Adv Exp Med Biol
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Review
Nanoceria as bona fide catalytic antioxidants in medicine: what we know and what we want to know….
Cerium oxide (CeO2) nanoparticles, CeNPs or nanoceria are inorganic and possess catalytic antioxidant activity. They scavenge reactive oxygen species and act as an oxygen buffer. Their application in industry is well-established. ⋯ We highlight studies that examine how CeNPs behave in biological environments and how they interact with bio-macromolecules. We also discuss studies that examine the dynamic changes of the surface chemistry of CeNPs in physiological buffers. Finally, we raise a list of questions that we think ought to be answered for CeNPs to be considered the antioxidants of choice in medicine, specifically in the treatment of ocular diseases.
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In most team sports, intermittent high intensity sprint efforts combined with short recovery periods have been identified as a key factor of physical performance; the ability to repeat these efforts at a sustained level is of great importance. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been proposed as a tool to monitor muscle oxygenation changes during such sprint efforts. The purpose of this study was to observe muscle reoxygenation rate (reoxy rate) (% s⁻¹) between sprint efforts in a repeat sprint cycle test. ⋯ The simplest explanation for the increase in desaturation following training is an increase in muscle oxygen consumption due to an increase in mitochondrial content. This results in an increased extraction of delivered oxygen as confirmed by the HHb data. In conclusion, NIRS is able to measure positive training effects on muscle oxygen extraction, at the level of the individual elite athlete.
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The relationship between cerebral autoregulation (CA) and the neurotoxic effects of anaesthesia with and without surgery is investigated. Newborn piglets were randomly assigned to receive either 6 h of anaesthesia (isoflurane) or the same with an additional hour of minor surgery. ⋯ Presence of CA impairment was not significant but found to increase with surgical exacerbation. The impairment did not correlate with histological outcome (presence of cell death, apoptosis and microglial activation in the brain).
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TrkB is the cognate receptor for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a member of the neurotrophin family involved in neuronal survival, neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity. BDNF has been shown to protect photoreceptors from light-induced retinal degeneration (LIRD) and to improve ganglion cell survival following optic nerve damage. However, the utility of BDNF as a retinal neuroprotectant is limited by its short half-life, inability to cross the blood-brain and blood-retinal barriers, and activation of the proapoptotic p75 neurotrophin receptor. ⋯ The compound can pass the blood-brain and blood-retinal barriers when administered systemically and reduces kainic acid-induced neuronal cell death in a TrkB-dependent manner. Systemic administration of HIOC mitigates LIRD, assessed electrophysiologically and morphometrically. Hence, NAS may function as an endogenous circadian neurotrophin-like compound and HIOC is a good lead compound for further drug development for treatment of retinal degenerative diseases.