IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL,HISTOLOGICAL AND ULTRASTRUCTURAL EVALUATION OF THE EFFECTS OF LEPTIN ON TESTES IN MICE

This study was undertaken to examine the effects of leptin on testes in mice. For this purpose, 12 male mice were divided into two groups. Animals in Group I were designated as control. Mice in Group II were injected daily with leptin for 5 days. All animals were decapitated at the end of the experiment. The testes were removed and weighed out. Testicular tissue specimens were processed for light and electron microscopic examination and semi-quantitative evaluation of immunohistochemical testosterone staining. Intensity of immunostaining was determined on a scale between 0 (no staining) and 5 (heavy staining). For morphometric comparison, diameters of seminiferous tubules from each group were measured. In the leptin injected group, testicular weights and diameters of seminiferous tubules were significantly increased in comparison to control values. In light microscopic examination, an increase in secretory granules in the cytoplasm of Leydig cells was observed after leptin treatment. In the same group, distinct changes indicative of increased cell activation were seen in the ultrastructure of Leydig cells. Amount of mitochondria, lysosomes and cytoplasmic secretory granules were increased. Furthermore, an increase in extensiveness of rough endoplasmic reticulum was noted in this group. Immunohistochemical testosterone staining of the cytoplasm of Leydig cells was heavy (5 +) in the leptin treated mice compared to mild score (2 +) in the control mice. Additionally, heavy immunostaining of testosterone was also observed in the interstitial space after injection of leptin. The present findings indicate that testicular functions and synthesis of testosterone increase after administration of leptin.     

Surgical treatment of giant liver hydatid cysts: comparison of cystojejunostomy and partial cystectomy

Purpose

The aim of this study was to compare partial cystectomy and internal drainage of the cyst cavity with cystojejunostomy for the surgical treatment of giant hepatic hydatid cysts.

Methods

Patients who underwent any type of surgical treatment between March 2009 and May 2013 for giant hepatic hydatid cysts were retrospectively evaluated. The data collected included demographic variables, diagnostic methods, surgical procedures, morbidity and mortality rates.

Results

Twenty-eight patients who underwent surgery for giant hepatic hydatid cysts were included. There were 16 (57 %) female patients, with a mean age of 32.8 years. The diagnostic methods primarily included abdominal ultrasonography and computed tomography, which were performed in 62 % of the patients. The patients were divided into two groups with respect to the treatment modality: Group A (n = 13) treated with cystojejunostomy and Group B (n = 15) treated with partial cystectomy. The overall rate of cavity-related complications was 25 % in Group B, whereas none of the patients in Group A had a cavity-related complication during the follow-up period (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Cystojejunostomy is an effective and safe surgical approach for the treatment of giant hepatic hydatid cysts, with a lower rate of morbidity than partial cystectomy, and thus may be the surgical treatment of choice for giant hepatic hydatid cysts.     

Protective effects of resveratrol on small intestines against intestinal ischemia–reperfusion injury in rats

Background and Aim:  The aim of this study was to determine whether resveratrol could prevent intestinal tissue injury induced by ischemia–reperfusion (I/R).
Methods:  Intestinal I/R was induced in rats' intestines by 60-min occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery, followed by a 60-min reperfusion. Thirty rats were divided into three groups as follows: sham (group 1), control (group 2), and the treatment groups (group 3). The rats in the treatment group received resveratrol both before ischemia and before reperfusion. In all groups, serum aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and lactate dehydrogenase levels were determined. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC), catalase, total oxidative status (TOS), oxidative stress index (OSI), and myeloperoxidase (MPO) in the intestinal tissue were measured. Intestinal tissue histopathology was also evaluated by light microscopy.
Results:  The levels of liver enzymes in group 3 were significantly lower than those in group 2 ( P  < 0.05). TAC in the intestinal tissue was significantly higher in group 3 than in group 2 ( P  < 0.05). TOS, OSI, and MPO in the intestinal tissue were significantly lower in group 3 than in group 2 ( P  < 0.05 for all). Histological tissue damage was milder in the resveratrol treatment group than in the control group.
Conclusions:  The results of this study indicated that resveratrol treatment limits the oxidative injury of the small intestine induced by I/R in rats. However, more precise investigations are required to evaluate the antioxidative effect of resveratrol on small intestine tissue damage in clinical and experimental models.     

Tuberculosis despite latent infection screening and treatment in patients receiving TNF inhibitor therapy

Clinical Rheumatology - Although latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) treatment is given before anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) treatment, tuberculosis (TB) still develops in these patients and...     

