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The disparity in the free radical generation and the production of antioxidants to counteract its effect is known as oxidative stress. Oxidative stress causes damage to the macromolecules such as lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, and DNA and RNA. The oxidative damage to the cellular components leads to a process of aging and various age-associated disorders. The literature survey for this review was done using PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct. The papers showing the studies related to aging and age-associated disorders have been selected for reviewing this paper. Ellagic acid has been used as the keyword, and more emphasis has been put on papers from the last 10 years. However, some papers with significant studies prior to 10 years have also been considered. Almost 250 papers have been studied for reviewing this paper, and about 135 papers have been cited. Ellagic acid (EA) is present in high quantities in pomegranate and various types of berries. It is known to possess the antioxidant potential and protects from the harmful effects of free radicals. Various studies have shown its effect to protect cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, cancer, and diabetes. The present review focuses on the protective effect of ellagic acid in age-associated disorders. The effect of EA has been studied in various chronic disorders but the scope of this review is limited to cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders. All the disease aspects have not been addressed in this particular review.

Background Endometriosis is defined as a condition in which a formation of abnormal endometrial tissue outside the uterus takes place. Irrespective of any ethnic and socioeconomic class, the prevalence of the diseases has been seen among women of reproductive age. Endometriosis has been seen adversely affect the physical, psychological, social, and career of women. Summary This paper aims to identify and describe the experiences and outcomes of endometriosis healthcare by reviewing the existing literature on social and psychological effects of endometriosis. The study serves the purpose of providing insights on women’s dual suffering (mental and social health) and critical comments on the present state of knowledge in order to make future recommendations for psycho-social research. The review included systematic search of the articles from various disciplines like, biology, psychology, sociology, anthropology, etc. A structured process of screening with specific inclusion and exclusion criteria was used to select the articles. The analysis of the articles resulted that woman diagnosed with endometriosis reported poor quality of life and the following symptoms such as anxiety, stress, Chronic Pelvic Pain (CPP), anxiety, dyspareunia, and dysmenorrhea. However, depression appears prominent among women diagnosed with endometriosis. There are few strategies mentioned that can be used to deal with endometriosis. Key Message The most promising causes of endometriosis include abnormality in immune functioning, atypical endometriotic growth, genetics, epigenetic, embryogenetic theory, and endocrine disruptors. The ill effects have been noted in the following domains of women’s life such as work, close relationships, social well-being, and education, deteriorating their quality-of-life manifold. Psychological intervention is required to deal with the disorder as only medical treatment with pain may not be sufficient. Though, the condition can be improved by providing awareness regarding the severity of the disorder at the school and community levels.

Bundelkhand region is rich in biodiversity for wood apple but less harnessed. The agro-climatic conditions of Bundelkhand have great potential for its commercial cultivation. Keeping these points in view, twenty-five genotypes of wood apple, fruit sample with shoot were collected from diverse areas of Bundelkhand region of utter Pradesh and analysed for various physic-chemical attributes and results of study revealed wide range of variability in morphological quantitative qualitative and biochemical etc. The quantitative variability of different genotypes in wood apple viz for fruit length (4.22 cm to 7.46 cm), fruit width (3.06 cm to 6.41 cm), shell thickness (0.10 cm to 0.31 cm), fruit weight (65.9 g to 238.7 g), leaf length (2 cm to 4.3 cm), leaf width (.97 cm to 2.3 cm), seed length (4.7 mm to 8.0 mm), seed width (2.97 mm to 4.77 mm), seed weight (23.76 g to 30.4 g), and No. of seed per fruit (102 to 614). The bio-chemical parameters also showed wide range of variation i.e. TSS (10.87 0Brix to18.09 0Brix), acidity (2.3% to 6.25%), total sugar (1.55% to 2.38%), reducing sugar (0.86% to 1.28%), non-reducing sugar (0.69% to 1.25%), ascorbic acid (12.63 mg/100g to 35.56 mg/100g). Therefore, on the basis of morphological quantitative and bio-chemical quality attributes, genotypes FS/WA-3, FS/WA-4, FS/WA-5, FS/WA-6, FS/WA-8, FS/WA-10 and FS/WA-25 were screened as promising genotypes. These promising genotypes can be recommended for commercial multiplication, growing at farmer’s field and conservation in the field gene bank for further evaluation and crop improvement.

