A Small-Molecule Approach Enables RNA Aptamers to Function as Sensors for Reactive Inorganic Targets.

Fluorescent light-up aptamer (FLAP) systems are promising (bio)sensing platforms that are genetically encodable. However, FLAP-mediated detection of each distinct target necessitates either in vitro selection or engineering of nucleic acid sequences. Furthermore, an aptamer that binds an inorganic target or a chemical species with a short lifetime is challenging to realize.

Holocord intramedullary pilocytic astrocytoma mimicking holocord spinal abscess: a case report and literature review.

Purpose: This report aims to present a case of a child with holocord pilocytic astrocytoma and review the existing literature to provide insights into current management strategies.

Case Presentation: An 11-month-old patient presented with progressive quadriplegia and was initially diagnosed with a spinal abscess. MRI revealed a heterogeneously enhancing cystic intramedullary lesion extending from the cervicomedullary region to the conus medullaris.

Evaluation of temporomandibular joint involvement in juvenile idiopathic arthritis patients.

Objective: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a common, chronic and inflammatory rheumatological disease of childhood. The disease can affect all synovial joints in the body. Temporomandibular joints (TMJs) are important areas of involvement in JIA, which are frequently involved but often not noticed because the involvement is usually asymptomatic.

Chemo-enzymatic production of base-modified ATP analogues for polyadenylation of RNA.

Base-modified adenosine-5'-triphosphate (ATP) analogues are highly sought after as building blocks for mRNAs and non-coding RNAs, for genetic code expansion or as inhibitors. Current synthetic strategies lack efficient and robust 5'-triphosphorylation of adenosine derivatives or rely on costly phosphorylation reagents. Here, we combine the efficient organic synthesis of base-modified AMP analogues with enzymatic phosphorylation by a promiscuous polyphosphate kinase 2 class III from an unclassified bacterium (EbPPK2) to generate a panel of C2-, N-, or C8-modified ATP analogues.

Continuous Thymoquinone Administration Mitigates Sodium Iodate-Induced Retinal Degeneration in Rats.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the protective or therapeutic effect of thymoquinone (TQ) in a retinal degeneration rat model and its relationships with the retina ultrastructure, heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), caspase-3, and RPE65 expressions and to determine whether TQ has a therapeutic effect at the biochemical level.

Methods: A total of 25 adult Wistar albino rats were divided into the following treatment groups: saline (control: CONT), CO (corn oil), sodium iodate (SI), TQ + SI, and SI + TQ injection groups. Retina morphology, RPE65, HO-1, and caspase-3 expression levels were evaluated using immunohistochemistry, and optical density was determined using ImageJ.

Refugee and asylum-seeker children and health problems in the city of Duzce, Türkiye.

Introduction: This study examines the health problems and healthcare needs of refugee and asylum-seeker children and aims to develop strategies for improvement.

Methods: Based on quantitative data from 448 refugee and asylum-seeker children and 222 non-refugee local children, this study was conducted at Düzce University, Department of Paediatrics, between 2010 and 2021. The refugee children originated from three countries: Iraq (n = 304), Syria (n = 101) and Afghanistan (n = 43).

Biomimetic Vesicles with Designer Phospholipids Can Sense Environmental Redox Cues.

Cell-like materials that sense environmental cues can serve as next-generation biosensors and help advance the understanding of intercellular communication. Currently, bottom-up engineering of protocell models from molecular building blocks remains a grand challenge chemists face. Herein, we describe giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) with biomimetic lipid membranes capable of sensing environmental redox cues.

Reporting the clinical spectrum of children with IgAV in a retrospective 24-year cohort: Influences of age and sex on clinical presentation.

Background/aim: Immunoglobulin A vasculitis (IgAV) is one of the most common types of vasculitis in children. The aims of this study were to investigate the clinical characteristics of the disease, and the effects of age and sex on the clinical course in children with IgAV.

Materials And Methods: This was a retrospective study including pediatric patients diagnosed with IgAV who attended follow-ups at the pediatric rheumatology department of a tertiary healthcare institution between January 1997 and December 2020.

