DNA methylation in ELOVL2 and C1orf132 correctly predicted chronological age of individuals from three disease groups.

Improving accuracy of the available predictive DNA methods is important for their wider use in routine forensic work. Information on age in the process of identification of an unknown individual may provide important hints that can speed up the process of investigation. DNA methylation markers have been demonstrated to provide accurate age estimation in forensics, but there is growing evidence that DNA methylation can be modified by various factors including diseases. We analyzed DNA methylation profile in five markers from five different genes (ELOVL2, C1orf132, KLF14, FHL2, and TRIM59) used for forensic age prediction in three groups of individuals with diagnosed medical conditions. The obtained results showed that the selected age-related CpG sites have unchanged age prediction capacity in the group of late onset Alzheimer's disease patients. Aberrant hypermethylation and decreased prediction accuracy were found for TRIM59 and KLF14 markers in the group of early onset Alzheimer's disease suggesting accelerated aging of patients. In the Graves' disease patients, altered DNA methylation profile and modified age prediction accuracy were noted for TRIM59 and FHL2 with aberrant hypermethylation observed for the former and aberrant hypomethylation for the latter. Our work emphasizes high utility of the ELOVL2 and C1orf132 markers for prediction of chronological age in forensics by showing unchanged prediction accuracy in individuals affected by three diseases. The study also demonstrates that artificial neural networks could be a convenient alternative for the forensic predictive DNA analyses.

Role of BRCA1 in Neuronal Death in Alzheimer's Disease.

Oxidative damage of DNA has recently been indicated as one of the strong pathogenic agent in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Oxidative stress induces numerous signaling pathways, including DNA damage response (DDR), associated with the breast cancer type 1 susceptibility protein (BRCA1) protein, known to date from numerous reports in the cancer field. In this Viewpoint, we discuss the latest discoveries related to the role of BRCA1 in the death of neurons in AD. We underline the role of BRCA1 in the development of neurons and speculate on the consequences of BRCA1 dysfunction in the dying brain. In general, this Viewpoint is in a line with several recent reports on the processes and players common at the molecular and genetic level for neurodegenerative and cancerous diseases.

[pH of fluid collected from middle ear in the course of otitis media in children]. / pH plynu pobranego z ucha srodkowego w przebiegu otitis media secretoria u dzieci.

In course of the study, pH of secretions taken during operation from middle ear of 112 children suffering OMS was examined. Samples of serous, mucous and serous-mucous secretions were collected. Values of pH were determined using 6.4-8.0 and 8.2-10.0 test-papers produced by E. Merck. pH of all samples was alkaline. Mean value of pH of mucous and serous-mucous secretion was higher (8.55 and 8.33, respectively), than serous secretion (7.92). Positive correlation between the age of children and pH of secretions was noticed.

[Cytological picture of fluid collected from middle ear in course of o.m.s. in children]. / Obraz cytologiczny plynu pobranego z ucha srodkowego w przebiegu o.m.s. u dzieci.

The fluid collected during operation from tympanic cavity of 37 children with o.m.s. was examined. Its cellular composition was assessed by microscopic observation in magnification of 400 in 10 different fields of view. Lymphocytes, neutrophiles, eosinophiles and macrophages were counted. The ratio of number of macrophages to the total number of lymphocytes granulocytes was expressed in percent. The concentration of proteins was evaluated using stripe method Multistix 10 SG and comparatively, after staining the fixed preparation with hematoxylin and eosine, on the basis of pink colour, which intensity is proportional to the amount of protein. The exudative fluid was found to be protein-rich; it contained numerous lymphocytes in 56% of samples; epithelioid cells were sparse or absent in 53% of samples; in 95% of samples eosinophiles were absent, or occurred in small numbers, in 65% of samples only few neutrophiles was found. The fraction of immature cells in total number of neutrophiles decreased evidently with increase of this number (r2 = 0.85); the average ratio of the number of macrophages to the total number of lymphocytes and granulocytes was 32%. The relationship between hypoacusia and cytological parameters of ear secretion was analysed. It was discovered, that there was no dependence between the value of hypoacusia and the concentration of proteins, neither the total number of cells in fluid. With the increase of hypoacusia, the number of eosinophiles decreased. Further studies are required to check whether hypoacusia is dependent on the amount of secretion.

[Bacteriologic evaluation of middle ear fluid during the course of secretory otitis media in children]. / Bakteriologiczna ocena plynu z ucha srodkowego w przebiegu o.m.s. u dzieci.

Fluid collected from tympanic cavity during operation from 43 children with O.M.S. was subjected to bacteriological examination. After the collection, each sample was immediately applied to Bactec Peds Plus/F liquid medium from Becton Dickinson. The number of samples, where each genus and species of bacteria were found, was determined, as well as the number of samples where every two genus coexisted; also the pH genes, in which each genus was found were calculated. Obtained results showed that 22 species of bacteria, belonging to 6 genus lived in the samples. The most commonly occurring genus were Staphylococcus, Streptococcus and Haemophilus; the most rare genus were Moraxella and Bacillus. The most common species were: Haemophilus influenzae (18.6% of samples), Staphylococcus aureus (14.0%), Staphylococcus epidermidis (11.6%), Staphylococcus warneri (9.3%) and Streptococcus oralis (7.0%). Streptococcus coexisted most frequently with Staphylococcus and Haemophilus; Staphylococcus--with Haemophilus and Bacillus; Haemophilus--with Streptococcus and Staphylococcus. The pH ranges for the three most often found genus were: for Staphylococcus--7.7-9, for Streptococcus--7.7-9.3 and for Haemophilus--8.2-8.8.