Anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive and antipyretic effects of extracts from snakehead fish (Channa striatus and C. lucius)

Channa spp. is a snakehead fish and widely consumed in Malaysia. A study was conducted to determine the effect of Channa striatus and Channa lucius extracts on carrageenan-induced synovitis in rabbits. The antinociceptive and antipyretic properties of both Channa spp. were also investigated in mice. The extracts of C. striatus and C. lucius were prepared as water and aqueous portion of chloroform: methanol extracts, respectively. Sixteen rabbits were randomly assigned into four groups. Each group of rabbits was treated orally 30 minutes before the induction of inflammation with C. striatus (60 mg/kg), C. lucius (60 mg/kg), ketoprofen (3 mg/kg) and saline solution (control), respectively. The right stifle joint was intra-articularly injected with 0.5 mL of 1% carrageenan. Whole blood was taken for serum thromboxane (TxB2) assay before and at 1, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 24 hour (h) after the induction of inflammation. Synovial fluid and synovial membrane were collected during post-mortem for analysis and histopathology. The results indicated that TxB2 synthesis was significantly (p<0.05) inhibited for 12 h after oral dosing of ketoprofen in rabbits. Serum TxB2 for C. striatus was lower than that of the control group at 1, 3, 6 and 12 h. As for C. lucius, TxB2 synthesis was inhibited at 9 and 12 h. However, the inhibition of TxB2 for both Channa spp. was small and not significant as compared to the control group. As for C. striatus and ketoprofen treated groups, the total white blood cell (WBC) count was reduced compared to the control group but was not significant different. Histopathological results indicated a mild infiltration of leucocytes in the synovial membrane of ketoprofen treated rabbits. However in the control, C. striatus and C. lucius treated groups showed massive leucocyte infiltration, congestion in the blood vessels and fibrin exudation. As for the analgesic activity of Channa spp., twenty four mice were allocated equally into three treatment groups and one control group. The extracts of C. striatus (60 mg/kg), C. lucius (60 mg/kg) or ketoprofen (1 mg/kg) was administered intraperitoneally, 30 minutes before injection of acetic acid. Both extracts of the local Channa spp. and ketoprofen showed significant (p<0.05) reductions in the number of abdominal constriction and hind limb stretching as compared to the control group. As for the antipyretic effect of the Channa spp. extracts, twenty four mice were equally divided into three treatment groups and one control group. Mice were injected with 30% (w/v) suspension of yeast in saline at the dosage of 10 mL/kg subcutaneously. The temperature was recorded 18 hour before and measured every half an hour for 5 hours after dosing. C. striatus (60 mg/kg) and C. lucius (60 mg/kg) reduced hyperthermia significantly (p<0.05) at 2.5 to 5 h and 3 to 4 h, respectively. Ketoprofen (1 mg/kg) caused significant inhibition (p<0.05) at 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 3 and 3.5 h after dosing. In summary, C. striatus and C. lucius extracts may possess antinociceptive and antipyretic in mice but at 60 mg/kg, both fish extracts did not produce anti-inflammatory activity in rabbits

Anti-inflammatory activity of Nigella sativa oil in rats

Nigella sativa (N. sativa), commonly known as black seed, has been a well known herb since ancient times with a wide range of healing properties. The aim of this study was to investigate anti-inflammatory activity of N. sativa seed oil at three dosages on carrageenan-induced paw oedema, total white blood cell (TWBC) count and plasma protein in rats. Acute inflammation was induced by subplantar injection of carrageenan (0.1 ml, 1 % w/v) into the rat hind paw. 500 mglkg, 1000 mg/kg and 1500 mg/kg of N. sativa oil were administrated orally. Paw oedema, total white blood cell count and plasma protein were assessed. N. sativa seed oil exerted significant inhibition of paw oedema at the dosage of 1500 mg/kg at second hour and plasma protein at a dosage of 1000 mg/kg at third hour (p< 0.05). No significant inhibition ofTWBC count was exerted by N. sativa seed oil at third hour after treatment at dosages used in this study. There was also dose-dependent correlation of N. sativa seed oil on inhibition of paw oedema. These results support the traditional use of N. sativa seed oil for the treatment of inflammatory diseases

