Biochemical evaluation of possible protective effect of purslane extract in experimentally induced arthritis associated with obesity.

Arthritis, a prevalent inflammatory condition, is often linked to obesity as a contributing factor. This study aimed to assess the potential protective effects of purslane extract in male albino rats with induced arthritis and obesity. Fifty rats were randomly assigned to five groups: a control group, an induced arthritis-high-fat diet group, a high-dose purslane extract-supplemented group (300 mg/kg body weight) for 8 weeks, a low-dose purslane extract-supplemented group (150 mg/kg body weight) for 8 weeks, and a metformin-supplemented group. Arthritis was induced in the rats using Complete Freund's Adjuvant. Plasma biomarkers, including Total Cholesterol, Triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, C Reactive Protein (CRP), Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR), Rheumatoid Factor (RF), and Anti-CCP, were assessed in each group. The results revealed a significant improvement in these biomarkers in the high-dose purslane-supplemented group (300 mg/kg body weight) compared to the induced arthritis-high-fat-diet group. This suggests a potential protective role of purslane against arthritis associated with obesity, likely attributed to its lipolytic capacity and anti-inflammatory properties. These findings contribute to our understanding of the interplay between obesity, arthritis, and natural interventions, providing valuable insights for future therapeutic approaches.

In Situ Biosynthesis of Reduced Alpha Hematite (α-Fe2O3) Nanoparticles by Stevia Rebaudiana L. Leaf Extract: Insights into Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, and Anticancer Properties.

In the present study, we utilized Stevia rebaudiana L. (SRLe) extract to in situ biosynthesize nanoscale alpha hematite (α-Fe2O3) nanoparticles (NPs) with potent antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anticancer properties. SRLe-α-Fe2O3 was characterized using physiochemical analyses, including UV/Vis, FTIR, XRD, DLS, EDX, SEM, and TEM studies. Among tested solvents, CHCl3/MeOH (2:1 v/v) SRL extract (least polar solvent) contained the highest EY, TPC, and antioxidant capacity of ~3.5%, ~75 mg GAE/g extract, and IC50 = 9.87 ± 0.7 mg/mL, respectively. FTIR confirmed the engagement of coating operation to the colloidal α-Fe2O3 NPs. TEM, SEM, and DLS revealed that SRLe-α-Fe2O3 has a spherical shape, uniform size distribution with aggregation for an average size of ~18.34 nm, and ζ = -19.4 mV, forming a repulsive barrier that helped to improve stability. The synthesized nanoparticles displayed considerable antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus bacterial growth, and exhibited superior activity against the A549 lung cancer cell lines. These findings indicate that the increased availability of bioactive substances with antioxidant properties of SRLe makes it a potentially interesting material for the preparation of biologically active compounds and green synthesis of nanoparticles.

Advances on Therapeutic Strategies for Alzheimer's Disease: From Medicinal Plant to Nanotechnology.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic dysfunction of neurons in the brain leading to dementia. It is characterized by gradual mental failure, abnormal cognitive functioning, personality changes, diminished verbal fluency, and speech impairment. It is caused by neuronal injury in the cerebral cortex and hippocampal area of the brain. The number of individuals with AD is growing at a quick rate. The pathology behind AD is the progress of intraneuronal fibrillary tangles, accumulation of amyloid plaque, loss of cholinergic neurons, and decrease in choline acetyltransferase. Unfortunately, AD cannot be cured, but its progression can be delayed. Various FDA-approved inhibitors of cholinesterase enzyme such as rivastigmine, galantamine, donepezil, and NDMA receptor inhibitors (memantine), are available to manage the symptoms of AD. An exhaustive literature survey was carried out using SciFinder's reports from Alzheimer's Association, PubMed, and Clinical Trials.org. The literature was explored thoroughly to obtain information on the various available strategies to prevent AD. In the context of the present scenario, several strategies are being tried including the clinical trials for the treatment of AD. We have discussed pathophysiology, various targets, FDA-approved drugs, and various drugs in clinical trials against AD. The goal of this study is to shed light on current developments and treatment options, utilizing phytopharmaceuticals, nanomedicines, nutraceuticals, and gene therapy.

Rhamnolipid-Coated Iron Oxide Nanoparticles as a Novel Multitarget Candidate against Major Foodborne E. coli Serotypes and Methicillin-Resistant S. aureus.

