Histological assessment of endometrial polyps resected by hysteroscopy.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to analyze the clinical data and pathologic aspects of endometrial polyps (EMPs) excised completely during surgical hysteroscopy and assess the connection between premalignant and malignant EMPs. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study includes 489 participants who underwent hysteroscopy due to endometrial polyps, and the clinical features and histological findings of the resected polyps analyzed. RESULTS: Participants with EMPs were divided into six groups according to histologic findings. The histologic finding of most cases was simple benign endometrial polyp [397 patients (81.2%)]. Malignant polyp was detected in 3 patients (0.6%). The histologic findings according to age, menopausal status, and menstrual bleeding patterns at the time of presentation to the outpatient clinic were compared; however, no significant difference was observed. 237 patients were observed to have menometrorrhagia, which was the most prevalent symptom reported. The distribution of polyp sizes observed at hysteroscopy according to histologic findings was compared, but no significant difference was observed. CONCLUSIONS: EMPs are often benign but can include premalignant or malignant tissue changes. Hysteroscopy is used for direct observation of the uterine cervix and resection of existing polyps, considering the increasing frequency of its use as a diagnostic and treatment tool.

Water/organic liquid interface properties with amine, carboxyl, thiol, and methyl terminal groups as seen from MD simulations.

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to study structural and dynamic properties of polar butanamine/water/butanamine, pentanoic acid/water/pentanoic acid, butanethiol/water/butanethiol, and nonpolar pentane/water/pentane systems. The mass density profiles along the interface normal to the organic liquid/water system, the difference in the local structure of H 2 O molecules in bulk and in the vicinity of interface, as well as the diffusion behavior of water molecules at the interface with above-mentioned organic liquids have been investigated. Our MD simulation has shown that the diffusion of water molecules across the water/organic liquid interface is influenced by the hydrogen bonds n HB between water molecules and the terminal groups of organic liquids. It was found that the loss of the hydrogen bonds n HB in the nonpolar organic liquid leads to a decrease in the value of the normal component of the diffusion coefficient D z , while the tangential diffusion coefficients, both D x and D y , increase.

Separation anxiety and depression in caregivers of epileptic patients.

OBJECTIVE: Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder affecting both the patients and the caregivers psychologically. Caregivers of these patients might have to face several challenges throughout the course of the disease. This study examines the correlations between the separation anxiety and depression of caregivers of adult and child epileptic patients according to their relation to the patients (parent vs. partner). PATIENTS AND METHODS: 50 participants (caregivers of epileptic patients) were included. A sociodemographic form, Beck Depression (BDI) and Anxiety (BAI) Scales, and Adult Separation Anxiety (ASA) Scale were applied to the participants. RESULTS: 54% of the patients in the study had generalized seizures, whereas 46% had focal seizures. Our study has found the BAI of woman caregivers was higher compared to male caregivers. BAI and ASA were significantly higher for caregivers of patients with an illness duration lower than 5 years who were on multiple medications than for caregivers of patients who had an illness duration of more than 5 years who were on single medication (p<0.05). BDI, BAI and ASA scores were significantly higher in the generalized epilepsy group than in the focal epilepsy group (p<0.05). The ASA score was significantly higher in females than in males (p<0.05). The ASA score was significantly higher in the group with a low educational level than in the group with a high educational level (p<0.05) CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study inform healthcare professionals regarding the needs of caregivers of epilepsy patients, especially around emotional problems. Results of this study demonstrate significant association between epilepsy seizure type, and separation anxiety and depression. Our study is the first study focused on the separation anxiety of the caregivers of epileptic patients. Separation anxiety has a negative impact on the personal independence of the caregiver.

Burr hole and craniotomy in the treatment of subdural hematoma: A comparative study.

Aim: This article aims to study the clinical outcomes in patients with chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) who underwent burr hole drainage or craniotomy. Patients and Methods: The length of hospitalization, Glasgow outcome scales (GOS) of patients undergoing burr-hole drainage or craniotomy, were evaluated and compared statistically. In this study, we also evaluated the relationship by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results: The sex and age distribution and specific clinical parameters of the patients were investigated. In this study, we provide the evidence of the GOS and length of hospitalization findings of the patients and the superiority of burr hole drainage over craniotomy. Conclusions: Chronic subdural hematoma responds better to burr hole drainage with shorter hospitalization and improved Glasgow score.

