Category Archives: Uncategorized
Evaluation of the spectral characteristics, purity and antioxidant activity of C-phycocyanin from the cyanobacteria collected in Kaunas Lagoon (Lithuania)
N. Hudz1,2*, V. Turkina3, O. Yezerska1, L. Kobylinska4, A. Filipska1,
J. Karosienė5, D. Galinytė6, G. Balčiūnaitė–Murzienė7,
S. Khomyak8, N. Savickienė9
1Department of Drug Technology and Biopharmacy,
Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, Lviv, Ukraine;
2Department of Pharmacy and Ecological Chemistry, University of Opole, Poland;
3Research Institute of Epidemiology and Hygiene,
Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, Lviv, Ukraine;
4Department of Biochemistry, Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, Lviv, Ukraine;
5Laboratory of Algology and Microbial Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania;
6Department of Pharmacognosy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania;
7Institute of Pharmaceutical Technologies, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania;
8Department of Technology of Biologically Active Substances, Pharmacy and Biotechnology,
Lviv Polytechnic National University, Lviv, Ukraine;
9Department of Pharmacognosy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania;
*e-mail: natali_gudz@ukr.net
Received: 09 October 2022; Revised: 14 November 2022;
Accepted: 16 November 2022; Available on-line: 19 December 2022
The physicochemical characteristics of phycocyanin extracted from cyanobacteria collected in Kaunas Lagoon were studied (spectrum characteristics, C-PC content in the dry mass and chemical purity). It was determined that the tested concentrations of C-PC in purified water should be in the range of 0.02–0.16% for measuring C-PC content in the dry mass and its spectrum characteristics. The two clear absorption maxima were detected in the spectrum of C-PC at the wavelengths of 277 and 619 nm. The content of C-PC in the dry powder form was in the range of 7.25% to 9.30% depending on its concentration in the solution and type of spectrophotometer. Furthermore, a purity factor of 1.5 was calculated, which indicated the food qualification of the obtained biomass of C-PC. Finally, the analytical procedure for studying the pro- and anti-oxidant activity of C-PC was developed and the antioxidant activity of C-PC was measured for the available markers. It was revealed that C-PC has dual properties (pro- and anti-oxidant ones) depending on its concentration, more exactly, its content in reaction mixtures with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). The following issues were resolved during the research: the concentration of ethanol in the DPPH solution was chosen in order to avoid precipitation of proteins in the reaction mixtures (50%); the ratio of the solution of C-PC to the DPPH solution was selected; the selected concentrations of the markers for the construction of their calibration curves were chosen for quercetin and for rutin. The antioxidant activity of the obtained C-PC sample was determined.
Dietary intake of folate and the frequency of its deficiency in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus and healthy children
L. I. Dobrovolska*, O. R. Boyarchuk, M. I. Kinash
І. Horbachevsky Ternopil National Medical University,
Department of Children’s Diseases and Pediatric Surgery, Ternopil, Ukraine;
*e-mail: dobrovolska_li@tdmu.edu.ua
Received: 29 January 2022; Revised: 22 March 2022;
Accepted: 20 September 2022; Available on-line: 19 December 2022
Adequate folate intake is essential for a child’s growth. There is lack of information about the prevalence of this nutrient deficiency in the Ukrainian population, including children. The aim of the study was to evaluate the dietary intake of folate and determine the frequency of folate deficiency in children with Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) and healthy children. Determination of folate in serum was performed by ELISA. Folate level <3 ng/ml was diagnosed as a folate deficiency. Among all observed children the folate deficiency was diagnosed in 23 (32.9%): in 6 (17.1%) patients with T1D and in 17 (48.6%) healthy children (P ≤ 0.01). The mean level of serum folate in patients with T1D was (5.09 ± 2.16) ng/ml and (3.72 ± 1.87) ng/ml in healthy children (P ≤ 0.01). The average daily intake of folate with food was (138.68 ± 70.37) µg, without difference between T1D (12.00 ± 3.51 yr.) and healthy groups (10.83 ± 3.24 yr.), and it was more than two times lower than age requirements (300 µg/day). However, it was self-reported that 15 (48.9%) children of T1D group received vitamin supplementation one time in six months, while in healthy children only 6 (17.1%) children received vitamins (P ≤ 0.01). In conclusion, the frequency of folate deficiency is high in the pediatric population. Nutrition does not provide the necessary intake of folate, which indicates the need for additional folate supplementation.
