Comparative effectiveness of EDTA and citric acid assisted phytoremediation of Ni contaminated soil by using canola (Brassica napus).

Phytoremediation is an ecofriendly technique to clean heavy metals from contaminated soil by the use of high biomass producing plant species. Chelators can help to improve this biological technique by increasing metal solubility. Therefore, a pot experiment was conducted to determine the effect of the chelators EDTA and citric acid (CA) in phytoremediation of Ni contaminated soil by using Brassica napus (canola). Two cultivars of B. napus, Con-II (tolerant) and Oscar (sensitive), were selected after screening and exposed to NiSO4 at 30 ppm at the time of sowing. CA (10 mM) and EDTA (1.5 mM) were applied either alone or in combination with each other after two weeks of Ni treatments. Different parameters like morpho-physiological and biochemical data were recorded after 15 days of chelate application. The results highlighted the successful use of chelating agents (CA and EDTA) not only to ameliorate Ni stress but also to enhance Ni accumulation which is prerequisite for phytoremediation. The basal application of 10 mMCA and 1.5 mM EDTA concentration proved to be effective for the growth of plants. The combination of chelating agents failed to show any synergistic effects.

Knowledge attitude and practices of university students to Vitamin D and Vitamin D supplements during times of low sun exposure and post lockdown.

OBJECTIVE: Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in Saudi Arabia. Inability to get sun exposure greatly influences Vitamin D levels. Getting enough Vitamin D during childhood and young adulthood can prevent possible future diseases. We aim to estimate the level of knowledge of Saudi University students about Vitamin D and Vitamin D supplements, to correlate it with their attitudes and practices to sun exposure and Vitamin D supplements and to compare between males and females. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is an epidemiological cross-sectional KAP study conducted at King Saud University in Riyadh. A stratified random sampling technique was used where students were randomly selected from 3 colleges and stratified to males and females. N= 767 students completed the online survey used to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of the students. RESULTS: We found that the level of knowledge of university students was moderate to low (mean equivalent to 40%) whereas females had better knowledge. Also, their practices are not sufficient to maintain healthy Vitamin D levels as only 8.2% stay in the sun for more than an hour during weekdays. Only 10.2% of students take regular Vitamin D supplements, where females are the more likely users. 99.1% of students stay indoors during work. CONCLUSIONS: The knowledge about Vitamin D is low among university students but slightly higher in females and medical students. Almost all participants work indoors and most of them wear a mask whenever going out. Few students take regular Vitamin D supplements. Females agreed more they have Vitamin D deficiency and take supplements more than males.

Silencing of tissue factor by antisense deoxyoligonucleotide mitigates thioacetamide-induced liver injury.

BACKGROUND: Retinoid receptors (RRs), RAR-α and RXR-α, work as transcription factors that regulate cell growth, differentiation, survival, and death. Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) store retinoid and release its RRs as lipid droplets upon their activation. PURPOSE: We test the hypothesis that loss of retinoid receptors RAR-α and RXR-α from HSCs is dependent on tissue factor (TF) during thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver injury. METHODS: Liver toxicity markers, TF, fibrin, cleaved caspase-3, and cyclin D1 as well as histopathology were investigated. RESULTS: Increased TF, fibrin, cleaved caspase-3, and cyclin D1 protein expression is seen in zone of central vein after TAA injection compared with vehicle-treated mice. A strong downregulation of RAR-α and RXR-α is seen in TAA-induced liver injury. In addition, histopathological obliteration and pericentral expression of cleaved caspase 3 and cyclin D1 are observed after TAA injection compared with the normal vehicle-treated mice. No changes have been seen in TAA/TF-sense (SC) in whole parameters compared with TAA-treated animals. TAA/TF-antisense (AS)-treated mice show normal expression of all parameters and normal histopathological features when compared with the control mice. In conclusion, this study declares that the strong downregulation of RAR-α and RXR-α may cause liver injury and particularly activation of HSCs in TAA-induced toxicity. TF-AS treatment not only downregulates TF protein expression but also alleviates loss of liver RAR-α and RXR-α and suppresses the activated apoptosis signals in TAA-induced liver toxicity. Finally, TF and RAR-α/RXR-α are important regulatory molecules in TAA induced acute liver injury.