Deamination of hordenine by monoamine oxidase and its action on vasa deferentia of the rat

The selectivity of the naturally occurring amine, N,N-dimethyltyramine (hordenine) for monoamine oxidase (MAO) and its action upon isolated vasa deferentia of the rat was investigated. Hordenine was deaminated by rat liver MAO with a Michaelis constant of 479 microM and maximum velocity of 128 nmol (mg protein)-1 h-1 compared with 144 microM and 482 nmol (mg protein)-1 h-1 for tyramine. Studies, with selective irreversible inhibitors of MAO, showed that hordenine was a highly selective substrate for MAO-B of liver and that it was not deaminated by the MAO-A of intestinal epithelium. In contrast to tyramine, hordenine did not produce contractions of isolated vasa deferentia. However, 25 microM hordenine potentiated contractile responses of vasa, from control animals, to submaximal doses of noradrenaline and inhibited responses to tyramine. It did not alter responses, to noradrenaline, of vasa denervated by chronic pretreatment of rats with guanethidine. Therefore, it appears that hordenine acted as an inhibitor of noradrenaline uptake, in isolated vasa deferentia. These results indicate that dietary-hordenine is unlikely to be deaminated by intestinal MAO as this is predominantly MAO-A. Consequently, it is likely to be absorbed and could affect the sympathetic nervous system, by virtue of its action as an inhibitor of noradrenaline uptake.     

Long-Term Effect of Gluten-Free Diets on Nutritional Status,Body Composition,and Associated Factors in Adult Saudi Females with Celiac Disease

This cross-sectional study examines the influence of long-term gluten-free diet (GFD) consumption on nutritional status, body composition, and associated factors in adult Saudi females with celiac diseases (CD). Fifty-one patients who have been diagnosed with CD and have been on GFD for more than 1 year were included in this study where data regarding their dietary pattern, as well as a complete analysis of their anthropometric parameters, vitamins B12 and D levels, and complete blood count (CBC), were collected. Data have shown that all included patients showed a reduced intake in all micro and macro-nutrients, as well as vitamin D, folate, calcium, and iron. However, the vast majority of all measured hematological parameters and blood indices were within the expected reference range. In addition, 51%, 43.1%, and 60.8% of the patients showed low waist/hip ratio (WHR), decreased level of total body fat (BF), and decreased level of visceral fat (VF), respectively, whereas 33.3% were slim. The poor educational level and some psychosocial factors were associated with the poor nutritional status of the patients. In conclusion, the GFD-dependent intake by female patients with CD adversely affects their nutritional intake and anthropometric indices and leads to a deficiency in major nutrients, vitamins, and ions.     

Effects of Nigella sativa Extracts on Antibody Response of Rats Vaccinated with Brucella Vaccine (Rev-1)

Volatile oil (VO), polysaccharide (PS) and ethanol extracts (EE) of N. sativa were evaluated for their effects on the antibody (Ab) titer of rats vaccinated with Brucella melitensis vaccine (Rev-1). Thirty rats were divided into five equal groups. Group 1(control) animals were injected with PBS, group 2 with Rev-1 alone, group 3 with Rev-1 and VO, group 4 with Rev-1 and PS and group 5 with Rev-1 and EE. The Ab titer was measured by Rose Bengal (RB) test, complement fixation (CF) test and tube agglutination (TA) test. All of the tests were negative in group 1. RB test occurred significantly faster in groups 4 and 5 than group 2 (P < 0.05 and 0.01, respectively). When the mean values of Ab titers of CF and TA in the groups was compared, significant differences (P < 0.05 or 0.01) were found between each of 2 and 3, 4, 5 and also between groups 3 and 4. When the percentages of lymphocytes and neutrophils were compared between the groups, significant differences were found between groups 1 and 3, and between 3 and 5. Histopathological examination of lymph nodes revealed a remarkably consistent picture of reactive lymphoid hyperplasia with prominence of germinal centers being evident in group 5. Infiltration of the medullary sinuses with plasma cells, lymphocytes, and macrophages was also seen. Our results suggest that all fractions of N. sativa had a significant adjuvant effect on the response of Br. melitensis vaccine, and that PS was the most effective fraction.     

