ABSTRACT
Anesthesia and analgesia are major components of many interventional studies on laboratory animals. However, various studies have shown improper reporting or use of anesthetics/analgesics in research proposals and published articles. In many cases, it seems “anesthesia” and “analgesia” are used interchangeably, while they are referring to two different concepts. Not only this is an unethical practice, but also it may be one of the reasons for the proven sub‑ optimal quality of many animal researches. This is a widespread problem among investigations on various species of animals. However, it could be imagined that it may be more prevalent for the most common species of laboratory animals, such as the laboratory mice. In this review, proper anesthetic/analgesic methods for routine procedures on laboratory mice are discussed. We considered the available literature and critically reviewed their anesthetic/analge‑ sic methods. Detailed dosing and pharmacological information for the relevant drugs are provided and some of the drugs’ side effects are discussed. This paper provides the necessary data for an informed choice of anesthetic/analge‑ sic methods in some routine procedures on laboratory mice.
ABSTRACT
microRNAs [miRNAs] are noncoding RNAs that function as key regulators of diverse biological activities such as cellular metabolism, cell proliferation and cell cycle regulation. Recent studies have indicated the high potential of these small molecules to control stem cell differentiation into desired cells. The aim of present study is to investigate the possible effect of let-7f on expression of hepatic nuclear factor 4 alpha [HNF4a] and some hepatic specific factors such as albumin [ALB], alpha fetoprotein [AFP], cytokeratin18 [CK18] and cytokeratin19 [CK19] in human adipose tissue derived stem cells [hADSCs]. ADSCs were isolated from human adipose tissue using collagenase type I and were transduced by recombinant lentiviruses that contained human inhibitor let-7f and Scramble [negative control]. Afterward, the expressions of HNF4a, ALB, AFP, CK18 and CK19 were evaluated by Real-time PCR at different time points. Transduction efficiency of lentiviral vectors into ADSCs was more than 80% as judged by the expression of the GFP reporter gene. Real-time PCR analysis revealed that inhibition of let-7f in hADSCs resulted in significant up regulation of hepatic specific genes compared with the negative control. The expression level of HNF4a also increased in experimental cells at day 14, which supported the suppression of HNF4a expression by let-7f. The results of this study identified let-7f as a negative regulator of HNF4a expression in hADSCs and increased the expression of hepatocyte specific factors through silencing of let-7f. Therefore, suppression of let-7f could be a considerable tool for hepatic differentiation of hADSCs
ABSTRACT
Sepsis is a systemic response to severe infections leading to organ failure and death. Recently the role of herbal drugs in the management of the inflammatory response has come under increased scrutiny. Caraway is a well known traditional herbal plant believed to contain active components with pharmacological properties such as antioxidative effects. In this study attempts were made to assess the protective role of caraway essential oils on parameters related to oxidative stress in heart and kidney of rats with sepsis induced by experimental cecal ligation and puncture [CLP] method. The rats were divided into five groups i.e: controls or Sham-operated [SOP]; CLP group; intervention group of CLP + essential caraway oils, 50 and 100 mg/kg injected intra peritoneally [IP]; and CLP + Indomethacin group 10 mg/kg, [IP], chosen as positive control. Twenty-four hours after CLP, the rats were sacrificed and the heart and kidney tissues and plasma were removed. The tissues and plasma were tested for parameters related to oxidative stress i.e. lipid peroxidation [LP], glutathione [GSH] and also the plasma tissue injury indexes [urea, creatinine and CK-MB]. It was found that kidney tissue was partially injured after sepsis induction as evidenced by increased level of LP and high levels of urea/creatinine. Treatment of rats with caraway oils and also indomethacin modulated these parameters showing a diminished response to CLP. These results implied that caraway oils have a protective role in preventing partial kidney damage induced by sepsis