Ruthenium terpyridine complexes containing a pyrrole-tagged 2,2'-dipyridylamine ligand-synthesis, crystal structure, and electrochemistry.

Ruthenium(II) terpyridine complexes containing the pyrrole-tagged 2,2'-dipyridylamine ligand PPP (where PPP stands for N-(3-bis(2-pyridyl)aminopropyl)pyrrole with the general formula [Ru(tpy)(PPP)X](n+) (1, X = Cl(-); 2, X = H(2)O; 3, X = CH(3)CN; tpy = 2,2':6',2"-terpyridine) have been synthesized and characterized by (1)H NMR, IR, UV-vis, mass spectrometry, and elemental analysis. 1 and 2 have been structurally characterized by X-ray crystallography. Both 1 and 2 were successfully immobilized onto glassy carbon electrode via anodic oxidation of the pyrrole moiety on the PPP ligand to give stable and highly electroactive polymer films.

Sino-American employer perspective about behavioral-driven health conditions: predictive analyses.

Objective: A large-scale quantitative study was conducted by stratified representative samples from Chicago (prototype of the United States; N = 293), Beijing (prototype of urbanized China; N = 302), and Hong Kong (prototype of East-meets-West culture; N = 284) to explore factors that might lead to their stigmatizing attitudes towards hiring individuals with (mental illness, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, and HIV/AIDS) and without (bone cancer) behavioral-driven health conditions.

Methods: Consented employers completed the Employer Survey pertaining to their attitudes towards specific health conditions, previous hiring experiences, resources, assets of applicants, and hiring concerns.

Results: The findings suggested that employers in Hong Kong and Beijing were more willing to hire individuals with alcohol abuse, whereas employers in Chicago were more willing to hire those with HIV/AIDS or bone cancer.

A review of the anticancer and immunomodulatory effects of Lycium barbarum fruit.

The anticancer effects of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) have attracted the attention of the public vis-à-vis existing cancer therapies with various side effects. Lycium barbarum fruit, commonly known as Gou Qi Zi in China, is a potential anticancer agent/adjuvant. Its major active ingredients, L.

Characterization of staphylococci contaminating automated teller machines in Hong Kong.

Environmental staphylococcal contamination was investigated by culture of 400 automated teller machines (ATMs). Isolates were characterized for antibiotic and antiseptic susceptibility, carriage of antiseptic resistance genes (QAC genes), and spa types. MRSA, which was similar to local clinical isolates, was present on two (0·5%) of the 62 (15·5%) ATMs that yielded Staphylococcus aureus.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) - Initiation of apoptosis via activation of stress-activated p38 MAPK and JNK signal pathway in H460 cell lines.

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate the photoefficacies of protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) generated by drug precursor 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) and its hexyl ester (H-ALA) on two human non-small lung carcinoma cell lines (H460/Bcl-2 and H460/neo).

Main Methods: Drug uptake and the photoefficacies of PpIX were measured by flow cytometry and MTT assay; while the mode of cell death and alternation of signal transduction pathways were studied with 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining and Western blot analysis, respectively.

Key Findings: The flow cytometric analysis of H-ALA (5μM) uptake revealed optimal fluorescent intensity at 8h incubation, while ALA (0.

Prevalence of antiseptic-resistance genes in Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci colonising nurses and the general population in Hong Kong.

Reduced biocide susceptibility in staphylococci is associated with quaternary ammonium compound (qac) gene-encoding efflux proteins. This study compared the prevalence of antiseptic-resistance genes (qacA/B, smr) in staphylococci colonising nurses and non-healthcare workers. Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) isolated from 249 nurses were compared for qacA/B and smr positivity with carriage isolates from non-healthcare workers.

Genoprotective effects of green tea (Camellia sinensis) in human subjects: results of a controlled supplementation trial.

Green tea is rich in polyphenolic antioxidants and has widely reported but largely unsubstantiated health benefits. In the present study, genoprotective effects of two types of green tea were studied both in an in vitro and in a human supplementation trial. For the in vitro study, human lymphocytes were pre-incubated in tea (0·005-0·1 %, w/v), washed and subjected to oxidant challenge induced by H2O2.

