Low cost options of carbon sources, gelling agents and supporting materials used for micropropagation of shoot tips of banana cultivar Grand Nain

The high cost of materials used for media preparation is chiefly constituted by gelling agents and sucrose. The objective of this study was to develop efficient micropropagation techniques for the newly released banana cultivar Grand Nain at a low cost by testing different alternatives of carbon sources (sucrose),gelling agents and supporting materials. Three experiments were conducted to test different carbon sources, gelling agents and support matrices.  In the first experiment, different carbon sources were tested. These included the refined imported sugar special for tissue culture from Sigma Company, Kenana (refined local sugar), Alguneid (brown local sugar) and beet crystal imported sugar from the local market. Results showed that all sources of sucrose resulted in the highest number of explants with shoots, however, Alguneid sugar induced significantly higher number of shoots per explants. There was 99.4% reduction in the medium cost compared to the standard medium of Sigma sugar. The second experiment was conducted to test different gelling agents such as corn starch at 50.0g/l plus agar at 3.0 and 4.0 g/l, corn starch at 50.0g/l plus phytagel at 1.25 and 1.5 g/l, respectively. Phytagel at 2.5 g/l and agar at 9 g/l were used as control. Gelling agents did not differ in the percentage of explants with shoots. However, corn starch at 50.0g/l and phytagel at 1.5 g/l resulted in the highest number of shoots which reduced the medium cost by 30.7%. In the third experiment, different supporting materials were used as low cost options including stone matrices, glass beads, cotton fiber and filter paper. Rock stones were the best supporting material in liquid medium for propagation of banana cv. Grand Nain. It resulted in significantly higher percentage of explants with shoots, number of shoots per explant and plant height.   ارتفاع كلفة الزراعة النسيجية النباتية هو السبب في عدم تطبيقها علي نطاق واسع. إن تكلفة المواد الجيلاتينية (الآجار والفايتاجل) والسكر تمثل أكبر تكلفة بين العناصر المكونة للوسط الغذائي. الهدف من هذه الدراسة هو تطوير خيارات اقتصادية لتقنية زراعة الأنسجة للإكثار الدقيق للموز الصنف قراند نين المجاز حديثاً وذلك باختبار بدائل للسكر والمواد الجلاتينية وايجاد مواد داعمة للزراعات النسيجية في الأوساط الغذائية السائلة. أجريت الاختبارات في هذه الدراسة بإستخدام النظام العشوائي الكامل في خمس مكررات وأربع قمم نامية في كل مكرر. تم تنفيذ ثلاث تجارب بهدف خفض تكلفة الاكثار الدقيق للموز الصنف قراندنين. فى التجربة الأولى تم اختبار أربعة مصادر الكربون وهى: سيقما (سكر نقى مستورد خاص بزراعة الأنسجة من شركة سيقما), كنانة (سكر نقى منتج محلياً من شركة سكر كنانة), الجنيد   ( سكر بنى منتج محلياً من مصنع الجنيد) والبنجر( سكر بلورى مستورد). لا توجد فروقات معنوية بين أنواع السكر التي تم اختبارها في النسبة المئوية للقمم النامية للموز التي تم تحفيز نموات جديدة منها وعدد النموات الجديدة (السيقان)، لكن عدد السيقان النامية من كل قمة نامية علي سكر الجنيد أعلي معنويا من أنواع السكر الأخرى. باستخدام هذه البدائل تم تخفيض 99.4% من تكلفة السكر في الوسط الغذائي. أجريت التجربة الثانية لاختبار مواد جلاتينية مختلفة وهى: 50.0 جرام/لتر من نشا الذرة الشامية مع3.0  جرام/لتر و4.0 جرام/لتر اجار,50.0 جرام/لتر من النشأ مع1.25  جرام/لتر و1.5 جرام/لتر فايتاجل, 2.5 جرام/لتر فايتاجل و9 جرام/لتر اجار كشواهد. أوضحت النتائج أن الاحلال الجزئي للمواد الجلاتينية (الفايتاجل والاجار) بمقدار 50.0 جرام/لتر من نشا الذرة الشامية يمكن استخدامه للإكثار الدقيق للموز صنف قراندنين، حيث لا توجد فروقات معنوية بين كل المعاملات في النسبة المئوية لأجزاء الموز التي تم تحفيز نموات جديدة منها وعدد السيقان مع تخفيض 40.7-30.7 %و65.8-54.7 % في كلفة الآجار والفايتاجل علي التوالي. فى التجربة الثالثة تمت زراعة القمم النامية فى وسط غذائي سائل باستخدام دعامات مختلفة وهى: مصفوفات من الحصى, البلى, ألياف قطنية و أوراق الترشيح. أثبتت النتائج أن مصفوفات الحصى هى أفضل الدعامات المختبرة فى الوسط الغذائي السائل.   &nbsp

Thyroid disorders, epidemiology and outcome among patients in South Western region: Southern Saudi Arabia

