Cyanobacterial blooms are global phenomena that can occur in calm and nutrient-rich (eutrophic) fresh and marine waters. Human exposure to cyanobacteria and their biologically active products is possible during water sports and various water activities, or by ingestion of contaminated water. Although the vast majority of harmful cyanobacterial products are confined to the interior of the cells, these are eventually released into the surrounding water following natural or artificially induced cell death. Electrochemical oxidation has been used here to damage cyanobacteria to halt their proliferation, and for microcystin degradation under in-vitro conditions. Partially spent Jaworski growth medium with no addition of supporting electrolytes was used. Electrochemical treatment resulted in the cyanobacterial loss of cell-buoyancy regulation, cell proliferation arrest, and eventual cell death. Microcystin degradation was studied separately in two basic modes of treatment: batch-wise flow, and constant flow, for electrolytic-cell exposure. Batch-wise exposure simulates treatment under environmental conditions, while constant flow is more appropriate for the study of boron-doped diamond electrode efficacy under laboratory conditions. The effectiveness of microcystin degradation was established using high-performance liquid chromatography–photodiode array detector analysis, while the biological activities of the products were estimated using a colorimetric protein phosphatase-1 inhibition assay. The results indicate potential for the application of electro-oxidation methods for the control of bloom events by taking advantage of specific intrinsic ecological characteristics of bloom-forming cyanobacteria. The applicability of the use of boron-doped diamond electrodes in remediation of water exposed to cyanobacteria bloom events is discussed.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3880271
Sponges (Porifera) currently represent one of the richest sources of natural products and account for almost half of the pharmacologically active compounds of marine origin. The extracts from 24 Antarctic marine sponges were tested for cytotoxic effects against normal and transformed cell lines, red blood cells, and algae, for modulation of the activities of selected physiologically important enzymes (acetylcholinesterase, butyrylcholinesterase, and alpha-amylase), and for inhibition of growth of pathogenic and ecologically relevant bacteria and fungi. We conclude that Antarctic marine sponges represent a valuable source of biologically active compounds with pharmacological potential.
COBISS.SI-ID: 4024177
In this study, we performed transcriptomic analysis of glioblastoma (GBM) tissues compared to normal brain tissues and revealed upregulation of CD9 gene, encoding for transmembrane protein tetraspanin, known to be involved in tumor progression. Using the public REMBRANDT database for brain tumors, we confirmed the prognostic value of CD9, whereby a more than two fold up-regulation correlates with shorter patient survival. We validated CD9 showing selective up-regulation in GBM stem cells, but not in normal human astrocytes, neural stem cells in normal brain tissues. CD9 silencing lowered expression of the stem-cell markers CD133, nestin and SOX2. Moreover, CD9-silenced GBM stem cells showed altered activation patterns of the Akt, MapK and Stat3 signaling transducers. Orthotopic xenotransplantation of CD9-silenced GBM stem cells into nude rats promoted prolonged survival. Therefore, the biomarkerCD9 should be further evaluated as a target molecule for GBM treatment
COBISS.SI-ID: 3660623
Melittin (MEL) is the main constituent and principal toxin of bee venom. It is a small basic peptide, consisting of a known amino acid sequence, with powerful haemolytic activity.. The aim was to evaluate the cyto/genotoxic effects of MEL in human peripheral blood lymphocytes (HPBLs) and the molecular mechanisms involved using a multi-biomarker approach. Results indicate that MEL is genotoxic to HPBLs and provide evidence that oxidative stress is involved in its DNA damaging effects. MEL toxicity towards normal cells has to be considered if used for potential therapeutic purpose
COBISS.SI-ID: 3695951
This work aimed to elucidate the role of kinin receptors in interactions between GBM cells and mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). The GBM cell line U87- MG was co-cultured with MSC, both in the direct co-cultures (DC) and indirect co-cultures (IC). In DC with MSCs, in U87-MG cells MMP9 expression is significantly increased, similar as that of kinin B1 (B1R) and B2 receptors (B2R). Similarly was observed in indirect co-cultures. The treatment with BK resulted in down-regulation of B1 and B2 receptors in MSC, with simultaneous upregulation of these receptors in U87-MG cells, suggesting possible function of BK in information flow between these cells, important for GBM progression.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3701583