Antinociceptive activity of Mentha piperita leaf aqueous extract in mice

Mentha piperita L. (Labiatae) is an herbaceous plant, used in folk medicine for the treatment of several medical disorders.In the present study, the aqueous extract of Mentha piperita leaf, at the i.p doses 200 and 400 mg/kg, showed significant analgesic effects against both acetic acid-induced writhing and hot plate-induced thermal stimulation in mice, with protection values of 51.79% and 20.21% respectively. On the contrary, the Mentha piperita leaf aqueous extract did not exhibit anti-inflammatory activity against carrageenan induced paw oedema.These findings indicate that Mentha piperita has a potential analgesic effect that may possibly have mediated centrally and peripherally, as well as providing a pharmacological evidence for its traditional use as a pain reliever

High torque tenovirus (TTV) load before first vaccine dose is associated with poor serological response to COVID-19 vaccination in lung transplant recipients

BACKGROUND: : Serological responses to COVID-19 vaccination are diminished in recipients of solid organ transplants, especially in lung transplant recipients (LTR), probably as result of immunosuppressive treatment. There is currently no marker of immunosuppression that can be used to predict the COVID-19 vaccination response. Here, we study whether torque tenovirus (TTV), a highly prevalent virus can be used as an indicator of immunosuppression. METHODS: : The humoral response to the mRNA 1273 vaccine was assessed in 103 LTR, who received a transplant between 4 and 237 months prior to vaccination, by measuring Spike (S)-specific IgG levels at baseline, 28 days after first, and 28 days after the second vaccination. TTV loads were determined by RT-PCR and Pearson's correlation coefficient was calculated to correlate serological responses to TTV load. RESULTS: : Humoral responses to COVID-19 vaccination were observed in 41/103 (40%) LTR at 28 days after the second vaccination. 62/103 (60%) were non-responders. Lower TTV loads at baseline (significantly) correlated with higher S-specific antibodies and a higher percentage of responders. Lower TTV loads also strongly correlated with longer time since transplantation, indicating that participants with lower TTV loads were longer after transplantation. CONCLUSIONS: : This study shows a better humoral response to the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in subjects with a lower TTV load pre-vaccination. In addition, TTV load correlates with the time after transplantation. Further studies on the use of TTV load in vaccination efficacy studies in immunocompromised cohorts should provide leads for the potential use of this marker for optimizing vaccination response

Identification of GPD1 gene from yeast via fluorescence differential display-polymerase chain reaction (FDD-PCR)

The main task of this work was to identify abiotic stress-induced gene(s) from yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and introduce it to a prokaryotic system to detect its effect on conferring tolerance to salt stress. Six isolates of yeast (S. cerevisiae) were evaluated under salt and osmotic stresses at concentrations of 2 M NaCl and 2 M sorbitol, respectively, in which one isolate was selected as the most tolerant against both stresses. Fluorescence differential display-polymerase chain reaction (FDD-PCR) was conducted for cDNAs after been exposed to 0 and 2 M NaCl for 0, 20, 40 and 60 min. After a number of DD-PCR runs, 350 fragments were observed, out of which 30 of them (9.14%) showed differential expression versus exposure times. They were classified into 12 patterns of gene expression. Three up-regulated DD fragments above 100 bp in size were chosen and cloned for subsequent molecular analysis and gene construction. DNA sequences were detected and subjected to homology searching via computer software. The results indicate that one DD fragment showed significant homology with a yeast DNA fragment on chromosome 4 expressing glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPD1); a NAD dependent key enzyme of glycerol synthesis essential for growth under osmotic stress. This fragment was chosen to recover full-length gene following the rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) strategy, then gene was cloned and transformed into Escherichia coli. Expression of GPD1 gene was proven in transformed bacteria via northern blotting and glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase enzyme activity. The overall results of stress tolerance for GPD1-transformed bacteria indicate the efficacy of utilizing the gene in conferring salt tolerance at the prokaryotic level.Keywords: Salt stress, osmotic stress, cDNA, Northern blotting, rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE), GeneRace