stereo photogrammetry to examine an adult with facial asymmetry and a baby with Pierre Robin syndrome. Three-dimensional photography is becoming more common allowing for a more dynamic facial evaluation, although it is associated with increased cost.

α-Amidated Peptides: Approaches for Analysis.

α-Amidation is a terminal modification in peptide biosynthesis that can itself be rate limiting in the overall production of bioactive α-amidated peptides. More than half of the known neural and endocrine peptides are α-amidated and in most cases this structural feature is essential for receptor recognition, signal transduction, and thus biologic function. This chapter describes methods for developing and using analytical tools to study the biology of α-amidated peptides.

Tau Is Elevated in Pediatric Patients on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation.

Neurologic injury is a known and feared complication of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Neurologic biomarkers may have a role in assisting in early identification of such. Axonal biomarker tau has not been investigated in the pediatric ECMO population.

Radiation resistance of normal human astrocytes: the role of non-homologous end joining DNA repair activity.

Radiotherapy is a common modality for treatment of brain cancers, but it can induce long-term physiological and cognitive deficits. The responses of normal human brain cells to radiation is not well understood. Astrocytes have been shown to have a variety of protective mechanisms against oxidative stress and have been shown to protect neurons.

Mechanisms of Endogenous Neuroprotective Effects of Astrocytes in Brain Injury.

Astrocytes, once believed to serve only as "glue" for the structural support of neurons, have been demonstrated to serve critical functions for the maintenance and protection of neurons, especially under conditions of acute or chronic injury. There are at least seven distinct mechanisms by which astrocytes protect neurons from damage; these are (1) protection against glutamate toxicity, (2) protection against redox stress, (3) mediation of mitochondrial repair mechanisms, (4) protection against glucose-induced metabolic stress, (5) protection against iron toxicity, (6) modulation of the immune response in the brain, and (7) maintenance of tissue homeostasis in the presence of DNA damage. Astrocytes support these critical functions through specialized responses to stress or toxic conditions.

The Effects of Blast Exposure on Protein Deimination in the Brain.

Oxidative stress and calcium excitotoxicity are hallmarks of traumatic brain injury (TBI). While these early disruptions may be corrected over a relatively short period of time, long-lasting consequences of TBI including impaired cognition and mood imbalances can persist for years, even in the absence of any evidence of overt injury based on neuroimaging. This investigation examined the possibility that disordered protein deimination occurs as a result of TBI and may thus contribute to the long-term pathologies of TBI.

Protein Citrullination: A Proposed Mechanism for Pathology in Traumatic Brain Injury.

Protein citrullination is a calcium-driven post-translational modification proposed to play a causative role in the neurodegenerative disorders of Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), and prion disease. Citrullination can result in the formation of antigenic epitopes that underlie pathogenic autoimmune responses. This phenomenon, which is best understood in rheumatoid arthritis, may play a role in the chronic dysfunction following traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Protein Oxidation in the Lungs of C57BL/6J Mice Following X-Irradiation.

Damage to normal lung tissue is a limiting factor when ionizing radiation is used in clinical applications. In addition, radiation pneumonitis and fibrosis are a major cause of mortality following accidental radiation exposure in humans. Although clinical symptoms may not develop for months after radiation exposure, immediate events induced by radiation are believed to generate molecular and cellular cascades that proceed during a clinical latent period.

Blood Biomarkers in Moderate-To-Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: Potential Utility of a Multi-Marker Approach in Characterizing Outcome.

Background: Blood biomarkers are valuable tools for elucidating complex cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying traumatic brain injury (TBI). Profiling distinct classes of biomarkers could aid in the identification and characterization of initial injury and secondary pathological processes. This study characterized the prognostic performance of a recently developed multi-marker panel of circulating biomarkers that reflect specific pathogenic mechanisms including neuroinflammation, oxidative damage, and neuroregeneration, in moderate-to-severe TBI patients.

Autoimmune Profiling Reveals Peroxiredoxin 6 as a Candidate Traumatic Brain Injury Biomarker.

Autoimmune profiling in rats revealed the antioxidant enzyme, peroxiredoxin 6 (PRDX6), as a target for autoantibodies evoked in response to traumatic brain injury (TBI). Consistent with this proposal, immunohistochemical analysis of rat cerebral cortex demonstrated that PRDX6 is highly expressed in the perivascular space, presumably contained within astrocytic foot processes. Accordingly, an immunosorbent electrochemiluminescence assay was developed for investigating PRDX6 in human samples.

Multivariate analysis of traumatic brain injury: development of an assessment score.

Important challenges for the diagnosis and monitoring of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) include the development of plasma biomarkers for assessing neurologic injury, monitoring pathogenesis, and predicting vulnerability for the development of untoward neurologic outcomes. While several biomarker proteins have shown promise in this regard, used individually, these candidates lack adequate sensitivity and/or specificity for making a definitive diagnosis or identifying those at risk of subsequent pathology. The objective for this study was to evaluate a panel of six recognized and novel biomarker candidates for the assessment of TBI in adult patients.

