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    Isolation and cultivation of adult primary bovine hepatocytes from abattoir derived liver
    (2016-12-22) Ehrhardt, Sonja; Schmicke, Marion
    The aim was to establish a cell culture of adult primary bovine hepatocytes obtained from liver following slaughter and to cultivate the cells in a sandwich culture. Cells and medium samples were taken after separation of cells (day 0), during monolayer (days 1, 2 and 3) and during sandwich culture (days 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 10 and 14). The mRNA expression of BAX, BCL2L, FAS, IGF-1 and GHR1A was measured as well as urea and LDH. Hepatocytes were obtained by using a two-step collagenase perfusion and were purified thereafter by density gradient centrifugation. The viability was 68.2 ± 9.5 %. In sandwich culture, cells have a typical polygonal hepatocytelike shape, build cell-cell contacts, and show irregularity of cell borders suggesting bile canaliculi generation. The BAX mRNA expression increased on day 1 as well but decreased steadily until day 3 and remained constant for 14 days. Urea- and LDH-concentrations increased from day 4 to day 7. In conclusion, we found that it is possible to gather viable primary hepatocytes from adult bovine liver after slaughter, and that cells gathered this way show typical morphologies, urea-production and low LDH-leakage especially at day 4 in a sandwich system.
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    Chemical composition and inhibitory effects of water extract of Henna leaves on reactive oxygen species, DNA scission and proliferation of cancer cells
    (2016-12-21) Kumar, Manish; Chandel, Madhu; Kaur, Paramjeet; Pandit, Kritika; Kaur, Varinder; Kaur, Sandeep; Kaur, Satwinderjeet
    From the centuries, Lawsonia inermis L. (Henna) is utilized in traditional health care system as a medicinal and cosmetic agent. The present study was intended to assess antiradical, DNA protective and antiproliferative activity of water extract of Lawsonia inermis L. leaves (W-LI). Antioxidant activity was estimated using various in vitro assays such as DPPH, ABTS, superoxide anion radical scavenging, FRAP, deoxyribose degradation and DNA protection assay. Growth inhibitory effects of W-LI were assessed using MTT assay against different cancer cell lines viz. HeLa, MCF-7, A549, C6 and COLO-205. From the results of antioxidant assays, it was found that W-LI quenched DPPH and ABTS cation radicals with IC50 value of 352.77 μg/ml and 380.87 μg/ml respectively. It demonstrated hydroxyl radical scavenging potential of 59.75 % at highest test dose of 1000 μg/ml in deoxyribose degradation assay. The results of FRAP assay showed that W-LI also possesses significant reducing activity. Extract inhibited hydroxyl radical induced pBR322 plasmid DNA strand scission, thus conferring DNA protection. Growth inhibition of various cancer cell lines was achieved to the varying extent on treatment with W-LI. Further, it was observed that activity was quite promising against colon cancer COLO-205 cells (GI50 121.03 μg/ml). HPLC profiling of W-LI revealed the presence of different polyphenolic compounds such as ellagic acid, catechin, quercetin, kaempferol etc. which might be contributing towards antioxidant and cytotoxic activity. The present study demonstrated that polyphenols rich W-LI extract from leaves of L. inermis possesses ability to inhibit oxidative radicals and cancer cells proliferation.
