Effect of sweet almond syrup versus methylphenidate in children with ADHD: A randomized triple-blind clinical trial

Background and purpose: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common health disorders among children. Some patients do not respond to methylphenidate or cannot tolerate its side effects. Sweet almond syrup as a Persian Medicine preparation has been used for many years. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of sweet almond for ADHD children. Materials and methods: Fifty children aged 6-14 years with ADHD were recruited to the study. The participants were randomly assigned to two groups to receive either methylphenidate or sweet almond syrup. The outcomes were assessed using the Parent and Teacher ADHD Rating Scale every two weeks for 8 weeks. Results: Results showed that the two treatments had similar effects on symptom reduction in ADHD children. No significant differences were observed between the two groups (F=2.3, df=1, p=0.13, F=0.57, df=1, p=0.47). Conclusion: Sweet almond may be an effective treatment for ADHD children. © 2019 Elsevier Lt

Indirect co-culture of testicular cells with bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells leads to male germ cell-specific gene expressions

Objective: Non-obstructive azoospermia is mostly irreversible. Efforts to cure this type of infertility have led to the application of stem cells in the reproduction field. In the present study, testicular cell-mediated differentiation of male germ-like cells from bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) in an in vitro indirect co-culture system is investigated. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, mouse BM-MSCs were isolated and cultured up to passage three. Identification of the cells was evaluated using specific surface markers by flow-cytometry technique. Four experimental groups were investigated: control, treatment with retinoic acid (RA), indirect co-culture with testicular cells, and combination of RA and indirect co-culture with testicular cells. Finally, following differentiation, the quantitative expression of germ cell-specific markers including Dazl, Piwil2 and Stra8 were evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: Molecular analysis revealed a significant increase in Dazl expression in the indirect co-culture with testicular cells group in comparison to the control group. Quantitative expression level of Piwil2 was not significantly changed in comparison to the control group. Stra8 expression was significantly higher in RA group in comparison to other groups. Conclusion: Indirect co-culture of BM-MSCs in the presence of testicular cells leads to expression of male germ cell-specific gene, Dazl, in the induced cells. Combination of co-culture with testicular cells and RA did not show any positive effect on the specific gene expressions. © 2019 Royan Institute (ACECR). All rights reserved

The Effects of Aromatherapy on Premenstrual Syndrome Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

ObjectivesPremenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a common disturbance among women of childbearing age. Aromatherapy is a commonly used form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to treat PMS. The purpose of this study is to quantify and summarize the effects of aromatherapy on premenstrual syndrome symptoms. Methods. PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane Library databases were searched through relevant search terms until October 2020. The effect sizes were pooled as weighted mean difference (WMD) and 95 confidence interval (CI) using the random effect model. Egger tests and visual inspection of the funnel plot were performed to identify the existence of publication bias. The I-squared (I2) test was applied to measure heterogeneity. Results. Eight studies (n = 8) were included in this analysis. The quantitative synthesis of evidence found that aromatherapy decreases PMS scores (WMD -13.83; 95 CI (-22.04, -5.63), I2 = 94.5), total psychological symptoms of PMS (WMD -3.51; 95 CI (-4.84, -2.18), I2 = 82.6), anxiety of PMS (WMD-1.78; 95 CI (-3.17, -0.38), I2 = 94.2), depression of PMS (WMD-2.0; 95 CI (-3.65, -0.34), I2 = 93.7), and fatigue of PMS (WMD - 1.44; 95 CI (-2.44, -0.44), I2 = 89.7) compared to the control group. Conclusion. Aromatherapy is an effective tool for the relief of PMS symptoms. Additional randomized controlled clinical trials with different durations and essential oils should be conducted to confirm our findings. © 2020 Somayeh Es-haghee et al

Melatonin protects testes against lithium-pilocarpine-induced temporal lobe epilepsy in rats: a time course study

Male dysfunction is common in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). We evaluated whether melatonin, as a supplement, can play a positive role in reducing the epileptogenesis imposing abnormalities of spermatozoa and testes in epileptic rats. Status epilepticus was induced based on the TLE lithium-pilocarpine model. Two patterns of melatonin were administered to the epileptic animals along the mean durations of latent (14days) and chronic (60days) phases. Sperm parameters, different antioxidant enzyme levels, germ cell apoptosis, body and relative sex organ weights were evaluated in all groups 60days following SE induction. Chronic TLE caused a significant reduction in sperm parameters. In the testis, the reduced level of antioxidant enzymes was accompanied by a significant increase in malondialdehyde concentration. The presence of oxidant condition in the testes of epileptic animals caused expanded apoptosis in the germ cell layer. Moreover, the amount of weight gain in epileptic animals was more prominent. Melatonin administration was able to improve sperm motility by increasing the total antioxidant level. There was also a significant reduction in the spermatogenic cell line apoptosis and the extra weight gain of melatonin-treated animals. Melatonin supplementation might be considered as an acceptable cotreatment in epileptic patients

