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Introduction and Objective Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signalling pathway plays a central role in the regulation of cellular response to stress. The aim of the study was to investigate the ability of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), CdTe quantum dots (CdTeQDs) or their binary mixtures to stimulate NF-κB binding in HepG2 cells. A dual luciferase reporter system was used to investigate NF-κB binding. Material and methods Cells were transiently transfected with a firefly luciferase reporter system and Renilla luciferase expression plasmid as a transfection efficiency control. Twenty- four hours after transfection, the cells were treated with nanoparticles (10 μg/cm 3 AgNPs, 10 μg/cm 3 AuNPs, 3 μg/cm 3 CdTeQDs) or with 10 ng/cm 3 TNFα as a positive control. Six hours later, the cells were lysed and the activities of the luminescence of firefly and Renilla luciferases were measured using the Dual-Luciferase Reporter Assay System. Results AuNPs and CdTeQDs alone significantly inhibited NF-κB binding activity. Co-treatment with AgNPs and CdTeQDs resulted in an additive effect, whereas the presence of AgNPs diminished the inhibitory effect of AuNPs. Interestingly, significant antagonism was observed between AuNPs and CdTeQDs, suggesting a similar mode of action. Conclusions Comparison of the NF-κB binding activity induced by the mixtures of NPs suggests that in some cases NF-κB binding activity might differ from that observed for the NPs alone.

Exposure to pesticides leads to complex, long-lasting adverse effects on human health, and poses a substantial risk to those living in areas devoted to agriculture. Children are particularly vulnerable to the pesticide exposure, due to the developmental, dietary and physiological factors. Small body mass and typical exploratory behavior result in increased risk of intoxication. Thus, even exposure to low concentrations of pesticides, if of sufficient duration, may lead to permanent health disorders and limit their harmonious development. In this study 108 children, living in areas of an intense pesticide use and a control group (n = 92) of children from an agrotouristic area were investigated, whether DNA damage increased due to prolonged pesticide exposure. A presence of DNA breaks and oxidative damage to DNA bases, characterized as Fpg-sensitive sites, were detected by comet assay. Micronuclei (MN) formation was evaluated by cytokinesis-block MN assay. The exposure of children to pesticides resulted in increased number of MN in peripheral blood lymphocytes (P = 0.016), increased DNA strand breaks level (P = 0.002) and oxidative damage to DNA (P 0.001). Negative correlation was demonstrated between the level of DNA strand breaks and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in exposed group. In conclusion, despite just environmental pesticide exposure in the test group of children, significant biological effects were detected.

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are used in many fields of industry and medicine. Despite the well-established antimicrobial activity, AgNPs are foreseen to be used as anticancer drugs due to the unusual feature&mdash, inability to induce drug resistance in cancer cells. The aim of the study was to assess biological activity of AgNPs against MDA-MB-436 cells. The cells were derived from triple-negative breast cancer, a type of breast cancer with poor prognosis and is particularly difficult to cure. AgNPs were toxic to MDA-MB-436 cells and the probable mechanism of toxicity was the induction of oxidative stress. These promising effects, giving the opportunity to use AgNPs as an anti-cancer agent should, however, be treated with caution in the light of further results. Namely, the treatment of MDA-MB-436 cells with AgNPs was associated with the increased secretion of several cytokines and chemokines, which were important in breast cancer metastasis. Finally, changes in the actin cytoskeleton of MDA-MB-436 cells under the influence of AgNPs treatment were also observed.

Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), which is expressed in the majority of epithelial tissues, exhibits tumor growth promoting abilities and is overexpressed in human epithelial ovarian cancer. Therefore, EpCAM is considered to be a promising target for specific immune‑based therapies. The present study evaluated the role of IL‑6 and IL‑8 in the expression of EpCAM in the A2780 human ovarian cancer cell line. Furthermore, the cellular localization of the EpCAM protein in A2780 cells was determined and the effect of EpCAM inhibition on the proliferation of the A2780 cells was investigated. An MTT assay demonstrated that blocking EpCAM with anti‑EPCAM antibodies had no effect on cellular metabolic activity (proliferation). Gene expression analysis revealed that IL‑8 increased EpCAM expression, whereas IL‑6 and the combination of IL‑6/IL‑8 had no effect on EpCAM expression. Immunofluorescence analysis confirmed that EpCAM is expressed on A2780 cell membranes. The present results demonstrated that IL‑8 increased EpCAM expression at the mRNA level in ovarian cancer cells and suggested a potential role of IL‑6 as an inhibitor of IL‑8‑stimulated EpCAM expression.

Objective The electrophysiological characteristics may serve as valuable biomarkers for the genetic vulnerability underlying alcoholism. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential associations between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located in the SGIP1 gene and the theta ERP quantitative traits. Method The theta band (4–7 Hz) visual ERP occurring in the P300 response in the resting EEG were examined to explore the electrophysiological effects of alcohol on the brain in five regions: frontal, central, parietal, temporal and occipital in patients with alcohol addiction. In addition, we tested the potential associations between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located in the SGIP1 gene and ERP quantitative traits. Results We found that the amplitude of the auditory P300 response differed considerably among groups of alcoholics in the frontal, central and temporal areas of the brain and it was lower in the studied brain regions in alcoholics in comparison to non-alcoholics. However, among subjects in the young adult group (GR-1) there was no statistical difference in amplitude of P300 response with control subjects in all studied brain regions in comparison with non-alcoholics. Moreover, we revealed that SNP rs10889635 had a significant effect on P300 amplitude in the central and temporal regions. The reduced P300 amplitude was in AA carriers in comparison to both carriers of GG and GA alleles. Conclusions The present study demonstrated a possible association of target P300 evoked theta and of alcohol dependence with SNPs from the gene SGIP1 in the region of rs10889635, but further studies are required.