Curcumin protects against testis-specific side effects of irinotecan.

OBJECTIVE: Irinotecan (IR/CPT-11) is a semisynthetic, water-soluble derivative of the alkaloid camptothecin. It is a topoisomerase I group antineoplastic drug commonly used for the treatment of many cancer types, although it has side effects in tissues such as the testis. Curcumin (CRC) is a polyphenol compound produced from the Indian saffron root; it is used as food colouring and food flavouring. This study examined the testis-specific side effects of IR and the ability of CRC to protect against these side effects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in our study (n = 10). The rats were randomly divided into the following four groups: control, IR, IR + CRC, and CRC. IR 10 mg/kg/day was administered intraperitoneally and CRC 100 mg/kg was administered orally. Blood and testicular samples were collected from rats in all four groups on day 30 after drug administration. Histological, biochemical, and spermatological analyses were conducted. RESULTS: Testis tissue and blood samples were collected from the four groups. Tissue samples from the control and CRC groups demonstrated normal histological appearance on light microscopy. The IR group exhibited the following findings: vascular congestion in the tunica albuginea layer; tubular degeneration and vascular congestion in the interstitial area; oedema, vacuolisation, and luminised cells in the seminiferous tubule; and cells that temporarily stopped dividing at any stage of division in the seminiferous tubule epithelium. In the IR+CRC group, histopathological damage was significantly reduced by CRC treatment. Biochemical analysis showed that the level of thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) was significantly increased in the IR group, compared with the other groups. CRC treatment significantly decreased this IR-mediated increase in TBARS level, and the TBARS level in the IR + CRC group approached the level observed in the control group. IR treatment caused significant decreases in glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and catalase (CAT) levels. However, CRC administration tended to ameliorate the decreases in GSH, SOD, CAT, and GPx levels. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, IR had some toxic effects in rat testis tissue; these effects were ameliorated by CRC treatment. Further studies are warranted to confirm our results.

Comparison of non-burn-specific systemic inflammatory response syndrome criteria and burn-specific American Burn Association systemic inflammatory response syndrome criteria in paediatric burned patients.

AIM: We aim to investigate the diagnostic value of newly defined criteria for the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) for paediatric burn patients by the American Burn Association (ABA) by comparing the non-burn-specific SIRS criteria for children. METHODS: A total of 147 paediatric burn patients were included in this study. Patients diagnosed with sepsis were included in the sepsis group. Clinical parameters were obtained from the electronic medical records at the time of preliminary sepsis diagnosis. Both the non-burn-specific SIRS criteria and the burn-specific ABA SIRS criteria were applied to both the sepsis group and the non-sepsis group. RESULTS: Of 147 patients, 50 had sepsis according to the non-burn-specific sepsis criteria. When the 50-patient sepsis group was compared to the 97-patient non-sepsis group, the sepsis group had a significantly higher duration of hospitalisation, burn percentage, burn state and abbreviated burn scoring index (ABSI) (P < 0.05). The specificity of the two scales was 29.9% for the non-burn-specific SIRS and 74.2% for the burn-specific ABA SIRS. The sensitivity for the burn-specific ABA SIRS was calculated as 58%, the sensitivity for the non-burn-specific SIRS was 100%. While positive predictive value was calculated as 42.4% for the non-burn-specific SIRS, this value was found as 53.7% for the burn-specific ABA SIRS criteria. The correlation coefficient between the non-burn-specific SIRS and the burn-specific ABA SIRS was 0.378 (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our study underlines the need for widespread use of more specific and sensitive burn-specific clinical criteria to early diagnosis of infection in burn patients to prevent unnecessary antibiotic usage.

Effects of artificial aging on the bond strengths of universal dental adhesives.