SIRT1 overexpression by melatonin and resveratrol combined treatment attenuates premature ovarian failure through activation of SIRT1/FOXO3a/BCL2 pathway.

Aim: To evaluate the synergistic effect of combined treatment with melatonin (MEL) and resveratrol (RES) in cisplatin (CIS)-induced premature ovarian failure (POF) model in rats and to elucidate the molecular mechanism of this therapeutic effect.

Material & Methods: Female Sprague Dawley rats were divided into 7 experimental groups as follows; CONT (Control), CIS, MEL, RES, POF + MEL, POF + RES, and POF + MEL + RES. H&E staining was performed to evaluate follicular cell vacuolization/degeneration, vascular congestion/hemorrhage, and inflammation, by using an ordinal scale from 0 to 4 to grade the severity of observed changes (0 = normal, 1 = mild, 2 = moderate, 3 = severe, 4 = very severe).

A Small-Molecule Approach to Bypass In Vitro Selection of New Aptamers: Designer Pre-Ligands Turn Baby Spinach into Sensors for Reactive Inorganic Targets.

Fluorescent light-up aptamer (FLAP) systems are promising biosensing platforms that can be genetically encoded. Here, we describe how a single FLAP that works with specific organic ligands can detect multiple, structurally unique, non-fluorogenic, and reactive inorganic targets. We developed 4--functionalized benzylidene imidazolinones as pre-ligands with suppressed fluorescent binding interactions with the RNA aptamer Baby Spinach.

Direct assessment of nitrative stress in lipid environments: Applications of a designer lipid-based biosensor for peroxynitrite.

Lipid membranes and lipid-rich organelles are targets of peroxynitrite (ONOO), a highly reactive species generated under nitrative stress. We report a membrane-localized phospholipid () that allows the detection of ONOO in diverse lipid environments: biomimetic vesicles, mammalian cell compartments, and within the lung lining. and POPC self-assemble to membrane vesicles that fluorogenically and selectively respond to ONOO.

Benchmarking the accuracy of structure-based binding affinity predictors on Spike-ACE2 deep mutational interaction set.

Since the start of COVID-19 pandemic, a huge effort has been devoted to understanding the Spike (SARS-CoV-2)-ACE2 recognition mechanism. To this end, two deep mutational scanning studies traced the impact of all possible mutations across receptor binding domain (RBD) of Spike and catalytic domain of human ACE2. By concentrating on the interface mutations of these experimental data, we benchmarked six commonly used structure-based binding affinity predictors (FoldX, EvoEF1, MutaBind2, SSIPe, HADDOCK, and UEP).

Visible Light Activates Coumarin-Caged mRNA for Cytoplasmic Cap Methylation in Cells.

Protein synthesis is important and regulated by various mechanisms in the cell. Translation initiation in eukaryotes starts at the 5' cap and is the most complex of the three phases of mRNA translation. It requires methylation of the N7 position of the terminal guanosine (m G).

Post-synthetic benzylation of the mRNA 5' cap enzymatic cascade reactions.

mRNAs are emerging modalities for vaccination and protein replacement therapy. Increasing the amount of protein produced by stabilizing the transcript or enhancing translation without eliciting a strong immune response are major steps towards overcoming the present limitations and improving their therapeutic potential. The 5' cap is a hallmark of mRNAs and non-natural modifications can alter the properties of the entire transcript selectively.

Full-Endoscopic Transforaminal Approach for Lumbar Discectomy.

With technical advancements, the full-endoscopic transforaminal approach for lumbar discectomy (ETALD) is gaining popularity. This technique utilizes various tools and instruments, including a dilator, a beveled working sleeve, and an endoscope with a 20-degree angle and 177 mm length, equipped with a 9.3-diameter oval shaft and a 5.

Assessment of the changing trends in maternal knowledge about management of fever and antibiotic use in the last decade in Türkiye.

Background: The wrong attitudes of parents on fever create a basis for unnecessary drug use and increased workload. The study was conducted to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes concerning fever and antibiotic use and demonstrate the changes in the last decade.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was composed of two parts, and a total of 500 participants were included.