Polyphenols are the known group of phytochemicals that essentially consists of phenolic rings. These are the plant product present in varied fruits and vegetables. These secondary metabolites perform a protective function in plants from environmental and biological stress. When consumed as a human diet these are also known to prevent various age-associated diseases. Polyphenols are known to possess antioxidant properties and protect against oxidative stress. The literature survey was carried out using databases such as PubMed, Science direct and Springer. The research articles from last 10–12 years were selected for this review based on its relevancy with the topic. The articles selected was mainly focused on quercetin and its health benefits. The present review highlights the main functions of a flavonoid, quercetin. Quercetin is among the widely occurring polyphenol, found abundantly in nature. It is commonly present in different plant products. Onion is known to have the highest quantity of quercetin. This plant compound is possessed antioxidant properties and is considered to have a protective function against aging. It is known to be present in both free and conjugated forms. Quercetin has anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, anti-carcinogenic, anti-diabetic, and anti-viral properties. The molecule is lipophilic and can easily cross the BBB (Blood-Brain Barrier) and hence protects from neurodegenerative diseases. Various in vivo and in vitro studies have demonstrated the role of quercetin and here a detailed review of quercetin as a curative agent in neurodegeneration, diabetes, cancer, and inflammation has been carried out. Studies have proved that quercetin plays a crucial role in the prevention of age-related disorders. Quercetin is a potent antioxidant which is currently being used in various pharmaceuticals. Properties of quercetin can be further explored in various other disorders. Nanoformulations and liposomal formulations of quercetin can be made to treat other age associated diseases.

The interaction of nanoparticles with the biological system has increased with the increasing popularity of nanomedicines. Red blood cells (RBCs) are very sensitive, and abundant cells in the blood. They are highly prone to oxidative damage due to constant interaction with oxygen itself, foreign particles in the blood, and the lack of repair mechanism. The cell membrane of RBCs undergoes lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation, and heme degradation which results in altered membrane permeability, changes in the morphology, and functioning of RBCs. The nanoparticles induce oxidative stress, hemolysis, morphological changes, membrane deformability, and alterations in hemoglobin structure in RBCs. In this review, the effects of metallic nanoparticles and their modifications on the physiology, and life span of RBCs are discussed. The detailed analysis of the antioxidant enzymes-like activity of metal nanoparticles is expected to highlight the beneficial use of these metal nanoparticles in RBCs against oxidative stress and the development of new biosafe nanodrugs.

Metal oxide nanoparticles are known to exhibit unique properties such as catalyzing the neutralization of superoxide anions, hydroxyl radicals, hydrogen peroxides and behave as antioxidant enzymes. Oxidative stress, damage and chronic inflammation are major causes and consequences of aging and age-associated disorders. With the increasing popularity of metal oxide nanoparticles, they have been applied in various age-related pathologies using their antioxidant property. Metal oxide nanoparticles have been used as diagnostic, therapeutic, and as theranostics. This review summarizes the applications of metal oxide nanoparticles in aging and age-associated disorders such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, neurodegenerative disorders. Oxidative stress plays a central role in the activation of inflammatory pathways, disturbing the mitochondrial function, decreasing the telomere length and leading the cell towards senescence or death. Oxidative damage is the common pathway in the progression of aging and related diseases. Metal oxide nanoparticles scavenge or precisely detect the generated reactive oxygen species, hence applied in both diagnostics and therapeutics.

No one questions the existence of presumptive knowledge of invisible organisms causing disease, decay and destruction mentioned before the discovery of the microbial world by Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek, who was the first to describe the invisible world as per literature available today. However, the knowledge about microbial world by Indian Rishis presented in Sanskrit shlokas or suktas of our traditional manuscripts such as Vedas remained unseen, where the Rishis had predicted the role of microorganisms known as Krimi or Jeevanu years before Leeuwenhoek. This note is an attempt to bring an emphasis to revisit our traditional Vedic knowledge and establish them through research based facts for wider acceptance globally.

Lung diseases are the leading cause of mortality worldwide. The currently available therapies are not sufficient, leading to the urgent need for new therapies with sustained anti-inflammatory effects. Small/short or silencing interfering RNA (siRNA) has potential therapeutic implications through post-transcriptional downregulation of the target gene expression. siRNA is essential in gene regulation, so is more favorable over other gene therapies due to its small size, high specificity, potency, and no or low immune response. In chronic respiratory diseases, local and targeted delivery of siRNA is achieved via inhalation. The effectual delivery can be attained by the generation of aerosols via inhalers and nebulizers, which overcomes anatomical barriers, alveolar macrophage clearance and mucociliary clearance. In this review, we discuss the different siRNA nanocarrier systems for chronic respiratory diseases, for safe and effective delivery. siRNA mediated pro-inflammatory gene or miRNA targeting approach can be a useful approach in combating chronic respiratory inflammatory conditions and thus providing sustained drug delivery, reduced therapeutic dose, and improved patient compliance. This review will be of high relevance to the formulation, biological and translational scientists working in the area of respiratory diseases.

