Potentials of Gynura procumbens to modulate chronic stress and immunological responses in Oreochromis niloticus.

Natural products and traditional remedies have become more popular over the years since they have less harmful side effects and are considered environmentally friendly. In this study we aimed to investigate the potential of Gynura procumbens extract (GPE), a well-known traditional medicinal plant extract, on the stress modulation of Oreochromis niloticus (Nile tilapia). Four different experimental groups: control, stress, prevention, and treatment were monitored for 12 weeks. Hydrocortisone (0.01% of body weight) was incorporated with the feed to induce the stress response in stress, prevention and treatment groups. Feed was also supplemented with 0.15% GPE of body weight for the prevention and treatment groups. Cortisol concentration was reduced significantly in the prevention (1870.52 pg/mL; p = 0.006) and treatment (2925.91 pg/mL; p = 0.002) groups than the stress group (7614.22 pg/mL). The result is substantiated by significant decrease in blood glucose level in prevention (29.5 mg/dL; p = 0.002) and treatment (31.5 mg/dL; p = 0.006) groups, compared to stress group (47.33 mg/dL) at the end of the experiment. Considering the current finding, we can conclude the GPE has potential to be used as therapeutic option for stress regulation however there is a room for further detailed study to understand the in-depth mechanism.

Reconstituted ovaries self-assemble without an ovarian surface epithelium.

Three-dimensional (3D) stem cell models of the ovary have the potential to benefit women's reproductive health research. One such model, the reconstituted ovary (rOvary) self-assembles with pluripotent stem cell-derived germ cells creating a 3D ovarian mimic competent to support the differentiation of functional oocytes inside follicles. In this study, we evaluated the cellular composition of the rOvary revealing the capacity to generate multiple follicles surrounded by NR2F2+ stroma cells. However, the rOvary does not develop a surface epithelium, the source of second-wave pre-granulosa cells, or steroidogenic theca. Therefore, the rOvary models represent the self-assembly of activated follicles in a pre-pubertal ovary poised but not yet competent for hormone production.

Modulation of acute stress and immune response in tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, using longevity spinach, Gynura procumbens extract, as nutraceuticals.

We investigated the effects of different concentrations of longevity spinach, Gynura procumbens, on the hematological parameters of acutely stressed Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, (average weight 461.81 ± 16.60 g and average length 28.71 ± 0.34 cm) and determined the best concentration. The fish were subjected to hormonal stress in this research. We fed the stress control group commercial feed with 0.01% hydrocortisone, a stress hormone (0.01% of fish body weight) without Gynura. All the treatment groups were supplemented with Gynura extracts (0.5 g/kg, 1.0 g/kg, and 1.5 g/kg of feed weight) in combination with hydrocortisone. We evaluated blood glucose, lysozyme activity, phagocytic capacity, hematocrit, spleen somatic index, and hepatosomatic index. During the acute stress period, G. procumbens has been shown to decrease the levels of blood glucose in 1.5 g/kg treatment group (49.60 mg/dl at Day 1; 53.75 mg/dl at Day 3) compared to stress control group (80.00 mg/dl at Day 1; 69.20 mg/dl at Day 3). Higher lysozyme activity observed in 1.5 g/kg Gynura treatment group (11.44 T/min at 540 nm) compared to control (7.85 T/min at 540 nm). The 1.5 g/kg treatment group maintained the homeostatic level of significant physiological parameters including phagocytic capacity, packed cell volume, and hepatosomatic index. These findings are promising for the development of new nutraceuticals for the aquaculture industry.