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    Comparison of melatonin with growth factors in promoting precursor cells proliferation in adult mouse subventricular zone
    (2016-12-21) Sotthibundhu, Areechun; Ekthuwapranee, Kasima; Govitrapong, Piyarat
    Melatonin, secreted mainly by the pineal gland, plays roles in various physiological functions including protecting cell death. We showed in previous study that the proliferation and differentiation of precursor cells from the adult mouse subventricular zone (SVZ) can be modulated by melatonin via the MT1 melatonin receptor. Since melatonin and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) share some signaling pathway components, we investigated whether melatonin can promote the proliferation of precursor cells from the adult mouse SVZ via the extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase /mitogen-activated protein kinase (ERK/MAPK) pathways in comparison with epidermal growth factor (EGF). Melatonin-induced ERK/MAPK pathways compared with EGF were measured by using in vitro and vivo models. We used neurosphere proliferation assay, immunocytochemistry, and immuno-blotting to analyze significant differences between melatonin and growth factor treatment. We also used specific antagonist and inhibitors to confirm the exactly signaling pathway including luzindole and U0126. We found that significant increase in proliferation was observed when two growth factors (EGF+bFGF) and melatonin were used simultaneously compared with EGF + bFGF or compared with melatonin alone. In addition,the present result suggested the synergistic effect occurred of melatonin and growth factors on the activating. the ERK/MAPK pathway. This study exhibited that melatonin could act as a trophic factor, increasing proliferation in precursor cells mediated through the melatonin receptor coupled to ERK/MAPK signaling pathways. Understanding the mechanism by which melatonin regulates precursor cells may conduct to the development of novel strategies for neurodegenerative disease therapy.
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    Hepato- and nephroprotective effects of bradykinin potentiating factor from scorpion (Buthus occitanus) venom on mercuric chloride-treated rats
    (2016-12-14) Salman, Muhammad M. A.; Kotb, Ahmed M.; Haridy, Mohie A. M.; Hammad, Seddik
    Bioactive peptides such as bradykinin potentiating factor (BPF), have, anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory and ameliorative effects in chronic diseases and play a potential role in cancer prevention. It is known that the liver and kidney accumulate inorganic mercury upon exposure, which often leads to mercury intoxication in these organs. In this study, we investigated the effect of bradykinin potentiating factor (BPF), a scorpion venom peptide, on mercuric chloride-induced hepatic and renal toxicity in rats. We used 20 adult male Albino rats divided into four equal groups: the first group was injected with saline (control); the second group was administered daily with mercuric chloride (HgCl2) for 2 weeks; the third group was administered with BPF twice weekly for 2 successive weeks, while the fourth group was exposed to BPF followed by HgCl2. We observed that HgCl2 treated rats had a significant increase in serum ALT, AST, ALP, creatinine and urea levels compared to control. Furthermore, HgCl2 treated rats showed a marked decrease in total proteins, albumin and uric acids compared to control. The previously studied parameters were not significantly changed in BPF pretreated rats compared to control. Moreover, a significant decrease in the activities of glutathione perioxidase (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT), in addition to a significant increase in the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) were observed in hepatic and renal tissues of rats after HgCl2 treatment. In contrast, the HgCl2/BPF treated rats showed a significant elevation in the activity of GSH, SOD, and CAT accompanied with a significant regression in the level of MDA compared to the HgCl2 exposed rats. We conclude that treatment with BPF is a promising prophylactic approach for the management of mercuric chloride-induced hepato- and nephro-toxicities.
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    The effect of hydroalcoholic extract of Achillea eriophora DC. on blood pressure of anaesthetized male rat
    (2016-12-07) Anvari, Sohrab; Bahaoddini, Aminollah; Moein, Mahmoodreza; Khosravi, Ahmad Reza
    Achillea eriophora (Asteraceae) is a medicinal plant commonly used in Iran. This study was performed to determine the cardiovascular effects of hydroethanolic extract of A. eriophora (HEAE) and the underlying mechanisms in anaesthetized rats. The acute effects of intravenous (i.v.) administration of different doses of HEAE (40, 50, 60, 80 mg/kg), and its probable interaction with cholinergic and nitrergic systems were investigated in the presence of ACh and NOS blocker (L-NAME) as well as ethanol (HEAE solvent in sham group). Intravenous administration of different doses of HEAE induced hypotension. HEAE (60 mg/kg) significantly reduced mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), systolic arterial blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic arterial blood pressure (DBP)compared to control rats that treated with ethanol only, but no change in heart rate (HR) was seen in both groups. The results showed significant decrease in MAP, SBP, DBP and increase of HR in the presence of HEAE plus ACh (10 μg/kg) compared to when ACh was injected alone. Finally i.v. administration of HEAE, significantly reduced MAP and DBP in L-NAME (5 mg/kg) treated animals, while bradycardic responses to L-NAME were not significantly changed by HEAE. It can be concluded that Achillea eriophora induced hypotensive effect via lowering total peripheral resistance and cardiac output that may be synergist with cholinergic and independent of nitrergic system.