Health-related quality of life of parents of children with phenylketonuria in Tehran Province, Islamic Republic of Iran Qualité de vie liée à la santé des parents d�enfants atteints de phénylcétonurie dans la province de Téhéran (République islamique d�Iran)

Background: Parents of children with phenylketonuria are at risk of reduced quality of life. Aims: This study determined the quality of life of parents of children with phenylketonuria in Tehran Province. Methods: The study was conducted in 2015 and included parents of children with phenylketonuria referred to three government children�s hospitals in Tehran Province that provide phenylketonuria services. Data were collected using the Farsi version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Bref questionnaire. Analysis of variance, t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple linear regression were used to assess the relationship between quality of life domains and sociodemographic characteristics of the parent and child. Results: The study included 240 parents; 55 were mothers. Quality of life of parents in psychological, social relationships and environment domains was low. Significant relationships were found between: physical domain and age of child at phenylketonuria diagnosis (P = 0.044); psychological domain and parent�s age (P = 0.019), child�s age (P = 0.007) and parent�s education (P = 0.015); social relationships domain and parent�s age (P = 0.003), and education (P = 0.002), household income (P = 0.025) and child�s age (P = 0.004; and environmental domain and residence (P = 0.034), parent�s education (P = 0.007), household income (P = 0.002) and child�s age (P = 0.049). In the multivariable analysis, parent�s age and education, child�s age, and household income were significantly associated with parent�s quality of life. Conclusion: Given the low levels of quality of life in the parents, education and more financial support are recommended. Keywords: quality of life, parents, phenylketonuria, Iran © World Health Organization (WHO) 2020. Open Access. Some rights reserved. © 2020, World Health Organization. All rights reserved

Differentiation of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells into male germ-like cells in co-culture with testicular cells

Objective. Stem cell therapy, specifically, pre-induction of mesenchymal stem cells toward male germ-like cells may be useful in patients with azoospermia. The aim of this study was to evaluate in vitro differentiation of mouse bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) into male germ-like cells by indirect co-culture with testicular cells in the presence of bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4). Methods. Experimental groups included: control (mouse BMSCs), treatment group-1 (BMSCs treated with BMP4), treatment group-2 (indirect co-culture of BMSCs with mouse testicular cells in the presence of BMP4) and treatment group-3 (indirect co-culture of BMSCs with testicular cells). BMSCs-derived male germ-like cells were evaluated by the expression of Dazl, and Stra8 using RT-qPCR. Results. Stra8 gene expression was significantly increased in the treatment group-2 and Dazl gene was significantly increased in the treatment group-1 compared to other groups. In conclusion, indirect co-culturing of BMSCs with testicular cells and BMP4 leads to the differentiation of BMSCs into male germ-like cells which express specific male germ-like genes. Testicular cells released factors that contributed to the differentiation of BMSCs into male germ progenitor cells. Conclusion. This study suggests that mesenchymal stem cells may be differentiated into male germ-like cells and therefore, may be a novel treatment option for men with azoospermia. © 2019 Nasim Malekmohamadi et al

Subcellular localization of L-selectin ligand in the endometrium implies a novel function for pinopodes in endometrial receptivity (vol 10, 46, 2012)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article

Improvement of the Bioactivity of UHMWPE by Two Different Atmospheric Plasma Treatments

"The final publication is available at link.springer.com"International audienceIn this research work we demonstrated that a helium/oxygen Dielectric Barrier Discharge conferred hydrophilic functional groups onto the surface, which lead to enhanced bioactivity of UHMWPE without affecting the biocompatibility of the polymer. The latter was checked by increased adhesion of fibroblast cells to the polymer. The effects of the He/2% O2 DBD plasma was compared for the first time to a rotating blown arc atmospheric pressure plasma jet (r-APPJ) in air. The results show a better functionalization as well as stability of the surface properties of the films treated with the DBD. The surface modified UHMWPE once immersed in a Simulated Body Fluid induced the formation of nucleus of hydroxyapatite (calcium phosphate) leading to the growth of a thick apatite coating which was followed up to 14 days, which can be expected to be highly bioactive. Surface characterization techniques also showed different chemical moieties in the case of the two different atmospheric discharges. DBD discharge in He/2% O2, leading to more stable polar functions grafted to a crosslinked polymer surface, proved to be more bioactive than UHMWPE treated by a r-APPJ in air. The latter treatment lead to grafting of less oxygen containing groups to the surface as well as to LMWOM created on r-APPJ treated UHMWPE which are unstable in aqueous media used both in SBF and fibroblasts in DMEM