Ondansetron enhanced diclofenac‐induced nephrotoxicity in mice

This study was performed to investigate the effect of ondansetron, a serotonin receptor (5‐HT3) antagonist, in the alleviation of diclofenac‐induced kidney injuries. NMRI mice were randomly divided into six groups and treated with (A) untreated control group, (B) diclofenac (100 mg/kg), (C) ondansetron (1 mg/kg), (D to F) ondansetron (0.1, 0.5, and 1 mg/kg, respectively) and diclofenac (100 mg/kg) for last 3 days of experiment. The oxidative stress tests strongly demonstrated the negative synergistic effects of diclofenac and ondansetron, regarding the observation of dose‐dependent enhancement of malondialdehyde concentration, and reduction of glutathione content, and superoxide dismutase and catalase activity. Histopathological analyses revealed dose‐dependent tubular epithelial cells degeneration, outstanding mononuclear cells infiltration, clear necrosis at the papillary region of kidney, dilation, and vascular hyperemia in mice kidney tissues treated with ondansetron and diclofenac. Conclusively, these findings suggested the possible ondansetron‐diclofenac interaction through the induction of oxidative stress.     

A bioinspired 3D shape olibanum-collagen-gelatin scaffolds with tunable porous microstructure for efficient neural tissue regeneration

There are a number of procedures for regeneration of injured nerves; however, tissue engineering scaffolds seems to be a promising approach for recovery of the functionality of the injured nerves. Consequently, in this study, olibanum-collagen-gelatin scaffolds were fabricated by freeze-cast technology. For this purpose, the olibanum and collagen were extracted from natural sources. The effect of solidification gradient on microstructure and properties of scaffolds was investigated. Scanning electron microscopy micrographs showed the formation of lamellar-type microstructure in which the average pore size reduced with an increase in freezing rate. According to the results, the prepared scaffolds at lower freezing rate showed a slight reduction in mechanical strength while the swelling and biodegradation ratio were increased due to the presence of larger pores and unidirectional channels. The composition of scaffolds and oriented microstructure improved cellular interaction. In addition, scaffolds with lower freezing rate exhibited promising results in terms of adhesion, spreading, and proliferation. In brief, the synthesized scaffolds at lower solidification rate have the potential for more in vitro and in vivo analyses to regeneration of neural defects.     

A radiobiological comparison of hypo-fractionation versus conventional fractionation for breast cancer 3D-conformal radiation therapy

BackgroundThe present research was aimed to compare the toxicity and effectiveness of conventional fractionated radiotherapy versus hypo-fractionated radiotherapy in breast cancer utilizing a radiobiological model.Materials and methodsThirty-five left-sided breast cancer patients without involvement of the supraclavicular and axillary lymph nodes (with the nodal stage of N0) that had been treated with conventional or hypo-fractionated were incorporated in this study. A radiobiological model was performed to foretell normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) and tumor control probability (TCP).ResultsThe data represented that TCP values for conventional and hypo-fractionated regimens were 99.16 ± 0.09 and 95.96 ± 0.48, respectively (p = 0.00). Moreover, the NTCP values of the lung for conventional and hypo-fractionated treatment were 0.024 versus 0.13 (p = 0.035), respectively. Also, NTCP values of the heart were equal to zero for both regimens.ConclusionIn summary, hypo-fractionated regimens had comparable efficacy to conventional fraction radiation therapy in the case of dosimetry parameters for patients who had left breast cancer. But, utilizing the radiobiological model, conventional fractionated regimens presented better results compared to hypo-fractionated regimens.     

The effect of substance P and its specific antagonist (aprepitant) on the expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, VEGF,and VEGFR in ovarian cancer cells

Molecular Biology Reports - Substance P (SP) has a crucial role in cancer initiation and progression via binding to its specific receptor (NK1R). Various evidence confirmed the overexpression of...     

Comparison of higher order spectra in heart rate signals during two techniques of meditation: Chi and Kundalini meditation

The human heartbeat is one of the important examples of complex physiologic fluctuations. For the first time in this study higher order spectra of heart rate signals during meditation have explored. Specifically, the aim of this study was to analysis and compares the contribution of quadratic phase coupling of human heart rate variability during two forms of meditation: (1) Chinese Chi (or Qigong) meditation and (2) Kundalini Yoga meditation. For this purpose, Bispectrum was estimated by using biased, parametric and the direct (FFT) method. The results show that the mean Bispectrum magnitude of heart rate signals increased during Kundalini Yoga meditation, but it decreased significantly during Chi meditation. However, in both meditation techniques phase-coupled harmonics are shifted to the higher frequencies during meditation. In addition, it has shown that not only there are significant differences between rest and meditation states, but also heart rate patterns appear to be influenced by different types of meditation.     

Germination and emergence of Astrodaucus orientalis (L.) Drude populations influenced by environmental factors and seed burial depth

Astrodaucus orientalis is a weed species in cropping systems and rangelands in Iran. The effects of temperature, light, NaCl concentration, water potential, seed burial depth and crop residue cover were assessed on seed germination and seedling emergence of two populations of A. orientalis from Ardabil (Meshginshahr population) and East Azarbayjan (Tabriz population) provinces of Iran. The A. orientalis populations indicated different responses to environmental factors and burial depth. In the Tabriz population the greatest germination (88.5%) was observed in 20/12°C day/night temperature but in the Meshginshahr population (83.2%) it was obtained in 24/16°C day/night temperature. Over a broad range of light period (10–24 hr light) germination was 74–83%, but it decreased (less than 37%) under 24 hr dark in both A. orientalis populations. With respect to water potential, the C₅₀ parameters were −0.62 and − 0.49 MPa for Tabriz and Meshginshahr populations, respectively. The D₅₀ parameters (the burial depth that caused 50% decrease in emergence) for Tabriz and Meshginshahr populations were 2.42 and 3.13 cm, respectively. Generally, the results showed that emergence of both populations of A. orientalis was delayed as depth of burial increased up to 4 cm and in cropping systems a shallow tillage that locates the seeds to >4 cm of depth in soil could be used in order to suppress seedling emergence. Our findings also could be useful in integrated management of A. orientalis in winter annual crops and rangelands.