Azathioprine favourably influences the course of malaria

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Azathioprine triggers suicidal erythrocyte death or eryptosis, characterized by cell shrinkage and exposure of phosphatidylserine at the erythrocyte surface. Eryptosis may accelerate the clearance of <it>Plasmodium</it>-infected erythrocytes. The present study thus explored whether azathioprine influences eryptosis of <it>Plasmodium</it>-infected erythrocytes, development of parasitaemia and thus the course of malaria.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Human erythrocytes were infected <it>in vitro </it>with <it>Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) </it>(strain BinH) in the absence and presence of azathioprine (0.001 – 10 μM), parasitaemia determined utilizing Syto16, phosphatidylserine exposure estimated from annexin V-binding and cell volume from forward scatter in FACS analysis. Mice were infected with <it>Plasmodium berghei (P. berghei) </it>ANKA by injecting parasitized murine erythrocytes (1 × 10⁶) intraperitoneally. Where indicated azathioprine (5 mg/kg b.w.) was administered subcutaneously from the eighth day of infection.</p> <p>Results</p> <p><it>In vitro </it>infection of human erythrocytes with <it>P. falciparum </it>increased annexin V-binding and initially decreased forward scatter, effects significantly augmented by azathioprine. At higher concentrations azathioprine significantly decreased intraerythrocytic DNA/RNA content (≥ 1 μM) and <it>in vitro </it>parasitaemia (≥ 1 μM). Administration of azathioprine significantly decreased the parasitaemia of circulating erythrocytes and increased the survival of <it>P. berghei</it>-infected mice (from 0% to 77% 22 days after infection).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Azathioprine inhibits intraerythrocytic growth of <it>P. falciparum</it>, enhances suicidal death of infected erythrocytes, decreases parasitaemia and fosters host survival during malaria.</p

Influence of salinity on hatching rate, larval and early juvenile rearing of sea cucumber Holothuria scabra Jaeger

The fertilized eggs, auricularia larvae and one month old juveniles of Holothuria scabra, obtained from induced spawning were used for various experiments to assess the effect of salinity on hatching rate and larval and early juvenile growth. The experiments were conducted for two days on hatching rate of fertilized eggs, for ten days on larval survival, growth and development and for 30 days on juvenile’s growth rate. The maximum hatching of 39% at 35 ppt, followed by 32% at 33 ppt indicated the suitability of an ambient salinity of 33 to 35 ppt for effective hatching of fertilized eggs. High survival, growth rate and fastest development of auricularia were obtained at salinity between 33 and 35 ppt. The maximum growth rate in length and weight, was at 30 ppt, which may be the optimum for juvenile rearing. The one way ANOVA on differences in the hatching rate, larval growth and survival rate and juvenile growth rate at different salinities indicated high level of significance (p<0.001 )

Stock enhancement of seacucumbers - a solution for the depletion of natural stocks of Holothuria scabra along Gulf of Mannar

Sea cucumbers form a valuable source of income for the poor fisherfolk along Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay areas of South-east-coast of India. Owing to the high demand in international market and inadequate fishery management practice, the commercial sea cucumber species have been over-exploited leading to the extinction of sea cucumber populations in several habitats. The "Convention on International Trade in Endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora" (CITES) has recommended inclusion of sea cucumbers in the list of endangered animals and cited the reasons as limited mobility, late sexual maturity, density depended reproduction, low rates of recruitment and ease of collections for their overexploitation and subsequent resource depletion. The releasing of hatchery produced juveniles of commercial sea cucumber species to their natural habitat, a process called restoration, restocking or reseeding is gaining momentum world wide, as the only way for replenishing the depleted stock of sea cucumbers

Environment degradation by chemical effluents along the Kayalpatinam coast of Gulf of Mannar with special reference to mercury

Studies were carried out on the level of mercury and other water quality parameters in the effluent lagoon of Dharangadhara Chemical Works, Tuticorin and the adjacent open sea over a period of three years and the impact of effluent discharge in bulk quantity into the coastal marine environment, over a distance of 18 km. The present study indicated that the presence of mercury, acidity and low oxygen concentration are the major impacts of effluent discharge. The mean concentration of mercury in the open sea during 1999 – 2002, was 4.7 μg. l-1 which got reduced to 1.68 μg. l-1 after five years, indicating the improvement of effluent treatment measures. However the mercury levels are still higher compared to those reported elsewhere. Except for salinity and pH, no statistically significant difference was observed in the variation of other parameters between stations during 1999-2002, but highly significant differences were observed in the variation of dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, pH and salinity between stations during 2007-2008

Temporal resolution of cell death signaling events induced by cold atmospheric plasma and electroporation in human cancer cells

Cancer treatment resistance and their invasive and expensive nature is propelling research towards developing alternate approaches to eradicate cancer in patients. Non-thermal, i.e., cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) and electroporation (EP) applied to the surface of cancerous tissue are new methods that are minimally invasive, safe, and selective. These approaches, both independently and synergistically, have been shown to deplete cancer cell populations, but the signaling mechanisms of death and their timelines of action are still widely unknown. To better understand the timeframe of signaling events occurring upon treatment, human cancer cell lines were treated with CAP, EP, and combined CAP with EP. The stages and incidence of apoptosis were tracked through time via flow cytometry while the activation/inactivation of the penultimate apoptotic signaling complex was examined through real-time fluorescent imaging. These treatments represent a promising new therapy in the global fight against cancer