Oxidative stress is intensely involved in enhancing the severity of various chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), infections and lung cancer. Even though there are various existing anti-inflammatory therapies, which are not enough to control the inflammation caused due to various contributing factors such as anti-inflammatory genes and antioxidant enzymes. This leads to an urgent need of novel drug delivery systems to combat the oxidative stress. This review gives a brief insight into the biological factors involved in causing oxidative stress, one of the emerging hallmark feature in CRDs and particularly, highlighting recent trends in various novel drug delivery carriers including microparticles, microemulsions, microspheres, nanoparticles, liposomes, dendrimers, solid lipid nanocarriers etc which can help in combating the oxidative stress in CRDs and ultimately reducing the disease burden and improving the quality of life with CRDs patients. These carriers improve the pharmacokinetics and bioavailability to the target site. However, there is an urgent need for translational studies to validate the drug delivery carriers for clinical administration in the pulmonary clinic.

We aimed to determine the association between short telomere length, sleep parameters, and sleep disorders in an adult general population sample.As part of the EPISONO cohort (São Paulo, Brazil), 925 individuals answered questionnaires, underwent a full-night polysomnography and clinical assessment, and had peripheral blood collected for DNA extraction. Insomnia was diagnosed based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition; and obstructive sleep apnea was defined according to apnea-hypopnea index. For the objective insomnia phenotype, we combined insomnia diagnosis with total sleep time from polysomnography with a cutoff of 360 minutes, allowing the classification of six groups. Self-reported sleep duration was used to classify the individuals as short (6 hours), average (6 to 8 hours) and long (8 hours) sleepers. The leukocyte telomere length was measured using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Based on its distribution, we considered leukocyte telomere length10th percentile as short telomere and leukocyte telomere length ≥ 10th percentile as non-short telomere.After adjusting for sex, age, and body mass index, only insomnia disorder (odds ratio [OR] = 2.654, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.025-6.873,Our findings support the existence of an association among insomnia, insomnia phenotype, and self-reported long sleep duration with the maintenance of telomere length.A commentary on this article appears in this issue on page 1975.

Gold nanoparticle (AuNP)-based optical assays are of significant interest since the molecular phenomenon can be examined easily with change in the color of AuNPs. Herein, we report the development of a dipstick using a AuNP-labeled single-chain fragment variable (scFv) antibody for the detection of morphine. The scFv antibodies for morphine were developed using phage display-based antibody library. Immunoglobulin variable regions of heavy (VH)- and light (VL)-chain genes were connected via a glycine–serine linker isolated from murine immune repertoire and cloned into the expression vector pIT2. The scFv was produced in Escherichia coli HB2151, yielding a functional protein with a molecular weight of approximately 32 kDa. The morphine scFv was labeled with gold nanoparticles and used as an optical immunoprobe in a dipstick. The competitive dipstick assay characterized the ability of the scFv antibody to recognize free morphine. The detection range was 1–1000 ng mL−1 with a limit of detection (LOD) of 5 ng mL−1 under optimal conditions, and the IC50 value was 14 ng mL−1 for morphine. The developed optical dipstick kit of scFv antibody was capable of specifically binding to free morphine and its analogs in a solution in less than 5 min and could be useful for on-site screening of a real sample in blood, urine, and saliva.

© 2019, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. Blood and the linings of blood vessels may be regarded as a fifth tissue type. The human body contains 5 × 109 red blood cells (RBCs) per ml, a total of 2.5 × 1013 cells in the 5 l of blood present in the body. With an average lifetime of 125 days, human RBCs are destroyed by leukocytes in the spleen and liver. Nowadays red blood cells are extensively used to study various metabolic functions. Nanoparticles (NP) are being widely accepted for drug delivery system. This review summarizes the red blood cells, NPs and their characteristics on the basis of the RBC components along with drug delivery systems through RBCs. Further, we also discussed that how erythrocytes can be used as an efficient in vitro model for evaluating the efficacy of various nanocomposite materials.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have found a wide range of biomedical and environmental monitoring applications (viz. drug delivery, diagnostics, biosensing, bio-imaging, theranostics, and hazardous chemical sensing) due to their excellent optoelectronic and enhanced physico-chemical properties. The modulation of these properties is done by functionalizing them with the synthesized AuNPs with polymers, surfactants, ligands, drugs, proteins, peptides, or oligonucleotides for attaining the target specificity, selectivity and sensitivity for their various applications in diagnostics, prognostics, and therapeutics. This review intends to highlight the contribution of such AuNPs in state-of-the-art ventures of diverse biomedical applications. Therefore, a brief discussion on the synthesis of AuNPs has been summarized prior to comprehensive detailing of their surface modification strategies and the applications. Here in, we have discussed various ways of AuNPs functionalization including thiol, phosphene, amine, polymer and silica mediated passivation strategies. Thereafter, the implications of these passivated AuNPs in sensing, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), bioimaging, drug delivery, and theranostics have been extensively discussed with the a number of illustrations.

