Amelioration effects of vitamin E, melatonin, L-carnitine, and atorvastatin, on destructive effects of busulfan in the testes of male rats: A gene expression evaluation

According to toxicity of various types of cancer treatments on different kind of cells with high division activities such as germ cells, antioxidants may protect these cells in testes against the toxic effects of the chemotherapeutic drugs. For this purpose, 24 h after busulfan treatment, 30 adult male wistar-rats were divided to six groups. Intra-peritoneally administrations of normal saline in control group and DMSO (as a busulfan solvent) in DMSO group were performed daily for 6 weeks beside the treatment contain vitamin E (Vit-E group), L-carnitine and melatonin (LM group), atorvastatin and melatonin (AM group), atorvastatin, L-carnitine, and melatonin (ALM group). After decapitation and removal of the testes, molecular evaluations were performed by the relative abundance measurement of DAZL, Bcl2, and Casp3 transcripts. The results of this study exhibited high level of expression of DAZL in Vit-E treated rats compared to control counterparts (P<0.01). The expression level of Bcl2 is significantly down-regulated in LM (P<0.008), and ALM groups (P<0.001), and the relative abundance of Casp3 transcripts was significantly lower in AM (P<0.001) and ALM (P<0.007) than that of control group. As well as, there was significant high expression of this gene in Vit E-treated rats compared to the rats of control group. In conclusion, busulfan destructive effects were moderated with Vit-E administration through regulation of the expression of DAZL. The other antioxidants used in different combinations had not amelioration effects on spermatogenesis in busulfan-induced male rats, though the positive effects of some of these antioxidants on apoptosis reduction. Keywords: Rat, Busulfan, Vitamin E, Melatonin, L-carnitine, Atorvastatin, DAZL, Bcl2, Casp

Development and evaluation of an injectable slow‐release progesterone formulation for estrus synchronization in ewes out of the breeding season

This study was aimed at developing a type of slow-release progesterone micro-particles useable in a single intramuscular injection for estrus synchronization in non-breeding season ewes. A total of 66 ewes were randomly assigned into four groups: CIDR (n = 16): exposed to intravaginal CIDR for 12 days, and three experimental groups, i.e., T100 (n = 16), T150 (n = 17) and T200 (n = 17), receiving a single intramuscular injection of 100, 150 and 200 mg slow-release progesterone, respectively. Blood sampling was performed on all ewes at five different times, and the ELISA method measured progesterone levels. No significant differences were observed in progesterone levels among the groups in each sampling time. More than 90% of ewes in the CIDR, T100 and T150 groups and all those in T200 showed estrus behaviour, and the rate was not significantly different between groups. The difference in the mean interval from progesterone treatment to estrus was also insignificant. The parturition rate declined by increasing the dose of injected progesterone; although it was similar in CIDR and T100 groups, it decreased significantly in T150 and T200. Since our injectable progesterone formulation was successful in the induction and synchronization of estrus in ewes out of the breeding season, it can be applied as an alternative to the conventional progesterone containing intravaginal devices

The protective effects of astaxanthin on pre-antral follicle degeneration in ovine vitrified/warmed ovarian tissue

This study assesses the protective effects of astaxanthin (AST) against vitrification/warming-induced cryoinjuries of ovarian tissue slices in sheep. Cortical slices of slaughterhouse acquired-ovine ovaries were randomly distributed in different groups: fresh, toxicity, and five vitrification groups including vitrification in presence of 0 (control group), 1, 10 and 100 μM astaxanthin or 100 μM vitamin E. After vitrification/warming and 24 h culturing, the samples were subjected to histological studies, antioxidant evaluation by TAC and TBAR assays, and assessment of relative expression of BMP4, BMP15, GDF9 and KITLG genes related to folliculogenesis and follicular growth regulation. According to the results, vitrification reduced the percentage of morphologically intact follicles compared to the fresh and toxicity groups (p < 0.05). In vitrification groups, vitamin E and all three concentrations of AST increased the percentage of intact pre-antral follicles and antioxidant activity relative to the vitrified control (p < 0.05). This enhancement significantly occurred in 10 μM AST group more than vitamin E (p < 0.05). Also, 10 μM concentration of AST enhanced the expression of all the examined genes compared to the control (p < 0.05), while the expression of BMP4, BMP15 and KITLG was higher in the AST than vitamin E (p < 0.05). The latter could increase only the expression of GDF9 compared to the control group (p = 0.011). In conclusion, AST is a highly effective antioxidant for maintaining the survival of pre-antral follicles, retaining cell density, increasing total antioxidant capacity, and increasing the expression of some genes related to follicular development after short-term culture of vitrified/warmed ovarian tissue slices

Personality traits of patients with multiple sclerosis and their correlation with anxiety and depression levels: A cross‐sectional case–control study

Abstract Objective Multiple sclerosis is a chronic demyelinating disease of the central nervous system that can cause severe disability and impair the quality of life (QoL). Methods In the current cross‐sectional, case–control study, we investigated personality traits, anxiety and depression levels, in 101 patients in the case group and 202 individuals as a control group. The personality traits of the participants were collected via the Neuroticism‐Extraversion‐Openness Five‐Factor Inventory (NEO‐FFI) questionnaire. We evaluated the level of anxiety and depression based on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale questionnaire. Results Our study showed in patients with disease duration above 1 year, the rates of agreement (29.78), anxiety (8.83), and depression level (6.39) were significantly higher than the control group (27.19, 6.47, and 4.97, respectively). Although patients with disease duration below 1 year showed a higher level of agreement and conscientiousness (29.65 and 34.35, respectively) than controls (26.6 and 30.86, respectively). The level of anxiety and depression in patients with a disability index above 4.5 was significantly higher than patients with a disability index below 1. Patients with a disability index below 1 showed a higher rate of extraversion and agreement and conscientiousness (31.47, 31.53, and 35.07, respectively) than controls (25.5, 26.23, and 3033, respectively). In addition, patients with a disability index above 4.5 showed a higher level of agreement (35.64), conscientiousness (35.5), anxiety (9.64), and depression (7.5) than controls (25.96, 30.71, 6.96, and 4.71, respectively). Conclusions In conclusion, anxiety and depression levels were much higher among MS patients compared with controls and the severity of these conditions correlate with the score of the disability index. Therefore, a complete comprehension of these conditions by the neurologist could be vital in improving patients’ QoL and increasing compliance and adherence to pharmacological therapy