Biochemical parameters among type 2 diabetic patients complaining of erectile dysfunction

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) have more disturbances of sexual and reproductive functions. The consequences of type 2 DM may include dyslipidemia, insulin resistance (IR), cardiovascular disease (CVD) and low testosterone level. The main objective of this study is to determine the value of various biochemical parameters in relation to erectile dysfunction (ED) in type 2 DM patients in Gaza city, Palestine. A total of 160 males between the age of 35–60 years were recruited; 80 type 2 DM patients and 80 as controls. Anthropometric, demographic, sexual and clinical data were obtained by questionnaire. Increased prevalence of high BMI and HOMA-IR were observed among type 2 DM patients, while high incidence of low testosterone was found in the same group (p< 0.05). Testosterone was correlated negatively and significantly with BMI and duration of type 2 DM (p< 0.05). ED was correlated significantly and directionally with dyslipidemia, duration of type 2 DM, and complications of diabetes mainly retinopathy (p< 0.05). While, nocturnal/early morning erection (NEME) was correlated significantly but inversely with duration of type 2 DM (p< 0.05). In addition, fasting blood glucose (FBG), duration of type 2 DM and low level of testosterone were predictor factors associated with ED (p< 0.05), while increased BMI was a predictor factor associated with low testosterone level (p< 0.05). In the present study, high incidence of low testosterone and increased prevalence of ED among type 2 DM patients could be attributed to uncontrolled type 2 DM, obesity, IR, dyslipidemia, long duration of type 2 DM and its complications

The Effect of Oral Allografts of Cancellous Bone and Marrow in Mice

The purpose of this study was: to develop a model for testing oral bone transplantation; to study the healing of a surgically produced defect with and without the transplantation of strongly allogeneic cancellous bones and marrow; and to determine the fate of the allogenic grafts. Twenty-eight CBA/H mice served as experimental animals. Intra-oral defects were made and in 14 of the animals strongly allogenic cancellous bone and marrow were transplanted. The 14 remaining animals served as controls. It was observed that the healing was delayed in the experimental animals as compared to the controls and that the grafted material was rejected in from two to three weeks

Autofluorescence of routinely hematoxylin and eosinstained sections without exogenous markers

Hematoxylin and eosin stained paraffin section was examined by fluorescence microscopy to study the pattern and distribution of fluorescence. Autofluorescence was sensitive and specific for detection ofelastic and collagen fibers. It was concluded that analytical morphological techniques based on autofluorescence can obtain information about morphological and pathological state of tissue and cells

Tissue microarrays and their use for preparation of reference slides for educational purposes in histology and histopathology

Use of Tissue array was first applied in 1998, and has received a significant amount of attention from the research community ever since. In this technique, a large number (up to 1000) of cylindrical tissue core extracted from \"donor\" paraffin block are deposited into \"recipient\" block. The aim was modification of the technique of tissue array for manual preparation of the recipient block and production of slides of educational interest in histology and histopathology. The area of interest was localized with the help of stained section, the area was punctured, and the cylindrical core of tissue removed was then introduced into another (recipient) paraffin block. Puncture method was suitable only for parenchymatous organs (liver, kidney, heart, spleen, etc.) but longitudinal sections were required for tubular (gastrointestinal tract, urinary tract, genital tract) and hollow organs (gallbladder, urinary bladder) and brain. The method described is of importance in procurement of materials for preparation of slides for educational purposes and in overcoming the shortage of these materials especially in the field of pathology African Journal of Health Sciences Vol. 13 (3-4) 2006: pp. 66-6

Anticholinergic Toxicity Secondary to Overuse of Topricin Cream, a Homeopathic Medication.

Adverse reactions from over-the-counter medications present a challenge to physicians. Homeopathic medicine is an alternative practice, originating in Germany and gaining popularity in the United States. It utilizes dilute preparations of substances in order to treat and cure disease. Patients may potentially suffer serious effects from the use of these products as the contents and concentrations are often unclear. Here, we describe a case of suspected atropine toxicity due to the overuse of a topical homeopathic cream, Topricin, which contains belladonna, a plant containing atropine

Biochemical parameters among type 2 diabetic patients complaining of erectile dysfunction

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) have more disturbances of sexual and reproductive functions. The consequences of type 2 DM may include dyslipidemia, insulin resistance (IR), cardiovascular disease (CVD) and low testosterone level. The main objective of this study is to determine the value of various biochemical parameters in relation to erectile dysfunction (ED) in type 2 DM patients in Gaza city, Palestine. A total of 160 males between the age of 35 -60 years were recruited; 80 type 2 DM patients and 80 as controls. Anthropometric, demographic, sexual and clinical data were obtained by questionnaire. Increased prevalence of high BMI and HOMA-IR were observed among type 2 DM patients, while high incidence of low testosterone was found in the same group (p &lt; 0.05). Testosterone was correlated negatively and significantly with BMI and duration of type 2 DM (p &lt; 0.05). ED was correlated significantly and directionally with dyslipidemia, duration of type 2 DM, and complications of diabetes mainly retinopathy (p &lt; 0.05). While, nocturnal/early morning erection (NEME) was correlated significantly but inversely with duration of type 2 DM (p &lt; 0.05). In addition, fasting blood glucose (FBG), duration of type 2 DM and low level of testosterone were predictor factors associated with ED (p &lt; 0.05), while increased BMI was a predictor factor associated with low testosterone level (p &lt; 0.05). In the present study, high incidence of low testosterone and increased prevalence of ED among type 2 DM patients could be attributed to uncontrolled type 2 DM, obesity, IR, dyslipidemia, long duration of type 2 DM and its complications

