Effects of Feeding Periods of High Cholesterol and Saturated Fat Diet on Blood Biochemistry and Hydroxyproline Fractions in Rabbits

Hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia are considered as important risk factors during the atherosclerotic process. The aim of the present investigation was to study the total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC), high density lipoprotein (HDL), triglyceride (TG), platelet levels and hydroxyproline fractions during the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. For this purpose, twenty five 12-weeks, New Zealand white male rabbits, were purchased, individually caged, and divided into either control group or cholesterol-fed group. The control group (n = 10) was fed 100 g/day of normal diet, ORC-4 (Oriental Yeast Co. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) for a period of 15 weeks. The cholesterol-fed group (n = 15) was fed a high cholesterol and saturated fat diet of ORC-4 containing 1% cholesterol plus 1% olive oil (100 g/day) for periods of 5 (group 1), 10 (group 2) and 15 (group 3) weeks. Blood sample from each animal was taken at the end of the experimental period for the biochemical analysis. The results of the present study showed that TC, LDLC, TG, HDLC and platelets were significantly (P < 0.01) increased in cholesterol-fed rabbits as compared with control rabbits. The serum hydroxyproline (Hyp) in rabbits belonging to group 1 showed no significant alteration when compared to control group. Group 2 rabbits showed a significant increase of 103% (P < 0.01) and 100% (P < 0.001) in free and protein—bound hydroxyproline fractions respectively when compared to control rabbits. However, there was no significant change in peptide—bound and total serum hydroxyproline levels as compared to the control group (P > 0.05). There was no significant (P > 0.05) decrease of free serum hydroxyproline in group 3 rabbits when compared to control rabbits. On the other hand, group 3 rabbits showed a significant increase in peptide–bound and protein-bound Hyp by 517% (P < 0.05) and 100% (P < 0.01) respectively when compared to control rabbits. However, total serum Hyp in group 3 rabbits showed no significant (P > 0.05) change when compared to control rabbits. These results suggest that feeding rabbits high cholesterol and saturated fat diet for feeding periods of 5, 10 and 15 weeks induced significant change in TC, LDLC, HDL, TG, platelet levels and various Hyp fractions in serum without any significant change in the total Hyp content

The changes in various hydroxyproline fractions in aortic tissue of rabbits are closely related to the progression of atherosclerosis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The most important function of collagen and elastin is to induce several mechanical parameters which are known to play a dominant role in governing mechanical properties of the blood vessels. The aortic tissue of rabbit is one of the important sources of collagen and elastin. The effects of high fat diet (HFD) on the hydroxyproline (Hyp) fractions in serum and aortic tissues of rabbits and collagen content in the aortic tissues of rabbits have not been documented before. The present study was undertaken to investigate the changes in Hyp fractions in serum and aortic tissues of rabbits and collagen content in the aortic tissues of rabbits during the progression of atherosclerosis. The atherosclerotic model used in this study was the New Zealand white rabbit (male; 12 weeks old). Twenty five rabbits were individually caged, and divided into control group (NOR; n = 10) and HFD group (CHO; n = 15). The control group was fed (100 g/day) of normal (NOR) diet for a period of 15 weeks. The HFD group was fed normal diet supplemented with 1.0% cholesterol plus 1.0% olive oil (100 g/day) for the same period of time.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found that the TC, LDLC, and TG (mg/dl) were significantly (p < 0.001) increased in HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits with percentage normalized changes of 1198%, 1591%, and 710%, respectively. The peptide-bound Hyp in the serum was significantly (P < 0.05) increased in HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits with percentage normalized change of 517% while it significantly (P < 0.01) decreased in aortic tissues of HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits with percentage normalized change of 65%. The protein-bound Hyp in the serum was significantly (P < 0.01) increased in HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits with percentage normalized change of 100%; the protein-bound Hyp in the aortic tissues of control rabbits was 235.30 ± 55.14 (Mean ± SD) while it was not detectable (ND) in HFD rabbits. Total serum Hyp showed no significant (P < 0.05) change in HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits while it was significantly (P < 0.05) decreased in aortic tissues of HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits with percentage normalized change of 73%. The total collagen was significantly (p < 0.01) decreased in aortic tissues of HFD rabbits compared with control rabbits with percentage normalized change of 73% which was supported by histological study.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results suggest that percentage decrease in various Hyp fractions in aortic tissue of HFD rabbits are closely related to percentage decrease of collagen content in aortic tissues of HFD rabbits. These results also suggest that it may be possible to use the changes in various Hyp fractions in aortic tissues of rabbits as an important risk factor during the progression of atherosclerosis.</p