Macrophages are considered as the most flexible cells of the hematopoietic system that are distributed in the tissues to act against pathogens and foreign particles. Macrophages are essential in maintaining homeostatic tissue processes, repair and immunity. Also, play important role in cytokine secretion and signal transduction of the infection so as to develop acquired immunity. Accounting to their involvement in pathogenesis, macrophages present a therapeutic target for the treatment of inflammatory respiratory diseases. This review focuses on novel drug delivery systems (NDDS) including nanoparticles, liposomes, dendrimers, microspheres etc that can target alveolar macrophage associated with inflammation, intracellular infection and lung cancer. The physiochemical properties and functional moieties of the NDDS attributes to enhanced macrophage targeting and uptake. The NDDS are promising for sustained drug delivery, reduced therapeutic dose, improved patient compliance and reduce drug toxicity. Further, the review also discuss about modified NDDS for specificity to the target and molecular targeting via anti-microbial peptides, kinases, NRF-2 and phosphodiesterase.

© 2019, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are amongst the most fascinating nanomaterials which have been extensively synthesized by chemical reduction and biological method using enzymes, microorganisms and plant extracts. In our study, an aqueous extract of green tea was used as a stabilizing and reducing agent for AgNPs synthesis. The synthesized AgNPs were characterized by dynamic light scattering, UV–visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. These AgNPs were evaluated for antimicrobial activity and photocatalytic dye degradation. The AgNPs showed antibacterial activity against E. coli, S. aureus and S. pyogenes with 6 mm, 5 mm and 8 mm zone of inhibition, respectively. Our work also focused on methylene blue degradation in aqueous solution using AgNPs as catalyst which shows 65% of dye degradation. An absorbance peak of 427–437 nm was observed using UV–Vis spectrophotometer. Our study proves that the AgNPs show potent antimicrobial activity against pathogenic bacteria. At room temperature, AgNPs possess rapid, effective and steady catalytic activity in cationic organic dye degradation. The high catalytic activity of AgNPs can be employed in industries and water purification. Our study confirmed that green-synthesized AgNPs are eco-friendly and non-toxic.

Nanomaterial has been employed as an alternative to antibiotics, diagnostic tools and delivery of therapeutics. In particular, nanomaterial has grabbed the attention of researchers due to their antimicrobial properties due to the emergence of multi-drug resistance of several micro-organisms. The present chapter highlights the antimicrobial nanomaterials with their mechanism of action along with their broad spectrum applications such as silver nanomaterial is antimicrobial in nature and is effective in drug delivery. Metallic, non-metallic and natural/ biodegradable nanomaterials have been discussed as potential antimicrobial and their mode of action. The mechanism of antimicrobial nanomaterial is poorly understood, but oxidative stress, non-oxidative action, inhibition of cell adhesion, decline in biofilm formation, obstructed quoram sensing and metal ion release are attributed to be as the major reasons. In addition, the limitation and toxicity with the clinical and environmental applications are also described.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma are the most common inflammatory respiratory diseases related to an increase in mortality and morbidity. Generally, bronchodilators, s- agonists, anticholinergics and theophylline used for treatment in these conditions and administered by inhalation for delivery, have localized and systematic effects. The adverse effects are due to pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic changes and especially drug-drug and drug-disease interactions. However, phytotherapy is classical and widespread throughout the world for the treatment of ailments. This chapter highlights cellular and molecular mediators involved in COPD and asthma, the shortcomings of current therapies and the emerging need of phytomedicines. Phytomedicine supports respiratory physiology, bronchial action and possesses antioxidants to maintain homeostasis.

Pulmonary diseases including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma affect millions of people all over the world. Conventional treatment methodologies are not sufficient to cure or prevent the disease. With the advent of nanotechnology, drug delivery to specific target site is still challenging, but targeted delivery can be achieved by physiochemical properties of the nanoparticles. Delivery of nanoparticles, liposomes, dendrimers, and others has been extensively studied for successful delivery by inhalation and aerosols. Several factors such as size, density, surface, and physical-chemical properties of nanoparticle are essential to cross airway barriers. In this chapter, different nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery systems have been highlighted along with their applications and toxicity in COPD and asthma.

