OXYTOCIN: THE PRIMARY MECHANISM OF DOMESTICATION OR ITS INHIBITOR?

Cisplatin (CDDP) a potent antitumor agent suffers from severe toxic side effects with nephrotoxicity being the major dose-limiting factor, The primary mechanism of its action has been proposed to be through its cross-linking DNA strands. It has also been shown to inactivate various transport enzymes and induce hypocalcemia and hypomagnesemia that may be the underlying cause for some of its toxicities. The present is an effort to study its influence on the parathyroid gland for any hormonal changes that control calcium levels in the body.Male Swiss Wistar rats (Crl: (WI) BR) weighing 200-300 g and of 60 days in age were injected (ip) with cisplatin (7mg/kg in normal saline). The controls received saline injections only. The animals were injected (iv) with calcium (0.5 ml of 10% calcium gluconate/day) and were killed by decapitation on day 1 through 5. Trunk blood was collected in heparinized tubes.

Download Full-text

Plasmons as the primary mechanism of ion-induced modifications in polymers

Philosophical Magazine B ◽

10.1080/014186399257104 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 79 (5) ◽

pp. 793-815 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

J. P. Moliton, C. Jussiaux-Devilder, T

Keyword(s):

Primary Mechanism

Download Full-text

The Impact of Bushfire Smoke on Cattle—A Review

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani11030848 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (3) ◽

pp. 848

Author(s):

Benjamin Eid ◽

David Beggs ◽

Peter Mansell

Keyword(s):

Particulate Matter ◽

Prolonged Exposure ◽

Negative Impact ◽

Airborne Particulate Matter ◽

Mortality Rates ◽

Airborne Particulate ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Background Mortality ◽

Fire Front ◽

The Impact

In 2019–2020, a particularly bad bushfire season in Australia resulted in cattle being exposed to prolonged periods of smoke haze and reduced air quality. Bushfire smoke contains many harmful pollutants, and impacts on regions far from the fire front, with smoke haze persisting for weeks. Particulate matter (PM) is one of the major components of bushfire smoke known to have a negative impact on human health. However, little has been reported about the potential effects that bushfire smoke has on cattle exposed to smoke haze for extended periods. We explored the current literature to investigate evidence for likely effects on cattle from prolonged exposure to smoke generated from bushfires in Australia. We conducted a search for papers related to the impacts of smoke on cattle. Initial searching returned no relevant articles through either CAB Direct or PubMed databases, whilst Google Scholar provided a small number of results. The search was then expanded to look at two sub-questions: the type of pollution that is found in bushfire smoke, and the reported effects of both humans and cattle being exposed to these types of pollutants. The primary mechanism for damage due to bushfire smoke is due to small airborne particulate matter (PM). Although evidence demonstrates that PM from bushfire smoke has a measurable impact on both human mortality and cardiorespiratory morbidities, there is little evidence regarding the impact of chronic bushfire smoke exposure in cattle. We hypothesize that cattle are not severely affected by chronic exposure to smoke haze, as evidenced by the lack of reports. This may be because cattle do not tend to suffer from the co-morbidities that, in the human population, seem to be made worse by smoke and pollution. Further, small changes to background mortality rates or transient morbidity may also go unreported.

Download Full-text

Insights into the Antioxidant Mechanism of Newly Synthesized Benzoxazinic Nitrones: In Vitro and In Silico Studies with DPPH Model Radical

Antioxidants ◽

10.3390/antiox10081224 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (8) ◽

pp. 1224

Author(s):

Stefania Marano ◽

Cristina Minnelli ◽

Lorenzo Ripani ◽

Massimo Marcaccio ◽

Emiliano Laudadio ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Antioxidant Activity ◽