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    Discovery of novel phthalimide analogs
    (2016-12-06) Rateb, Heba S.; Ahmed, Hany E. A.; Ahmed, Sahar; Ihmaid, Saleh; Afifi, Tarek H.
    In continuation of our endeavor towards the design and development of potent and effective antimicrobial agents, three series of phthalimide derivatives (4a–i, 5a–f, and 6a-c) were synthesized, fully characterized and evaluated for their potential antibacterial, antifungal and antimycobacterial activities. These efforts led to the discovery of nine compounds 4c, 4f, 4g, 4h, 4i, 5c, 5d, 5e, and 6c (MIC range from 0.49 to 31.5 μg/mL) with potent antibacterial, antifungal, and antimycobacterial activities. Ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, amphotericin B were used as references for antibacterial and antifungal screening respectively, while isoniazid was used as a reference for antimycobacterial testing. Furthermore, molecular modeling studies were done to explore the binding mode of the most active derivatives to M. tuberculosis enoyl reductase (InhA) and DNA gyrase B. Our study showed the importance of both hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions as a key interaction with the target enzymes.
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    Bromelain capped gold nanoparticles as the novel drug delivery carriers to aggrandize effect of the antibiotic levofloxacin
    (2016-12-06) Bagga, Paramdeep; Ansari, Tarique Mahmood; Siddiqui, Hefazat Hussain; Syed, Asad; Bahkali, Ali H.; Rahman, Md. Azizur; Khan, Mohd. Sajid
    To develop bromelain capped gold nanoparticles (BRN capped Au-NPs) as the effective drug delivery carriers of the antibiotic levofloxacin (LvN) and evaluate antibacterial potential of its bioconjugated form compared to pure LvN. BRN capped Au-NPs were synthesized by in vitro method and bioconjugated to LvN using 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylamino-propyl)-carbodiimide as activator to form Au-BRN-LvN-NPs. These were characterized for mean particle size by dynamic light scattering analysis, zeta potential by Zetasizer nanosystem analysis and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) on carbon coated TEM copper grids by TEM respectively. Drug loading efficiency of LvN was calculated using UV-visible spectroscopy by standard curve of pure LvN. Antibacterial efficacy of Au-BRN-LvN-NPs and pure LvN was determined by evaluating minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against Staphylococcus aureus and Eschereschia coli.Two peaks were observed in Au-BRN-LvNNPs spectrum one at 307 nm and other at 526 nm while one peak in BRN capped Au-NPs at 522 nm during UV spectroscopy suggesting red shift. The drug loading efficiency of LvN was found to be 84.8 ± 2.41 %. The diameter of Au-BRN-LvN-NPs and BRN capped Au-NPs were found to be (58.65 ± 2 nm, 38.11 ± 2 nm), zeta potential (-9.01 mV, -13.8 mV) and surface morphology (~13.2 nm, 11.4 nm) respectively. The MICs against S. aureus and E. coli were found to be (0.128 μg/mL, 1.10 μg/mL) for Au-BRN-LvN-NPs and (0.547 μg/mL, 1.96μg/mL) for pure LvN. The results suggested that BRN capped Au-NPs can be used as effective drug delivery carriers of the antibiotic LvN. The Au-BRN-LvN-NPs exhibited enhanced antibacterial activity compared to pure LvN alone.
