Human Wharton's Jelly Stem Cell (hWJSC) Extracts Inhibit Ovarian Cancer Cell Lines OVCAR3 and SKOV3 in vitro by Inducing Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis

Ovarian cancer is a highly lethal and the second highest in mortality among gynecological cancers. Stem cells either naïve or engineered are reported to inhibit various human cancers in both in-vitro and in-vivo. Herein we report the cancer inhibitory properties of human Wharton's jelly stem cell (hWJSC) extracts, namely its conditioned medium (hWJSC-CM) and cell lysate (hWJSC-CL) against two ovarian cancer cell lines (OVCAR3 and SKOV3) in-vitro. Cell metabolic activity assay of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells treated with hWJSC-CM (12.5, 25, 50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (5, 10, 15, 30, and 50 μg/ml) demonstrated concentration dependent inhibition at 24–72 h. Morphological analysis of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells treated with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (15, 30, and 50 μg/ml) for 24–72 h showed cell shrinkage, membrane damage/blebbings and cell death. Cell cycle assay demonstrated an increase in the sub-G1 and G2M phases of cell cycle following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (10, 15, and 30 μg/ml) at 48 h. Both OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells demonstrated mild positive expression of activated caspase 3 following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) and hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 24 h. Cell migration of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells were inhibited following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) and hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h. Tumor spheres (TS) of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 treated with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (10, 15, 30 μg/ml) for 48 h showed altered surface changes including vacuolations and reduction in size of TS. TS of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 also showed the presence of few ovarian cancer stem cells (CSCs) in minimal numbers following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) or hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h. Real-time gene expression analysis of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 treated with hWJSC-CM (50%) or hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h demonstrated decreased expression of cell cycle regulatory genes (cyclin A2, Cyclin E1), prostaglandin receptor signaling genes (EP2, EP4) and the pro-inflmmatory genes (IL-6, TNF-α) compared to untreated controls. The results indicate that hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL inhibit ovarian cancer cells at mild to moderate levels by inducing cellular changes, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, decreasing the expression of CSC markers and related genes regulation. Therefore, the stem cell factors in hWJSCs extracts can be useful in cancer management

Evolving trends in the management of acute appendicitis during COVID-19 waves. The ACIE appy II study

Background: In 2020, ACIE Appy study showed that COVID-19 pandemic heavily affected the management of patients with acute appendicitis (AA) worldwide, with an increased rate of non-operative management (NOM) strategies and a trend toward open surgery due to concern of virus transmission by laparoscopy and controversial recommendations on this issue. The aim of this study was to survey again the same group of surgeons to assess if any difference in management attitudes of AA had occurred in the later stages of the outbreak. Methods: From August 15 to September 30, 2021, an online questionnaire was sent to all 709 participants of the ACIE Appy study. The questionnaire included questions on personal protective equipment (PPE), local policies and screening for SARS-CoV-2 infection, NOM, surgical approach and disease presentations in 2021. The results were compared with the results from the previous study. Results: A total of 476 answers were collected (response rate 67.1%). Screening policies were significatively improved with most patients screened regardless of symptoms (89.5% vs. 37.4%) with PCR and antigenic test as the preferred test (74.1% vs. 26.3%). More patients tested positive before surgery and commercial systems were the preferred ones to filter smoke plumes during laparoscopy. Laparoscopic appendicectomy was the first option in the treatment of AA, with a declined use of NOM. Conclusion: Management of AA has improved in the last waves of pandemic. Increased evidence regarding SARS-COV-2 infection along with a timely healthcare systems response has been translated into tailored attitudes and a better care for patients with AA worldwide

Critical Thinking Pedagogy: Using Textbooks Evaluation and Content Analysis Techniques for Saudi University Students

This research has an aim to investigate to what extent Saudi English textbooks help in enhancing Saudi student's critical thinking skills. The research topic was selected by keeping in mind the experience that Saudi Arabia students always face difficulty in the application of critical thinking skills for the determination of best possible solutions. The critical thinking skills are the necessity of professional life and if students of Saudi Arabia are failed in applying it to a particular situation, then it is important to investigate the reasons for it. The literature has concluded the same thing that the critical thinking skills learning should of that type which helps students in applying it to a particular situation because if they do not know its application, then critical thinking skill is useless. The past studies have revealed that the English textbooks have some elements of critical thinking skills but, it is important to investigate that either specific textbook contains the elements by which learner can learn the critical thinking skill or not. The primary research data was collected through a questionnaire of Five Point Likert Scale, which shows that the teachers of Saudi Arabia have neutral reply towards the role of English Textbook activities in the development of critical thinking skills. Teachers who are the research respondents of this study claimed that some gaps exist in the Saudi curricula for the development of critical thinking skills among students. This study successfully explored the role of curricula in the development of critical thinking skills among students, and how much Saudi Arabia curricula is efficient in it

