Liver injury from ampicillin-induced intestinal microbiota distresses in rats fed carbohydrate- and protein-rich diets

Purpose: To investigate the effect of ampicillin on rat intestinal microflora and liver in the presence of high carbohydrate and protein diets.Methods: Male Wistar albino rats were divided into four groups. The first group served as the control, the second group was treated with ampicillin (50 mg/kg for 3 weeks) and fed with a standard diet, while the third and fourth groups were treated with the same dose of ampicillin and fed with acarbohydrateand protein-rich diets, respectively, to observe the effect of diet on gut flora and liver. Fecal specimens were collected and used for qualitative determination of gut microbiota composition. Serum hepatospecific markers (AST, ALT and ALP) were estimated. The antioxidant status of liver tissues was estimated for GSH, MDA, GST, LDH and vitamin C l, in addition to sodium and potassium.Results: Administration of orogastric dose of ampicillin for 3 weeks induced inhibition of E.coli, yeasts, total anaerobes, and anaerobic lactobacilli with new growth of P. vulgaris and K. pneumonia. The levels of serum AST, ALT and ALP showed significant (p ˂ 0.05) increase to 163, 112.38 and 115.35 %, respectively in ampicillin-treated animals, compared to control. Also significant (p ˂ 0.05) increase in lipid peroxidation (120 %) and LDH (111 %) coupled with significant (p ˂ 0.05) decrease in glutathione (74.57 %), vitamin C (63.49 %) and glutathione S-transferase (41.51 %) were observed in ampicillintreated groups. No significant variation (p ˂ 0.05) in sodium and potassium levels were found between control and the treated group after 3 weeks of treatment.Conclusion: These results confirm that extended ampicillin therapy disrupts gut flora, which results in liver injury; hence, overuse of antibiotics should be avoidKeywords: Ampicillin, Gut microbiota, Overgrowth, Dietary Strategies, Live

The protective effect of Moringa oleifera plant extract against glutamate-induced DNA damage and reduced cell viability in a primary retinal ganglion cell line

Background Glutamate excitotoxicity can cause DNA damage and is linked to many retinal and neurological disorders. In mammals, the visual signal from the eyes to the brain is conducted only by retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), which can be damaged by overstimulation of glutamate receptors. Methodology We examined the protective effects of Moringa oleifera seed extract against glutamate-induced DNA damage in RGCs. RGCs cells were treated with 5, 10, 50, or 100 µg/ml of M. oleifera seed extract and glutamate separately and then assessed for DNA damage using the comet assay. We also evaluated the viability of the RGCs after both treatments using the MTT test. Additionally, RGCs were pretreated with M. oleifera seed extract (50 or 100 µg/ml) for 2 h before glutamate treatment (100 µg/ml) to determine the potential protective effects of M. oleifera. We performed a phytochemical analysis of the M. oleifera seed extract using standard reactions. Results The M. oleifera seed extract was found to be rich in many phytochemicals. We observed a significant dose-dependent elevation in all comet assay variables in glutamate-treated RGCs, whereas M. oleifera seed extract treatments did not show any significant change in DNA integrity. Conclusion M. oleifera seed extract demonstrates neuroprotective effects, which suggests it may help to prevent the development of many neurodegenerative disorders

Antioxidant and hepatorenal protective effects of bee pollen fractions against propionic acid‐induced autistic feature in rats

In the brain, propionic acid (PA) can cross cell membranes and accumulate within cells, leading to intracellular acidification, which may alter neurotransmitter release (NT), communication between neurons, and behavior. Such elevation in levels of PA constitutes a neurodevelopmental metabolic disorder called propionic acidemia, which could clinically manifest as autism. The purpose of this study was to investigate the protective effects of different fractions of bee pollen (BP) on PA‐induced autism in rats, and to evaluate their effects on the expression of liver and renal biomarkers. Groups of rats received treatments of different fractions of BP at a dose of 250 mg/kg of body weight/day for a period of 1 month. Normal control group I and group II were orally administered with phosphate‐buffered saline and propionic acid, respectively, for 3 days. BP contains various health‐promoting phenolic components. Different fractions of BP administered pre‐ and post‐treatment with PA showed significant reduction in the levels of liver and renal biomarkers (p < .05). Also, a significant enhancement in the levels of glutathione S‐transferase (GST), catalase CAT), and ascorbic acid (VIT C) was observed. Supplementation with BP significantly reduced biochemical changes in the liver, kidneys, and brain of rats with PA‐induced toxicity. It exhibited protective effects against oxidative damage and reactive oxygen species produced by PA‐induced adverse reactions in rats. Taken together, our study shows that BP possesses protective effects in PA‐induced liver and kidney damage

Phytochemical constituents and antibacterial activity of some green leafy vegetables