Surface-growing antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus are emerging as a global health challenge due to dilemmas in clinical treatment. Furthermore, their pathogenesis, including increasingly serious antimicrobial resistance and biofilm formation, makes them challenging to treat by conventional therapy. Therefore, the development of novel antivirulence strategies will undoubtedly provide a path forward in combatting these resistant bacterial infections. In this regard, we developed novel biosurfactant-coated nanoparticles to combine the antiadhesive/antibiofilm properties of rhamnolipid (RHL)-coated Fe3O4 nanoparticles (NPs) with each of the p-coumaric acid (p-CoA) and gallic acid (GA) antimicrobial drugs by using the most available polymer common coatings (PVA) to expand the range of effective antibacterial drugs, as well as a mechanism for their synergistic effect via a simple method of preparation. Mechanistically, the average size of bare Fe3O4 NPs was ~15 nm, while RHL-coated Fe3O4@PVA@p-CoA/GA was about ~254 nm, with a drop in zeta potential from -18.7 mV to -34.3 mV, which helped increase stability. Our data show that RHL-Fe3O4@PVA@p-CoA/GA biosurfactant NPs can remarkably interfere with bacterial growth and significantly inhibited biofilm formation to more than 50% via downregulating IcaABCD and CsgBAC operons, which are responsible for slime layer formation and curli fimbriae production in S. aureus and E. coli, respectively. The novelty regarding the activity of RHL-Fe3O4@PVA@p-CoA/GA biosurfactant NPs reveals their potential effect as an alternative multitarget antivirulence candidate to minimize infection severity by inhibiting biofilm development. Therefore, they could be used in antibacterial coatings and wound dressings in the future. IMPORTANCE Antimicrobial resistance poses a great threat and challenge to humanity. Therefore, the search for alternative ways to target and eliminate microbes from plant, animal, and marine microorganisms is one of the world's concerns today. Furthermore, the extraordinary capacity of S. aureus and E. coli to resist standard antibacterial drugs is the dilemma of all currently used remedies. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant S. aureus (VRSA) have become widespread, leading to no remedies being able to treat these threatening pathogens. The most widely recognized serotypes that cause severe foodborne illness are E. coli O157:H7, O26:H11, and O78:H10, and they display increasing antimicrobial resistance rates. Therefore, there is an urgent need for an effective therapy that has dual action to inhibit biofilm formation and decrease bacterial growth. In this study, the synthesized RHL-Fe3O4@PVA@p-CoA/GA biosurfactant NPs have interesting properties, making them excellent candidates for targeted drug delivery by inhibiting bacterial growth and downregulating biofilm-associated IcaABCD and CsgBAC gene loci.

Monitoring of iron, lipid and liver profiles in Egyptian hepatitis C virus patients on sofosbuvir therapy.

Hepatitis C virus is a major cause of inflammation of liver tissue. In serious cases the disease can progressed to cirrhosis, fibrosis, hepatocellular carcinoma and end stage liver disease. The research was designed to monitoring the iron, lipid and liver profiles in hepatitis C patients before and during treatment with sofosbuvir antiviral drug. To achieve this aim, the study was conducted on 22 patients with hepatitis C virus infection and 9 control normal volunteers after taking their consent. The monitoring done through biochemical determination of serum iron, ferritin, transferrin as well as total iron binding capacity. Also, serum cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL, LDL, VLDL, AST, ALP, total protein and albumin was determined. The result showed that, the increased serum iron (205.59±8.27 µg/dl), cholesterol (237.96 ± 10.92 mg/dl), triglycerides (246.58 ± 8.23 mg/dl), LDL (172.82 ± 8.47 mg/dl), VLDL (50.91 ± 1.65 mg/dl), AST (164.58 ± 8.45 U/L), ALP (142.61 ± 7.41 U/L) in hepatitis C virus patients was significantly decreased (P < 0.05) upon treatment with sofosbuvir and the decreased serum ferritin (18.55±1.39 ng/dl), transferrin (128.41 ± 6.43 mg/dl), total iron binding capacity (204.41 ± 8.82 mg/dl), total protein (5.81 ± 0.24 g/dl), albumin (2.83 ± 0.09 g/dl) and HDL (14.22 ± 1.17 mg/dl) in hepatitis C virus patients was significantly increased (P < 0.05) upon treatment with sofosbuvir. According to our finding we concluded that, treatment with sofosbuvir 12 week ameliorate disruption of iron, lipid and liver parameters caused by infection with Hepatitis C virus.

Hydroxytyrosol alleviate intestinal inflammation, oxidative stress and apoptosis resulted in ulcerative colitis.

