Assessment of morphological and functional changes in neonate vitrified testis grafts after host treatment with melatonin

This study was conducted to assess the effect of melatonin on the structure of testis and spermatogenesis dynamics in neonate vitrified testis grafts. Neonate vitrified testes, candidates for transplantation heterotopically to experiment or control groups, were warmed in thawing media which had or did not have a supplement of 100 μM melatonin, respectively. Following transplantation, melatonin (20 mg/ /kg/day) or saline solution was intraperitoneally injected into the treated and the non-treated groups, respectively. The initiating spermatogenesis, spermatogonia survival, and structure of tissue in the testis graft were examined. Cell apoptosis (TUNEL assay) and proliferation (Brdu assay) in germ cells were determined. Histological studies revealed the dynamic of the spermatogenesis process in the vitrified testis graft. However, dilation of the lumen accompanied by a disorganised epithelium in the non-treated group was higher than in the treated group. Furthermore, the proportion of apoptotic germ cells together with a reduced proportion of proliferated germ cells was higher in the non-treated group than in the treated group. Overall, the number of seminiferous tubules in the testes grafts of both groups remained steady. However, the non-treated testes grafts contained more damaged seminiferous tubules than the treated ones. The thickness of the seminiferous tubules was greater in the melatonin treated group than in the non-treated group. In fact, the thickness of germinal epithelium was significantly higher in the treated group than in the non-treated group. The study may show a positive effect from melatonin resulting in more grafts restoring puberty. Furthermore, the associated increase in the healthy number of seminiferous tubules suggests that melatonin may have a preventative ischaemia/antioxidant role and in fact may be useful to initiate the spermatogenesis process. (Folia Morphol 2011; 70, 2: 95–102

Prevention of methylprednisolone acetate-induced osteoporosis with calcium administration in rat model

Glucocorticoid steroids are widely used as anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive medications and are well known to induce osteoporosis. In Present study 24 rats were randomly divided into four groups (n=6): Group A (control), Group B (sham)that was treated only by normal saline for 1 month.Group C that was treated by methylprednisolone acetate alone (0.2 mg/kg) for 1 month. Group D that was treated by methylprednisolone acetate (0.2 mg/kg) and oral calcium supplementation (15 mg/kg) for 1 month. Changes in concentration of bone metabolic markers such as osteocalcine, acid phosphatase and calcium were evaluated before and after treatment. Bone mineral density (BMD) of lumbar vertebrae was also measured by dual energy X ray absorptiometry (DEXA). The results showed that concentration mean of serum acid phosphatase was increased significantly (P � 0.05) in C and D groups in compared to A and B groups. The concentration mean of serum osteocalcine in group C was decreased significantly (P � 0.05) in comparison to A and B groups but increased significantly in the group D in comparison to group C. The concentration mean of serum calcium was decreased significantly (P � 0.05) in C and D groups in compared to A and B groups. The bone mineral density (g/cm2) was decreased significantly (P � 0.05) in group C in compared to A and B groups. This increased significantly in group D in compared to group C. These results are compatible with the view that low doses of methylprednisolone acetate decreases bone formation and increase bone resorption in the lumbar vertebrae of rats. Calcium administration decreased effects of methylprednisolone. © 2009 Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved

Effects of different doses of hyaloronan on human sperm motility, vitality and morphology

Important aspect of sperm function such as motility and capacitation appear to be mediated at least partially though hyaloronic acid (HA). Present study investigated effects of different doses of HA on sperm motility and vitality in human. Sperm was obtained from 20 male from IVF clinic in Imam Khomeini Hospital. Sperm motility and vitality in human semen was analyzed according to WHO criteria before and 4 hours after treatment with different doses of HA (0.750, 1000 and 1250 μg/ml). The results showed that in 1000 μg/ml the percent of stage 3 and 4 increased compare to control group. Percent of stage 1 and 2 decreased in group with 1000 μg/ml HA, there was an increase in the percentage of stage 3 and 4 and decrease in percentage of stage 1 and 2 compare to control. In the group treated with 1250 μg/ml stage 1 and 2 increased while stage 3 and 4 decreased. Vitality in all groups decreased except of the group treated with 1000 μg/ml HA. The group with 1250 μg/ml showed significantly decrease in vitality compare to fresh group (P < 0.05). The present study showed that the effects of HA on sperm motility and vitality is dose dependant and 1000 μg/ml HA had the effective role on sperm parameters. © 2009 Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved

Tumoral calcinosis of the foot: An unusual differential diagnosis of calcaneal mass

