Volume 25, Issue 1

Neopterin is a biomarker of host response to neoplasia. In the present study, urinary neopterin was determined during the course of (chemo)radiation in ten patients with gynecological tumors (nine patients with cervical carcinoma and one patient with carcinoma of the vulva). Baseline urinary neopterin concentrations were, generally, above the normal range. Neopterin concentrations were relatively stable during the first 5 weeks of combined (chemo)radiation. Marked peaks of neopterin concentrations reflected the emergence of complications. Neopterin could represent a useful biomarker for the assessment of the condition of the patients during this aggressive therapy.

In this study, native spores surrounded by fluorescent substances in the spore mass of Dictyostelium discoideum were found to be resistant to relatively strong ultraviolet-C (UV-C) irradiation (2880 J/m 2 ). The remaining emergency activity of the native mass of spores was over 80% even after exposure to strong UV-C irradiation (2880 J/m 2 ). In contrast, the washed spores were very sensitive to weak UV-C irradiation (144 J/m 2 ). The mass of spores in the fruiting body formed by amoebae with a low concentration of fluorescent substances was less resistant to UV-C than that in the fruiting body formed by normally grown amoebae. Based on the remaining emergency activity of washed spores with appropriate lumazine solution, the concentration of fluorescent substances in the native mass of spores was estimated to be equivalent to approximately 5 mmol/L of lumazine.