PET Radiopharmaceuticals for Probing Enzymes in the Brain.

PET radiopharmaceuticals for probing enzymes in the brain.

Am J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2013; 3(3): 194-216
Holland JP, Cumming P, Vasdev N

Biologically important processes in normal brain function and brain disease involve the action of various protein-based receptors, ion channels, transporters and enzymes. The ability to interrogate the location, abundance and activity of these entities in vivo using non-invasive molecular imaging can provide unprecedented information about the spatio-temporal dynamics of brain function. Indeed, positron emission tomography (PET) imaging is transforming our understanding of the central nervous system and brain disease. Great emphasis has historically been placed on developing radioligands for the non-invasive detection of neuroreceptors. In contrast, relatively few enzymes have been amenable to examination by PET imaging procedures based upon trapping or accumulation of enzymatic products, because only a subset of enzymes have sufficient catalytic rate to produce measureable accumulation within the practical time-limit of PET recordings. However, high affinity inhibitors are now serving as tracers for enzymes, particularly for measuring the abundance of enzymes mediating intracellular signal transduction in the brain, which offer a rich diversity of potential targets for drug discovery. The purpose of this review is to summarize well-known radiotracers for brain enzymes, and draw attention to recent developments in PET radiotracers for imaging signal transduction pathways in the brain. The review is organized by target class and focuses on structural chemistry of the best-established radiotracers identified in each class. HubMed – drug

Detection of bla(IMP) and bla(VIM) metallo-?-lactamases genes among Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains.

Int J Burns Trauma. 2013; 3(2): 122-4
Fallah F, Borhan RS, Hashemi A

Acquired Metallo-?-Lactamases (MBLs) are emerging resistance determinants in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other gram-negative bacteria.Using Combination Disk Diffusion test, it was found that among 83 imipenem non-susceptible P. aeruginosa strains, 48 (57.9%) were MBL producers. PCR and Sequencing methods proved that these isolates were positive for blaIMP-1 genes, whereas none were positive for bla(VIM) genes. The mortality rate due to MBL-producing Pseudomonas infection was 4 (8.3%) among the hospitalized patients. Therefore, identification of drug resistance patterns in P. aeruginosa and detection of MBLs producing isolates are of great importance in the prevention and control of infections. HubMed – drug

RNA aptamers and their therapeutic and diagnostic applications.

Int J Biochem Mol Biol. 2013; 4(1): 27-40
Germer K, Leonard M, Zhang X

RNA Aptamers refer to RNA oligonulceotides that are capable of binding to specific targets with high affinity and specificity. Through a process called Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment (SELEX), a number of RNA aptamers have been identified against various targets including organic compounds, nucleotides, proteins and even whole cells and organisms. RNA aptamers have proven to be of high therapeutic and diagnostic value with recent FDA approval of the first aptamer drug and additional ones in the clinical pipelines. It has also been found to be a particularly useful tool for cell-type specific delivery of other RNA therapeutics like siRNA. All these establish RNA aptamers as one of the pivotal tools of the emerging RNA nanotechnology field in the fight against human diseases including cancer, viral infections and other diseases. This article summarizes the current advancement in the identification of RNA aptamers and also provides some examples of their therapeutic and diagnostic applications. HubMed – drug