Chronic paternal alcohol exposures induce dose-dependent changes in offspring craniofacial shape and symmetry.

Although dose-response analyses are a fundamental tool in developmental toxicology, few studies have examined the impacts of toxicant dose on the non-genetic paternal inheritance of offspring disease and dysgenesis. In this study, we used geometric morphometric analyses to examine the impacts of different levels of preconception paternal alcohol exposure on offspring craniofacial shape and symmetry in a mouse model. Procrustes ANOVA followed by canonical variant analysis of geometric facial relationships revealed that Low-, Medium-, and High-dose treatments each induced distinct changes in craniofacial shape and symmetry.

Elucidation of sex from mature Palmer amaranth () leaves using a portable Raman spectrometer.

Palmer amaranth () is a pervasive and troublesome weed species that poses significant challenges to agriculture in the United States. Identifying the sex of Palmer amaranth plants is crucial for developing tailored control measures due to the distinct characteristics and reproductive strategies exhibited by male and female plants. Traditional methods for sex determination are expensive and time-consuming, but recent advancements in spectroscopic techniques offer new possibilities.

Alterations in sperm RNAs persist after alcohol cessation and correlate with epididymal mitochondrial dysfunction.

Background: Chronic preconception paternal alcohol use adversely modifies the sperm epigenome, inducing fetoplacental and craniofacial growth defects in the offspring of exposed males. A crucial outstanding question in the field of paternal epigenetic inheritance concerns the resilience of the male germline and its capacity to recover and correct sperm-inherited epigenetic errors after stressor withdrawal.

Objectives: We set out to determine if measures of the sperm-inherited epigenetic program revert to match the control treatment 1 month after withdrawing the daily alcohol treatments.

Non-invasive identification of combined salinity stress and stalk rot disease caused by Colletotrichum graminicola in maize using Raman spectroscopy.

Food security is an emerging problem that is faced by our civilization. There are millions of people around the world suffering from various kinds of malnutrition. The number of people that starve will only increase considering the continuous growth of the world's population.

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy is capable of precise differentiation between re-dyed hair samples.

Scalp hairs are readily present at most crime scenes because an average person sheds around 100 hairs a day. Forensic experts analyze hair found at crime scenes to identify suspects involved in a crime. Many people color their hair on a regular basis.

Testing Raman spectroscopy as a diagnostic approach for Lyme disease patients.

Lyme disease (LD), the leading tick-borne disease in the Northern hemisphere, is caused by spirochetes of several genospecies of the complex. LD is a multi-systemic and highly debilitating illness that is notoriously challenging to diagnose. The main drawbacks of the two-tiered serology, the only approved diagnostic test in the United States, include poor sensitivity, background seropositivity, and cross-reactivity.

Confirmatory detection and identification of biotic and abiotic stresses in wheat using Raman spectroscopy.

Wheat is one of the oldest and most widely cultivated staple food crops worldwide. Wheat encounters an array of biotic and abiotic stresses during its growth that significantly impact the crop yield and consequently global food security. Molecular and imaging methods that can be used to detect such stresses are laborious and have numerous limitations.

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy enables highly accurate identification of different brands, types and colors of hair dyes.

Hair is present at nearly all crime scenes. Forensic analysis of hair can be used to establish a connection between a suspect and a crime scene or demonstrate the absence of such connection. Almost half of people around the world color their hair.

Raman Spectroscopy Enables Non-invasive and Confirmatory Diagnostics of Aluminum and Iron Toxicities in Rice.

Metal toxicities can be detrimental to a plant health, as well as to the health of animals and humans that consume such plants. Metal content of plants can be analyzed using colorimetric, atomic absorption- or mass spectroscopy-based methods. However, these techniques are destructive, costly and laborious.

Raman spectroscopy enables highly accurate differentiation between young male and female hemp plants.

Hand-held Raman spectroscopy can be used for highly accurate differentiation between young male and female hemp plants. This differentiation is based on significantly different concentration of lutein in these plants. Last year, a global market of only industrial hemp attained the value of USD 4.

The effect of post-mortem computed tomography angiography (PMCTA) using water-soluble, iodine-based radiographic contrast on histological analysis of the liver, kidneys and left ventricle of the heart.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of post-mortem computed-tomography angiography (PMCTA) on the histology of the liver, kidneys and heart. Multiple tissue cores were collected from the liver, left and right kidneys and left ventricle utilizing CT-guided biopsy. Subsequent whole body PMCTA was performed using a solution of polyethylene glycol and iodinated radiographic contrast, and an embalming pump.

Identification and functional prediction of mitochondrial complex III and IV mutations associated with glioblastoma.

Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common primary brain tumor in adults, with a dismal prognosis. Treatment is hampered by GBM's unique biology, including differential cell response to therapy. Although several mitochondrial abnormalities have been identified, how mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations contribute to GBM biology and therapeutic response remains poorly described.

Dual targeting NG2 and GD3A using Mab-Zap immunotoxin results in reduced glioma cell viability in vitro.

Background: Effective treatments for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) are lacking due, in part, to cellular heterogeneity. Consequently, single-target therapeutic strategies are unlikely to succeed. Simultaneous targeting of different neoplastic cell populations within the same tumour may, therefore, prove of value.

Expression of the chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan, NG2, in paediatric brain tumors.