Hydroxytyrosol (HYT) is one of the main alcoholic compounds of the olive leaves extract (OLE), which is known for its beneficial effects. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of olive leaves extract standardized with 25% hydroxytyrosol (OLES-25%HYT) in treatment of induced ulcerative colitis. Three groups of albino rats, were divided as following, group 1 (normal control), group 2 (induced ulcerative colitis and untreated) and group 3 (induced ulcerative colitis and treated with OLES-25%HYT). Colonic tissue samples were collected from all studied groups, the antioxidant activity for malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), myeloperoxidase (MPO) and nitric oxide (NO) were performed. The expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, the apoptotic gene Bax and the anti-apoptotic gene Bcl2 was obtained in colon tissue to evaluate the OLES-25%HYT effect on ulcerative colitis. OLES-25%HYT showed effectiveness on reduction of mortality rate and disease activity index (DAI). Also, reduced oxidative stress and inflammation in colon tissue, OLES-25%HYT showed a significant reduction in colon MDA, MPO and NO levels and a significant elevation in SOD, CAT and GPX levels and cause down regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Also, the apoptotic gene Bax downregulated and the anti-apoptotic gene Bcl2 upregulated as a result of the treatment compared to untreated induced ulcerative colitis group. OLES-25%HYT showed intestinal anti-inflammatory, antioxidants and anti-apoptotic effects in experimental models of ulcerative colitis.

Sofosbuvir plus ribavirin combination regimen boost liver functions and antioxidant profile in hepatitis C virus patients.

Hepatitis C virus is an infectious pathogen affecting thousands of people causing great damage to the liver and consider an important cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries. This research was conducted on 30 patients infected with hepatitis C virus and 10 control normal volunteers after taking consent of them in order to evaluate the liver function and antioxidants profile after treatment with combination of Sofosbuvir and Ribaverin in hepatitis C virus patients. The results showed significant reduction of elevated levels of L-Malondialdhyde, Alanine Aminotrasferase, Aspartate Aminotrasferase, Alkaline Phosphatase, Albumin, Total protein, Total bilirubin and α-fetoprotein mean while significant increase in glutathione peroxidase, catalase, superoxide dismutase activity upon treatment with combination of sofosbuvir plus ribavirin. In conclusion, the present finding suggest that, treatment of hepatitis C virus patient with combination of Sofosbuvir and Ribavirin significantly improve liver function parameters and antioxidant profile.

Selenium cleome droserifolia nanoparticles (Se-CNPs) and it's ameliorative effects in experimentally induced diabetes mellitus.

Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic disorders with great challenge in its treatment due to its pathological complication. In recent decade, there is extensive use of applying nanotechnology to medicinal plants as a trend in diabetes treatment due to phytochemical constituents. The present study aimed to evaluate the hypoglycemic effect of selenium cleome droserifolia nanoparticles (Se-CNPs) and/or Galvus met® treatment on streptozotocin induced diabetes mellitus in male rats. Fifty male Wistar rats were divided equally into five groups: control group, control diabetic group, diabetic group treated with Se-CNPs, diabetic group treated with Galvus met® and diabetic group treated with Se-CNPs plus Galvus met®. Glucose and insulin levels, Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) and Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), Total Cholesterol (TC), Triacylglycerols (TG), High Density Lipoprotein (HDL-c), Very Low Density Lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-c), Low Density Lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) and (NEFAs), urea and creatinine were evaluated. Also, histopathological changes in pancreatic tissue were examined. The results showed significant elevation in serum glucose concentration, ALT and AST activities, TG, LDL-c, VLDL-c and Non Esterified Fatty Acids (NEFAs), urea and creatinine levels while a significant decrease in serum insulin and HDL-c concentration in untreated diabetic rats when compared with control. Meanwhile, daily administration of Se-CNPs and/or Galvus met® to diabetic rats showed significant amelioration of these parameters.

Biochemical study on occupational inhalation of benzene vapours in petrol station.

inhalation of benzene vapours promote various and dangerous health problems. Fuel station workers are most susceptible to benzene inhalation toxicity. Samples were collected twice, at beginning of the study and 6 months later from 40 fuel station workers from different egyptian governorates and 10 control healthy volunteers. Fuel station workers were sub divided into four groups according to years working in the station. All of them are exposed to benzene vapours and exhausts during their duties, their work shifts were 8 hrs./day. Results indicated that; benzene vapours exposure induced significant increasing in serum Lead and Cadmium and Myeloperoxidase (MPO) enzyme activity levels. This goes with marked immunologic changes presented by decreases in immunoglobulins; IgA and IgG, along with increases in levels of IgM and IgE. Also, Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly increased. Meanwhile, reduction in some other biochemical parameters including; Copper, Zinc and Iron micronutrients, as well as; Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), Catalase (CAT) enzyme levels and Glutathione (GSH) content. Hence, the study inferred that prolonged benzene inhalation can lead to biochemical and immune disorders, probably through potentiating oxidative stress and inflammation pathways.