scholarly journals The Role of Mitochondrial Impairment and Oxidative Stress in the Pathogenesis of Lithium-Induced Reproductive Toxicity in Male Mice

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Mehdi Ommati ◽  
Mohammad Reza Arabnezhad ◽  
Omid Farshad ◽  
Akram Jamshidzadeh ◽  
Hossein Niknahad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Reproductive Toxicity ◽  
The Other ◽  
Mitochondrial Depolarization ◽  
Mitochondrial Impairment ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Testis Tissue

Lithium (Li+) is prescribed against a wide range of neurological disorders. Besides its excellent therapeutic properties, there are several adverse effects associated with Li+. The impact of Li+ on renal function and diabetes insipidus is the most common adverse effect of this drug. On the other hand, infertility and decreased libido is another complication associated with Li+. It has been found that sperm indices of functionality, as well as libido, is significantly reduced in Li+-treated men. These adverse effects might lead to drug incompliance and the cessation of drug therapy. Hence, the main aims of the current study were to illustrate the mechanisms of adverse effects of Li+ on the testis tissue, spermatogenesis process, and hormonal changes in two experimental models. In the in vitro experiments, Leydig cells (LCs) were isolated from healthy mice, cultured, and exposed to increasing concentrations of Li+ (0, 10, 50, and 100 ppm). In the in vivo section of the current study, mice were treated with Li+ (0, 10, 50, and 100 ppm, in drinking water) for five consecutive weeks. Testis and sperm samples were collected and assessed. A significant sign of cytotoxicity (LDH release and MTT assay), along with disrupted testosterone biosynthesis, impaired mitochondrial indices (ATP level and mitochondrial depolarization), and increased biomarkers of oxidative stress were detected in LCs exposed to Li+. On the other hand, a significant increase in serum and testis Li+ levels were detected in drug-treated mice. Moreover, ROS formation, LPO, protein carbonylation, and increased oxidized glutathione (GSSG) were detected in both testis tissue and sperm specimens of Li+-treated mice. Several sperm anomalies were also detected in Li+-treated animals. On the other hand, sperm mitochondrial indices (mitochondrial dehydrogenases activity and ATP levels) were significantly decreased in drug-treated groups where mitochondrial depolarization was increased dose-dependently. Altogether, these data mention oxidative stress and mitochondrial impairment as pivotal mechanisms involved in Li+-induced reproductive toxicity. Therefore, based on our previous publications in this area, therapeutic options, including compounds with high antioxidant properties that target these points might find a clinical value in ameliorating Li+-induced adverse effects on the male reproductive system.

scholarly journals Chitosan/Selenium Nanoparticles Attenuate Diclofenac Sodium-Induced Testicular Toxicity in Male Rats

Crystals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 1477
Author(s):  
Samy M. El-Megharbel ◽  
Fawziah A. Al-Salmi ◽  
Sarah Al-Harthi ◽  
Khadeejah Alsolami ◽  
Reham Z. Hamza
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Diclofenac Sodium ◽  
Chitosan Nanoparticles ◽  
Reproductive Toxicity ◽  
Male Reproduction ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Antioxidant Enzyme Activities ◽  
Testicular Function ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

The detrimental effect of diclofenac sodium (Diclo-Na) on male reproductive organs is reported upon in this paper. Chitosan is a polysaccharide composed of various amounts of glucosamine. Chitosan nanoparticles (CH-NPs) have attracted much attention owing to their biomedical activity. Selenium (Se) has a vital role in nutrition, plays an important role in enhancing male reproduction, and has a wide range of free radical scavenging activities. However, the study of the impact of chitosan nanoparticles in combination with Se (IV) (CH-NPs/Se) on male reproductive toxicity associated with Diclo-Na administration is lacking in recent literature. The current study assessed the ameliorative effects of complexes of CH-NPs/Se (IV) on Diclo-Na and the ways in which they alter reproductive toxicity in male rats. Male rats were treated for 30 days successively, either with Diclo-Na (10 mg/kg) or co-treated with a CH-NPs/Se complex (280 mg/kg). Sperm characteristics, marker enzymes of testicular function, LH, FSH, and testosterone were evaluated in addition to oxidative stress markers and histological alterations. CH-NPs/Se significantly alleviated Diclo-Na-induced decline in sperm count and motility, testicular function enzymes, and levels of LH and testosterone in serum. Additionally, CH-NPs/Se co-administration at 280 mg/Kg, inhibited the Diclo-Na-induced decline of antioxidant enzyme activities and elevated oxidative stress indices and reactive free radicals in testicular homogenates of male rats. CH-NPs/Se (280 mg/kg) alone improved Diclo-Na and ameliorated histological damages in exposed rats. In conclusion, chitosan improved testicular function in Diclo-Na-treated rats by enhancing the testosterone hormone levels, ameliorating testicular tissue, and inhibiting markers of oxidative stress in male rats.