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    AEG-1 is associated with hypoxia-induced hepatocellular carcinoma chemoresistance via regulating PI3K/AKT/HIF-1alpha/MDR-1 pathway
    (2016-11-30) Xie, Yong; Zhong, De-Wu
    Hypoxia is a common characteristic of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) associated with reduced response to chemotherapy, thus increasing the probability of tumor recurrence. Astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) has been involved in a wide array of cancer progression including proliferation, chemoresistance, angiogenesis and metas- tasis, but its effect on HCC chemoresistance induced by hypoxia is unclear. In this study, expression of AEG-1 and multiple drug resistance (MDR-1) were examined in HCC using immunohistochemical staining and RT- PCR. Furthermore, their expression levels were detected in HCC HepG2 cells in normoxia or hypoxia via RT- PCR and Western blot assays. Specific shRNAs were used to silence AEG-1 expression in HepG2 cells. Results showed AEG-1 and MDR-1 expression were higher in HCC tissues than in adjacent normal tissues. Incubation of HepG2 cells in hypoxia increased expression of AEG-1 and MDR-1, compared to incubation in normoxia. Exposure to hypoxia blunted sensitivity of HepG2 cells to Adriamycin, 5-fluorouracil and cis-platinum, as evi- denced by modest alterations in cell viability and apoptosis rate, however the sensitivity was elevated with AEG- 1 knockdown. PI3K/AKT/HIF-1/MDR-1 pathway was attenuated following AEG-1 knockdown in hypoxia. Based on these data, it was suggested that AEG-1 is associated with hypoxia-induced hepatocellular carcinoma chemoresistance via regulating PI3K/AKT/HIF-1/MDR-1 pathway. This study uncovered a novel potential tar- get for development of an effective therapy against hypoxia-induced HCC chemoresistance.
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    Colorectal cancer in Iran
    (2016-11-28) Rafiemanesh, Hosein; Pakzad, Reza; Abedi, Mehdi; Kor, Yones; Moludi, Jalal; Towhidi, Farhad; Reza Makhsosi, Behnam; Salehiniya, Hamid
    Colorectal cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers in different countries, including Iran. No comprehensive study has been done in the country for colorectal cancer, but information on the incidence and trends is essential to planning. This study aimed to evaluate the occurrence and morphology of colorectal cancer and its trend in Iran. This study was conducted using data from the national cancer registry system in Iran from 2003-2008. We used joinpoint regression analysis for assessing incidence time trends and morphology change percentage. Of all cases of colorectal cancer, 61.83 % were colon cancer, 27.54 % rectal cancer, 7.46 % rectosigmoid cancer, and 3.10 anal cancer. The most common histological types with the frequencies of 80.85 % was related to adenocar- cinoma, NOS. The Annual percentage changes (APC) in ASIR for colorectal cancer significantly increased in both men and women. APC in ASIR was 13.7 (CI: 10.5-17.1) in women and 16.4 (CI: 12.4-20.5) in men. APC of adenocarcinoma in villous adenoma showed significant declining trend (p<0.05), while APC of adenocarci- noma, NOS had a constant trend. The incidence of the cancer in recent years has increased in Iran because of changes in lifestyle and diet. Therefore, further studies are necessary to detect the cause of this cancer and per- form preventive measures.
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    Synthesis and antimalarial potential of some novel quinoline-pyrazolopyridine derivatives
    (2016-11-28) Saini, Deepika; Jain, Sandeep; Kumar, Ajay; Jain, Neelam
    A series of 1-(4-methylquinolin-2-yl)-4,6-diaryl-1H-pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridin-3-amine derivatives was synthesized by the reaction of 3-cinnamoyl-4-hydroxy-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2-ones with 2-chloro-4,6-diphenylnicotinonitrile analogues in the presence of 2-hydrazino-4-methyl quinoline and ethanol. The newly synthesized compounds were characterized by IR, 1H NMR and mass spectral data. The synthetic series of novel quinolinepyrazolopyridine hybrids were screened for in vitro schizont maturation assay against chloroquine sensitive 3D7 strain of Plasmodium falciparum, from which the most five active analogues were further evaluated for in vivo 4-day suppressive test in Swiss albino mice. Among the series, 5p (containing 4-Cl substituent attached to both aryl ring) portrayed considerable potent antimalarial activity during in vitro as well as in vivo study
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    Tiagabine treatment in kainic acid induced cerebellar lesion of dystonia rat model
    (2016-11-17) Wang, Tsui-chin; Ngampramuan, Sukonthar; Kotchabhakdi, Naiphinich
    Dystonia is a neurological disorder characterized by excessive involuntary muscle contractions that lead to twisting movements. The exaggerated movements have been studied and have implicated basal ganglia as the point of origin. In more recent studies, the cerebellum has also been identified as the possible target of dystonia, in the search for alternative treatments. Tiagabine is a selective GABA transporter inhibitor, which blocks the reuptake and recycling of GABA. The study of GABAergic drugs as an alternative treatment for cerebellar induced dystonia has not been reported. In our study, tiagabine was i.p. injected into kainic acid induced, cerebellar dystonic adult rats, and the effects were compared with non-tiagabine injected and sham-operated groups. Beam walking apparatus, telemetric electromyography (EMG) recording, and histological verification were performed to confirm dystonic symptoms in the rats on post-surgery treatment. Involuntary dystonic spasm was observed with repetitive rigidity, and twisting movements in the rats were also confirmed by a high score on the dystonic scoring and a high amplitude on the EMG data. The rats with tiagabine treatment were scored based on motor amelioration assessed via beam walking. The result of this study suggests and confirms that low dose of kainic acid microinjection is sufficient to induce dystonia from the cerebellar vermis. In addition, from the results of the EMG recording and the behavioral assessment through beam walking, tiagabine is demonstrated as being effective in reducing dystonic spasm and may be a possible alternative therapeutic drug in the treatment of dystonia.
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    Anti-cancer activities of Brassica juncea leaves in vitro
    (2016-11-15) Kwak, Youngeum; Lee, Jungjae; Ju, Jihyeung
    Mustard (Brassica juncea) leaves are commonly consumed in different Asian and African countries. Cancer is a major burden of disease worldwide, and the colorectal and lung cancers are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality among cancers. In the current study, we aimed to investigate the effects of ethanol extract of mustard leaf (MLE) on the growth, angiogenic, and metastatic potentials of HCT116 colorectal carcinoma and H1299 non-small cell lung carcinoma cells in vitro. Treatment of HCT116 and H1299 cells with MLE inhibited cell growth in a dose-dependent manner (in the range of 175-700 μg/ml, by 39-86 %) and anchorage-independent colonization (at 700 μg/ml, by 56-86 %). Induction of apoptosis by MLE was evidenced by heterogeneous and condensed nucleus morphology, increased 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride staining intensity, and elevated sub-G1 cell population. In both HCT116 and H1299 cells, treatment with MLE markedly suppressed the secretion of key pro-angiogenic factors, such as vascular endothelial cell growth factor (by >92 %) and basic fibroblast growth factor (by 73-94 %). MLE was also effective in inhibiting critical events during metastasis, such as invasion (by 18-33 % in HCT116 and H1299), migration (45-82 % in H1299), and adhesion (by 17-45 % in HCT116 and H1299). These results indicate that MLE possesses in vitro anti-cancer activities against colon and lung cancers. It needs to be verified whether similar effects are reproduced in vivo.
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    Effect of prolyl hydroxylase domain 2 haplodeficiency on liver progenitor cell characteristics in early mouse hepatocarcinogenesis
    (2016-11-11) Bogaerts, Eliene; Paridaens, Annelies; Verhelst, Xavier; Carmeliet, Peter; Geerts, Anja; Van Vlierberghe, Hans; Devisscher, Lindsey
    Activation of the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) induces therapy resistant tumours, characterized by increased liver progenitor cell (LPCs) characteristics and poor prognosis. We previously reported corresponding results in mice with HCC in which hypoxia was mimicked by prolyl hydroxylase domain (PHD) inhibition. Here, we aimed at investigating whether induction of LPC characteristics occurs during the onset of hepatocarcinogenesis and if this is associated with activation of Notch signalling. Dietheylnitrosamine (DEN) was used to induce hepatic tumours in PHD2 haplodeficient (PHD2+/-) mice which were euthanized at 5, 10, 15 and 17 weeks following DEN during neoplastic transformation, before tumour formation. Neoplasia and mRNA expression of LPC and Notch markers were evaluated by histology and qPCR on isolated livers. PHD2 haplodeficiency resulted in enhanced expression of HIF target genes after 17 weeks of DEN compared to wild type (WT) littermates but had no effect on the onset of neoplastic transformation. The mRNA expression of Afp and Epcam was increased at all time points following DEN whereas CK19, Prom1 and Notch3 were increased after 17 weeks of DEN, without difference between PHD2+/- and WT mice. MDR1 mRNA expression was increased in all DEN treated mice compared to saline control with increased expression in PHD2+/- compared to WT from 15 weeks. These results indicate that the effects of PHD2 haplodeficiency on the expression of LPC and Notch markers manifest during tumour nodule formation and not early on during neoplastic transformation.
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    Development and validation of instrument for ergonomic evaluation of tablet arm chairs
    (2016-11-07) Tirloni, Adriana Seára; Reis, Diogo Cunha dos; Bornia, Antonio Cezar; Andrade, Dalton Francisco de; Borgatto, Adriano Ferreti; Moro, Antônio Renato Pereira
    The purpose of this study was to develop and validate an evaluation instrument for tablet arm chairs based on ergonomic requirements, focused on user perceptions and using Item Response Theory (IRT). This exploratory study involved 1,633 participants (university students and professors) in four steps: a pilot study (n=26), semantic validation (n=430), content validation (n=11) and construct validation (n=1,166). Samejima’s graded response model was applied to validate the instrument. The results showed that all the steps (theoretical and practical) of the instrument’s development and validation processes were successful and that the group of remaining items (n=45) had a high consistency (0.95). This instrument can be used in the furniture industry by engineers and product designers and in the purchasing process of tablet arm chairs for schools, universities and auditoriums.
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    Effect of undifferentiated versus hepatogenic partially differentiated mesenchymal stem cells on hepatic and cognitive functions in liver cirrhosis
    (2016-11-07) Elberry, Dalia Azmy; Amin, Shaimaa Nasr; Esmail, Reham Shehab El Nemr; Rashed, Laila Ahmed; Gamal, Maha Mohamed
    Liver cirrhosis is the outcome of chronic liver injury. The current study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effect of undifferentiated mesenchymal stem cells versus in vitro partially differentiated mesenchymal stem cells on liver cirrhosis and hepatic encephalopathy. 50 adult male albino rats constituted the animal model and were divided into the following groups: control, thioacetamide, undifferentiated mesenchymal stem cells and hepatocyte growth factor-differentiated mesenchymal stem cells groups. Cognitive assessment was achieved by open field test and Y-maze task. We measured serum alanine aminotransferase, albumin and transforming growth factor-beta1, gene expression of α-smooth muscle actin, matrix metalloprotein-2, its tissue inhibitor and apoptotic markers: Bax and Bcl2, brain glial fibrillary acidic protein, synaptophysin, and dopaminergic receptors.