Magnitude and Time Trend of Acute Respiratory Infections (Aris) Among Male School Students and Employees in Aleith

A setting-based descriptive study was conducted to study magnitude and time trend of acute respiratory infections (ARIs) among male school students and employees in Aleith. Data about Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs) among school students and employees in Aleith during the last three years were collected by reviewing monthly and annual reports in school health units. The proportion of acute reparatory infections in the last three years among male student and employees in Aleith was high in year 1435 which was 50.2%, followed by the year 1437 which was 47% and 1436 was 43.3%. The time distribution of acute respiratory infections illustrates that the percentage of infection occurred during Jumada-Al-Thani (21.9%) in the year 1435, Moharam and Rabi-Al-Thani (17.3%) in the year 1436 and Jumada-Al-Awwal (18%) in the year 1437. In the year 1435, acute respiratory infection among student was 811(63.7%) and among employees was 462 (36.3%); in the year 1436, the disease was 1177 (71.4%) in students while in employees was 471 (28.6%) and in the year1437, the percentage was 747(64.7%) in students and 408(35.3%) in employees. The high percentages of Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs) occurred among primary school students was high 35.6%, 45.5% and 48.1% in the years 1435, 1436 and 1437 respectively. The peak of ARIs occurred during the year 1435 and the minimum proportion rate of cases was found in 1436. The study concluded that ARIs were still high and more frequent in winter months

Efficient numerical simulations on the forest barrier for seismic wave attenuation: engineering safe constructions

This paper aims to elucidate the clear visibility of attenuating seismic waves (SWs) with forest trees as natural metamaterials known as forest metamaterials (FMs) arranged in a periodic pattern around the protected area. In analyzing the changeability of the FM models, five distinct cases of “metawall” configurations were considered. Numerical simulations were conducted to study the characteristics of bandgaps (BGs) and vibration modes for each model. The finite element method (FEM) was used to illustrate the generation of BGs in low frequency ranges. The commercial finite element code COMSOL Multiphysics 5.4a was adopted to carry out the numerical analysis, utilizing the sound cone method and the strain energy method. Wide BGs were generated for the Bragg scattering BGs and local resonance BGs owing to the gradual variations in tree height and the addition of a vertical load in the form of mass to simulate the tree foliage. The results were promising and confirmed the applicability of FEM based on the parametric design language ANSYS 17.2 software to apply the boundary conditions of the proposed models at frequencies below 100 Hz. The effects of the mechanical properties of the six layers of soil and the geometric parameters of FMs were studied intensively. Unit cell layouts and an engineered configuration for arranging FMs based on periodic theory to achieve significant results in controlling ground vibrations, which are valuable for protecting a large number of structures or an entire city, are recommended. Prior to construction, protecting a region and exerting control over FM characteristics are advantageous. The results exhibited the effect of the ‘trees’ upper portion (e.g., leaves, crown, and lateral bulky branches) and the gradual change in tree height on the width and position of BGs, which refers to the attenuation mechanism. Low frequency ranges of less than 100 Hz were particularly well suited for attenuating SWs with FMs. However, an engineering method for a safe city construction should be proposed on the basis of the arrangement of urban trees to allow for the shielding of SWs in specific frequency ranges

Systemic Type I IFN Inflammation in Human ISG15 Deficiency Leads to Necrotizing Skin Lesions

