Comparative study of the sensilla on antenna and maxillary palps of five culicine mosquitoes in Sohag governorate, Egypt

Mosquitoes are unquestionably the most medically important arthropod vectors of disease. The maintenance and transmission of the pathogens that cause malaria, lymphatic filariasis, and numerous viral infections are absolutely dependent on the availability of competent mosquito vectors. Although the medical community has known for over a century the role played by mosquitoes in the transmission of malaria and lymphatic filariasis, these diseases continue to have a devastating influence on less privileged populations throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The present study was done to identify the different culicine mosquitoes in four different districts in Sohag Governorate and to describe and compare the various types of sensilla located on their antenna and maxillary palps using scanning electron microscopy

Effect of sperm DNA fragmentation on pregnancy rate after intracytoplasmic sperm injection

To evaluate the degree of DNA fragmentation in human sperm used for ICSI to determine the effect of sperm DNA fragmentation on fertilization rate, embryo cleavage rate, embryo quality and biochemical pregnancy rates after ICSI. Design: Prospective, analytic descriptive study. Settings: Tertiary care fertility clinic. Patient[s]: Fifty couples undergoing ICSI treatment due to male factor infertility. Intervention[s]: The percentage of spermatozoa with DNA fragmentation was determined using the method f terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase mediated UTP- biotin end- labeling [TUNEL] Main Outcome Measure[s]: The percentage of spermatozoa with DNA fragmentation was correlated with semen analysis parameters, ICSI fertilization rate, embryo cleavage rate, embryo grades and biochemical pregnancy rate. Result[s]: The mean [ +/- SD] percentage of spermatozoa with DNA fragmentation was 30.2 +/- 13.8%. A significant negative correlation was found between the percentage of sperm with DNA fragmentation and the concentration and motility of the ejaculated sperm. In addition, a significant negative association was found between the percentage of sperm with DNA fragmentation and fertilization rate, embryo cleavage rate, embryo quality and biochemical pregnancy rate. Conclusion[s]: Detection of DNA fragmentation in human sperm could provide additional information about the biochemical integrity of sperm and may explain fertilization failure after ICSI. By learning more about the fundamental mechanisms that cause sperm DNA fragmentation, it should be possible to develop more precise tests to describe defects and then to develop new therapeutic modalities designed to overcome these specific defects

Physical training ameliotates insulin resistance caused by high fat diet

Thirty male-albino rats were segregated equally into three groups according to their dietary fat content and physical training. The first group fed low fat diet [LF] and led sedentary life, the second group fed high fat [HF] diet and led sedentary life, the second group fed [HF] diet but were physically trained. After 6 weeks of dieting and physical training program animals were killed by decapitation, soleus muscle and epididymal pads of fat were taken from all rats and incubated in suitable media. Basal and maximally insulin stimulated glucose uptake by these tissues were estimated. The results of this work demonstrated that both soleus muscle and epididymal pads of fat showed lowered basal and maximally insulin stimulated glucose uptake in the group fed HF diet without physical training compared to the group fed LF diet. By physical training, there is significant enhancement of glucose uptake in the group fed HF diet with physical training. Therefore, insulin resistance induced by high fat diet can be ameliorated by physical training

Net urate handling by renal tubules in maturity onset diabetics

An oral glucose tolerance test [OGTT] was performed and the serum levels of urate and creatinine were determined in 36 maturity-onset diabetics [MOD] and 10 normal controls. The rate of urine flow, the concentration of urate and creatinine were determined on 24 hours collected urine. From these determinations, creatinine clearance [C.C.], urate clearance [U.C.], urate load, final urate excretion per minute and net tubular urate reabsorption were calculated. When the diabetic patients, as a whole, were compared with normal controls, there is significant decrease in the C.C. and nonsignificant increase in U.C.; but when the nonproteinuric diabetics were compared with the controls, a significant elevation in U.C. was noticed. Both proteinuric and nonproteinuric diabetic patients showed a significant decrease in both the filtered urate load to renal tubules and tubular urate reabsorption, but the urate excretion is not significantly changed in the proteinuric 01 nonproteinuric diabetic patients. It is suggested that the increased urate clearance, reported in diabetics in the present investigation, is due to the presence of increased amounts of glucose in the tubular filtrate

Nature of proteinuria in diabetic nephropathy. I- evaluation of albuminuria in various types of diabetes mellitus

By use of a radial immunodiffusion technique for determination of urinary albumin, it was noted that the diabetic patients studied excrete albumin in urine as much as 9 times the normal control values, although the majority of the diabetics have negative results for albumin as tested by the classical procedures for detecting urinary albumin. The juvenile onset diabetics [JOD] have a higher degree of albuminuria than that observed in maturity-onset diabetes [MOD] and maturity.onset diabetes of the young [MODY]. Moreover it has been noted that the extent of urinary albumin excretion is proportionatl to the degree of glucose intolerance. These results implies that the biochemical derrangernent in diabetes particularly hyperglycemia have a direct influence in promoting transglomerular passage of albumin. The higher level of albuminuria in JOD denotes greater detonation of glomerular function. This has been ascribed to result from the consequences of poor metabolic control notably ketosis and ketonuria which has been observed in most of these patients. In diabetics of more than 5 years duration, albuminuria is significantly greater than in diabetics of shorter duration, denoting the progressive nature of the underlying mechanism responsible for albuminuria

Nature of proteinuria in diabetic nephropathy. II- significance of different types of proteinuria in diabetes mellitus

The urinary excretion of albumin, alpha 1 acid glycoprotein [1 Ag], IgA and alpha 2 macroglobulin [alpha 2 MG] was determined in 27 diabetics and 8 normal controls using an immunodiffusion technique. Although alpha 1 AG has a molecular weight [40.000] less than that of albumin [69.000], it was detected in the urine of only one third of the diabetics having albuminuria. Its presence in urine of these patients was accounted for by impaired tubular reabsorption. Urinary excretion of IgA was noted at a greater frequency in diabetics with longer duration of diabetes or with a greater impairment of glucose tolerance. This may suggest that the appearance of IgA in urine of diabetics is a refletion of the greater strain imposed on the kidneys by metabolic derrange-ment, or it can be a sign of diabetic nephropathy. alpha 2 MG was detected only in urine of one patient having end stage renal failure. Thus, it is obvious that in diabetic nephropathy, the increased glomerular permeability did not progress readily to allow for the passage of huge macromolecules, such as alpha 2 MG, but remains limited for the passage of relatively smaller proteins such as albumin, though albuminuria is progressive in nature

Correlation between antithrombin III and glucose intolerance, type of diabetes, diabetic nephropathy and serum triglyceride level

Oral glucose tolerance test OGTT] and the serum levels of Tiglycerides [TG] and antithrombin III [AT III] were determined in 33 diabetic and 8 normal subjects. AT III was determined by radial immunodiffusion technique. The present results denote that the level of AT III in diabetics is not significantly different from the normal controls. Also, it shows that the level of AT III in diabetics is not affected by elevation of the serum TG or by increased impairement of glucose tolerance. Moreover, AT III in diabetics with mild proteinuria was not significantly different from that in patients without proteinuria, nor patients with diabetes of longer than 5 years duration have a different level of AT III than those with diabetes of shorter duration. Juvenile-onset diabetics [JOD] tend to have a higher AT III level as compared with the maturity-onset diabetics [MOD], though the difference was statistically nonsignificant. These results were discussed in relation to the possible role of AT III in the pathogenesis of diabetic vascular disease