TUMORSKI ANTIGENI U KARCINOMU PROSTATE, STRESNI KOMUNIKATIVNI PROBLEMI SUVREMENOG ČOVJEKA

This study investigated the immunohistochemical expression of the cancer testis antigen SSX in prostate cancer. SSX expression, with varying staining intensities, was observed in 83% of cancer samples. Substantial heterogeneity of expression was observed within individual samples. SSX expression was significantly higher in Gleason score 7 than in Gleason score 6 cancer (p=0.008). Tumours demonstrating capsular invasion had higher SSX expression than did tumours without capsular invasion (p=0.005). SSX expression did not correlate significantly with prostate-specific antigen level or tumour size. Further studies are needed to investigate SSX expression in prostate cancer and its potential implications for diagnosis and immunotherapy.U ovom radu istraživali smo imunohistokemijsku ekspresiju karcinom testis antigena SSX u karcinomu prostate. SSX ekspresija različitog intenziteta je pokazana u 83% uzoraka karcinoma. Pokazana je također i značajna heterogenost ekspresije unutar individaulnih uzoraka. SSX ekspresija je bila značajno više u Gleason zbroju 7, nego u Gleason zbroju 6 karcinoma prostate (p=0.008). Tumori koji su zahvatili kapsulu prostate imali su također značajniju SSX ekspresiju nego tumori koji nisu zahvatili kapsulu (p=0.005). SSX ekspresija nije korelirala značajno s vrijednostima prostata-specifičnog antigena ili veličinom tumora. Daljnje studije su potrebna da bi se istražila ekpresija SSX antigena u karcinomu prostate s potencijalnim implikacijama i na dijagnostiku i na imunoterapiju karcinoma prostate

TUMORSKI ANTIGENI U KARCINOMU PROSTATE, STRESNI KOMUNIKATIVNI PROBLEMI SUVREMENOG ČOVJEKA

This study investigated the immunohistochemical expression of the cancer testis antigen SSX in prostate cancer. SSX expression, with varying staining intensities, was observed in 83% of cancer samples. Substantial heterogeneity of expression was observed within individual samples. SSX expression was significantly higher in Gleason score 7 than in Gleason score 6 cancer (p=0.008). Tumours demonstrating capsular invasion had higher SSX expression than did tumours without capsular invasion (p=0.005). SSX expression did not correlate significantly with prostate-specific antigen level or tumour size. Further studies are needed to investigate SSX expression in prostate cancer and its potential implications for diagnosis and immunotherapy.U ovom radu istraživali smo imunohistokemijsku ekspresiju karcinom testis antigena SSX u karcinomu prostate. SSX ekspresija različitog intenziteta je pokazana u 83% uzoraka karcinoma. Pokazana je također i značajna heterogenost ekspresije unutar individaulnih uzoraka. SSX ekspresija je bila značajno više u Gleason zbroju 7, nego u Gleason zbroju 6 karcinoma prostate (p=0.008). Tumori koji su zahvatili kapsulu prostate imali su također značajniju SSX ekspresiju nego tumori koji nisu zahvatili kapsulu (p=0.005). SSX ekspresija nije korelirala značajno s vrijednostima prostata-specifičnog antigena ili veličinom tumora. Daljnje studije su potrebna da bi se istražila ekpresija SSX antigena u karcinomu prostate s potencijalnim implikacijama i na dijagnostiku i na imunoterapiju karcinoma prostate

Self-healing mortar using different types, content, and concentrations of bacteria to repair cracks.

The creation of cracks, which are the most common cause of structural failure, has a significant impact on the structure's strength and durability. As a result, effective repair and maintenance are vital and unavoidable for treating any of these issues. Self-healing mortar holds promising benefits for reducing the cost of repair as cracks are autonomously repaired without any human intervention. This study investigated the effect of bacteria type, bacteria content, bacteria concentration, and nutrient type on the properties of the self-healing mortar. Three types of bacteria, Bacillus sphaericus, Bacillus Megaterium, and Bacillus subtilis encapsulated in calcium alginate beads, were introduced into the mortar. Two concentrations of bacteria, 2× 108 and   2× 109 Colony Forming Units per milliliter, and different percentages of bacteria of cement weight were selected for the study. In addition, calcium lactate and calcium acetate were used at 0.5% of cement weight as nutrition for bacteria. Tests were performed for compressive strength, bending strength, SEM, EDX, and TGA/DTG. The results show a significant development in the mechanical behaviour of mortar, especially with Bacillus Megaterium using a 2.5% bacterial proportion with a concentration 2× 109 CFU/ml. This can be related to the filling of voids and cracks in microbial mortar by calcite, which was confirmed by SEM and EDX