Prostatic adenocarcinoma metastasis in the thyroid gland

Metastasis from prostate to thyroid gland is very uncommon. Here we report a 77-year-old man who was admitted to the hospital because of a nodular goiter. A fine-needle aspiration biopsy of the nodule showed metastatic prostatic adenocarcinoma. This is the second case of a metastatic prostate carcinoma to the thyroid gland.     

Endocrine disrupting chemicals: exposure,effects on human health,mechanism of action,models for testing and strategies for prevention

Reviews in Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders - Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) are a global problem for environmental and human health. They are defined as “an exogenous chemical, or...     

Arg-Phe-amide-related peptides influence gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons

The hypothalamic Arg-Phe-amide-related peptides, gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone and orthologous mammalian peptides of Arg-Phe-amide, may be important regulators of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal reproductive axis. These peptides may modulate the effects of kisspeptins because they are presently recognized as the most potent activators of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis. However, their effects on gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons have not been investigated. In the current study, the GT1-7 cell line-expressing gonadotropin-releasing hormone was used as a model to explore the effects of Arg-Phe- amide-related peptides on kisspeptin activation. Intracellular calcium concentration was quantified using the calcium-sensitive dye, fura-2 acetoxymethyl ester. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone released into the medium was detected via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results showed that 100 nmol/L kisspeptin-10 significantly increased gonadotropin-releasing hormone levels (at 120 minutes of exposure) and intracellular calcium concentrations. Co-treatment of kisspeptin with 1 μmol/L gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone or 1 μmol/L Arg-Phe-amide-related peptide-1 significantly attenuated levels of kisspeptin-induced gonadotropin-releasing hormone but did not affect kisspeptin-induced elevations of intracellular calcium concentration. Overall, the results suggest that gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone and Arg-Phe-amide-related peptide-1 may have inhibitory effects on kisspeptin-activated gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons independent of the calcium signaling pathway.     

Choroidal and macular thickness changes in type 1 diabetes mellitus patients without diabetic retinopathy

Objectives: To explore choroidal thickness (ChT) and retinal thickness (RT) changes in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM).

Methods: Sixty patients with Type 1 DM and 60 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were included in this prospective case–control clinical study. All patients underwent a complete ophthalmological examination. ChT of each participant was measured at the fovea and horizontal nasal and temporal quadrants at 500-µm intervals to 1500 µm from the foveola using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Age, gender, disease duration, serum glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting glucose level, axial length (AL) and refractive error were noted and analyzed.

Results: Mean disease duration, mean HbA1c and mean fasting blood glucose in diabetic patients were 6.1±2.8 years, (8.9±0.9)% and 287.5±69.1 mg/dl, respectively. Age, gender, AL, spherical equivalent differences between the patients and subjects were insignificant (p>0.05). Subfoveal ChT, nasal quadrant ChT measurements, temporal 1500 µm and mean nasal ChT were significantly lower in diabetic patients (p<0.05 for all). Temporal 500 µm and 1000 µm ChT measurements, mean temporal ChT, average ChT, central macular thickness and average macular thickness did not differ significantly between the groups (p>0.05 for all).

Conclusion: This study showed that there is choroidal thinning in young Type 1 diabetic patients with early period of disease duration without diabetic retinopathy nor any other systemic diseases. Choroidal changes in type 1 DM seem to begin at nasal and distal temporal retina. These results need to be verified by larger and longitudinal studies.     

Effects of N‐nitro L‐arginine methyl ester and α‐tocopherol on testicular oxidative stress caused by exposure to cigarette smoke

Testis is a rich organ with blood vessels. For this reason, it is possible that the toxic substances of the cigarette carried in the blood change the balance between the oxidant and the antioxidant system in this organ. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the effects of N‐nitro L‐arginine methyl ester and α‐tocopherol on testicular oxidative stress caused by exposure to cigarette smoke. 45 wistar male rats were used in the study. Five groups were formed: control, cigarette smoke, cigarette smoke + α‐tocopherol, cigarette smoke + N‐nitro L‐arginine methyl ester and cigarette smoke + α‐tocopherol + N‐nitro L‐arginine methyl ester. Biochemical and histological evaluations were performed to determine the damage caused by cigarette smoke. It was observed that there were structural and functional disturbances at the cellular and hormonal level in the smoking group. Biochemical evaluations showed that cellular damage was reduced in treatment groups. Histological examinations were revealed that the damage caused by cigarette smoke exposure was eliminated in treatment groups. As a result of our study, we think that oxidative damage and hormonal irregularity in the testes tissue caused by cigarette smoke exposure can be improved with α‐tocopherol and N‐nitro L‐arginine methyl ester application.