Are there fetal stem cells in the maternal brain?

Fetal cells can enter maternal blood during pregnancy but whether they can also cross the blood-brain barrier to enter the maternal brain remains poorly understood. Previous results suggest that fetal cells are summoned to repair damage to the mother''s brain. If this is confirmed, it would open up new and safer avenues of treatment for brain damage caused by strokes and neural diseases. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether a baby''s stem cells can enter the maternal brain during pregnancy. Deceased patients who had at least one male offspring and no history of abortion and blood transfusion were included in this study. DNA was extracted from brain tissue samples of deceased women using standard phenol-chloroform extraction and ethanol precipitation methods. Genomic DNA was screened by quantitative fluorescent-polymerase chain reaction amplification together with short tandem repeat markers specific to the Y chromosome, and 13, 18, 21 and X. Any foreign DNA residues that could be used to interpret the presence of fetal stem cells in the maternal brain were monitored. Results indicated that fetal stem cells can not cross the blood-brain barrier to enter the maternal brain.     

Restless legs syndrome in hemodialysis patients: association with depression and quality of life

Purpose  

The prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) ranging from 6.6% to 83% has been reported in different case series. The pathophysiology of RLS in uremia is still unclear. The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of RLS in the hemodialysis patients and to explore depression and associated detrimental impact on quality of life.     

Atorvastatin acutely reduces the reactivity to spasmogens in rat aorta: implication of the inhibition of geranylgeranylation and MYPT‐1 phosphorylation

Statins are known to display benefits in various diseases independently from their cholesterol lowering properties. In this study, we investigated the acute effects of atorvastatin on vascular reactivity to various spasmogens in isolated rat aorta. The responses to noradrenaline (NA, 10^?8–10^?4 m ), endothelin‐1 (ET‐1, 10^?10–10^?7 m ), and potassium chloride (KCl, 10–100 mm ) were evaluated in aortic rings pretreated with atorvastatin (10^?7–10^?4 m , 30 min). To verify the mechanism of action, the effects of atorvastatin were studied in the presence of cholesterol precursor, mevalonate (10^?2 m , 45 min), mevalonate‐derived isoprenoids, namely geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate (GGPP, 5 × 10^?6 m , 30 min) and farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP, 5 × 10^?6 m , 30 min), and in the absence of endothelium. In parallel, aortic rings were pretreated with the specific inhibitor of Rho kinase, Y‐27632 (10^?7–10^?6 m ). Atorvastatin significantly and concentration‐dependently reduced the contractions to spasmogens in rat aorta. This acute inhibitory effect was also evident in endothelium‐denuded rings. Pretreatment with mevalonate and GGPP, but not with FPP, reversed the inhibitory effect of atorvastatin (10^?4 m ) on NA and ET‐1 induced contractions. Similar to atorvastatin, pretreatment with Y‐27632 inhibited the contractions to NA and KCl in a concentration‐dependent manner. Western blot analysis revealed that both atorvastatin (10^?4 m ) and Y‐27632 (10^?6 m ) pretreatment inhibited the phosphorylation of myosin phosphatase target subunit‐1 (MYPT‐1) triggered by NA, indicating an inhibitory influence on myosin phosphatase. In conclusion, atorvastatin displayed an acute inhibitory effect on vascular contractility evoked by various spasmogens and the inhibitory effect was possibly mediated by the inhibition of mevalonate and GGPP synthesis as well as the prevention of MYPT‐1 phosphorylation induced by Rho/Rho kinase.     

The Oxidant and Antioxidant Status in Pityriasis Rosea

Background:Pityriasis rosea (PR) is usually an asymptomatic and self-limiting papulosquamous skin disease with acute onset. The etiology has not been clarified yet. Recently, increased oxidative stress was found to play a role in etiopathogenesis of multiple cutaneous diseases with T cell-mediated immune response. However, there are no studies demonstrating the oxidative stress status in PR.Aim:The aim of the study is to determine the status of oxidative stress (OS) and paraoxonase (PON) 1/arylesterase enzyme activities in PR.Results:TAS levels and ARES activities in the patient group were significantly lower than the control group. On the other hand, TOS and OSI levels were significantly higher in patients compared with controls. There was no significant correlation between the duration of disease and TAS, TOS, OSI levels, and ARES activities.Conclusion:A systemic oxidative stress exists in PR, which suggests that OS may be involved in the etiopathogenesis of disease.