The Potential Benefits of Legumes Germ and Cereal Grains on Roosters' Reproductive Performance.

Vit E is known as one of the most important antioxidant. It has been previously approved that cereal grains and leafy plants are considered as the main source for α-tocopherol (Vit E). One of the recommended therapies for male infertility would be the Vit E therapy. Following Vit E consumption the semen parameters such as sperm concentration, ejaculation volume, sperm progressive motility, and in vitro function (zone binding assay) have been significantly improved. Therefore, present study was designed to investigate the effects of oral administration of cereal grain and seeds on reproductive performance of local cocks. During a period of 63 weeks, 100 local (Iraqi breed) rooster chicks were randomly divided into the five groups (n=20). Animals in group 1 served as control group and had not received any supplementations in their diet. The animals in the Groups 2-5 received diets which were fortified with 100, 200, 300, and 400 g of cereal grain and legume seeds pure germs. The results of the current study showed that the total number of spermatozoa and percentages of abnormal sperm were decreased by adding more amount of germ of cereal grain and seeds (P<0.01). Increased germ of cereal grain and seeds was not associated with pH volume, colour, consistency and motility of the sperm compared to corresponding rates in control group. Phospholipids content and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance of semen sample as well as density of ejaculate (sperm/µl) were decreased by adding increasing germ of cereal grain and seeds in diet of rosters. Weight of testis decreased by increasing levels of cereal grains and legume seeds germ in the diets (P<0.05).

Molecular mechanism of action and pharmacokinetic properties of methotrexate.

Since its discovery in 1945, methotrexate has become a standard therapy for number of diseases, including oncological, inflammatory and pulmonary ones. Major physiological interactions of methotrexate include folate pathway, adenosine, prostaglandins, leukotrienes and cytokines. Methotrexate is used in treatment of pulmonary sarcoidosis as a second line therapy and is drug of choice in patients who are not candidates for corticosteroid therapy, with recommended starting weekly dose of 5-15 mg. Number of studies dealt with methotrexate use in rheumatoid arthritis and oncological patients. Authors are conducting research on oral methotrexate use and pharmacokinetics in chronic sarcoidosis patients and have performed literature research to better understand molecular mechanisms of methotrexate action as well as high level pharmacokinetic considerations. Polyglutamation of methotrexate affects its pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties and prolongs its effect. Bile excretion plays significant role due to extensive enterohepatic recirculation, although majority of methotrexate is excreted through urine. Better understanding of its pharmacokinetic properties in sarcoidosis patients warrant optimizing therapy when corticosteroids are contraindicated in these patients.

Potentials of human bile acids and their salts in pharmaceutical nano delivery and formulations adjuvants.

In the last decade, the attention of the scientific community has been focused on bile acids and their salts as systems for the transportation of drugs; specifically their role as carriers and integration into nanomedicine. Bile acids can play a critical role as drug carriers in the form of chemical conjugates, complexation, mixed micelles formation as well as stabilized bile acid liposomes (bilosomes). The unique molecular structure and interaction of these amphiphilic-steroidal compounds make them an interesting subject of research. This review is based on literature research in order to emphasize the importance of bile acids and their salts as absorption modulators in order to improve therapeutic potentials of low bioavailability drugs.

Antihypertensive agents do not prevent blood-brain barrier dysfunction and cognitive deficits in dietary-induced obese mice.

BACKGROUND: While vascular risk factors including Western-styled diet and obesity are reported to induce cognitive decline and increase dementia risk, recent reports consistently suggest that compromised integrity of cerebrovascular blood-brain barrier (BBB) may have an important role in neurodegeneration and cognitive deficits. A number of studies report that elevated blood pressure increases the permeability of BBB. METHODS: In this study, we investigated the effects of antihypertensive agents, candesartan or ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), on BBB dysfunction and cognitive decline in wild-type mice maintained on high fat and fructose (HFF) diet for 24 weeks. RESULTS: In HFF-fed mice, significantly increased body weight with elevated blood pressure, plasma insulin and glucose compared with mice fed with low-fat control chow was observed. Concomitantly, significant disruption of BBB and cognitive decline were evident in the HFF-fed obese mice. Hypertension was completely prevented by the coprovision of candesartan or UDCA in mice maintained on HFF diet, while only candesartan significantly reduced the body weight compared with HFF-fed mice. Nevertheless, BBB dysfunction and cognitive decline remained unaffected by candesartan or UDCA. CONCLUSIONS: These data conclusively indicate that modulation of blood pressure and/or body weight may not be directly associated with BBB dysfunction and cognitive deficits in Western diet-induced obese mice, and hence antihypertensive agents may not be effective in preventing BBB disruption and cognitive decline. The findings may provide important mechanistical insights to obesity-associated cognitive decline and its therapy.

Long-Term Supplementation of Microencapsulated ursodeoxycholic Acid Prevents Hypertension in a Mouse Model of Insulin Resistance.