Epr Spectroscopy ◽

Point Of View ◽

Uv Spectrophotometry ◽

Design And Synthesis ◽

Antioxidant Mechanism ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

In Silico Studies ◽

Wide Range

Synthetic nitrone spin-traps are being explored as therapeutic agents for the treatment of a wide range of oxidative stress-related pathologies, including but not limited to stroke, cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases. In this context, increasing efforts are currently being made to the design and synthesis of new nitrone-based compounds with enhanced efficacy. The most researched nitrones are surely the ones related to α-phenyl-tert-butylnitrone (PBN) and 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide (DMPO) derivatives, which have shown to possess potent biological activity in many experimental animal models. However, more recently, nitrones with a benzoxazinic structure (3-aryl-2H-benzo[1,4]oxazin-N-oxides) have been demonstrated to have superior antioxidant activity compared to PBN. In this study, two new benzoxazinic nitrones bearing an electron-withdrawing methoxycarbonyl group on the benzo moiety (in para and meta positions respect to the nitronyl function) were synthesized. Their in vitro antioxidant activity was evaluated by two cellular-based assays (inhibition of AAPH-induced human erythrocyte hemolysis and cell death in human retinal pigmented epithelium (ARPE-19) cells) and a chemical approach by means of the α,α-diphenyl-β-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging assay, using both electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and UV spectrophotometry. A computational approach was also used to investigate their potential primary mechanism of antioxidant action, as well as to rationalize the effect of functionalization on the nitrones reactivity toward DPPH, chosen as model radical in this study. Further insights were also gathered by exploring the nitrone electrochemical properties via cyclic voltammetry and by studying their kinetic behavior by means of EPR spectroscopy. Results showed that the introduction of an electron-withdrawing group in the phenyl moiety in the para position significantly increased the antioxidant capacity of benzoxazinic nitrones both in cell and cell-free systems. From the mechanistic point of view, the calculated results closely matched the experimental findings, strongly suggesting that the H-atom transfer (HAT) is likely to be the primary mechanism in the DPPH quenching.

Download Full-text

Evaluating Functional Immunity Following Encapsulated Bacterial Infection and Vaccination

Vaccines ◽

10.3390/vaccines9060677 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (6) ◽

pp. 677

Author(s):

Zheng Quan Toh ◽

Rachel A. Higgins ◽

Nadia Mazarakis ◽

Elysia Abbott ◽

Jordan Nathanielsz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Protective Immunity ◽

Invasive Disease ◽

Haemophilus Influenzae Type ◽

Current State ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Antibody Assays ◽

Functional Immunity ◽

Accurate Comparison ◽

Encapsulated Bacteria ◽

Functional Antibodies

Encapsulated bacteria such as Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae type b and Neisseria meningitidis cause significant morbidity and mortality in young children despite the availability of vaccines. Highly specific antibodies are the primary mechanism of protection against invasive disease. Robust and standardised assays that measure functional antibodies are also necessary for vaccine evaluation and allow for the accurate comparison of data between clinical studies. This mini review describes the current state of functional antibody assays and their importance in measuring protective immunity.

Download Full-text

Microfinance and Vulnerability to Seasonal Famine in a Rural Economy: Evidence from Monga in Bangladesh

The B E Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy ◽

10.1515/bejeap-2018-0359 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Claudia Berg ◽

M. Shahe Emran

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Rural Economy ◽

Screening Process ◽

Data Set ◽

Estimation Strategy ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Unique Data ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Poor Households ◽

Microfinance Institution

AbstractThis paper uses a unique data set on 143,000 poor households from Northern Bangladesh to analyze the effects of microfinance membership on a household’s ability to cope with seasonal famine known as Monga. We develop an identification and estimation strategy that exploits a jump and a kink at the 10-decimal land ownership-threshold driven by the Microfinance Institution screening process to ensure repayment by excluding the ultra-poor. Evidence shows that microfinance membership improves food security during Monga, especially for the poorest households who survive at the margin of one and two meals a day. The positive effects on food security are, however, not driven by higher income, as microcredit does not improve the ability to migrate for work, nor does it reduce dependence on distress sale of labor. The evidence is consistent with consumption smoothing being the primary mechanism behind the gains in food security of MFI households during the season of starvation.

Download Full-text

Microfinance and Vulnerability to Seasonal Famine in a Rural Economy: Evidence from Monga in Bangladesh

The B E Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy ◽

10.1515/bejeap-2020-2001 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Claudia Berg ◽

M. Shahe Emran

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Rural Economy ◽

Screening Process ◽

Data Set ◽

Estimation Strategy ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Unique Data ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Poor Households ◽

Microfinance Institution

AbstractThis paper uses a unique data set on 143,000 poor households from Northern Bangladesh to analyze the effects of microfinance membership on a household's ability to cope with seasonal famine known as Monga. We develop an identification and estimation strategy that exploits a jump and a kink at the 10 decimal land ownership-threshold driven by the Microfinance Institution (MFI) screening process to ensure repayment by excluding the ultra-poor. Evidence shows that microfinance membership improves food security during Monga, especially for the poorest households who survive at the margin of one and two meals a day. The positive effects on food security are, however, not driven by higher income, as microcredit does not improve the ability to migrate for work, nor does it reduce dependence on distress sale of labor. The evidence is consistent with consumption smoothing being the primary mechanism behind the gains in food security of MFI households during the season of starvation.