Most monogenic disorders have a primary clinical presentation. Inherited ISG15 deficiency, however, has manifested with two distinct presentations to date: susceptibility to mycobacterial disease and intracranial calcifications from hypomorphic interferon-II (IFN-II) production and excessive IFN-I response, respectively. Accordingly, these patients were managed for their infectious and neurologic complications. Herein, we describe five new patients with six novel ISG15 mutations presenting with skin lesions who were managed for dermatologic disease. Cellularly, we denote striking specificity to the IFN-I response, which was previously assumed to be universal. In peripheral blood, myeloid cells display the most robust IFN-I signatures. In the affected skin, IFN-I signaling is observed in the keratinocytes of the epidermis, endothelia, and the monocytes and macrophages of the dermis. These findings define the specific cells causing circulating and dermatologic inflammation and expand the clinical spectrum of ISG15 deficiency to dermatologic presentations as a third phenotype co-dominant to the infectious and neurologic manifestations.Fil: Martin Fernandez, Marta. Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai; Estados Unidos. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Bravo García Morato, María. Instituto de Investigacion del Hospital de la Paz.; EspañaFil: Gruber, Conor. Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai; Estados Unidos. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Murias Loza, Sara. Instituto de Investigacion del Hospital de la Paz.; EspañaFil: Malik, Muhammad Nasir Hayat. Twincore; Alemania. University Of Lahore; Países Bajos. Leibniz Universitat Hannover; Alemania. Helmholtz Gemeinschaft; AlemaniaFil: Alsohime, Fahad. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Alakeel, Abdullah. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Valdez, Rita. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Doctor Cosme Argerich; ArgentinaFil: Buta, Sofija. Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai; Estados UnidosFil: Buda, Guadalupe. Bitgenia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Biología Celular e Histología; ArgentinaFil: Marti, Marcelo Adrian. Bitgenia; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Biología Celular e Histología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Larralde, Margarita. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos "Ramos Mejía"; ArgentinaFil: Boisson, Bertrand. L'institut Des Maladies Génétiques Imagine; Francia. The Rockefeller University; Estados Unidos. Universite de Paris; FranciaFil: Feito Rodriguez, Marta. Instituto de Investigacion del Hospital de la Paz.; EspañaFil: Qiu, Xueer. Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai; Estados UnidosFil: Chrabieh, Maya. L'institut Des Maladies Génétiques Imagine; FranciaFil: Al Ayed, Mohammed. Najran University; Arabia SauditaFil: Al Muhsen, Saleh. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Desai, Jigar V.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Ferre, Elise M.N.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Rosenzweig, Sergio D.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Amador-Borrero, Blanca. Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai; Estados UnidosFil: Bravo-Gallego, Luz Yadira. Instituto de Investigacion del Hospital de la Paz.; EspañaFil: Olmer, Ruth. Hannover Medical School; Alemania. German Center for Lung Research; AlemaniaFil: Merkert, Sylvia. Hannover Medical School; Alemania. German Center for Lung Research; AlemaniaFil: Bret, Montserrat. Instituto de Investigacion del Hospital de la Paz.; EspañaFil: Sood, Amika K.. University of North Carolina; Estados UnidosFil: Al-rabiaah, Abdulkarim. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Temsah, Mohamad Hani. King Saud University; Arabia SauditaFil: Halwani, Rabih. University of Sharjah; Emiratos Arabes UnidosFil: Hernandez, Michelle Marilyn. University of North Carolina; Estados UnidosFil: Pessler, Frank. Twincore; Alemania. Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research; AlemaniaFil: Casanova, Jean Laurent. The Rockefeller University; Estados Unidos. Necker Hospital for Sick Children; Francia. Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Estados Unidos. Universite de Paris; FranciaFil: Bustamante, Jacinta. The Rockefeller University; Estados Unidos. Necker Hospital for Sick Children; Francia. Universite de Paris; FranciaFil: Lionakis, Michail S.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Bogunovic, Dusan. Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai; Estados Unido

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Biophysical studies on the liposome-albumin system

