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Electrochemical biosensors have revolutionized the detection of biomarkers related to depression and the quantification of antidepressant drugs. These biosensors leverage nanomaterials and advanced assay designs to achieve high sensitivity and selectivity for clinically relevant analytes. Key neurotransmitters implicated in depression, such as serotonin, dopamine, and glutamate, can be accurately measured via biosensors, providing insights into the effects of antidepressant treatments on neurotransmission. Biosensors can also detect biomarkers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and neuronal health that are altered in depression. Real-time biosensing techniques such as fast-scan cyclic voltammetry enable monitoring of dynamic neurotransmitter changes during depressive episodes and pharmacological interventions. Advancements incorporating graphene, gold nanoparticles, and other nanomaterials have enhanced biosensor performance, enabling the detection of low biomarker concentrations. Closed-loop biosensing systems hold promise for precision medicine by automating antidepressant dosage adjustments on the basis of neurotransmitter levels. A wide range of depression biomarkers, including apolipoprotein A4, heat shock protein 70, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, microRNAs, proteins, and combinatorial biomarker panels, have been detected via sophisticated biosensor platforms. Emerging biosensors show selectivity for antidepressant drugs such as serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in biological samples. This review emphasizes the transformative potential of electrochemical biosensors in combating depression. By facilitating earlier and more accurate diagnoses, these biosensors can revolutionize patient care and enhance treatment outcomes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Therapeutic monitoring of drugs, particularly those with multiple metabolites, can be time-consuming and labor-intensive due to the need for different analytical methods depending on the specific metabolite or matrix of interest. In this study, we employed a heart-cutting 2D-LC separation method based on the coupling of reversed-phase and mixed-mode mechanisms to determine Favipiravir and surrogates of five main metabolites. This approach was applied to serum, plasma, urine, and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The method underwent validation to ensure its reliability. The findings highlight the potential of 2D-LC as a practical and efficient approach for therapeutic drug monitoring., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Although phage therapy has been in existence for a century, a recent resurgence in interest has occurred because of the continued emergence of antimicrobial resistance and the rising use of indwelling medical devices, resulting in biofilm-associated infections, for which conventional antibiotics are of limited use. Despite this, the clinical successes have been inconsistent because of multiple reasons, including (1) the narrow host range of phages, (2) challenges with concentrating phages at the site of infection, (3) development of resistance of bacteria to phages and (4) immune neutralization. Microbiologic assays have the potential to help guide the course of clinical therapy and improve outcomes. Methods developed decades ago remain the mainstay of phage diagnostics and recently, newer diagnostics are closing the gap needed to further advance clinical phage therapy., Objectives: To review the current state of clinical phage microbiology and identify gaps., Sources: A PubMed search was performed using the terms "phage microbiology", "phage susceptibility test", "phage host range", "phage biofilm", and "phage therapeutic monitoring"., Content: Phage susceptibility testing, biofilm assays, phage-antibiotic combination testing, therapeutic drug monitoring, and immune monitoring assays are the current foundation for clinical phage diagnostics. Standardization of these assays and better understanding as to if and how they should be used in terms of clinical management of patients receiving phage therapy is needed., Implications: A substantial gap between in vitro studies and in vivo outcomes indicates that further work is needed in phage pharmacokinetics to accurately assay phage particles at the site of infection; recapitulate in vivo biofilm; capture the complex interactions between phages and antibiotics, phages and their target bacteria, among phages in a cocktail, and with the superhost immune system., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The CD86 occupancy assay has been developed to measure the number of CD86 molecules unbound to belatacept, but its association with clinical outcomes has not been assessed yet. All kidney transplant patients switched to belatacept in our center between 2016 and 2018 were included. Blood samples were collected before each infusion for 1 year to assess CD86 occupancy by CD86 antibody cytometry staining on the surface of CD14 + monocytes. Results were expressed as the median fluorescence intensity (MFI) value of CD86 staining. At each infusion, the MFI Day of infusion /MFI Day 0 ratio was calculated. Forty-one patients were consecutively included. After every 2-week infusion period, CD86 MFI ratio dropped from 1.00 to 0.73 [0.57-0.98], p = .07. However, this ratio progressively increased to 0.78 [0.53-1.13] at 1 year, which was not statistically different from pre-switch ratio, p = .4. Over the first year, the MFI ratio coefficient of variation was 31.58% [23.75-38.31]. MFI ratio was not different between patients with or without opportunistic infections: 0.73 [0.60-0.88] versus 0.80 [0.71-1.00], p = .2, or between patients with or without EBV DNAemia, p = .2. Despite previous in vitro results, the CD86 occupancy assay suffers from a high intra-individual variability and does not appear to be relevant to clinical outcomes., (© 2022 The American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.)

