Bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells do not exert acute neuroprotection after stroke in spontaneously hypertensive rats

Bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells (BM-MNCs) were shown to improve the outcome in animal stroke models and clinical pilot studies on BM-MNCs for stroke patients were already conducted. However, relevant aspects of pre-clinical evaluation, such as the use of animals with comorbidities and dose-response studies, were not thoroughly addressed so far. We therefore investigated different BM-MNC doses in the clinical meaningful stroke model of spontaneously hypertensive (SH) rats. Three hours after the onset of transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) animals received either one of three syngeneic BM-MNC doses or placebo intravenously. The primary endpoint was the infarct size. Secondary endpoints included functional outcome, mortality, inflammatory processes, and the dose-response relationship. In contrast to previous studies which used healthy animals no beneficial effect of BM-MNCs was found. Infarct volumes, mortality, behavioral outcomes, and the extent of the inflammatory response to cerebral ischemia were comparable in all groups. In conclusion, we could not demonstrate that early BM-MNC treatment improves the outcome after stroke in SH rats. Whether BM-MNCs improve neurological recovery after delayed treatment initiation was not investigated in the present study, but our data indicates that this should be determined in co-morbid animal stroke models before moving to large-scale clinical studies. Future preclinical stroke studies on co-morbid animals should also include groups of healthy animals in order to determine whether negative results can be attributed to the comorbid condition

Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor for stroke treatment: mechanisms of action and efficacy in preclinical studies

G-CSF is widely employed for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia. Recently, neuroprotective effects of G-CSF in animal stroke models were discovered including infarct size reduction and enhancement of functional recovery. The underlying mechanisms of action of G-CSF in ischemia appear to be a direct anti-apoptotic activity in neurons and a neurogenesis inducing capacity. Additional effects may be based on the stimulation of new blood-vessel formation, the stimulation of immunocompetence and -modulation as well as on bone marrow mobilization. In addition to a discussion of these mechanisms, we will review the available preclinical studies and analyze their impact on the overall efficacy of G-CSF in experimental stroke

Sodium-Dependent Vitamin C Transporter 2 (SVCT2) Expression and Activity in Brain Capillary Endothelial Cells after Transient Ischemia in Mice

Expression and transport activity of Sodium-dependent Vitamin C Transporter 2 (SVCT2) was shown in various tissues and organs. Vitamin C was shown to be cerebroprotective in several animal models of stroke. Data on expression, localization and transport activity of SVCT2 after cerebral ischemia, however, has been scarce so far. Thus, we studied the expression of SVCT2 after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in mice by immunohistochemistry. We found an upregulation of SVCT2 after stroke. Co-stainings with Occludin, Von-Willebrand Factor and CD34 demonstrated localization of SVCT2 in brain capillary endothelial cells in the ischemic area after stroke. Time-course analyses of SVCT2 expression by immunohistochemistry and western blots showed upregulation in the subacute phase of 2–5 days. Radioactive uptake assays using 14C-labelled ascorbic acid showed a significant increase of ascorbic acid uptake into the brain after stroke. Taken together, these results provide evidence for the expression and transport activity of SVCT2 in brain capillary endothelial cells after transient ischemia in mice. These results may lead to the development of novel neuroprotective strategies in stroke therapy

Anticancer, Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activities of Some Mediterranean Plants Extracts

This research was carried out to determine the anti-tumorigenic, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of extracts obtained from Juniperus oxycedrus L. oxycedrus (Cupressaceae) and Smilax aspera L. (Smilacaceae) fruits. The cytotoxic effects of ethanol extracts of Juniperus oxycedrus L. oxycedrus and Smilax aspera L. fruits were determined with six different tumorogenic cell lines including breast adenocarcinoma, small cell lung carcinoma, osteosarcoma, neuroblastoma and healthy kidney epithelial cells. Among the tested ethanol extracts of Juniperus oxycedrus L. oxycedrus and Smilax aspera L. fruits the ethanol extract obtained from Juniperus oxycedrus fruits was determined to have the highest anti-tumorigenic effect against small cell lung carcinoma with an IC50 value of 7.2 ?g ml-1. At the end of cytotoxicity studies, ethanol extracts of Juniperus oxycedrus L. oxycedrus fruits proved to be good candidates for small cell lung carcinoma (A569). Antimicrobial effects were analyzed by the MIC test. MIC values of ethanol extracts of Juniperus oxycedrus L. oxycedrus and Smilax aspera L. fruits against Escherichia coli and Candida albicans were found to be 31.25 ?g ml-1. Moreover, the radical scavenging capacity of Juniperus oxycedrus L. oxycedrus and Smilax aspera L. fruit extracts was elucidated. S. aspera L. (61%) and J. oxycedrus L. oxycedrus (47.3%) were found to have good free radical scavenging capacity

The effect of COVID-19 on development of hair and nail disorders: a Turkish multicenter, controlled study

© 2022 the International Society of Dermatology.Background: A broad spectrum of skin diseases, including hair and nails, can be directly or indirectly triggered by COVID-19. It is aimed to examine the type and frequency of hair and nail disorders after COVID-19 infection. Methods: This is a multicenter study conducted on consecutive 2171 post-COVID-19 patients. Patients who developed hair and nail disorders and did not develop hair and nail disorders were recruited as subject and control groups. The type and frequency of hair and nail disorders were examined. Results: The rate of the previous admission in hospital due to COVID-19 was statistically significantly more common in patients who developed hair loss after getting infected with COVID-19 (P < 0.001). Telogen effluvium (85%) was the most common hair loss type followed by worsening of androgenetic alopecia (7%) after COVID-19 infection. The mean stress scores during and after getting infected with COVID-19 were 6.88 ± 2.77 and 3.64 ± 3.04, respectively, in the hair loss group and were 5.77 ± 3.18 and 2.81 ± 2.84, respectively, in the control group (P < 0.001, P < 0.001). The frequency of recurrent COVID-19 was statistically significantly higher in men with severe androgenetic alopecia (Grades 4–7 HNS) (P = 0.012; Odds ratio: 2.931 [1.222–7.027]). The most common nail disorders were leukonychia, onycholysis, Beau's lines, onychomadesis, and onychoschisis, respectively. The symptoms of COVID-19 were statistically significantly more common in patients having nail disorders after getting infected with COVID-19 when compared to the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The development of both nail and hair disorders after COVID-19 seems to be related to a history of severe COVID-19