Immunohistochemical characteristic of C cells in European bison thyroid gland

Introduction. C cells constitute a small percentage of thyroid gland parenchyma. The number, morphology and distribution of C cells differ among species; however, data regarding their characteristics in European bison are sparse. The aim of this study was to evaluate the morphology, distribution pattern and percentage of C cells in European bison thyroid gland together with morphometric analysis.Material and methods. Thyroid glands from 28 European bisons of different sex and age were collected either in autumn-winter (13/28) or in spring-summer (15/28) periods and analyzed by immunohistochemistry.Results. The mean total C cell number per all endocrine (follicular and C cells) cell number (C cell concentration) was 7.33%. The tendency to increase the C cell number from periphery to the central region of thyroid lobe was observed with the mean C cell concentration of 3.95%, 7.89% and 9.97% in peripheral, intermediate and central areas, respectively. Most frequently, C cells were situated intrafolliculary whereas epifollicular and interfollicular positions were observed less often. C cells were polymorphic with long cytoplasmic processes. The mean C cell area was 61.97 μm2 and the mean C cell perimeter, length and width were: 34.92 μm, 12.85 μm and 4.91 μm, respectively. In the majority of C cells, strong immunohistochemical cytoplasmic reaction was observed with the mean color intensity of 78.32. In autumn-winter period, C cells were significantly larger with lower color intensity than during spring and summer.Conclusions. This study leads to deeper characteristics of thyroid gland C cells in European bison. The histomorphometric data suggest that in European bison production of calcitonin by C cells may differ depending on the time of the year

Diamond nanoparticles modity curcumin activity:<i>in vitro</i> studies on cancer and normal cells and <i>in ovo</i> studies on chicken embryo model

Curcumin has been studied broadly for its wide range of biological activities, including anticancer properties. The major problem with curcumin is its poor bioavailability, which can be improved by the addition of carriers, such as diamond nanoparticles (DN). They are carbon allotropes, and are therefore biocompatible and easily taken up by cells. DN are non-toxic and have antiangiogenic properties with potential applications in cancer therapy. Their large surface makes them promising compounds in a drug delivery system for bioactive agents, as DN create bio-complexes in a fast and simple process of self-organisation. We investigated the cytotoxicity of such bio-complexes against liver cancer cells and normal fibroblasts, revealing that conjugation of curcumin with DN significantly improves its activity. The experiment performed in a chicken embryo model demonstrated that neither curcumin nor DN nor bio-complexes affect embryo development, even though DN can form deposits in tissues. Preliminary results confirmed the applicability of DN as an efficient carrier of curcumin, which improves its performance against cancer cells in vitro, yet is not toxic to an organism, which makes the bio-complex a promising anticancer agent

A homozygous FANCM mutation underlies a familial case of non-syndromic primary ovarian insufficiency

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