Phosphodiesterase inhibitors (PDE5i) are considered the first line therapy for erectile dysfunction. All PDE5i available on the market are structurally related; their main differences relate to their pharmacokinetic parameters. For these treatments to be effective and safe, it is necessary that these drugs are in the appropriate doses and that they reach adequate concentrations in the plasma. For this purpose, it is essential to perform therapeutic monitoring using bioanalytical methods. In this way, the present work aimed to develop and validate a new bioanalytical method, based on LC-MS/MS, for the simultaneous quantification of six commercially available PDE5i (avanafil, lodenafil, sildenafil, tadalafil, udenafil, and vardenafil). For this purpose, the human plasma was extracted with diethyl ether and sulfaquinoxaline was established as an internal standard. Separation was achieved using an Xbridge C18 column at 40 °C as the stationary phase, using water and acetonitrile as the mobile phase (both with formic acid and ammonium formate) in gradient mode. The method was validated according to the current guidelines and was found to be selective, linear (from 1 to 200 ng.mL -1 for all drugs except for tadalafil which is from 5 to 200 ng.mL -1 ), precise, accurate, and free of residual and matrix effects. The drugs were considered stable in plasma and in solution under different conditions. The method was applied to volunteerssamples, demonstrating that the method can be used routinely and may be useful in future studies on pharmacokinetics and therapeutic monitoring., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs) are characterized by the accumulation of specific disease substrates inside the lysosomes of various cells, eventually leading to the deterioration of cellular function and multisystem organ damage. With the continuous discovery and validation of novel and advanced therapies for most LSDs, there is an urgent need to discover more versatile and clinically relevant biomarkers. The utility of these biomarkers should ideally extend beyond the screening and diagnosis of LSDs to the evaluation of disease severity and monitoring of therapy. Metabolomic and proteomic approaches provide the means to the discovery and validation of such novel biomarkers. This is achieved mainly through the application of various mass spectrometric techniques to common and easily accessible biological samples, such as plasma, urine and dried blood spots. In this review, we tried to summarize the complexity of the lysosomal disorders phenotypes, their current diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, the various techniques supporting metabolomic and proteomic studies and finally we tried to explore the newly discovered biomarkers for most LSDs and their reported clinical values., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Crohn's disease (CD) is principally characterized by chronic and recurrent inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, most commonly found in the ileo-colonic region. The chronicity and severity of intestinal inflammation together contribute to progressive, cumulative, deep, transmural intestinal damage, including stricturing, obstruction, abscesses, and fistulae. Both intestinal inflammation and its chronic complications result in a range of symptoms subsequently leading to patient presentations with diarrhea, abdominal pain, and anemia related to intestinal blood loss. Measuring disease activity and severity are essential for decision of treatment intensity early in the disease course and longitudinal monitoring of therapeutic efficacy. This review will summarize the transition from subjective symptoms driving disease activity indices, into increasingly objective and quantitative measures of intestinal injury by direct mucosal assessment (endoscopy), cross-sectional imaging, and surrogate biomarkers. Specific commentary on intestinal stricture and perianal fistula assessment and management are presented in accompanying sections of this series., Competing Interests: CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENTS RWS: Has served as consultant for Abbvie, has received grant support from Abbvie, UCB, Pfizer. RKC: Has served as a consultant for Abbvie, has participated in advisory boards for Abbvie, has received grant support from Abbvie, Janssen, Shire, and Takeda, and has received payment for disease-state awareness lectures for Abbvie and UCB.

Purpose: Levetiracetam (LEV) therapeutic range (20-40mg/L) and potential drug interactions were assessed in people with epilepsy (PWE)., Method: Fifty-two PWE had LEV and concomitant medications [carbamazepine (CBZ); valproate (VPA); lamotrigine (LTG)] blood levels measured and compared to seizure activity. Lacosamide (LCM) levels were unavailable. Adopted therapeutic ranges were: 20-40mg/L - LEV; 25-50μmol/L - total CBZ; 6-13μmol/L - free CBZ; 300-750μmol/L - total VPA; 30-75μmol/L - free VPA; and 40-60μmol/L - LTG. Seizure-freedom was assessed and patients followed for almost two years., Results: 23 of 52 PWE (44%) used LEV monotherapy and 16/23 (70%) had 'therapeutic' LEV with 13/16 (81%) seizure-free. 29 of 52 (56%) used polytherapy and 16/29 (55%) had 'therapeutic' LEV with 7/16 (44%) seizure-free. 11 of 29 (38%) used CBZ: 4/11 (36%) had therapeutic mean LEV levels and 7/11 (64%) were seizure-free. Fourteen (48%) used VPA: 9/14 (64%) had therapeutic mean LEV levels and 8/14 (57%) were seizure-free. 13 of 29 (45%) used LTG: 8/13 (62%) had therapeutic mean LEV levels and 5/13 (38%) were seizure-free. LEV did not alter CBZ, but CBZ affected LEV. LEV elevated VPA free levels but not VPA total levels. Dosage/concentration was lowered with polytherapy., Conclusion: LEV range (20-40mg/L) assisted epilepsy management and anti-epileptic medication interactions were suggested with polytherapy thus possibly explaining the impaired efficacy of LEV with polytherapy., (Copyright © 2014 British Epilepsy Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)