scholarly journals The Impact of Probiotics in Respiratory Diseases

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 148-156
Author(s):  
Rafee H. Askandar ◽  
Nasim Ebrahimi
Keyword(s):  
Tract Infection ◽  
Respiratory Tract ◽  
Respiratory Tract Infection ◽  
The Other ◽  
Chronic Obstructive ◽  
Recurrent Respiratory Tract Infection ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Probiotic Treatment ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Probiotics are viable microorganisms that, if adequately administered, confer great benefits to the host for the prevention or treatment of a wide range of human diseases, including recurrent respiratory tract infection (RRTI), cystic fibrosis, allergies, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). One of the current problems is that the overuse of antibiotics during respiratory tract infection has led to increased resistance to them, which has been demonstrated in numerous examinations that specific lactic acid bacteria (LAB), one of the key probiotics, against bacterial and viral infections of the respiratory and gastrointestinal tract, have a protective effect. On the other hand, changes in the gastrointestinal and respiratory microbiomes, especially lactobacilli and bifidobacteria, lead to an increase in allergies and asthma and a balance in the microbiome may improve symptoms. Probiotics are able to increase the number and activity of leukocytes, neutrophils, and NK cells. They can also increase IL-10 expression and decrease the expression of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-8. In addition, they maintain high levels of IgA and produce bacteriocin and ruterin that have antimicrobial activity. Without identifying the specific properties of the probiotic strains and identifying the precise mechanism of their action, probiotic treatment would only be a large hypothesis because the therapeutic and clinical outcomes are different. On the other hand, metagenomics have provided information on how the microbiome interacts with host physiology, leading to new therapeutic targets.

scholarly journals Manganese-Induced Nephrotoxicity Is Mediated through Oxidative Stress and Mitochondrial Impairment

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Mohammad Niknahad ◽  
Mohammad Mehdi Ommati ◽  
Omid Farshad ◽  
Leila Moezi ◽  
Reza Heidari
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Renal Injury ◽  
Kidney Tissue ◽  
Essential Element ◽  
The Other ◽  
Tubular Atrophy ◽  
Mitochondrial Impairment ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Markers Of Oxidative Stress ◽  
Dehydrogenases Activity

Manganese (Mn) is an essential element that is incorporated in various metabolic pathways and enzyme structures. On the other hand, a range of adverse effects has been described in association with Mn overexposure. Mn is a well-known neurotoxic agent in mammals. Renal injury is another adverse effect associated with Mn intoxication. No precise mechanism for Mn nephrotoxicity has been identified so far. The current study was designed to evaluate the potential mechanisms of Mn-induced renal injury. Rats were treated with Mn (20 and 40 mg/mL, respectively, in drinking water) for 30 consecutive days. Markers of oxidative stress, as well as several mitochondrial indices, were assessed in the kidney tissue. Renal injury was evident in Mn-treated animals, as judged by a significant increase in serum BUN and creatinine. Moreover, urinalysis revealed a significant increase in urine glucose, phosphate, and protein in Mn-treated rats. Kidney histopathological alterations, including tubular atrophy, interstitial inflammation, and necrosis, were also detected in Mn-treated animals. Biomarkers of oxidative stress, including an increment in reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipid peroxidation, and oxidized glutathione (GSSG), were detected in Mn-treated groups. On the other hand, kidney glutathione (GSH) stores and total antioxidant capacity were depleted in Mn groups. Mn exposure was associated with significant mitochondrial depolarization, decreased mitochondrial dehydrogenases activity, mitochondrial permeabilization, and depletion of adenosine tri-phosphate (ATP) content. These data highlight oxidative stress and mitochondrial impairment as potential mechanisms involved in Mn-induced renal injury.

