Packed red blood cell transfusion (PRBC) attenuates intestinal blood flow responses to feedings in pre-term neonates with normalization at 24 hours

Objective: To determine whether packed red blood cell (PRBC) transfusion affects post-prandial superior mesenteric artery blood flow velocities (SMA BFVs) in very-low birth weight (VLBW) neonates and if so, at what time point after transfusion restoration of previous SMA BFV patterns occurs.

Design/Methods: VLBW pre-term neonates, older than 14 days and tolerating bolus enteral feedings administered every 3?h were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Pulsed Doppler ultrasound was used to measure pre- and post-prandial (at 45?min) time-averaged mean, peak and end diastolic velocities (TAMV, PSV, EDV) immediately before and after 15?ml/kg of PRBC transfusion was given over 3?h; patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) status was also evaluated. Subsequent pre- and post-prandial SMA BFVs were recorded 24 and 48?h after the transfusion.

Results: Pre- and post-prandial measurements were obtained for 21 out of 25 enrolled infants. Post-prandial SMA BFVs were attenuated during the feedings immediately after transfusion; at 24 and 48?h after transfusion, changes in post-prandial SMA BFVs were similar to those measured prior to transfusion; the presence of the PDA did not affect results.

Conclusions: PRBC transfusion blunted SMA BFV responses to feedings immediately after the transfusion with normalization observed 24?h post-transfusion.     

Interleukin-11 Overexpression and M2 Macrophage Density are Associated with Angiogenic Activity in Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy

ABSTRACT

Purpose

To investigate the expression of IL-11 and its receptor IL-11Rα and to quantify density of CD163⁺ M2 macrophages in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR).     

Enhanced antitumour activity of doxorubicin and simvastatin combination loaded nanoemulsion treatment against a Swiss albino mouse model of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma

Doxorubicin (DOX) is the most commonly used anticancer drug; however, it has limited use because prolonged administration may result in severe cardiotoxicity. Simvastatin (SIM), generally prescribed for hypercholesterolaemia, has also shown salubrious results in the monotherapy or combinational drug therapy of different cancers in various models. Nanoparticle drug delivery systems are a novel way of improving therapeutics and also improving the absorption and specificity of drugs towards tumour cells. In this study, we exploited this technology to increase drug specificity and minimize imminent adverse effects. In this study, the antitumour activity of the combination formulas of DOX and SIM, either loaded in water (DOX‐SIM‐Solution) or nanoemulsions (NEs) (DOX‐SIM‐NE), was evaluated in a Swiss albino mouse model of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma. The anticancer effect was assessed by quantifying the change in body weight, mean survival time, and percent increase in lifespan (%ILS), determining haematological and serum biochemical parameters (liver function test, kidney function test and lipid profile parameters) as well as studying the histopathological alterations in liver tissues. We observed a clear increase in %ILS of the DOX‐SIM‐Solution group (265.30) that was double the %ILS of the DOX‐SIM‐NE group (134.70). However, DOX‐SIM‐NE had a non‐toxic effect on the haematological parameters, whereas DOX‐SIM‐Solution increased the levels of haemoglobin and lymphocytes. Furthermore, the encapsulation of SIM and DOX into NEs improved the levels of all serum biochemical parameters compared to the DOX‐SIM‐Solution. A reduction in the side effects of DOX‐SIM‐NE on the liver was also established using light microscopy, which revealed that the morphologies of the hepatocytes of the mice were less affected by administration of the DOX‐SIM‐NE treatment than with the DOX‐SIM‐Solution treatment. The study showed that incorporating SIM into the DOX‐loaded‐NE formulation remarkably improved its efficiency and simultaneously reduced its adverse effects.