Antiproliferative effects of Ceratonia siliqua L. on mouse hepatocellular carcinoma cell line

Extracts from pods and leaves of carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.) were tested for their ability to inhibit cell proliferation of mouse hepatocellular carcinoma cell line (T1). The two extracts showed a marked alteration of T1 cell proliferation in a dose-related fashion reaching the maximal effect at 1 mg/ml. Moreover, we demonstrated that leaf and pod extracts were able to induce apoptosis in T1 cell lines after 24-h treatment mediating a direct activation of the caspase 3 pathway. HPLC analysis revealed the presence of gallic acid, epigallocatechin-3-gallate and (-) epi catechin - 3 -gallate in pod and leaf extracts, compounds well known to exert antiproliferative effects. Their concentration reached 6.28 mg/g in carob leaves and 1.36 mg/g in carob pods extract. The discovery that carob pod and leaf extracts contained antiproliferative agents could be of practical importance in the development of functional foods and/or chemopreventive drugs

Improved sexual behavior in male rats treated with a Chinese herbal extract: hormonal and neuronal implications

Aim: To investigate the influence of an extract obtained from five Chinese medicinal plants on sexual behavior ofadult male rats. Methods: The extract was administered at doses of 30, 60 and 120 mg/kg by oral gavage, acutely (onetime, 45 min before mating test) or subchronically (daily for 10 days) in sexually potent and sexually sluggish/impotentrats. Sexual behavior, serum levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) and testosterone (T) were evaluated in treatedrats and compared with controls receiving vehicle. The effect of the extract on central dopaminergic neurotransmissionwas assessed in the nucleus accumbens using a microdialysis technique. Results: In sexually potent rats, bothacute and subchronic treatment with the extract dosed at 30 and 60 mg/kg reduced mount latency and intromissionlatency. In sluggish/impotent rats, the acutely administered extract at the dose of 60 mg/kg shortened ejaculationlatency, whereas subchronically administered at the doses of 30 and 60 mg/kg, reduced mount, intromission andejaculation latencies, increasing also the percentage of mounting and ejaculating rats. The extract dosed at 60 mg/kgsignificantly increased LH and T following acute and subchronic administration and increased 3,4-dihydroxyphenylaceticacid levels in the nucleus accumbens, 30 min after the acute administration. Conclusion: The improvement in bothappetitive and consummatory components of sexual behavior observed in male rats treated with the extract could beascribed to increased serum T level in parallel with the activation of the central dopaminergic system

Morphological and Receptorial Changes in the Epididymal Adipose Tissue of Rats Subjected to a Stressful Stimulus.

Obesity is nowadays related to other pathological conditions such as inflammation, insulin resistance, and diabetes, but little is known about the relationship between psychological stress and adipocytes. We decided to study the expression of the translocator protein (TSPO) 18-kDa, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-\u3b3 (PPAR-\u3b3), mitochondrial uncoupling protein-1 (UCP-1), and adipocyte morphology in the adipose tissue of rats subjected to stress conditions. In our model of stress, rats fasted for 24 h were placed in a restraint cage and then immersed vertically to the level of the xiphoid process in a water bath at 23 \ub0C for 7 h. After that period, we removed the epididymal adipose tissues for the subsequent analysis. The optical and electron microscopy revealed that adipocytes of control rats formed a continuous epithelial-like cell layer; on the contrary in the adipocytes of stressed rats some cells have merged together and the number of vessels formed seems to increase. Stressed adipocytes presented unilocular cells with numerous mitochondria with a morphology ranging between that of brown adipose tissue (BAT) and white adipose tissue (WAT). Interestingly, when we investigated the subcellular distribution of UCP-1 by immunogold electron microscopy, the adipose tissue of stressed rats was positive for UCP-1. From the immunoblot analysis with anti-PPAR-\u3b3 antibody, we observed an increased expression of PPAR-\u3b3 in the adipocytes of stressed group compared with control group (P < 0.05). Stress induced the expression of TSPO 18-kDa receptor (B(max) = 106.45 \ub1 5.87 fmol/mg proteins), which is undetectable by saturation-binding assay with [(3)H]PK 11195 in the control group