Background: Thyroid gland may have a group of a medical condition that affects its main function. The thyroid gland is located at the front of the neck and produces thyroid hormones. The released hormones go through the blood to many body organs for regulating their function, meaning that it is an endocrine organ. These hormones normally act in the body to regulate energy use, infant development, and childhood development. The study aimed to assess the epidemiology of thyroid disorders among cases in the south-western region, Saudi Arabia, and to assess the reporting quality for these cases data.Methods: A retrospective record based descriptive approach was used through reviewing medical records of all cases that were admitted and diagnosed as thyroid related disorders for different indications in the main hospital (king Khalid Hospital) during the period from January 2018 to January 2020. Data extracted throng pre-structured questionnaire including patient's bio-clinical data, preoperative radiological and laboratory investigations. Also, laryngoscope pre and post operatively was reviewed to record findings.Results: The study included 405 cases with thyroid disorders whose ages ranged from 15 to 71 years old with a mean age of 30.5±10.6 years. Females were 82.7% of the included cases, and 83.8% were Saudi. Thyroid related symptoms were recorded for 1-2 years among 58.1% of the cases and for more than 5 years among 15.8%. Thyroid enlargement was recorded for 73.1% of the cases. The multinodular enlargement was recorded for 53.5% of the cases followed with diffuse thyroid enlargement (27.3%). Regarding the type of surgery undergone, total thyroidectomy was the most recorded followed with lobectomy.Conclusions: The study revealed that the majority of the cases were females at middle age presented with benign lesions with Euthyroid status. The most important conclusion was the significant remarkable underreporting of the different clinical data for the cases with many missing items

Evaluation of Cell Cycle Arrest in Estrogen Responsive MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells: Pitfalls of the MTS Assay

Endocrine resistance is a major problem with anti-estrogen treatments and how to overcome resistance is a major concern in the clinic. Reliable measurement of cell viability, proliferation, growth inhibition and death is important in screening for drug treatment efficacy in vitro. This report describes and compares commonly used proliferation assays for induced estrogen-responsive MCF-7 breast cancer cell cycle arrest including: determination of cell number by direct counting of viable cells; or fluorescence SYBR®Green (SYBR) DNA labeling; determination of mitochondrial metabolic activity by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium (MTS) assay; assessment of newly synthesized DNA using 5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine (EdU) nucleoside analog binding and Alexa Fluor® azide visualization by fluorescence microscopy; cell-cycle phase measurement by flow cytometry. Treatment of MCF-7 cells with ICI 182780 (Faslodex), FTY720, serum deprivation or induction of the tumor suppressor p14ARF showed inhibition of cell proliferation determined by the Trypan Blue exclusion assay and SYBR DNA labeling assay. In contrast, the effects of treatment with ICI 182780 or p14ARF-induction were not confirmed using the MTS assay. Cell cycle inhibition by ICI 182780 and p14ARF-induction was further confirmed by flow cytometric analysis and EdU-DNA incorporation. To explore this discrepancy further, we showed that ICI 182780 and p14ARF-induction increased MCF-7 cell mitochondrial activity by MTS assay in individual cells compared to control cells thereby providing a misleading proliferation readout. Interrogation of p14ARF-induction on MCF-7 metabolic activity using TMRE assays and high content image analysis showed that increased mitochondrial activity was concomitant with increased mitochondrial biomass with no loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, or cell death. We conclude that, whilst p14ARF and ICI 182780 stop cell cycle progression, the cells are still viable and potential treatments utilizing these pathways may contribute to drug resistant cells. These experiments demonstrate how the combined measurement of metabolic activity and DNA labeling provides a more reliable interpretation of cancer cell response to treatment regimens

Saudi date cultivars' seed extracts inhibit developing hepatic steatosis in rats fed a high-fat diet

This research aim was to assess the impact of the seed extracts of the date cultivars (Qatara, Barhi, and Ruthana) on rat’s liver steatosis, oxidative stress, and inflammation triggered by feeding a high-fat diet (HFD). The experimental design was based on random partitioning into two groups; one that received the standard diet and another that received the HFD diet. The HFD rats were orally administered Lipitor or date seed extracts at 300 or 600 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks. Accordingly, feeding rats HFD significantly increased body and liver weights, hepatic and serum lipid levels, glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, liver function enzymes, and inflammation markers, and decreased oxidative stress enzymes. Oral administration of Barhi and Ruthana date seed extracts significantly decreased body and liver weights. Serum and liver total cholesterol TC, Triglycerides TGs, and free fatty acids FFAs were also decreased as were AST, ALT, MAD, leptin, and CRP, with a concomitant increase in SOD, GSH, and CAT. Furthermore, similar to Lipitor, oral administration of the extracts reduced inflammation markers such as TNF-α, serum CRP, IL-6, IL-1β, and leptin while increasing IL-10 and adiponectin levels. Histological observation revealed that extract administration improved hepatocyte and parenchymal structures and decreased lipid deposition. In conclusion, both Barhi and Ruthana seed extracts showed strong hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects against HFD-induced liver steatosis. And date seeds have other beneficial potential for prevention and treatment of various diseases, which can be studied in the future

