Effect of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) extract on weight, hematology and cell-mediated immune response of newborn goat kids

This study aimed at evaluating the effects of different levels of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) extract on growth rate, hematology and cell-mediated immune response in Markhoz newborn goat kids. Twenty four goat kids (aged 7 +/- 3 days) were randomly allotted to four groups with six replicates. The groups included: control, T1, T2 and T3 groups which received supplemented-milk with 0, 100, 200 and 400mg aqueous rosemary extract per kg of live body weight per day for 42 days. Body weights of kids were measured weekly until the end of the experiment. On day 42, 10 ml blood samples were collected from each kid through the jugular vein. Cell-mediated immune response was assessed through the double skin thickness after intradermal injection of phyto-hematoglutinin (PHA) at day 21 and 42. No significant differences were seen in initial body weight, average daily gain (ADG) and total gain. However, significant differences in globulin (P 0.05), and white blood cells (WBC) (P 0.001) were observed. There were no significant differences in haemoglobin (Hb), packed cell volume (PCV), red blood cells (RBC), lymphocytes and neutrophils between the treatments. Skin thickness in response to intra dermal injection of PHA significantly increased in the treated groups as compared to the control group at day 42 (P 0.01) with the T3 group showing the highest response to PHA injection. In conclusion, the results indicated that aqueous rosemary extract supplemented-milk had a positive effect on immunity and skin thickness of newborn goat kids

Production of hepatocyte-like cells from human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells

The human umbilical vein, as a readily available stem cell source, is a good alternative to harvest mesenchymal stem cells. Human umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells have recently been isolated and have demonstrated the ability to differentiate into various cell types such as fat, bone, cartilage and neuronal cells. In this study, we have investigated whether human umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells are also able to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells. Hepatic differentiation was performed with a 2-step protocol and the use of hepatocyte growth factor and oncostatin M for cell culture. During four weeks of induction, most cells displayed a cuboidal morphology. Immunological analysis indicated that umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells-derived hepatocyte-like cells expressed liver-specific protein markers such as albumin and cytokeratin-18. The hepatocyte-like cells also displayed several characteristics of hepatocytes, including expression of transthyretin, glucose 6-phosphatase, cytokeratin-8,18, alpha-fetoprotein, hepatocyte nuclear factor-3β and albumin. The result of indocyanine green cell uptake, as a test substance to evaluate hepatocyte-like cell function, was positive for differentiated cells. Glycogen storage was examined by periodic acid-Schiff staining. Accumulation of intracellular glycogen was detected in the hepatocyte-like cells. Based on these observations, we have concluded that umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells are endowed with hepatogenic potential and may provide a stem cell source to be used as cell therapy for liver diseases

CTLA-4 Blockade of Natural Killer Cells Increases Cytotoxicity against Acute Lymphoid Leukaemia Cells Neda

Objective: There is interest in using cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) immunotherapy to treat blood cancers.Unfortunately, patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) frequently exhibit resistance to treatment and naturalkiller (NK) cell exhaustion. This study aims to increase the cytotoxic potency of natural killer cells by using CTLA-4 toblock the Nalm-6 leukaemia cell line.Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, NK cells were purified from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMCs) of 10 healthy people and assessed by flow cytometry for purity and viability. The purified cells were activatedovernight at 37°C and 5% CO2 with interleukin-15 (IL-15, 10 ng/ml) followed by evaluation of expressions of CTLA-4,activating and inhibitory receptors, and the release of interferon gamma (IFN-γ) and granzyme B (GZM B). CTLA-4expression on NK cells from recurrent ALL patients was also evaluated. Finally, the cytotoxic activity of NK cells wasassessed after the CTLA-4 blockade.Results: The purity of the isolated cells was 96.58 ± 2.57%. Isolated NK cells activated with IL-15 resulted in significantlyhigher CTLA-4 expression (8.75%, P<0.05). Similarly, CTLA-4 expression on the surface of NK cells from patientswith ALL was higher (7.46%) compared to healthy individuals (1.46%, P<0.05). IL-15 reduced NKG2A expression(P<0.01), and increased expressions of NKP30 (P<0.05) and NKP46 (P<0.01). The activated NK cells released moreIFN-γ (P<0.5) and GZM B (P<0.01) compared to unactivated NK cells. Blockade of CTLA-4 enhanced the NK cellkilling potential against Nalm-6 cells (56.3%, P<0.05); however, IFN-γ and GZM B levels were not statistically differentbetween the blocked and non-blocked groups.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that CTLA-4 blockage of Nalm-6 cells causes an increase in antitumour activity ofNK cells against these cells. Our study also provides evidence for the potential of cancer immunotherapy treatmentusing blocking anti-CTLA-4 mAbs