AIMS: The effect of mechanical loading on the microtensile bond strength (µTBS) of universal adhesives to dentin was evaluated in this study. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Human molar teeth had the occlusal dentin surfaces exposed and were allocated into ten groups (five experimental groups and five control groups) that used the following universal adhesive systems in self-etch mode: All-Bond Universal (ABU), Single Bond Universal (SBU), Gluma Bond Universal (GBU), Tetric N-Bond Universal (TBU), and Clearfil Universal Bond (CUB). Following the bonding procedures and build-ups, the specimens were either stored in water at 37°C for 24 h or were mechanically loaded (50 N for 60,000 cycles) prior to the µTBS test. Data were analyzed using the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's posthoc test (P = 0.05). RESULTS: Both the adhesive type and mechanical loading had significant effects on the µTBS (P < 0.05). The µTBS values of SBU and ABU were significantly higher than the values of the other adhesives (P < 0.05). However, the µTBS values of ABU decreased significantly after mechanical loading (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: With the exception of ABU, mechanical loading had no deleterious effects on the µTBS of the universal adhesive systems examined in this study.

Comparison of immunological, histological and oxidative effects of felbamate and levetiracetam in traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to compare immunological, histological and oxidative effects of antiepileptic agents; felbamate and levetiracetam on head trauma in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, 32 Sprague-Dawley genus male rats were used. A closed head trauma mechanism was constituted in order to perform head trauma in rats. Rats were divided into 4 groups, and each group had 8 rats. Following head trauma, Group 1 (Control); normal saline was administered, Group 2; levetiracetam 50 mg/kg was administered, Group 3; felbamate 100 mg/kg was administered, and Group 4; levetiracetam 50 mg/kg and felbamate 100 mg/kg were administered with a combination. Injections were administered intraperitoneally once a day for 20 days. The rats were decapitated at the end of the 20th day. Blood and tissue samples were collected and analyzed for biochemical, immunohistochemical and histological parameters. RESULTS: Serum cytokine levels in Group 2, 3 and 4 were lower when compared to the control group. In Group 4, in which combined therapy was performed, cytokine levels were found to be the lowest. In Groups 2 and 3, a significant decrease in vascular congestion, mononuclear cell infiltration, hemorrhage, and neural degeneration was noticed in the pia mater. In Group 2, a decrease in vascular congestion and Purkinje cell degeneration was obtained in the cerebellum. However, the best outcomes were determined in Group 4. CONCLUSIONS: We determined that levetiracetam and felbamate alone are useful with respect to immunological, oxidative and histological alterations. However, their utility is better when used in a combination.

Ossicular chain reconstruction: endoscopic or microscopic?

OBJECTIVE: To compare the results of endoscopic and microscopic ossicular chain reconstruction surgery. METHODS: Patients undergoing ossicular chain reconstruction surgery via an endoscopic (n = 31) or microscopic (n = 34) technique were analysed for age, gender, Middle Ear Risk Index, ossicular chain defect, incision type, ossicular chain reconstruction surgery material, mean air conduction threshold, air-bone gap, air-bone gap gain, word recognition score, mean operation duration and mean post-operative follow up. RESULTS: Post-operative air conduction, air-bone gap and word recognition score improved significantly in both groups (within-subject p < 0.001 for air conduction and air-bone gap, and 0.026 for word recognition score); differences between groups were not significant (between-subject p = 0.192 for air conduction, 0.102 for air-bone gap, and 0.709 for word recognition score). Other parameters were similar between groups, except for incision type. However, endoscopic ossicular chain reconstruction surgery was associated with a significantly shorter operation duration (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Endoscopic ossicular chain reconstruction surgery can achieve comparable surgical and audiological outcomes to those of microscopic ossicular chain reconstruction surgery in a shorter time.

Evaluation of hearing loss and tinnitus in Behcet's disease.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to evaluate sensorineuralhearing loss (SHNL) and tinnitus in patients with Behcet's disease (BD), while also determining the association between the clinical symptoms of BD and the disease duration with the development of hearing loss. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 44 patients with BD and 42 healthy volunteers as the control group. The level of tinnitus-induced annoyance and the effects of tinnitus on daily life were evaluated with Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the Tinnitus Reaction Questionnaire (TRQ). The hearing levels of all participants were measured with high-frequency audiometry and transient auto-acoustic emission tests. RESULTS: The patients with BD were significantly more affected by SNHL and tinnitus than the controls (p < 0.05). The correlation between disease duration and age among those with SNHL was statistically significant (p < 0.05). No association was found between the clinical findings and SNHL and tinnitus (p > 0.05) in the BD patients. CONCLUSION: In the present study, high-frequency SNHL was found to be common in among the patients with BD. SNHL in BD is positively correlated with the patients' age of the and the disease duration.

Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor and glial fibrillary acidic protein in a rat model of traumatic brain injury treated with honokiol: a biochemical and immunohistochemical study.

BACKGROUND: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) leads to neuronal damage and neurological dysfunction. The aim of our study was to investigate the antioxidative effect of honokiol on TBI in rats with biochemical, histopathological and immunohistochemical methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to TBI with a weight-drop device using 300 g/1 m weight/height impact. Forty-five rats were divided into three groups as control group, TBI group and TBI + honokiol group (5 mg/kg/day, i.p.). Honokiol (5 mg/kg) dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was intraperitoneally administered to rats for 7 days after the trauma. At the end of experiment, blood samples were taken from the animals and analysed with various biochemical markers. RESULTS: Histopathological examination of the trauma group revealed some degenerated pyramidal cells, dilatation and congestion in blood vessels, hyperplasia in endothelial cells, inflammatory cell infiltration around the vein and disruptions in glial extensions. In TBI + honokiol group, pyramidal neurons showed a decrease in degeneration, slight dilatation in blood vessels, improvement of endothelial cells towards the lumen, and reduction of inflammatory cells in the vessel. In TBI + honokiol group, vascular endothelial growth factor expression was positive in the endothelial and few inflammatory cells of the mildly dilated blood vessels. In the blood brain barrier deteriorated after trauma, it was observed that the glial foot processes were positive expression and extended to the endothelial cells in the TBI + honokiol group. CONCLUSIONS: Glial fibrillary acidic protein expression showed a positive reaction in these processes. Considering the important role of antioxidants and inflammatory responses in cerebral damage induced by traumatic head injury, honokiol is thought to be important in decreasing lipid peroxidation, protecting the membrane structure of blood brain barrier, degeneration of neurons and glial cells.

Neuroprotective effects of Potentilla fulgens on spinal cord injury in rats: an immunohistochemical analysis.

BACKGROUND: This examination was performed to research the advantage of the antioxidant impact of Potentilla fulgens on spinal cord injury (SCI) in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the SCI model of this examination, the tolerably serious lesion was performed at the L1-L2 spinal segmental level. SCI animals were given P. fulgens 400 mg/kg/day, intraperitoneally. At 7 days post-lesion, exploratory rats were executed after intraperitoneal administration 7 ketamine HCL (0.15 mL/100 g body weight). Spinal cord specimens were taken for histological examination or assurance of malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) levels and myelope- roxidase (MPO) action. SCI caused a remarkable decline in spinal cord GSH content, trailed by noteworthy increments in MDA levels and MPO action. RESULTS: Degenerative changes in some multipolar and bipolar nerve cells and pyknotic changes in the nuclei of glial cells were likewise noticed. Remarkable development was seen in cells and vascular structures of P. fulgens treated groups when contrasted with untreated groups. CONCLUSIONS: Potentilla fulgens application may influence angiogenetic impro- vement in vein endothelial cells, reduce inflammatory cell aggregation by influ- encing cytokine system and may make apoptotic nerve cells and neuroprotective component in glial cells.

Evaluation of PECAM-1 and p38 MAPK expressions in cerebellum tissue of rats treated with caffeic acid phenethyl ester: a biochemical and immunohistochemical study.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the antioxidative and anti-inflam- matory effects of caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) on damage caused to cere- bellum tissue by diffuse traumatic head trauma via biochemical, histopathologic, and immuno-histochemical methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley (300-350 g) rats were subjected to traumatic brain injury with a weight-drop device (300 g/1 m weight-height im- pact). Twenty-four adult rats were randomly divided into three equal groups of 8, including a control group, traumatic brain injury (TBI) group, and TBI + CAPE treatment group (10 µmoL/kg/i.p.). Cerebellum tissue samples taken from anterior lobe from all rats were taken 7 days after traumatic injury and were subjected to biochemical and histopathological analysis, as well as immunohistochemical ana- lysis for platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (PECAM-1) and phosphate 38-mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK). RESULTS: In the TBI group, the granular layer had dilatation and haemorrhage in the capillary vessels and inflammatory cell infiltration around the periphery of the blood vessels. In the TBI + CAPE group, the small capillaries in the white matter were slightly dilated, there were no inflammatory cells, and dense chromatin/ granular cells were observed in the granular layer. Also in the TBI + CAPE group, the Purkinje cells of the ganglion cell layer had ovoid nuclei, were chromatin- -rich, and their extensions protruded to the molecular layer. CAPE is thought to regulate inflammation, cell damage, and angiogenetic development by affecting the PECAM-1 and p38 MAPK proteins. CONCLUSIONS: These proteins are key modulators of endothelial integrity and neuroinflammation in vessels in response to endothelial damage as well as of the proinflammatory response in the cerebellum in response to traumatic damage.

