Distribution and altitudinal structuring of phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in southern Anatolia, Turkey: their relation to human cutaneous leishmaniasis.

The two Old World genera, Phlebotomus and Sergentomyia, were both recorded in southern Anatolia in Turkey. Phlebotomus species predominated and comprised about 93% of the entire collection (3,172 specimens). Out of the sixteen species identified, two belonged to the genus Sergentomyia: S. dentata and S. theodori. The remaining fourteen species in the genus Phlebotomus were grouped under four subgenera including some species that are elsewhere known to act as vectors of human cutaneous leishmaniasis. Most of the Phlebotomus were P. tobbi (32.5%), but P. papatasi, P. transcaucasicus, P. halepensis, P. galilaeus, P. sergenti, P. syriacus, P. neglectus, P. simici, P. alexandri, P. similis, P jacusieli, P. perfiliewi, and P. brevis were also identified. There were two associations of sand fly fauna with altitudinal gradient; the first one at relatively higher altitudes and the second one at lower altitudes. The transition between these two assemblages was within the range of 800-1,000 m. It is likely that Adana and Hatay provinces are transitional areas between western and eastern Anatolia. Mountains do not appear to be important geographical barriers for sand fly distribution. We also found that the proven vector P. sergenti is a widely distributed species throughout southern Anatolia and this species, together with its closely related species P. similis, shows sympatry in Konya Province.     

Ex vivo elimination of neoplastic T-cells from human marrow using an anti-Mr 41,000 protein immunotoxin: potentiation by ASTA Z 7557

ASTA Z 7557 potentiated the ex vivo efficiency of a T-cell directed immunotoxin containing pokeweed antiviral protein (PAP). We used an immunotoxin of pan-T monoclonal antibody 3-A1 directed against p41 antigen expressed both on normal and leukemic T-cells. Treatment with 3A1-PAP in combination with ASTA Z 7557 produced 7-8 logs elimination of target lymphoblastic leukemia cells. Our data suggest that this new strategy shows potential for more effective ex vivo marrow purging in autologous marrow transplantation for acute lymphoblastic leukemia.     

Combined ex vivo treatment with immunotoxins and mafosfamid: a novel immunochemotherapeutic approach for elimination of neoplastic T cells from autologous marrow grafts

We evaluated a novel ex vivo "purging" protocol for selective elimination of neoplastic T cells from human marrow by using a sensitive clonogenic assay. Immunotoxins (IT) were synthesized by conjugating ricin (R) to four different monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) directed against distinct markers of T cell lineage. Treatment with anti-p67-R produced effective elimination of leukemic T cells from human marrow. The cyclophosphamide congener mafosfamid (ASTA Z 7577) markedly enhanced the target cell cytotoxicity of IT and extended the final level of clonogenic kill 2 to 3 logs. Our data show that anti-p67-R in combination with mafosfamid resulted in a maximum elimination of 6.2 logs of neoplastic T cells with minimal toxicity to normal bone marrow progenitors. The efficiency of this protocol was not reduced in the presence of excess normal bone marrow cells. Similar findings were obtained by using a cocktail of four different anti-T cell IT. This approach is unique in combining both immunologic (IT) and chemical (mafosfamid) strategies for more effective ex vivo bone marrow purging in autologous bone marrow transplantation for T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoblastic lymphoma.     

B lymphocyte regulation of human hematopoiesis

Epstein Barr virus (EBV)-transformed B lymphoblastoid cell lines (BLCL) were derived from seven different individuals. The ability of BLCL supernatants to stimulate hematopoietic colony formation in vitro was tested in a conventional stem cell assay system. Supernatants promoted the growth of single (GM, E, MK) as well as multi-lineage (GEMM) colonies in bone marrow cultures. Our results indicate that EBV-transformed B lymphocytes produce cytokines that affect in vitro stem cell proliferation and differentiation. These studies demonstrate the regulatory potential of activated B lymphocytes in human hematopoiesis.     