Kirurško liječenje karcinoma prostate visokog rizika i oligometastatske bolesti

Prostate cancer is responsible for the largest number of cancer-related deaths in male population in many countries of the world. Aggressive forms of the disease are associated with an increased risk of local recurrence and death. Treatment of high-risk local prostate cancer most commonly involves radical prostatectomy (RP) or external beam radiation therapy (EBRT ) combined with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT ) with or without the addition of brachytherapy (BT). The use of surgery for high risk prostatic carcinoma (HR PC) is on the rise, because of its advantages including the possibility of cure with surgery alone without the risk of toxicities from prolonged ADT, accurate staging, and avoiding the influence of PSA originating from benign prostatic hyperplasia on future therapy. Oligometastatic prostate cancer may be considered as the last border of possibly curable disease. Radical prostatectomy in oligometastatic prostate cancer can significantly decrease the risk of local complications but only multimodal approach in selected group of patients may offer opportunities to eradicate tumor or delay its progression. Surgery for oligometastatic disease most commonly targets lymphatic disease with salvage pelvic lymph node dissection, whereas it rarely targets distant metastases. Further prospective, randomized studies are necessary to define the role and value of therapies in oligometastatic prostate cancer.Rak prostate ostaje najčešći uzrok smrtnosti od karcinoma u mnogim zemljama svijeta. Bolesnici s agresivnijom bolešću izloženi su većem riziku od neuspjeha lokalnog liječenja i smrti. Liječenje visoko rizične lokalne bolesti najčešće uključuje radikalnu prostatektomiju, radioterapiju (EBRT ) s androgenom deprivacijskom terapijom (ADT ) ili EBRT plus brahiterapiju (BT) i ADT . Kirurško liječenje karcinoma prostate visokog rizika (HR PC) je u porastu zbog svojih prednosti koje uključuju mogućnost izlječenja samo operacijom, točno određivanje stadija bolesti, uklanjanje dobroćudnog izvora PSA koji je čimbenik za određivanje buduće terapije, te mogućnost izbjegavanja toksičnosti dugotrajne primjene ADT-a. Čini se da je oligometastatska bolest posljednja barijera potencijalno izlječivog karcinoma prostate. Radikalna prostatektomija u oligometastatskom karcinomu prostate može značajno smanjiti rizik od lokalnih komplikacija, ali samo multimodalni pristup odabranoj skupini bolesnika može pružiti mogućnosti za potpuno uklanjanje tumora ili usporavanje njegovog napredovanja. Kirurško liječenje oligometastatske bolesti najčešće je usmjereno na limfogeno širenje s disekcijom zahvaćenih zdjeličnih limfnih čvorova, a rjeđe može biti usmjereno na udaljene metastaze. Potrebna su daljnja prospektivna, randomizirana istraživanja za definiranje uloge i vrijednosti terapije oligometastatskog karcinoma prostate

Assessment of the Cost-returns and Profitability Patterns of Tomato Production in Yamaltu-Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria

The study examined profitability of tomato production in Yamaltu-Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State. A three-stage sampling technique was used to select 96 tomato producers. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and were analysed using descriptive statistics, farm budget model, and t-test analysis. The results revealed that, the mean age of tomato producers was 38.94 years, 92.48% were males, 71.56% were married with the majority (95.44%) had family size ranging from 1 – 6 persons, and had 6.55 mean years of farming experience, having an average of 0.6 ha farm size holding. Furthermore, the result revealed that only 8.74% that have attained tertiary education. The results also revealed average variable costs constituted 88.98% and 88.84% of the average total costs of production in the dry and rainy seasons respectively. The per hectare average net income realised were found to be ₦ 154,444.20 ($398.05) and ₦ 39,725.14 ($ 102.38) in the dry and rainy seasons respectively. Hence, the returns per naira invested was ₦ 0.67 ($0.00173) in dry season and ₦ 0.18 ($0.00046) in rainy season (P<0.05). Moreover, the results revealed positive and desirable gross and operating ratios of < 1; implying the tomato farms in the study area maintained profitability levels both in the short and long run. However, inadequate capital was critical; which was attributed to lack of affordable sources of credits. Lack of storage and processing facilities were among the impediments to large scale tomato production in the study area. However, improvement in the existing patterns and as well as the provision of adequate essential factors of production will help expand the present scale of operations. Therefore, governments and other financial institutions should do more to provide soft loans to the farmers to improve efficiency