Protein carbonylation after traumatic brain injury: cell specificity, regional susceptibility, and gender differences.

Protein carbonylation is a well-documented and quantifiable consequence of oxidative stress in several neuropathologies, including multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer׳s disease, and Parkinson׳s disease. Although oxidative stress is a hallmark of traumatic brain injury (TBI), little work has explored the specific neural regions and cell types in which protein carbonylation occurs. Furthermore, the effect of gender on protein carbonylation after TBI has not been studied.

Bone Marrow Protein Oxidation in Response to Ionizing Radiation in C57BL/6J Mice.

The bone marrow is one of the most radio-sensitive tissues. Accidental ionizing radiation exposure can damage mature blood cells and hematopoietic progenitor/stem cells, and mortality can result from hematopoietic insufficiency and infection. Ionizing radiation induces alterations in gene and protein expression in hematopoietic tissue.

Effect of ionizing radiation on liver protein oxidation and metabolic function in C57BL/6J mice.

Purpose: Protein oxidation in response to radiation results in DNA damage, endoplasmic reticulum stress/unfolded protein response, cell cycle arrest, cell death and senescence. The liver, a relatively radiosensitive organ, undergoes measurable alterations in metabolic functions following irradiation. Accordingly, we investigated radiation-induced changes in liver metabolism and alterations in protein oxidation.

The TARC/sICAM5 Ratio in Patient Plasma is a Candidate Biomarker for Drug Resistant Epilepsy.

Epilepsy is a common affliction that involves inflammatory processes. There are currently no definitive chemical diagnostic biomarkers in the blood, so diagnosis is based on a sometimes expensive synthesis of clinical observation, radiology, neuro-psychological testing, and interictal and ictal EEG studies. Soluble ICAM5 (sICAM5), also known as telencephalin, is an anti-inflammatory protein of strictly central nervous system tissue origin that is also found in blood.

The percutaneous trampoline platysmaplasty: technique and experience with 105 consecutive patients.

Background: Controversy persists regarding the optimal procedure to rejuvenate the aging neck. More invasive procedures carry increased risks of complications, whereas less invasive approaches may deliver marginal results. The challenge is selecting the appropriate procedure for delivering consistent, durable results meeting both the patient's and surgeon's expectations.

Gender dependence for a subset of the low-abundance signaling proteome in human platelets.

The incidence of cardiovascular diseases is ten-times higher in males than females, although the biological basis for this gender disparity is not known. However, based on the fact that antiplatelet drugs are the mainstay for prevention and therapy, we hypothesized that the signaling proteomes in platelets from normal male donors might be more activated than platelets from normal female donors. We report here that platelets from male donors express significantly higher levels of signaling cascade proteins than platelets from female donors.

In vitro synthesis of arachidonoyl amino acids by cytochrome c.

Arachidonoyl amino acids are a class of endogenous lipid messengers that are expressed in the mammalian central nervous system and peripherally. While several of their prominent pharmacologic effects have been documented, the mechanism by which arachidonoyl amino acids are biosynthesized has not been defined. We have previously observed that the mitochondrial protein, cytochrome c, is capable of catalyzing the formation of the prototypic arachidonoyl amino acid, arachidonoyl glycine, utilizing arachidonoyl CoA and glycine as substrates, in the presence of hydrogen peroxide.

Biosynthesis of oleamide.

Oleamide (cis-9-octadecenamide) is the prototype long chain primary fatty acid amide lipid messenger. The natural occurrence of oleamide was first reported in human serum in 1989. Subsequently oleamide was shown to accumulate in the cerebrospinal fluid of sleep-deprived cats and to induce sleep when administered to experimental animals.

alpha-Amidated peptides: approaches for analysis.

alpha-Amidation is a terminal modification in peptide biosynthesis that can itself be rate-limiting in the overall production of bioactive alpha-amidated peptides. More than half of the known neural and endocrine peptides are alpha-amidated and in most cases, this structural feature is essential for receptor recognition, signal transduction, and thus, biologic function. This chapter describes methods for developing and using analytical tools to study the biology of alpha-amidated peptides.

Cytochrome c catalyzes the in vitro synthesis of arachidonoyl glycine.

Long chain fatty acyl glycines are an emerging class of biologically active molecules that occur naturally and produce a wide array of physiological effects. Their biosynthetic pathway, however, remains unknown. Here we report that cytochrome c catalyzes the synthesis of N-arachidonoyl glycine (NAGly) from arachidonoyl coenzyme A and glycine in the presence of hydrogen peroxide.

Protein microarray platforms for clinical proteomics.

Proteomics for clinical applications is presently in a state of transition. It has become clear that the classical approaches based on 2-DE and/or MS need to be complemented by different kinds of technologies. The well-known problems include sample complexity, sensitivity, quantitation, reproducibility, and analysis time.