The Ameliorative Effect of Green Tea, Garlic and Vitamin C on Arsenic Toxicity in Male Mice: Biochemical and Histological Forensic Perspectives

Arsenic is a heavy metal with toxic effects on human health and is widely found in the environment. It is used in suicides and, hence, acquires forensic impact. Sixty adult male albino mice weighing 30-40 g were subjected to a sub-lethal dose of sodium arsenate (40 mg/kg body weight) to investigate hematological, biochemical and histopathological alterations in liver and kidney. The mice were also co-treated with green tea, garlic and vitamin C to reveal the protective role of these herbal and synthetic antioxidants. Arsenic induced significant declines in all blood parameters, while green tea, garlic and vitamin C ameliorated these affected hematological parameters. Alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) were significantly increased in the sodium arsenate treated group, while green tea, garlic and vitamin C ameliorated these increases in enzyme levels. Creatinine and urea were significantly increased in arsenic treated mice. These renal parameters become normal in mice co-treated with green tea, garlic and vitamin C. Arsenate-treated mice showed venous congestion, sinusoidal dilatation, mononuclear cell infiltration and periportal fibrosis in liver sections. Kidney samples from the same group revealed interstitial hemorrhages, mononuclear cell infiltration, glomerulonephritis and proximal tubular necrosis. Hepato-renal injuries were greatly reduced, particularly in animals that received both green tea and garlic. The herbs used have a potential for ameliorating and protecting against the hepato-renal toxicity caused by arsenic and need further studies. This study revealed the possibility of using liver and kidney as indicators to ascertain arsenic poisoning in forensic casework

Retrieval of separated instruments using a combined method with a modified vista dental tip

Biomechanical preparation of the entire root canal system is one of the most important procedures in endodontic treatment. Separation of instruments while preparing root canals presents a compromised situation in which a biologically inert segment is left behind with potential contamination that has the ability to affect the healing process. Management of this procedural error is tedious and requires creativity as well as clinical knowledge and skills. In this report, we demonstrated two cases with separated instrument in which a combined technique of ultrasonic method with microtube tube method was used to retrieve the separated tips using a modified Vista dental tip

Is inadequate sleep a potential risk factor for periodontitis?

This study was undertaken to investigate the potential association between sleep duration and periodontitis. The study population consisted of 10,291 individuals who participated in the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from the 2009-2014 cycles. Sleep duration was categorized into sleep deficient ( 8 hours). We used the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) periodontitis case definition. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression models were used for data analyses. The prevalence of periodontitis was 36% higher in individuals who reported sleep deficiency when compared to the sleep adequate group (odds Ratio (OR) = 1.36, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.23-1.50). Those who reported excessive sleep had 41% higher odds of periodontitis (OR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.16-1.71). After adjusting for confounding factors, sleep deficient individuals were 19% more likely to have periodontitis when compared to sleep adequate individuals (OR: 1.19, 95% CI: 1.06-1.38). Among sleep excessive individuals, the association was non-significant (OR: 1.16, 95% CI: 0.94-1.43). Sleep deficiency was associated with a higher prevalence of periodontitis in this study population. The association however needs to be confirmed in longitudinal studies

Double primary cancers registered in a tertiary care hospital: review of two cases

In our centre, among 1965 registered cancer patients between May 2011 and December 2013, we report three cases with multiple primary malignant neoplasms. One of them was excluded due to lack of data, and so we present the remaining two cases. The first case is an 82-year-old female patient with colon and thyroid cancer and the second case is a 61-year-old female patient with colon and breast cancer. Both cases were metachronous and discovered accidently during the regular follow up, and managed with a curative intent. Conclusion: It is important for the clinicians to keep in mind that individuals with cancer are at increased risk for subsequent primary malignancies, which must be differentiated from recurrent or metastatic disease

Removal of Cr(VI) and Toxic Ions from Aqueous Solutions and Tannery Wastewater Using Polymer-Clay Composites

Polymer-clay composites were prepared by natural zeolite (clinoptilolite) or naturally local clay deposits in an N,N-methylene-bis-acrylamide as cross-linked. The resultant composites were used for the removal of Cr(VI) from an aqueous solution. Additionally, their effects on soluble ions of tannery wastewater were investigated. The produced composites were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that Cr(VI) removal is dependent upon initial concentrations and pH. The adsorption quantity of Cr(VI) onto the polymerized clay deposit followed by polymerized zeolite exhibited higher values than their original samples. The polymer-clay composite of clay deposit showed the highest removal of 76.3–100% overall initial concentrations of 10–50 mg L−1 and at initial pH of 2. Kinetics of Cr(VI) removal by various sorbents was predicted using a pseudo–second order model. Our findings showed that the levels of salinity and various soluble ions (Cr2+, Na+, Cl− and SO42−) in tannery wastewater are very high, and their levels were reduced after treatment, especially by polymerized sorbents. It could be concluded that the polymer-clay composites may be employed as a highly efficient sorbent for the removal of Cr(VI) and toxic ions from the wastewater