Benign prostatc hyperplasia – medicamentous treatment

Benigna hiperplazija prostate (BPH) karakterizirana je umnažanjem žljezdanih i/ili stromalnih elemenata prostate. Ona može dovest do uvećanja prostate i uzrokovati smetnje mokrenja donjeg dijela mokraćnog sustava (LUTS). Rast prostate ovisan je o dobi i utjecaju spolnih hormona, prvenstveno dihidrotestosterona. Simptomi se dijele na iritatvne, opstruktvne i postmikcijske. U osnovnu obradu pacijenata spada anamneza, korištenje upitnika o smetnjama mokrenja, dnevnik mokrenja, fizikalni pregled, analiza urina, serumska koncentracija kreatinina i prostata specifčnog antigena, mikciometrija i mjerenje rezidualnog urina. Terapiju se odabire na osnovi smetnji koje pacijent ima i rezultata dijagnostčke obrade. Prvi korak u liječenju predstavljaju određene promjene u ponašanju i prehrani. U pacijenata s blagim smetnjama preporučuje se aktivno praćenje. U ostalih pacijenata započinje se s medikamentoznom terapijom. Mogućnost medikamentozne terapije su mnogobrojne: blokatori alfa adrenergičkih receptora, inhibitori 5-alfa-reduktaze, antagonisti muskarinskih receptora, analog vazopresina – dezmopresin, agonisti beta-3 adrenergičkih receptora, inhibitori 5-fosfodiesteraze, fitoterapija i kombinirana terapija. U slučaju neuspjeha medikamentozne terapije ili prisutnost komplikacija BPH-a preporučuje se kirurško liječenje.Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is characterized with proliferaton of glandular and stromal components of the prostate. BPH can produce prostate enlargement and caused lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). The growth of the prostate depends on patent’s age and influence of sexual hormones, specially dihydrotestosterone. Symptoms can be divided as irritatve, obstructve and postmicturation symptoms. The basic evaluation included medical history, symptom score questionnaire, bladder diary, physical examinaton, urinalysis, creatinine and prostate specific antigen serum concentraton, uroflowmetry and postvoid residual urine. The modality of treatment depends about patents symptoms and results of diagnostic evaluaton. The inital step in the treatment are behavioural and dietary modificatons. In the patients with mild symptoms watchful waiting is first line treatment. In the other patients medicamentous treatment is recommended. Pharmacological management included: alpha adrenoreceptor antagonists, 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors, muscarin receptors antagonists, vasopressin analogue – desmopressin, beta-3 agonists, phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors, phytotherapy and combinaton therapy. If the medicamentous therapy failed or the complicatons of BPH are present surgical treatment is recommended

Novel 1,3-Thiazole Analogues with Potent Activity against Breast Cancer: A Design, Synthesis, In Vitro, and In Silico Study

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, responsible for over half a million deaths in 2020. Almost 75% of FDA-approved drugs are mainly nitrogen- and sulfur-containing heterocyclic compounds, implying the importance of such compounds in drug discovery. Among heterocycles, thiazole-based heterocyclic compounds have demonstrated a broad range of pharmacological activities. In the present study, a novel set of 1,3-thiazole derivatives was designed and synthesized based on the coupling of acetophenone derivatives, and phenacyl bromide was substituted as a key reaction step. The activity of synthesized compounds was screened against the proliferation of two breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231). Almost all compounds exhibited a considerable antiproliferative activity toward the breast cancer cells as compared to staurosporine, with no significant cytotoxicity toward the epithelial cells. Among the synthesized compounds, compound 4 exhibited the most potent antiproliferative activity, with an IC50 of 5.73 and 12.15 µM toward MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells, respectively, compared to staurosporine (IC50 = 6.77 and 7.03 µM, respectively). Exploring the mechanistic insights responsible for the antiproliferative activity of compound 4 revealed that compound 4 possesses a significant inhibitory activity toward the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2) with (IC50 = 0.093 µM) compared to Sorafenib (IC50 = 0.059 µM). Further, compound 4 showed the ability to induce programmed cell death by triggering apoptosis and necrosis in MCF-7 cells and to induce cell cycle arrest on MCF-7 cells at the G1 stage while decreasing the cellular population in the G2/M phase. Finally, detailed in silico molecular docking studies affirmed that this class of compounds possesses a considerable binding affinity toward VEGFR2 proteins. Overall, these results indicate that compound 4 could be a promising lead compound for developing potent anti-breast cancer compounds.Faculty of Pharmacy, Suez Canal University, and Faculty of Science, Port Said University, EgyptPrincess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers SupportingTaif University Researcher