Download Full-text

Rapid intra-adrenal feedback regulation of glucocorticoid synthesis

Journal of The Royal Society Interface ◽

10.1098/rsif.2014.0875 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 12 (102) ◽

pp. 20140875 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

J. J. Walker ◽

F. Spiga ◽

R. Gupta ◽

Z. Zhao ◽

S. L. Lightman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Adrenal Glands ◽

Feedback Regulation ◽

Feedback Mechanism ◽

Acth Secretion ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Acth Receptor ◽

Local Feedback ◽

Short Time ◽

Pituitary Adrenal Axis ◽

Short Time Delay

The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis is a vital neuroendocrine system that regulates the secretion of glucocorticoid hormones from the adrenal glands. This system is characterized by a dynamic ultradian hormonal oscillation, and in addition is highly responsive to stressful stimuli. We have recently shown that a primary mechanism generating this ultradian rhythm is a systems-level interaction where adrenocorticotrophin hormone (ACTH) released from the pituitary stimulates the secretion of adrenal glucocorticoids, which in turn feedback at the level of the pituitary to rapidly inhibit ACTH secretion. In this study, we combine experimental physiology and mathematical modelling to investigate intra-adrenal mechanisms regulating glucocorticoid synthesis. Our modelling results suggest that glucocorticoids can inhibit their own synthesis through a very rapid (within minutes), presumably non-genomic, intra-adrenal pathway. We present further evidence for the existence of a short time delay in this intra-adrenal inhibition, and also that at the initiation of each ACTH stimulus, this local feedback mechanism is rapidly antagonized, presumably via activation of the specific ACTH receptor (MC2R) signalling pathway. This mechanism of intra-adrenal inhibition enables the gland to rapidly release glucocorticoids while at the same time preventing uncontrolled release of glucocorticoids in response to large surges in ACTH associated with stress.

Download Full-text

Taiwanese montaneSambucus chinensisseeds require warm stratification, contrasting with other congeneric temperate members

Seed Science Research ◽

10.1017/s0960258514000130 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 217-228 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Shun-Ying Chen ◽

Ching-Te Chien ◽

Siti N. Hidayati ◽

Jeffrey L. Walck

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Cold Stratification ◽

Cold Temperatures ◽

Tropical Regions ◽

Morphophysiological Dormancy ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Northern Latitudes ◽

Northern Hemispheric ◽

Response To Temperature ◽

Seed Characteristics

AbstractMany temperate plant genera, likeSambucus, have species with range disjunctions among North America, Europe and/or Asia. Cold stratification (sometimes in combination with warm stratification) is the primary mechanism to break seed dormancy in these species. For some of these genera showing Northern Hemispheric disjunctions, members also occur in subtropical or tropical regions, mostly confined to higher elevations where climate and vegetation differ from those in northern latitudes. We made two hypotheses concerning germination for the subtropical TaiwaneseSambucus chinensis: (1) seeds from populations exposed to warm temperatures would require warm stratification, and (2) seeds from populations exposed to cold temperatures need cold stratification. We investigated the germination (including embryo growth) of non-stratified seeds over a range of temperatures and tested the effects of cold stratification and of gibberellins GA3and GA4on germination. The amount and timing of germination among populations varied substantially in response to temperature treatments. Seeds from all populations of this species required warm temperatures for dormancy break and germination, regardless of environmental conditions. As such, the majority of seeds had non-deep simple morphophysiological dormancy, which, until now, has not been reported in any members ofSambucus. The seed characteristics of the subtropicalS. chinensisare different from those of temperate members of the genus in which cold stratification is the predominate treatment to overcome dormancy.

Download Full-text

Oxidation Kinetics of Cu-Ni Alloy Observed by in situ UHV-TEM

MRS Proceedings ◽

10.1557/proc-1026-c05-03 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 1026 ◽

Author(s):

Li Sun ◽

John E. Pearson ◽

Judith C. Yang

Keyword(s):

High Vacuum ◽

Alloy Film ◽

Ultra High Vacuum ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Primary Mechanism ◽

Transmission Electron ◽

Ni Alloy ◽

Cu Oxidation ◽

Kinetics Of

AbstractThe nucleation and growth of Cu2O and NiO islands due to oxidation of Cu-24%Ni(001) films were monitored at various temperatures by in situ ultra-high vacuum (UHV) transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In remarkable contrast to our previous observations of Cu and Cu-Au oxidation, irregular-shaped polycrystalline oxide islands were observed to form with respect to the Cu-Ni alloy film, and an unusual second oxide nucleation stage was noted. Similar to Cu oxidation, the cross-sectional area growth rate of the oxide island is linear indicating oxygen surface diffusion is the primary mechanism of oxide growth.

Download Full-text