To study early reorganization of the cytoskeleton in response to physical forces, human gingival and periodontal ligament fibroblasts were cultured on flexible plastic substrata and stretched by mechanical deformation of the substratum. F-actin was measured by quantitative spectrofluorimetry of FITC-phalloidin-stained cells. Fluorescence due to FITC-phalloidin was reduced stoichiometrically by ...

In order to investigate further the determinants of protein stability, four mutants of thioredoxin from Bacillus acidocaldarius were designed: K18G, R82E, K18G/R82E, and D102X, in which the last four amino acids were deleted. The mutants were constructed on the basis of molecular dynamic studies and the prediction of the structure of thioredoxin from B. acidocaldarius, performed by a comparativ...

The research question addressed in the current study was: do formoterol (1 and 10 nM) and montelukast (2 μM) possess interactive inhibitory effects on activated human neutrophils, particularly in relation to alterations in cyclic AMP and cytosolic Ca²(+) fluxes? Isolated human blood neutrophils were activated with the chemoattractant N-formyl-L-methionyl-L-leucyl-L-phenylalanine (fMLP) (1 μM) i...

Among various phospholipid-mediated drug delivery systems (DDS) suitable for topic and oral administration, phytosome technology represents an advanced innovation, widely used to incorporate standardized bioactive polyphenolic phytoconstituents into phospholipid molecular complexes. In order to extend their potential therapeutic efficiency also to other routes of administration, we proposed a n...

Catecholamine (CAT) release from adrenomedullary chromaffin cells (AMC) in response to stressors such as low O(2) (hypoxia) and elevated CO(2)/H(+) is critical during adaptation of the newborn to extrauterine life. Using a surrogate model based on a v-myc immortalized adrenal chromaffin cell line (i.e., MAH cells), combined with genetic perturbation of mitochondrial function, we tested the hypo...

Folium and orchil are dyes of vegetal origin. Folium is obtained from Chrozophora tinctoria (L.) A. Juss., whereas orchil is obtained from Roccella and other genera of lichens. These dyes were used in the past to impart purple hue to paintings and textiles as substitutes for the more prised Tyrian purple dye, obtained from shellfish. Despite several citations in ancient technical treatises dati...

Sodium-dependent Cl(-)/HCO3 (-) exchanger acts as a chloride (Cl(-)) efflux in lymphocytes. Its functional characterization had been described when Cl(-) efflux was measured upon substituting extracellular sodium (Na(+)) by N-methyl-D-glucamine (NMDG). For Na(+) and Cl(-) substitution, we have used D-mannitol or NMDG. Thymocytes of male Wistar rats aged 7-9 weeks were used and intracellular Cl(...

Objective(s):Cefixime (Cfx), is a semi-synthetic third-generation oral cephalosporin antibiotic that is prescribed for the treatment of susceptible infections. There are some procedures for the determination of Cfx in pharmaceutical formulations and biological samples. Herein a spectrofluorimetric method was proposed for Cfx determination based on the fluorescence quenching of terbium-danofloxa...

One of the main routes to ensure that biomolecules or bioactive agents remain active as they are incorporated into products with applications in different industries is by their encapsulation. Liposomes attractive platforms for encapsulation due ease synthesis and manipulation potential fuse cell membranes when intended drug delivery applications. We propose encapsulating our recently developed...

Spirulina is a microalga cultivated in many countries. It source of valuable protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, antioxidants and elements. We have not found studies that address the effect supplement form or cultivation method on mineral content spirulina supplements. The aim this study was to determine whether (tablet powder) (organic conventional) bearing nutrients content. Such ...