Renal involvement, presence of amyloidosis, and genotype-phenotype relationship in pediatric patients with Familial Mediterranean fever: a single center study.

The aim of the study is to investigate how renal involvement is correlated with frequency of amyloidosis, risk factors, and demographic and clinical characteristics in pediatric patients with Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). Demographic and clinical characteristics and laboratory data of the pediatric patients diagnosed with FMF between 1990 and 2018 were recorded from their files. The diagnosis of patients with amyloidosis (AA) was proven by renal biopsy, and as for patients with non-amyloidosis renal involvement (RI wo AA), amyloidosis could not be detected but they were followed up with the diagnosis of proteinuria and/or hematuria.

Enzymatic Generation of Double-Modified AdoMet Analogues and Their Application in Cascade Reactions with Different Methyltransferases.

Methyltransferases (MTases) have become an important tool for site-specific alkylation and biomolecular labelling. In biocatalytic cascades with methionine adenosyltransferases (MATs), transfer of functional moieties has been realized starting from methionine analogues and ATP. However, the widespread use of S-adenosyl-l-methionine (AdoMet) and the abundance of MTases accepting sulfonium centre modifications limit selective modification in mixtures.

Genetic complementation screening and molecular docking give new insight on phosphorylation-dependent Mastl kinase activation.

Mastl is a mitotic kinase that is essential for error-free chromosome segregation. It is an atypical member of AGC kinase family, possessing a unique non-conserved middle region. The mechanism of Mastl activation has been studied extensively .

Retrospective Results of Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine Parasitology Laboratory Between 2014-2019.

Objective: Parasitic infections emerge as a significant health problem, especially in underdeveloped and developing countries. Epidemiological data play an important role in taking effective measures against parasitic diseases.

Methods: Clinical samples (stool, blood, bone marrow and tissue samples, etc.

Investigation of Dientamoeba fragilis and Blastocystis in patients from Turkey with ulcerative colitis and irritable bowel syndrome: Any relation with genotypes?

Blastocystis sp. and Dientamoeba fragilis are two most common protists worldwide, whose pathogenic potentials are a matter of debate since their discovery. This study aims to investigate the relationship between the activation of ulcerative colitis (UC) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) with these protists.

A Rare Case of Oral Myiasis Caused by (Meigen) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in an Intubated Patient.

Myiasis is the infestation of tissues with living larvae. Oral myiasis is an extremely rare form of the disease, with open mouth, unconsciousness, and poor oral hygiene being the predisposing factors. It is generally observed in the tropics or subtropics, as well as rural places with low socio-economic income.

Multicomponent formation route to a new class of oxygen-based 1,3-dipoles and the modular synthesis of furans.

A new class of phosphorus-containing 1,3-dipoles can be generated by the multicomponent reaction of aldehydes, acid chlorides and the phosphonite PhP(catechyl). These 1,3-dipoles are formally cyclic tautomers of simple Wittig-type ylides, where the angle strain and moderate nucleophilicity in the catechyl-phosphonite favor their cyclization and also direct 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition to afford single regioisomers of substituted products. Coupling the generation of the dipoles with 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition offers a unique, modular route to furans from combinations of available aldehydes, acid chlorides and alkynes with independent control of all four substituents.

Effects of scopolamine treatment and consequent convulsion development in c‑fos expression in fed, fasted, and refed mice.

Fasting, anticholinergics, and seizures affect c‑fos activation in the brain. Additionally, antimuscarinic treated fasted animals develop convulsion soon after re‑feeding. Therefore, we assessed whether c‑fos expression changes in fed, fasting, and refed animals and how scopolamine treatment affects these changes.

Evaluation of the Ocular Surface, Conjunctival Impression Cytology and Meibomian Gland Dropout in Patients with Familial Mediterranean Fever.

Purpose: Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an idiopathic disease with chronic inflammation. We aimed to determine the changes caused by the chronic inflammatory nature of FMF on the ocular surface, meibomian glands (MG), and conjunctiva via conjunctival impression cytology (CIC).

Material-method: Forty-two FMF patients with a mean age of 11.