Critical Thinking Pedagogy: Using Textbooks Evaluation and Content Analysis Techniques for Saudi University Students

This research has an aim to investigate to what extent Saudi English textbooks help in enhancing Saudi student's critical thinking skills. The research topic was selected by keeping in mind the experience that Saudi Arabia students always face difficulty in the application of critical thinking skills for the determination of best possible solutions. The critical thinking skills are the necessity of professional life and if students of Saudi Arabia are failed in applying it to a particular situation, then it is important to investigate the reasons for it. The literature has concluded the same thing that the critical thinking skills learning should of that type which helps students in applying it to a particular situation because if they do not know its application, then critical thinking skill is useless. The past studies have revealed that the English textbooks have some elements of critical thinking skills but, it is important to investigate that either specific textbook contains the elements by which learner can learn the critical thinking skill or not. The primary research data was collected through a questionnaire of Five Point Likert Scale, which shows that the teachers of Saudi Arabia have neutral reply towards the role of English Textbook activities in the development of critical thinking skills. Teachers who are the research respondents of this study claimed that some gaps exist in the Saudi curricula for the development of critical thinking skills among students. This study successfully explored the role of curricula in the development of critical thinking skills among students, and how much Saudi Arabia curricula is efficient in it

Critical Thinking Pedagogy: Using Textbooks Evaluation and Content Analysis Techniques for Saudi University Students

This research has an aim to investigate to what extent Saudi English textbooks help in enhancing Saudi student\u27s critical thinking skills. The research topic was selected by keeping in mind the experience that Saudi Arabia students always face difficulty in the application of critical thinking skills for the determination of best possible solutions. The critical thinking skills are the necessity of professional life and if students of Saudi Arabia are failed in applying it to a particular situation, then it is important to investigate the reasons for it. The literature has concluded the same thing that the critical thinking skills learning should of that type which helps students in applying it to a particular situation because if they do not know its application, then critical thinking skill is useless. The past studies have revealed that the English textbooks have some elements of critical thinking skills but, it is important to investigate that either specific textbook contains the elements by which learner can learn the critical thinking skill or not. The primary research data was collected through a questionnaire of Five Point Likert Scale, which shows that the teachers of Saudi Arabia have neutral reply towards the role of English Textbook activities in the development of critical thinking skills. Teachers who are the research respondents of this study claimed that some gaps exist in the Saudi curricula for the development of critical thinking skills among students. This study successfully explored the role of curricula in the development of critical thinking skills among students, and how much Saudi Arabia curricula is efficient in it

Attitude and awareness of dentist towards resin bonded bridges in Saudi Arabia

Statement of the problem: Resin bonded bridges (RBBs) offer a conservative approach to tooth replacement. However, the use of this treatment option has been limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the knowledge and attitude of dentists in Saudi Arabia, including general dental practitioners (GDPs) and prosthodontic and restorative specialists (SPs), toward RBBs. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, questionnaires designed to survey knowledge of RBB performance factors were distributed to GDPs and SPs (n = 400). Specifically, opinions of GDPs and SPs regarding clinical, mechanical, technique- and patient-dependent performance factors of RBBs were obtained. Average significance and Chi-square tests were used to identify the frequency, pattern, and significance of the response variables identified. Results: A majority (65.3%) of the subjects reported using RBBs in less than 10% of their prosthodontic cases. The most common reason for the limited clinical application of RBBs was perceived poor retention (23.45%). In addition, SPs regarded the influence of enamel structure, number of pontics, cement type, RBB design, and surface treatment as “very significant” factors with respect to RBB survival. Overall, a statistically significant difference was observed between the responses of GDPs and SPs regarding their knowledge of performance factors for RBBs. Conclusion: In comparison to SPs, GDPs reported greater disagreement with current standards for RBB success factors. Moreover, 60% of SPs and 71% of GDPs used RBBs for less than 10% of their prosthodontic cases. Therefore, continuing education opportunities are needed for practicing dentists, and undergraduate students need to receive greater exposure to the clinical application of RBBs. Keywords: Attitude, Awareness, Clinical performance, Resin bonded bridges, Dental practitioner, Specialis

