ABSTRACT
Background: Hydrogen has been demonstrated can selectively reduce the hydroxyl, which is the main cause of ionizing radiation-induced damage. Amifostine [AM] is the only radioprotective drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in radiotherapy. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the combined radio-protective effect of hydrogen rich water [HRW] and AM. Materials and Methods: Male ICR mice were treated intragastrically with HRW or/and intraperitoneally with AM 30 minutes prior to 9.0 Gy whole body irradiation from a [60]Co source [dose rate 0.96Gy/min]. Then the survival rate for 30 days, the hematological parameters, the Clinical chemistry parameters and the bone marrow nucleated cells were examined. Results: We found that the mice treated with HRW and AM before irradiation could increase the 30-day survival rate and improve the body weight better than the HRW or AM treatment alone group and irradiation alone group. Hematological test and Clinical chemistry assays also showed the same results that HRW combined AM could better improve the recovery of hemopoietic system and alleviate the detrimental effects of radiation. Conclusion: The results indicate that the combined application of HRW and AM may be a better method for radiation therapy
ABSTRACT
Toxoplasmosis is caused by the intracellular protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. It is anopportunistic zoonosis in warm-blooded animals and humans, with a worldwide distribution. Toxoplasma gondii dense granule protein 16 (TgGRA16) can modulate some functions in host cells and is considered a significant virulent factor of the parasite. The present study reports sequence variation in TgGRA16 gene among T. gondii strains from different hosts and geographical locations, and the construction of phylogenetic relationships of these T. gondii strains based on sequences of TgGRA16, and analysis of B cell epitopes in TgGRA16. Our results showed that all TgGRA16 gene sequences were 1518 bp and the C+G contents ranged from 52.17% to 52.59%. Sequence variation in the TgGRA16 gene was 0-1.51%. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that TgGRA16 gene sequence could not be used to differentiate the different T. gondii genotypes. Six B cell epitopes were predicted in TgGRA16. These results indicated that TgGRA16 gene is not an ideal marker for studying genetic relationships of T. gondii isolates, but may represent a good vaccine candidate against toxoplasmosis.