Projection onto Epigraph Sets for Rapid Self-Tuning Compressed Sensing MRI.

The compressed sensing (CS) framework leverages the sparsity of MR images to reconstruct from the undersampled acquisitions. CS reconstructions involve one or more regularization parameters that weigh sparsity in transform domains against fidelity to acquired data. While parameter selection is critical for reconstruction quality, the optimal parameters are subject and dataset specific. Thus, commonly practiced heuristic parameter selection generalizes poorly to independent datasets. Recent studies have proposed to tune parameters by estimating the risk of removing significant image coefficients. Line searches are performed across the parameter space to identify the parameter value that minimizes this risk. Although effective, these line searches yield prolonged reconstruction times. Here, we propose a new self-tuning CS method that uses computationally efficient projections onto epigraph sets of the l1 and total-variation norms to simultaneously achieve parameter selection and regularization. In vivo demonstrations are provided for balanced steady-state free precession, time-of-flight, and T1-weighted imaging. The proposed method achieves an order of magnitude improvement in computational efficiency over line-search methods while maintaining near-optimal parameter selection.

Submandibular gland invasion and feasibility of gland-sparing neck dissection in oral cavity carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the incidence and routes of submandibular gland involvement in oral cavity carcinoma to determine the feasibility of submandibular gland sparing neck dissection. METHODS: The records of 155 patients diagnosed with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma, with a total of 183 neck specimens, including those involving level I, were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: Submandibular gland involvement, via direct invasion from the anatomical proximity of T4a tumours, was evident in two patients. The floor of mouth location, either primarily or as an extension of the primary tumour, was the only risk factor for submandibular gland involvement in oral cavity carcinoma (p = 0.042). Tumour location, clinical and pathological tumour (T) and nodal (N) stages, and radiological suspicion of mandible invasion, were not found to be statistically relevant (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The results suggest the feasibility of preserving the submandibular gland in early stage oral cavity carcinoma unless the tumour is located in, or extends to, the floor of mouth.

Maternal low-quality protein diet exerts sex-specific effects on plasma amino acid profile and alters hepatic expression of methyltransferases in adult rat offspring.

Nutrition during pregnancy and lactation is a critical factor in the development of the offspring. Both protein content and source in maternal diet affect neonatal health, but the long-term effects of maternal low-quality protein diet on the offspring are less clear. This study aimed to examine the effects of maternal low-quality protein diet on offspring's growth, development, circulating metabolites and hepatic expression of methyltransferases. Virgin Wistar rats were mated at 11 weeks of age. Dams were then maintained on either a chow diet with 20% casein as the control group (C), or a low-quality protein diet with 20% wheat gluten as the experimental group (WG) throughout gestation and lactation. After weaning, all offspring were fed a control chow diet until the age of 20 weeks. Male WG offspring had significantly lower body weight and energy intake, whereas female WG offspring had significantly higher body weight and energy intake when compared with controls. Early life exposure to WG diet had no significant effect on circulating metabolites. However, fasting insulin concentrations and homoeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance were decreased in WG male and female offspring. Maternal low-quality protein diet increased plasma aspartic acid, glutamic acid, histidine, cystathione and decreased lysine in male WG offspring. Conversely, the same amino acids were reduced in female WG offspring. Adult offspring exposed to WG diet had significantly upregulated hepatic DNMT3a and DNMT3b expressions. Our study showed that there were differential effects of maternal poor-quality protein diet upon adult offspring's metabolism.

Effects of ciprofloxacin on fetal rat liver during pregnancy and protective effects of quercetin.