Perinatal hypoxia and thalamus brain region: increased efficiency of antiepileptic drug levetiracetam to inhibit GABA release from nerve terminals
M. V. Dudarenko*, N. G. Pozdnyakova
Department of Neurochemistry, Palladin Institute of Biochemistry,
National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv;
*e-mail: marina.dudarenko@gmail.com
Received: 28 January 2022; Revised: 25 March 2022;
Accepted: 20 September 2022; Available on-line: 19 December 2022
Levetiracetam (LV), 2S-(2-oxo-1-pyrrolidiny1) butanamide, is an antiepileptic drug. The exact mechanisms of anticonvulsant effects of LV remain unclear. In this study, rats (Wistar strain) underwent hypoxia and seizures at the age of 10–12 postnatal days (pd). [3H]GABA release was analysed in isolated from thalamus nerve terminals (synaptosomes) during development at the age of pd 17–19 and pd 24–26 (infantile stage), pd 38–40 (puberty) and pd 66–73 (young adults) in control and after perinatal hypoxia. The extracellular level of [3H]GABA in the preparation of thalamic synaptosomes increased during development at the age of pd 38–40 and pd 66–73 as compared to earlier ones. LV did not influence the extracellular level of [3H]GABA in control and after perinatal hypoxia at all studied ages. Exocytotic [3H]GABA release in control increased at the age of pd 24–26 as compared to pd 17–19. After hypoxia, exocytotic [3H]GABA release from synaptosomes also increased during development. LV elevated [3H]GABA release from thalamic synaptosomes at the age of pd 66–73 after hypoxia and during blockage of GABA uptake by NO-711 only. LV realizes its antiepileptic effects at the presynaptic site through an increase in exocytotic release of [3H]GABA in thalamic synaptosomes after perinatal hypoxia at pd 66–73. LV exhibited a more significant effect in thalamic synaptosomes after perinatal hypoxia than in control ones. The action of LV is age-dependent, and the drug was inert at the infantile stage that can be useful for an LV application strategy in child epilepsy therapy.
The level of nitric oxide and arginase activity in patients with arterial hypertension and diabetes mellitus during COVID-19
O. Y. Sklyarova1, S. R. Mahiiovych2, N. V. Denysenko3,
L. I. Kobylinska3*, Y. Y. Sklyarov2
1Department of Family Medicine FPGE, Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, Ukraine;
2Department of Therapy No 1 and Medical Diagnostics FPGE, Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, Ukraine;
3Department of Biological Chemistry, Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, Ukraine;
*e-mail: lesyaivanivna.biochemistry@gmail.com
Received: 28 September 2022; Revised: 06 November 2022;
Accepted: 11 November 2022; Available on-line: 19 December 2022
The aim of this study was to assess the level of nitric oxide production and arginase activity in patients with arterial hypertension and type II diabetes mellitus during infection with SARS-CoV-2. The study groups included patients with arterial hypertension, patients with arterial hypertension combined with a severe course of COVID-19 and patients who, in addition to arterial hypertension and COVID-19, were suffering from type II diabetes mellitus. The volunteers without any clinical signs of diseases and normal blood pressure formed the control group. It has been established that arterial hypertension, combined with COVID-19 occurs along with reduced L-arginine, nitric oxide, superoxide dismutase activity and increased arginase activity. At the same time, the presence of arterial hypertension in patients with diabetes and coronavirus disease is accompanied by a decline in the content of L-arginine and arginase activity. Our study’s results may help scientists find new pharmacological targets in the future treatment of coronavirus disease and comorbid disorders.
Purification and characterization of platelet aggregation inhibitor from the venom of Bitis arietans
O. Platonov1*, V. Nikulina1, Y. Kucheryavyi1,
V. Gryshchuk1, Y. Stohniy1, V. Chernyshenko1, O. Slominskyi1,
A. Rebriev1, K. Savchenko1,2, L. Garmanchuk2
1Palladin Institute of Biochemistry, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv;
2ESC “Institute of Biology and Medicine”,
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ukraine;
*e-mail: chaosplaton@gmail.com
Received: 28 January 2022; Revised: 03 October 2022;
Accepted: 20 September 2022; Available on-line: 19 December 2022
Disintegrins are the antagonists of integrin receptors that can be found mostly in snakes’ venom. They can inhibit platelet aggregation, thus preventing the formation of blood clots. By blocking the integrin receptors of cancer cells, disintegrins can inhibit proliferation and metastasis. Thus, the search for new sources of disintegrins and development of methods of their purification is an important task of modern biotechnology. This work was dedicated to the purification and characterization of inhibiting polypeptides from Bitis arietans venom. Crude venom of B. arietans was fractionated using ion-exchange chromatography on Q Sepharose followed by size-exclusion chromatography on Superdex 75 using FPLC method. Analysis of molecular weight of protein components was performed using SDS-PAGE and MALDI-TOF analysis on Voyager-DE. Aggregation of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in the presence of platelet aggregation inhibitor was investigated using aggregometry on the AR2110. MTT test was used for measuring HeLa cells proliferation and survival in vitro. Two-step chromatography allowed us to obtain fraction that contained polypeptides possessing the dose-dependent inhibitory action on adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-induced platelet aggregation in PRP. SDS-PAGE showed that obtained fraction contained two polypeptides with molecular weight 9.0 and 13.67 kDa according to MALDI-TOF analysis. Purified polypeptides inhibited ADP-induced platelet aggregation with IC50 0.09 mg/ml. However, 0.005 mg/ml of fraction suppressed viability of HeLa cells according to MTT test on 20%. Discovered biological effects of fractions allowed us to conclude the possible use of these polypeptides as anti-aggregatory or anti-proliferative agents.
