Early detection of chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity in breast cancer patients: a comprehensive analysis using speckle tracking echocardiography.

Introduction: Chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity poses a significant challenge in the treatment of breast cancer, potentially compromising both the efficacy of cancer therapy and cardiac health of patients. This study aimed to enhance the early detection of cardiotoxic effects by integrating advanced imaging modalities and biomarker analysis, thereby facilitating timely interventions to mitigate cardiac risk. Methods: A prospective cohort design was employed, enrolling breast cancer patients scheduled for potentially cardiotoxic chemotherapy regimens. The study utilized a comprehensive diagnostic toolkit, including echocardiography with strain imaging, cardiac MRI, and serial measurements of cardiac biomarkers such as high-sensitivity troponins and natriuretic peptides. Results: The analysis revealed that subtle changes in myocardial strain parameters and early biomarker elevations were predictive of subsequent declines in left ventricular function, preceding conventional echocardiographic evidence of cardiotoxicity. Logistic regression analysis highlighted the additive predictive value of integrating biomarker data with advanced imaging findings to identify patients with the highest risk of significant cardiotoxicity. Discussion: The study concluded that an integrated diagnostic approach, combining detailed imaging assessments with sensitive biomarker analysis, offers a superior strategy for the early detection of chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity in breast cancer patients. This proactive diagnostic strategy empowers clinicians to tailor cancer therapy more precisely, balancing oncologic efficacy with cardiovascular safety and underscores the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in the management of patients undergoing potentially cardiotoxic chemotherapy.

miR-99a-5p: A Potential New Therapy for Atherosclerosis by Targeting mTOR and Then Inhibiting NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation and Promoting Macrophage Autophagy.

Objective: MicroRNAs have been revealed to be involved in the development of atherosclerosis. The present study is aimed at exploring the potential of miR-99a-5p as a therapy for atherosclerosis. We suspected that miR-99a-5p might inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome activation and promote macrophage autophagy via constraining mTOR, therefore, alleviating atherosclerosis. Methods: The cell viability in ox-LDL-induced THP-1 macrophages was assessed by CCK-8 assay. Bioinformatic analysis was used to predict the target genes of miR-99a-5p. The binding between miR-99a-5p and mTOR was confirmed by luciferase reporter assay. In vivo, a high-fat-diet-induced atherosclerosis model was established in apolipoprotein E knockout mice. Hematoxylin-eosin, oil red O, and Sirius red staining were performed for the determination of atherosclerotic lesions. MTOR and associated protein levels were detected by Western blot analysis. Results: miR-99a-5p inhibited NLRP3 inflammasome activation and promoted macrophage autophagy by targeting mTOR. Enforced miR-99a-5p significantly reduced the levels of inflammasome complex and inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, miR-99a-5p overexpression inhibited the expression of mTOR, whereas mTOR overexpression reversed the trend of the above behaviors. In vivo, the specific overexpression of miR-99a-5p significantly reduced atherosclerotic lesions, accompanied by a significant downregulation of autophagy marker CD68 protein expression. Conclusion: We demonstrated for the first time that miR-99a-5p may be considered a therapy for atherosclerosis. The present study has revealed that miR-99a-5p might inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome activation and promote macrophage autophagy by targeting mTOR, therefore, alleviating atherosclerosis.

Simultaneous electrochemical detection of multiple tumor markers using metal ions tagged immunocolloidal gold.

In this work, a sandwich-format electrochemical immunosensor has been fabricated in the aim of simultaneous detection of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) using metal ions tagged immunocolloidal gold nanocomposites as signal tags. The capture anti-CEA and anti-AFP were immobilized onto the chitosan-Au nanoparticles (CHIT-AuNPs) membrane modified glassy carbon electrode through glutaraldehyde (GA). The metal ion labels could be detected directly through differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) without metal pre-concentration, and the distinct voltammetric peaks had a close relationship with each sandwich-type immunoreaction. Under the optimized conditions, the multiplexed immunoassay exhibited good sensitivity and selectivity for the simultaneous determination of CEA and AFP with linear ranges of 0.01-50 ng mL(-1). The detection limits for CEA and AFP are 4.6 pg mL(-1) and 3.1 pg mL(-1), respectively. The method was successfully applied for the determination of AFP and CEA levels in clinical serum samples, and the results were in good agreement with standard enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). This approach gives a promising simple and sensitive immunoassay strategy for clinical applications.