Honey-Based Extracts and Their Microemulsions in the Treatment of Liver and Breast Cancers

Pharmaceutical Chemistry Journal - Liquid-liquid fractionation was performed for two samples of honey, and the fractions were nanoencapsulated in microemulsions using the method of water dilution....     

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with rheumatoid arthritis suppress erythropoiesis in vitro via the production of tumor necrosis factor alpha

Abstract: Anemia is a frequent manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis, with a probably multifactorial etiology. We investigated the effect of peripheral blood mononuclear cell supernatants (PBMCS) from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients on hematopoietic colony formation in vitro, by using a methylcellulose assay. PBMCS from patients suppress in vitro erythroid (BFU-E), mixed-lineage (CFU-GEMM) and to a lesser degree granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) progenitors. PBMCS from anemic RA patients were more suppressive for BFU-E than those from non-anemic patients. Addition of antibodies to tumor-necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) almost completely reversed the inhibition of BFU-E and CFU-GEMM, but had little effect on the CFU-GM colony formation. Antibodies to interferon-gamma (IFNγ) and interleukin-1 (IL-1) were not effective. The above data suggest that PBMCS from RA patients suppress in vitro erythropoiesis via the production of TNFα; a pathogenetic role for TNFα in the anemia of RA can be implied.     

Enhanced proliferative response to beta-endorphin of phytohemagglutinin-activated lymphocytes from patients with ulcerative colitis

We investigated the effect of a known T cell mitogen, phytohemagglutinin (PHA) and the neuropeptide beta-endorphin on the in vitro lymphocyte proliferative response in patients with ulcerative colitis and in health persons. We found that patients with ulcerative colitis show enhanced reactivity to PHA, when incubated in the presence of beta-endorphin. The activity of the disease during the period of the investigation seemed to play no role, since lymphocytes from both patients in exacerbation or remission reacted in a similar manner.     

10-Methacryloyloxydecyl Dihydrogen Phosphate (10-MDP)-Containing Cleaner Improves Bond Strength to Contaminated Monolithic Zirconia: An In-Vitro Study

Contamination of zirconia restorations before cementation can impair the resin–zirconia bonding durability. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of human saliva or blood decontamination with 10-methacryloyloxydecyl dihydrogen phosphate (10-MDP)-containing cleaner on the resin–zirconia shear bond strength (SBS). Methods: A total of 220 zirconia specimens were prepared and air-abraded and randomly distributed into 11 groups (n = 20 per group). Except for the control group (no contamination), zirconia specimens were contaminated with either human saliva (five groups) or blood (five groups), and then subjected to one of five cleaning methods: water rinsing, 38% phosphoric acid etchant (Pulpdent Corp., Watertown, MA, USA), 70% isopropanol alcohol (Avalon Pharma, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia), Ivoclean (Ivoclar Vivadent, Schaan, Lichtenstein) and Katana Cleaner (Kuraray Noritake, Tokyo, Japan). The resin–zirconia SBS was tested at 24 h and after thermocycling (10 k cycles). Three-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s multiple comparisons test were utilized to analyze the SBS data. Failure modes were evaluated using a scanning electron microscope. Results: Both blood and saliva significantly affected resin–zirconia SBS as contaminants. After thermocycling, there was no statistically significant difference between SBS obtained after decontamination with the Katana Cleaner (blood, 6.026 ± 2.805 MPa; saliva, 5.206 ± 2.212 MPa) or Ivoclean (blood, 7.08 ± 3.309 MPa; saliva, 6.297 ± 3.083 MPa), and the control group (no contamination, 7.479 ± 3.64 MPa). Adhesive and mixed failures were the most frequent among the tested groups. Conclusion: Both 10-MDP-containing cleaner (Katana Cleaner) and zirconium oxide-containing cleaner (Ivoclean) could eliminate the negative effect of saliva and blood contamination on resin–zirconia SBS.