The present study aimed to investigate the protective potential of naringin (NG) against di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP)- induced testicular damage and impairment of spermatogenesis in rats. Forty-two ...male Wistar albino rats were divided into six equal groups, and treated orally, 3 times weekly for 8 successive weeks. Control vehicle group was administrated olive oil, naringin-treated group was administered NG (80 mg/kg), DBP 250- and DBP 500- intoxicated groups received DBP (250 mg/kg) and (500 mg/kg), respectively, NG + DBP 250 and NG + DBP 500 groups received NG, an hour prior to DBP 250 and 500 administration. The results revealed that DBP induced dose-dependent male reproductive dysfunctions, included a significant decrease in the serum testosterone level concomitantly with significant decreases in the sperm count, viability, and total motility. Meanwhile, DBP significantly increased the testicular malondialdehyde level with significant reductions of glutathione content and catalase activity. Histopathologically, DBP provoked absence of spermatozoa, degenerative changes in the cell layers of seminiferous tubules and a significant decrease in the thickness of the seminiferous tubules epithelium. Conversely, the concomitant treatment with NG, one hour before DBP 250 or 500- intoxication mitigated the dose-dependent reproductive dysfunctions induced by DBP, evidenced by significant increases of serum testosterone level, sperm motility, count and viability along with marked improvement of the oxidant/antioxidant status and testicular histoarchitecture. In conclusion, the findings recorded herein proved that NG could mitigate DBP-induced testicular damage and impairment of spermatogenesis, suggesting the perspective of using NG as a natural protective and therapeutic agent for alleviating the reproductive dysfunctions and improving reproductive performance, mainly via its potent antioxidant activity.
Cyclophosphamide (Cyp) is one of the most commonly used, wide spectrum chemotherapeutic agents. Cyp has multi-organ toxicities that are dose limiting, thus it's mostly used in chemotherapeutic ...combinations. Radiation is well known as a hazardous sort of energy, recent studies are interested in studying the beneficial therapeutic effects of low-dose gamma radiation. This study examined the protective effect of two different doses/dose-rates of irradiation either alone or combined with telmisartan against Cyp-induced cardiotoxicity.
Rats were divided into seven groups; (1): Control, (2): Cyp, (3-4): 0.05 Gy low dose rate (LDR) irradiation, 0.25 Gy high dose rate (HDR) irradiation, respectively, prior to Cyp dose, (5-7): telmisartan either alone or with 0.05 Gy LDR-irradiation or 0.25 Gy HDR-irradiation, respectively, prior to Cyp dose. The current investigation studied the effect of Cyp alone or combined with different treatment regimens on serum cTn-I and LDH, nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway (p65/IκB/IKK-α/IKK-ß) in the myocardium. Pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1ß, IL-6 and TNF-α were assessed in addition to histopathological examination of the heart.
Low-dose irradiation attenuated cardiac enzymes, pro-inflammatory cytokines, NF-κB content, and histology, in both low and HDRs. Furthermore, the combination of low-dose irradiation with telmisartan (an angiotensin-II receptor type-1 blocker and a known cardio-protective drug) offered the best histological results.
Low-dose irradiation-induced amelioration is partially but not completely through canonical activation of NF-κB, and may have another atypical pathway. While telmisartan probably ameliorates NF-κB totally through canonical pathway.
Graphene oxide (GO) with high specific surface area was prepared and functionalized with ethylene diamine tetra‐acetic acid (EDTA). The as‐prepared GO and the functionalized one (GO‐EDTA) were ...characterized using high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy. The as‐prepared and EDTA funcationalized GO were applied as adsorbent to remove strontium(II) and cobalt(II) from water. The results indicated that the prepared materials are efficient adsorbents for strontium(II) and cobalt(II) removal. The adsorption of CoII and SrII under effects of contact time, temperature, and pH was investigated It is concluded that the maximum adsorption capacities of GO for CoII and SrII were about 168 and 140 mg·g–1, whereas of GO‐EDTA the values were about 197 and 158 mg·g–1, respectively. It is indicated that pH 6 and temperature 40 °C are the best condition for CoII and SrII removal from water. The application of Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms indicated that Langmuir isotherm is best fit for CoII and SrII equilibrium adsorption. Adsorption kinetics were studied by applying pseudo first‐order, pseudo second‐order, and intraparticle diffusion models on the experimental data. The results proved that pseudo second‐order model is the best represented adsorption kinetics. Appling the intraparticle diffusion regressions on the experimental data indicated that intraparticle diffusion involved in adsorption process, which was not the only rate‐controlling step.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether ancient Egyptians had atherosclerosis.