Image_1_Human Wharton's Jelly Stem Cell (hWJSC) Extracts Inhibit Ovarian Cancer Cell Lines OVCAR3 and SKOV3 in vitro by Inducing Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis.TIF

Ovarian cancer is a highly lethal and the second highest in mortality among gynecological cancers. Stem cells either naïve or engineered are reported to inhibit various human cancers in both in-vitro and in-vivo. Herein we report the cancer inhibitory properties of human Wharton's jelly stem cell (hWJSC) extracts, namely its conditioned medium (hWJSC-CM) and cell lysate (hWJSC-CL) against two ovarian cancer cell lines (OVCAR3 and SKOV3) in-vitro. Cell metabolic activity assay of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells treated with hWJSC-CM (12.5, 25, 50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (5, 10, 15, 30, and 50 μg/ml) demonstrated concentration dependent inhibition at 24–72 h. Morphological analysis of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells treated with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (15, 30, and 50 μg/ml) for 24–72 h showed cell shrinkage, membrane damage/blebbings and cell death. Cell cycle assay demonstrated an increase in the sub-G1 and G2M phases of cell cycle following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (10, 15, and 30 μg/ml) at 48 h. Both OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells demonstrated mild positive expression of activated caspase 3 following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) and hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 24 h. Cell migration of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells were inhibited following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) and hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h. Tumor spheres (TS) of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 treated with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (10, 15, 30 μg/ml) for 48 h showed altered surface changes including vacuolations and reduction in size of TS. TS of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 also showed the presence of few ovarian cancer stem cells (CSCs) in minimal numbers following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) or hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h. Real-time gene expression analysis of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 treated with hWJSC-CM (50%) or hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h demonstrated decreased expression of cell cycle regulatory genes (cyclin A2, Cyclin E1), prostaglandin receptor signaling genes (EP2, EP4) and the pro-inflmmatory genes (IL-6, TNF-α) compared to untreated controls. The results indicate that hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL inhibit ovarian cancer cells at mild to moderate levels by inducing cellular changes, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, decreasing the expression of CSC markers and related genes regulation. Therefore, the stem cell factors in hWJSCs extracts can be useful in cancer management.</p

Image_2_Human Wharton's Jelly Stem Cell (hWJSC) Extracts Inhibit Ovarian Cancer Cell Lines OVCAR3 and SKOV3 in vitro by Inducing Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis.TIF

Ovarian cancer is a highly lethal and the second highest in mortality among gynecological cancers. Stem cells either naïve or engineered are reported to inhibit various human cancers in both in-vitro and in-vivo. Herein we report the cancer inhibitory properties of human Wharton's jelly stem cell (hWJSC) extracts, namely its conditioned medium (hWJSC-CM) and cell lysate (hWJSC-CL) against two ovarian cancer cell lines (OVCAR3 and SKOV3) in-vitro. Cell metabolic activity assay of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells treated with hWJSC-CM (12.5, 25, 50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (5, 10, 15, 30, and 50 μg/ml) demonstrated concentration dependent inhibition at 24–72 h. Morphological analysis of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells treated with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (15, 30, and 50 μg/ml) for 24–72 h showed cell shrinkage, membrane damage/blebbings and cell death. Cell cycle assay demonstrated an increase in the sub-G1 and G2M phases of cell cycle following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (10, 15, and 30 μg/ml) at 48 h. Both OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells demonstrated mild positive expression of activated caspase 3 following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) and hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 24 h. Cell migration of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells were inhibited following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) and hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h. Tumor spheres (TS) of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 treated with hWJSC-CM (50, 75, 100%) and hWJSC-CL (10, 15, 30 μg/ml) for 48 h showed altered surface changes including vacuolations and reduction in size of TS. TS of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 also showed the presence of few ovarian cancer stem cells (CSCs) in minimal numbers following treatment with hWJSC-CM (50%) or hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h. Real-time gene expression analysis of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 treated with hWJSC-CM (50%) or hWJSC-CL (15 μg/ml) for 48 h demonstrated decreased expression of cell cycle regulatory genes (cyclin A2, Cyclin E1), prostaglandin receptor signaling genes (EP2, EP4) and the pro-inflmmatory genes (IL-6, TNF-α) compared to untreated controls. The results indicate that hWJSC-CM and hWJSC-CL inhibit ovarian cancer cells at mild to moderate levels by inducing cellular changes, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, decreasing the expression of CSC markers and related genes regulation. Therefore, the stem cell factors in hWJSCs extracts can be useful in cancer management.</p