Homeostasis is a key characteristic of cellular lifespan. Its maintenance influences the rate of aging and age related disorders. Only certain flavonoids have been shown to alter homeostasis of red blood cells in the course of aging. It has been demonstrated that myricetin possesses both antioxidant and pro-oxidant properties. The objective of this study was the determination of the membrane bound oxidative stress biomarkers (Na+, K+-ATPase, Ca2+-ATPase, and Na+, H+ exchanger) activity in myricetin treated red blood cells during human aging. The study was carried out on clinically relevant blood samples obtained from 92 healthy subjects between the ages of 20–79 years. The subjects were divided into three age groups, young (18–35 years), middle (36–60 years) and old (>60 years). The effects of myricetin were evaluated by detecting Na+, K+-ATPase, Ca2+-ATPase, and Na+, H+ exchanger activities by co-incubating the red blood cells in the presence of myricetin (10−8 M to 10−3 M final concentration). The results showed significant (p < 0.001) age dependent decline in the activities of Na+, K+-ATPase, and Ca2+-ATPase and elevation in the activity of Na+, H+ exchanger as compared to the respective young controls. In vitro administration of myricetin significantly attenuated the deleterious effect of oxidative stress in red blood cells from all three age groups. We believe that these findings are novel and they will help in further research against oxidative stress in red blood cells, thereby this study has remarkable scope in medical science.

Quercetin and myricetin are important dietary flavonoids with potential health benefits and interfere with reactive oxygen species metabolism. The objective of this study was multi-target spectroscopic analysis of oxidative stress biomarkers (malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH) and sulfhydryl (–SH) groups) in quercetin and myricetin treated red blood cells (RBCs) during human aging. The study was carried out on clinically relevant blood samples obtained from 105 healthy subjects between the ages of 18–82 years. The subjects were divided into three age groups, young (18–35 years), middle (36–60 years) and old (>60 years). Oxidative stress was induced in vitro by incubating RBCs with 10−5 M tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP). The effects of flavonoids were evaluated by detecting MDA, GSH and –SH groups by co-incubating the RBCs in the presence of flavonoid (10−8 M to 10−5 M final concentration) and t-BHP. The GSH/GSSG ratios were estimated to demonstrate the antioxidant power of the RBCs. The results showed elevated MDA levels (p < 0.001) after incubation with t-BHP as compared to a control. The GSH and –SH groups significantly (p < 0.001) decreased when incubated with t-BHP. In vitro administration of both flavonoids significantly attenuated the deleterious effect of oxidative stress in erythrocytes from all age groups. We showed a significant (p < 0.0001) negative correlation (r = −0.8334) between GSH/GSSG during human aging. We believe that these findings are novel and will help in the fast screening of new chemical molecules which may help against oxidative stress in RBCs, and thereby have tremendous scope in medical diagnostics and therapeutics.

Metallic nanoparticles (MNPs) have seen myriad applications in various fields of science and technology. Green chemistry based NP synthesis offers several advantages over conventional approaches. In addition to being inexpensive, the biological approach is a facile, rapid, and environmentally benign method to synthesize NPs. Characterization of NPs is generally based on their dimension, surface area, and dispersity and the most common techniques used for the purpose are UV-Vis, DLS, AFM, SEM, FTIR, XRD, TEM, Raman spectroscopy, etc. These techniques are considered very useful as they provide valuable information which helps these materials to be used for diverse biological and environmental applications. Until now, numerous plant sources have been utilized to generate copious MNPs, such as silver, gold, copper, titanium, platinum, palladium, zinc, and iron NP. Among these MNPs, the noble ones have attracted significant researchers' attention because they are non-corrosive and resistant to oxidation in moist air. They have been useful in providing remedies with less or no adverse effects for several acute diseases like cancer, malaria, HIV, and hepatitis. Herein, we present a systematic review, focusing on phytofabricated MNPs and their wide range of applications, such as sensors, diagnostics and therapeutics, antimicrobial agents, anti-inflammatory agents, cancer treatment, etc.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease accounts as the leading cause of mortality worldwide prominently affected by genetic and environmental factors. The disease is characterized by persistent coughing, breathlessness airways inflammation followed by a decrease in forced expiratory volume1 and exacerbations, which affect the quality of life. Determination of genetic, epigenetic, and oxidant biomarkers to evaluate the progression of disease has proved complicated and challenging. Approaches including exome sequencing, genome-wide association studies, linkage studies, and inheritance and segregation studies played a crucial role in the identification of genes, their pathways and variation in genes. This review highlights multiple approaches for biomarker and gene identification, which can be used for differential diagnosis along with the genome editing tools to study genes associated with the development of disease and models their function. Further, we have discussed the approaches to rectify the abnormal gene functioning of respiratory tissues and various novel gene editing techniques like Zinc finger nucleases (ZFN), transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALEN), and clustered regulatory interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9).