Comparison of different methods of aggregation of model ensemble outcomes in the validation and reconstruction of real power plant signals

International audienceSensors are placed at various locations in a production plant to monitor the state of the processes and components. For the plant state monitoring to be effective, the sensors themselves must be monitored for detecting anomalies in their functioning and for reconstructing the correct values of the signals measured. In this work, the task of sensor monitoring and signal reconstruction is tackled with an ensemble of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) models handling individual overlapping groups of sensor signals, randomly generated according to the Random Feature Selection Ensemble (RFSE) technique. The outcomes of these models are combined using a Local Fusion (LF) technique based on the evaluation of the models performance on set of training patterns similar to the test pattern under reconstruction. The performances obtained using the LF method are compared to those obtained using classical aggregation methods such as Simple Mean (SM) Globally weighted average (GWA), Median (MD) and Trimmed Mean (TM), on a real case study concerning 215 signals monitored at a Finnish Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) nuclear power plant

Neonatal lymphocyte subpopulations analysis and maternal preterm premature rupture of membranes: a pilot study

Abstract Objectives Preterm premature rupture of membranes (pPROM) causes preterm delivery, and increases maternal T-cell response against the fetus. Fetal inflammatory response prompts maturation of the newborn's immunocompetent cells, and could be associated with unfavorable neonatal outcome. The aims were (1) to examine the effects of pPROM on the newborn's and mother's immune system and (2) to assess the predictive value of immune system changes in neonatal morbidity. Methods Mother-newborn pairs (18 mothers and 23 newborns) who experienced pPROM and controls (11 mothers and 14 newborns), were enrolled. Maternal and neonatal whole blood samples underwent flow cytometry to measure lymphocyte subpopulations. Results pPROM-newborns had fewer naïve CD4 T-cells, and more memory CD4 T-cells than control newborns. The effect was the same for increasing pPROM latency times before delivery. Gestational age and birth weight influenced maturation of the newborns' lymphocyte subpopulations and white blood cells, notably cytotoxic T-cells, regulatory T-cells, T-helper cells (absolute count), and CD4/CD8 ratio. Among morbidities, fewer naïve CD8 T-cells were found in bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) (p=0.0009), and more T-helper cells in early onset sepsis (p=0.04). Conclusions pPROM prompts maturation of the newborn's T-cell immune system secondary to antigenic stimulation, which correlates with pPROM latency. Maternal immunity to inflammatory conditions is associated with a decrease in non-major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-restricted cytotoxic cells

Cognitive deficits and changes in gene expression of NMDA receptors after prenatal methylmercury exposure.

Previous studies showed learning and memory deficit in adult rats that were prenatally exposed to methylmercury chloride (MMC) in an advanced stage of pregnancy (15 days). Under these conditions, the cognitive deficits found at 60 days of age paralleled particularly changes in the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor characteristics. In the present study, we report the behavioral effects of a single oral dose of MMC (8 mg/kg) administered earlier at gestational day 8. The use of different learning and memory tests (passive avoidance, object recognition, water maze) showed a general cognitive impairment in the in utero-exposed rats tested at 60 days of age compared with matched controls. Considering the importance of the glutamatergic receptor system and its endogenous ligands in learning and memory process regulation, we surmised that MMC could affect the gene expression of NMDA receptor subtypes. The use of a sensitive RNase protection assay allowed the evaluation of gene expression of two families of NMDA receptors (NR-1 and NR-2 subtypes). The result obtained in 60-day-old rats prenatally exposed to MMC, showed increased mRNA levels of the NR-2B subunit in the hippocampus but not in the frontal cortex. The data suggest that the behavioral abnormalities of MMC-exposed rats might be ascribed to a neurotoxic effect of the metal that alters the gene expression of a specific NMDA receptor subunit in the hippocampus

