Heat stress aggravates oxidative stress,apoptosis, and endoplasmic reticulum stress in the cerebellum of male C57 mice

Molecular Biology Reports - The current study was set to assess the effect of heat stress exposure on oxidative stress, apoptosis, and endoplasmic reticulum stress markers in the cerebellum of male...     

The antagonistic/synergistic effects of some medicinal plant essential oils,extracts and powders combined with Diatomaceous earth on red flour beetle,Tribolium castaneum Herbst (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Abstract

Red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum Herbst (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) is a prominent pest of stored products particularly cereal flour. Since resistance of this pest to common chemical insecticides is well documented, we were examined the synergistic/antagonistic interaction between Satureja hortensis L., Trachyspermum ammi L., Ziziphora tenuior L., Cuminum cyminum L. and Foeniculum vulgare Miller essential oils, ethanolic extracts and powders with Diatomaceous earth (DE) against T. castaneum adults under laboratory conditions at 27 ± 1 °C, 65 ± 5% RH and continuous darkness. We assayed repellency of ethanolic extracts and essential oils of mentioned plants on the pest. Results showed that DE had high toxicity to the pest. Plant essential oils and ethanolic extracts (except ziziphora) synergized the performance of DE. Nevertheless, plant powders elicited antagonistic effects (except ziziphora that exhibited synergistic effect). The most repellent EO and extract was cumin which exhibited mean repellency value on adult insect equivalent to 92.58 and 51.47%, respectively.     

A genetic assay of three patients in the same family with Holt-Oram syndrome; a case report

Holt-Oram syndrome (HOS) is a developmental disorder inherited in an autosomal-dominant pattern. Affected organs are the heart and forelimbs with upper extremity skeletal defects and congenital heart malformation. In this study we present three cases of HOS in the same family. In one of these three individuals we detected a transition of C to T (CTG-GTT, V205V) in exon 7 of the TBX5 gene. This nucleotide change causes no amino acid change and potential pathologic effects remain unknown.Key Words: Holt-Oram syndrome, Congenital heart malformation, TBX5 gene     

2-(Bipiperidin-1-yl)-5-(nitroaryl)-1,3,4-thiadiazoles: Synthesis,evaluation of in vitro leishmanicidal activity,and mechanism of action

The development of novel leishmanicidal agents that are capable of being replaced by the available therapeutic options has become a priority. In the present study, the synthesis and leishmanicidal activity of a series of 5-(nitroheteroaryl-2-yl)-1,3,4-thiadiazole derivatives are described. All compounds appeared to be potent anti-leishmanial agents against both promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania major (L. major). Amongst the synthesized compounds, 2-([1,4′-bipiperidin]-1′-yl)-5-(5-nitrofuran-2-yl)-1,3,4-thiadiazole (IIa) and 1-(5-(1-methyl-5-nitro-1H-imidazole-2-yl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-4-(piperidine-1-yl) piperidine (IIc) are the most effective. Infection index was statistically declined in the presence of all compounds. The analysis of redox-related factors revealed that exposure of L. major cells to IIa and IIc led to an increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS). Furthermore, two compounds were able to increase ROS and NO levels in infected macrophages in a dose-independent manner. In addition, we showed that these compounds induced cell death in promastigotes. Altogether, our results indicated the anti-leishmanial potential of IIa and IIc is mediated by apoptosis through an imbalance in the redox system resulting in the elevation of ROS. This new class of compound seems to hold great promise for the development of new and useful anti-leishmanial agents.     

Pyrophosphate inhibits mineralization of osteoblast cultures by binding to mineral, up-regulating osteopontin, and inhibiting alkaline phosphatase activity

