Evaluation of Acute Toxicity and Antioxidant Response of Earthworm Exposed to a Lignin-Modified Crosslinked Hydrogel.

Hydrogels are polymers of great importance due to their multiple applications, which have led to an exponential increase in their production. However, once they have fulfilled their function, they become waste and their ecotoxicological effects are unknown. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the acute toxicity and total antioxidant capacity of the earthworm () exposed to a terpolymeric hydrogel (acrylic acid, acrylamide, and 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propane-sulfonic acid) crosslinked with modified kraft lignin.

High-throughput proteomics for alcohol research.

This report summarizes the proceedings of a satellite symposium of the 2003 Research Society on Alcoholism meeting held on June 21, 2003, in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The goal of this symposium, sponsored by the NIAAA, was to identify new proteomic directions in alcohol research that will (1) enable studies that focus on characterizing protein function, biochemical pathways, and networks to understand alcohol-related illnesses; (2) identify protein-protein interactions, posttranslational modifications, and subcellular localizations; (3) identify molecular targets for medication development; (4) develop biomarkers for susceptibility, dependence, consumption, and relapse, as well as alcohol-induced pathologies; and (5) develop high-throughput drug screens to test the efficacy of therapeutics that control alcohol-induced diseases. The purpose of the symposium was also to promote the application of high-throughput proteomic approaches, including isolation of membrane-bound proteins, in situ proteomics, large-scale two-dimensional separations, protein microarray platforms, mass spectrometry, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, and isotope-coded affinity tags.