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The research activities within each of AUT’s five faculties are overseen by an Associate Dean of Research who works closely with the Pro Vice-Chancellor Research, Innovation and Enterprise. We encourage you to explore the broad suite of research activities from each faculties. Full text digital files are available open access for all items.

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Browsing AUT Faculties by Subject "0399 Other Chemical Sciences"

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    Concussion-Related Biomarker Variations in Retired Rugby Players and Implications for Neurodegenerative Disease Risk: The UK Rugby Health Study
    (MDPI AG, 2024-07-17) Alanazi, N; Fitzgerald, M; Hume, P; Hellewell, S; Horncastle, A; Anyaegbu, C; Papini, MG; Hargreaves, N; Halicki, M; Entwistle, I; Hind, K; Chazot, P
    The health and well-being of retired rugby union and league players, particularly regarding the long-term effects of concussions, are of major concern. Concussion has been identified as a major risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), in athletes engaged in contact sports. This study aimed to assess differences in specific biomarkers between UK-based retired rugby players with a history of concussion and a non-contact sports group, focusing on biomarkers associated with Alzheimer’s, ALS, and CTE. We randomly selected a sample of male retired rugby or non-contact sport athletes (n = 56). The mean age was 41.84 ± 6.44, and the mean years since retirement from the sport was 7.76 ± 6.69 for participants with a history of substantial concussions (>5 concussions in their career) (n = 30). The mean age was 45.75 ± 11.52, and the mean years since retirement was 6.75 ± 4.64 for the healthy controls (n = 26). Serum biomarkers (t-tau, RBP-4, SAA, Nf-L, and retinol), plasma cytokines, and biomarkers associated with serum-derived exosomes (Aβ42, p-tau181, p-tau217, and p-tau231) were analyzed using validated commercial ELISA assays. The results of the selected biomarkers were compared between the two groups. Biomarkers including t-tau and p-tau181 were significantly elevated in the history of the substantial concussion group compared to the non-contact sports group (t-tau: p < 0.01; p-tau181: p < 0.05). Although between-group differences in p-tau217, p-tau231, SAA, Nf-L, retinol, and Aβ42 were not significantly different, there was a trend for higher levels of Aβ42, p-tau217, and p-tau231 in the concussed group. Interestingly, the serum-derived exosome sizes were significantly larger (p < 0.01), and serum RBP-4 levels were significantly reduced (p < 0.05) in the highly concussed group. These findings indicate that retired athletes with a history of multiple concussions during their careers have altered serum measurements of exosome size, t-tau, p-tau181, and RBP-4. These biomarkers should be explored further for the prediction of future neurodegenerative outcomes, including ALS, in those with a history of concussion.
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    Syntheses and Structures of Transition Metal Complexes of Quinoline-Containing Multidentate Amine Ligands
    (Elsevier BV, 2024-03-01) Carr, B; Fleming, CL; Blackman, AG
    The literature pertaining to tri-, tetra-, penta-, and hexadentate amine ligands containing unsubstituted quinoline moieties is reviewed. The syntheses of these 46 ligands are detailed, and all X-ray structurally characterised transition metal complexes of these ligands are compiled and discussed. Comparisons to the analogous pyridine complexes, where they exist, are made. Most differences are found amongst the five-coordinate complexes, where the quinoline complexes mostly exhibit square pyramidal geometries, while the analogous pyridine complexes are predominantly trigonal bipyramidal. A structural feature we term the quinolyl split, where one or two quinolyl rings bisect an X-M-X angle, in contrast to their pyridine congeners, is identified.
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