Long-Term but Not Short-Term Maternal Fasting Reduces Nephron Number and Alters the Glomerular Filtration Barrier in Rat Offspring.

The present study examined the effects of maternal Ramadan-type fasting during selected days in the first, second, or third trimester, or during the entire pregnancy, on the kidney structure of male rat offspring. Pregnant rats were provided with food ad libitum during pregnancy (control group, C), or they were exposed to 16 h of fasting/day for three consecutive days in the middle of the first (FT1), second (FT2), or third trimester (FT3), or during whole pregnancy (FWP). Our results showed that dams in the FWP group demonstrated lower food intake and body weight during gestation. Litter size was unaltered by fasting in all groups; however, litter weight was significantly reduced only in the FWP group. Nephron number was decreased in the FWP group, but it remained unchanged in the other fasting groups. The ultrastructure of the glomerular filtration barrier indicated that the kidneys of offspring of the FWP group demonstrated wider diameters of fenestrations and filtration slits and smaller diameters of basement membranes. This was reflected by a significant increase in proteinuria in FWP only. These results suggest that, unlike with short-term fasting, which seems to be safe, maternal long-term fasting induces structural changes that were non-reversible, and that may contribute to impaired renal function, leading to chronic diseases in later life.

The flavonoid, kaempferol-3-O-apiofuranosyl-7-O-rhamnopyranosyl, as a potential therapeutic agent for breast cancer with a promoting effect on ovarian function.

It is widely known that breast cancer cells eventually develop resistance to hormonal drugs and chemotherapies, which often compromise fertility. This study aimed to investigate the effect of the flavonoid, kaempferol-3-O-apiofuranosyl-7-O-rhamnopyranosyl (KARP), on 1) the viability of MCF-7 breast cancer cells and 2) ovarian function in rats. A dose-dependent decrease in MCF-7 cell survival was observed, and the IC50 value was found to be 48 µg/ml. Cells in the control group or those exposed to increasing concentrations of KARP experienced a similar generation of reactive oxygen species and induction of apoptosis. For the rats, estradiol levels correlated negatively to KARP dosages, although a recovery was obtained at administration of 30 mg/kg per day. Noteworthily, when compared against the control, this dosage led to significant increases in mRNA levels for CYP19, CYP17a, CCND2, GDF9, and INSL3 among the treatment groups, and ER1 and ER2 mRNA levels decreased in a dose-dependent manner. KARP shows great promise as an ideal therapy for breast cancer patients since it induced apoptosis and autophagy in cancerous cells without harming fertility in our animal model. Future investigations on humans are necessary to substantiate these findings and determine its efficacy as a general line of treatment.

Effects of Au/TiO2 metallic nanoparticles on Unio ravoisieri: assessment through an oxidative stress and toxicity biomarkers.

Several studies have been performed on the effects of nanoparticles on aquatic life. However, most of them investigated marine organisms, not freshwater organisms. This study investigated biomarker responses after exposure for 48 h and 7 days to newly made gold and titanium dioxide (Au/TiO2) metallic nanoparticles (MNPs) (100 and 200 µg·L-1) using the freshwater bivalve mussel Unio ravoisieri. Biochemical analysis of the gills and digestive glands showed induction of oxidative stress following exposure of the bivalve to Au/TiO2 MNPs. After 2 or 7 days of exposure to Au/TiO2 MNPs, both utilized concentrations of Au/TiO2 MNPs induce an overproduction of H2O2. Catalase and glutathione S-transferase activities and the malonedialdehyde content significantly increased in the presence of Au/TiO2 MNPs, depending on the concentration and target organ. In contrast, acetylcholinesterase activity was significantly inhibited, indicating a discernible disturbance of the cholinergic system in the presence of Au/TiO2 MNPs. The behavior of the freshwater mussel was altered by reducing the clearance rate. Therefore, U. ravoisieri can be used as a model species in laboratory studies to mirror the presence of MNPs, and the biomarker approach is important for detecting the effects of Au/TiO2 MNPs. In addition, digestive gland is the target organ of Au/TiO2NPs contamination.

