Ankle injuries in sports: anatomical considerations and clinical implications

Ankle injuries are commonly seen in various sports. The main aim of the present review was to highlight the normal anatomy of the ankle, mechanism of injuries related to sports, congenital abnormalities or anatomical variations related to ankle injury and discuss its effective management. A review of literature was done to determine the ankle injuries which occur as a result of various sports related activities. We documented all sports which involved injury to the ankle joint. The anatomy of various structures in the sole of foot and their involvement in injuries were discussed at length. The anatomical knowledge of ankle injury may be beneficial for future diagnosis and treatment purpose

The effect of Stichopus chloronotus aqueous extract on human osteoarthritis articular chondrocytes in three-dimensional collagen type I hydrogel in vitro

Autologous chondrocyte-seeded scaffolds have proved to be one of the most promising alternative therapies for articular cartilage defects. However, the chondrocytes have specific nutritional requirements and risk of dedifferentiation during in vitro expansion. Stichopus chloronotus aqueous extract (SCAE) was investigated as a medium supplement for three-dimensional (3D) collagen type I hydrogel scaffold seeded with chondrocytes to determine whether SCAE is capable of maintaining phenotype and sustaining extracellular matrix synthesis and deposition. Human osteoarthritis articular chondrocytes were isolated from the knee joint cartilage of patients underwent total knee replacement surgery. Human osteoarthritis articular chondrocytes were encapsulated in collagen type I hydrogel and cultured in basic medium with 0, 0.1 and 0.2% of SCAE. The chondrocytes in 3D culture were evaluated by means cell morphology and proliferation, quantitative phenotypic expression of collagen type I, II, aggrecan core protein and sox-9. H&E, toluidine blue staining and sulfated glycosaminoglycan (sGAG) production were analyzed after 7 days in culture. Chondrocytes cultured in 3D with various SCAE concentration appeared with polygonal morphology maintaining their chondrocytes characteristic. SCAE supplementation promoted chondrocytes proliferation and the ability of the cells to express gene encoding collagen type I decreased, whereas their ability to express collagen type II, aggrecan core protein and sox9 increased as compared to control. The cartilaginous matrices were positively stained toluidine blue concomitant with higher sGAG accumulation in SCAE-supplemented culture medium. This study shown that SCAE may be beneficial for in vitro development of 3D chondrocytes culture for use in cartilage tissue engineering therapies

The effects of the fractions of Piper sarmentosum leaves on inhibition of adipogenesis of 3T3 L1 preadipocytes

Piper sarmentosum Roxb. was reported to have anti-obesity, hypoglycaemic and anti-oxidant properties. The aim of this study was to identify the fractions of P. sarmentosum leaf extract in inhibiting adipogenesis of 3T3L1 preadipocytes. The crude extract of the P. sarmentosum leaves was fractionated to produce hexane, dichloromethane, methanol, and aqueous fractions. Various dilutions of the fractions; hexane (0.1 - 1 μg/mL), dichloromethane (9.76 - 97.6 μg/mL), methanol (3.6 - 36 mg/mL), and aqueous (1 - 10 mg/mL), were treated onto the 3T3L1 preadipocytes from 3rd to 15th day of culture. The crude extract (1 - 10 mg/mL) and glycyrrhizic acid (GCA) (0.24 - 2.4 mg/mL) were used as positive controls. The viability of the adipocytes was measured by MTT assay at the 15th day of culture. The content of each fraction was quantified with reference standards of naringin, naringenin, pellitorine, sarmentosine and β-sitosterol by using HPLC. The results showed that 49.1% of the crude extract contained aqueous fraction, 0.12% in hexane fraction, 9.7% in dichloromethane fraction and 36% in methanol fraction. The aqueous fraction and crude extract at the dose of 7 mg/mL and GCA at the dose of 1.92 mg/mL showed potent inhibitory effects on the adipogenesis. However, none of the reference standards were identified from the fractions using HPLC analysis. In conclusion, the aqueous fraction was the main fraction in the crude extract of the P. sarmentosum and contributed a significant role in inhibiting adipogenesis of the 3T3L1 preadipocytes

