Cerium and Yttrium Oxide Nanoparticles Against Lead-Induced Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Rat Hippocampus

Due to numerous industrial applications, lead has caused widespread pollution in the environment; it seems that the central nervous system (CNS) is the main target for lead in the human body. Oxidative stress and programmed cell death in the CNS have been assumed as two mechanisms related to neurotoxicity of lead. Cerium oxide (CeO2) and yttrium oxide (Y2O3) nanoparticles have recently shown antioxidant effects, particularly when used together, through scavenging the amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS) required for cell apoptosis. We looked into the neuroprotective effects of the combinations of these nanoparticles against acute lead-induced neurotoxicity in rat hippocampus. We used five groups in this study: control, lead, CeO2 nanoparticles + lead, Y2O3 nanoparticles + lead, and CeO2 and Y2O3 nanoparticles + lead. Nanoparticles of CeO2 (1000 mg/kg) and Y2O3 (230 mg/kg) were administered intraperitoneally during 2 days prior to intraperitoneal injection of the lead (25 mg/kg for 3 days). At the end of the treatments, oxidative stress markers, antioxidant enzymes activity, and apoptosis indexes were investigated. The results demonstrated that pretreatments with CeO2 and/or Y2O3 nanoparticles recovered lead-caused oxidative stress markers (ROS, lipid peroxidation, and total thiol molecules) and apoptosis indexes (Bax/Bcl-2 and caspase-3 protein expression). Besides, these nanoparticles reduced the activities of lead-induced superoxide dismutase and catalase as well as the ADP/ATP ratio. Interestingly, the best recovery resulted from the compound of these nanoparticles. Based on these outcomes, it appears that this combination may potentially be beneficial for protection against lead-caused acute toxicity in the brain through improving the oxidative stress-mediated programmed cell death pathway. © 2014, Springer Science+Business Media New York

In vitro wound healing activity of luteolin

Background and objectives: Luteolin (3′,4′,5,7-tetrahydroxy flavone) is one of the most common flavones, which is naturally found in several edible plants and traditional medicine. It is known as a non-toxic compound with anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive, anticarcinogenic, antimutagenic, and antiangiogenic properties. Luteolin has antiproliferative activity against different human hormone dependent cancer cells e.g. breast, prostate, and thyroid. Due to its bacteriostatic properties  and strong antioxidant potential, luteolin is valuable in the management of diverse diseases including peptic ulcers. There are some evidences on wound healing effect of luteolin on diabetic rats and in this work, an in vitro model of wound healing was used to study the wound healing effect of luteolin. Methods: Different concentrations of luteolin were applied in MTT and scratch assay on 3T3 fibroblast cells. FBS-free medium was used as the negative control. Cell proliferation and migration during scratch contraction was calculated. Annexin V and cell cycle analyses were performed to study the effect of luteolin on cell proliferation. Result: The results showed that, scratch contraction was observed significantly (