Histological and ultrastructural studies on the effect of Cassia alata methanolic leaf extracts against chemically induced lung adenocarcinoma in rats

ABSTRACT The present work aims to evaluate anticancer performance of Cassia alata methanolic leaf extracts (CMLE) in ethyl carbamate-stimulated lung adenocarcinoma (LAD) in differentiation to the function of Cisplatin (CIPL). Rats were divided into four groups: (1) control (CONT), (2) lung-adenocarcinoma (LAD) injected intra-peritoneally with 1g/kg ethyl carbamate once weekly for a month, (3) LAD+CMLE administered 500 mg/kg CMLE orally for the last two months of the experiment, and (4) LAD+CIPL treated group, injected 2.5 mg/kg Cisplatin intraperitoneally once weekly for the last two months of the experiment. Light and electron microscopic examinations revealed adenocarcinoma development in terminal bronchiole besides some histopathological changes in the LAD group such as atypical, exaggerated collagen fibers, increment of mucinous content, and increasing of PCNA positive immunoreactivity whereas electron microscopy investigation exposed that papillary adenocarcinoma originated from Clara cells in the LAD group. The LAD+CMLE treated group showed no tumor masses and nearly all with normal lung histology. It also recovered the normal ultrastructure of bronchiolar Clara cells. CMLE treatment offers a new alternative cure with less toxicity than Cisplatin for lung cancer therapy. Hence, CMLE would be employed as a novel supply of anti-cancer compounds combating lung cancer

EFFECT OF SOME OF ORGANIC AND BIO AND/OR MINERAL FERTILIZATION ON VEGETATIVE GROWTH AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF DELONIX REGIA

This work wasexecuted during two successive seasons of 2018 and 2019 in the nursery and laboratory of Fac. Agric., Minia Univ., Egypt to investigate the response of vegetative and root growthand some chemical composition of Delonix regia seedlings to four percentages of humic acid (0, 1, 2 and 4%) and four bio- and/or mineral NPK fertilization treatments (control, 100% NPK, Minia Azotein and 75% NPK plus Minia Azotein), as well as, the interaction between them. All used three percentages of humic acid significantly increased vegetative growth (plant height, stem diameter, the aerial part dry weight), root growth (root number and roots dry weight) and chemical composition (photosynthetic pigments, NPK%, total phenolic and total flavonoids contents) over control. Humic acid at 4% more was effective treatment. All used bio-and/or mineral NPK fertilization treatments significantly increased all studied characters over control. The best treatments were 100% NPK or 75% NPK plus Minia Azotein. It could be recommended to add humic acid at 4% in combination with 100% NPK or 75% NPK plus Minia Azotein to improve growth of Delonix regia

Molecular detection of Leishmania species in Sand Flies by PCR-RFLP technique in refugee camps

ABSTRACT Leishmaniasis is one of the most important health dilemmas facing the World Health Organization (WHO), due to it being widespread and the great diversity of sand flies that transmit it. This study aimed to detect the presence of Leishmania parasites in the sand flies spread in Refugee camps by PCR- RLFP technique. A total of 437 sandflies were collected and classified into two species Phlebotomus papatasi and Phlebotomus sergenti. DNA was extracted from the female fly species, then the PCR reaction was amplified by two primers (LITSR, L5.8S) that transcribed a partial internal transcribed spacer (ITS)-1 gene for Leishmania parasite with a length of 320 bp. PCR showed the presence of Leishmania DNA in females of both P. papatasi (10%) and P. sergenti (20%). To determine Leishmania species transmitted by the two previous fly species, the RFLP-PCR technique was performed by the HaeIII enzyme for Leishmania DNA extracted from them. RFLP-PCR showed that P. papatasi females transmitted Leishmania major and P. sergenti females transmitted Leishmania tropica in Refugee camps. It could be concluded that leishmaniasis is widely distributed in Refugee camps due to the presence of its vector