186-189The potential use of liposomes as a delivery system is still limited by the poor understanding of their interaction mechanisms with biological media. In the present work, interaction between bovine albumin (BA) and liposomes was studied using phase transition and dielectric measurements as well as solubilization process using non-ionic detergent octylglucoside (OG). After liposomes were incubated with diluted and concentrated BA, phase transition, characterizing the liposome membrane exhibited a shift towards higher temperatures, together with initiation of multiple phase transitions. The relaxation time of liposome membrane molecules also increased in a concentration-dependent manner. The solubilization profiles of incubated samples also showed remarkable changes, especially in beginning of solubilization stages. Moreover, amount of detergent needed to completely solubilize membrane was also increased. It was concluded that BA significantly altered the physical state of liposome membrane, which may be attributed to BA interaction with liposomes surface and/or by its incorporation within the bilayer membrane

Concomitant Sub-Chronic Administration of Small-Size Gold Nanoparticles Aggravates Doxorubicin-Induced Liver Oxidative and Inflammatory Damage, Hyperlipidemia, and Hepatic Steatosis

This study examined the effect of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) on doxorubicin (DOX)-induced liver damage and steatosis in rats and tested its effect mechanism. Wistar male rats were divided into four groups (each of eight rats) as control, AuNPs (50 µL of 10 nm), DOX (15 mg/kg; 3 mg/kg/week), and DOX + AuNPs-treated rats. DOX is known to induce fasting hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia in treated rats. Individual treatment of both DOX and AuNPs also promoted liver damage, increased circulatory levels of ALT and AST, and stimulated serum and liver levels of TGs, CHOL, LDL-c, and FFAs. They also stimulated MDA, TNF-α, and IL-6, reduced GSH, SOD, HO-1, and CAT, upregulated mRNA levels of Bax and caspases-3 and -8 and downregulated mRNA levels of Bcl2 in the livers of rats. However, while DOX alone reduced hepatic levels of PPARα, both AuNPs and DOX stimulated mRNA levels of SREBP1, reduced the mRNA, cytoplasmic and nuclear levels of Nrf2, and increased mRNA, cytoplasmic, and nuclear levels of NF-κB. The liver damage and the alterations in all these parameters were significantly more profound when both AuNPs and DOX were administered together. In conclusion, AuNPs exaggerate liver damage, hyperlipidemia, and hepatic steatosis in DOX-treated rats by activating SREBP1 and NF-κB and suppressing the Nrf2/antioxidant axis

The Protective Effect of α-Lipoic Acid against Gold Nanoparticles (AuNPs)-Mediated Liver Damage Is Associated with Upregulating Nrf2 and Suppressing NF-κB

This study examined if regulating the keap-1? Nrf2 antioxidant pathway mediated gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) induced liver damage, and examined the protective effect of co-supplement of α-lipoic acid (α-LA). Rats were separated into 4 groups (n = 8/each) as control, α-LA (200 mg/kg), AuNPs (5 µg/2.85 × 1011), and AuNPs (5 µg/2.85 × 1011) + α-LA (200 mg/kg). After 7 days, AuNPs induced severe degeneration in the livers of rats with the appearance of some fatty changes. In addition, it increased serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and gamma-glutamyl transferase (ɣ-GTT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), as well as liver levels of malondialdehyde (MDA). Concomitantly, AuNPs significantly depleted hepatic levels of total glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) but increased hepatic levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6). It also reduced mRNA levels of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) but significantly increased those of Bax and cleaved caspase-3, as well as the ratio of Bax/Bcl2. In addition, AuNPs enhanced the total and nuclear levels of NF-κB p65 but reduced the mRNA and total and nuclear protein levels of Nrf2. Of note, AuNPs did not affect the mRNA levels of keap-1. All these events were reversed by α-LA in the AuNPs-treated rats. In conclusion, α-LA attenuated AuNPs-mediated liver damage in rats by suppressing oxidative stress and inflammation, effects that are associated with upregulation/activation of Nrf2