Reduced red blood cell membrane damage in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats supplemented with roselle (UKMR-2) calyx extract.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of aqueous extract of roselle on the membrane composition of red blood cells. A total of 32 male Sprague-Dawley rats (230-250 g) were divided randomly into four groups. Diabetic rats were induced streptozotocin (45 mg kg(-1), i.v). The normal and diabetes groups were administrated with distilled water. The other normal and diabetes group were administrated with roselle aqueous extracts (100 mg kg(-1)). After 28 days, the blood was drawn by sinus orbital for biochemical tests including membrane total protein, cholesterol and phosphatidylcholine and morphology of red blood cells was carried out through light microscope. In diabetic rats, the result showed the weight of rat, membrane total protein and Phosphatidylcholine (PCh) were significantly lower (p<0.05), while blood glucose and membrane cholesterol showed significantly higher (p<0.05) than control rats. In diabetic rats demonstrated with roselle, the result showed no significant difference (p>0.05) in weight and blood glucose compared to diabetic rats. The membrane total protein and PCh were significantly higher (p<0.05) than diabetic rats, whereas membrane cholesterol was significantly lower (p<0.05) compared to diabetic rats. The observation red blood cells morphology that showed echinocytes, schistocytes and Heinz body in diabetic rats was caused by oxidative stress damage. The morphology of red blood cells in diabetic rats supplemented with roselle is normal. Aqueous extract of roselle showed potential protective effects on membrane composition of damaged red blood cells.

Haptoglobin typing and quantitation in normal Chinese females and gynecologic cancer patients.

Haptoglobin typing with polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and guaiacol staining was performed in 1028 sera, including 215 cases of various gynecologic malignancies, 45 of benign gynecologic tumors, 99 of pregnancy, 2 of infection, and 667 of healthy subjects as controls. In the control group, excluding 9 cases of hypohaptoglobinemia, the incidences of haptoglobin type 1-1, 2-1, and 2-2 were 12.00%, 41.03%, and 46.96% respectively. The Hp alpha 1 gene frequency was 0.3251. In cervical cancer and ovarian cancer, the incidence of type 1-1 was lower, while in corpus cancer, it was remarkably elevated. The frequency of Hp alpha 1 gene decreased in cervical cancer but increased in corpus cancer and other miscellaneous gynecologic cancer patients. However, the type distribution of gynecologic malignancy as a group was almost the same as that in the control group. The association of malignancy and haptoglobin types awaits further study. With single radial immunodiffusion technic, haptoglobin quantitation was also performed in 655 cases. In 331 nonpregnant healthy subjects, the mean levels in type 1-1, 2-1, and 2-2 were 118.4, 180.9, and 137.9 mg% respectively. While the haptoglobin level during pregnancy and in most benign gynecologic tumors remained the same as in normal controls, it was significantly elevated in corpus cancer, ovarian cancer and advanced cervical cancers. A close association between malignancy and elevated haptoglobin levels was evident.

Secretion of human chorionic gonadotropin and alpha-fetoprotein by an ovarian germ cell tumor of apparent yolk sac origin.

alpha-Fetoprotein (alpha FP) and four placental proteins, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), human placental lactogen (hpL), pregnancy specific beta 1-glycoprotein (SP1), and placental protein 5 (PP5), were measured in a 17-year-old patient with endodermal sinus tumor of the ovary. The circulating levels of alpha FP were consistently high (more than 14 mg/ml), and alpha FP was localized in tissue sections using immunohistochemical techniques. None of the four placental proteins was detectable in serum samples, but hCG was detected in urinary concentrates in an episodic manner. This ectopic hCG resembled placental hCG in its physicochemical and immunological characteristics. Unlike alpha FP, hCG was not detected in the tumor by immunohistochemical methods. This study indicates that the neoplasm elaborated both hCG and alpha FP. Whether pure endodermal sinus tumor of the ovary is capable of secreting hCG cannot be answered by this study because of limited histologic sampling. The likelihood that this represents a mixed germ cell tumor in which only the endodermal sinus tumor element was sampled remains a possibility. This study also indicates that the 24-hr urinary concentrate is far more sensitive than serum samples for hCG detection.