Amphibole: A major carrier of helium isotopes in crustal rocks

The first evidence for a specific role of amphiboles in He isotope balance of crustal rocks was presented in early contributions by Gerling et al. (1971, 1976). Since then it was shown that 4He and 3He concentrations in amphiboles generally exceed those in the host rock samples. Recently amphibole was considered as an important carrier of noble gases and other volatiles components in the course of their subduction into the mantle. This paper presents new data on the balance and mobility of noble gas isotopes and major gas constituents in amphibole separates in order to understand sources and evolution of volatile components of 2666 Ma old alkaline granites from Ponoy massif (Kola Peninsula), which underwent metamorphism 1802 Ma ago.In the amphiboles 3He, 4He and 40Ar* were dominantly produced in situ due to radioactive decay of the parent isotopes and associated nuclear reactions. A small fraction of He (≈ 3% of the total) is liberated by crushing and shows 3He/4He ratio indistinguishable from that found by total extraction. The fraction of trapped 40Ar* amounts to ≈ 40%; both these fractions presumably occupy fluid inclusions and show rather low 4He/40Ar* ≈ 0.1, a factor of ≈ 150 below the production ratio (calculated assuming no loss / gain of the species has happened since the time of metamorphism).3He has been better preserved in amphiboles compared with 4He: the retention parameter (measured amount of He / totally produced amount) for 3He (≈ 0.4) exceeds that for 4He (≈ 0.15).He extraction by fast and slow linear heating of amphiboles resulted in different release patterns. The fast heating (within 12 to 40 °C min− 1) revealed a superposition of two peaks. When heating with slower heating rate (below 8 °C min− 1) was applied, the high-temperature peak disappeared (the “disappearing site”). Extractions of He atoms from grain and powder samples at different heating rates have shown that: (1) the “disappearing site” is revealed by the fast heating analyses of different amphibole samples but not only those from the Ponoy massif; (2) amount of He liberated from the “disappearing site” is variable and generally much less than the total amount of He in the sample; (3) analysis of the powder produced in the crushing experiments never reveals the “disappearing site”; the temperature of He release from the powder is lower than that from the mm grain size sample by ≈ 50 °C. Possible explanations of the nature of the “disappearing site” are discussed. However, independently on nature of this effect, repeated gas extractions by heating at different rates would give additional information about structure and its transformation during heating of amphiboles.The simplest explanation of the observed abundances of noble gas isotopes in the amphibole separates from Ponoy granites suggests local production, redistribution and partial loss of noble gases during evolution of the massif

Zeolite abrogates cadmium-induced testicular damage in rats: implication of NF-κB/ TNF-α/IL-1β Pathway

ABSTRACT Cadmium (Cd) is an environmental pollutant affecting various tissues and organs, including the testis. Many studies demonstrated that Cd toxicity causes testicular impairment through oxidative stress and inflammatory action. Therefore, this study aimed to demonstrate Cd's testicular toxicity and the protective action of zeolite against cadmium's deleterious effects. Adult male rats were given Cd at a dose of 30mg/kg/day for 28 consecutive days with or without zeolite, which was given at a dose of 100mg/kg/day for 28 days. Testis weight, sperm (count, motility, and abnormalities), serum testosterone and luteinizing hormone (LH), testicular enzymes Acid phosphatase (ACP) and Alkaline phosphatase(ALP), inflammatory cytokines Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha (TNF-α) , interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) , and Nuclear Factor Kappa B (NF-κB) and oxidative stress were evaluated. Herein, we found that cadmium caused alterations in sperm characteristics, sex hormone disturbance, decline in testicular enzymes, elevated malondialdehyde (MDA) contents, decreased glutathione (GSH), increased Nuclear Factor Kappa B (NF-κB) and pro-inflammatory cytokines Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) levels in testis homogenate. In contrast, zeolite significantly amended these deleterious effects, and the potential mechanism involved the downregulation of Nuclear Factor Kappa B (NF-κB), Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-1beta (IL-1β), restoring glutathione (GSH) and reducing malondialdehyde (MDA). Also, zeolite was associated with an increased rate of pregnancy. Our data suggested that oxidative stress and inflammation are responsible for Cd-induced testicular injury and co-administration of zeolite exerts a protective effect via NF-κB /TNF-α/IL-1β pathway

Characterizations of El Minia limestone for manufacturing paper filler and coating

This study introduces a contribution of using the El Minia carbonate filler pigment for paper making. El Minia limestone samples were grind to very fine powder ranging from 2 to 10 μm, for utilization in paper filler/coating industry, with using testing techniques; X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The limestone assessment includes more examinations to confirm the suitability of studied samples for alkaline paper manufacture such as, chemical analysis and physical properties, brightness, refractive index, oil & water absorption, moisture content, water soluble, surface area and soundness tests as per paper industry standards. Keywords: Calcium carbonate, Paper filler, El Minia, Inorganic pigmen

Pd (II) and Pt (II) chalcone complexes. Synthesis, spectral characterization, molecular modeling, biomolecular docking, antimicrobial and antitumor activities

Pd (II) and Pt(II) complexes of (E)-3-(4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)-1-(pyridin-2-yl) prop-2-en-1-one (L) and its Pd (II) and Pt(II) formulated as [Pt(L1)2] Cl2. 2H2O, [Pd (L1)2] Cl2 0.5H2O, [Pd (L1)2] (AcO)2 CH3OH have been synthesized. Elemental analyses, molar conductance, thermal technique, molecular modeling, IR and electronic spectral measurements were used to verify the structures of the complexes. The titled ligand behaves as a neutral bidentate ligand coordination via pyridine nitrogen and carbonyl oxygen atoms. These complexes have square planar geometry. The kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of the decomposition steps were evaluated. The in-vitro antimicrobial and antitumor activities of the investigated compounds were screened against different microorganisms and the human hepato-cellular carcinoma cells, HEPG2, respectively. The data showed that the metal complexes have more antimicrobial and antitumor activities than the ligand itself. Molecular docking studies were performed by Docking Server and SwissDock using X-ray crystallographic structures of the proteins (3t88, 4m01, 4ynt, 1zap & 121P) from Protein Data Bank (PDB). The ligand and possibly its complexes showed favorable binding with the receptors of the microorganisms (3t88, 4m01, 4ynt, 1zap) and H-ras oncoprotein. Hence, our results present the synthesized complexes as potential antimicrobial and anticancer drug candidates