Imagineering anatomy assessment amidst Covid-19: turning obstacles into achievements

A well-designed assessment has beneficial impacts on students’ learning and competency attainment. Failure in obtaining psychomotor learning competency, lack of understanding of assessment principles among instructors, unoptimized information and technology facilities, and difficulties in ensuring the integrity of online examination are among the threats to validity of online anatomy assessment during the COVID-19 pandemic. To ensure the validity of anatomy assessment during the pandemic, it is important to adopt several educational principles into the assessment design. We solidify the input discussed in the Malaysian Anatomical Association webinar 2021, on the challenges of anatomy online assessment and proposed six solutions to the challenges, namely adopting the programmatic assessment design, conducting small group in-person high stake examination, modifying assessment policy, utilizing question bank software, upgrading ICT facilities, and offering the ICT training to the students and instructors. It is envisioned that anatomy assessment are future ready are adaptive to change

Zingiber officinale Roscoe prevents DNA damage and improves muscle performance and bone integrity in old Sprague Dawley rats

Age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength or sarcopenia is attributed to the high level of oxidative stress and inadequate nutritional intake. The imbalance in oxidative status with increased production of free radicals results in damage to the DNA which leads to cell dysfunction. This study aimed to determine the effect of Zingiber officinale Roscoe (ginger) on muscle performance and bone integrity in Sprague Dawley (SD) rats. SD rats aged three (young), nine (adult), and twenty-one (old) months old were treated with either distilled water or ginger extract at a concentration of 200 mg/kg body weight (BW) daily for 3 months via oral gavage. Muscle performance was assessed at 0, 1, 2, and 3 months of treatment by measuring muscle strength, muscle function, and bone integrity while DNA damage was determined by comet assay. Muscle cell histology was analyzed by hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. Young and adult ginger-treated rats showed a significant improvement in muscle strength after 3 months of supplementation. Bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) were increased while fat free mass (FMM) was decreased after 3 months of ginger supplementation in young rats but not changed in adult and old ginger supplemented groups. Interestingly, supplementation of ginger for 3 months to the old rats decreased the level of damaged DNA. Histological findings showed reduction in the size of muscle fibre and fascicles with heterogenous morphology of the muscle fibres indicating sarcopenia was evident in old rats. Treatment with ginger extract improved the histological changes even though there was evidence of cellular infiltration (mild inflammation) and dilated blood vessels. In conclusion, Z. officinale Roscoe prevents DNA damage and improves muscle performance and bone integrity in SD rats indicating its potential in alleviating oxidative stress in ageing and thus delaying sarcopenia progression

Effects of edible bird's nest (EBN) on cultured rabbit corneal keratocytes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There has been no effective treatment or agent that is available for corneal injury in promoting corneal wound healing. Previous studies on edible bird's nest extract (EBN) had reported the presence of hormone-like substance; avian epidermal growth factor that could stimulate cell division and enhance regeneration. This study aimed to investigate the effects of EBN on corneal keratocytes proliferative capacity and phenotypical changes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Corneal keratocytes from six New Zealand White Rabbits were isolated and cultured until Passage 1. The proliferative effects of EBN on corneal keratocytes were determined by MTT assay in serum-containing medium (FDS) and serum-free medium (FD). Keratocytes phenotypical changes were morphologically assessed and gene expression of aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), collagen type 1 and lumican were determined through RT-PCR.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The highest cell proliferation was observed when both media were supplemented with 0.05% and 0.1% EBN. Cell proliferation was also consistently higher in FDS compared to FD. Both phase contrast micrographs and gene expression analysis confirmed the corneal keratocytes retained their phenotypes with the addition of EBN.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results suggested that low concentration of EBN could synergistically induce cell proliferation, especially in serum-containing medium. This could be a novel breakthrough as both cell proliferation and functional maintenance are important during corneal wound healing. The in vitro test is considered as a crucial first step for nutri-pharmaceutical formation of EBN-based eye drops before in vivo application.</p

Role of MicroRNA in Proliferation Phase of Wound Healing

Wound healing is a complex biological process that is generally composed of four phases: hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. The proliferation phase is crucial for effective healing compared to other phases. Many critical events occur during this phase, i.e., migration of fibroblasts, re-epithelialization, angiogenesis and wound contraction. Chronic wounds are common and are considered a major public health problem. Therefore, there is the increasing need to discover new therapeutic strategies. MicroRNA (miRNA) research in the field of wound healing is in its early phase, but the knowledge of the recent discoveries is essential for developing effective therapies for the treatment of chronic wounds. In this review, we focused on recently discovered miRNAs which are involved in the proliferation phase of wound healing in the past few years and their role in wound healing

Correlative transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy of rabbit cornea.