We are stronger and better together
Sandor G. Vari
International Research, and Innovation in Medicine Program, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA, and President of the RECOOP HST Association
I learned during twenty years in RECOOP HST Association that sharing ideas, plans and actions make a human network naturally productive. Also, I believed throughout these years that honesty is a key component of a healthy relationship. Not only because honesty helps us avoid harmful breaches of trust, but because it allows us to build creative collaborative research organizations.
Nonetheless, in the last two years, we were challenged with a vast scale of crises. First, the COVID-19 pandemic and second, beginning February 24, 2022, the brutal Russian aggression against Ukraine have impacted everybody’s life causing significant concern and insecurity across the globe. Economic instability, disturbed work routines and disrupted family lives have caused higher risks of physical and mental disorders [1, 2].
Socially isolated people often feel lonely or depressed. Constantly lonely people have higher blood pressure, are more vulnerable to infection and are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Loneliness also interferes with an entire range of everyday functions such as sleep patterns, attention and logical and verbal reasoning [3-6].
At the time the pandemic calmed, the Russian barbaric aggression and bombardment of civilian targets exposed large populations to physical aggression, which grants more damage over time as many Ukrainians are losing human condition. Are we losing humanity also?
Humans are good or bad, or predators also capable of great kindness. Humanity symbolizes human love and sympathy toward each other. Human qualities include honesty, integrity, courage, self-awareness and dedication. These qualities define who we are as human beings. In this troubled time, we must look for the good in people and strengthen the care for others.
Gandhi taught us, “The power of humanity is the strength of individual commitment and the force of collective action.” When RECOOP HST Association does something to help in Ukraine, all of us gain a sense of being valuable, helpful and worthwhile. Gandhi’s words remind us, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”
The human misery caused by Russia’s attacks only strengthen Ukrainians’ extraordinary spirit and their dedication to protect their family, culture and homeland. Putin is scrambled by the strength of Ukraine and getting more aggressive. His actions prove, like Gandhi wrote, “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” And we are stronger and better together.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2022
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2022 was awarded jointly to Carolyn R. Bertozzi, Morten Meldal and K. Barry Sharpless “for the development of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry”.
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2022
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2022 was awarded to Svante Pääbo “for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution”.
Localization and level of proapoptotic protein regulators in a rat lung tissue during development of acute experimental bronchopneumonia
D. S. Ziablitsev1*, A. O. Tykhomyrov2, O. O. Dyadyk3,
S. V. Kolesnikova1, S. V. Ziablitsev1
1Bogomolets National Medical University, Kyiv, Ukraine;
2Palladin Institute of Biochemistry, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv;
3Shupyk National Healthcare University of Ukraine, Kyiv;
*e-mail: denis898@ukr.net
Received: 20 July 2022; Revised: 13 September 2022;
Accepted: 04 November 2022; Available on-line: 14 November 2022
Apoptosis plays an important role in the development of acute inflammatory lung injury (AILI) and its consequences, which can be realized in different cells with distinct intensity and rate. The aim of this study was to determine the distribution and expression intensity of apoptosis markers in the lungs of rats in the AILI model with endotracheal introduction of capron thread and LPS. Immunoblotting and immunohistochemical studies were performed using monoclonal antibodies against Bax and caspase-3 proteins. It was shown that Bax level increased significantly with the peak on the 7th day. The second peak of Bax 40 dimeric form was noted on the 21st day. The level of both pro-caspase-3 and active caspase-3 was also dramatically increased with a maximum on the 5th day and the second peak of active caspase-3 content was observed on the 21st day. These changes reflected the activation of apoptosis in key trigger periods of AILI during the development of exudative hemorrhagic pneumonia and subsequent fibrotic remodeling of the lungs.
Studies of the molecular basis of eukaryotic transcription. Roger Kornberg the Nobel prize in Chemistry 2006
O. P. Matyshevska*, V. M. Danylova, S. V. Komisarenko
Palladin Institute of Biochemistry, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiyv;
*e-mail: matysh@yahoo.com
Received: 18 October 2022; Revised: 25 October 2022;
Accepted: 04 November 2022; Available on-line: 14 November 2022
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2006 was awarded to an American biochemist and professor of structural biology at Stanford University Roger Kornberg for his fundamental research on the molecular mechanisms of copying genetic information in eukaryotic cells. What are these molecular mechanisms? How is transcription complex formed and what is its structure? R. Kornberg devoted tirelessly 20 years of his work to answer these questions. The article is focused on his research and also describes Roger Kornberg’s life and scientific career.