The worldwide burden of atherosclerotic disease continues to rise and parallels the spread of diet, ...lifestyles, and environmental risk factors associated with the developed world. It is tempting to conclude that atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is exclusively a disease of modern society and did not affect our ancient ancestors.
We performed whole body, multislice computed tomography scanning on 52 ancient Egyptian mummies from the Middle Kingdom to the Greco-Roman period to identify cardiovascular structures and arterial calcifications. We interpreted images by consensus reading of 7 imaging physicians, and collected demographic data from historical and museum records. We estimated age at the time of death from the computed tomography skeletal evaluation.
Forty-four of 52 mummies had identifiable cardiovascular (CV) structures, and 20 of these had either definite atherosclerosis (defined as calcification within the wall of an identifiable artery, n = 12) or probable atherosclerosis (defined as calcifications along the expected course of an artery, n = 8). Calcifications were found in the aorta as well as the coronary, carotid, iliac, femoral, and peripheral leg arteries. The 20 mummies with definite or probable atherosclerosis were older at time of death (mean age 45.1 ± 9.2 years) than the mummies with CV tissue but no atherosclerosis (mean age 34.5 ± 11.8 years, p < 0.002). Two mummies had evidence of severe arterial atherosclerosis with calcifications in virtually every arterial bed. Definite coronary atherosclerosis was present in 2 mummies, including a princess who lived between 1550 and 1580 BCE. This finding represents the earliest documentation of coronary atherosclerosis in a human. Definite or probable atherosclerosis was present in mummies who lived during virtually every era of ancient Egypt represented in this study, a time span of >2,000 years.
Atherosclerosis is commonplace in mummified ancient Egyptians.
LiF is an alkali halide that is commonly used in radiation dosimetry
utilizing its well-known thermoluminescence property. Pure LiF has very
limited use in radiation dosimetry since the density and ...types of the
internal traps are limited. For that reason, LiF is usually doped with
different elements such as Mg and Ti in (TLD-100) to enhance its
thermoluminescence properties and to be suitable for dosimetry
applications. In this work we used ball milling as an alternative to
dopants (impurities) to induce structure defects (e.g. dislocation) that
will play the major role in thermoluminescence process similar to
defectsecaused by dopants. The dislocation density of 1 h ball milled
pristine LiF was evaluated at the MCX beamline of the Italian Synchrotron
ELETTRA. A ball milled LiF was then compressed in the form of chips, then
annealed for 1 h at 600?C to get rid of low temperature dislocations. The
annealed samples showed linear response in the range 50-300 Gy. Fading
investigation showed that the integral thermoluminescence intensity almost
stabilizes after 12 days from the first irradiation. Results indicate that
ball milling is a new promising technique to produce thermoluminescence
dosimeters without using any kind of dopants.
nema
Abstract Background Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is often thought of as a disease of modernity, a disease affecting primarily men and a disease primarily affecting members of affluent ...Western societies. Methods We reviewed CT scans for evidence of vascular calcification as a manifestation of atherosclerosis in ancient Egyptian female mummies and compared the results to clinical features of contemporary Egyptian women, who are suffering from an epidemic of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Results The common assumption that atherosclerosis is strictly a modern disease which spares women, mainly affecting men, is not true. We report the CT examination of an ancient Egyptian woman who lived more than 3000 years ago, finding calcified atherosclerotic plaque in her systemic arteries and other abnormalities probably due to prior myocardial infarction. We also confirmed recent reports of a virtual epidemic of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease in contemporary Egyptian women. Conclusions Atherosclerosis, both ancient and contemporary, is common in women as well as in men, and is related to both a genetic predisposition and to environmental factors including diet, exercise, obesity and exposure to smoke and other toxins.
Atherosclerosis in Ancient Egyptian Mummies Allam, Adel H., MD; Thompson, Randall C., MD; Wann, L. Samuel, MD ...