The present study was carried out to detect intracellular quercetin uptake by RBCs during human aging. The study was carried out on 95 normal healthy subjects of both the sexes. Intracellular quercetin uptake was estimated by performing ethyl acetate extraction. A significant (p

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are amongst the most fascinating nanomaterials which have been extensively synthesized by chemical reduction and biological method using enzymes, microorganisms and plant extracts. In our study, an aqueous extract of green tea was used as a stabilizing and reducing agent for AgNPs synthesis. The synthesized AgNPs were characterized by dynamic light scattering, UV–visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. These AgNPs were evaluated for antimicrobial activity and photocatalytic dye degradation. The AgNPs showed antibacterial activity against E. coli, S. aureus and S. pyogenes with 6 mm, 5 mm and 8 mm zone of inhibition, respectively. Our work also focused on methylene blue degradation in aqueous solution using AgNPs as catalyst which shows 65% of dye degradation. An absorbance peak of 427–437 nm was observed using UV–Vis spectrophotometer. Our study proves that the AgNPs show potent antimicrobial activity against pathogenic bacteria. At room temperature, AgNPs possess rapid, effective and steady catalytic activity in cationic organic dye degradation. The high catalytic activity of AgNPs can be employed in industries and water purification. Our study confirmed that green-synthesized AgNPs are eco-friendly and non-toxic.

Introduction Many cell migration-related molecules are associated with endometriosis. Tensin 1 (TNS1), which has been implicated in cell migration, may play a role in endometriosis. The study goal was to evaluate the TNS1 expression in endometrial tissue and serum from women with endometriosis treated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist (GnRHa). Material and methods Tissue and serum samples were collected from women with endometriosis who were treated (n = 29) with GnRHa or untreated (n = 30). TNS1 mRNA was examined using quantitative PCR. TNS1 protein levels in tissue and serum samples were investigated using Western blot, immunohistochemistry and ELISA. Eleven women with endometriosis participated in a follow-up investigation of serum TNS1 before and after GnRHa treatment. Results TNS1 mRNA (P = 0.006) and protein (P = 0.001) were significantly downregulated in endometriotic tissue from women with endometriosis who received GnRHa. Immunolocalization of TNS1 showed strong expression in the epithelial and stromal cells of endometriotic tissue from women untreated with GnRHa, whereas endometriotic tissue from GnRHa-treated women showed low TNS1 expression. Follow-up monitoring of serum TNS1 concentration in 11 women showed an average decrease in concentration of 53%, from 294.9 ± 66.69 to 140.3 ± 55.21 pg/mL, following GnRHa treatment (P = 0.003). Conclusions GnRHa induces downregulation of TNS1 in tissue and serum in women with endometriosis. These results emphasize the importance TNS1 as a potential therapeutic molecular target for the treatment of endometriosis with GnRHa.

Objectives The study aims to generate an immunological age (IA) trait on the basis of immune cell differentiation parameters, and to test whether the IA is related to age and disease characteristics. Methods Forty-four euthymic type I bipolar disorder patients were included in this study. Five immunosenescence-related parameters were assessed: proportions of late-differentiated cells (e.g., CD3+CD8+CD28-CD27- and CD3-CD19+IgD-CD27-), and the expression of CD69, CD71, and CD152 after stimulation. Confirmatory factor analysis was applied to generate an IA trait underling the 5 measures. Results The best-fit model was constituted by 4 parameters that were each related to an underlying IA trait, with 1 cell population positively correlated (CD3+CD8+CD28-CD27- [λ = 0.544, where λ represents the loading of the parameter onto the IA trait] and 3 markers negatively correlated (CD69 [λ = -0.488], CD71 [λ = -0.833], and CD152 [λ = -0.674]). The IA trait was associated with chronological age (β = 0.360, p = .013) and the number of previous mood episodes (β = 0.426, p = .006). In a mediation model, 84% of the effect between manic episodes, and IA was mediated by body mass index. Conclusion In bipolar disorder type I, premature aging of the immune system could be reliably measured using an index that validated against chronological age, which was related to adverse metabolic effects of the disease course.

Among various problems faced by mankind, health-related concerns are prevailing since long which are commonly found in the form of infectious diseases and different metabolic disorders. The clinical cure and management of such abnormalities are greatly dependent on the availability of their diagnoses. The conventional diagnostics used for such purposes are extremely powerful; however, most of these are limited by time-consuming protocols and require higher volume of test sample, etc. A new evolving technology called "biosensor" in this context shows an enormous potential for an alternative diagnostic device, which constantly compliments the conventional diagnoses. In this review, we have summarized different kinds of biosensors and their fundamental understanding with various state-of-the-art examples. A critical examination of different types of biosensing mechanisms is also reported highlighting the advantages of electrochemical biosensors for its great potentials in next-generation commercially viable modules. In recent years, a number of nanomaterials are extensively used to enhance not only the performance of biosensing mechanism, but also obtain robust, cheap, and fabrication-friendly durable mechanism. Herein, we have summarized the importance of nanomaterials in biosensing mechanism, their syntheses as well as characterization techniques. Subsequently, we have discussed the probe fabrication processes along with various techniques for assessing its analytical performances and potentials for commercial viability.

