Pro řadu biomedicínských aplikací je zásadní interakce mezi biologickým prostředím a povrchem pevné látky. Diamant jako materiál sdružuje v tomto ohledu výborné polovodičové, mechanické, chemické i biologické vlastnosti a lze ho připravovat synteticky i na velké plochy. Zde ukazujeme, jaký vliv má atomární zakončení povrchu diamantu na uspořádání proteinů a buněk a jak toto biologické rozhraní naopak ovlivňuje jeho elektronické vlastnosti. Dosažené poznatky jsou přínosné pro využití unikárních vlastností diamantu v medicíně a dalších oborech., Understanding interactions between the biological environment and solid state surfaces is crucial for a wide range of biomedical applications. In this context, diamond as a material merges excellent semiconducting, mechanical, chemical as well as biological properties and it can be prepared synthetically even at large areas. here we show how atomic termination of diamond surfaces inluences arrangement of proteins and cells and how such biological interface influences electronic properties of diamond. Attained knowledge is fundamental for employing diamond unique properties in medicine and other fields., Bohuslav Rezek, Egor Ukraintsev, Marie Krátká, Alexander Kromka, Antonín Brož, Marie Kalbáčová., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Biometric data are typically used for the purposes of unique identification of a person. However, recent research suggests that biometric data gathered for the purpose of identification can be analysed for extraction of additional information. This augments indicative value of biometric data. This paper illustrates the range of augmented indicative values of the data as well as identifies crucial factors that contribute to increased vulnerability of data subjects., Alžběta Krausová, Hananel Hazan, Ján Matejka., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
Diabetes is a recognized risk factor of heart disease. The abnormalities related to a decreased heart performance probably arise at cellular and molecular levels already in the asymptomatic phase of diabetes. However, the early alterations initiating a sequence of events that culminates in the clinical signs have not been fully elucidated yet. This review deals with some biophysical methods applied to investigation of left ventricular myocytes in rats with streptozotocin diabetes, as well as our most important findings concerning diabetes-induced cell changes which cannot be captured by other techniques. The observed decrease in sarcolemmal membrane fluidity is causatively associated with increased glycation and glycoxidation. On the other hand, an increase in the mitochondrial membrane fluidity may be attributed to augmented energy transduction through the membranes. We reported for the first time concurrent measurements of membrane potential and dynamics, and respiratory chain activities in rat heart mitochondria, as well as calcium transients in the myocytes from diabetic hearts together with the assessed quantitative relationships among these variables. We were able to detect some significant alterations that may underlie myocyte dysfunction and subsequent remodeling of the heart. We suppose that not all these changes reflect mechanisms leading to pathology; some may represent adaptive and compensatory responses to diabetes., I. Waczulíková ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
Projekt Centra kompetence BIORAF se již třetím rokem zabývá biorafinačními procesy, které se zakládají na chemické, biologické a termické přeměně přírodních materiálů z odpadů rostlinného a živočišného původu ze zemědělské výroby i potravinářského průmyslu či z řas na žádané produkty s vysokou přidanou hodnotou. Projekt se řeší s finanční podporou Technologické agentury ČR za koordinace Ústavu chemických procesů AV ČR a ve spolupráci s Vysokou školou chemicko-technologickou, Botanickým ústavem AV ČR a společnostmi Agra, Rabbit, Briklis a Ecofuel. Viz také První rok Centra BIORAF a Aplikace biorafinací. and Olga Šolcová.
