Combined Subcutaneous Fat Aspirate and Skin Tru-Cut Biopsy for Amyloid Screening in Patients with Suspected Systemic Amyloidosis

Screening for systemic amyloidosis is typically carried out with abdominal fat aspirates with varying reported sensitivities. Fat aspirates are preferred for use in primary screening instead of organ biopsies as they are less invasive and thereby minimize the potential risk of complications. At Odense Amyloidosis Center, we performed a prospective study on whether the combined use of fat aspirate and tru-cut skin biopsy could increase the diagnostic sensitivity. Both fat aspirates and skin biopsies were screened with Congo Red staining, and positive biopsies were subsequently subtyped using immunoelectron microscopy and mass spectrometry. Seventy-six patients were included. In total, 24 patients had systemic amyloidosis (11 AL, 12 wtATTR, 1 AA), and 6 patients had localized amyloidosis. Combined fat aspirate and skin biopsy were Congo Red-positive in 15 patients (overall sensitivity (OS) 62.5%). Fat aspirates were positive in 14 patients (OS 58.3%), and the skin biopsy was positive in 5 patients (OS 20.8%). In only one patient did the skin biopsy add extra diagnostic information. The sensitivity differed between AL and ATTR amyloidosis—81.8% and 41.7%, respectively. Using skin biopsy as the only screening method is not recommended.     

Targeting Inflammation by Anthocyanins as the Novel Therapeutic Potential for Chronic Diseases: An Update

Low-grade chronic inflammation (LGCI) and oxidative stress act as cooperative and synergistic partners in the pathogenesis of a wide variety of diseases. Polyphenols, including anthocyanins, are involved in regulating the inflammatory state and activating the endogenous antioxidant defenses. Anthocyanins’ effects on inflammatory markers are promising and may have the potential to exert an anti-inflammatory effect in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, translating these research findings into clinical practice would effectively contribute to the prevention and treatment of chronic disease. The present narrative review summarizes the results of clinical studies from the last 5 years in the context of the anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative role of anthocyanins in both health and disease. There is evidence to indicate that anthocyanins supplementation in the regulation of pro-inflammatory markers among the healthy and chronic disease population. Although the inconsistencies between the result of randomized control trials (RCTs) and meta-analyses were also observed. Regarding anthocyanins’ effects on inflammatory markers, there is a need for long-term clinical trials allowing for the quantifiable progression of inflammation. The present review can help clinicians and other health care professionals understand the importance of anthocyanins use in patients with chronic diseases.     

Chemical Composition and Potential Practical Application of 15 Red Algal Species from the White Sea Coast (the Arctic Ocean)

Though numerous valuable compounds from red algae already experience high demand in medicine, nutrition, and different branches of industry, these organisms are still recognized as an underexploited resource. This study provides a comprehensive characterization of the chemical composition of 15 Arctic red algal species from the perspective of their practical relevance in medicine and the food industry. We show that several virtually unstudied species may be regarded as promising sources of different valuable metabolites and minerals. Thus, several filamentous ceramialean algae (Ceramium virgatum, Polysiphonia stricta, Savoiea arctica) had total protein content of 20–32% of dry weight, which is comparable to or higher than that of already commercially exploited species (Palmaria palmata, Porphyra sp.). Moreover, ceramialean algae contained high amounts of pigments, macronutrients, and ascorbic acid. Euthora cristata (Gigartinales) accumulated free essential amino acids, taurine, pantothenic acid, and floridoside. Thalli of P. palmata and C. virgatum contained the highest amounts of the nonproteinogenic amino acid β-alanine (9.1 and 3.2 μM g⁻¹ DW, respectively). Several red algae tend to accumulate heavy metals; although this may limit their application in the food industry, it makes them promising candidates for phytoremediation or the use as bioindicators.     

Physicochemical,Antioxidant, Microstructural Properties and Bioaccessibility of Dark Chocolate with Plant Extracts

In this study, dark chocolates (DCh) containing zinc lactate (ZnL) were enriched with extracts from elderberries (EFrE), elderflowers (EFlE), and chokeberries (ChFrE) to improve their functional properties. Both dried plant extracts and chocolates were analyzed for antioxidant capacity (AC) using four different analytical methods: 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), cupric ion-reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC), and ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), while total phenolic content (TPC) was determined by Folin–Ciocalteu (F–C) assay. An increase in antioxidant properties of fortified chocolates was found, and the bioaccessibility of their antioxidants was evaluated. The highest AC and TPC were found in ChFrE and chocolate with chokeberries (DCh + ChFrE) before and after simulated in vitro digestion. Bioaccessibility studies indicated that during the simulated digestion the AC of all chocolates reduced significantly, whereas insignificant differences in TPC results were observed between chemical and physiological extracts. Moreover, the influence of plant extracts on physicochemical parameters such as moisture content (MC), fat content (FC), and viscosity of chocolates was estimated. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy with dispersive energy spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) was used to analyze surface properties and differences in the chemical composition of chocolates without and with additives.     