Objective: To investigate the antibacterial activity and photochemicals of five green leafy vegetables against a panel of five bacteria strains. Methods: Disc diffusion method was used to determine the antibacterial activity, while kanamycin was used as a reference antibiotic. The phytochemical screening of the extracts was performed using standard methods. Results: All methanol extracts were found active against all the test bacterial strains. Overall maximum extracts shows antibacterial activity which range from 6 to 15 mm. Proteins and carbohydrates was found in all the green leaves, whereas alkaloid, steroids, saponins, flavonoids, tannins were found in most of the test samples. Conclusions: The obtain result suggests that green leafy vegetables have moderate antibacterial activity and contain various pharmacologically active compounds and thus provide the scientific basis for the traditional uses of the studied vegetables in the treatment of bacterial infections

Antimicrobial activity of Litchi chinensis and Nephelium lappaceum aqueous seed extracts against some pathogenic bacterial strains

Seeds aqueous extracts from Litchi chinensis and Nephelium lappaceum were investigated for antibacterial activity by disc diffusion method and protein profile. Both seed aqueous extracts show moderate inhibition against pathogenic bacteria, both gram positive including Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, and Bacilllus subtillis and gram negative bacteria including Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Overall analysis of the antibacterial activity of tested samples revealed that the highest inhibitory activity was produced by Litchi chinensis (15 ± 0.55 mm) against S. pyogenes. Tris glycine SDS PAGE revealed major protein band approximately 15.5 kDa and 22-kDa. Protein contents of Seeds of Litchi chinensis and Nephelium lappaceum were approximately 7.5 and 13.5 mg/g, respectively

Antibacterial activities of extracts of leaf, fruit, seed and bark of Phoenix dactylifera

The antibacterial activities of different parts of local Phoenix dactylifera were investigated in vitro. Dried leaf, fruit, seed and tree bark were extracted with water, methanol and acetone. Antibacterial property of the extracts was evaluated against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa using the disc diffusion method. Overall analysis of the antibacterial activity of various extracts revealed that the highest inhibitory activity was produced by the fruit extract (18.2 ± 0.55 mm) as compared to the leaf, bark and seed extracts. All the extracts from the different parts of the plant showed antibacterial activity against most tested microorganisms. On the whole, aqueous extracts have the least antibacterial activity as compared to methanol and acetone extracts. The antibacterial activity against the Gram-positive strains was the highest in the acetone fruit extract against S. aureus (18.2 ± 0.55 mm). The most active extract against Gram-negative bacteria was methanol extract from the leaves with a 13.5 ± 0.33 mm inhibition zone for E. coli followed by 12.5 ± 0.88 mm for P. aeruginosa. Phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of carbohydrates and alkaloids in all parts, and flavonoids, steroids, saponins and tannins were present in some parts.Key words: Antibacterial activity, Phoenix dactylifera, disc diffusion assay, extracts, inhibition zone

Antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of whole seed extracts of Perseaamericana Mill

Perseaamericana Mill used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various ailments and has antibacterial, antifungal, anti-viral and wound-healing properties. In the present study, antioxidant and antibacterial activity of different extracts of Perseaamericana Mill were investigated. Antioxidant potential of plant extracts was evaluated by means of total phenolic, total flavonoids content and DPPH radical scavenging activity. The highest phenolic and flanovoid content was observed in methanol extract while the lowest was achieved in aqueous extract. At concentration of 500 SOH g/mL, DPPH radical scavenging activity was found to be highest in methanol extract (70%) and lowest in aqueous extract (51%). Antibacterial activity of different extracts was evaluated by using the disk diffusion method. Highest antibacterial activity was observed with methanol extract against S. pyogenes, while minimum activity was observed with aqueous extract against E.coli

The anti‐inflammatory and antiapoptotic effects of probiotic on induced neurotoxicity in juvenile hamsters

Abstract Brain inflammation and apoptosis play crucial roles in the pathogenesis of various neurodevelopmental disorders. Probiotics have been shown to confer protection against many stresses, including apoptosis and inflammation, by modulating the gut function. The short‐chain fatty acid, propionic acid (PPA), plays an important intermediate of cellular metabolism. Although PPA exhibits numerous beneficial biological effects, its accumulation is neurotoxic. This study focused on the therapeutic potency of probiotics against PPA‐induced apoptosis and neuroinflammation in hamsters. Five groups of male golden Syrian hamsters were treated as follows: Group I as control; Group II as PPA‐treated with three doses of 250 mg PPA/kg/day; Group III as clindamycin‐treated with a single dose of 30 mg clindamycin/kg; Group IV as PPA–probiotic; and Group V as clindamycin–probiotic were two therapeutic groups which were treated with the same doses of PPA and clindamycin, respectively, followed by treatment with 0.2 g kg‐1 d−1 of probiotic (ProtexinR, Probiotics International Limited) for three weeks. Proapoptotic markers, such as caspases 3 and 7; neuroinflammation markers, such as interleukins 1β and 8; and heat shock protein 70 were measured in the brain. Significant increase of all measured markers (p ˂ .001) was observed in PPA and clindamycin‐treated hamsters compared with controls. Probiotics significantly reduced the damages and ameliorated all the test markers in both therapeutic groups compared with the control. Our results confirmed that probiotics can be utilized as a feasible strategy for managing apoptotic and inflammation‐related stresses in brain disorders by retaining the gut function