The term "antioxidant" is one of the most confusing definitions in biological/medical sciences. In chemistry, "antioxidant" is simply conceived "a compound that removes reactive species, mainly those oxygen-derived", while in a cell context, the conceptual definition of an antioxidant is poorly understood. Indeed, non-clinically recommended antioxidants are often consumed in large amounts by the global population, based on the belief that cancer, inflammation and degenerative diseases are triggered by high oxygen levels (or reactive oxygen species) and that through blocking reactive species production, organic unbalances/disorders can be prevented and/or even treated. The popularity of these chemicals arises in part from the widespread public mistrust of allopathic medicine. In fact, reactive oxygen species play a dual role in dealing with different disorders, since they may contribute to disease onset and/or progression but may also play a key role in disease prevention. Further, the ability of the most commonly used supplements, such as vitamins C, E, selenium, and herbal supplements to decrease pathologic reactive oxygen species is not clearly established. Hence, the present review aims to provide a nuanced understanding of where current knowledge is and where it should go. Antoni Sureda acknowledges the support of Institute of Health Carlos III (Project CIBEROBNCB12/03/30038). Natália Martins thank to Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT–Portugal) for the Strategic project ref. UID/BIM/04293/2013 and “NORTE2020-Programa Operacional Regional do Norte” (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000012).

Nanostructured materials (NSMs) have increasingly been used as a substitute for antibiotics and additives in various products to impart microbicidal effect. In particular, use of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) has garnered huge researchers' attention as potent bactericidal agent due to the inherent antimicrobial property of the silver metal. Moreover, other nanomaterials (carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, graphene, chitosan, etc.) have also been studied for their antimicrobial effects in order ensure their application in widespread domains. The present review exclusively emphasizes on materials that possess antimicrobial activity in nanoscale range and describes their various modes of antimicrobial action. It also entails broad classification of NSMs along with their application in various fields. For instance, use of AgNPs in consumer products, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in drug delivery. Likewise, use of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) and titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2-NPs) as additives in consumer merchandises and nanoscale chitosan (NCH) in medical products and wastewater treatment. Furthermore, this review briefly discusses the current scenario of antimicrobial nanostructured materials (aNSMs), limitations of current research and their future prospects. To put various perceptive insights on the recent advancements of such antimicrobials, an extended table is incorporated, which describes effect of NSMs of different dimensions on test microorganisms along with their potential widespread applications.

Cancer is one of leading causes of death in the world and occurs in more than two hundred types according to the National Cancer Institute. Its early diagnosis has been remained a prime focus amongst scientists and clinicians since long, not only to understand the complications but also to mitigate its chance of further proliferation. Nowadays, tremendous advances in nanotechnology-empowered diagnostics are serving a substantial input to identify biomarkers associated with various cancers. These biomarkers are found in different forms including overexpressed proteins/surface antigens, metabolites, miRNA, and the entire cell as well. Several approaches have been adopted to detect such cancer biomarkers, where electrochemical sensors have widely been appreciated due to its high sensitivity, selectivity, robustness, and miniaturized point-of-care cancer diagnostics. Due to its immense importance, the present review has been formulated describing classical concepts of cancer biomarker discovery followed by the recent status of electrochemical biosensors for cancer diagnoses. Particularly, we have summarized the state-of-the-art technologies based on potentiometric, impedimetric, amperometric, voltammetric biosensors for the detection of different biomarkers viz. protein, miRNA, whole cell and biomarkers generated by metabolic shift in response to carcinoma population. Apart from these, we have also highlighted different deliverable microfluidics-based approaches and recent prototypes for cancer detection. To put various perceptive insights on the recent advancements in cancer diagnostics, an extended table is incorporated, which includes sensor fabrication strategies, type of biomarkers, detection strategies, and analytical performance of the cancer biosensor since last five years (2013-2017).

CONTENT: The increased oxidative stress in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients is the result of increased inhaled oxidants, generated by various cells of the airways. OBJECTIVE: The investigation included measurements of malondiadehyde (MDA), uric acid, ascorbic acid, and matrix metalloproteinase-12 (MMP-12) in COPD patient. We also performed genetic analysis for protein-protein interaction (PPI) network. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted on healthy subjects with normal lung function (NS, 14 subjects) and 28 patients (Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (Gold) 1 and Gold 2) with COPD. RESULTS: There was significant (p

