Deuteronation and aging.

Deuterium has one proton and one neutron in its atomic nucleus, but hydrogen has only proton. The natural abundance of deuterium is 1 per approximately 6600 hydrogen atoms. Therefore deuterated water (both HOD + D(2)O [heavy water]) abundance is 1 per approximately 3300 water molecules.

Mitochondrial DNA alterations in aging.

During the aging process, the increase of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) alterations has been reported. In this study, we investigated deletions/insertions in the approximately 2.4-kb region (from 14680 to 578 bp) of mtDNA covering D-loop region.

Mitochondrial DNA-deficient models and aging.

Human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) encodes 13 subunits of oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) enzyme complexes I, III, IV, and V except complex II. MtDNA is more sensitive to oxidative damage than nuclear DNA. MtDNA defects are involved in many pathologies including aging.

Age-related paraoxonase activity changes in Turkish population.

Paraoxonase1 (PON1) is a high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-associated enzyme capable of hydrolyzing diverse substrates from organophosphate (OP) toxins to oxidized phospholipids. As such, it has been linked with both the prevention of OP poisoning and inhibition of atherosclerosis initiated by oxidatively modified low-density lipoprotein (LDL). The aim of this study was to investigate, with aging, the activity of PON1 associated with HDL and partially responsible for its antiatherogenic activity.

Chitotriosidase levels in healthy elderly subjects.

Chitotriosidase (CHIT) belongs to the family of glycosylhydrolases and is highly homologous to chitinases from lower organisms. The enzyme CHIT is of interest for clinical reasons, because it is selectively expressed in chronically activated tissue macrophages. In most ethnic groups, approximately 6% of all individuals are homozygous for CHIT deficiency.

Comparison of Lipoprotein(a) levels between elderly and middle-aged men with coronary artery disease.

Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] is known to be a risk factor for atherosclerotic disease in middle-aged men, but the role of Lp(a) in women and in the elderly is less clear. In most studies, excess Lp(a) is not associated with increased risk for persons >65 years of age. This study examined the strength of association of a number of risk factors to coronary artery disease (CAD) in groups of men <65 years (n = 108) and >65 of age (n = 66) with angiographically documented significant narrowing of coronary arteries.

Protective effect of soy isoflavones and activity levels of plasma paraoxonase and arylesterase in the experimental nonalcoholic steatohepatitis model.

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is characterized by diffuse fatty infiltration in the liver and ballooning degeneration and inflammation in hepatocytes. We aimed to study the protective effect of soy isoflavones on experimental NASH and their effects on plasma paraoxanese and arylesterase levels in rats. Twenty-eight male rats were divided into four groups: Group 1 (n=7) received an isocaloric normal diet for 8 weeks, Group 2 (n=7) was fed an isocaloric basal diet plus oral soy isoflavone for 8 weeks (100 mg/kg in diet), Group 3 (n=7) received a special diet that was methionine and choline deficient (MCD) and rich in fat for 8 weeks, and Group 4 (n=7) was fed a special diet that was MCD and rich in fat plus oral soy isoflavone for 8 weeks (100 mg/kg in diet).

Increased levels of nitric oxide, cortisol and adrenomedullin in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Objective: To investigate the levels of serum cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S), nitric oxide (NO) and adrenomedullin (AM) in schizophrenic patients.

Subjects And Methods: Sixty-six male patients with chronic schizophrenia and 28 normal male subjects participated in this study. The duration of disease was 145 +/- 120 (mean +/- SD) months.

A comparison of ghrelin, glucose, alpha-amylase and protein levels in saliva from diabetics.

During the past decade, many salivary parameters have been used to characterize disease states. Ghrelin (GAH) is recently-discovered peptide hormone secreted mainly from the stomach but also produced in a number of other tissues including salivary glands. The aim of this work was to examine the relationship between active (aGAH) and inactive (dGAH) ghrelin in the saliva and other salivary parameters in type II diabetic patients and healthy controls.

GSTT1 and GSTM1 allelic polymorphisms in head and neck cancer patients from Italian Lazio Region.