Corneal volume measures for monitoring contact lens induced corneal swelling: a pilot study.

Background:   This study investigated the use of corneal volume to monitor the corneal swelling response induced by wearing high plus power contact lenses.

Methods:   Twelve young non-contact lens wearers were recruited with one eye fitted with a soft contact lens (Polymacon material, 38.6 per cent water, Dk of 9 and 0.

Icariin protects against bone loss induced by oestrogen deficiency and activates oestrogen receptor-dependent osteoblastic functions in UMR 106 cells.

Background And Purpose: Icariin may be the active ingredient in Herba Epimedii, a Chinese herb commonly used for treatment of osteoporosis. The present study aims to delineate the mechanism(s) by which icariin prevents bone loss after ovariectomy (OVX) in vivo and stimulates osteoblastic functions in vitro.

Experimental Approach: Ovariectomized or sham-operated C57BL/6 mice were treated with vehicle, 17beta-oestradiol or icariin for 6 weeks.

Urine 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodG), a specific marker of oxidative stress, using direct, isocratic LC-MS/MS: Method evaluation and application in study of biological variation in healthy adults.

Background: Urine 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodG) is a specific biomarker of oxidative stress. We evaluated a modified LC-MS/MS assay for urine 8-oxodG and determined biological variation in healthy adults.

Method: Untreated urine was injected into an isocratic LC-MS/MS system (positive-ion MRM mode).

Promising multifunctional anti-Alzheimer's dimer bis(7)-Cognitin acting as an activator of protein kinase C regulates activities of alpha-secretase and BACE-1 concurrently.

We have recently demonstrated that bis(7)-Cognitin, a promising multifunctional anti-Alzheimer's dimer, can remarkably reduce the generation of amyloid beta peptide (Abeta) by inhibiting beta-secretase (BACE-1) and activating alpha-secretase activity. In this study, the mechanism(s) underlying bis(7)-Cognitin's regulation of the activity of these two proteases was further investigated. In N2a cells stably expressing human amyloid precursor protein with the Swedish mutation (APPswe), the reduction in Abeta production induced by 1microM bis(7)-Cognitin was not altered by the co-pretreatment of muscarinic and nicotinic cholinergic receptor antagonists, indicating that the regulation of APP processing by this dimer is independent of cholinergic transmission.

Luminescent gold nanoparticles capped with tiopronin derivatives.

This paper describes the preparation of gold nanoparticles passivated with different tiopronin-like thiol peptide derivatives. The average size of these gold particles falls into the range of 1.7-2.

PTK787/ZK22258 attenuates stellate cell activation and hepatic fibrosis in vivo by inhibiting VEGF signaling.

Liver fibrosis due to hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation represents a common response to chronic liver injury. PTK787/ZK222584 (PTK/ZK) is a pan-VEGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of PTK/ZK in liver fibrosis.

Novel anti-Alzheimer's dimer Bis(7)-cognitin: cellular and molecular mechanisms of neuroprotection through multiple targets.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive and degenerative brain disorder that has emerged as one of the major public health problems in adults. Unfortunately, its molecular pathology and therapeutic strategies remain elusive. Because there are multiple factors closely indicated in the pathogenesis of AD, multiple drug therapy will be required to address the varied pathological aspects of this disease.

Osteogenic activities of genistein derivatives were influenced by the presence of prenyl group at ring A.

Our recent report indicated that the crude extract from stem bark of Erythrina variegata L. (Leguminosae) (EV) exerted beneficial effects against osteoporosis induced by estrogen deficiency in vivo. Follow-up phytochemical study has isolated genistein-derivatives mainly in the form of prenylgenistein from this extract, including 6-prenylgenistein, 8-prenylgenistein, and 6, 8-diprenylgenistein.

Inhibitions of chloride transport and gap junction reduce fluid flow across the whole porcine ciliary epithelium.

Purpose: To study the effects of chloride transport and gap junction inhibitors on fluid formation across the porcine ciliary epithelium.

Methods: A complete annulus of porcine iris-ciliary body preparation was mounted onto a modified Ussing type chamber to measure the fluid flow (FF) rate. The potential difference (PD) across the preparation was monitored simultaneously.

