Biomedical subjects

Wojciech Piekoszewski

Publications and source records attributed to Wojciech Piekoszewski.

39 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Reduced potency of zinc to interact with NMDA receptors in hippocampal tissue of suicide victims.

Zinc is involved in both psychopathology and treatment of depression. Since a considerable percentage of suicide victims had suffered from depression, we hypothesized that alteration in zinc homeostasis might occur in their brain tissue. We now report that zinc content is not altered in the hippocampal or cortical tissue of suicide victims (n = 10) compared to age-matched controls (n = 10). However, there is a statistically significant 26% decrease in the potency (increase in the IC(50) value) of zinc to inhibit [(3)H]MK-801 binding to NMDA receptors in the hippocampal but not cortical tissue of suicide subjects. The data represent the first demonstration that the alteration in zinc interaction with NMDA receptors may be involved in psychopathology underlying suicidal attempts.

Binding Sites↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effect of rutin on total antioxidant status of rats exposed to cigarette smoke.

Exposure to tobacco smoke impairs the antioxidant defense mechanisms. In female Wistar rats fed on regular rodent chow and supplemented with a flavonoids rutin, Trolox Equivalent Antioxidant Capacity (TEAC) was measured as an ABTS-radical cation reduction power in plasma, lungs, liver, brain and kidneys. Exposure to smoke reduced the TEAC values in the liver, brain and kidneys and enhanced antioxidant potential in lungs in comparison to control animals. In plasma no change of TEAC value was observed. Supplementation with rutin increased antioxidant status of plasma, but TEAC was reduced in kidneys, brain and liver of smoke-exposed animals when compared to the matched controls. In lung no change in TEAC was found. The results suggest a complex pattern of influence of tobacco smoke on blood and tissue antioxidant mechanisms. The enrichment of diet with non-nutrient antioxidant rutin did not result in direct improvement of tissue TEAC with the exception of blood plasma.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Antepartum/postpartum depressive symptoms and serum zinc and magnesium levels.

In the present study, we investigated the relationship between depressive symptoms and serum zinc and magnesium level in antepartum and postpartum women. All women received standard vitamin, zinc and magnesium supplementation. Sixty-six pregnant women in the Czerwiakowski Hospital in Kraków were assessed for prepartum depressive symptoms using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Sixty-two and fifty-eight women were also assessed for postpartum depressive symptoms (using Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Rating Scale, EPDRS) at 3 and 30 days after delivery, respectively. Serum zinc and magnesium levels were also determined at these time points, however, the number of examined subjects were diminished. A significantly higher EPDRS score (by 45%), indicating severity of depressive symptoms, was found on the 3rd day after childbirth compared with the 30th postpartum day. Moreover, the early post-delivery period (3rd day) was characterized by a 24% lower serum zinc concentration than that found on the 30th day after childbirth. BDI scores assessed a month before childbirth revealed mild depressive symptoms, which was accompanied by a serum zinc concentration similar to that found on the 3rd day after delivery. No significant alterations were found in the magnesium levels between these time points. The present results demonstrated a relationship between severity of depressive symptoms and decreased serum zinc (but not magnesium) concentration in a very specific type of affective disorder, the postpartum depression.

Adult↗