Background: The association between head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and allelic variants of glutathione S-transferase M1 (GSTM1) and -T1 (GSTT1) is currently controversial. The present study investigates the prevalences of GSTT1 and GSTM1 polymorphism in a cohort of 100 head and neck cancer patients, 100 healthy donors and 200 controls with non-neoplastic head and neck diseases from Italian Lazio Region.

Methods: The patients with benign head and neck pathologies, as well as the healthy donors were matched for age, sex, cigarette smoke (yes/no) and alcohol consumption (yes/no).

Determination of saturated and unsaturated Fatty acids amount in leukocyte membranes from subjects fed with solid and fluid oils.

Modifications in dietary fatty acid intake might lead to a modification in membrane phospholipid fatty acid composition. The purpose of this study was to investigate relationship between different type of oil consumption and leukocyte membrane phospholipid composition. This study was carried out in subjects utilizing butter (n = 15), margarine (n = 15), fluid oil (n = 15) and mixed types of oils (n = 15) in total 60 subjects.

The effects of diazinon on lipid peroxidation and antioxidant enzymes in rat heart and ameliorating role of vitamin E and vitamin C.

Diazinon is one of the most widely used organophosphate insecticides (OPIs) in agriculture and public health programs. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) caused by OPIs may be involved in the toxicity of various pesticides. The aim of this study was to investigate how diazinon affects lipid peroxidation (LPO) and the antioxidant defense system in vivo and the possible ameliorating role of vitamins E and C.

Serum and erythrocyte adenosine deaminase activities in patients with Behçet's disease.

Objectives: Adenosine deaminase (ADA) is a non-specific marker of the activation of the T cell, which has an important role in the etiology of Behçet's disease (BD). The purpose of this study was to investigate the determination of ADA activity as an index of T-lymphocyte function in BD, which is known to have an T-cell-mediated immune response.

Materials And Methods: Adenosine deaminase activities in both serum and erythrocytes were measured in 23 untreated patients with BD and in 20 healthy controls.

Increased serum leptin concentrations in patients with chronic stable angina pectoris and ST-elevated myocardial infarction.

Leptin is an adipocytokine that is produced mainly by adipose tissue; it is also identified in atherosclerotic lesions in human coronary atherosclerosis. However, the relation of serum leptin concentrations to ischemic heart disease (IHD) is still obscure. The aims of the present study were to investigate serum leptin concentrations in patients with ST-elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI) and with chronic stable angina pectoris (CSAP) and to evaluate the possible correlations of leptin to other atherosclerotic risk factors; including serum high sensitive C-reactive protein (Hs-CRP), serum homocysteine, and fibrinogen concentrations.

Efficacy of supplementation of alpha-amylase-producing bacterial culture on the performance, nutrient use, and gut morphology of broiler chickens fed a corn-based diet.

A trial was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of an Escherichia coli strain producing alpha-amylase of Bacillus stearothermophilus on growth performance, nutrient use, and the morphology of the small intestine of broilers fed a corn-based diet. One hundred thirty-five 1-d-old chicks (Cobb 500) were randomly divided into 3 groups and treated as follows: (i) basal diet (control); (ii) basal diet and water supplemented with an E. coli strain that produced amylase, and (iii) basal diet and water supplemented with an E.

Ghrelin in plants: what is the function of an appetite hormone in plants?

In the present work, we provide compelling evidence for the expression of a ghrelin-like peptide hormone that has only been associated with animals, in various plant tissues. Ghrelin, the appetite stimulating hormone, has been identified from a number of different species including humans, rat, pig, mouse, gerbil, eel, goldfish, bullfrog and chicken. The study here was conducted using an immunohistochemistry assay to screen whether plants have any ghrelin immunoreactivity.

Serum arylesterase and paraoxonase activity in patients with chronic hepatitis.

Aim: To investigate the relationship between serum paraoxonase (PON1), AST, ALT, GGT, and arylesterase (AE) activity alterations and the degree of liver damage in patients with chronic hepatitis.

