University of Graz

About: University of Graz is a education organization based out in Graz, Steiermark, Austria. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Quantum chromodynamics. The organization has 17934 authors who have published 37489 publications receiving 1110980 citations. The organization is also known as: Carolo Franciscea Graecensis & Karl Franzens Universität.

4-Hydroxynonenal, a lipid peroxidation product, rapidly accumulates following traumatic spinal cord injury and inhibits glutamate uptake

Abstract: Traumatic injury to the spinal cord initiates a host of pathophysiological events that are secondary to the initial insult One such event is the accumulation of free radicals that damage lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids A major reactive product formed following lipid peroxidation is the aldehyde, 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE), which cross-links to side chain amino acids and inhibits the function of several key metabolic enzymes In the present study, we used immunocytochemical and immunoblotting techniques to examine the accumulation of protein-bound HNE, and synaptosomal preparations to study the effects of spinal cord injury and HNE formation on glutamate uptake Protein-bound HNE increased in content in the damaged spinal cord at early times following injury (1-24 h) and was found to accumulate in myelinated fibers distant to the site of injury Immunoblots revealed that protein-bound HNE levels increased dramatically over the same postinjury interval Glutamate uptake in synaptosomal preparations from injured spinal cords was decreased by 65% at 24 h following injury Treatment of control spinal cord synaptosomes with HNE was found to decrease significantly, in a dose-dependent fashion, glutamate uptake, an effect that was mimicked by inducers of lipid peroxidation Taken together, these findings demonstrate that the lipid peroxidation product HNE rapidly accumulates in the spinal cord following injury and that a major consequence of HNE accumulation is a decrease in glutamate uptake, which may potentiate neuronal cell dysfunction and death through excitotoxic mechanisms

The Microwave‐to‐Flow Paradigm: Translating High‐Temperature Batch Microwave Chemistry to Scalable Continuous‐Flow Processes

Abstract: The popularity of dedicated microwave reactors in many academic and industrial laboratories has produced a plethora of synthetic protocols that are based on this enabling technology. In the majority of examples, transformations that require several hours when performed using conventional heating under reflux conditions reach completion in a few minutes or even seconds in sealed-vessel, autoclave-type, microwave reactors. However, one severe drawback of microwave chemistry is the difficulty in scaling this technology to a production-scale level. This Concept article demonstrates that this limitation can be overcome by translating batch microwave chemistry to scalable continuous-flow processes. For this purpose, conventionally heated micro- or mesofluidic flow devices fitted with a back-pressure regulator are employed, in which the high temperatures and pressures attainable in a sealed-vessel microwave chemistry batch experiment can be mimicked.

Interactions between progesterone receptor isoforms in myometrial cells in human labour

Abstract: Progesterone acts to maintain uterine quiescence during pregnancy. In contrast to many other species, no decrease in maternal serum levels of progesterone can be observed in humans before the onset of labour. Therefore, a 'functional' progesterone withdrawal in association with labour has been proposed. In humans the progesterone receptor (PR) exists in two isoforms, PR-A and PR-B. While PR-B generally mediates the effects of progesterone upon gene transcription, the role of PR-A during pregnancy, and in parturition, is unknown. In this study, term myometrium cells cultured before the onset of labour were transiently transfected with expression vectors for either PR-A or PR-B. Only those cells expressing PR-B significantly increased expression of a progesterone-sensitive reporter when stimulated with progesterone. Co-transfection of both isoforms of PR demonstrated that PR-A is a dominant repressor of transactivation in these cells. Western blot analysis showed that PR-A is present in human myometrium samples taken only after, but not before, the onset of labour. These data suggest that increased expression of PR-A in human myometrium may contribute to 'functional' progesterone withdrawal and the initiation of human labour.