Antiviral and cytotoxic activities of some plants used in Malaysian indigenous medicine

Ethanolic extracts of 61 medicinal plants used in Malaysia were screened for antiviral and cytotoxic activities. Antiviral activity was tested against the herpes simplex type-1 (HSV-1) and vesicular stomatitis (VSV) viruses, and cytotoxicity was assayed using the HeLa cell line. Antiviral activity against both viruses was present in the extracts from Calotropis gigantea, Costus speciosus, Eugenia michelii, Hedyotis auricularia, Mentha arvensis, Orthosiphon aristatus, Polygonum minus and Ricinus communis (MIG: 0.002-0.1 mg/ml). The extracts from Alternanthera sessilis, Blumea chinensis, Eleusine indica, Euphorbia hirta, Freycinetia malaccensis, Leea indica and Solanum americanum were active in selectively inhibiting HSV-1 (0.001-0.1 mg/ml). Selective activity against VSV was shown by the extracts from Acalypha indica, Bertholletia excelsa, Cerbera manghas, Codiaeum variegatum, Plectranthus amboinicus, Centella asiatica, Mirabilis jalapa, Morinda elliptica, Oenanthe javanica, Piper sarmentosum and Premna odorata (MIG: 0.005-0.1 mg/ml). Gytotoxic activity was present in the extracts from Acalypha indica, Andrographis paniculata, Cerbera manghas, Codiaeum variegatum, Cosmos caudatus, Elephantopus scaber, Etlingera elatior, Eugenia michelii, Freycinetia malaccensis, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis,Cen~ella asiati~a, Lecythis ollaria, Mentha arvensis, Mirabilis jalapa, Morinda elliptica, Ocimum tenUlflorum, PIper sarmentosum and Polygonum minus (CD50: 0.001-0.1 mgjml).Co-existing antiviral and cytotoxic activities were shown by Eugenia michelii, Mentha arvensis and Polygonum minus

Box–Behnken Response Surface Design of Polysaccharide Extraction from Rhododendron arboreum and the Evaluation of Its Antioxidant Potential

© 2020 by the authors. In the present investigation, the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) conditions and optimization of Rhododendron arboreum polysaccharide (RAP) yield were studied by a Box–Behnken response surface design and the evaluation of its antioxidant potential. Three parameters that affect the productivity of UAE, such as extraction temperature (50–90 ◦C), extraction time (10–30 min), and solid–liquid ratio (1–2 g/mL), were examined to optimize the yield of the polysaccharide percentage. The chromatographic analysis revealed that the composition of monosaccharides was found to be glucose, galactose, mannose, arabinose, and fucose. The data were fitted to polynomial response models, applying multiple regression analysis with a high coefficient of determination value (R2 = 0.999). The data exhibited that the extraction parameters have significant effects on the extraction yield of polysaccharide percentage. Derringer’s desirability prediction tool was attained under the optimal extraction conditions (extraction temperature 66.75 ◦C, extraction time 19.72 min, and liquid–solid ratio 1.66 mL/g) with a desirability value of 1 yielded the highest polysaccharide percentage (11.56%), which was confirmed through validation experiments. An average of 11.09 ± 1.65% of polysaccharide yield was obtained in optimized extraction conditions with a 95.43% validity. The in vitro antioxidant effect of polysaccharides of R. arboreum was studied. The results showed that the RAP extract exhibited a strong potential against free radical damage