The current diagnostic tools are insufficient for the early detection of many diseases, including type 1 diabetes mellitus. The disease is accompanied not only by a permanently elevated level of blood glucose and altered levels of other biomarkers, but also by changes in the conformation of blood plasma proteins and other biomolecules associated with the pathogenesis of diabetes. However, the observation of these structural changes by conventional Raman and infrared spectroscopy is limited. Therefore, we used chiroptical spectroscopy which is inherently sensitive to the 3D structure of chiral molecules and able to detect any possible structural changes. We investigated the blood plasma samples of diabetic patients and healthy controls by Raman optical activity and electronic circular dichroism. The measurements were combined with conventional methods of molecular spectroscopy, i.e. Raman and infrared spectroscopy. The obtained data sets were statistically evaluated using linear discriminant analysis focusing on the spectral ranges that correspond to the structure and conformation of proteins and other plasmatic biomolecules. Our results suggest that chiroptical spectroscopy gives more detailed information about the 3D structure of biomolecules; and therefore, might be a promising complement to conventional diagnostic methods.

The completed environmental study was concerned with assessing the exposure of the Czech population to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Simultaneously, the levels of polychlorinated pollutants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and chlorinated diphenyl ethanes (DDTs) were also monitored. The pollutant levels were newly measured in solid fat tissue removed during plastic surgery. A total of 107 samples of fat were taken from 19–76-year-old volunteers. A total of 16 PBDE congeners were determined, of which only six occur in more than 38% of fat tissue samples. The total PBDE level attains an average value of 3.31 ng/g, which is 25% less than was measured in 2009. On the other hand, there was an increase in the levels of two PCB congeners, which was caused by an increase of the total PCB concentration from level of 625.5 ng/g, published in 2009, to the current level of 776 ng/g. The level of DDTs decreased and currently has a value of 467.4 ng/g, which is about 24% lower than in 2009. The contamination of obese middle-aged women in Czechia by more modern types of pollutants, such as PBDEs, is incomparably lower than that by PCBs and DDTs and is also decreasing in time.

Over the past decades, chiroptical spectroscopy has proved its incomparable ability to elucidate the structure and spatial arrangement of chiral molecules. Systematic analysis of biomolecules in the natural environment of biofluids, however, remains challenging. In this study, we used chiroptical spectroscopy to monitor urinary levels of human serum albumin. Not only severe proteinuria but even just a slightly increased urinary excretion of albumin (microalbuminuria) may indicate serious health complications, especially for diabetic individuals. Given the chiral nature of albumin and its typical spectral pattern, it may be easily observable by chiroptical spectroscopy, particularly electronic circular dichroism. The performed chiroptical analysis of urine not only allowed the detection of clinically confirmed microalbuminuria but was also able to reveal this pathological condition in cases beyond the diagnostic capability of common clinical procedures. Thus, our approach suggests that electronic circular dichroism is a useful tool for the fast and reliable qualitative monitoring of microalbuminuria with the potential for a quantitative analysis in the future.