Effect of propolis consumption on hepatotoxicity and brain damage in male rats exposed to chlorpyrifos

This study was undertaken to determine the protective effect of propolis against the hepatotoxicity and brain damage of chlorpyrifos (CPF) in male rats. Animals were assigned to one of four groups. The first group was used as control. Groups 2, 3 and 4 were treated with 6.8 mg CPF /kg BW (1/20 LD50); 50 mg propolis/kg BW; CPF (6.8 mg CPF/kg BW) plus propolis (50 mg propolis/kg BW). Rats were orally administered their respective doses daily for 28 days. Serum transaminases, glucose, lactate dehydrogenase, total proteins, albumin, reduced glutathione, thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances, superoxide dismutase and catalase were assessed. Also, total lipid, cholesterol, triglyceride and LDL-c were assayed. Oral treatment with CPF was found to elicit significant deterioration in all the tested parameters confirming its toxicity. The injury of liver tissues after CPF-treatment was confirmed by the histological changes. Also, CPF caused significant decrease in the activity of serum and brain cholinesterase but increased glial fibrillary acidic protein-expression and cause some histological changes in the brain tissues. While, oral treatment with propolis plus CPF could antagonize CPFtoxicity. These results suggest that propolis may become a promising tool for wide use in reducing the liver and brain damage during CPF-exposure.Keywords: Chlorpyrifos, propolis, rats, lipid peroxidation, antioxidant enzymes, biochemical parametersAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(33), pp. 5232-524

Haptoglobin and Sickle Cell Polymorphisms and Risk of Active Trachoma in Gambian Children

BACKGROUND: Susceptibility and resistance to trachoma, the leading infectious cause of blindness, have been associated with a range of host genetic factors. In vitro studies of the causative organism, Chlamydia trachomatis, demonstrate that iron availability regulates its growth, suggesting that host genes involved in regulating iron status and/or availability may modulate the risk of trachoma. The objective was to investigate whether haptoglobin (Hp) haplotypes constructed from the functional polymorphism (Hp1/Hp2) plus the functional promoter SNPs -61A-C (rs5471) and -101C-G (rs5470), or sickle cell trait (HbAS, rs334) were associated with risk of active trachoma when stratified by age and sex, in rural Gambian children. METHODOLOGY AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In two cross sectional surveys of children aged 6-78 months (n = 836), the prevalence of the clinical signs of active trachoma was 21.4%. Within boys, haplotype E (-101G, -61A, Hp1), containing the variant allele of the -101C-G promoter SNP, was associated with a two-fold increased risk of active trachoma (OR = 2.0 [1.17-3.44]). Within girls, an opposite association was non-significant (OR = 0.58 [0.32-1.04]; P = 0.07) and the interaction by sex was statistically significant (P = 0.001). There was no association between trachoma and HbAS. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that genetic variation in Hp may affect susceptibility to active trachoma differentially by sex in The Gambia

Infection efficiency of Phaeoisariopsis personata and the influence of different wetness patterns on germ-tube growth of the pathogen

Controlled environment studies with P. personata [Mycosphaerella berkeleyi], the causal agent of late leaf spot disease of groundnut, showed that infection is enhanced if leaves are exposed to alternate wet and dry periods (intermittent wetness) compared with continuous wetness. Detailed investigations to elucidate this phenomenon revealed more germ tubes per conidium and more branching of germ tubes with intermittent wetness than with continuous wetness. With intermittent wetness there was clear evidence of tropic growth of germ tubes and branches towards stomata and subsequent penetration. With continuous wetness, germ tube growth did not appear to be directional and germ tubes commonly passed over the stomatal guard cells, therefore leading to relatively few stomatal penetrations. For both wetness regimes, stomatal penetrations continued to increase with increased leaf wetness for at least 6 d after inoculation and there was a linear relationship between the number of stomatal penetrations and the number of resultant lesions. Infection efficiency was markedly increased when the spore load was reduced to 0.1 conidia/cm² (c. 1 spore/leaflet)

Relations Between Serum Essential Fatty Acids, Cytokines (IL-6 & IL- 8), Apoptotic Marker (SFAS), And Free Radicals In Egyptian Patients With Autoimmune Diseases

Eicosanoids, lymphokines, free radicals and apoptotic marker are known to participate in the pathogenesis of inflammation. The aim of this study was to investigate the relations between free radical generation, interleukins (IL-6 & IL-8), apoptotic marker soluble Fas (sFas), and the level of essential fatty acids and their metabolites in patients with autoimmune diseases. The study was conducted on 7 patients admitted to Rheumatology Unit Hospital of Ain Shams University, in addition there was 10 control subjects. The patients suffered from different types of autoimmune diseases according to their criteria, Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), systemic sclerosis (SSC) and overlap syndrome. Serum levels of total glutathione (reduced;GSH and oxidized; GSSG) were estimated by HPLC; serum MDA, IL-6, IL-8 and sFas were alsoassayed. In addition serum fatty acids were determined by using GLC. The inflammations resulting from the studied autoimmune diseases induced significant decrease in serum level of GSH, and marked increase in the levels of GSSG, MDA, IL-6, IL-8 and sFas whereas serum fatty acid revealed that Linoleicacid (LA) and alpha linolenic acid (ALA) were significantly decreased in the studied cases . LA metabolite (arochidonic acid; AA) is markedly increase while ALA metabolite (eicosapentaenoic; EPA) & docosahexaenoic (DHA) were significantly increased. These results suggest that essential fatty acid metabolism is altered in autoimmune diseases. The interactions between essential fatty acids, eicosanoids, lymphokines and free radicals suggest that new therapeutic strategies can be devised to modify the course of these diseases.Keywords: autoimmune diseases, IL-6, IL-8, sFas, fatty acids

Prevalence of hyperplasia and cancer in endometrial polyps in women with postmenopausal bleeding: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

There is wide variation in reporting the prevalence of hyperplasia and cancer in endometrial polyps in women with postmenopausal bleeding. Most studies reported heterogenous populations of pre- and postmenopausal women both symptomatic and asymptomatic, making data interpretation difficult. The aim of this work is to quantify the prevalence of hyperplasia and cancer in polyps in women with postmenopausal bleeding aiming to produce data that help inform clinical practice as whether it is safer to remove all polyps, or some women could be offered expectant management. The search terms used were Medical Subject Headings terms, text words, truncations and word variations of the words or phrases 'endometrial polyp' or 'uterine polyp' or 'womb polyp' and 'postmenopause' or 'menopause'. Search was limited to human studies and English language articles. Studies reporting separate analysis for women with postmenopausal bleeding were included. The included articles were assessed for risk of bias using the 'Quality in Prognosis Studies' tool. The prevalence was estimated with a random effect model using 'DerSimonian and Laird' method. The pooled estimate of prevalence of hyperplasia and cancer was 9% (95% confidence interval: 6.5%-11.5%). An I statistic of 77.2% suggests likely substantial heterogeneity. However, adjustment for small study effects had no influence on the pooled prevalence estimate suggesting no evidence for publication bias. Sensitivity analyses showed that no study exerted a big influence on the pooled estimate. The prevalence of hyperplasia and cancer in endometrial polyps in women with postmenopausal bleeding is high enough to warrant removal for accurate histopathological diagnosis