Nano-synthesis, characterization, modeling and molecular docking analysis of Mn (II), Co (II), Cr (III) and Cu (II) complexes with azo pyrazolone ligand as new favorable antimicrobial and antitumor agents

Novel nanosized Mn (II), Co (II), Cr (III) and Cu (II) complexes were synthesized with 2‐((5‐oxo‐1,3‐diphenyl‐4,5‐dihydro‐1H‐pyrazol‐4‐yl)diazenyl) benzoic acid, HL applying precipitation method. Their structures were characterized based on the elemental and thermal analyses, spectra (FT‐IR, UV–Vis, MS, ESR and XRD), conductivity and magnetic moment measurements. IR spectra offered that HL behaves as monobasic tri‐dentate ligand towards Mn (II), Cr (III) and Cu (II) and monobasic bi‐dentate towards Co (II). The XRD results unambiguously confirmed the crystalline nature and nano‐sized particles of Cu (II) complex while HL and other complexes exhibited amorphous phases. The magnetic moment data, UV–Vis and ESR spectra supported the formation of octahedral geometries for Mn (II), and Cr (III) complexes, whereas Co (II), and Cu (II) complexes showed tetrahedral arrangement. The activation parameters for the thermal degradation stages were theoretically calculated using TGA curves. The obtained data showed the inspected complexes as favorable antimicrobial drug candidates. The studied compounds were screened out for their antitumor and antimicrobial activities. The inspected compounds exhibited a reasonable antibacterial activity and weak antitumor efficacy. The in vitro results were confirmed using the in silico molecular docking analysis (docking server) applying x‐ray crystallographic structures of the proteins (4 m01, 3 t88, 1zap & 4ynt) from PDB (Protein Data Bank). HL and probably its complexes displayed adequate binding with the receptors of 4 m01, 3 t88, 1zap, and 4ynt microorganisms. The obtained data show the inspected complexes as favorable antimicrobial drug candidates

Synthesis, spectroscopic, thermal and molecular modeling studies of Zn2+, Cd2+ and UO22+ complexes of Schiff bases containing triazole moiety. Antimicrobial, anticancer, antioxidant and DNA binding studies

A novel series of Zn2 +, Cd2 + and UO22 + complexes of ligands namely 1-[(5-mercapto-1H-1,2,4-triazole-3-ylimino) methyl]naphthalene-2-ol (HL1) and [(1H-1,2,4-triazole-3-ylimino) methyl] naphthalene-2-ol (HL2) have been prepared and characterized by different analytical and spectral techniques. The stoichiometry, stereochemistry, conductivity measurements and mode of bonding of the complexes have been elucidated. Accurate comparison of the IR spectra of the ligands with their metal chelates proved the involvement of nitrogen atoms of the azomethine group and/or triazole ring in chelation in addition to the deprotonated hydroxyl oxygen. The UV–Vis and molar conductance data supported the octahedral geometry for the metal complexes. TGA technique has been used to study the thermal decomposition way of the metal complexes and the thermo kinetic parameters were estimated. Valuable information is obtained from calculations of molecular parameters using the molecular modeling techniques. The interaction between the metal complexes and CT-DNA has been studied from which the binding constants (kb) were calculated. The Schiff bases and their metal chelates have shown potent antimicrobial, antioxidant and antitumor activities. The antitumor activities of the compounds have been tested in vitro against HEPG2 cell line and in silico by the molecular docking analysis with the VEGFR-2 receptor responsible for angiogenesis

Mineralogical and Geochemical Studies of Oil Shale Deposits in the Cretaceous/Paleogene succession at Quseir Area, Egypt

Cretaceous/Paleogene succession in Quseir area represents one of the most important economic sedimentary rocks, which contain phosphate and oil shale beds. Oil shale samples selected from nine mines around Quseir area were subjected to mineralogical, petrographical and geochemical analyses. As raveled by X-ray diffraction analysis, the oil shale samples are composed of calcite, quartz, dolomite, smectite, kaolinite, gypsum and pyrite. The petrographical investigation of the studied oil shales indicates the dominance of two microfacies: calcareous foraminiferal claystone and Calci-mudstone. The EDX results of oil shale samples show that the pyrite found as framboidal-disseminated particles in smectite. The high ratio of the sulfur and organic carbon contents in the selected mines indicate highly reducing environment. Five mines (El-Nakheil, Abu Tundub, Abu Tundub Bahree, El Beida and Hammadat) are markedly rich in organic content and can be considered as good to excellent source rock. Keywords: Quseir area, Petrography, Mineralogy, Geochemistry, Oil shal