Complex Aerogels Generated from Nano-Polysaccharides and Its Derivatives for Oil–Water Separation

The complex aerogel generated from nano-polysaccharides, chitin nanocrystals (ChiNC) and TEMPO-oxidized cellulose nanofibers (TCNF), and its derivative cationic guar gum (CGG) is successfully prepared via a facile freeze-drying method with glutaraldehyde (GA) as cross-linkers. The complexation of ChiNC, TCNF, and CGG is shown to be helpful in creating a porous structure in the three-dimensional aerogel, which creates within the aerogel with large pore volume and excellent compressive properties. The ChiNC/TCNF/CGG aerogel is then modified with methyltrichlorosilane (MTCS) to obtain superhydrophobicity/superoleophilicity and used for oil–water separation. The successful modification is demonstrated through FTIR, XPS, and surface wettability studies. A water contact angle of 155° on the aerogel surface and 150° on the surface of the inside part of aerogel are obtained for the MTCS-modified ChiNC/TCNF/CGG aerogel, resulting in its effective absorption of corn oil and organic solvents (toluene, n-hexane, and trichloromethane) from both beneath and at the surface of water with excellent absorption capacity (i.e., 21.9 g/g for trichloromethane). More importantly, the modified aerogel can be used to continuously separate oil from water with the assistance of a vacuum setup and maintains a high absorption capacity after being used for 10 cycles. The as-prepared superhydrophobic/superoleophilic ChiNC/TCNF/CGG aerogel can be used as a promising absorbent material for the removal of oil from aqueous media

Anti-Hyperlipidemia, Hypoglycemic, and Hepatoprotective Impacts of Pearl Millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) Grains and Their Ethanol Extract on Rats Fed a High-Fat Diet

This study tested the anti-hyperlipidemic, hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective, and anti-inflammatory effects of whole pearl millet grain powder (MPG) and its ethanol extract (MPGethaolE) in obese rats fed a high-fat diet. The rats were divided into eight groups based on the treatments they received: control, high fat diet (HFD), HFD + MGE (25 mg/Kg), HFD + MPGethaolE (50 mg/Kg), HFD + MPGethaolE (100 mg/Kg), HFD + MPG (10%), HFD + MPG (20%), and HFD + MPG (30%). The final body weight, visceral, epididymal fat pads, and the liver weight were significantly decreased, in a dose-dependent manner, in HFD fed rats that were co-administered either the MPG powder or MPGethaolE. In the same line, serum levels of triglycerides (TGs), cholesterol (CHOL), and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-c), as well as fasting glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, and serum levels of lipopolysaccharides (LPS), interleukine-6 (IL-6), interleukine-10 (IL-10), C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), and adiponectin were progressively decreased while serum levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDL-c) were significantly increased when increasing the doses of both treatments. In conclusion, both the raw powder and ethanolic extract of MP have a comparative dose-dependent anti-obesity, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-steatotic in HFD-fed rats

Selection of newly identified growth-promoting Archaea Haloferax species with a potential action on cobalt resistance in maize plants

Soil contamination with cobalt (Co) negatively impacts plant growth and production. To combat Co toxicity, plant growth-promoting microorganisms for improving plant growth are effectively applied. To this end, unclassified haloarchaeal species strain NRS_31 (OL912833), belonging to Haloferax genus, was isolated, identified for the first time, and applied to mitigate the Co phytotoxic effects on maize plants. This study found that high Co levels in soil lead to Co accumulation in maize leaves. Co accumulation in the leaves inhibited maize growth and photosynthetic efficiency, inducing oxidative damage in the tissue. Interestingly, pre-inoculation with haloarchaeal species significantly reduced Co uptake and mitigated the Co toxicity. Induced photosynthesis improved sugar metabolism, allocating more carbon to defend against Co stress. Concomitantly, the biosynthetic key enzymes involved in sucrose (sucrose-P-synthase and invertases) and proline (pyrroline-5- carboxylate synthetase (P5CS), pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase (P5CR)) biosynthesis significantly increased to maintain plant osmotic potential. In addition to their osmoregulation potential, soluble sugars and proline can contribute to maintaining ROS hemostasis. Maize leaves managed their oxidative homeostasis by increasing the production of antioxidant metabolites (such as phenolics and tocopherols) and increasing the activity of ROS-scavenging enzymes (such as POX, CAT, SOD, and enzymes involved in the AsA/GSH cycle). Inside the plant tissue, to overcome heavy Co toxicity, maize plants increased the synthesis of heavy metal-binding ligands (metallothionein, phytochelatins) and the metal detoxifying enzymes (glutathione S transferase). Overall, the improved ROS homeostasis, osmoregulation, and Co detoxification systems were the basis underlying Co oxidative stress, mitigating haloarchaeal treatment's impact