Lipid peroxidation and its role in the expression of NLRP1a and NLRP3 genes in testicular tissue of male rats: a model of spinal cord injury

Background: The majority of male patients with spinal cord injury [SCI] suffer from infertility. Nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptors NOD-like receptors [NLRs] are a kind of receptors that corporate in the inflammasome complex. Recent studies have introduced the inflammasome as the responsible agent for secreting cytokines in semen. Reactive oxygen species [ROS] is one of the elements that trigger inflammasome activation. Genital infections in SCI can lead to ROS generation. We investigated the relation between lipid peroxidation and inflammasome complex activity in testicular tissue of SCI rats

Methods: Adult male rats [n=20], weighting 200- 250 g, were included and divided into four groups: three experimental groups, including SCI1, SCI3, and SCI7, i.e. the rats were subjected to SCI procedure and sacrificed after one, three, and seven days, respectively and a control group. We performed a moderate, midline spinal contusion injury at thoracic level 10. The animals were anesthetized, and testes were collected for measurement of gene expression by real-time PCR. Caudal parts of epididymis were collected for malondialdehyde [MDA] measurement

Results: No NLRP1a mRNA overexpression was seen in the testes of control and SCI groups. After seven days from SCI surgery, NLRP3 mRNA expression was significantly increased in SCI7 animals [p

Conclusion: NLRP3 overexpression occurs due to the increased ROS production in testis tissue of SCI rats

In vitro anti-leishmanial activity of methanolic extracts of Calendula officinalis flowers, Datura stramonium seeds, and Salvia officinalis leaves / 中国天然药物

AIM@#The anti-leishmanial activity of methanolic extracts of Calendula officinalis flowers, Datura stramonium seeds, and Salvia officinalis leaves against extracellular (promastigote) and intracellular (amastigote) forms of Leishmania major were evaluated in this study.@*METHOD@#In the first stage, promastigote forms of L. major, were treated with different doses of the plant extracts in a 96-well tissue-culture microplate and IC50 values for each extract were measured with colorimetric MTT assay. In the second stage, macrophage cells were infected with L. major promastigotes. Infected macrophages were treated with plant extracts. Then the macrophages were stained with Gimsa and the number of infected macrophages and amastigotes were counted with a light microscope.@*RESULTS@#The results indicated that the plant extracts inhibited the growth of promastigotes and amastigotes of L. major. Inhibitory concentrations (IC50) for promastigote assay were 108.19, 155.15, and 184.32 μgmL(-1) for C. officinalis flowers, D. stramonium seeds and S. officinalis, respectively. The extracts also reduced the number of amastigotes in macrophage cells from 264 for control group to 88, 97, and 102 for test groups. Although the anti-leishmanial activity of the extracts were not comparable with the standard drug, miltefosine; but they showed significant efficiency in reducing the number of amastigotes in macrophages, in comparison with the control group (P < 0.001). These plant extracts had lower toxicity compared with miltefosine.@*CONCLUSION@#This study demonstrates the potential efficacy of the methanolic extracts of C. officinalis flowers, D. stramonium seeds, and S. officinalis leaves to control of cutaneous leishmaniasis.