Globally, water deficit is one of the major constraints in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) production due to substantial reduction in photosynthesis. Photorespiration often enhances under stress thereby protecting the photosynthetic apparatus from photoinhibition. Application of bioregulators is an alternative to counter adverse effects of water stress. Thus, in order to analyze the role of bioregulators in protecting the photosynthetic machinery under water stress, we performed an experiment with two contrasting chickpea varieties, i.e., Pusa 362 (Desi type) and Pusa 1108 (Kabuli type). Water deficit stress was imposed at the vegetative stage by withholding water. Just prior to exposure to water stress, plants were pretreated with thiourea (1,000 mg L-1), benzyladenine (40 mg L-1), and thidiazuron (10 mg L-1). Imposed water deficit decreased relative water content (RWC), photosynthetic rate (P N), quantum efficiency of PSII (Fv/Fm), and enhanced lipid peroxidation (LPO). However, bioregulator application maintained higher RWC, P N, Fv/Fm, and lowered LPO under water stress. Expression of Rubisco large subunit gene (RbcL) was low under water stress both in the Kabuli and Desi type. However, bioregulators strongly induced its expression. Although poor expression of two important photorespiratory genes, i.e., glycolate oxidase and glycine decarboxylase H subunit, was observed in Desi chickpea under imposed stress, bioregulators in general and cytokinins in particular strongly induced their expression. This depicts that the application of bioregulators protected the photosynthetic machinery by inducing the expression of RbcL and photorespiratory genes during water deficit stress., T. V. Vineeth, P. Kumar, G. K. Krishna., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
The Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (AS CR) established a new public research institution, the Institute of Biotechnology AS CR, v. v. i. The primary ambition of this new institute is to develop cutting-edge basic and oriented research on topics opening for diagnostic and therapeutic applicatons in human medicine. In particular, the institute was established to serve as a nucleation center of BIOCEV, the joined Biotech & Biomed Research Center of the Academy of Sciences with Charles University, to be built at Vestec near Prague by the year 2012 with the support of the European Regional Development Funds in frame of the Operational Program R&D for Innovation., Peter Šebo, -red-., and Tři otázky pro ředitele připravila -red-
To determine the role of postinspiratory inspiratory activity of the diaphragm in the biphasic ventilatory response to hypoxia in unanesthetized rats, we examined diaphragmatic activity at its peak (DI), at the end of expiration (DE), and ventilation in adult unanesthetized rats during poikilocapnic hypoxia (10 % O2) sustained for 20 min. Hypoxia induced an initial increase in ventilation followed by a consistent decline. Tidal volume (VT), frequency of breathing (fR), DI and DE at first increased, then VT and DE decreased, while fR and DI remained enhanced. Phasic activation of the diaphragm (DI - DE) increased significantly at 10, 15 and 20 min of hypoxia. These results indicate that 1) the ventilatory response of unanesthetized rats to sustained hypoxia has a typical biphasic character and 2) the increased end-expiratory activity of the diaphragm limits its phasic inspiratory activation, but this increase cannot explain the secondary decline in tidal volume and ventilation., H. Maxová, M. Vízek., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Cardiac resynchronization therapy is not commonly used in the early postoperative period in pati ents undergoing cardiac surgery who have left ventricular (LV) dysfunction and a history of heart failure. We performed a prospective randomized clinical trial to compare atrial synchronous right ventricular (DDD RV) and biventricular (DDD BIV) pacing within 72 hours after cardiac surgery in patients with an EF ≤ 35 %, a QRS interval longer than 120 msec and who had LV dyssynchrony detected by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT3DE). Epicardial pacing was provided by a modified Medtronic INSYNC III pacemaker. An LV epicardial pacing lead was implanted on the latest activated segment of the LV based on RT3DE. The study included 18 patients with ischemic heart diseas e, with or without valvular heart disease (14 men, 4 women, average age 71 years). Patients undergoing DDD BIV pacing had a statistically significant greater CO and CI (CO 6.7±1.8 l/min, CI 3.4±0.7 l/min/m²) than patients undergoing DDD RV pacing (CO 5.5±1.4 l/min, CI 2.8±0.7 l/min/m²), p<0.001. DDD BIV paci ng in the early postoperative period after cardiac surgery corrects LV dyssynchrony and has better hemodynamic results than DDD RV pacing., F. Straka ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy