Influence of heavy metals in Parkinson’s disease: an overview

Journal of Neurology - Parkinson’s disease (PD) is an ageing disorder with deterioration of dopamine neurons which leads to motor complications like tremor, stiffness, slow movement and...     

Immune Augmentation of Single Contact Hepatitis B Vaccine by Using PLGA Microspheres as an Adjuvant

The present study was aimed to replace the alum type adjuvant for hepatitis B vaccine. The hepatitis B vaccine was encapsulated in poly (DL-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres by solvent evaporation technique. The formulated microspheres were characterized in terms of morphology, particle size analysis, in vitro release study and in vivo immune response in male Wistar rats. The FT IR spectrum illustrates the characteristics bands of poly (DL-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres and hepatitis B vaccine at 1750 cm^-1 and 1650 cm^-1, respectively. The hepatitis B vaccine loaded poly (DL-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres were able to release antigens till day 42. Significant enhancement of specific antibodies to HBsAg was produced till day 90 after a single administration of HBsAg encapsulated poly (DL-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres. However, the conventional alum adsorbed hepatitis B vaccine was not found to produce any significant specific antibody levels till day 90 after a single dose. The results showed that poly (DL-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres show potential as an adjuvant for hepatitis B vaccine.     

Novel progranulin mutations with reduced serum-progranulin levels in frontotemporal lobar degeneration

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease with an age at onset generally below 65 years. Mutations in progranulin (GRN) have been reported to be able to cause FTLD through haploinsufficiency. We have sequenced GRN in 121 patients with FTLD and detected six different mutations in eight patients: p.Gly35Glufs*19, p.Asn118Phefs*4, p.Val200Glyfs*18, p.Tyr294*, p.Cys404* and p.Cys416Leufs*30. Serum was available for five of the mutations, where the serum-GRN levels were found to be >50% reduced compared with FTLD patients without GRN mutations. Moreover, the p.Cys416Leufs*30 mutation segregated in an affected family with different dementia diagnoses. The mutation frequency of GRN mutation was 6.6% in our FTLD cohort.     

Efficacy of various cleansing techniques on dentin wettability and its influence on shear bond strength of a resin luting agent

PURPOSE

To evaluate the shear bond strength of resin luting agent to dentin surfaces cleansed with different agents like pumice, ultrasonic scaler with chlorhexidine gluconate, EDTA and the influence of these cleansing methods on wetting properties of the dentin by Axisymmetric drop Shape Analysis - Contact Diameter technique (ADSA-CD).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Forty coronal portions of human third molar were prepared until dentin was exposed. Specimens were divided into two groups: Group A and Group B. Provisional restorations made with autopolymerizing resin were luted to dentin surface with zinc oxide eugenol in Group A and with freegenol cement in Group B. All specimens were stored in distilled water at room temperature for 24 hrs and provisional cements were mechanically removed with explorer and rinsed with water and cleansed using various methods (Control-air-water spray, Pumice prophylaxis, Ultrasonic scaler with 0.2% Chlorhexidine gluconate, 17% EDTA). Contact angle measurements were performed to assess wettability of various cleansing agents using the ADSA-CD technique. Bond strength of a resin luting agent bonded to the cleansed surface was assessed using Instron testing machine and the mode of failure noted. SEM was done to assess the surface cleanliness. Data were statistically analyzed by one-way analysis of variance with Tukey HSD tests (α=.05).

RESULTS

Specimens treated with EDTA showed the highest shear bond strength and the lowest contact angle for both groups. SEM showed that EDTA was the most effective solution to remove the smear layer. Also, mode of failure seen was predominantly cohesive for both EDTA and pumice prophylaxis.

CONCLUSION

EDTA was the most effective dentin cleansing agent among the compared groups.     

Role of Nanocurcumin as a Surface Modifying Agent with Excellent Preventive Effect on Device-Related CoNS Infections

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India Section B: Biological Sciences - The study focused on the analysis of efficiency of curcumin and nanocurcumin (NC) against biofilm-forming...     

Advocacy for eye care

The effectiveness of eye care service delivery is often dependant on how the different stakeholders are aligned. These stakeholders range from the ministries of health who have the capacity to grant government subsidies for eye care, down to the primary healthcare workers who can be enrolled to screen for basic eye diseases. Advocacy is a tool that can help service providers draw the attention of key stakeholders to a particular area of concern. By enlisting the support, endorsement and participation of a wider circle of players, advocacy can help to improve the penetration and effectiveness of the services provided. There are several factors in the external environmental that influence the eye care services - such as the availability of trained manpower, supply of eye care consumables, government rules and regulations. There are several instances where successful advocacy has helped to create an enabling environment for eye care service delivery. Providing eye care services in developing countries requires the support - either for direct patient care or for support services such as producing trained manpower or for research and dissemination. Such support, in the form of financial or other resources, can be garnered through advocacy.     

Novel derivatives of eugenol as potent anti-inflammatory agents via PPARγ agonism: rational design,synthesis, analysis,PPARγ protein binding assay and computational studies

Eugenol is a natural product abundantly found in clove buds known for its pharmacological activities such as anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, antioxidant, and anticancer activities. It is well known from the literature that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARγ) have been reported to regulate inflammatory responses. In this backdrop, we rationally designed semi-synthetic derivatives of eugenol with the aid of computational studies, and synthesized, purified, and analyzed four eugenol derivatives as PPARγ agonists. Compounds were screened for PPARγ protein binding by time-resolved fluorescence (TR-FRET) assay. The biochemical assay results were favorable for 1C which exhibited significant binding affinity with an IC₅₀ value of 10.65 μM as compared to the standard pioglitazone with an IC₅₀ value of 1.052 μM. In addition to the protein binding studies, as a functional assay, the synthesized eugenol derivatives were screened for in vitro anti-inflammatory activity at concentrations ranging from 6.25 μM to 400 μM. Among the four compounds tested 1C shows reasonably good anti-inflammatory activity with an IC₅₀ value of 133.8 μM compared to a standard diclofenac sodium IC₅₀ value of 54.32 μM. Structure–activity relationships are derived based on computational studies. Additionally, molecular dynamics simulations were performed to examine the stability of the protein–ligand complex, the dynamic behavior, and the binding affinity of newly synthesized molecules. Altogether, we identified novel eugenol derivatives as potential anti-inflammatory agents via PPARγ agonism.

Rational design, synthesis, analysis, PPARγ protein binding assay and computational studies of novel eugenol derivatives.     

Early life permethrin insecticide treatment leads to heart damage in adult rats

Early life environmental exposure to xenobiotics could represent a critical period for the onset of permanent alterations in the structure and function of different organs. Cardiovascular diseases can be related to various factors including environmental toxicants.The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of early life permethrin treatment (1/50 LD₅₀, from 6th to 21st day of life) on heart of adult rats. Increased DNA damage, decreased heart cell membrane fluidity, increased cholesterol content, protein and lipid oxidation were measured in heart cells from adult rats treated with permethrin during the neonatal period with respect to control rats. Moreover, the same group showed higher levels of cholesterol, IL-1β, IL-2, IFN-γ, rat-Rantes and IL-10 cytokines and decreased albumin content in plasma. Lower cholesterol levels and perturbation in the phospholipid lateral diffusion together with decreased GSH levels and increased GPx activity were measured in heart mitochondria of the treated group.Our findings support the evidence that the neonatal period has a critical role in the development of heart disease in adulthood. We hypothesize that the alterations observed in adult rats could depend on epigenetic changes that occurred during this period which influence gene expression throughout the rat's life, leading to alterations of certain parameters related to cardiac function.