0000000000275789
AUTHOR
Cecilia Gelfi
Determination of cow’s milk in non-bovine and mixed cheeses by capillary electrophoresis of whey proteins in acidic isoelectric buffers
An improved method for the determination of cow's milk in non-bovine cheese is reported: electrophoresis of whey proteins in acidic, isoelectric buffers. Two background electrolytes (BGEs) have been tested: (i) 50 mM iminodiacetic acid (pH=isoelectric point=2.30 at 25 degrees C), 0.5% hydroxyethylcellulose, 0.1% Tween 20 and 6 M urea (apparent pH 3.1), E=300 V/cm, for the separation of alpha-lactalbumins (alpha-LAs); (ii) a BGE with the same composition, but supplemented with 10% Tween 20, E=450 V/cm, for the fractionation of beta-lactoglobulins (beta-LGs). Surfactants have a discriminating effect on the retention behaviour of the bovine alpha-LA and beta-LG proteins, owing to the different…
Determination of cow's milk and ripening time in nonbovine cheese by capillary electrophoresis of the ethanol-water protein fraction
A novel method is reported for analyzing adulteration of goat and ewe cheeses with cow's milk: capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) in isoelectric, acidic buffers (50 mM imino diacetic acid, IDA, pH = pI 2.3). The cheese samples were extracted with a 20:80 v/v ethanol-water mixture in presence of 3 M urea and 1% beta-mercaptoethanol for 1 h. After centrifugation and lipid extraction, the samples were dissolved in 50 mM IDA, 6 M urea and 0.5% hydroxyethyl cellulose and analyzed by CZE at 700 V/cm. A total of 18 characteristic peaks were resolved among the three types of cheeses and 18 variables were defined as their respective areas. There was excellent similarity among the electrophoretic p…
Analysis of thiamine transporter genes in sporadic beriberi
Abstract Objective Thiamine or vitamin B 1 deficiency diminishes thiamine-dependent enzymatic activity, alters mitochondrial function, impairs oxidative metabolism, and causes selective neuronal death. We analyzed for the first time, the role of all known mutations within three specific thiamine carrier genes, SLC19 A2, SLC19 A3 , and SLC25 A19 , in a patient with atrophic beriberi, a multiorgan nutritional disease caused by thiamine deficiency. Methods A 44-year-old male alcoholic patient from Morocco developed massive bilateral leg edema, a subacute sensorimotor neuropathy, and incontinence. Despite normal vitamin B 1 serum levels, his clinical picture was rapidly reverted by high-dose in…
Unmasking epithelial-mesenchymal transition in a breast cancer primary culture: a study report
Abstract Background Immortalized cancer cell lines are now well-established procedures in biomedicine for a more complete understanding of cellular processes in cancer. However, they are more useful in preparation of fresh tumour tissue, in order to obtain cancer cells with highly preserved individual tumour properties. In the present study we report an analytical investigation on a breast cancer primary cell culture isolated from a surgical specimen obtained from a patient with an infiltrating ductal carcinoma. The objective of the research was to reveal unrecognized aspects of neoplastic cells, typical of the tumour from where the cells were derived, but masked in fixed tissue sections, i…
Novel acrylamido monomers with higher hydrophilicity and improved hydrolytic stability: II. Properties of N-acryloylaminopropanol
The physico-chemical properties and the electrophoretic behavior of the novel set of monomers reported by (Simo-Alfonso et al., Electrophoresis 1996, 17, 723-731) have been evaluated. Of utmost importance was the combination of high hydrophilicity and extreme hydrolytic stability, most desired properties for, any electrophoretic matrix, especially for protein fractionation. One of these monomers (N-acryloylaminopropanol, AAP) was found indeed to be extremely hydrophilic (with a partition coefficient P of only 0.10, vs. P = 0.13 for N-acryloylaminoethoxyethanol and P = 0.20 for acrylamide) and to possess excellent stability to alkaline hydrolysis. Its hydrolysis constant (0.008 L mol-1 min-1…
Novel acrylamido monomers with higher hydrophilicity and improved hydrolytic stability: I. Synthetic route and product characterization.