Interpreting Sentinel-1 SAR Backscatter Signals of Snowpack Surface Melt/Freeze, Warming, and Ripening, Through Field Measurements and Physically-Based SnowModel

The transition of a cold winter snowpack to one that is ripe and contributing to runoff is crucial to gauge for water resource management, but is highly variable in space and time. Snow surface melt/freeze cycles, associated with diurnal fluctuations in radiative inputs, are hallmarks of this transition. C-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) reliably detects meltwater in the snowpack. Sentinel-1 (S1) C-band SAR offers consistent acquisition patterns that allow for diurnal investigations of melting snow. We used over 50 snow pit observations from 2020 in Grand Mesa, Colorado, USA, to track temperature and wetness in the snowpack as a function of depth and time during snowpack phases of warming, ripening, and runoff. We also ran the physically-based SnowModel, which provided a spatially and temporally continuous independent indication of snowpack conditions. Snowpack phases were identified and corroborated by comparing field measurements with SnowModel outputs. Knowledge of snowpack warming, ripening, and runoff phases was used to interpret diurnal changes in S1 backscatter values. Both field measurements and SnowModel simulations suggested that S1 SAR was not sensitive to the initial snowpack warming phase on Grand Mesa. In the ripening and runoff phases, the diurnal cycle in S1 SAR co-polarized backscatter was affected by both surface melt/freeze as well as the conditions of the snowpack underneath (ripening or ripe). The ripening phase was associated with significant increases in morning backscatter values, likely due to volume scattering from surface melt/freeze crusts, as well as significant decreases in evening backscatter values associated with snowmelt. During the runoff phase, both morning and evening backscatter decreased compared to reference values. These unique S1 diurnal signatures, and their interpretations using field measurements and SnowModel outputs, highlight the capacities and limitations of S1 SAR to understand snow surface states and bulk phases, which may offer runoff forecasting or energy balance model validation or parameterization, especially useful in remote or sparsely-gauged alpine basins

Developmental exposure to lead (Pb) alters the expression of the human tau gene and its products in a transgenic animal model

Tauopathies are a class of neurodegenerative diseases associated with the pathological aggregation of the tau protein in the human brain. The best known of these illnesses is Alzheimer’s disease (AD); a disease where the microtubule associated protein tau (MAPT) becomes hyperphosphorylated (lowering its binding affinity to microtubules) and aggregates within neurons in the form of neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). In this paper we examine whether environmental factors play a significant role in tau pathogenesis. Our studies were conducted in a double mutant mouse model that expressed the human tau gene and lacked the gene for murine tau. The human tau mouse model was tested for the transgene’s ability to respond to an environmental toxicant. Pups were developmentally exposed to lead (Pb) from postnatal day (PND) 1-20 with 0.2% Pb acetate. Mice were then sacrificed at PND 20, 30, 40 and 60. Protein and mRNA levels for tau and CDK5 as well as tau phosphorylation at Ser396 were determined. In addition, the potential role of miRNA in tau expression was investigated by measuring levels of miR-34c, a miRNA that targets the mRNA for human tau, at PND20 and 50. The expression of the human tau transgene was altered by developmental exposure to Pb. This exposure also altered the expression of miR-34c. Our findings are the first of their kind to test the responsiveness of the human tau gene to an environmental toxicant and to examine an epigenetic mechanism that may be involved in the regulation of this gene’s expression

EFFECT OF SOME POST-HARVEST TREATMENTS ON UNROOTED CUTTING OF DRACAENA MARGINATA

This study was carried out at the Post-harvest Lab. of Ornamental Plants and Landscape Gardening Res. Dept., Hort. Res. Inst., Giza, Egypt during the two seasons of 2014/2015 and 2015/2016. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of GA3, BA, 8-HQC, CA and Sug. as the preservative solution to improve the quality of the unrooted cutting, delaying leaf wilting, leaf yellowing and extending the shelf life period of unrooted cutting of Dracaena marginata. The results revealed that, the treatment of the solution containing the GA3 at 50 ppm + BA at 20 ppm + 8-HQC at 300 ppm + CA at 300 ppm + Sug. at 2%, followed by the solution containing GA3 at 50 ppm + BA at 20 ppm + CA at 300 ppm + Sug. at 2% significantly increased the water uptake, water balance, general appearance, vase life, chlorophyll a, b, carotenoids and total carbohydrates. It also reduced the amount of water loss in all days compared to other treatments. It can be recommended that holding unrooted cutting of Dracaena marginata in a solution containing GA3 at 50 ppm + BA at 20 ppm + 8-HQC at 300 ppm + CA at 300 ppm + Sug. at 2%, followed by the solution containing GA3 at 50 ppm + BA at 20 ppm + CA at 300 ppm + Sug. at 2% to improve quality and giving longer vase life was reached 50 days