Urinary tract infections are common in pregnant women and ciprofloxacin frequently is used as a broad spectrum antibiotic. It has been suggested that ciprofloxacin causes liver damage in fetuses. Quercetin is a flavonoid with antioxidant properties. We investigated the efficacy of quercetin treatment for preventing fetal liver damage caused by ciprofloxacin. Pregnant rats were divided into four groups: untreated control group (C), 20 mg/kg quercetin for 21 days group (Q), 20 mg/kg twice/day ciprofloxacin for 10 days group (CP), and 20 mg/kg, ciprofloxacin + quercetin for 21 days group (CP + Q). Fetal livers were removed on day 21 of gestation to measure antioxidants and for histological observation. Malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) levels, and superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities were measured in tissue samples. GSH-Px, SOD and CAT activities were significantly lower in the CP group compared to group C. A significant increase in MDA was observed in the CP group compared to group C. There was no significant difference in GSH levels in any group. MDA levels were lower and CAT, SOD and GSH-Px enzyme activities were higher in the CP + Q group compared to group CP. Liver samples of the CP group exhibited central vein dilation, portal vein congestion, pyknotic nuclei and cytoplasmic vacuolization in some hepatocytes. Histological changes were less prominent in the rats treated with quercetin. Use of ciprofloxacin during pregnancy caused oxidative damage in fetal liver tissue. Oxidative stress was ameliorated by quercetin. Quercetin supports the antioxidant defense mechanism and it is beneficial for treating fetal liver damage caused by ciprofloxacin.

Therapeutic effects of melatonin and quercetin in improvement of hepatic steatosis in rats through supression of oxidative damage.

BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, a cause of cirrhosis, is characterized by fatty infiltration of the liver, inflammation, hepatocellular damage and fibrosis. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of melatonin and quercetin on CCl4-induced steatosis characterized by fatty infiltration of the liver, inflammation, hepatocellular damage and fibrosis. METHODS: Rats were divided into 5 groups: Ethanol, Olive oil, CCl4, CCl4+Melatonin (CCl4+Mel), CCl4+Quercetin. Rats were sacrificed and livers were removed for being evaluated by histopathological, immunohistochemical and biochemical methods. RESULTS: In CCI4 group, vacuolization, vascular congestion, haemorrhage, necrosis, and inflammatory infiltration were identified. The mean tissue MDA level was increased, whereas GSH level and SOD and CAT activities were decreased in comparison with ethanol and olive oil groups. MDA levels were decreased in CCI4+Quercetin and CCI4+Mel groups versus CCI4 group. CAT activity of CCI4+Mel group was higher than that of CCI4 and CCI4+Quercetin groups. The mean tissue GSH level of CCI4+Mel group versus CCI4 group was significantly increased. CONCLUSIONS: By the means of histopathological examination, we suggest that both agents are beneficial against necrotic and apoptotic cell death during steatosis. Thus, melatonin and quercetin might be beneficial in the improvement of hepatic steatosis by supporting conventional therapy in humans (Tab. 1, Fig. 5, Ref. 53).

Everolimus as an mTOR Inhibitor Suppresses Endometriotic Implants: an Experimental Rat Study.

Introduction Mammalian target of rapamycin is a pathway to block apoptosis. Recent studies showed that the activity of mammalian target of rapamycin pathway increases in endometriotic lesions. Aim of the present study was to study the effect of everolimus agent, a rapamycin analog, in an experimental endometriosis model. Materials and Methods Endometriosis established by the autotransplantation of uterine tissue in the peritoneal cavity was confirmed in 24 rats. The animals were then randomly divided into three groups to receive either everolimus (1.5 mg/kg/day, p. o.), anastrozole (0.004 mg/day, p. o.), or normal saline (0.1 mL, i. p.) for 14 days. Endometriotic foci were excised, stained with hematoxylin and eosin, and endometriosis was scored semiquantitatively. In addition, immunohistochemical examination were performed using primary antibodies of vascular endothelial growth factor, CD117, and Bax. Results Both anastrozole and everolimus lowered endometriosis scores. Significant decreases in ovarian follicles were observed following anastrozole treatment but not everolimus treatment. Conclusion Through its apoptosis-promoting effect, everolimus suppressed endometriotic foci without negatively affecting ovarian reserve. These findings support the hypothesis that everolimus merits further study on the way to developing a new endometriosis drug.