Anti-T cell immunotoxins containing pokeweed anti-viral protein: potential purging agents for human autologous bone marrow transplantation

The ex vivo anti-leukemic efficacy and stem cell toxicity of two different T cell directed immunotoxins containing pokeweed antiviral protein (PAP) were studied by clonal assays. 5E9-11-PAP, an immunotoxin directed against human transferrin receptors, elicited a maximum leukemic cell kill of 3.9 logs. However, it was also toxic against normal pluripotent stem cells, and therefore is not a clinically useful purgative reagent. PAP conjugated to 3-A1, a monoclonal antibody directed against CD7 (T, p41), was more effective against leukemic T cells than 5E9-11-PAP and eliminated a maximum of 4.8 log of cells. 3A1-PAP was only slightly toxic to pluripotent stem cells: 13% of CFU-GEMM were lost after treatment with 3000 ng of 3A1-PAP/ml, a concentration that eliminated 99.96% of contaminating leukemic T cells from a 200-fold excess of normal bone marrow. Cryopreservation of treated cells by conventional methods did not affect the extreme selectivity and potency of 3A1-PAP. Incubation of 3A1-PAP with peripheral blood mononuclear cells resulted in the complete inhibition of phytohemagglutinin-induced mitogenic response, illustrating the possibility of using this immunotoxin as a potent anti-T cell reagent for prophylaxis against graft vs host disease in allogeneic BMT as well.     

Evaluation of cytotoxic,antifungal, and larvicidal activities of different bis-sulfonamide Schiff base compounds

Schiff bases (imines or azomethines) are versatile ligands synthesized from the condensation of amino compounds with active carbonyl groups and used for many pharmaceutical and medicinal applications. In our study, we aimed to determine the cytotoxic, antifungal and larvicidal activities of biologically potent bis-sulfonamide Schiff base derivatives that were re-synthesized by us. For this aim, 16 compounds were re-synthesized and tested for their cytotoxic, antifungal and larvicidal properties. Among this series, compounds A1B2 , A1B4 , A4B2 , A4B3 , and A4B4 were shown to have cytotoxic activity against tested cancer lung cell line (A549). The most potent antifungal activity was observed in compounds A2B1 and A2B2 against all fungi. A1B1 showed the strongest larvicidal effect at all concentrations at the 72nd h (100% mortality). These obtained results demonstrate that these type of bis-substituted compounds might be used as biologically potent pharmacophores against different types of diseases.     

HPLC-DAD Analysis and Versatile Bioactivities of Turkish Sunflower Honeys Using Chemometric Approaches

Sunflower honey (SH) is bright yellow, fragrant, pollen-flavoured, slightly herbaceous and has a unique taste. The present research aims to examine the enzyme inhibitory, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and anti-quorum sensing activities and phenolic compositions of 30 sunflower honeys (SHs) produced from several regions of Turkey with chemometric study. SAH from Samsun exhibited the best antioxidant activity in β-carotene linoleic acid (IC₅₀: 7.33±0.17 mg/mL) and CUPRAC (A_0.50: 4.94±0.13 mg/mL) assays, anti-urease activity (60.63±0.87 %) and anti-inflammatory activity against COX-1 (73.94±1.08 %) and COX-2 (44.96±0.85 %). SHs exhibited mild antimicrobial activity against the test microorganisms while they showed high quorum sensing inhibition zones measured in the range of 42–52 mm against the CV026 strain. The phenolic composition was determined by high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC-DAD) system and levulinic, gallic, p-hydroxybenzoic, vanillic and p-coumaric acids were identified in all studied SHs. The classification of SHs was performed the using PCA and HCA. This study revealed that phenolic compounds and biological properties are effective in classification of SHs according to their geographical origin. The results suggest that studied SHs could be valued as potential agents with versatile bioactivities in oxidative stress-related disease, microbial infections, inflammation, melanoma, and peptic ulcer.     

CD45 cross-linking regulates phospholipase C activation and tyrosine phosphorylation of specific substrates in CD3/Ti-stimulated T cells.