Introduction Tumoral calcinosis (TC) is a rare disorder characterized by the development of calcified masses within the periarticular soft tissues of large joints. It commonly involves the hip, shoulders, and elbows. TC rarely involves the feet. Case presentation In this report, we describe an unusual case of primary TC of the foot in a 76-year-old female and discuss the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and therapeutic interventions of the condition. Discussion Due to the wide range of conditions mimicking TC, its diagnosis could be challenging. Diagnosis of TC is mainly based on the radiographic findings, the patient's biochemical profile, and the medical history plus differentiating the condition from its mimics. Conclusion TC should be considered in the differential diagnosis of any soft tissue calcification. ©2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd. on behalf of Surgical Associates Ltd

Electrochemical determination of ciprofloxacin using glassy carbon electrode modified with CoFe2o4-MWCNT

CoFe2O4 nanostructures composed of spherical-like were obtained by sol-gel method with glucose as template and combine with MWCNT and composed CoFe2O4-MWCNT heterostructure. The crystal Structure, phase composition, morphology and magnetic properties of CoFe2O4/MWCNT heterostructure were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and vibrating sample magnetometers (VSM), A pure phase of well crystallized CoFe2O4 nanostructures, with average size of 60 nm, could be readily synthesized at present glucose. The modified glassy carbon (GC) electrode with CoFe2O4-MWCNT heterostructure was used to determine the ciprofloxacin concentration. A cyclic voltammetric technique was used for comparison between the unmodified and modified electrodes. The fabricated modified electrode shows linear response for detection of ciprofloxacin at two linear range of 0.1-1 µM and 1-30 µM with a detection limit of 0.036 µM. © 2019 by CEE (Center of Excellence in Electrochemistry)

A framework to model thermomechanical coupled of fracture and martensite transformation in austenitic microstructures

A fully thermomechanical coupled phase-field (PF) model is presented to investigate the mechanism of austenite-to-martensite phase transformation (MPT) and crack initiation as well as its propagation in pure austenitic microstructures. The latent heat release and absorption involved in the MPT are explicitly taken into account by coupling the PF model with transient latent heat transfer. In order to consider temperature dependency in the PF model for MPT, a temperature-dependent Landau polynomial function, whose parameters are identified using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, is proposed. Furthermore, the fracture surface energy is approximated based on the second-order PF model and then, the temporal evolution of the damage variable is given by the variational derivative of the total potential free energy of the system with respect to the damage variable. The achieved numerical results demonstrate that the model can be employed to predict the fracture mechanism of austenitic microstructures under a thermomechanical field in a multiphysics environment. The results reveal that the temperature has a tremendous impact on the growth rate of both martensitic variants and consequently on the crack growth path. The key contributions of this work are to shed light on the impact of thermal boundary conditions on the coupled process of MPT, crack initiation and growth

Synthesis of ytterbium tungstate with excellent pseudocapacitive behavior and a high cycling stability material for supercapacitors

Nanoparticles of ytterbium tungstate prepared through the direct addition of an Yb3+ solution to a tungstate solution, were computed through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Further the supercapacitive characteristics of the nanoparticles, as a potential material for constructing electrodes, were evaluated through cyclic voltammetry (CV), galvanostatic charge/discharge (GCD) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Electrodes made of the Yb2(WO4)3 had a specific capacitance (SC) value of 336 F g-1 in a 2.0 M H2SO4 solution at a potential scan rate of 2 mV s-1; and 298 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1 based on GCD tests. The electrodes also revealed to have a 95.8 cycling durability after 4000 potential cycles. © 2020 by CEE (Center of Excellence in Electrochemistry)

Comparing performance of amoxicillin and intramuscular benzathine penicillin in relieving manifestations of Streptococcal pharyngitis in children

Objective: To compare clinical and bacteriologic responses to intramuscular benzathine penicillin G (BPG) and single dose of amoxicillin in Group A streptococcal (GAS) pharyngitis.Design: This study included 571 children from 6 to 15 years old age, with pharyngitis, who were admitted to 45 elementary and guidance schools from 7 regions of Education Organization in North-East of Iran, Mashhad. They were screened for enrollment and if he/she presented pharyngitis with clinical criteria of sore throat, erythema, exudate and tender or enlarged anterior cervical lymph nodes. Exclusion criteria included reports of antibiotic use, negative throat culture for GAS and history of allergy to the drugs. Clinical and bacteriologic responses to BPG and once daily orallyamoxicillin were considered and compared.Results: In the amoxicillin group, treatment failure was more than the penicillin group (18.9% vs. 6.4%, respectively) but the difference was not statistically significant (p &lt; 0.05). Both drugs were significantly effective in reducing pharyngitis manifestations but penicillin was significantly more effective in reducing exudate than amoxicillin.Conclusion: Our study was in line with studies comparing the two drugs. The results show that once-daily therapy with amoxicillin is as effective as intramuscular benzathine penicillin G for the treatment of GAS pharyngitis, but penicillin was significantly more effective in reducing exudate and concurrent signs vs. amoxicillin.Keywords: Streptococcal Pharyngitis, Erythema, Lymph nodes, Amoxicillin, Penicilli