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    Physicochemical analyses of a bioactive 4-aminoantipyrine analogue - synthesis, crystal structure, solid state interactions, antibacterial, conformational and docking studies
    (2016-10-26) Alam, Mohammad Sayed; Lee, Dong-Ung
    A novel Schiff base derivative of 4-aminoantipyrine, that is, (E)-4-(2-methoxybenzylideneamino)-1,5-dimethyl-2-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-3(2H)-one (MBA-dMPP), was synthesized and characterized by FT-IR, 1H-NMR, and EI-MS. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction data revealed MBA-dMPP adopts a trans configuration around its central C=N double bond, and forms orthorhombic crystals. XRD revealed that MBA-dMPP possess two different planes, in which the pyrazolone and benzylidene groups attached to C9 of the pyrazolone ring are almost coplanar and the phenyl ring connected to the N1 atom of the pyrazolone moiety lies in another plane. The intermolecular, host-guest C-H…O, C-H…N, and C-H…C van der Waals interactions were found to form a 3D network and confer stability to the MBA-dMPP crystal structure. The quantitative and qualitative solid state behaviors of MBA-dMPP were subjected to 3D Hirshfeld surface analysis and 2D fingerprint plotting. Reciprocal H…H contacts contributed most (52.9 %) to the Hirshfeld surface, followed by C…H/H…C contacts (30.2 %), whereas, O…H/H…O and N…H/H…N interactions contributed 15.5 % to the Hirshfeld surface. Electrostatic potentials were mapped over the Hirshfeld surface to analyze electrostatic complementarities within the MBA-dMPP crystal. In addition, geometrical descriptors were also analyzed to the extent of surface interactions. MBA-dMPP was also investigated for in vitro antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, and showed highest activity against Bacillus cereus (MIC = 12.5 mg mL -1) and Salmonella tythimurium (MIC = 50 mg mL-1). In silico screening was conducted by docking MBA-dMPP on the active site of S12 bacterial protein (an important therapeutic target of antibacterial agents) and its binding properties were compared with those of ciprofloxacin. Moreover, a field points map of MBA-dMPP ligand was studied to determine electrostatic and van der Waals forces, hydrophobic potentials, and positions involved in ligand-receptor interactions. Finally, the torsion energies of crystal structure and optimized and bioactive conformers of MBA-dMPP were compared to predict its bioactive conformation.
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    Isolation, characterization and hypolipidemic activity of ferulic acid in high-fat-diet-induced hyperlipidemia in laboratory rats
    (2016-10-25) Jain, Pankaj G.; Surana, Sanjay J.
    Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce (Leguminosae) (syn. Prosopis spicigera L.) has antidiabetic and antioxidant potential. Earlier we reported its hypolipidemic activity obtained from ethanol extract (ET-PCF). Object of this work was to isolate ferulic acid (FA) from ET-PCF and evaluate hypolipidemic activity against high-fat diet (HFD)-induced hyperlipidemic laboratory rats. ET-PCF was subjected to flash column chromatography to isolate FA. The chemical structure of the isolated compound was elucidated by UV, IR, 1H NMR,13C NMR and LC-MS. Further, the antihyperlipidemic effect of FA (10, 20 and 40 mg/kg, p.o.) in HFD-induced hyperlipidemic rats was investigated. Hyperlipidemia was induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats by feeding with HFD for 60 days. Lipid parameters such as total cholesterol (TC), Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglycerides (TG) levels were measured in serum and hepatic tissue. Hepatic oxido-nitrosative stress (SOD, GSH, MDA and NO) were also determined. Histological evaluation of liver tissue was carried out. The structure of the isolated compound was characterized based on spectral data and confirmed as FA. HFD induced an alteration in serum, and hepatic lipid profile (triglyceride, cholesterol, HDL, and LDL) was significantly restored (p < 0.001) by administration of FA (20 and 40 mg/kg, p.o.). The elevated level of oxido-nitrosative stress in liver was significantly reduced (p < 0.001) by FA (20 and 40 mg/kg, p.o.). Histological aberration induced in the liver after HFD ingestion were restored by FA administration. Ferulic acid isolated from ET-PCF showed hypolipidemic effects in HFD-induced hyperlipidemic rats via modulation of elevated oxido-nitrosative stress.