In Vitro Differentiation of Human Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells into Cardiomyocyte-like Cells

Objective: Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been recognized as potentialcandidates for cell therapy. In the present study, the ability of human bone marrow mesenchymalstem cells (hBMSCs) to differentiate into cells with characteristics of cardiomyocytesin vitro was investigated.Materials and Methods: hBMSCs cultured in enriched medium were treated with oxytocinand 5-azacytidin. The differentiation of hBMSCs into cells that expressed cardiacspecificgenes such as α3-actinin, alpha - myosin heavy chain (α-MHC), beta - myosinheavy chain (β-MHC), myosin light chain isoform 2a (MLC2a), myosin light chain isoform2v (MLC2v), artial natriuretic factor (ANF), GATA4 and oxytocin receptor (OTR) was investigatedby reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Protein expressionsof β-actinin and troponin I-C in the cells were analyzed through immunofluorescencestaining.Results: MSCs are spindle-shaped with irregular processes. Cells treated with oxytocinand 5-azacytidin connected with adjoining cells to form myotube-like structures. Expressionsof a number of cardiac-specific genes were detected by RT-PCR. Immunofluorescencestaining analysis showed that the differentiated cells stained positively for β-actininand troponin I-C protein.Conclusion: These results indicate that adult hBMSCs can differentiate into cardiomyocytesin vitro by treatment with oxytocin and 5-azacytidin, and can be considered as asource of cells for cellular cardiomyoplasty

Evaluating the Expression of Oct-4, NANOG, Sox2 and Nucleostemin in Colon Cancer Cell Lines (Caco-2 and HT-29)

Objective: Evaluating the expression of Oct-4, NANOG, Sox2 and Nucleostemin in coloncancer cell lines (Caco-2 and HT-29).Materials and Methods: Caco-2 and HT-29 human colon cancer cell lines were culturedin Dulbecco’s modified eagles medium (DMEM) and Roswell Park Memorial Institute medium(RPMI) respectively, containing 10% fetal bovin serum (FBS) with 1% peniciline andstreptomycinen in 37°, 5% CO2 incubator. Total RNA was isolated using the ISOGENmethod. RNA integrity was checked with the use of agarose gel electrophoresis and spectrophotometry.Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used toexamin the samples. The expression of Oct-4 and Nucleostemin at the protein level wasfurther determined using immunocytochemistry.Results: RT-PCR analysis of Caco2 and HT-29 colon cancer cell lines showed expressionof Oct-4, NANOG, Sox2 and Nucleostemin genes . Also immunocytochemical analysisconfirmed the cytoplasmic and nuclear expression of the Oct-4 protein and Nucleosteminproteins.Conclusion: Collectively, our data confirmed the expression of Oct-4, NANOG, Sox2and Nucleostemin in colon cancer cells and suggested that their expression can be usedas potential tumor markers in diagnosis and /or prognosis of colon tumors. These resultsconfirm the potential value of the cancer stem-cell theory in cancer therapy

Differentialrechnung in Grundkursen

SIGLECopy held by FIZ Karlsruhe / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekDEGerman

Toxic Agents Responsible for Acute Poisonings Treated at Four Medical Settings in Iran during 2012-2013: A Report from Iran's National Drug and Poison Information Center

Background: Acute poisoning has been reported to be the most common reason for hospitalization in Iran. This study was designed to delineate the toxic agents responsible for acute poisonings in Iran by reviewing poisoning cases treated at four major referral hospitals for treatment of poisoning across the country. Methods: This was a descriptive retrospective study on poisoned patients treated at four tertiary hospitals referral for poisoning in Iran, including Loghman Hakim Hospital (LHH) in Tehran, Imam Reza Hospital (IRH) in Mashhad, Noor and Ali Asghar Hospital (NAH) in Isfahan, and Ghaemshahr Razi Hospital (GRH) in Ghaemshahr, as reported to the National Drug and Poison Information Center during the years 2012 and 2013. Results: During the two-year study period, 61,187 poisoned patients (i.e. 32,107 patients in 2012 and 29,080 patients in 2013) were treated at the four hospitals. In these two years, 22,185 patients (36.3%) were treated at LHH, 22,160 patients (36.2%) at IRH, 10,897 patients (17.8%) at NAH and 5,945 patients (9.7%) at GRH. Cumulatively in all hospitals, the highest rate of admissions was due to drug poisoning (42,017, 68.7%), recreational substances overdose (7,302, 11.9%) and pesticide poisoning (5,217, 8.5%). Conclusion: Pharmaceutical products, substances of abuse and pesticides are the most common causes of poisoning-related admissions to referral Iranian poison treatment centers. Effective measures to reduce poisoning with these substances should be done