Background/aim: While neuron-glia 2 (NG2) is well-characterized in the developing brain and in adult high-grade gliomas, little is known about NG2 expression in paediatric brain tumors. Here, NG2 expression was examined in a range of paediatric brain tumors.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective immunohistopathological analysis of 57 paediatric brain tumor biopsies of various tumor types was carried out.

Subunit variation to uncover properties of polyazine-bridged Ru(II), Pt(II) supramolecules with low lying charge separated states providing insight into the functioning as H2O reduction photocatalysts to produce H2.

Two new structurally diverse polyazine-bridged Ru(II),Pt(II) tetrametallic complexes, [{(Ph2phen)2Ru(dpp)}2Ru(dpp)PtCl2](PF6)6 (1a) and [{(Ph2phen)2Ru(dpp)}2Ru(dpq)PtCl2](PF6)6 (2a) (Ph2phen = 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline, dpp = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)pyrazine, dpq = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)quinoxaline), as well as their trimetallic precursors have been synthesized to provide a comparison for detailed analysis to elucidate component effects in the previously reported photocatalyst [{(phen)2Ru(dpp)}2Ru(dpq)PtCl2](PF6)6 (4a) (phen = 1,10-phenanthroline). Electrochemistry shows terminal Ru based highest occupied molecular orbitals (HOMOs) with remote BL' (BL' = bridging ligand coupling central Ru and cis-PtCl2 moiety) based lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals (LUMOs). Population of a lowest-lying charge separated ((3)CS) excited state with oxidized terminal Ru and reduced remote BL' via intramolecular electron transfer is predicted by electrochemical analysis and is observed through steady-state and time-resolved emission studies as well as emission excitation profiles which display unusual nonunity population of the lowest lying emissive Ru→dpp (3)MLCT (metal-to-ligand charge transfer) state.

Requests for emergency contraception in community pharmacy: an evaluation of services provided to mystery patients.

Background: Requests for supply of the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) through community pharmacies require consideration of a range of factors and the application of professional judgment. Pharmacists should therefore be able to follow a structured reasoning process.

Objectives: The research involved an assessment of history taking and counseling by pharmacy staff through mystery patient emergency contraception product requests.

Metal to ligand charge transfer induced DNA photobinding in a Ru(II)-Pt(II) supramolecule using red light in the therapeutic window: a new mechanism for DNA modification.

The Ru(II)-Pt(II) supramolecular complex, [(Ph(2)phen)(2)Ru(dpp)PtCl(2)](2+), displays a new mechanism for DNA modification: photobinding through a (3)MLCT excited state. Gel shift analysis, selective DNA precipitation, and DNA melting point experiments support efficient covalent DNA binding following visible light excitation.

Electrochemical, spectroscopic, and photophysical properties of structurally diverse polyazine-bridged Ru(II),Pt(II) and Os(II),Ru(II),Pt(II) supramolecular motifs.

Five new tetrametallic supramolecules of the motif [{(TL)(2)M(dpp)}(2)Ru(BL)PtCl(2)](6+) and three new trimetallic light absorbers [{(TL)(2)M(dpp)}(2)Ru(BL)](6+) (TL = bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine or phen = 1,10-phenanthroline; M = Ru(II) or Os(II); BL = dpp = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)pyrazine, dpq = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)quinoxaline, or bpm = 2,2'-bipyrimidine) were synthesized and their redox, spectroscopic, and photophysical properties investigated. The tetrametallic complexes couple a Pt(II)-based reactive metal center to Ru and/or Os light absorbers through two different polyazine BL to provide structural diversity and interesting resultant properties. The redox potential of the M(II/III) couple is modulated by M variation, with the terminal Ru(II/III) occurring at 1.

A new Os,Rh bimetallic with O2 independent DNA cleavage and DNA photobinding with red therapeutic light excitation.

Many Ru and Os systems display photoactive (3)MLCT states. Systems activated by therapeutic window light in the absence of O(2) remain elusive. [(bpy)(2)Os(dpp)RhCl(2)(phen)](3+) photobinds and photocleaves DNA under red light in an oxygen independent manner, due to molecular design involving one Os chromophore coupled to a photoactive cis-Rh(III)Cl(2) moiety.

Redox, spectroscopic, and photophysical properties of Ru-Pt mixed-metal complexes incorporating 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline as efficient DNA binding and photocleaving agents.

The redox, spectroscopic, and photophysical properties as well as DNA interactions of the new bimetallic complexes [(Ph2phen)2Ru(BL)PtCl2](2+) (Ph2phen = 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline, and BL (bridging ligand) = dpp = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)pyrazine, or dpq = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)quinoxaline) were investigated. These Ru-polyazine chromophores with Ph2phen TLs (terminal ligands) and polyazine BLs are efficient light absorbers. The [(Ph2phen)2Ru(BL)PtCl2](2+) complexes display reversible Ru(II/III) oxidations at 1.

Human, mouse or rat? Species authentication of glioma-derived cell cultures.

Cell culture and the use of cell lines are often fundamental requirements in basic scientific research. It is of the utmost importance for researchers to ensure that the cell lines in use have a well defined origin and are routinely re-analysed to highlight possible areas of contamination. In this preliminary study species specific primers were designed to easily distinguish between human, mouse and rat DNA with standard agarose gel electrophoresis.