Triple signal amplification using gold nanoparticles, bienzyme and platinum nanoparticles functionalized graphene as enhancers for simultaneous multiple electrochemical immunoassay.

Here we demonstrated an ultrasensitive electrochemical immunoassay employing graphene, platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs), glucose oxidase (GOD) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) as enhancers to simultaneously detect carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). This immunosensor is based on the observation that multiple-labeled antibodies (thionine-labeled anti-CEA and ferrocene-labeled anti-AFP) recognition event yielded a distinct voltammetric peak through "sandwich" immunoreaction, whose position and size reflected the identity and level of the corresponding antigen. Greatly enhanced sensitivity for cancer markers is based on a triple signal amplification strategy. Experimental results revealed that the immunoassay enabled simultaneous determination of CEA and AFP in a single run with wide working ranges of 0.01-100 ng mL(-1). The detection limits reached 1.64 pg mL(-1) for CEA and 1.33 pg mL(-1) for AFP. No obvious cross-talk was observed during the experiment. In addition, through the analysis of clinical serum samples, the proposed method received a good correlation with ELISA as a reference. The signal amplification strategy could be easily modified and extended to detect other multiple targets.

A simple and novel system for colorimetric detection of cobalt ions.

A simple and novel method for the colorimetric detection of Co(2+) was developed based on controlling the oxidation level of methylene blue (MB). After a complex was formed between MB, 2-aminothiophenol (ATP) and copper nitrate (MB-ATP-Cu(2+)), the sensing of Co(2+) showed high selectivity. The mechanism of sensing has also been discussed.

A label-free immunosensor based on graphene nanocomposites for simultaneous multiplexed electrochemical determination of tumor markers.

Here we prepared a label-free electrochemical immunosensor employing indium tin oxide (ITO) sheets as working electrodes and graphene nanocomposites as supporting matrix for simultaneous determination of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and α-fetoprotein (AFP). Reduced graphene oxide/thionine/gold nanoparticles nanocomposites were synthesized and coated on ITO for the immobilization of anti-CEA while reduced graphene oxide/Prussian Blue/gold nanoparticles were used to immobilize anti-AFP. The immunosensor determination was based on the fact that due to the formation of antibody-antigen immunocomplex, the decreased response currents of thionine and Prussian Blue were directly proportional to the concentrations of corresponding antigens. Experimental results revealed that the multiplexed immunoassay enabled the simultaneous determination of CEA and AFP with linear working ranges of 0.01-300 ng mL(-1). The limit of detections for CEA is 0.650 pg mL(-1) and for AFP is 0.885 pg mL(-1). In addition, the methodology was evaluated for the analysis of clinical serum samples and received a good correlation with the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay.

Electrochemical immunosensor for simultaneous detection of multiplex cancer biomarkers based on graphene nanocomposites.

In this work, a sandwich-format electrochemical immunosensor for simultaneous determination of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) was fabricated using biofunctional carboxyl graphene nanosheets (CGS) as immunosensing probes, which were fabricated by means of immobilization of toluidine blue (TB) and labeled anti-CEA (Ab2,1), Prussian blue (PB) and anti-AFP (Ab2,2) successively on CGS. The capture anti-CEA (Ab1,1) and anti-AFP (Ab1,2) were immobilized onto the chitosan-Au nanoparticles (CHIT-AuNPs) modified electrode through 1-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-3-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride and N-hydroxy succinimide (EDC/NHS). Experimental results revealed that this sandwich-type immunoassay enabled simultaneous detection of CEA and AFP with linear range of 0.5-60 ng mL(-1) for both analytes. The detection limit was 0.1 ng mL(-1) for CEA and 0.05 ng mL(-1) for AFP (S/N=3). The assay results of serum samples with the proposed method were in a good agreement with the reference values from the standard ELISA method. And the negligible cross-reactivity between the two analytes allows it to possess potential promise in clinical diagnosis.