Observation of singlet cycloreversion of thymine oxetanes by direct photolysis.

An ultrafast broadband transient absorption spectroscopic study of the direct photolysis of oxetane DMT-BP [which is the oxetane adduct of 1,3-dimethylthymine (DMT) with benzophenone (BP)] is presented. Previous nanosecond time-resolved absorption studies by other researchers observed that direct photolysis of such oxetanes results in a rare, adiabatic photochemical reaction to produce a triplet excited-state carbonyl species. However, the mechanism for this adiabatic photochemical reaction remained unclear for the reaction sequence of the bond scission and the intersystem crossing (ISC) because of the time resolution for the experiments, and this prompted us to further study its mechanism with ultrafast time-resolution.

The dual roles of Ganoderma antioxidants on urothelial cell DNA under carcinogenic attack.

Aims Of The Study: Ganoderma lucidum possesses significant antioxidant and anti-cancer properties. The effects of Lingzhi antioxidants on oxidative DNA damage and oxidative stress were investigated, in order to understand their roles in bladder chemoprevention.

Materials And Methods: Antioxidant-enhanced extracts were tested, in terms of ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH.

Telomerase-associated apoptotic events by mushroom ganoderma lucidum on premalignant human urothelial cells.

The chemopreventive effects of Ganoderma lucidum was tested, using a tumorigenic transformable human urothelial cell (HUC-PC) model. These in vitro data show that G. lucidum can inhibit the viability and growth of HUC-PC.

Fluorophore-labeled beta-lactamase as a biosensor for beta-lactam antibiotics: a study of the biosensing process.

The fluorescein-labeled E166C mutant of the PenPC beta-lactamase (E166Cf) represents a successful model in the construction of "switch-on" fluorescent biosensors from nonallosteric proteins (Chan P.-H. et al.

The signaling role of extracellular ATP and its dependence on Ca2+ flux in elicitation of Salvia miltiorrhiza hairy root cultures.

The application of a polysaccharide elicitor from yeast extract, YE, to Salvia miltiorrhiza hairy root cultures induced transient release of ATP from the roots to the medium, leading to a dose-dependent increase in the extracellular ATP (eATP) level. The eATP level rose to a peak (about 6.5 nM with 100 mg l(-1) YE) at about 10 h after YE treatment, but dropped to the control level 6 h later.

Inhibition of neuropeptide FF (NPFF)-induced hypothermia and anti-morphine analgesia by RF9, a new selective NPFF receptors antagonist.

Neuropeptide FF (NPFF) belongs to a neuropeptide family including two precursors (pro-NPFF A and pro-NPFF B) and two receptors (NPFF1 and NPFF2). Very recently, the novel compound RF9 was reported as the truly selective antagonist on NPFF receptors. The present study examined the effects of RF9 on the hypothermia and anti-morphine action induced by NPFF in mice.

In vivo characterization of the effects of human hemokinin-1 and human hemokinin-1(4-11), mammalian tachykinin peptides, on the modulation of pain in mice.

Human hemokinin-1 (h HK-1) and its truncated form h HK-1(4-11) are mammalian tachykinin peptides encoded by the recently identified TAC4 gene in human, and the biological functions of these peptides have not been well investigated. In the present study, an attempt has been made to investigate the effects and mechanisms of action of h HK-1 and h HK-1(4-11) in pain modulation at the supraspinal level in mice using the tail immersion test. Intracerebroventricular (i.

DNA damage induced by caffeic acid phenyl ester in the presence of Cu(II) ions: potential mechanism of its anticancer properties.

The prooxidant effect of caffeic acid phenyl ester (CAPE) and its structurally analogues on supercoiled pBR322 plasmid DNA strand breakage and calf thymus DNA damage in the presence of Cu(II) ions has been studied. It was found that CAPE exhibit remarkably higher activity in the DNA damage than the ones bearing no ortho-dihydroxyl functionality. Kinetic analysis by UV-visible and fluorescence spectra demonstrates that the formation of CAPE-Cu(II) complexes, the stabilization of oxidative intermediate derived from CAPE and Cu(II)/Cu(I) redox cycles, might be responsible for the DNA damage.