In lymphocytes, CD45 regulates the increase in cytoplasmic calcium concentration that occurs after receptor cross-linking. Here we show that T cell receptor complex (CD3/Ti)-mediated inositol phosphate production was inhibited by CD45 ligation in Jurkat cells. CD3/Ti signaling in normal T cells was also inhibited by CD45 ligation, but coupling of CD4 with CD3/Ti gave augmented calcium signals that were entirely resistant to the inhibitory effect of CD45. In contrast, CD3-induced T cell proliferation was suppressed by immobilized CD45 mAb even in the presence of CD4 mAb. The effect of CD45 and CD4 ligation on tyrosine phosphorylation during T cell activation was directly examined by immunoblotting with anti-phosphotyrosine. Using immobilized mAb, CD45 ligation suppressed the tyrosine phosphorylation of specific substrates induced by CD3/Ti stimulation, including almost complete suppression of 150-, 36-, and 35-kDa proteins and partial suppression of 76- and 80-kDa proteins. Other tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins induced by CD3/Ti stimulation, including 135- and 21-kDa proteins, were not suppressed by simultaneous ligation of CD3/Ti and CD45. Simultaneous ligation of CD3 and CD4 enhanced tyrosine phosphorylation of all substrates, but did not overcome the CD45-mediated suppression of tyrosine phosphorylation of the 35- and 36-kDa proteins. The CD45-mediated suppression of phospholipase C activation is therefore modulated by association with CD4 without altering the specific inhibition of tyrosine phosphorylation and T cell proliferation after co-ligation of CD45 and CD3/Ti.     

Foliar Application of Phosphorus Enhances Photosynthesis and Biochemical Characteristics of Maize under Drought Stress

Water is essential for the growth period of crops; however, water unavailability badly affects the growth and physiological attributes of crops, which considerably reduced the yield and yield components in crops. Therefore, a pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of foliar phosphorus (P) on morphological, gas exchange, biochemical traits, and phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) of maize (Zea mays L.) hybrids grown under normal as well as water deficit situations at the Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan in 2014. Two different treatments (control and P @ 8 kg ha⁻¹ ) and four hybrids (Hycorn, 31P41, 65625, and 32B33) of maize were tested by using a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Results showed that the water stress caused a remarkable decline in total soluble protein (9.7%), photosynthetic rate (9.4%) and transpiration rate (13.4%), stomatal conductance (10.2%), and internal CO₂ rate (20.4%) comparative to well-watered control. An increase of 37.1%, 36.8%, and 24.5% were recorded for proline, total soluble sugar, and total free amino acid, respectively. However, foliar P application minimized the negative impact of drought by improving plant growth, physio-biochemical attributes, and PUE in maize plants under water stress conditions. Among the hybrids tested, the hybrid 6525 performed better both under stress and non-stress conditions. These outcomes confirmed that the exogenous application of P improved drought stress tolerance by modulating growth, physio-biochemical attributes, and PUE of maize hybrids.     

Comparison of outpatient and inpatient spa therapy in knee osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common condition that impacts many people worldwide and involves weight-bearing joints, resulting in chronic pain. In this study, we aimed to compare the effectiveness of inpatient and outpatient physical therapy modalities and spa combination treatments on pain and functional status in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Seventy-four patients diagnosed with primary knee osteoarthritis were included in this study. The patients were randomized into two groups, inpatient (n?=?37) and outpatient (n?=?37) physical therapy. All patients received a physical therapy program (superficial heater + deep heater + transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) for 2 weeks and spa therapy. All cases were evaluated clinically, laboratory, and radiographically. In order to evaluate pain and functional status, the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC), and Timed Up and Go (TUG) test were used before and after treatment. There was no significant difference between the two groups in the TUG test and WOMAC scores (p?>?0.05). However, a significant difference was found in VAS scores in favor of the outpatient group (p?<?0.05). As a result, although there was a significant improvement in pain scores in the outpatient group, multicenter studies with larger patient groups may provide more evidence.