Componentes de produção de soja em diferentes épocas no noroeste do Rio Grande do Sul / Components of soybean production in different times in the northwest of Rio Grande do Sul

A soja (Glycine Max(L.) Merrill) é uma das culturas mais importantes da economia mundial. A época de semeadura é uma problemática que afeta a arquitetura, o desenvolvimento e a produtividade. Portanto, o objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar os componentes de produção de duas cultivares de soja, com diferentes níveis de maturidade, submetidas a três datas de plantio. O experimento foi realizado no ano agrícola 2018/2019, em delineamento de blocos ao acaso, em esquema bifatorial 3x2, com três datas de plantio EP1 (23/09/2018), EP2 (29/10/2018) e EP3 (25/11/2018) e duas cultivares Brasmax (Spear 58I60 RSF IPRO e Elite 5855 RSF IPRO), com três repetições. As variáveis analisadas foram: altura da planta, número total de vagens férteis, número total de vagens inférteis, peso de mil sementes, rendimento de grãos e número de vagens inférteis. Houve diferença significativa apenas entre as datas de semeadura da soja. O menor número de sementes por vagem influenciou positivamente o peso de mil sementes. Os plantios realizados nas estações (EP1 23/09/2018) e (EP2 29/10/2018) apresentaram maior produtividade de grãos na colheita da soja.A soja (Glycine Max (L.) Merrill) é uma das culturas mais importantes da economia mundial. A época de semeadura é uma problemática que afeta a arquitetura, o desenvolvimento e a produtividade. Portanto, o objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar os componentes de produção de duas cultivares de soja, com diferentes níveis de maturidade, submetidas a três datas de plantio. O experimento foi realizado no ano agrícola 2018/2019, em delineamento de blocos ao acaso, em esquema bifatorial 3x2, com três datas de plantio EP1 (23/09/2018), EP2 (29/10/2018) e EP3 (25/11/2018) e duas cultivares Brasmax (Spear 58I60 RSF IPRO e Elite 5855 RSF IPRO), com três repetições. As variáveis analisadas foram: altura da planta, número total de vagens férteis, número total de vagens inférteis, peso de mil sementes, rendimento de grãos e número de vagens inférteis. Houve diferença significativa apenas entre as datas de semeadura da soja. O menor número de sementes por vagem influenciou positivamente o peso de mil sementes. Os plantios realizados nas estações (EP1 23/09/2018) e (EP2 29/10/2018) apresentaram maior produtividade de grãos na colheita da soja

Fontes de adubação na cultura do tomateiro e o efeito na qualidade da água percolada / Fertilizer sources on tomato culture and the effect on the quality of percolated water

O tomate é uma das hortaliças mais produzidas no mundo e que permite um bom retorno econômico aos produtores, além disso, é muito exigente em adubação. Neste sentido, o uso de adubações orgânicas combinada com mineral pode ser uma forma viável e de menor custo, além de poder melhorar o desenvolvimento da cultura. O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar o impacto de fontes de adubação em parâmetros morfológicos e fisiológicos de tomateiro e na qualidade da água percolada. O experimento foi conduzido em área experimental da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria campus de Frederico Westphalen. O delineamento utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado com esquema bifatorial 4x2, utilizando 4 fontes de adubação e 2 cultivares, com parcelas subdivididas. As fontes de adubação não apresentaram diferenças, se mostrando melhores apenas em relação a testemunha. Os teores de Sólidos Solúveis e Acidez Titulável foram mais elevados para a cultivar Santa Cruz Kada. As adubações com Dejeto de Suínos+NK e Cama de Aves+NK proporcionaram maior lixiviação dos elementos nitrogenados no início do cultivo. O uso de adubações orgânicas combinadas com minerais é uma alternativa viável e de menor custo aos produtores, desde que sua quantidade seja adequada, sem causar problemas ambientais