s. m aghamiri

Bone metastases are one of the main consequences of some cancers, such as breast, lung and prostate cancers, which are accompanied by severe pain in the bone area. Gallium-68 radioisotope with a half-life of 68 minutes is one of the most suitable options in Positron emission tomography (PET) is used in nuclear medicine. In this study, one of the zoledronic acid derivatives was synthesized as a bone-seeking agent and then attached to the DOTA chelator. The DOTA-ZOL compound was finally used for 68Ga labeling. All synthesized products were identified by FT-IR, NMR and MASS spectroscopies. The radionuclide purity of gallium-68 was calibrated by HPGe detector and determined with a multi-channel analyzer (99.9%). The radiochemical purity of the generator wash solution was investigated by thin layer chromatography using two different solutions (100%). Labeling of the prepared complex with 68Ga was performed by DOTA chelator and the radiochemical purity of the final complex at the optimized conditions (pH=4, temperature 98ºC, reaction time: 30 min) was examined by thin layer chromatography technique and determined about 97%. The results of this study showed that 68Ga-DOTA-ZOL is a suitable diagnostic radiopharmaceutical for imaging bone metastases by PET method.

Acute-phase proteins (APPs) may be increased due to different stresses during estrus phase in farm animals.

Determining changes of APPs at different phases of non-synchronized estrous cycle group (NSEG), and Ovsynch-synchronized estrous cycle group (SEG) in Holstein cows.

Twelve non-pregnant clinically and paraclinicaly healthy Holstein cows with a body condition score (BCS) of 2.75 and 70 days in milk were chosen. Two groups including NSEG and SEG were performed. Blood sampling was carried out from NSEG at the time of diestrus, proestrus, and estrus. In SEG, blood sampling was performed on day 7 (at the time of prostaglandin injection, equivalent diestrus), day 9 (at the time of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) injection, equivalent proestrus), and day 10 (at the time of insemination, equivalent estrus) of synchronization protocol. Concentrations of haptoglobin (Hp), serum amyloid A (SAA), ceruloplasmin (Cp), and fibrinogen (Fib) were measured.

Concentration of Hp at estrus phase was significantly higher compared with diestrus (P=0.001) and proestrus (P=0.019) in NSEG. Moreover, Hp level in the NSEG was significantly higher than SEG at estrus phase (P=0.002). Concentrations of SAA, Cp, and Fib had no significant differences during various phases of estrous cycle in each group or between equivalent phases of both groups.

It seems that unlike SAA, Fib, and Cp, concentrations of Hp may be affected by different phases of estrous cycle. Although APPs are not specific indicators, their changes besides other clinical and paraclinical indices may be helpful for more accurate heat detection in dairy cows.