Impact of takeoff angle of bucket type energy dissipater on scour hole

Scour holes formed downstream of bucket type energy dissipater may affect the safety and stability of the structure. In this study, a physical model is employed to study the impact of takeoff angle of bucket type energy dissipater on the scour hole. The area of longitudinal profile of the scour hole is used to evaluate the seriousness of the scour at downstream of the bucket type energy dissipater. Experimental results showed that the takeoff angle of 45° is the optimum angle which gives minimum longitudinal area of the scour hole. Also, validation of selected equations for predicting maximum scour depth at downstream of the bucket type energy dissipater showed that the equation proposed by Schoklitsch gave minimum error (33%) [1]

Preliminary screening of plant proteases as a potential source for the development of an inhibitive assay for heavy metals

Heavy metals pollution has become a great threat to the world. Since instrumental methods are expensive and need skilled technician, a simple and fast method is needed to determine the presence of heavy metals in the environment. In this work, a preliminary study was carried out on the applicability of various local plants as a source of protease for the future development of the inhibitive enzyme assay for heavy-metals. The crude proteases preparation was assayed using casein as a substrate in conjunction with the Coomassie dye-binding assay. The crude protease from the kesinai plant was found to be the most potent plant protease. The crude enzyme exhibited broad temperature and pH ranges for activity and will be developed in the future as a potential inhibitive assay for heavy metals

Superhydrophobic zinc oxide/epoxy coating prepared by a one-step approach for corrosion protection of carbon steel

Corrosion in carbon steel (CS) has been an existing issue and it calls attention to the need for improved corrosion protection. At present, superhydrophobic (SHB) coating technology has piqued the interest of researchers as alternative means of mitigating metal corrosion. Herein, a one-step solution deposition process was used to prepare an SHB coating based on nano-zinc oxide/epoxy (ZnO/EP) on CS and its corrosion resistance performance was analyzed by the means of electrochemical analysis and compared with that of the blank CS metal and the regular coatings (plain EP and regular ZnO/EP). Results implied the as-prepared SHB coating shows remarkable improvement in corrosion protection for the substrate. Notably, it exhibited higher in both impedance modulus (|Z|) and coating resistance (Rc) results approaching 1010 Ωcm2, than those of regular coatings by 3 orders of magnitude to that of plain EP (∼107 Ω cm2), and 1 order of magnitude to regular coating (∼109 Ω cm2), indicating its superior corrosion resistance performance. Besides that, the superior inhibitive effect of the SHB ZnO/EP (ZES) is also proven by the potentiodynamic polarization (PDP) results, in which the Icorr value is suppressed down to 2.08 × 10−11 A/cm2, thereby achieving an excellent corrosion rate result of 3.38 × 10−11 mm/year. The exceptional barrier protection is ascribed to the presence of a stabilized air interlayer captured within the coating/electrolyte interface thus effectively blocking the penetration of electrolyte into the coating. This facile yet effective one-step processed SHB coating offers an effective route to improve the corrosion resistance performance of the CS metal and thereafter expand its potential applications

Impact of Takeoff Angle of Bucket Type Energy Dissipater on Scour Hole

Scour holes formed downstream of bucket type energy dissipater may affect the safety and stability of the structure. In this study, a physical model is employed to study the impact of takeoff angle of bucket type energy dissipater on the scour hole. The area of longitudinal profile of the scour hole is used to evaluate the seriousness of the scour at downstream of the bucket type energy dissipater. Experimental results showed that the takeoff angle of 45o is the optimum angle which gives minimum longitudinal area of the scour hole. Also, validation of selected equations for predicting maximum scour depth at downstream of the bucket type energy dissipater showed that the equation proposed by Schoklitsch gave minimum error (33%

