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The iron metabolism was studied in serum blood samples collected from 26 professional sportsmen undergoing intensive physical exercises using EPR combined with haematological and biochemical laboratory tests. Only 23% of EPR spectra (n = 6) were practically normal while in the rest spectra additional abnormal absorption lines were detected. Presumably, the significant portion of new signals may be caused by different cytochromes. Moreover, the anisotropic signals with g1 approximately equal to 2.02; g2 approximately equal to 1.94 and g3 approximately equal to 1.86 registered in some spectra pointed to the sulfur-iron centers. There was nearly linear correlation between the concentration of Fe3+ in transfferin (Fe(3+)-Tf) obtained from the EPR spectra and the serum iron concentration measured by absorption photometry both for sportsmen and controls (healthy individuals and patients with different diseases). At equal serum iron concentrations the Fe(3+)-Tf level was higher in sportsmen than that in controls. The Pearson correlation coefficient (r) for Fe(3+)-Tf and serum iron values was equal to 0.89 in sportsmen versus r = 0.97 in controls. Additional new lines in serum EPR spectra of professional sportsmen prove the suitability of EPR assay for scheduled medical exams since routinebiochemical and haematological tests are insufficient to discover all abnormalities in iron metabolism under intensive physical exercises.

Changes in Fe(3+)-transferrin (Fe(3+)-Tf) and Cu(2+)-ceruloplasmin (Cu(2+)-Cp) concentrations in venous blood sampled from anemic patients with urinary bladder and kidney cancer in I-IV stages were investigated using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. It was established that at malignancy-associated anemia the paramagnetic Fe3+ ion concentration in transferrin is below a norm, while in anemic non-oncology patients the Tf iron saturation is normal. Moreover, in patients with malignancy-associated anemia the Cu(2+)-Cp average value is nearly twice as large as that for healthy volunteers (confidence probability P). It was shown that simultaneous EPR measuring of paramagnetic centers (such as Fe(3+)-Tf and Cu(2+)-Cp) in blood of anemic patients can be used as a biomarker for urological cancer diagnosis even at early stages of the growth of a malignant tumor.

The electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) technique was used to study the venous blood levels of Fe(3+)-transferrin (Fe(3+)-TF) and Cu(2+)-ceruloplasmin (Cu(2+)-CP) in three different groups: donors, outpatients, and patients with Stages I-IV bladder and kidney cancer. The anemia-related range of concentrations of paramagnetic centers Fe(3+)-TF was determined, which corresponded to the hemoglobin levels below the normal physiological value (< or = 120 g/l). It was found that the blood concentration of Cu(2+)-TCP exceeded the normal value in the donors and outpatients who had anemia whereas it increased up to abnormally high values in anemic cancer virtually always due to the enhanced synthesis of CP. Simultaneous monitoring of Fe(3+)-TF and Cu(2+)-CP levels may serve as a basis for the rapid diagnosis of cancers by the technique EPR even in the early stage of the tumor process. The method may be also used to predict the course of the disease and to screen anemic patients.

The electron paramagnetic resonance technique was used to study the venous blood levels of ceruloplasmin (CP) in 93 cancer patients with Stages I-IV malignancies of the urinary bladder and kidneys. Two groups were selected as a control; one of them comprised 44 donors who were considered to be apparently healthy and the other included 32 outpatients, some of whom had noncancer diseases. It has been established that in urological cancer, the level of the paramagnetic phase of Cu2+ -CP may vary in the wide range: from the lower to exceeding upper normal range in noncancer disease. The content of Cu2+ -CP does not virtually depend on the site and differentiation of a tumor. A correlation between the blood concentration of Cu2+ -CP and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) in urological cancer patients has been considered. Determination of CP levels at the ESR exceeding the normal values may be expedient for the early diagnosis of cancer and also an addition to the biological individual screening of patients in the preoperative period to choose the correct and effective treatment tactics.

The effect of radiotoxins (RT), obtained from gamma-irradiated potato tubers, on mice have been investigated using ex vivo EPR. Parts of liver, lung, spleen, heart and kidney were used for investigation. The amount of the preparations injected was 0.2 ml, RT concentration varying from 0.1 to 1 LD100 (LD100 = 100 mg/kg). An intraperitoneal injection of RT in dose of 0.1 LD100 resulted in metabolic changes only in spleen. During 8 hours after injection a gradual depression of enzyme ribonucleotide reductase activity in spleen has been observed. After the treatment of mice with a lethal dose of RT signals from nitrosyl complexes have been appeared in spectra from all tissue investigated. The intensities of lines depend both on a time passed after treatment and a sensitivity of tissue to RT action. One of the main reasons of the lethal outcome of mice treated with RT may be the breaking of the compensatory adaptive response due to enhanced hypoxic state resulting from the high concentration of nitrosyl complexes generated in the tissue.

The effect of radiotoxin (RT) obtained from y-irradiated potato tubes on blood of sheep and mice has been investigated by using in vitro and ex vivo EPR. In experiments in vitro, the action of different preparations (RT, extract from unirradiated potato tubers, 1%-HCl or 30%-hydrogen peroxide) on sheep blood has been compared. It has been established that RT is an effective oxidant (like 1%-HCl) of haem iron that leads to an increase of the methemoglobin concentration. The specific peculiarity of RT effect on blood in vitro is an appearance of two well-resolved lines from methemoglobin belonging, probably, to different paramagnetic centers. The signal from nonspecific complexes of Fe3+ has been also observed. Ex vivo EPR spectra markedly differ from these obtained in experiments in vitro. An additional line with g approximately 2.005 and width 6 G in 30 minutes after intraperitoneal RT injection in the lethal dose (0.2 ml of preparation containing of 2 mg RT) has been revealed. Subsequent intoxication of mice is accompanied by the appearance of the signal from nitrosyl complexes in EPR spectra. These differences in experimental results of in vitro and ex vivo EPR can be explained by launch of compensatory adaptive response of organism on the action of highly toxic preparation.