भारत के होलोतूरियन के आधार और संरक्षण कार्रवाई

कृपया पूरा लेखा पढ

Synergy of Cold Atmospheric Plasma and Electroporation for Treatment of Cancer Cells

Cancer kills about 1500 people every day in the United States alone. Treatments for cancer patients like chemotherapy and radiation are invasive, aggressive, expensive, and can sometimes do more harm than good. There is a need for instrumentation and procedures that reduce toxicity to the human body and are more mobile and accessible to cancer and tumor patients. Electroporation and Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) are two methods being explored to treat cancerous cells without affecting the healthy cells through a minimally invasive treatment. This study will focus on the optimization of parameters for both procedures for efficient apoptosis of cancer cells. This study used different cancer cells lines for both procedures in sequence and simultaneously with the goal of understanding the synergy of both techniques. The viability of cells was analyzed through the use of emission spectroscopy, fluorescence, and microscopy. Initial results show that sequential electroporation was successful at leading cells to apoptosis. These results are very encouraging and have the potential of significant advantages over current methods and techniques. Further work and studies are currently in progress to study the synergetic effect of CAP with electroporation

Beneficial effect of aurothiomalate on murine malaria

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Premature death of <it>Plasmodium</it>-infected erythrocytes is considered to favourably influence the clinical course of malaria. Aurothiomalate has previously been shown to trigger erythrocyte death or eryptosis, which is characterized by cell membrane scrambling leading to phosphatidylserine exposure at the cell surface. Phosphatidylserine-exposing cells are rapidly cleared from circulating blood. The present study thus tested whether sodium aurothiomalate influences the intraerythrocytic parasite development <it>in vitro </it>and the clinical course of murine malaria <it>in vivo</it>.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Human erythrocytes were infected with <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>BinH <it>in vitro </it>and mice were infected (intraperitoneal injection of 1 × 10⁶parasitized murine erythrocytes) with <it>Plasmodium berghei </it>ANKA <it>in vivo</it>.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Exposure to aurothiomalate significantly decreased the <it>in vitro </it>parasitemia of <it>P. falciparum</it>-infected human erythrocytes without influencing the intraerythrocytic DNA/RNA content. Administration of sodium aurothiomalate <it>in vivo </it>(daily 10 mg/kg b.w. s.c. from the 8^thday of infection) enhanced the percentage of phosphatidylserine-exposing infected and noninfected erythrocytes in blood. All nontreated mice died within 30 days of infection. Aurothiomalate-treatment delayed the lethal course of malaria leading to survival of more than 50% of the mice 30 days after infection.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Sodium aurothiomalate influences the survival of <it>Plasmodium berghei</it>-infected mice, an effect only partially explained by stimulation of eryptosis.</p

Structural Evolution of Tungsten Surface Exposed to Sequential Low-Energy Helium Ion Irradiation and Transient Heat Loading

Structural damage due to high flux particle irradiation can result in significant changes to the thermal strength of the plasma facing component surface (PFC) during off-normal events in a tokamak. Low-energy He+ ion irradiation of tungsten (W), which is currently the leading candidate material for future PFCs, can result in the development of a fiber form nanostructure, known as “fuzz”. In the current study, mirror-finished W foils were exposed to 100 eV He+ ion irradiation at a fluence of 2.6 × 1024 ions m−2 and a temperature of 1200 K. Then, samples were exposed to two different types of pulsed heat loading meant to replicate type-I edge-localized mode (ELM) heating at varying energy densities and base temperatures. Millisecond (ms) laser exposure done at 1200 K revealed a reduction in fuzz density with increasing energy density due to the conglomeration and local melting of W fibers. At higher energy densities (∼ 1.5 MJ m−2), RT exposures resulted in surface cracking, while 1200 K exposures resulted in surface roughening, demonstrating the role of base temperature on the crack formation in W. Electron beam heating presented similar trends in surface morphology evolution; a higher penetration depth led to reduced melt motion and plasticity. In situ mass loss measurements obtained via a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) found an exponential increase in particle emission for RT exposures, while the prevalence of melting from 1200 K exposures yielded no observable trend

The orientation of elliptical galaxies

We determine the orientations of the light distribution of individual elliptical galaxies by combining the profiles of photometric data from the literature with triaxial models. The orientation is given by a Bayesian probability distribution. The likelihood of obtaining the data from a model is a function of the parameters describing the intrinsic shape and the orientation. Integrating the likelihood over the shape parameters, we obtain the estimates of the orientation. We find that the position angle difference between the two suitably chosen points from the profiles of the photometric data plays a key role in constraining the orientation of the galaxy. We apply the methodology to a sample of ten galaxies. The alignment of the intrinsic principle axes of the NGC 3379, 4486 and NGC 5638 are studied.Comment: accepted in Astrophysics and Space Scienc