Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging is one of the most advanced non-invasive methods of obtaining information about the heart and its function. One of the methods used is T1 mapping, which allows to measure the extracellular (interstitial) volume of the heart muscle, as one of the important markers of cardiovascular diseases.

T1 mapping uses measured T1 relaxation time values obtained before and after administration of a gadolinium contrast agent. However, the hematocrit value, which is the proportion of red blood cells to total blood volume, is also important for accurate calculation. In the study, researchers from the Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance team at the International Clinical Research Centre at St. Anne’s University Hospital Brno and the I. IKAK of St. Anne’s University Hospital Brno focused on determining it using values obtained directly during T1 mapping. This method greatly simplifies the whole procedure and is already used in some centres, but a comprehensive overview of calculation methods has not been published yet. In addition to determining the best method of calculation, the researchers also attempted to further refine the formula by adding the values obtained after the application of the contrast agent.

For this purpose, they used values obtained by measuring 139 patients. “We first measured hematocrit values using standard laboratory techniques, then used cardiovascular magnetic resonance to determine the T1 relaxation times of the blood before and after contrast agent administration and used statistical methods to determine the relationship between these values. Subsequently, we investigated the accuracy of the calculation with each type of formula using conventional formulas, calibrated statistically for our department and then adding post-contrast values,” said Dr. Lukáš Opatřil.

In the end, the reciprocal model of the formula calibrated for the workplace proved to be the most accurate and the addition of post-contrast values further improved its accuracy significantly. “Using this calculation could unify and refine this time- and cost-efficient method in the future,” said Dr Opatřil.

The final formula and the full study can be found here:

The second highest civilian award, the Order of the Italian Star, was awarded to an Italian scientist Giancarlo Forte this June. He received the award in recognition of his work and for representing Italy abroad. He is the head of the Center for Translational Medicine at the International Center for Clinical Research of the St. Anne’s University Hospital in Brno (FNUSA-ICRC), which he has built and has been working there for more than 8 years. In the past, he also lived and worked in Japan and Germany, but since 2013 he has been living with his wife in Brno, where their daughter was born in 2017.

When it comes to his research, he studies cardiovascular diseases, diseases of the brain and nervous system, immune system diseases and selected types of cancer. As a part of his research, he also works with stem cells that can regenerate tissues and thus represent a potential for the treatment of many diseases.

Was becoming a scientist always your dream, or did you have another career in mind?

When I was a kid, I wanted to become an archeologist. Because I had this dream of becoming Indiana Jones, but then with time, I developed an interest in natural sciences and biology. My decision to become a scientist was made in high school.

Previously you worked and lived abroad, why did you choose specifically Germany and Japan?

Usually, in science, you don’t choose that much as far as location is concerned because of the projects. Whenever you are working on a specific scientific project, you make sure that you choose the best place where this can be pursued. So Germany came as an offer after my Graduation, and I was interested in the offered project. So I decided to move there. With Japan, it was similar, but in that case, one of my mentors of the Ph.D. moved to japan, and he invited me to join for a while. During that period, I met a japanese professor who invited me to apply for a position, and that’s how I got the job in Japan. Moving around is basically driven by science and the specific programs that each place focuses on.

Were you always planning to work or live abroad?

No, I always had this idea of being a globetrotter, and I wanted to actually move abroad for a period of time. I just didn’t know how long this period would be. And then with science, you are told constantly that you should go to the best lab or to follow the project you are working on. And then it became natural. It’s kind of a natural part of the life of all scientists.

Out of all the places in the world, why did you choose Brno?

This was pure chance. Basically, after a few years in Japan, I decided I wanted to go back to Europe because of the earthquake, nuclear fallout, and tsunami. Those are the moments when you realize how far you are from Home. I started to look for a position, and then I found a possible position in this brand-new institute in Brno, and I simply took the challenge. I visited Brno, and I liked it immediately, so together with my wife, we decided that it was a good place to start fresh.

How different is Brno from other places where you have worked? Or is it the same everywhere?

No, it’s not the same everywhere. It’s completely the opposite of Japan. Since being in Japan feels like living upside down, Brno feels like going back to normality. European lifestyle is somehow homogenous, more homogenous than living in the far east or in the USA, so Brno is very close to our lifestyle. I think I just experienced the language shock, I was quite used to the European lifestyle, and Brno is quite a European city.

Is there something in Italy you miss now that you live in Brno?

We miss our family and friends. When you move around, you somehow feel closer to long-term friends. As we travel and move abroad, we are actually driven to value friendship and family more. Apart from that I also miss the weather and the food, but that’s something you can live with.

What does the award mean for those who receive it? And What does it mean to you specifically?

The award is a commendation by the president of the Italian republic, which is given to Italians but sometimes also foreigners who help represent the nation abroad. Even Though it is an old status, I was happy to see that probably for the first time, it was awarded to a scientist. Usually, most young italian scientists are forced to go abroad because there are no possibilities to work at home. I don’t think it’s bad, I decided to go on my own, and I never felt exiled. But for all Italian scientists who are abroad, it’s nice to hear that the president values our contribution even though we are not giving it directly to the country, but we are giving it to the country from abroad. So in my case, I felt that it was an appreciation of the work we have been doing. And it’s not just about me. It’s about the whole lab and the whole FNUSA-ICRC and what we have been doing to create an international environment and to make all the students and scientists who are traveling the world feel comfortable and like they are at home. We have many nationalities in the lab, and people are, as far as I know, happy to be there. We give them a chance, train them, and make sure they feel welcome.

