Evaluating the interaction of 308-nm xenon chloride excimer laser with human dentin and enamel hard tissues

Background: The pulsed output of the 308 nm XeCl laser and its photoablation action rather than photothermal action offers the ability to remove dental hard tissues with minimal generation of heat in the tissue. Materials and Methods: A total of 20 human molar teeth (ten teeth used as enamel samples and ten teeth used as dentin samples after removing the enamel tissue from their crowns) were irradiated by the laser. The crown of each sample was regarded as a cube which its lateral sides were exposed in 2Hz frequency without water cooling. Also, 18 holes for all enamel samples and 18 holes for all dentin samples were obtained. Three different amounts of energy were selected as a variable factor with 6 different numbers of pulses in each energy. The images of these holes were prepared by optic and computer combining, and the amounts of the ablation depth and effective ablation area were calculated using the MATLAB software. Results: The amounts of ablation depth were increased with increasing the number of pulses for both enamel and dentin tissues. The amounts of ablation depth were also increased with increasing the amounts of energy for both enamel and dentin tissues. The greater amounts of ablation depth and effective ablation area were observed in the dentin tissue rather than the enamel tissue. The borders of created holes were reported sharp and clear. Conclusion: The application of the XeCl laser for hard tissue removal and cavity preparation can be possible after some certain modifications

The combination of retinoic acid and estrogen can increase germ cells genes expression in mouse embryonic stem cells derived primordial germ cells

A B S T R A C T Generation of germ cells from embryonic stem cells in vitro could have great application for treating infertility. The temporal expression profile of several genes was expressed at different stages of germ cell development and examined in differentiation the mouse embryonic stem cells. Cells were treated in three groups of control, with 10−8M of all-trans retinoic acid and the combination of 10−9M of 17β-Estradiol and retinoic acid for 7, 12, 17 or 22 days. Quantitative RT-PCR and Immunofluorescent were used to investigate the possible inductive effects of estrogen on mouse embryonic stem cell-derived primordial germ cells. mRNA expression of Oct4 and Dazl were downregulated in embryonic stem cells by the retinoic acid group, whereas Mvh transcription was reduced by retinoic acid and estrogen group in these cells compared to the control group. But, retinoic acid with estrogen group-treated cells exhibited increased mRNA expression of Stra8, Fragilis, Sycp3, GDF9, and Stella compared to untreated controls. The expression of Stella and Mvh proteins were remarkably increased in cell colonies. This study shows that estrogen affects the expression of specific markers of primordial germ cells. Also, estrogen and retinoic acid speed up and increase the level of expression of specific markers. Keywords: Gene expression profiling Immunofluorescent Mouse embryonic stem cells Primordial germ cells RT PC

Retinoic acid and 17β-estradiol improve male germ cell differentiation from mouse-induced pluripotent stem cells

This research aimed to explore the impacts of retinoic acid (RA)/17β-estradiol (E) induction and embryoid body formation to enhance differentiation of mouse-induced pluripotent stem cells (miPSCs) into male germ cells in vitro. Flow cytometry and qPCR were conducted to describe miPSCs differentiation process. Various temporal expression profiles of germ cell-related genes were traced. Stra8 gene expression increased in the RA group on the 4th day compared to other groups. The RA group experienced a more significant increase than E group. The expression of Sycp3 increased in RA + E group on 4th day compared with other groups. Expression of AKAP3 enhanced in the RA + E group than other groups on day 4. Moreover, miPSCs showed that this gene expression in the RA + E group was increased in comparison to RA and E groups on day 7. AKAP3 gene expression on day 7 of miPSCs decreased in RA and E groups. Flow cytometry data indicated that 3–8 of the cells in sub-G1 stage were haploid after RA and E induction compared to other groups on day 4. This study showed that miPSCs possess the power for differentiating into male germ cells in vitro via formation of embryoid body by RA with/or E induction. © 2019 Blackwell Verlag Gmb

Studies on combination of oxaliplatin and dendrosomal nanocurcumin on proliferation, apoptosis induction, and long non-coding RNA expression in ovarian cancer cells

Drug resistance remains a major challenge in the treatment of patients with ovarian cancer. Therefore, the development of new anticancer drugs is a clinical priority to develop more effective therapies. New approaches to improve clinical outcomes and limit the toxicity of anticancer drugs focus on chemoprevention. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of dendrosomal nanocurcumin (DNC) and oxaliplatin (Oxa) and their combination on cell death and apoptosis induction in human ovarian carcinoma cell lines analyzed by MTT assay and flow cytometry, respectively. The synergism effect of Oxa and DNC was analyzed using the equation derived from Chou and Talalay. In addition, real-time PCR was used to measure the effect of this combination on the expression levels of long non-coding RNAs with different expression in ovarian cancer and normal ovaries. Our data showed that the effect of DNC on cell death is more than curcumin alone in the same concentration. The greatest cell death effect was observed in combination of Oxa with DNC, while Oxa was added first, followed by DNC at 4 h interval (0/4 h). The findings indicated that DNC induced apoptosis significantly in both cell lines as compared to control groups; however, combination of both agents had no significant effect in apoptosis induction. In addition, combination of both agents significantly affects the relative expression of long non-coding RNAs investigated in the study as compared with mono therapy. © 2018, Springer Nature B.V

Effect of sesame-supplemented diet on prostate and seminal vesicle histology of adult rat