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    Genotoxic and cytotoxic action potential of Terminalia citrina, a medicinal plant of ethnopharmacological significance
    (2016-10-24) Akhtar, Muhammad Furqan; Saleem, Ammara; Sharif, Ali; Akhtar, Bushra; Nasim, Maaz Bin; Peerzada, Sohaib; Raza, Moosa; Ijaz, Hira; Ahmed, Shoaib; Shabbir, Maryam; Ali, Sajid; Akbar, Zeeshan; Ul Hassan, Syed Saeed
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    Segmenting breast cancerous regions in thermal images using fuzzy active contours
    (2016-08-26) Ghayoumi Zadeh, Hossein; Haddadnia, Javad; Rahmani Seryasat, Omid; Mostafavi Isfahani, Sayed Mohammad
    Breast cancer is the main cause of death among young women in developing countries. The human body temperature carries critical medical information related to the overall body status. Abnormal rise in total and regional body temperature is a natural symptom in diagnosing many diseases. Thermal imaging (Thermography) utilizes infrared beams which are fast, non-invasive, and non-contact and the output created images by this technique are flexible and useful to monitor the temperature of the human body. In some clinical studies and biopsy tests, it is necessary for the clinician to know the extent of the cancerous area. In such cases, the thermal image is very useful. In the same line, to detect the cancerous tissue core, thermal imaging is beneficial. This paper presents a fully automated approach to detect the thermal edge and core of the cancerous area in thermography images. In order to evaluate the proposed method, 60 patients with an average age of 44/9 were chosen. These cases were suspected of breast tissue disease. These patients referred to Tehran Imam Khomeini Imaging Center. Clinical examinations such as ultrasound, biopsy, questionnaire, and eventually thermography were done precisely on these individuals. Finally, the proposed model is applied for segmenting the proved abnormal area in thermal images. The proposed model is based on a fuzzy active contour designed by fuzzy logic. The presented method can segment cancerous tissue areas from its borders in thermal images of the breast area. In order to evaluate the proposed algorithm, Hausdorff and mean distance between manual and automatic method were used. Estimation of distance was conducted to accurately separate the thermal core and edge. Hausdorff distance between the proposed and the manual method for thermal core and edge was 0.4719 ± 0.4389, 0.3171± 0.1056 mm respectively, and the average distance between the proposed and the manual method for core and thermal edge was 0.0845± 0.0619, 0.0710 ± 0.0381 mm respectively. Furthermore, the sensitivity in recognizing the thermal pattern in breast tissue masses is 85 % and its accuracy is 91.98 %.A thermal imaging system has been proposed that is able to recognize abnormal breast tissue masses. This system utilizes fuzzy active contours to extract the abnormal regions automatically.
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    Quantification of rutin in rats brain by UHPLC/ESI-Q-TOF-MS/MS after intranasal administration of rutin loaded chitosan nanoparticles
    (2016-08-17) Ahmad, Niyaz; Ahmad, Rizwan; Naqvi, Atta Abbas; Alam, Md Aftab; Samim, Mohd; Iqbal, Zeenat; Ahmad, Farhan Jalees
    Rutin (RT), an antioxidant drug, has been utilized to treat cerebral ischemia hence a sensitive quantification method for estimation of RT in brain homogenate is necessary to develop. This study aims to prepare RT loaded Chitosan Nanoparticles (RT-CS-NPs) develop and validate ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-synapt mass spectrometric method Synapt Mass Spectrometry (Synapt MS) (UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS/MS) for quantification of RT in brain homogenate from Wistar rat. The process of chromatographic separation was carried out on Waters ACQUITY UPLC™ with the components of separation in detail as; column: BEH C-18 with dimension as 2.1 mm×100 mm and particle size 1.7 µm, mobile phase: acetonitrile (85 % v/v/v): 2 mM ammonium formate (15 % v/v/v): formic acid (0.1 % v/v/v) and flow rate: 0.25 mL/min. Liquid-liquid extraction method (LLE), in mixture, i.e. ethyl acetate:acetonitrile, was considered to optimize the recovery of analyte from the brain homogenate of Wistar rat. Over a total run time of 5 minutes, the elution time for RT and internal standard (IS), i.e. Tolbutamide, observed was 2.67 and 2.82 min respectively whereas the transition observed for RT and IS was at m/z 611.1023/303.1071 and 271.1263/155.1073, respectively. Results, regarding various processes and parameters studied for RT as summarized, established a linear dynamic range over a concentration range of 1.00 ng/mL - 1000.0 ng/mL with r2; 0.9991±0.0010. Accuracy for intra and inter-assay in terms of % CV revealed a range of 0.45- 2.11 whereas lower limit of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ) observed was 0.09 ng/mL and 0.142 ng/mL, respectively. The analyte stability as well as method specificity and accuracy, i.e. recovery > 86 %, supports the idea for application of current developed method in order to quantify and evaluate the RT-loaded-CS-NPs for RT determination in brain homogenate after intranasal drug delivery.