A Phage Display-Identified Short Peptide Capable of Hydrolyzing Calcium Pyrophosphate Crystals—The Etiological Factor of Chondrocalcinosis

Chondrocalcinosis is a metabolic disease caused by the presence of calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystals in the synovial fluid. The goal of our endeavor was to find out whether short peptides could be used as a dissolving factor for such crystals. In order to identify peptides able to dissolve crystals of calcium pyrophosphate, we screened through a random library of peptides using a phage display. The first screening was designed to select phages able to bind the acidic part of alendronic acid (pyrophosphate analog). The second was a catalytic assay in the presence of crystals. The best-performing peptides were subsequently chemically synthesized and rechecked for catalytic properties. One peptide, named R25, turned out to possess some hydrolytic activity toward crystals. Its catalysis is Mg²⁺-dependent and also works against soluble species of pyrophosphate.     

l-Arginine Improves Solubility and ANTI SARS-CoV-2 Mpro Activity of Rutin but Not the Antiviral Activity in Cells

The COVID-19 pandemic outbreak prompts an urgent need for efficient therapeutics, and repurposing of known drugs has been extensively used in an attempt to get to anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents in the shortest possible time. The glycoside rutin shows manifold pharmacological activities and, despite its use being limited by its poor solubility in water, it is the active principle of many pharmaceutical preparations. We herein report our in silico and experimental investigations of rutin as a SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitor and of its water solubility improvement obtained by mixing it with l-arginine. Tests of the rutin/l-arginine mixture in a cellular model of SARS-CoV-2 infection highlighted that the mixture still suffers from unfavorable pharmacokinetic properties, but nonetheless, the results of this study suggest that rutin might be a good starting point for hit optimization.     

Carboxyboronate: A Versatile C1 Building Block

The synthesis and applications of carboxy‐MIDA‐boronate, a novel C1 building block, are described. This molecule is accessible via a ruthenium tetraoxide‐mediated cleavage of commercially available ethynyl‐MIDA‐boronate. In the course of this study, carboxy‐MIDA‐boronate was found to possess ambident reactivity towards nucleophiles. Carboxylic acid derivatization produces a broad range of previously unknown carbamoyl‐, oxycarbo‐ and thiocarboboronates. Carboxy‐MIDA‐boronate and its derivatives undergo condensations to access borylated heterocycles with boron at positions that are difficult to access using alternate methods. The resulting heterocycles participate in the Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling reaction, enabling entry into diverse bis(heteroaryl) motifs. The carbon monoxide‐releasing capacity of carboxy‐MIDA‐boronate was also examined and applied in palladium‐catalyzed carbonylation.     

Dealing with repetitions in sequencing by hybridization

DNA sequencing by hybridization (SBH) induces errors in the biochemical experiment. Some of them are random and disappear when the experiment is repeated. Others are systematic, involving repetitions in the probes of the target sequence. A good method for solving SBH problems must deal with both types of errors. In this work we propose a new hybrid genetic algorithm for isothermic and standard sequencing that incorporates the concept of structured combinations. The algorithm is then compared with other methods designed for handling errors that arise in standard and isothermic SBH approaches. DNA sequences used for testing are taken from GenBank. The set of instances for testing was divided into two groups. The first group consisted of sequences containing positive and negative errors in the spectrum, at a rate of up to 20%, excluding errors coming from repetitions. The second group consisted of sequences containing repeated oligonucleotides, and containing additional errors up to 5% added into the spectra. Our new method outperforms the best alternative procedures for both data sets. Moreover, the method produces solutions exhibiting extremely high degree of similarity to the target sequences in the cases without repetitions, which is an important outcome for biologists. The spectra prepared from the sequences taken from GenBank are available on our website http://bio.cs.put.poznan.pl/.     

Kinetic Spectrophotometric Determination of Chromium (VI) by Oxidation of Sodium Pyrogallol-5-sulphonate by Hydrogen Peroxide

Summary. A new selective, sensitive, and simple kinetic method is developed for the determination of trace amounts of chromium (VI). The method is based on the catalytic effect of Cr(VI) on the reaction of sodium pyrogallol-5-sulphonate (PS) with hydrogen peroxide. The reaction is followed spectrophotometrically by tracing the oxidation product at 437nm within 1min after addition of H₂O₂. The optimum reaction conditions are PS (1.32·10^–3mol·dm^–3), H₂O₂ (0.32mol·dm^–3), HClO₄ (2.6·10^–3mol·dm^–3) at 25°C. Following this procedure, chromium (VI) can be determined with a linear calibration graph up to 0.25ng·cm^–3 and a detection limit of 0.024ng·cm^–3, based on the 3 criterion. The interference effect of several species was also investigated and it was found that the most common cations and anions do not interfere with the determination. The developed procedure was successfully applied to the determination of Cr(VI) and total Cr in river waters and total Cr in herbal samples.