Hypertension is a significant comorbidity associated with insulin resistance and type-2 diabetes. Limited evidence show that ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) has some anti-hypertensive effects. However, the potential effect of UDCA on hypertension induced by type-2 diabetic insulin resistance has not been reported. In C57Bl6 wild-type mice, insulin resistance was induced by the chronic ingestion of diet enriched in fat and fructose (HFF). HFF mice were randomized to treatment with UDCA or candersartan incorporated into the diet to achieve an ingested dose of approximately 70 mg/kg/day of UDCA or 3 mg/kg/day respectively. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure were measured with tail-cuff method. At 4 weeks of dietary treatment systolic and diastolic blood pressure were comparable in HFF and low-fat (LF) control mice. Co-administration of candesartan at 4 weeks significantly decreased systolic and diastolic blood pressure, UDCA showed no anti-hypertensive effect at 4 weeks. At 24 weeks of dietary intervention, HFF fed mice had substantially elevated systolic blood pressure compared to LF controls. The provision of UDCA substantially attenuated the dietary HFF induced increase in systolic blood pressure concomitant with significantly lower plasma angiotensin II. The anti-hypertensive effect of UDCA in HFF mice was comparable to candesartan. The data suggests that long term supplementation of UDCA effectively lowers hypertension in a dietary induced model of type-2 diabetic insulin resistance.

Typing of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from bovine mastitis cases in Australia and India.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of the different capsular polysaccharide (CP) and major surface-associated non-CP antigen 336 (SP-336) types among Staphylococcus aureus isolated from bovine mastitis cases in Australia and India. METHODS: A total of 414 strains (154 from Australia, 260 from India) isolated from clinical bovine mastitis were included in the study. Mouse antisera raised against CP types (CP1, CP2, CP5, and CP8) or SP-336 were used in slide agglutination tests and compared with detection of cap1, cap5 and cap8 gene fragments by PCR. RESULTS: Serological studies revealed the presence of CP2, CP5, CP8 and SP-336 in 9.1%, 23.4%, 31.8%, and 5.8% of the Australian versus 0.8%, 46.9%, 13.1% and 0% of the Indian isolates, respectively. By PCR, CP1, CP5 and CP8 accounted for 0%, 26.6% and 32.4% of the Australian versus 3.9%, 85% and 8.1% of the Indian isolates, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Both PCR and the serological method demonstrated that CP5 and CP8 are the predominant capsular types in Australia, whereas CP5 is the predominant capsular type in India. The study also demonstrated a strong correlation between both methods of typing for CP1, CP5, CP8 and non-typeable S. aureus strains. High-percentage prevalence of non-typeable isolates in both the countries highlights the importance of continued investigations of the identification of unique surface-associated polysaccharide antigens prevalent among S. aureus isolates for the formulation of CP- and SP-based vaccines for bovine mastitis.

Influence of the semisynthetic bile acid MKC on the ileal permeation of gliclazide in vitro in healthy and diabetic rats treated with probiotics.

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of sodium 3alpha,7alpha-dihydroxy-12-keto-5beta-cholanate (MKC) on the ileal permeation of gliclazide in healthy and diabetic rats treated with probiotics. Male Wistar rats (2-3 months, 350 +/- 50 g) were randomly allocated into four groups (n = 32); Groups 1 and 2 were healthy controls and Groups 3 and 4 were diabetic rats (alloxan 30 mg/kg was administered i.v.), which were administered probiotics for three days after the rats became diabetics. The rats were sacrificed and tissues were mounted on Ussing chambers. Then, gliclazide (200 microg/ml) was added to all the groups, while MKC (50 microg/ml) was given to Groups 2 and 4, for the measurement of the mucosal to serosal absorption Jss(MtoS) and serosal to mucosal secretion Jss(StoM) of gliclazide. In the tissues of healthy rats treated with probiotics, MKC stimulated the net absorption of gliclazide by stimulating the absorptive and reducing the secretory unidirectional fluxes, while in tissues from diabetic rats treated with probiotics, MKC had no effect. In healthy rats treated with probiotics, the degradation of MKC by bacterial polypeptides produced divalent bile salts that inhibited Mrp2, which resulted in reducing secretion and stimulating the absorption of gliclazide. In contrast, in diabetic rats treated with probiotics, MKC had no effect possibly due to a difference in the metabolic profile and resulting in no net flux.

Bioavailability and hypoglycemic activity of the semisynthetic bile acid salt, sodium 3alpha,7alpha-dihydroxy-12-oxo-5beta-cholanate, in healthy and diabetic rats.

Previous studies in our laboratory have shown that the semisynthetic bile acid derivative, sodium 3alpha,7alpha-dihydroxy-12-oxo-5beta-cholanate (MKC), has hypoglycemic activity. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the pharmacokinetics and hypoglycemic activity of MKC in healthy and diabetic rats. Groups of healthy and alloxan-induced diabetic rats were dosed intravenously (i.v.) and orally with MKC (4 mg/kg). Blood samples were taken before administration of the dose and at 20, 40, 60, 80, 120, 150, 180, 210 and 240 minutes post-dose. MKC serum concentration was measured by HPLC, and pharmacokinetic parameters determined using the WinNonlin program. The absolute bioavailability of MKC was found to be low in healthy and diabetic rats (29 and 23% respectively) and was not significantly different between the two groups. Mean residence time (MRT), volume of distribution (Vd) and half-life (t1/2) of MKC after oral administration were significantly lower in diabetic than in healthy rats (21, 31 and 29% respectively). After the i.v. dose, the change in blood glucose concentration was not significant in either healthy or diabetic rats. After the oral dose, the decrease in blood glucose concentration was significant, reaching a maximum decrease from baseline of 24% in healthy rats and 15% in diabetic rats. The results suggest that a first-pass effect is crucial for the hypoglycemic activity of MKC, indicating that a metabolite of MKC and/or interference with metabolism and glucose transport is responsible.