99mTc-MIBI Lung Scintigraphy in the Assessment of Pulmonary Involvement in Interstitial Lung Disease and Its Comparison With Pulmonary Function Tests and High-Resolution Computed Tomography

Abstract: The differentiation of active inflammatory processes from an inactive form of the disease is of great value in the management of interstitial lung disease (ILD). The aim of this investigation was to assess the efficacy of 99mTc-methoxy-isobutyl-isonitrile (99mTc- MIBI) scans in distinguishing the severity of the disease compared to radiological and clinical parameters. In total, 19 known cases of ILD were included in this study and were followed up for 1 year. Five patients without lung disease were considered as the control group. The patients underwent pulmonary function tests (PFTs) and high-resolution computed tomography scans, followed by 99mTc-MIBI scanning. The 99mTc-MIBI scans were analyzed either qualitatively (subjectively) or semiquantitatively. All 19 ILD patients demonstrated a strong increase in 99mTc-MIBI uptake in the lungs compared to the control group. The 99mTc-MIBI scan scores were higher in the patient group in both the early phase (0.24[0.19–0.31] vs 0.11[0.10–0.15], P<0.05) and the delayed phase (0.15[0.09–0.27] vs 0.04[0.01–0.09], P<0.05) compared with the control group. A positive correlation was detected between the 99mTc-MIBI scan and the high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) scores (Spearman’s correlation coefficient ¼ 0.65, P<0.02) in the early phase but not in the delayed phase in patients (P>0.14). The 99mTc-MIBI scan scores were not significantly correlated with the PFT findings (P>0.05). In total, 5 patients died and 14 patients were still alive over the 1-year follow-up period. There was also a significant difference between the uptake intensity of 99mTc-MIBI and the outcome in the early phase (dead: 0.32[0.29–0.43] vs alive: 0.21[0.18–0.24], P<0.05) and delayed phase (dead: 0.27[0.22–0.28] vs alive: 0.10[0.07–0.19], P<0.05). The washout rate was �40 min starting from 20 min up to 60 min and this rate was significantly different in our 2 study groups (ILD: 46.61[15.61–50.39] vs NL: 70.91[27.09–116.36], P¼0.04). The present study demonstrated that 99mTc-MIBI lung scans might distinguish the severity of pulmonary involvement in early views, which were well correlated with HRCT findings. These results also revealed that 99mTc-MIBI lung scans might be used as a complement to other diagnostic and clinical examinations in terms of functional information in ILD; however, further investigations are strongly require

Investigating the Cytotoxic Effect of Urolithin B and Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles Synthesized from Aloe Vera Plant on Brain Cancer Cell Colony (U87MG)

Background: Brain cancer is one of the types of cancer that appears with the growth of cancer cells in the brain. In this experimental study, we investigated and compared the effect of cerium oxide nanoparticles synthesized by the green method from Aloe vera with urolithin B on U87MG cancer cells. Materials and Methods: Cerium oxide nanoparticles were produced by the green synthesis method from the Aloe vera plant and confirmed by nanoparticle size characterization tests and an FESEM microscope. The U87MG cells were obtained from Pasteur Institute of Tehran, Iran, and after passage, they were treated with cerium oxide nanoparticles and urolithin B drug for 72 h and cell colonies for 15 days. Results: The IC50 of cancer cells in the MTT test for urolithin B and cerium oxide nanoparticles synthesized by green method from Aloe vera plant with urolithin B were 170 μM and 135 μM, respectively. In addition, the survival percentage results from the clonogenic test at a concentration of 30 μM for cerium oxide nanoparticles (78%), urolithin B(61%), and cerium oxide nanoparticles with urolithin B(30%), and for a concentration of 60 μM, it was 60, 42, and 16%, respectively. Conclusion: Urolithin B has a higher cytotoxic effect (170μM) than cerium oxide nanoparticles synthesized by the green method from the Aloe vera plant, and when combined with cerium oxide nanoparticles, this cytotoxic effect increased more (135μM). It also reduced the survival percentage of colonies within 15 days of treatment

Chemical Composition of Hexane Extract of Different Parts of Anthemis talyschensis and its Potential to Use in Sunscreen Products

In this study, both the presence and concentration of some unsaturated compounds in hexane extracts of different parts of Anthemis talyschensis showing absorption at wavelength 280-450 nm were surveyed, with the view of possibly using extracts of this plant in new formulations of sunscreen creams. The hexane extracts of flower, leaf and stem of A. talyschensis, collected from Northwest Iran, were obtained using a Soxhlet apparatus. The fatty acids were derivatized to methyl esters and were determined by gas chromatography/flame ionization detector (GC/FID) and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) systems. The chemical analysis resulted in identification of 14, 9 and 29 constituents, comprising about 99.5, 97.1 and 98.2% of the total constituents in hexane extracts of flower, leaf and stem, respectively. The main unsaturated constituents in the hexane extract of A. talyschensis flower were 9, 12-octadecadienoic acid, 9-octadecenoic acid and 6, 9, 12-octadecatrienoic acid; while the leaf's extract contained 9, 12-octadecadienoic acid and 9-octadecenoic acid; no unsaturated compounds were detected in the stem. The ratios of unsaturated fatty acid /saturated fatty acid were 13.6, 9.3 and 0 in extracts of the flower, leaf and stem, respectively, but the total amounts in the leaf were much greater. It can be concluded the leaf extract is more likely to be suitable for producing sunscreens creams than others

Probing the interaction behavior of Nano-Resveratrol with α-lactalbumin in the presence of β-lactoglobulin and β-casein: spectroscopy and molecular simulation studies

The main purpose of this research was to evaluate the role of α-lactalbumin (α-LA), β-lactoglobulin (β-LG), and β-Caseins (β-CN) in the binding interaction between Nano Resveratrol (Nano Res), as binary and ternary systems. This investigation was fulfilled through the application of multi-spectroscopic, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), conductometry, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation techniques. Fluorescence spectroscopy observations illustrated the effectiveness of Nano Res throughout the quenching of α-LA, (α-LA-β-LG), and (α-LA-β-CN) complexes, confirming the occurrence of interaction through the combination of static and dynamic mechanisms. An enhancement in the temperature of all three complexes caused a decrease in their Ksv and Kb values, which indicates the static and dynamic behavior of their interactions. The obtained thermodynamic parameters proved the dominance of electrostatic interaction as the binding force of both binary and ternary systems. The observed properties of Tyr or Trp residues in proteins through the data of synchronous spectroscopy at Δλ = 15 and 60 nm, respectively, demonstrated the closer positioning of (α-LA-β-CN) complex to the proximity of Trp residues when compared to the two other cases. According to the resonance light scattering (RLS) measurements, the detection of a much greater RLS intensity in (α-LA-β-CN) Nano Res complex suggested the production of a larger complex. Furthermore, the conductometry outcomes displayed an increase in molar conductivity and therefore approved the occurrence of interaction between Nano Res and proteins in both binary and ternary systems. The spherical shape of Nano Res was confirmed through the results of FE-SEM and TEM analyses. The conformational changes of proteins throughout the binding of Nano Res was evaluated by circular dichroism (CD) technique, while molecular docking and MD simulations affirmed the binding of Nano Res to α-LA, (α-LA-β-LG), and (α-LA-β-CN) complexes as binary and ternary systems. These In Silico study data confirm the results of in vitro assessments. The occurrence of changes in the secondary structure of β-galactosidase was implied through the increased enzyme catalytic activity induced by the interaction of different lactose concentrations. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma</p