Assessment of DNA damage and oxidative stress in juvenile Channa punctatus (Bloch) after exposure to multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have many applications in industry and used as additives in polymers, catalysts, anodes in lithium-battery and drug delivery. There is little information about MWCNTs' (210 nm) genotoxic potential on juvenile freshwater fish Channa punctatus. Therefore, in this study, we have determined the toxic effects of MWCNTs on freshwater fish C. punctatus by assessing toxicological endpoints such as oxidative stress, mutagenicity, and genotoxicity after acute MWCNTs exposure for 5 days. MWCNTs LC50 -96 hours value for C. punctatus was 21.8 mg/L and on this basis three different MWCNTs concentrations were selected, that is, sub-lethal I, II, and III, for 5-days exposure trials with C. punctatus. The level of lipid peroxidation increased in the gills and kidney of exposed fish at sub-lethal concentrations II and III. Contrastingly, glutathione decreased more in the gills than in the kidney. The activity of catalase enzymes decreased more in the gills than in the kidney at sublethal concentrations I and II. Glutathione S-transferase decreased in gill tissue but increased in kidney tissue following sub-lethal III exposure. Moreover, the level of glutathione reductase decreased in both tissues. In addition, MWCNTs genotoxicity was confirmed by DNA damage in lymphocytes, gills, kidney cells, and production of micronuclei (MNi) in red blood cells of freshwater fish following sub-lethal I, II, and III exposures. In conclusion, this study revealed that application of micronucleus and comet assays for in vivo laboratory studies using freshwater fish for screening the genotoxic potential of MWCNTs.

Impacts of Enriching Growing Rabbit Diets with Chlorella vulgaris Microalgae on Growth, Blood Variables, Carcass Traits, Immunological and Antioxidant Indices.

This work aimed to explore the effects of dietary supplementation of Chlorella vulgaris (CLV) on the growth performance, carcass traits, hematobiochemical variables, immunity responses, and the antioxidant status of growing rabbits. A total number of 100 rabbits were randomly distributed into four treatment groups, each of five replicates (25 rabbits/group). The experimental groups were as follows; control: a basal diet without supplementation, CLV0.5: basal diet + 0.5 g chlorella powder/kg diet; CLV1.0: basal diet + 1.0 g chlorella powder/kg diet, CLV1.5: basal diet + 1.5 g chlorella powder/kg diet. Live body weight (LBW), cumulative body weight gain (CBWG), feed intake (FI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were not affected by dietary CLV supplementation. Platelet count (PLT), hematocrit (HCT), means corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) values were significantly increased in the CLV0.5 group compared with the other treatment groups. Dietary supplementation of CLV (1.5 g/kg diet) significantly reduced the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity. The concentrations of serum triglycerides and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) were lower (p < 0.05) in the CLV-treated groups than those of the control. Supplemental CLV at all experimental levels gave the best values of immunoglobulins (IgG and IgM) and glutathione activities. Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were lower in the animals that received CLV in their diet than those of the control group. Dietary supplementation of 1.0 g CLV/kg had the potential to enhance immune responses and antioxidant status, as well as reduce blood lipid accumulation. Therefore, it could be concluded that CLV supplementation to growing rabbit diets can improve the health status.

Immuno- and gene expression analysis of EGFR and Nestin during mice skin development.

BACKGROUND: Skin stem cell populations reside in the adult hair follicle, sebaceous gland, dermis and epidermis. However, the origin of most of the stem cell populations found in the adult epidermis is still unknown. Far more unknown is the embryonic origin of other stem cells that populate the other layers of this tissue. OBJECTIVES: The main objectives of the present study were to identify the precise anatomical localization of stem cells in mice during skin developing; and to determine the expression levels by using immuno- and gene expression analysis. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: In this comparative cross sectional study, six ages been chosen and divided into: embryonic days (E12.5, E14.5 and E19.5) and litter days (L7, L14 and L19). Skin were removed from the back side and processed to assess both immuno- and gene-expression of EGFR and Nestin surface antigen markers. Data of the different studied age groups was compared using the SPSS software. RESULTS: EGFR was mainly expressed in the outer root sheath (ORS), in basal and, to a lesser extent, in suprabasal keratinocytes and tend to lie where the dermis comes closest to the skin surface, while Nestin expressed throughout the dermis in the early embryo, but it is subsequently restricted to the follicular connective tissue sheaths later in development and to hair follicles after birth. Immunoexpression analysis showed a strong EGFR expression in all group ages except E12.5 which recorded as moderate, while Nestin showed strong expression level for all embryonic stages, while in the litters it was moderate. The qRT-PCR results were consistent with those of the immunohistochemical study. The Pearson correlation analyze present a correlation between the cases of study with age (p≤0.01), which indicated to the effect of age to mice development. CONCLUSION: EGFR and Nestin showed to have vital role during mice development, and considered to be suitable markers for the study of skin stem cells.