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Abstract: In many recent publications the importance of various constituents of berries, anthocyanins and polyphenols, is shown in vitro and in vivo to be beneficial in protecting cells from different forms of cancer. As red raspberries are very rich in the in content of ellagic acid, the goal of this work was to study the cancer suppressive action of water raspberry extracts obtained by extracting water soluble constituents from pulp and from seeds, of five different raspberry cultivars: K81-6, Latham, Meeker, Tulameen and Willamette. The further aim was to compare their antiproliferative action to malignant human colon carcinoma LS174 cells and to normal immune competent cells, with the action of ellagic acid alone. Results from this study show that water extracts of raspberries seeds or pulp possess the potential for antiproliferative action against human colon carcinoma cells in vitro. The antiproliferative action of seeds extract was correlated with its content of ellagic acid. The cytotoxic activity of seeds extracts was not pronounced on normal human PBMC. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objectives Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients show low serum levels of the Ag dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV/CD26), both soluble CD26 (sCD26) concentration and its DPP-IV activity. The aim of this study was to test if anti-DPP-IV/CD26 Abs (Anti-CD26) cleared sCD26. Design & methods Serum Anti-CD26 and Total titers (as comparison) of isotypes IgA, IgM and IgG as well as sCD26 concentration and DPP-IV activity were measured in a cohort of RA patients undergoing different biological and non-biological therapies (n = 105) and controls (n = 50). Results Anti-CD26 levels were increased approximately two-fold for each isotype in RA, were not related to the sCD26 clearance, showed several correlations with disease activity parameters, were significantly higher in smokers and they were not ACPA. Anti-CD26 Igs showed high diagnostic power (82% sensitivity and 96% specificity) and their levels differed amongst the different groups of patients stratified by the type of therapy. Conclusions As DPP-IV/CD26 is associated to factors triggering RA in the lung and periodontal tissue, these results suggest that Anti-CD26 isotypes may participate in pathogenesis and may be useful as biomarkers for earlier diagnosis and/or precision medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The level of humoral immunoreactivity to total cows’ milk proteins (TCMP) in sera of patients suffering from recurrent oral ulcerations, gastrointestinal diseases or haematological malignancies was investigated. TCMP were also hydrolysed with two different species of lactobacilli and dramatic changes in the levels of specific IgG and IgE were found with statistically significant decreases in the levels of specific antibodies in sera from all patient groups. The levels below cut-off values of IgG specific for TCMP hydrolysates were detected in sera from all patients, while values of IgE for hydrolysates obtained with Lactobacillus helveticus BGRA43 and Lactobacillus zeae LMG17315were below cut-off in 85% and 97% of patients, respectively. Competitive ELISA confirmed the specificity of antibodies for immunogenic TCMP epitopes, demonstrating that lactobacilli hydrolyse TCMP by degrading immunogenic epitopes, and could therefore be used in processing of milk proteins to obtain products suitable for patients with altered immune response on TCMP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Total phenolics, total anthocyanins, mineral content, radical scavenging activity and antiproliferative activity against human cancer cell lines were evaluated in fresh pressed juices of five different berries. Total phenolic content ranged from 133.0 to 260.3mg of gallic acid equivalents/100g of fresh weight, for red currant and black currant, respectively. Bilberry juice contained the highest amount of total anthocyanins (0.18%). Significant correlation between total phenolics content and radical scavenging activity was observed (r =−0.980; p <0.01). All examined juices showed antiproliferative activity in dose-dependent manner with IC50 ranging from 10.2 to 70.5μl/ml. Black currant juice was the most effective inhibitor of proliferation in all cell lines tested (HeLa, Fem X, LS 174, MCF-7 and PC-3). Significant correlations of acidity and total anthocyanin content with antiproliferative activity of berry juices on HeLa cells, Fem X cells and MCF-7 cells were noticed. Berry juices are good sources of some minerals and contribute significantly to daily intake of these micronutrients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: 2-Acetyl pyridine thiosemicarbazone containing an 1-(4-fluorophenyl)-piperazinyl ring incorporated at N(4)-position, HAcPipPheF (1) and the zinc(II) complexes [Zn(AcPipPheF)2] (2) and [Zn(OAc)(AcPipPheF)]2 (3) have been prepared and structurally characterized by means of vibrational and NMR (1H and 13C) spectroscopy. The crystal structures of the compounds 1–3 have been determined by X-ray crystallography. The metal coordination geometry of [Zn(AcPipPheF)2] is described as distorted octahedral configuration in a trans-N–cis-N–cis-S configuration. In [Zn(OAc)(AcPipPheF)]2 one of the acetato group exhibits monoatomic bridge and the other bridges in a bidentate manner. The zinc(1) metal ion is coordinated in a distorted octahedral configuration while the metal coordination of Zn(2) is described as distorted square pyramidal. Biomedical studies revealed that, compounds 1–3 displayed potent anticancer activity. The antiproliferative activity of 1–3 was found to be considerably stronger than that of cis-platin. The IC50 values range from 26 to 90nM, against all cell lines tested, while for cis-platin the IC50 values range from 2 to 17μM and for the zinc salt, ZnCl2, the IC50 values range from 81 to 93μM. The complex 3 shows the highest activity against all four cancer cell lines and the highest selectivity against K562 and MDA-MB-453 cancer cell lines. The compounds inhibited tumor cell proliferation by arresting the cell cycle progression at the S phase. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A simple approach to a stable steroidal estrone derived A,B-spiro system is reported. Treatment of estrone derived A-ring diepoxyalcohol with the Ac2O–TMSOTf system at the ambient temperature led to acetylation, while at the reflux temperature the acid-catalysed rearrangement took place affording the spiro-compound. Results of extensive in vitro and in vivo anticancer tests on the diepoxide, as well as preliminary data on the antiproliferative activity of the spiro-product against three cancer cell lines, are also presented. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A lectin from the Adriatic sponge Haliclona cratera was purified by ion-exchange and gel chromatography. The molecular mass of the lectin is approximately 29 kDa. Purified lectin is rich in hydrophobic and basic amino acids and has an isoelectric point at pH 8.6. H. cratera lectin is relatively heat- and pH-stable. It agglutinates native and trypsinized, papainized and neuraminidase-treated human A, B, O, AB and sheep erythrocytes, and the hemagglutinating activity is independent of Ca2+, Mn2+ and Mg2+ ions; d-galactose and N-acetyl-d-galactosamine are found to be moderate inhibitors of the activity. H. cratera lectin displays cytotoxic effect on HeLa and FemX cells and weak mitogenic effect on human T-lymphocytes pretreated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]