Biomimetic Analogues of the Desferrioxamine E Siderophore for PET Imaging of Invasive Aspergillosis: Targeting Properties and Species Specificity.

The pathogenic fungus utilizes a cyclic ferrioxamine E (FOXE) siderophore to acquire iron from the host. Biomimetic FOXE analogues were labeled with gallium-68 for molecular imaging with PET. [Ga]Ga(III)-FOXE analogues were internalized in cells via Sit1.

Ustekinumab therapy changes the transcriptional activity pattern of TGF-β1-3 genes.

Introduction: One of the examples of genes whose expression can be altered by the action of ustekinumab is TGF-β. It is a pleiotropic cytokine whose activity affects psoriatic changes and the state of homeostasis of the whole organism.

Aim: To evaluate the effect of ustekinumab on the transcriptional activity of TGF-β family genes in patients with psoriatic arthritis and to check whether the results obtained can be helpful in monitoring the progress of treatment.

Flexibility in Problem Solving: Analogical Transfer of Tool Use in Toddlers Is Immune to Delay.

Solving problems that are perceptually dissimilar but require similar solutions is a key skill in everyday life. In adults, this ability, termed analogical transfer, draws on memories of relevant past experiences that partially overlap with the present task at hand. Thanks to this support from long-term memory, analogical transfer allows remarkable behavioral flexibility beyond immediate situations.

Analysis of the Differences in the Expression of mRNAs and miRNAs Associated with Drug Resistance in Endometrial Cancer Cells Treated with Salinomycin.

Background: It is important to understand the molecular mechanisms involved in cancer drug resistance and to study the activity of new drugs, e.g. salinomycin.

Streptococcus agalactiae and Chlamydia trachomatis detection in women without symptoms of infection.

Background: Chlamydia trachomatis (C. trachomatis) and Streptococcus agalactiae (GBS) may be present in the female cervical canal without any symptoms of infection. Chronic chlamydial infections lead to many serious complications and perinatal infections, while the presence of GBS is a reservoir for infections of newborns or invasive streptococcal infection in adults.

A novel approach for obtaining α,β-diaminophosphonates bearing structurally diverse side chains and their interactions with transition metal ions studied by ITC.

Aminophosphonates are an important group of building blocks in medicinal and pharmaceutical chemistry. Novel representatives of this class of compounds containing nontypical side chains are still needed. The aza-Michael-type addition of amines to phosphonodehydroalanine derivatives provides a simple and effective approach for synthesizing '-substituted α,β-diaminoethylphosphonates and thus affords general access to aminophosphonates bearing structurally diverse side chains.

Evaluation of the Impact of Cisplatin on Variances in the Expression Pattern of Leptin-Related Genes in Endometrial Cancer Cells.

This research aimed to assess the impact of cisplatin, depending on the concentration and exposure time, on the expression pattern of leptin in an endometrial cancer cell line. Ishikawa endometrial cancer cell cultures were incubated with cisplatin, at concentrations of 2.5-10 µM, or leptin in the concentration range 10-40 ng/mL, and for durations of 12, 24 and 48 h compared with the control.

The Influence of Salinomycin on the Expression Profile of mRNAs Encoding Selected Caspases and MiRNAs Regulating their Expression in Endometrial Cancer Cell Line.

Background: Apoptosis could take place in the pathway dependent on death receptors or pathways dependent on mitochondria. In both, a key role is played by enzymes with protease activity, known as caspases.

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the variances in the expression pattern of caspase-dependent signaling pathways in the endometrial cancer cell line when treated with salinomycin.

Differences in the Expression Pattern of mRNA Protein SEMA3F in Endometrial Cancer under Cisplatin Treatment.

Background: Semaphorin 3F (SEMA3F) plays a substantial role in carcinogenesis, because of its role in inducing angiogenesis, and creating a microenvironment for the developing tumor.

Objective: The purpose of this work was to assess the impact of cisplatin, depending on the concentration and exposure time on the expression pattern of SEMA3F in an endometrial cancer cell line.

Materials And Methods: Cultures of the Ishikawa endometrial cancer cells were incubated with cisplatin with the following concentrations: 2.

Difficulties Perceived by ICU Nurses Providing End-of-Life Care: A Qualitative Study.

Background: With advances in medicine and technology, intensive care units (ICUs) have the capacity to treat patients who would have previously not been expected to survive and would therefore not have been managed in ICUs. When an individual is not expected to survive, doctors and nurses face the modern ethical dilemma of death associated with withdrawal of life-supporting strategies. The aim of this study was to identify difficulties perceived by ICU nurses providing end-of-life care (EOLC) in Poland.

Exploring the Specificity of Rationally Designed Peptides Reconstituted from the Cell-Free Extract of toward Mn(II) and Cu(II).

A series of five rationally designed decapeptides [DEHGTAVMLK (DP1), THMVLAKGED (DP2), GTAVMLKDEH (Term-DEH), TMVLDEHAKG (Mid-DEH), and DEHGGGGDEH (Bis-DEH)] have been studied for their interactions with Cu(II) and Mn(II) ions. The peptides, constructed including the most prevalent amino acid content found in the cell-free extract of (DR), play a fundamental role in the antioxidant mechanism related to its exceptional radioresistance. Mn(II) ions, in complex with these peptides, are found to be an essential ingredient for the DR protection kit.

Is ursodeoxycholic acid therapy due to pregnant intrahepatic cholestasis change the adiponectin and fibroblast growth factor-21 levels?-Pilot study.

The main aim of the study was to assess changes in adiponectin and fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) levels in pregnant women with intrahepatic cholestasis during ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapy. The study included 40 pregnant women with intrahepatic cholestasis (ICP) treated with UDCA. In the pregnant ICP group, material for further analysis was collected three times: before the first dose of drug T1, 4 weeks after the first dose of drug T2, 8 weeks after the first dose of drug T3, and 1 day after delivery T4 (P < .