Impacts of acidity on multiphase chemistry in aqueous particles and clouds

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Schaefer ◽  
Andreas Tilgner ◽  
Havala O. T. Pye ◽  
V. Faye McNeill ◽  
Hartmut Herrmann
Keyword(s):  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Aqueous Phase ◽  
Carbonyl Compounds ◽  
Kinetic Data ◽  
The Other ◽  
Aerosol Composition ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Phase Chemistry ◽  
The Impact

<p>The acidity of aqueous atmospheric solutions is a key parameter driving both partitioning of semi-volatile acidic or basic trace gases and their linked aqueous-phase chemistry. On the other hand, acidity of atmospheric aqueous phases, e.g. deliquesced aerosol particles, cloud and fog droplets, is conversely affected by aqueous-phase chemistry processes. Those feedbacks in acidity and chemistry have crucial implications for the (i) tropospheric lifetime of air pollutants, hence air quality and atmospheric aerosol composition, (ii) deposition input into other terrestrial and oceanic ecosystems, (iii) the visibility, (iv) climate and (v) human health. Due to their fundamental role, atmospheric research has gained substantial progress in the understanding in feedbacks of acidity and multiphase chemistry. In the present study, the current state of knowledge on the acidity-multiphase chemistry feedbacks has been summarized. From a wide range of topics, two selected issues focusing on impacts of acidity (i) on the hydration of organic carbonyl compounds and (ii) multiphase chemistry of dissociating organic compounds in aqueous particles and clouds will be presented.</p><p>Hydration processes are typically known to be acid- or base-catalyzed. Thus, the acidity of an aqueous solution can affect the hydration and all other processes linked to it. This comprehensive literature study revealed that the hydration of simple aldehydes and ketones as well as dicarbonyls is less affected by acidity. However, for multifunctional carbonyl compounds such as pyruvic acid, the hydration equilibrium constant of the carbonyl group is strongly influenced by the electronic effects of the adjacent group. The hydration of carbonyl groups in compounds that also contain pH sensitive moieties, such as α-oxocarboxylic acids, is highly influenced by the acidity of the surrounding environment. However, this acidity effect is often not considered in multiphase models.</p><p>Furthermore, oxidation reactions of dissociating organic compounds can be affected by acidity. To examine the effect of acidity on the chemical processing of dissociating organic compounds, kinetic data for their oxidation by OH, NO<sub>3</sub> and O<sub>3</sub> have been newly compiled in the present study. Kinetic reactivity data of both protonated and deprotonated organic compounds together with their reactivity ratio  have been investigated to identify possible acidity effects. The present study showed that, for OH reactions, the impact of acidity on the chemical kinetics is often quite small and only important for some specific compounds. On the other hand, for NO<sub>3</sub> reaction, particularly under cloud conditions, acidity can substantially affect the chemical NO<sub>3</sub>-initiated processing of organic compounds. Less acidic conditions will enhance the degradation of dissociating compounds via NO<sub>3</sub> because of more rapid oxidation and possibility of additional ETR pathway. Furthermore, the present O<sub>3</sub> kinetic data analyses have demonstrated the role of acidity for ozonolysis processes, especially for phenolic compounds. Overall, the present study summarizes atmospheric implications and needs for future investigations, particularly with respect to changing aerosol and cloud acidity conditions in the future.</p>

SCENARIOS FOR AN EXPANDING DEMAND OF TOURISM ON THE COASTS OF CUBA

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar Gutiérrez-Bolívar ◽  
Oscar Gutiérrez-Bolívar ◽  
Pedro Fernández Carrasco ◽  
Pedro Fernández Carrasco
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The Other ◽  
Sudden Increase ◽  
Tourist Destination ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

