Avicenna Research Institute

As the number of people with dementia grows, it becomes even more important to improve how it is diagnosed and treated. Metabolomics, the study of small molecule metabolites in biological systems, helps us learn a lot about dementia by revealing changes in the brain's systems through blood plasma research.

The objective of this study is to clarify the changes in metabolism that are linked to dementia. This will be achieved by using metabolic fingerprinting techniques on human plasma to differentiate between patients with dementia and individuals who have normal cognitive function.

This study used data from the Birjand Longitudinal Aging Study and high-tech Raman Spectroscopy, as well as multivariate statistical methods such as PCA and OPLS-DA. The study looked at 34 people with dementia and 34 people who did not have any cognitive damage.

Metabolic fingerprints distinguished two groups with extremely distinct metabolic characteristics. Main findings demonstrate that oxidative stress and energy metabolism metabolites have changed significantly. OPLS-DA distinguished healthy and dementia samples with high accuracy and sensitivity. Both the expected high model accuracy and the clear score plot split confirmed this.

The metabolic deviations detected offer a deeper understanding of the biochemical processes associated with dementia. These results enhance our understanding of dementia-related biochemical changes and underscore the exploratory potential of Raman-based metabolomic fingerprinting as a complementary, non-invasive approach for identifying broader functional group-level alterations.

This study estimates the prevalence of vertical transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and identifies risk factors for mother-to-neonate transmission. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science up to May 2024 identified 204 observational studies, out of 28,543 records, that included neonates with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 detection via RT-PCR. The overall vertical transmission rate was 4 % (95 % CI: 4 %-5 %), with notable heterogeneity (I² = 75 %). Transmission varied based on delivery method, income classification, and region, being higher in lower-income areas and cesarean deliveries. Maternal SARS-CoV-2 detection in breast milk was rare. Neonatal SARS-CoV-2-specific IgG antibodies were frequently detected, while IgM antibodies were less common. The findings highlight the infrequency of vertical transmission but underline disparities in healthcare practices. Further high-quality studies, especially in low-income regions, are essential for a deeper understanding of vertical transmission dynamics in diverse clinical settings.

Here, for the first time, we introduce a simple yet effective one-step visual approach for the concurrent detection of octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (Oct-4) and Nanog, two pivotal homeobox genes involved in regulating pluripotency in both stem cells and certain cancer cells, within human urine samples. We utilized a closed bipolar electrochemistry system to enable the electrochemiluminescence (ECL) detection of pluripotency biomarkers. This was accomplished by capturing the ECL of Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ loaded into mesoporous SiO₂ nanoparticles and luminol incorporated into luminol@MIL-53 on the upper and lower anodic poles of BPEs in separate chambers of a bipolar cell using a digital camera. An identical electric potential was applied across the bipolar electrodes, driving the reduction of thionine acetate at the cathodic poles and thereby facilitating simultaneous light emission of the luminophores. Moreover, the incorporation of electroactive Ti₃C₂T_x MXene-TiO₂ nanosheets catalyzed the electro-oxidation of co-reactants within both the Ru(bpy)₃²⁺/TPrA and luminol/H₂O₂ systems, thereby enhancing the signal-to-background ratio and eliciting a significantly amplified visual ECL response. Under optimized conditions, the immunosensor displayed a linear response across a broad range of 100 pg mL^-1 to 400 ng/mL for Nanog, with a detection limit of 21.58 pg mL^-1, and a linear response from 200 pg mL^-1 to 400 ng/mL with a detection limit of 106.24 pg mL^-1 for Oct-4. This study supports the immunosensor's potential for broader clinical application, where its high specificity and sensitivity could offer significant benefits in cancer diagnostics and stem cell research.