Methods: We studied 34 chronic hepatitis patients and 32 control subjects, aged between 35 and 65 years, in the Department of Infection and Clinical Microbiology at the Firat University School of Medicine. Blood samples were collected from subjects between 8:00 and 10:00 a.

Antioxidant status, alpha-amylase production, growth, and survival of hemoglobin bearing Escherichia coli exposed to hypochlorous acid.

In the present work, two matched strains of E. coli that bear a recombinant R-amylase gene (MK57) or the R-amylase gene and vgb (MK79-hemoglobin expressing strain) were exposed to HOCl. In these cells, glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), alpha-amylase production, growth and lethality were assessed in the presence and absence of HOCl.

Serum paraoxonase 1 activity and lipid peroxidation levels in patients with age-related macular degeneration.

Our objective was to investigate antioxidant paraoxonase 1 (PON1) activity together with malondialdehyde (MDA) levels to evaluate oxidative stress in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), an important cause of blindness in the elderly population. Serum PON1 activity and MDA levels were analyzed in 37 patients with AMD and compared with 29 healthy controls using a spectrophotometric method. Serum MDA levels were significantly higher in the patient group (2.

Ghrelin immunohistochemistry of gastric adenocarcinoma and mucoepidermoid carcinoma of salivary gland.

Ghrelin (G-HH) synthesized in several tissues including salivary and stomach glands stimulates appetite in humans by modulating neuropeptide Y neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus. Loss of appetite is one of the most important symptoms of stomach cancer. We conducted a study using immunohistochemistry to determine whether salivary glands and stomach cancer tissues produce ghrelin.

Lipid peroxidation levels in patients with acute brucellosis.

The purpose of this study was to investigate levels of lipid peroxidation, indicated by plasma malondialdehyde (MDA), with consideration of clinical status and treatment outcomes in patients with acute brucellosis. Plasma MDA levels were measured in patients with acute brucellosis and healthy subjects. Significantly higher MDA levels were detected in plasma of patients with acute brucellosis compared to controls (P<0.

Ghrelin is present in human colostrum, transitional and mature milk.

Ghrelin and its mRNA have recently been found in numerous human tissues including breast. The aim of this study was to compare the ghrelin levels in colostrum, mature and transitional milk and plasma in lactating women with plasma samples from non-lactating women. Venous blood samples were obtained from 17 healthy lactating women aged 22-35 years and from 16 age-matched controls.

Linkage between I172N mutation, a marker of 21-hydroxylase deficiency, and a single nucleotide polymorphism in Int6 of CYP21B gene: a genetic study of Sardinian family.

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is a genetic disorder due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency. More than 90% of CAH cases are caused by mutations of CYP21B gene, most of which are the result of microconversion events between the functional gene and its pseudogene. Using a combination of RFLP and direct sequencing analysis, in this paper we describe the genetic study of a Sardinian family carrying I172N mutation in linkage with a SNP namely 1636 Int6.

Investigation of protein oxidation and lipid peroxidation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

We aimed to determine the importance of neutrophil activation and the source of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by quantification of advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP) and total thiol levels as markers of oxidative protein damage, malondialdehyde (MDA) levels as a marker of lipid peroxidation and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity as a marker of neutrophil activation in patients with RA. Fifty-seven rheumatoid arthritis patients were included in the study and sub-grouped according to disease activity (active, n = 31; inactive, n = 26) and compared with healthy controls (n = 25). Serum MPO activity, AOPP, MDA, and thiol levels were measured by an enzymic spectrophotometric method.

Assessment of paraoxonase 1 activity and malondialdehyde levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate antioxidant paraoxonase 1 activity together with malondialdehyde (MDA) (an oxidative stress parameter) levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Design And Methods: Fifty-seven rheumatoid arthritis patients were included in the study and subgrouped according to disease activity (active, n = 31; inactive, n = 26) and compared with healthy controls (n = 25). Serum paraoxonase 1 activity and MDA levels were measured according to an enzymatic spectrophotometric method.