JACC. Cardiovascular imaging,
04/2011, Volume:
4, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Objectives The purpose of this study was to determine whether ancient Egyptians had atherosclerosis. Background The worldwide burden of atherosclerotic disease continues to rise and parallels the ...spread of diet, lifestyles, and environmental risk factors associated with the developed world. It is tempting to conclude that atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is exclusively a disease of modern society and did not affect our ancient ancestors. Methods We performed whole body, multislice computed tomography scanning on 52 ancient Egyptian mummies from the Middle Kingdom to the Greco-Roman period to identify cardiovascular structures and arterial calcifications. We interpreted images by consensus reading of 7 imaging physicians, and collected demographic data from historical and museum records. We estimated age at the time of death from the computed tomography skeletal evaluation. Results Forty-four of 52 mummies had identifiable cardiovascular (CV) structures, and 20 of these had either definite atherosclerosis (defined as calcification within the wall of an identifiable artery, n = 12) or probable atherosclerosis (defined as calcifications along the expected course of an artery, n = 8). Calcifications were found in the aorta as well as the coronary, carotid, iliac, femoral, and peripheral leg arteries. The 20 mummies with definite or probable atherosclerosis were older at time of death (mean age 45.1 ± 9.2 years) than the mummies with CV tissue but no atherosclerosis (mean age 34.5 ± 11.8 years, p < 0.002). Two mummies had evidence of severe arterial atherosclerosis with calcifications in virtually every arterial bed. Definite coronary atherosclerosis was present in 2 mummies, including a princess who lived between 1550 and 1580 BCE. This finding represents the earliest documentation of coronary atherosclerosis in a human. Definite or probable atherosclerosis was present in mummies who lived during virtually every era of ancient Egypt represented in this study, a time span of >2,000 years. Conclusions Atherosclerosis is commonplace in mummified ancient Egyptians.
The New Kingdom in ancient Egypt, comprising the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties, spanned the mid-16th to the early 11th centuries bc. The late 18th dynasty, which included the reigns of pharaohs ...Akhenaten and Tutankhamun, was an extraordinary time. The identification of a number of royal mummies from this era, the exact relationships between some members of the royal family, and possible illnesses and causes of death have been matters of debate.
To introduce a new approach to molecular and medical Egyptology, to determine familial relationships among 11 royal mummies of the New Kingdom, and to search for pathological features attributable to possible murder, consanguinity, inherited disorders, and infectious diseases.
From September 2007 to October 2009, royal mummies underwent detailed anthropological, radiological, and genetic studies as part of the King Tutankhamun Family Project. Mummies distinct from Tutankhamun's immediate lineage served as the genetic and morphological reference. To authenticate DNA results, analytical steps were repeated and independently replicated in a second ancient DNA laboratory staffed by a separate group of personnel. Eleven royal mummies dating from circa 1410-1324 bc and suspected of being kindred of Tutankhamun and 5 royal mummies dating to an earlier period, circa 1550-1479 bc, were examined.
Microsatellite-based haplotypes in the mummies, generational segregation of alleles within possible pedigree variants, and correlation of identified diseases with individual age, archeological evidence, and the written historical record.
Genetic fingerprinting allowed the construction of a 5-generation pedigree of Tutankhamun's immediate lineage. The KV55 mummy and KV35YL were identified as the parents of Tutankhamun. No signs of gynecomastia and craniosynostoses (eg, Antley-Bixler syndrome) or Marfan syndrome were found, but an accumulation of malformations in Tutankhamun's family was evident. Several pathologies including Köhler disease II were diagnosed in Tutankhamun; none alone would have caused death. Genetic testing for STEVOR, AMA1, or MSP1 genes specific for Plasmodium falciparum revealed indications of malaria tropica in 4 mummies, including Tutankhamun's. These results suggest avascular bone necrosis in conjunction with the malarial infection as the most likely cause of death in Tutankhamun. Walking impairment and malarial disease sustained by Tutankhamun is supported by the discovery of canes and an afterlife pharmacy in his tomb.
Using a multidisciplinary scientific approach, we showed the feasibility of gathering data on Pharaonic kinship and diseases and speculated about individual causes of death.
The correlation between the thermoluminescence (TL) response of nanocrystalline LiF and its microstructure was studied. To investigate the detailed TL mechanism, the glow curves of nanocrystalline ...LiF samples produced by high‐energy ball‐milling were analyzed. The microstructure of the prepared samples was analyzed by synchrotron X‐ray powder diffraction (XRPD) at room temperature. Then, the microstructure of a representative pulverized sample was investigated in detail by performing in situ XRPD in both isothermal and non‐isothermal modes. In the present study, the dislocations produced by ball‐milling alter the microstructure of the lattice where the relative concentration of the vacancies, responsible for the TL response, changes with milling time. An enhancement in the TL response was recorded for nanocrystalline LiF at high‐temperature traps (after dislocations recovery starts >425 K). It is also found that vacancies are playing a major role in the dislocations recovery mechanism. Moreover, the interactions among vacancies–dislocations and/or dislocations–dislocations weaken the TL response.
Ball‐milling of a coarse LiF powder was employed to produce nanostructured fluorites with different defect concentration for thermoluminescence applications. In situ X‐ray diffraction analysis shows that thermoluminescence is highly dependent on the structural defect densities and on the degree of interaction between dislocations and point defects.
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