Infertility is a great concern among the people of reproductive age. The use of natural products obtained from traditional herbs is appealing. Studies show that antioxidants are important in improving male infertility. Thirty adult male rats were randomly divided into two regimen and control groups. The regimen group received diet containing 30 sesame seed, while the control group received standard diet for 12 weeks. Histology of prostate and seminal vesicle were evaluated and serum levels of FSH, LH and testosterone concentrations were assessed as well. The results showed that, the diameter of peripheral epithelium and the volume density of the prostate epithelium increased but the volume density of the prostate stroma was decreased significantly in the regimen group compared to the control group. Central epithelium diameter and the volume density of the prostate lumen did not change significantly between two groups. In seminal vesicle, volume density of fibromascular and lumen decreased significantly in regimen group compared to control group. FSH and Testosterone level did not change while LH concentration increased significantly in the regimen group compared to the control group (P <0.03). This study shows that the sesame seed might improve male rat reproductive systems by histopathological changes in prostate and seminal vesicle. © 2016, Universidad de la Frontera. All rights reserved

The protective effects of curcumin on cytotoxic and teratogenic activity of retinoic acid in mouse embryonic liver

Background: Retinoic acid (RA) is a synthetic vitamin derivative. It exerts toxic and teratogenic effects on the development of embryonic organs in dose- and time-dependent manners in mice. Curcumin is a compound obtained from rhizomes of turmeric (Curcuma longa) and has protective effects on teratogenic agents. The current study examined the effects of curcumin on embryos treated with RA. Methods: A total of 24 female NMRI mice (8-week-old pregnant mice) were investigated in the current study. All of them were treated for 10 days during days 15 to 50 of pregnancy. In the first group, the animals were fed with normal diets (control); in the second group, with 60 mg/kg all- trans RA; in the third group, with 10 mg/kg curcumin; and in the fourth group, with RA and curcumin in their diets. The animals were killed by cervical dislocation at the 18th day of pregnancy and embryos were separated from the uteruses. The embryo weight and crown rump (CR) length were measured, and the SPSS software was used to analyze data. Results: There was a significant increase in the lengths of CR and weights of embryos after using curcumin, but RA had no effect on the length of CR and weight of embryos at a dose of 60 mg/kg. Morphometric assay of liver tissue was performed, and data analysis indicated that there were significant differences between groups in terms of morphometric parameters of liver tissue. Therefore, RA increased the cell number and sinusoid diameter and decreased the cell areas in the embryonic liver tissue. However, curcumin decreased these side effects of RA on the embryonic liver tissue. Conclusion: The results indicated that curcumin could decrease the toxic and teratogenic effects of RA in mouse embryos. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

The effects of vasectomy on epididymal morphology and sperm parameters in adult male Balb/c mice

Vasectomy is a common contraceptive procedure in men. The present study is aimed to explore the impact of vasectomy on epididymal morphology and sperm parameters in adult male Balb/c mice. Twenty adult (age: 8 weeks) male Balb/c mice, weighting 20-30 g were used in the experiments. They were divided into 2 groups (vasectomy and sham). The operations were performed under sodium pentobarbital (40 mg/kg body weight, IP) anesthesia via a lower mid-abdominal incision. The left epididymis caput was fixed for histological studies and the right one was used for sperm count and motility. Progressive fast and slow sperm motility were significantly decreased in the vasectomized compared to the sham operation group (P<0.05) and the number of immotile sperm in the vasectomized group was increased in comparison to control group. Sperm granuloma was seen in 60 of epididymis after vasectomy. Also, Histological study showed an increase in tubular lumen diameter, interstitial space and infiltration of immune cells in interstitial tissue in vasectomized group. Vasectomy increases histopathological changes in epididymis and decreases the motility of sperm developing a reduction in fertility rates

Effect of diet contains sesame seed on epididymal histology of adult rat

Sesamin is a major lignan constituent of sesame seed and considered as a key factor in a number of beneficial effects on human health. Sesame leaves intake improve and increase epididymal spermatocytes reserve in adult male sprague dawley rat. The present study was aimed to investigate the effects of contain sesame seed on epididymis histologhical structure. Thirty adult male rats were divided into two groups of 15 rats each. The regimen group received diet containing 30 sesame seed, while the control group received diet along 12 weeks. The right epididymis were removed and minced into several pieces on a specimen bottle containing normal saline for some few minutes to allow the sperms to become motile and swim out and sperm parameters were analyzed. Left epididymis were divided into three sections and fixed into bouin,s solution for further investigation. Serum FSH and LH concentration were estimated by ELISA technique, Testosterone concentration was done by using Chemo-Luminance method. The body weight gained during the treatment period did not differ significantly among groups. The mean epididymal sperm motility and count of the experimental group was significantly higher than control group. LH levels significantly increased in experimental group compared to controls but significant changes in FSH and testosterone levels were not observed in both groups. The results obtained showed that the mean epididymal diameter of the tubular, lumen and epithelium in three parts were not significant in two groups. It can be concluded that sesame seed improves sperm parameters (motility and count) and also can increase LH. But diet contains sesame seed did not affect on epididymal tissue and body weight

Derivation of male germ cells from induced pluripotent stem cells by inducers: A review

Abstract Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) refer to stem cells that are artificially produced using a new technology known as cellular reprogramming, which can use gene transduction in somatic cells. There are numerous potential applications for iPSCs in the field of stem cell biology becauase they are able to give rise to several different cell features of lineages such as three-germ layers. Primordial germ cells, generated via in vitro differentiation of iPSCs, have been demonstrated to produce functional gametes. Therefore, in this review we discussed past and recent advances in the in vitro differentiation of germ cells using pluripotent stem cells with an emphasis on iPSCs. Although this domain of research is still in its infancy, exploring development mechanisms of germ cells is promising, especially in humans, to promote future reproductive and developmental engineering technologies. While few studies have evaluated the ability and efficiency of iPSCs to differentiate toward male germ cells in vitro by different inducers, the given effect was investigated in this review. Key Words differentiation germ cells induced pluripotent stem cells inducer