Robotic-assisted resection of isolated paraaortic lymph node recurrence with right lateral decubitus position.

In this report we describe transperitoneal robotic-assisted paraaortic lymphadenectomy via the right lateral decubitus position to treat solitary recurrence in a patient with cervical carcinoma. This is, to our knowledge, the first report utilizing the right lateral decubitus position rather than the traditional approach with the Trendelenberg position. This approach adds another option for surgical approaches to the paraaortic lymph nodes, particularly in subgroups of patients who have significant cardiopulmonary cormobidities and are unable to tolerate the steep Trendelenburg position.

Quantification of the binding properties of Cu2+ to the amyloid beta peptide: coordination spheres for human and rat peptides and implication on Cu2+-induced aggregation.

There is no consensus on the coordinating ligands for Cu(2+) by Abeta. However, the differences in peptide sequence between human and rat have been hypothesized to alter metal ion binding in a manner that alters Cu(2+)-induced aggregation of Abeta. Herein, we employ isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), circular dichroism (CD), and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy to examine the Cu(2+) coordination spheres to human and rat Abeta and an extensive set of Abeta(16) mutants.

Neuromelanins isolated from different regions of the human brain exhibit a common surface photoionization threshold.

Neuromelanin isolated from the premotor cortex, cerebellum, putamen, globus pallidus and corpus callosum of the human brain is studied by scanning probe and photoelectron emission microscopies and the results are compared with previously published work on neuromelanin from the substantia nigra. Scanning electron microscopy reveals common structure for all neuromelanins. All exhibit spherical entities of diameters between 200 and 400 nm, composed of smaller spherical substructures, approximately 30 nm in diameter.

New melanic pigments in the human brain that accumulate in aging and block environmental toxic metals.

Neuronal pigments of melanic type were identified in the putamen, cortex, cerebellum, and other major regions of human brain. These pigments consist of granules 30 nm in size, contained in organelles together with lipid droplets, and they accumulate in aging, reaching concentrations as high as 1.5-2.

Quantification of the binding constant of copper(II) to the amyloid-beta peptide.

The amyloid beta (A beta) peptide of Alzheimer's disease binds copper(II), and the peptide-bound metal may be a source of reactive oxygen species and neurotoxicity. To circumvent peptide aggregation and reduce redox activity, there is growing interest in using metal chelates as drug therapeutics for AD, whose design requires accurate data on the affinity of A beta peptides for copper(II). Reports on Cu2+ binding to A beta range from approximately 10(5) to approximately 10(9); these values' being obtained for different peptide lengths (1-16, 1-28, 1-40, 1-42) at varying pH.

Determining thermodynamic parameters from isothermal calorimetric isotherms of the binding of macromolecules to metal cations originally chelated by a weak ligand.

An accurate data analysis method for determining stoichiometry and thermodynamic parameters from isothermal titration calorimetry data for the binding of macromolecules to metal cations that are solubilized through an association with a weak ligand is presented. This approach is applied to determine the binding constant for the association of Cu(II) to the first 16 residues of the Alzheimer's amyloid beta peptide, Abeta(1-16) under conditions where Cu(II) is rendered soluble through weak binding to glycine. At pH 7.

Quantification of Ca(2+) binding to melanin supports the hypothesis that melanosomes serve a functional role in regulating calcium homeostasis.

Calcium regulation in melanocytes affects numerous biological pathways including protecting the redox balance in the cell and regulating the supply of substrate, l-tyrosine, for melanogenesis. The pigment contained in the melanocytes, melanin, has been implicated in maintaining calcium homeostasis in the cell and is known to be involved with calcium ion regulation in the inner ear. Herein, the association constant for Ca(2+) binding to Sepia melanin is determined by isothermal titration calorimetry to be 3.

The surface oxidation potential of human neuromelanin reveals a spherical architecture with a pheomelanin core and a eumelanin surface.

Neuromelanin (NM) isolated from the substantia nigra region of the human brain was studied by scanning probe and photoelectron emission microscopies. Atomic force microscopy reveals that NM granules are comprised of spherical structures with a diameter of approximately 30 nm, similar to that observed for Sepia cuttlefish, bovine eye, and human eye and hair melanosomes. Photoelectron microscopy images were collected at specific wavelengths of UV light between 248 and 413 nm, using the spontaneous-emission output from the Duke OK-4 free electron laser.