The opening of relationships between United States and Cuba could be a drive for a huge increase in the affluence of tourism to Cuba and especially to the coast areas. Cuba has been for many years an important tourist destination for people from many countries, but almost forbidden for US citizens. The proximity of the USA, its amount of population as well as their great acquisition power will increase in a very substantial way the demand for accommodation and other uses in the proximity of the coasts. There will be a need to implement a package of measures that reduce the impact of such sudden increase in the coastal line. On the other hand that augment in tourism could be an opportunity to improve the standard of life of Cubans. The consideration of different possibilities of such development, the analysis of the damages that each one could cause as well as the measures that could avoid, ameliorate or compensate such effects are the goals that are going to be presented in this paper.

Laughter on the Fringes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Peterson
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Literary Canon ◽  
Autobiographical Writing ◽  
Treasure Trove ◽  
Old Comedy ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Aggressive Humor ◽  
The One ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Impact

This book examines the impact that Athenian Old Comedy had on Greek writers of the Imperial era. It is generally acknowledged that Imperial-era Greeks responded to Athenian Old Comedy in one of two ways: either as a treasure trove of Atticisms, or as a genre defined by and repudiated for its aggressive humor. Worthy of further consideration, however, is how both approaches, and particularly the latter one that relegated Old Comedy to the fringes of the literary canon, led authors to engage with the ironic and self-reflexive humor of Aristophanes, Eupolis, and Cratinus. Authors ranging from serious moralizers (Plutarch and Aelius Aristides) to comic writers in their own right (Lucian, Alciphron), to other figures not often associated with Old Comedy (Libanius) adopted aspects of the genre to negotiate power struggles, facilitate literary and sophistic rivalries, and provide a model for autobiographical writing. To varying degrees, these writers wove recognizable features of the genre (e.g., the parabasis, its agonistic language, the stage biographies of the individual poets) into their writings. The image of Old Comedy that emerges from this time is that of a genre in transition. It was, on the one hand, with the exception of Aristophanes’s extant plays, on the verge of being almost completely lost; on the other hand, its reputation and several of its most characteristic elements were being renegotiated and reinvented.

scholarly journals Application of Plant Extracts in Micropropagation and Cryopreservation of Bleeding Heart: An Ornamental-Medicinal Plant Species

Agriculture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 542
Author(s):  
Dariusz Kulus ◽  
Natalia Miler
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Culture ◽  
Plant Growth ◽  
Plant Growth Regulators ◽  
Growth Regulators ◽  
Plant Extracts ◽  
The Other ◽  
White Gold ◽  
Natural Extracts ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The Impact

Lamprocapnos spectabilis (L.) Fukuhara (bleeding heart) is valued both in the horticultural and pharmaceutical markets. Despite its great popularity, information on the in vitro tissue culture technology in this species is limited. There is also little knowledge on the application of plant extracts in the tissue culture systems of plants other than orchids. The aim of this study is to compare the utility of traditional plant growth regulators (PGRs) and natural extracts—obtained from the coconut shreds, as well as oat, rice, and sesame seeds—in the micropropagation and cryopreservation of L. spectabilis ‘Gold Heart’ and ‘White Gold’. The biochemical analysis of extracts composition is also included. In the first experiment related to micropropagation via axillary buds activation, the single-node explants were cultured for a 10-week-long propagation cycle in the modified Murashige and Skoog medium fortified either with 1.11 µM benzyladenine (BA) and 1.23 µM indole-3-butritic acid (IBA) or with 10% (v/v) plant extracts. A PGRs- and extract-free control was also considered. In the cryopreservation experiment, the same 10% (v/v) extracts were added into the medium during a seven-day preculture in the encapsulation-vitrification cryopreservation protocol. It was found that the impact of natural additives was cultivar- and trait-specific. In the first experiment, the addition of coconut extract favoured the proliferation of shoots and propagation ratio in bleeding heart ‘Gold Heart’. Rice extract, on the other hand, promoted callus formation in ‘White Gold’ cultivar and was more effective in increasing the propagation ratio in this cultivar than the conventional plant growth regulators (4.1 and 2.6, respectively). Sesame extract suppressed the development of the explants in both cultivars analysed, probably due to the high content of polyphenols. As for the second experiment, the addition of plant extracts into the preculture medium did not increase the survival level of the cryopreserved shoot tips (sesame and oat extracts even decreased this parameter). On the other hand, coconut extract, abundant in simple sugars and endogenous cytokinins, stimulated a more intensive proliferation and growth of shoots after rewarming of samples. Analysing the synergistic effect of conventional plant growth regulators and natural extracts should be considered in future studies related to L. spectabilis.

