Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 18, Issue 23, 2011

Following their introduction in the late 1980's cardiac troponins (cTn) have become a “cornerstone” within the diagnosis and management of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) [1]. Since the initial introduction of cTn assays many manufacturers have improved the sensitivity of their assays, which in turn has lead to a reduction in the recognized clinical cut-offs for ACS. The ongoing development of high sensitive assays in an attemp Read More

Cardiac troponins (cTn) are considered to be the ‘gold standard’ biomarker for the diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome (ACS); a pathological spectrum which includes cardiac ischemia, angina, myocardial infarction and ultimately cardiac failure. The growing evidence base for the diagnostic and prognostic use of cTn in ACS has resulted in a universal redefinition of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Recently a num Read More

Prolonged strenuous exercise is associated with the appearance of biomarkers of cardiac cell damage and a decline in cardiac function during recovery. Few studies have assessed repeated bouts of prolonged exercise and whether this results in further biomarker accumulation and greater dysfunction. Further, it may be useful to describe the changes in a range of biomarkers that may provide additional insight into the clinic Read More

Objectives: Post-exercise cardiac troponin T (cTnT) release has been widely reported in adult athletes but limited data is available for adolescents. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence and magnitude of cTnT appearance in a large group of adolescent runners, and to determine any association between cTnT release and personal characteristics of adolescents. Methods: We recruited 63 adolescent runners (mean Read More

Exercise training represents a successful and powerful strategy to prevent future cardiovascular disease. Paradoxically, performance of exercise is also associated with an increased risk of acute cardiac events. Accordingly, patients may present to hospital with cardiac symptoms following a bout of unaccustomed physical effort (e.g. exercise). Current guidelines for the identification of an acute myocardial infarction (AMI) imp Read More

Malignancy-associated hypercalcemia (MAH) is one of the clinical emergencies in medical oncology, arising early or, more often, during the late phases of disease. Prevalence cannot be estimated accurately because previous figures of 5-30% of all cancer patients have progressively reduced thanks to the widespread use of bisphosphonates for the prevention of skeletal events. The classic distinction of humoral vs. osteolytic h Read More

Botulinum toxin (BoNT) has been increasingly used in the interventional treatment of several disorders; the use of this agent has extended to a plethora of conditions including focal dystonia, spasticity, inappropriate contraction in most gastrointestinal sphincters, eye movement disorders, hyperhidrosis, genitourinary disorders and aesthetically undesirable hyperfunctional facial lines. In addition, BoNT is being investigated f Read More

The apoptotic phenomena observed in tissues which are subdued to ischemia and then to technical therapeutics of perfusion keep causing serious problems in the patient's clinical recovery. Then, they constitute a challenge to resolve. The objective of this work is to discuss the intracellular mechanisms that lead cells to apoptosis during the ischemia-reperfusion process, taking into consideration that these phenomena are o Read More

Hypercalcemia is a relatively common clinical problem, mainly (>90%) related to primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) and malignancies. The anatomical and functional imaging techniques available for locating enlarged parathyroid glands include ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and nuclear medicine imaging techniques. The most commonly employed are US and parathyr Read More

Traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, tNSAIDs, are effective medication for prevention of ischemic events and treatment of pain, fever and inflammation. However their use associates with a significant risk to develop gastrointestinal and cardiovascular complications. Low doses of acetyl salicylic acid (ASA) and effective doses of tNSAIDs associate with a 2-6 fold increase in the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding. ASA a Read More

Renin-angiotensin II-aldosterone axis has long been known as a regulator of blood pressure and fluid homeostasis. Yet, local renin-angiotensin II systems have been discovered and novel actions of angiotensin II (AngII) have emerged among which its ability to act as a immunomodulator and profibrotic molecule. The enzyme responsible for its synthesis, Angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE), is present in high concentrations i Read More

Quantum dot (QD) has been extensively investigated as a nanoprobe to replace conventional organic dyes due to its unique optical properties. However, nanotoxicity of QD greatly hampers its biomedical applications, particularly in in vivo imaging. It is critical to functionalize QD and/or composite QD with other functional materials for biocompatibility, multifunction and expanded applications. In this review, advances of Read More

Calcium is essential for many metabolic process, including nerve function, muscle contraction, and blood clotting. The metabolic pathways that contribute to maintain serum calcium levels are bone remodeling processes, intestinal absorption and secretion, and renal handling, but hypercalcemia occurs when at least 2 of these 3 metabolic pathways are altered. Calcium metabolism mainly depends on the activity of Read More

Sialic acids are one of the important constituents of glycoconjugates in the deuterostome lineage of animals and microorganisms. Siglecs (Sialic acid-binding immunoglobulin like lectins) are a family of cell-surface receptor proteins that recognize sialylated glycoconjugates as ligands. To date, 15 Siglecs have been described in humans and are mainly known as regulators of the immune system. Several of the Siglecs are emergi Read More

Discovery, isolation, characterisation and pre-clinical and clinical trials of plant- or animal-derived drugs displaying pharmacological activities continue to develop and enlarge. Cancer chemotherapy is one of the most promising areas for these drugs. Since a very long time, nature has been an attractive source of potential medicinal agents for human use. The deep sea is becoming a novel and potently appealing sourc Read More

Neuropilins comprise two homologous widely-expressed single-pass plasma membrane receptors (Nrp1 and Nrp2), originally identified for binding secreted Semaphorins and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors (in association with Plexins and VEGF-Receptors). Semaphorins have been implicated with opposite functions in cancer: either as putative tumor suppressors and anti-angiogenic factors, or mediating tumour ang Read More

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a kind of common noncancerous prostate gland enlargement with growing tendency in recent years. 5α-reductase is the key enzyme responsible for dihydrotestosterone biosynthesis and has been considered as an important target for designing inhibitors as potent therapeutic agents for BPH. Finasteride, the first steroidal 5α-reductase inhibitor, has been marketed worldwide as a Read More

Chinese medicine has a long history of several thousand years. The main form of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is composite, i.e. a mixture of up to 10 medicinal products. Thus a composite prescription of 4-5 kinds of Chinese medicinal products may contain several hundred kinds of chemical composition. The active ingredients and clinical efficacy of which are difficult to characterize. We aim to review the Chinese lite Read More