Involvement of ADAM10 in axonal outgrowth and myelination of the peripheral nerve

The disintegrin and metalloproteinase 10 (ADAM10) is a membrane‐anchored metalloproteinase with both proteolytic and disintegrin characteristics. Here, we investigate the expression, regulation, and functional role of ADAM10 in axonal outgrowth and myelination of the peripheral nerve. Expression pattern analysis of 11 ADAM family members in co‐cultures of rat dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons and Schwann cells (SCs) demonstrated the most pronounced mRNA expression for ADAM10. In further studies, ADAM10 was found to be consistently upregulated in DRG‐SC co‐cultures before the induction of myelination. Neurons as well as SCs widely expressed ADAM10 at the protein level. In neurons, the expression of ADAM10 was exclusively limited to the axons before the induction of myelination. Inhibition of ADAM10 activity by the hydroxamate‐based inhibitors GI254023X and GW280264X resulted in a significant decrease in the mean axonal length. These data suggest that ADAM10 represents a prerequisite for myelination, although its activity is not required during the process of myelination itself as demonstrated by expression analysis of myelin protein zero (P0) and Sudan black staining. Hence, during the process of myelin formation, ADAM10 is highly upregulated and appears to be critically involved in axonal outgrowth that is a requirement for myelination in the peripheral nerve. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Silver nanoparticles production by two soil isolated bacteria,Bacillus thuringiensis and Enterobacter cloacae,and assessment of their cytotoxicity and wound healing effect in rats

Production of silver nanoparticles by Bacillus thuringiensis and Enterobacter cloacae was performed and confirmed through UV–visible spectrophotometry, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and x‐ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. The 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)?2,5‐diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay using mouse fibroblast cell line NIH‐3T3 D4 was carried out and IC_50s of AgNPs were obtained. The nontoxic dose of each AgNPs solution was selected for wound healing assay. Thirty‐two rats were divided into four groups; two were used as the controls and two were treated by AgNPs that were produced by two bacterial strains. Results revealed that the produced AgNPs were amorphous, spherical in shapes, and had sizes under 100 nm. Histological analysis showed that AgNPs had better wound healing efficacy than the control groups. In conclusion, when the biologically produced AgNPs were used in vivo, they induced the epithelization, formation of the collagen bundles and fibroplasia and reduced the duration of completion of the epithelization and the angiogenesis.     

Ethnobotanical Study of Medicinal Plants Used by Kurd Tribe in Dehloran and Abdanan Districts,Ilam Province,Iran

This paper provides significant ethnobotanical information on pharmaceutical plant uses, where some degree of acculturation exists, so that there is urgency in recording such data. The aim of this work is to catalogue, document, and make known the uses of plants for folk medicine in Dehloran and Abdanan districts, Ilam Province, Iran. An analysis was made of the species used, parts of the plant employed, preparation methods, administration means, and the ailments treated in relation to pathological groups. A folk botanical survey was carried out from February 2007 to October 2009. The information was collected from 81 persons (60% men and 40% women) in 20 villages. The informants reported data on 122 species, belonging to 49 botanical families, were claimed as medicinal. This work is focused on human medicinal plant uses, which represent 95% of the pharmaceutical uses. The most commonly represented families were Asteraceae (37.5%), Lamiaceae (20.8%), Rosaceae (18.7%), Fabaceae (16.7%) and Apiaceae (14.6%). Some of the uses were found to be new when compared with published literature on ethnomedicine of Iran. The folk knowledge about medicinal plant use is still alive in the studied region, and a number of scarcely reported plant uses has been detected, some of them with promising phytotherapeutical applications. The results of the study reveal that some of species play an important role in primary healthcare system of these tribal communities.     

Effect of thymol and carvacrol on nutrient digestibility in rams fed high or low concentrate diets

