These baseline data will be useful for future studies on the effect of ultraviolet radiation to cause photoaging and reparative effects of similar agents in this animal. The information contained in the report may provide guidelines to consumers and clinicians.

this paper presents a study of the response of fRet based DnA aptasensors in the intracellular environment. Herein, we extend previous studies of aptasensors functioning in the extracellular environment to detection of antigens in the intracellular environment. An essential step in this research is the use of a novel means of achieving the endocytosis of aptasensors. Specifically, it is demonstrated that functioning aptasensors are successfully endocytosed by functionalizing the aptasensors with endocytosis-inducing DSS peptides. Biomarker proteins are an important indicator of the presence of a specific disease condition in the physiological system. Hence, sensors for biomarker protein detection are being widely studied today. Techniques like Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assays (ELISAs) have been traditionally used to determine biomarker proteins like Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-α). TNF-α has been determined to be an important biomarker for infectious conditions like sepsis 1 while Glycated albumin (GA) has been observed to be a more versatile biomarker of diabetes mellitus for all kinds of patients including the ones with blood based disorders 2. Therefore, the objective of this study is to detect these biomarkers in an intracellular environment in order to facilitate early detection of these diseases; this is possible due to the pioneering work on the use of DSS as an endocytosis-inducing peptide. Ghosh et.al have summarized previously published detection techniques for TNF-α and GA and compared the advantages of their FRET based DNA aptasensors with those of the published sensing platforms 1,2. DNA aptamers are short oligonucleotides, which have the capability of binding to another molecule. Aptamer based sensors have been evaluated to have excellent recognition capacity towards various types of target molecules. These antigens include metal ions like lead 3 , mercury 4 , potassium 5-7 as well as biomolecules like thrombin 8 , interferon-γ 9 , ATP 10 , AMP 11 etc. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) is a process, which facilitates transfer of energy from a 'donor' nanostructure to an 'acceptor' nanostructure. The efficiency of the FRET process is proportional to 1/ {1 + (d/d o) 6 } where d is the distance between the donor and the acceptor and d o is generally approximately 5 nm 12-14. The 1/{1 + (d/d o) 6 } dependence results from a dipole-dipole interactions between the donor and the acceptor. For a typical case, the FRET effect is relatively strong when d is less than about 5 nm and is relatively weak when d is greater than about 5 nm. In this study, the donor is a semiconductor quantum dot (QD) and the acceptor is a gold (Au) nanoparticle. When the QD and the Au nanoparticle are closer than about 5 nm there is strong transfer of energy from the QD to the Au nanoparticle and there is consequently less energy available in the quantum dot to emit as photons. Accordingly, when the QD and the Au nanoparticle are closer together the light emitted by the QD decreases significantly. The quantum dot ...

Problem To compare topical effects of 5 anti-aging agents on epidermal histology in the non-irradiated hairless mouse. Methods Female retired breeders (SKH-1 hairless mouse) were treated topically on the dorsal skin with 5 commercially available agents as a daily treatment for 2 weeks. The agents used were retinoic acid, glycolic acid, estrogen, soy, and vitamin C. Skin sections were analyzed in the light microscope to acquire morphometric data of keratinocyte proliferation (Index of Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen), epidermal thickness, and nuclear volume of cells from three epidermal layers. Quantitative data were analyzed with SPSS 14.0 statistical software to detect significant difference between the means of control and 5 experimental groups. Results Epidermal stimulation was observed with all cosmeceuticals but most pronounced effects resulted from the application of glycolic acid, and estrogen, and retinoic acid to a somewhat lesser degree. Soy and vitamin C produced significant cellular changes of lesser magnitude. Conclusion Reported studies of many of these agents were conducted in the irradiated mice, and their effects on the intact animal skin have been rarely documented. These data will be useful for our contemplated studies of photo aging in the same species. Agents like retinoic acid derivatives, or glycolic acid are popular rejuvenating compounds, but have been reported to produce annoying side effects. Milder compounds like Vitamin C or soy may cause reversal of detrimental aging changes without cutaneous side effects. Significance This study may be helpful to pinpoint therapeutic advantages of popular anti-wrinkle compounds, and devise clinical strategies to combat photo aging. Support This research has been supported by the 2007 Leslie Bernstein Grant from the AAFPRS Foundation.