What does your research focus on?

I specifically coordinate the center for translational medicine within the FNUSA-ICRC, where we do translational research. So we study and investigate the molecular basis of diseases affecting the cardiovascular system, diseases of the nervous system (brain and nervous system), diseases of the immune system, and some selected kinds of cancer. We basically try to bridge the clinical experience of the pathology itself, of the symptoms with the causes at the cell and tissue level.

What are your research plans or goals for the future, and are you planning to stay in Brno?

During these years, we have made some interesting contributions and discoveries about new possible mechanisms of pathologies both in cancer and in cardiovascular diseases, so we would like to investigate this further. The challenge here is to turn our knowledge of the mechanisms of disease into a cure. We would be happy to move a little closer to the clinics and the patients and try to understand how we can control these molecular processes to design some potential treatments. Obviously, I am dreaming here because the path to the clinics is very far for everybody, and it is clear to everybody that the path from translational science to the design of disease treatment is a very long one.

When it comes to moving abroad, that depends on many circumstances. It’s also true that scientists are globetrotters, and sooner or later, they need to find a new place. It’s possible that in the future, we will look for new challenges somewhere else, but for the time being, we are happy in Brno. We are happy with the possibilities we have to do research and express ourselves as scientists, and there is currently no plan we have for the far future.

Do you have any wild dreams or plans you have when it comes to research?

Most of the science is incremental. We try to take little steps in one direction, which are fueled not only by curiosity but also by the support of other colleagues. This knowledge builds up, and then, in the end, you reach something revolutionary, but most of the efforts are incremental. I definitely don’t plan a revolution. Revolutions in science are usually random, so they come just by chance.

The blood of many animals, including humans, contains about 40% red blood cells, which bind oxygen but also impede blood flow in the blood vessels. Mathematical models suggest that 40% is optimal. It provides the highest oxygen supply to the tissues. Nature has arrived at it through evolution. However, previous theories have not explained why elite athletes perform better after (illegal) blood transfusions or erythropoietin, nor why there are animals, such as dogs and horses, that expel concentrated blood from the spleen during physical exercise. In both cases the resulting haematocrit is higher than the optimal 40%.

“Together with Dr. Stark and Prof. Schuster from the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena, Germany, we studied the optimal percentage of red blood cells in the blood (the so-called hematocrit) during extreme physical exertion limited by cardiac performance,” said Michal Šitina, M.D., head of the Biostatistics research team at the International Clinical Research Centre of St. Anne’s University Hospital in Brno.

“In our study, we mathematically described the blood oxygen supply to tissues both under resting conditions without cardiac restriction and under conditions of extreme physical exercise, when blood flow is restricted by maximal cardiac output,” described Šitina. The calculation showed that under resting conditions, the optimal hematocrit value is indeed 40%, but it rises to 60% during physical exercise. This is the value observed in horses just after a race. This work thus explained the observed findings and refined the theory of the optimal haematocrit. Limiting cardiac performance, however, even without major physical exertion, are patients with severe heart failure. “In the next theoretical study, we would like to calculate the optimal hematocrit value for just such patients,” said Šitina

The article is available here:

Mgr. Martin Toul, a member of the Protein Engineering team at International Clinical Research Center of St. Anne’s University Hospital Brno (FNUSA-ICRC), won the poster of the day award at the 45th Congress of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS). In addition, he also won the Outstanding poster of FEBS Open Bio Editor prize, which was given to only 4 out of a total of 1285 participants. The poster was titled “Engineering protein dynamics for the understanding of the divergent evolution of the Renilla luciferase” and described research on the role of protein dynamics and their high efficiency to understand the evolution of luciferase in Sea pansy (Renilla reniformis) on a molecular level.

Luciferase is the name of enzymes that allow animals to produce light (bioluminescence). The best-known example of an animal using bioluminescence is a firefly. The light is produced as a result of an oxidation reaction of a luciferin molecule in the presence of the enzyme luciferase. The range of bioluminescence colors is relatively extensive, ranging from blue-violet, found mainly in marine organisms including the sea pansy Renilla, to red, which can be seen on the beaches of California during so-called “red tides.”

Luciferase is beneficial not only for organisms in nature but also for laboratory use. It serves as an imaging technique for processes in living organisms, such as insulin secretion imaging. It can also monitor genes, their expression, or their interaction with other biomolecules. Luciferase is also used to monitor the spreading of labeled viruses or cancer cells. Using dynamics engineering of luciferase, Toul, in collaboration with other colleagues from the research team, constructed a new type of luciferase with a 100 times prolonged bioluminescence compared to the original short flash.

 

“The result is of great importance wherever the enzyme luciferase is used as a diagnostic system for monitoring gene expression or as an imaging technique. The prolongation of bioluminescence can extend the practical application of luciferase even more and make it more efficient, as the original short flash luminescence was not suitable for long-term monitoring of a stable bioluminescence signal. The newly modified protein makes this possible, “concluded Toul.