Published data on the effects of essential oils (EO) on in vivo nutrient digestibility in sheep are contradictory. In 2 experiments, the effect of thymol and carvacrol on nutrient digestibility was studied in sheep fed with high (70%) or low (52%) concentrate diets, using incomplete Latin Square designs. The essential oils were mixed with the concentrate portion of the diet at the rate of 0.0, 0.3, or 0.6 g per kg dry matter (DM) diet. Supplementation of thymol had no significant effect on digestibility of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP) and acid detergent fiber (ADF). The main effect of thymol on neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and ether extract (EE) digestibility and on nitrogen balance (NB) was significant (P<0.05), but within each level of dietary concentrate no significant differences were observed for these measurements. Overall, ruminal ammonia concentration was higher (P<0.05) in both HCD and LCD lambs receiving 0.3 mg thymol per kg diet. Supplementation of carvacrol had no significant effect on nutrient digestibility. The main effect of carvacrol on ruminal ammonia levels and NB was significant, but within each level of dietary concentrate no significant differences were observed in ammonia levels and NB. Inclusion of 0.3 g/kg diet DM of carvacrol or thyme was more effective than 0.6 g/kg diet DM in terms of NB but neither dose affected nutrient digestibility. Future research should determine the long-term effects of essential oils on digestibility and performance in sheep, before recommendation can be made for their use under practical husbandry conditions.Key Words: Carvacrol, Digestibility, Essential oils, Sheep, Thymol     

Androgen receptor gene and sex-specific Alzheimer's disease

Women are at a 2-fold risk of developing late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) (onset at 65 years of age or older) compared with men. During perimenopausal years, women undergo hormonal changes that are accompanied by metabolic, cardiovascular, and inflammatory changes. These all together have been suggested as risk factors for late-onset AD. However, not all perimenopausal women develop AD; we hypothesize that certain genetic factors might underlie the increased susceptibility for developing AD in postmenopausal women. We investigated the Androgen Receptor gene (AR) in a clinical cohort of male and female AD patients and normal control subjects by sequencing all coding exons and evaluating the length and distribution of the CAG repeat in exon 1. We could not establish a correlation between the repeat length, sex, and the disease status, nor did we identify possible pathogenic variants. AR is located on the X chromosome; to assess its role in AD, X-inactivation patterns will need to be studied to directly correlate the actual expressed repeat length to a possible sex-specific phenotypic effect.     

Is the IL-10 −819 Polymorphism Associated with Visceral Leishmaniasis?

Previous investigations demonstrated that immune responses play critical roles in the defense against visceral leishmaniasis (VL). A key regulator of immune responses is the cytokine, IL-10 and polymorphisms within its promoter which could alter its expression. Thus, the aim of this study was to examine the correlation between polymorphism at the ?819 position of the IL-10 gene and VL in a selected Iranian population. This cross-sectional study was performed on 100 patients with clinical presentation of VL and seropositive for the leishmania (group 1), 62 patients without clinical presentation but seropositive (group 2), and 128 healthy controls (group 3). The IL-10 ?819 polymorphism was evaluated using the PCR-RFLP technique. The anti-leishmania antibody titration was assessed using an immunofluorescence assay. Our results showed that the polymorphism at IL-10 ?819 (C/T) position was significantly associated with VL, and C/T genotype was significantly higher in VL patients when compared to groups 2 and 3 (p?<?0.001). However, the results demonstrated that the C and T alleles were not associated with VL (p?=?0.855). The data presented here confirm the results of previous reports that polymorphisms at the ?819 position of the IL-10 gene can influence susceptibility to VL suggesting that the C/T genotype may be considered as a risk factor for the disease.     

A Randomized Clinical Trial of Insulin Glargine and Aspart,Compared to NPH and Regular Insulin in Children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Objective

Appropriate treatment of patients with Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is necessary to avoid further complications. This study was performed to compare the efficacy of insulin Glargine and Aspart with NPH insulin and regular insulin regimen in a group of children with T1DM.

Methods

Forty patients with T1DM were enrolled in this study. During run-in, all subjects were treated with conventional therapy consisting of twice-daily NPH and thrice-daily regular. Following randomization, 20 subjects received Glargine and Aspart and 20 subjects received NPH and Regular insulin.

Findings

Mean HbA1c was 8.8% and 8.6% at first and 8.4% and 8.2% at the end of study for subjects randomized initially to Glargine and Aspart and for those randomized to NPH and Regular, respectively (P>0.05). Mean fasting blood glucose (FBS) of the subjects randomized initially to Glargine and Aspart was 217±101 mg/dL, with no significant difference to 196±75 mg/dL for those randomized to NPH and Regular (P=0.48). This was also true at the end of the study. The difference in total cholesterol and triglyceride between the two groups in the beginning of study and at the end did not show any significance.

Conclusion

The current study showed no significant difference in glycemic control [Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and FBS] and lipid profile (total cholesterol and triglyceride) between two regimes.