Reactions of polar dienes with o-quinones

1989 ◽  
Vol 67 (8) ◽  
pp. 1354-1358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacques Paquet ◽  
Paul Brassard
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Ketene Acetal

The behaviour of various types of polar dienes towards halogenated ortho quinones has been investigated in a number of representative cases. As compared to the commonly used para analogues, o-quinones provide a wide range of products that indicate a keener response to the nature, number, and position of substituents on both reactants. 3-Halogenated-o-naphthoquinones 1 and 2 react smoothly with a representative vinologous ketene acetal 3, vinylketene acetals 4 and 5, and a monooxygenated diene 6 to provide variously substituted phenanthrenequinones 7–11. Only monooxygenated dienes on the other hand add to o-benzoquinones 14–16 and give convenient syntheses of the corresponding o-naphthoquinones 18–20. Keywords: cycloaddition, o-naphthoquinones, phenanthrenequinones, regiospecificity.

The Council of Trent Revisited

2002 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig A. Monson
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Council Of Trent ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Official Status

Abstract Reexamination of a wide range of documents surrounding the twenty-second, twenty-fourth, and twenty-fifth sessions of the Council of Trent reveals that delegates strived officially to say as little as possible about music: only that secular or impure elements should be eliminated and that specific issues should be settled locally, by individual bishops and provincial synods. But, beginning with Gustave Reese, several scholars have misleadingly strung together a preliminary canon, stressing textual intelligibility, which was never approved in the general congregations, and the few lines that actually supplanted it, concerned only with the elimination of lasciviousness. On the other hand, a largely unrecognized or misunderstood attack on church polyphony did occur at the less familiar twenty-fifth session, when Gabriele Paleotti may have attempted to suppress elaborate music in female monasteries. Although this attempt was rejected in the general congregations, its restrictions were subsequently revived by local authorities such as Paleotti and Carlo Borromeo in their own dioceses. In the Council's immediate aftermath, reformers such as Paleotti and Borromeo once again focused on the issue of intelligibility, affording it a quasi-official status that seems to have quickly become widely accepted as “iuxta formam concilii.”

Education and Learning at a Medieval English Cathedral: Exeter 1380–1548

1981 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 265-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Orme
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Good Deal ◽  
The Other ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Medieval England ◽  
Literary Education ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The People ◽  
The Impact

During the last hundred years our knowledge of the educational institutions of medieval England has steadily increased, both of schools and universities. We know a good deal about what they taught, how they were organised and where they were sited. The next stage is to identify their relationship with the society which they existed to serve. Whom did they train, to what standards and for what ends? These questions pose problems. They cannot be answered from the constitutional and curricular records which tell us about the structure of educational institutions. Instead, they require a knowledge of the people—the pupils and scholars—who went to the medieval schools and universities. We need to recover their names, to compile their biographies and thereby to establish their origins, careers and attainments. If this can be done on a large enough scale, the impact of education on society will become clearer. In the case of the universities, the materials for this task are available and well known. Thanks to the late Dr A. B. Emden, most of the surviving names of the alumni of Oxford and Cambridge have been collected and published, together with a great many biographical records about them. For the schools, on the other hand, where most boys had their literary education if they had one at all, such data are not available. Except for Winchester and Eton, we do not possess lists of the pupils of schools until the middle of the sixteenth century, and there is no way to remedy the deficiency.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document