Effect of ursodeoxycholic acid therapy due to pregnant intrahepatic cholestasis on chemerin and irisin levels.

The purpose of the work was to assess changes in chemerin and irisin levels in women with diagnosed intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnant women treated with ursodeoxycholic acid. The study group consisted of 50 patients with diagnosed and confirmed intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnant women at 24-25 weeks of pregnancy treatment by ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA). The study also included a group of 40 pregnant women, without concomitant intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP).

Telomere length in leukocytes and cervical smears of women with high-risk human papillomavirus (HR HPV) infection.

Objective: Persistent high-risk HPV (HR HPV) infection leads to the development of squamous intraepithelial lesions, which in turn may progress to cervical cancer. Telomere elongation or shortening may indicate a carcinogenesis process. In the present study, we analyzed telomere length from blood and cervical smears of women without and with high-risk HPV infection.

Metal Complexes of Two Specific Regions of ZnuA, a Periplasmic Zinc(II) Transporter from .

The crystal structure of ZnZnuA from reveals two metal binding sites. (i) The primary binding site, His143, is located close the His-rich loop (residues 116-138) and plays a significant role in Zn(II) acquisition. (ii) The secondary binding site involves His224.

Assessment of Expression of Homeobox A5 in Endometrial Cancer on the mRNA and Protein Level.

Background: Endometrial cancer is one of the most common gynecological cancer in the developed countries and occurs mainly in postmenopausal women. Angiogenesis is important for cancer formation as it provides nutrients for growing tumor mass. Most tumors do not show detectable Homeobox A5 (HOXA5 level), suggesting its potential role as a cancer suppressor.

Triplet of cysteines - Coordinational riddle?

Polythiol binding of metal ions plays crucial role in the proper functioning of cysteine-rich proteins that are responsible for metal homeostasis and defending processes against metal toxicity (including heavy metals detoxification). The coordination properties of cysteine residues involved in specific sequencional patterns in proteins (like those present in e.g.

Zinc Binding Sites Conserved in Short Neuropeptides Containing a Diphenylalanine Motif.

A diphenylalanine motif in peptides plays a crucial role in supramolecular systems. The current work represents a novel strategy in which a diphenylalanine motif in the central domain of neuropeptides conserves the specific Zn binding site and prevents "hopping" of the Zn ion between alternative metal binding sites. Alternative metal binding sites may also include carboxylic atoms in the terminal domains of a peptide.

Assessment of the Usefulness of the SEMA5A Concentration Profile Changes as a Molecular Marker in Endometrial Cancer.

Background: Semaphorin 5A (SEMA5A) functions not only in the nervous system but also in cancer transformation where its role has not yet been sufficiently studied and described.

Objective: The aim of the study was to determine the changes in SEMA5A expression in endometrial cancer at various degrees of its differentiation (G1-G3) compared to control.

Materials And Methods: The study group consisted of 45 patients with endometrial cancer at various grades: G1, 17; G2, 15; G3, 13.

Variances in the Level of COX-2 and iNOS in Different Grades of Endometrial Cancer.

Background: Many experimental studies have demonstrated the importance of COX-2 in the tumor angiogenesis. Inducible iNOS is responsible for a high and stable level of nitric oxide and is expressed in response to pro-inflammatory factors.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the expression of COX-2 and iNOS at the protein level and to assess their potential prognostic significance in patients with endometrial cancer.

Copper(II)-Binding Induces a Unique Polyproline Type II Helical Structure within the Ion-Binding Segment in the Intrinsically Disordered F-Domain of Ecdysteroid Receptor from .

Reproduction of the dominant vector of Zika and dengue diseases, mosquito, is controlled by an active heterodimer complex composed of the 20-hydroxyecdysone receptor (EcR) and ultraspiracle protein. Although EcR shares the structural and functional organization with other nuclear receptors, its C-terminus has an additional long F domain (AaFEcR). Recently, we showed that the full length AaFEcR is intrinsically disordered with the ability to specifically bind divalent metal ions.

Biophysical approaches for the study of metal-protein interactions.

Protein-protein interactions play important roles for a variety of cell functions, often involving metal ions; in fact, metal-ion binding mediates and regulates the activity of a wide range of biomolecules. Enlightening all of the specific features of metal-protein and metal-mediated protein-protein interactions can be a very challenging task; a detailed knowledge of the thermodynamic and spectroscopic parameters and the structural changes of the protein is normally required. For this purpose, many experimental techniques are employed, embracing all fields of Analytical and Bioinorganic Chemistry.

Expression Profile of VEGF-C, VEGF-D, and VEGFR-3 in Different Grades of Endometrial Cancer.

Background: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-C, -D, and VEGF receptor-3 are proteins characterized as crucial for tumor lymphangiogenesis. It is accompanied by angiogenesis during wound healing, but also in the neoplastic process. The research studies have shown that the lymphatic system plays a key role in the progression of carcinogenesis.

Changes in the Expression Profile of VEGF-A, VEGF-B, VEGFR-1, VEGFR-2 in Different Grades of Endometrial Cancer.

Background: VEGF-A, VEGF-B, VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 are important proteins involved in the induction and development of a new blood vessel network through which the tumor is properly nourished and oxygenated.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate changes in VEGF-A, VEGF-B, VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 expression in endometrial cancer depending on its grade and to determine the VEGFR-1 to VEGFR-2 concentration ratio.

Methods: The study group consisted of 45 patients diagnosed with endometrial cancer (G1, 17; G2, 15; G3, 13).