A miniaturized device for bioluminescence analysis of caspase-3/7 activity in a single apoptotic cell

Caspases are key enzymes activated during the apoptotic machinery. Apoptosis as a way of programmed cell death becomes deregulated in some pathologies including cancer transformations, neurodegenerative, or autoimmune diseases. Most of the methods available for the detection of apoptosis and caspases provide qualitative information only or quantification data as an average from cell populations or cell lysates. Several reports point to the importance of more accurate single-cell analyses in biomedical studies due to heterogeneity at tissue as well as cell level. To meet these requirements, we developed a miniaturized device enabling detection and quantification of active caspase-3/7 in individual cells at a femtogram level (10^?15 g). The active caspase-3/7 detection protocol is based on the bioluminescence chemistry commercially available as a Caspase-Glo? 3/7 reagent developed by Promega. As a model, we used human stem cells treated by camptothecin to induce apoptosis. Individual apoptotic cells were captured from a culture medium under a microscope and transferred by a micromanipulation system into a detection capillary containing 2 μl of the reagent. Cells without activation by camptothecin served as negative controls. The detection limit of active caspase-3/7 achieved in the miniaturized system was determined as 0.20 and limit of quantification as 0.65 of the amount found in a single apoptotic human stem cell. Such a sensitive method could have a wide application potential in laboratory medicine and related clinically oriented research. Figure

Bioluminescence detection assembly     

Adsorption and Electrooxidation of Nucleic Acids at Glassy Carbon Electrodes Modified with Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes Dispersed In Polylysine

We report the advantages of the adsorption and electrooxidation of oligonucleotides and calf‐thymus double stranded DNA (dsDNA) at glassy carbon electrodes (GCE) modified with a dispersion of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) in poly‐L ‐lysine (Plys) (GCE/MWCNT‐Plys). Important enhancement in the guanine oxidation signal was obtained by adsorptive stripping voltammetry (AdSV) due to a most favorable interaction between the negatively charged DNAs and the positively charged Plys that support the MWCNT. The layer of oligo(dG)₁₁ immobilized at GCE/MWCNT‐Plys was successfully used for the selective detection of the hybridization event using oligo(dG)₁₁/oligo(dC)₁₁ as model.     

Effects of the expression level of epidermal growth factor receptor on the ligand-induced restructuring of focal adhesions: a QCM-D study

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) plays a major role in cell migration and invasion and is considered to be the primary source of activation of various malignant tumors. To gain insight into how elevated levels of EGFR influence cellular function, particularly cell motility, we used a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) to examine restructuring of focal adhesions in MCF-10A cells induced by epidermal growth factor. Engineered cells that overexpress epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) exhibited a very different kinetic profile from wildtype MCF-10A cells that have a lower level of EGFR with a higher rate for the initial disassembly of focal adhesion and a much lower rate for the later reassembly of focal adhesions. It is conceivable that these effects exhibited by EGFR-overexpressing cells may promote the initiation and maintenance of a more favorable adhesion state for cell migration. This study has demonstrated the capability of the dissipation monitoring function of the QCM-D to quantitatively assess kinetic aspects of cellular processes with a high temporal resolution and sensitivity.

Two-Staged Temperature and Agitation Strategy for the Production of Transglutaminase from a Streptomyces sp. Isolated from Brazilian Soils

Transglutaminase catalyzes the cross-linking reaction between a glutamine residue and a free amine residue of proteins leading to the formation of protein aggregates. In this research, the effects of temperature, agitation, and aeration on the production of transglutaminase in a bench reactor by a newly isolated Streptomyces sp. from Brazilian soils were investigated using a factorial experimental design. The parameters evaluated influenced the enzyme production, and the data showed that the best conditions to enhance cell growth were different from those leading to enhanced transglutaminase production. Thus, a temperature and agitation shift strategy was adopted to increase transglutaminase productivity. The temperature and agitation were first set at 34 °C and 350 rpm, respectively, and after 24 h decreasing to 26 °C and 150 rpm until the end of fermentation. The transglutaminase activity obtained was 2.18 U/mL after 42 h of fermentation, which was twice than that obtained using a constant temperature and agitation fermentation strategy.     

Potentiometric studies on sodium dehydrocholate micelles

The scarcely studied sodium dehydrocholate-water system was investigated at low concentration by using H⁺-, Na⁺- and dehydrocholate-ion-selective electrodes. The findings at concentrations below the critical micelle concentration are consistent with those of previous work. A dimeric chelate structure entrapping Na⁺ ions at very low concentration is proposed. The composition of the micelles and the degree of ionisation were studied and explained as the result of the possibility of a back-to-face mechanism of aggregation of this steroid salt. This mechanism also explains the possibility of formation of acid soaplike aggregates at intermediate concentrations.     

New palladium(II) complexes with pyrazole ligands

The pyrazole ligand 3,5-dimethyl-4-iodopyrazole (HdmIPz) has been used to obtain a series of palladium(II) complexes (1–4) of the type [PdX₂(HdmIPz)₂] {X = Cl⁻ (1); Br⁻ (2); I⁻ (3); SCN⁻ (4)}. All compounds have been isolated, purified, and characterized by means of elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, ¹H and ¹³C{¹H}-NMR experiments, differential thermal analysis (DTA), and thermogravimetry (TG). The TG/DTA curves showed that the compounds released ligands in the temperature range 137–605 °C, yielding metallic palladium as final residue. The complexes and the ligand together with cisplatin have been tested in vitro by MTT assay for their cytotoxicity against two murine cancer cell lines: mammary adenocarcinoma (LM3) and lung adenocarcinoma (LP07).     

Joint photoelectron and theoretical study of (Rh(m)Co(n))⁻ (m=1-5, n=1-2) cluster anions and their neutral counterparts

Anion photoelectron spectroscopic experiments and calculations based on density functional theory have been used to investigate and uniquely identify the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of both neutral and anionic (Rh(m)Co(n)) and (Rh(m)Co(n))(-) (m=1-5, n=1-2) clusters, respectively. Negative ion photoelectron spectra are presented for electron binding energies up to 3.493 eV. The calculated electron affinities and vertical detachment energies are in good agreement with the measured values. Computational results for geometric structures and magnetic moments of both cluster anions and their neutrals are presented.     

Highly integrated flow assembly for automated dynamic extraction and determination of readily bioaccessible chromium(VI) in soils exploiting carbon nanoparticle-based solid-phase extraction

An automated dynamic leaching test integrated in a portable flow-based setup is herein proposed for reliable determination of readily bioaccessible Cr(VI) under worst-case scenarios in soils containing varying levels of contamination. The manifold is devised to accommodate bi-directional flow extraction followed by processing of extracts via either in-line clean-up/preconcentration using multi-walled carbon nanotubes or automatic dilution at will, along with Cr(VI) derivatization and flow-through spectrophotometric detection. The magnitude of readily mobilizable Cr(VI) pools was ascertained by resorting to water extraction as promulgated by current standard leaching tests. The role of carbon nanomaterials for the uptake of Cr(VI) in soil leachates and the configuration of the packed column integrated in the flow manifold were investigated in detail. The analytical performance of the proposed system for in vitro bioaccessibility tests was evaluated in chromium-enriched soils at environmentally relevant levels and in a standard reference soil material (SRM 2701) with a certified value of total hexavalent chromium. The automated method was proven to afford unbiased assessment of water-soluble Cr(VI) in soils as a result of the minimization of the chromium species transformation. By combination of the kinetic leaching profile and a first-order leaching model, the water-soluble Cr(VI) fraction in soils was determined in merely 6 h against >24 h taken in batchwise steady-state standard methods.