Niculina Mitrea

Correlations Between the Monoaminergic Status and the Psychoneuroendocrine Typology in a Murine Model – Possible Biomolecular Predictions for an Individualized Pharmacotherapy

The neurons represent unique anatomical fractions, with the ability to forward the information in a network system, which justifies the experience-dependent mechanisms such as memorization, learning or consciousness. In order to fulfill these functions, the neurons are, structurally and functionally polarized. This aspect is obvious in their tripartite composition: cell body, axon and dendrites. While the body comprises the biosynthesis structure (nucleus, ribosomes, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus and mitochondria for energy storage), the axon is equipped with molecular and under-cellular components for the propagation of the action potential from the cell body to distant targets, the dendrites represent a set of branched endings which prolong from the cell body and have as result an increase of it, in order to receive the signal. The structural connections for the signal transmission are the basis of the neural architecture. Inside the mature nervous system, normally, the neural circuit (neuroarchitecture) supports adaptive changes. Inside an old synapses neural cells can involute (until their disappearance), with simultaneous formation of new branches (new neuritis) which will establish new synapses. These changes in the neurotic and synaptic architecture prove the great plasticity (capacity) of the nervous system to adapt to the environmental conditions. Today we consider that there are two major intracellular classes of factors (signals) which adjust the neuronal development and adaptation: growth factors (the growth factor fibroblasts, the ciliary neutrophil factor, etc.) and the neurotransmitters factors (dopamine, serotonin, acetylcholine, glutamate, etc.). The loss of balance between the two systems of factors leads to the development of the pathological states.

Cardiovascular risk assessment in osteoporotic patients using osteoprotegerin as a reliable predictive biochemical marker

Osteoprotegerin (OPG), a member of the tumour necrosis factor receptor (TNFR) superfamily of proteins known to be involved in a large number of biological systems, plays a pivotal role in bone remodelling. In addition to the roles of OPG in bone metabolism, it has been reported to be associated with a high cardiovascular risk in patients with metabolic syndrome. In most cases, the exact functions of OPG remain to be established; however, the widespread expression of OPG suggests that this molecule may have multiple biological activities, mainly in the cardiometabolic environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the value of OPG as a predictive marker for cardiovascular and metabolic risk in osteoporotic patients. The study group comprised patients with osteoporosis, in order to evaluate the association between OPG serum levels and cardiovascular pathology. Our results revealed significant correlations between classical biochemical bone and metabolic parameters, such as osteocalcin and parathyroid hormone with lipid and glucose biomarkers, sustaining the crosstalk between calcium and bone parameters and cardiovascular risk. The OPG serum level proved to have a significant and independent predictive value for metabolic syndrome (MetS) as a cardiovascular risk standard in osteoporotic patients. The OPG serum levels were increased in patients with MetS as a protective response against the atherosclerotic lesions. The serum levels of 25-hydroxy vitamin D had significant and independent predictive value for cardiovascular and metabolic risk in our subjects, sustaining the active role of vitamin D beyond the area of bone metabolism.

Redox status parameters and PBMC membrane fluidity in diabetes mellitus

Abstract The present study aims at finding correlations between certain biochemical and biophysical blood parameters for diabetes patients, focusing on the antioxidant status of the red blood cells and the membrane fluidity of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), the endothelial function and the risk of stable interaction between the leucocytes and the endothelium. For that purpose we evaluated blood samples from 32 diabetes patients compared to a control group of 10 subjects for erythrocytes’ enzymatic activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and of superoxide dismutase, their susceptibility to lipid peroxidation, the plasma nitric oxide stable end products level and the PBMC membrane fluidity. Our results showed that the erythrocytes’ antioxidant mechanisms and the PBMC membrane fluidity are impaired under chronic hyperglycemic conditions. Since microvascular complications of diabetes are mainly determined by redox mechanisms, the evaluation of these parameters might help in characterizing th...

Murine Models for Developping an Individualized Neuropsychopharmacotherapy Based on the Behaviour Typology

A drug administered in the same dosage, under similar conditions, to adult individuals from a population homogeneous in race, gender and age, triggers different pharmacological effects. This phenomenon represents the pharmacological variability in a relatively homoge‐ neous population, as a natural expression of the biological variability of the response to any stimulus. The cause of the pharmacological variability to a drug is often considerably differ‐ ent between the individuals of the same population. The pharmacology variability (pharma‐ cokinetics, pharmaco-dynamics and pharmaco-toxicological) is therefore of two types: interindividual (on population level) and, respectively, intra-individual (on individual level).