The present work was carried out to study the organization of rabbit cornea. The transparent nature of the normal cornea was very important to give the understanding of the cornea in health and disease state. The ultrastructural features of the cornea were obtained by transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The epithelial surface of the cornea composed of microvilli and microplicae. In the Bowman's membrane, the individual collagen fibrils were interwoven densely to form a felt-like sheet, while in the stroma, the collagen fibrils ran abreast in lamellae. In the innermost stromal region adjacent to Descemet's membrane, collagen fibrils were oriented in various directions and interlaced, forming loose fibrillar networks. The endothelial layer is a single cell layer and apically-localized below the Descemet's membrane. This present work will be a standard reference for future research pertaining to cornea particularly cornea tissue engineering

Therapeutic Potential of Honey and Propolis on Ocular Disease

Honey and propolis have recently become the key target of attention for treating certain diseases and promoting overall health and well-being. A high content of flavonoids and phenolic acids found in both honey and propolis contributes to the antioxidant properties to scavenge free radicals. Honey and propolis also exhibited antibacterial effects where they act in two ways, namely the production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and gluconic acids following the enzymatic activities of glucose oxidase, which exerts oxidative damage on the bacteria. Additionally, the anti-inflammatory effects of honey and propolis are mainly by reducing proinflammatory factors such as interleukins and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-&alpha;). Their effects on pain were discovered through modulation at a peripheral nociceptive neuron or binding to an opioid receptor in the higher center. The aforementioned properties of honey have been reported to possess potential therapeutic topical application on the exterior parts of the eyes, particularly in treating conjunctivitis, keratitis, blepharitis, and corneal injury. In contrast, most of the medicinal values of propolis are beneficial in the internal ocular area, such as the retina, optic nerve, and uvea. This review aims to update the current discoveries of honey and propolis in treating various ocular diseases, including their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and anti-nociceptive properties. In conclusion, research has shown that propolis and honey have considerable therapeutic promise for treating various eye illnesses, although the present study designs are primarily animal and in vitro studies. Therefore, there is an urgent need to translate this finding into a clinical setting

Age estimation using aorta image analysis in the Thai population

The current technology used in imaging has an increasing role in medical education. The concept of using an image analysis programme to help in estimating the age of the aorta, the largest artery, can be clearly seen to be of use, especially in establishing age changes for the identification of individuals. The purposes of the study were to investigate gross morphology, morphometric parameters, and the correlation between parameters with age of the aorta in human cadavers by using an image analysis programme. A total of 244 specimens were dissected from 4 locations of 61 human aortas from donour and autopsy cadavers with an age range of 20 to 90 years. The morphometric parameters included outer circumference, inner circumference, aortic diameter, and average thickness of all locations of the aorta. These were defined and measured by using the image analysis programme. The results of this study showed that the outer circumference (r=0.808-0.739), inner circumference (r=0.763-0.682), vertical diameter of the aorta (r=0.628-0.524) and horizontal diameter of the aorta (r=0.808-0.396) showed a significant correlation with age in all areas of the aorta. In the ascending aorta, the correlation between the outer circumference, horizontal diameter and age were higher than other variables and areas. The age equation established pertinent to the outer circumference (OC) in the ascending aorta was age = -61.648+ (1.141(OC)) with a standard error of ± 12.45 years. The age prediction equation for the horizontal diameter (HD) in the ascending aorta was age = -35.799+ (4.134(HD)) and a standard error of ± 12.43 years. In conclusion, knowledge of the structural changes associated with age can be used for age estimation in forensic anthropology