The novel acrylamido monomer reported by our group (N-acryloylaminoethoxyethanol, AAEE; Chiari et al., Electrophoresis 1994, 15, 177-186), found to combine high hydrophilicity with extraordinary resistance to alkaline hydrolysis, has come under closer scrutiny due to unexpected and random autopolymerization while stored as a 1/1 v/v water solution at 4 degrees C (possibly due to a greater oxidability of the ether group). We have additionally found a unique degradation pathway of the monomer, called "1-6 H-transfer", by which the C1 (on the double bond site), by constantly ramming against the C6, next to the ether oxygen (O7, which in fact favors the transfer of the hydrogen atom by C1), pro…
Performance of a series of novel N-substituted acrylamides in capillary electrophoresis of DNA fragments
DNA separations by capillary electrophoresis in viscous solutions of novel polymers, made with Ω-hydroxyl, N-substituted acrylamides (notably N-acryloyl amino propanol, AAP and N-acryloyl amino butanol, AAB) are evaluated. Whereas in standard poly(acrylamide), at 6% concentration, the theoretical plate number (N) does not exceed 500 000, in 6% poly(AAP) N reaches 922 000 and in 6% poly(AAB) N values as high as 1 200 000 are obtained. Also, copolymers of AAP and AAB give N values in excess of 1 million plates. The two novel monomers (AAP and AAB) remain extremely stable during alkaline hydrolysis and display very good hydrophilicity, while being devoid of the noxious habit of auto-polymeriza…
Protein modulation in mouse heart under acute and chronic hypoxia
Exploring cellular mechanisms underlying beneficial and detrimental responses to hypoxia represents the object of the present study. Signaling molecules controlling adaptation to hypoxia (HIF-1α), energy balance (AMPK), mitochondrial biogenesis (PGC-1α), autophagic/apoptotic processes regulation and proteomic dysregulation were assessed. Responses to acute hypoxia (AH) and chronic hypoxia (CH) in mouse heart proteome were detected by 2-D DIGE, mass spectrometry and antigen-antibody reactions. Both in AH and CH, the results indicated a deregulation of proteins related to sarcomere stabilization and muscle contraction. Neither in AH nor in CH the HIF-1α stabilization was observed. In AH, the …
Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition) 1
Contains fulltext : 232759.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access) In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to…
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Val66Met) polymorphism does not influence recovery from a post-traumatic vegetative state: a blinded retrospective multi-centric study.
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a neurotrophin that influences neuronal plasticity throughout life. Emergence from a vegetative state (VS) after a traumatic brain injury (TBI) implies that the brain undergoes plastic changes. A common polymorphism in the BDNF gene—BDNF Val66Met (referred to herein as BDNFMet)—impairs cognitive function in healthy subjects. The aim of this study was to determine whether the BDNFMet polymorphism plays a role in the recovery of consciousness and cognitive functions in patients in a VS after a TBI. Fifty-three patients in a VS 1 month after a TBI were included in the study and genotyped for the BDNFMet polymorphism. Scores of levels of cognitive fun…
Autophagy
In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide…
Genotyping analysis and 18FDG uptake in breast cancer patients: a preliminary research
Background: Diagnostic imaging plays a relevant role in the care of patients with breast cancer (BC). Positron Emission Tomography (PET) with 18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) has been widely proven to be a clinical tool suitable for BC detection and staging in which the glucose analog supplies metabolic information about the tumor. A limited number of studies, sometimes controversial, describe possible associations between FDG uptake and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). For this reason this field has to be explored and clarified. We investigated the association of SNPs in GLUT1, HIF-1a, EPAS1, APEX1, VEGFA and MTHFR genes with the FDG uptake in BC. Methods: In 26 caucasian individu…
Novel acrylamido monomers with higher hydrophilicity and improved hydrolytic stability: III. DNA separations by capillary electrophoresis in poly(N-acryloylaminopropanol).
Separation of DNA fragments in a novel polymer network, consisting of N-acryloylaminopropanol (AAP) is reported. The performance of this novel monomer, as a sieving liquid polymer in capillary zone electrophoresis, was evaluated. In 50 microns ID capillaries, an 8% solution of poly (AAP) can afford apex-resolution of the 123/124 bp adjacent pair of DNA fragments in marker V, typically unresolved in any poly (acrylamide) formulation. It is proposed that the distal-OH group in the AAP molecule can form transient H-bonds with the DNA double helix. Molecular modeling shows a meandering structure for poly (AAP), lacing the walls of half a cylinder, with kinks protruding at regular intervals, pot…