The aim of the present study was to assess the role of interleukin (IL)‑6 and IL‑8 on the expression of fluid‑phase complement inhibitor, factor H (FH), and FH‑like protein 1 (FHL‑1), in the A2780 ovarian carcinoma cell line. This cell line does not normally produce IL‑6, however, is IL‑6 responsive due to the presence of receptor for IL‑6. The presence of FH and FHL‑1 in the cell lysates was confirmed by western blotting. The levels of FH and FHL‑1 in the medium were determined by enzyme‑linked immunosorbent assay. To evaluate gene expression, reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction was performed. The cellular localization of FH and FHL‑1 in ovarian cancer cells was assessed by immunofluorescence. The present study revealed that FH, contrary to FHL‑1, was secreted by ovarian cancer cells, however, this process was independent of IL stimulation. No significant differences were observed in the concentration of FH in the control cells, when compared with the samples treated with IL‑6/IL‑8. The results of western blotting revealed that the protein expression levels of FH and FHL‑1 were not regulated by IL‑6 and IL‑8 in a dose‑dependent manner. Immunofluorescence analysis confirmed that the A2780 ovarian cancer cell line expressed both membrane bound and intracellular forms of FH and FHL‑1. The present data revealed that the A2780 cells expressed and secreted FH protein and are also able to bind FH and FHL‑1. This may influence the efficiency of complement mediated immunotherapy.

Widespread use and the bioaccumulation of pesticides in the environment lead to the contamination of air, water, soil and agricultural resources. A huge body of evidence points to the association between the pesticide exposure and increase in the incidence of chronic diseases, e.g. cancer, birth defects, reproductive disorders, neurodegenerative, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, developmental disorders, metabolic disorders, chronic renal disorders or autoimmune diseases. Organophosphorus compounds are among the most widely used pesticides. A growing body of evidence is suggesting the potential interdependence between the organophosphorus pesticides (OPs) exposure and risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). This article reviews the current literature to highlight the latest in vitro and in vivo evidences on the possible influence of OPs on obesity and T2DM development, as well as epidemiological evidence for the metabolic toxicity of OPs in humans. The article also draws attention to the influence of maternal OPs exposure on offspring. Summarized studies suggest that OPs exposure is associated with metabolic changes linked with obesity and T2DM indicated that such exposures may increase risk or vulnerability to other contributory components.

Skin, the organ responsible for vitamin D synthesis, is fully exposed to many xenobiotics, e.g. polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and pesticides. A broad spectrum organophosphorus insecticides (OP's), such as chlorpyrifos (CPS), are commonly used in agriculture and to control domestic insects. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of chlorpyrifos, on the expression of vitamin D

Introduction. On the contrary to the adult population exposed to pesticides, mostly on occupational basis, rural children are mostly exposed to pesticides deposited in the environment. However, even this constant, distributed in time exposure to low concentrations of pesticides may led to permanent health disorders and limit children’s harmonious development. Objective. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the usefulness of aacetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) activity determination as a marker of children’s environmental exposure to pesticides. An additional aim was to evaluate the usefulness of sweat patches as a novel, non-invasive method of detection of pesticides in sweat as a measure of pesticide exposure. Materials and method. A total of 108 children living in areas of intense pesticide use, and as a control group, 92 children living in an agro-tourist area were enrolled in the study. The AChE and BuChE activity was assayed colorimetricaly in diluted whole blood or plasma, respectively. In addition, selected pesticides were measured by GC/MS analysis in samples of the subject’s sweat absorbed onto a sorbent. Results. The study demonstrated significantly lower AChE and BuChE activity, respectively, in the diluted whole blood and plasma of children exposed to pesticides, compared to the control group (p

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) have found many practical applications in industry and daily life. A widespread application of TiO2 NPs rises the question about safety of their use in the context of potential occupational, environmental and intentional exposure of humans and biota. TiO2 NPs easily enter the body through inhalation, cross blood-brain barrier and accumulate in the brain, especially in the cortex and hippocampus. Toxicity of these NPs and the molecular mechanisms of their action have been studied extensively in recent years. Studies showed that TiO2 NPs exposure resulted in microglia activation, reactive oxygen species production, activation of signaling pathways involved in inflammation and cell death, both in vitro and in vivo. Consequently, such action led to neuroinflammation, further brain injury. A spatial recognition memory and locomotor activity impairment has been also observed.

In recent years the attention of society, the media and politicians has focused on the negative phenomenon of the occurrence of an enormous amount of new psychoactive substances flooding the European market. In Poland and in Europe they are known under the name 'legal highs' or 'smart drugs'. In many countries these compounds present a serious social and health problem. The core of the problem is the fact that in the light of the law these substances are legal, while actually they imitate the eff ect of illegal narcotics. Smart drugs are sold allegedly as 'products not intended for human consumption', under the cover of 'collector's commodities', 'incense sticks' or 'bath salts'. Efforts undertaken by many countries, including Poland, are biased towards gaining control over this pathological phenomenon by placing the subsequent substances on the list of prohibited agents. However, the resilient chemical and pharmaceutical industry still remains one step ahead by introducing new derivatives of already banned products, practically identical in action. The presented article is an attempt to bring closer the problem of smart drugs in Poland, from the occurrence of this alarming phenomenon, through the spread of sales in shops all over Poland, to a series of changes in the Polish anti-narcotic law, drastic actions of closing the shops throughout the entire country, and transferring the sale of smart drugs to the internet.