Effect of nanoparticles on wettability of nanocoating on carbon steel

Nanocoatings plays an important role in coating industry. The solution was being prepared through copolymerization of epoxy resin hardener and with the incorporation of metal oxide nanoparticles, Zinc Oxide (ZnO) and Silica (SiO2). ZnO and SiO2 were synthesized using sol-gel. Epoxy hardener acted as host while the metal oxide nanoparticles as guest components. The formulation of nanocoatings with excellent adhesion strength and corrosion protection of carbon steel was studied. The performance of wetting ability with different medium was analysed using contact angle. Water medium showed the addition of 3wt% of hybrid between ZnO and SiO2 was the best nanocoating to form hydrophobic surface and was also the best nanocoating surface to form hydrophilic surface with vacuum oil dropping. In oil dropping, the contact angle was smaller than 90° and the water drop tends to spreads on surface

Ficus deltoidea: Effects of solvent polarity on antioxidant and anti-proliferative activities in breast and colon cancer cells

Introduction: Ficus deltoiea (FD) is traditionally used to treat hyperlipidaemia, hypertension and diabetes. Limited studies are available on their anti-proliferative effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant activities of the hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol and water extracts of three varieties of FD and to evaluate their anti-proliferative effects on breast and colon cancer cells. Methods: The plant extracts were analysed for polyphenolic and flavonoid content. Antioxidant activities were determined using DPPH, ABTS and O2 ·− radical scavenging assays, FRAP, Fe2+ chelating, and cellular antioxidant assays. The anti-proliferative activity and apoptotic effects of the extracts was analysed using breast (MCF-7, MDA-MB 231, HCC 1937) and colon cancer (HCT 116) cell lines. Gene expression analysis of selected extracts was investigated against HCT 116 cells. Results: Methanol was the best solvent for extraction of antioxidants and had the highest polyphenolic content (70–100 mg GAE/g), FRAP (6.0–9.0 mmol Fe2+/g), ABTS (2.0–3.0 mmol TE/g) and DPPH (EC50:200-410 μg/mL) activities. The ethyl acetate extracts of FD variety A (FDA-EA) and B (FDB-EA) demonstrated anti-proliferative activities in MCF-7, MDA-MB 231, and HCT 116 (IC50<100 μg/mL) and moderate activities in HCC 1937 (IC50:150-200 μg/mL) cells. The extracts also increased caspase 3/7 activities in HCT 116 and HCC 1937 cells. HCT 116 cells treated with FDA-EA showed upregulation of Fas1, Bax, Cdk-1, TNF-α and Cdk-2 and downregulation of Bcl-2 and Tp53 genes, implying the induction of apoptosis. Conclusion: FD especially FDA-EA is a promising source of antioxidants and anti-proliferative agents, especially against colon cancer. © 2019 Elsevier Gmb

Design of an artificial neural network pattern recognition scheme using full factorial experiment

Automated recognition of process variation patterns using an artificial neural network (ANN) model classifier is a useful technique for multivariate quality control. Proper design of the classifier is critical for achieving effective recognition performance (RP). The existing classifiers were mainly designed empirically. In this research, full factorial design of experiment was utilized for investigating the effect of four design parameters, i.e., recognition window size, training data amount, training data quality and hidden neuron amount. The pattern recognition study focuses on bivariate correlated process mean shifts for cross correlation function, ρ = 0.1 ~ 0.9 and mean shifts, µ = ± 0.75 ~ 3.00 standard deviations. Raw data was used as input representation for a generalized model ANN classifier. The findings suggested that: (i) the best performance for each pattern could be achieved by setting different design parameters through specific classifiers, which (ii) gave superior result (average RP = 98.85%) compared to an empirical design (average RP = 96.5%). This research has provided a new perspective in designing ANN pattern recognition scheme in the field of statistical process control