Aging is associated with an increase in the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) as well as the shortening of telomeres. It is known that OSAS-related factors are stimuli that can contribute to the acceleration of cellular senescence. Thus, the present study aimed to compare the leukocyte telomere length (LTL) between OSAS patients and controls, as well as to verify the correlation between LTL and sleep parameters. We used DNA extracted of 928 individuals from EPISONO to measure the LTL by the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. All individuals were subjected to one full-night polysomnography. LTL was significantly shorter in OSAS patients compared to controls. The results showed negative correlations between LTL and the following variables: apnea-hypopnea index, respiratory disturbance index, desaturation index and wake after sleep onset. LTL was positively correlated with sleep efficiency, total sleep time, basal, minimum and maximum oxygen saturation. Lastly, it was observed that OSAS severity was associated with shorter LTL even after adjusting for sex, age, years of schooling, body mass index, diabetes, stroke and heart attack. In conclusion, our study indicates the presence of an association between LTL and OSAS and a significant impact of severity of OSAS in telomeres shortening.

National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES) Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) Background Socioeconomic disadvantage (SED) has been consistently associated with early life mental health problems. SED has been shown to impact multiple biological systems, including the regulation of neurotrophic proteins, immune-inflammatory and oxidative stress markers, which, conversely, have been reported to be relevant to physiological and pathological neurodevelopment This study investigated the relationship between SED, different domains of psychopathology, serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL6), thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). We hypothesized that a composite of socioeconomic risk would be associated with psychopathology and altered levels of peripheral biomarkers. In addition, we hypothesized that SED would moderate the associations between mental health problems, IL6, TBARS and BDNF. Methods and Findings Using a cross-sectional design, we measured the serum levels of IL6, TBARS and BDNF in 495 children aged 6 to 12. We also investigated socio-demographic characteristics and mental health problems using the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) DSM-oriented scales. SED was evaluated using a cumulative risk model. Generalized linear models were used to assess associations between SED, biomarkers levels and psychopathology. SED was significantly associated with serum levels of IL6 (RR = 1.026, 95% CI 1.004 1.049, p = 0.020) and TBARS (RR = 1.077, 95% CI 1.028 1.127, p = 0.002). The association between SED and BDNF was not statistically significant (RR = 1.031, 95% CI 0.997 1.066, p = 0.077). SED was also significantly associated with all CBCL DSM-oriented scales (all p < 0.05), whereas serum biomarkers (i.e. IL6, TBARS, BDNF) were associated with specific subscales. Moreover, the associations between serum biomarkers and domains of psychopathology were moderated by SED, with stronger correlations between mental health problems, IL6, TBARS, and BDNF being observed in children with high SED. Conclusions In children, SED is highly associated with mental health problems. Our findings suggest that this association may be moderated via effects on multiple interacting neurobiological systems. CNPq, Natl Inst Dev Psychiat Children & Adolescents, Sao Paulo, Brazil Univ Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, Interdisciplinary Lab Clin Neurosci LiNC, Sao Paulo, Brazil Univ Toronto, Mood Disorders Psychopharmacol Unit MDPU, Univ Hlth Network, Toronto, ON, Canada Pontificia Univ Catolica Rio Grande do Sul, Inst Biomed Res, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil Univ Fed Rio Grande do Sul, Dept Psychiat, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil Univ Texas Hlth Sci Ctr Houston, Dept Psychiat & Behav Sci, Ctr Translat Psychiat, Houston, TX 77030 USA Univ Fed Minas Gerais, Interdisciplinary Lab Med Invest, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Psychiat, Sao Paulo, Brazil Univ Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, Interdisciplinary Lab Clin Neurosci LiNC, Sao Paulo, Brazil Web of Science

Epigenetic regulation is responsible for transcriptional silencing of genes and parental imprinting. This study addresses the question whether microRNAs (miRNAs) could be affected by DNA methylation during morula-blastocyst transition. Mouse embryos were treated with/without a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor (5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine, 5-aza-dC, 10 nM-5 μM). Changes of miRNAs were analyzed by quantitative real-time (Q-PCR)-based megaplex pre-amp microRNA assays. Development from morula to blastocyst in mice was inhibited by 5-aza-dC in a dose-dependent manner (10 nM-5 μM), with half of the embryos arrested at morula stage when treated with levels of 5-aza-dC as low as 50 nM. In total, 48 down-regulated microRNAs and 17 up-regulated microRNAs (≥5-fold changes) were identified after 5-aza-dC treatment, including let-7e, mir-20a, mir-21, mir-34b, mir-128b and mir-452. Their predicted targets were selected based on software analysis, published databases and further confirmed by Q-PCR. At least eight targets, including dnmt3a, jagged 1, sp1, edg2, abcg4, numa1, tmsb10 and csf1r were confirmed. In conclusion, 5-aza-dC-modified microRNA profiles and identification of the microRNA's targets during the morula to blastocyst stage in mice provide information that helps us to explore the relationship between fertility, microRNA regulation and epigenetic intervention.