Inorganic pyrophosphate (PP(i)) produced by cells inhibits mineralization by binding to crystals. Its ubiquitous presence is thought to prevent "soft" tissues from mineralizing, whereas its degradation to P(i) in bones and teeth by tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (Tnap, Tnsalp, Alpl, Akp2) may facilitate crystal growth. Whereas the crystal binding properties of PP(i) are largely understood, less is known about its effects on osteoblast activity. We have used MC3T3-E1 osteoblast cultures to investigate the effect of PP(i) on osteoblast function and matrix mineralization. Mineralization in the cultures was dose-dependently inhibited by PP(i). This inhibition could be reversed by Tnap, but not if PP(i) was bound to mineral. PP(i) also led to increased levels of osteopontin (Opn) induced via the Erk1/2 and p38 MAPK signaling pathways. Opn regulation by PP(i) was also insensitive to foscarnet (an inhibitor of phosphate uptake) and levamisole (an inhibitor of Tnap enzymatic activity), suggesting that increased Opn levels did not result from changes in phosphate. Exogenous OPN inhibited mineralization, but dephosphorylation by Tnap reversed this effect, suggesting that OPN inhibits mineralization via its negatively charged phosphate residues and that like PP(i), hydrolysis by Tnap reduces its mineral inhibiting potency. Using enzyme kinetic studies, we have shown that PP(i) inhibits Tnap-mediated P(i) release from beta-glycerophosphate (a commonly used source of organic phosphate for culture mineralization studies) through a mixed type of inhibition. In summary, PP(i) prevents mineralization in MC3T3-E1 osteoblast cultures by at least three different mechanisms that include direct binding to growing crystals, induction of Opn expression, and inhibition of Tnap activity.     

Modulation of Apoptosis and Oxidative Stress with Nesfatin-1 in Doxorubicin Induced Cardiotoxicity in Male Rat

International Journal of Peptide Research and Therapeutics - Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a metabolic regulator with a wide range of biological functions. Although previous studies have...     

Evaluation of the neuroprotective effects of electromagnetic fields and coenzyme Q10 on hippocampal injury in mouse

Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are reported to interfere with chemical reactions involving free radical production. Coenzyme Q₁₀ (CoQ10) is a strong antioxidant with some neuroprotective activities. The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the neuroprotective effects of EMF and CoQ10 in a mouse model of hippocampal injury. Hippocampal injury was induced in mature female mice (25–30 g), using an intraperitoneal injection of trimethyltin hydroxide (TMT; 2.5 mg/kg). The experimental groups were exposed to EMF at a frequency of 50 Hz and intensity of 5.9 mT for 7 hr daily over 1 week or treated with CoQ10 (10 mg/kg) for 2 weeks following TMT injection. A Morris water maze apparatus was used to assess learning and spatial memory. Nissl staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) tests were also performed for the histopathological analysis of the hippocampus. Antiapoptotic genes were studied, using the Western blot technique. The water maze test showed memory improvement following treatment with CoQ10 and coadministration of CoQ10 + EMF. The Nissl staining and TUNEL tests indicated a decline in necrotic and apoptotic cell count following treatment with CoQ10 and coadministration of CoQ10 + EMF. The Western blot study indicated the upregulation of antiapoptotic genes in treatment with CoQ10, as well as coadministration. Also, treatment with EMF had no significant effects on reducing damage induced by TMT in the hippocampus. According to the results, EMF had no significant neuroprotective effects in comparison with CoQ10 on hippocampal injury in mice. Nevertheless, coadministration of EMF and CoQ10 could improve the neuroprotective effects of CoQ10.     

Anti-cancer study and whey protein complexation of new lanthanum(III) complex with the aim of achieving bioactive anticancer metal-based drugs

In this study, a new lanthanum (III)-amino acid complex utilizing cysteine has been synthesized and characterized. The anticancer activities of the prepared La(III) complex against MCF-7 cell lines were studied. Results of MTT assay showed that at all three incubation times, the cytotoxic effect of prepared La(III) complex on MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines displays a time- and dose-dependent inhibitory effects. The interactions of the La(III) complex with two whey proteins (bovine serum albumin, BSA, and Bovine β-lactoglobulin, βLG) have been explored by using spectroscopic and molecular dicking methods. The obtained results indicated that La(III) complex strongly quenched the fluorescence of two carrier proteins in static quenching mode and also, BSA hah stronger binding affinity toward studied complex than βLG whit binding constant values of K_{BSA-La?Complex}?～?0.11?×?10⁴ M^?1 and K_{βLG-La?Complex}?～?0.63?×?10³ M^?1 at 300 K. The thermodynamic parameters revealed the contribution of hydrogen bond and Vander Waals interactions in both systems. The distances of the La(III) complex whit whey proteins were calculated using Förster energy transfer theory and proved existence of the energy transfer between two proteins and prepared La(III) complex with a high probability. FT-IR and UV–Vis absorption measurements indicated that the binding of the La(III) to BSA and βLG may induce conformational and micro-environmental changes of the proteins. The docking results indicate that the La(III) complex bind to residues located in the site II of BSA and second site of βLG.

Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma