Comparison of Antiaging Effects on Rat Skin of Cog Thread and Poly-L-Lactic Acid Thread.

BACKGROUND: Polydioxanone Cog thread and poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) thread have been used clinically for lifting and antiaging purposes. However, the histological changes in tissue and the efficacy of these 2 different types of thread have not been compared. OBJECTIVE: This study used hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining, Masson's trichrome staining, and electron microscopy (EM) to compare the results associated with the use of Cog thread and PLLA thread in rat skin. METHODS: Thirty female rats were divided into 3 groups of 10 rats each: a control group; a Cog group; and a PLLA group. Biopsy specimens obtained at 1, 3, and 6 months were examined using H&E, MT, and EM. RESULTS: Although significant increases were observed in dermal thickness and the numbers of fibroblasts in the PLLA group compared with the control group within the first month (p: .019), there were no significant differences between the Cog and control groups during this period (p: .245). Dermal thickness (p: .002) and numbers of fibroblasts (p: .001) were similar in samples obtained from the PLLA and Cog groups at 3 and 6 months, and both groups showed significantly improved outcomes compared with the control group. CONCLUSION: Poly-L-lactic acid and Cog sutures were effective in facial rejuvenation; both increased dermis thickness and stimulated collagen production.

The effects of acrylamide and Vitamin E administration during pregnancy on adult rats testis.

Thirty rats, with confirmed pregnancies by vaginal smear, were divided into five groups, each including six rats, as the Control, Corn Oil, Vitamin E, Acrylamide, Vitamin E + Acrylamide groups. The births were monitored on the 21st day to select the male rats, and the selected male rats were decapitated at the end of the 8th week. Oxidant-antioxidant parameters, serum hormone levels and histopathological examinations were performed on testis tissues of the rats. It was found that acrylamide (AA) negatively affected the serum hormone levels (Total Testosterone, Progesterone, FSH, LH, Estradiol), oxidant-antioxidant parameters in the tissues (MDA, GSH, NO, SOD, CAT, TAS, TOS) (p < 0.05) and the histological findings (the Johnson's score, seminiferous tubule diameter, histopathological images), and Vitamin E administration resulted with an increase in the total testosterone, progesterone, FSH, LH, GSH, TAS, NO, SOD, CAT levels (p < 0.05) and an improvement in histopathological findings. Currently, it is almost inevitable to be exposed to food-induced AA toxicity and such toxicity is likely to cause lifelong damage. It was concluded that Vitamin E was able to present a protective effect in the testis tissue against AA toxicity; however, further studies are necessary.

Melatonin preserves ovarian tissues of rats exposed to chronic TCDD: An electron microscopic approach to effects of TCDD on ovarian cells.

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo- p-dioxin (TCDD) is a toxic agent and has disruptive effects on reproductive tissues in females. TCDD disrupts the hormonal regulation of the body and decreases the production of melatonin. In this study, we investigated the protective effects of melatonin supplements against the toxic effects of TCDD on ovaries of female rats. TCDD caused a significant decrease in the average number of corpora lutea and follicles per tissue section (2.1 ± 0.7; 2.3 ± 0.8, respectively), whereas these numbers were maintained in the melatonin supplemented group (5.0 ± 0.8; 5.1 ± 0.8, respectively) and were similar to the control group (5.3 ± 1.0; 5.9 ± 0.9, respectively). Electron microscopic analysis showed that the disruption of ultrastructure components such as cell membrane and organelles due to TCDD exposure was inhibited by melatonin supplements. This study suggested that melatonin has a protective and a possible ameliorative effect over histopathological damage of rat ovaries exposed to TCDD.

Comparison of nerve, vessel, and cartilage grafts in promoting peripheral nerve regeneration.

Peripheral nerve injury primarily occurs due to trauma as well as factors such as tumors, inflammatory diseases, congenital deformities, infections, and surgical interventions. The surgical procedure to be performed as treatment depends on the etiology, type of injury, and the anatomic region. The goal of treatment is to minimize loss of function due to motor and sensory nerve loss at the distal part of the injury. Regardless of the cause of the injury, the abnormal nerve regeneration due to incomplete nerve regeneration, optimal treatment of peripheral nerve injuries should provide adequate coaptation of proximal and distal sides without tension, preserving the neurotrophic factors within the repair line. The gold standard for the treatment of nerve defects is the autograft; however, due to denervation of the donor site, scarring, and neuroma formation, many studies have aimed to develop simpler methods, better functional results, and less morbidity. In this study, a defect 1 cm in length was created on the sciatic nerve of rats. The rats were treated with the following procedures: group 1, autograft; group 2, allogeneic aorta graft; group 3, diced cartilage graft in allogeneic aorta graft; and group 4, tubularized cartilage graft in allogeneic aorta graft. Group 5 was the control group. The effects of cartilage tissue in nerve regeneration were evaluated by functional and histomorphological methods.Group 1, for which the repair was performed with an autograft, was evaluated to be the most similar to the control group. There was not a statistically significant difference in myelination and Schwann cell rates between group 2, in which an allogeneic aorta graft was used, and group 3, in which diced cartilage in an allogeneic aorta graft was used. In group 4, myelination and Schwann cell formation were observed; however, they were scattered and irregular, likely due to increased fibrosis.In all of the groups, nerve regeneration at various rates was observed both functionally and histomorphologically. This study demonstrates that cartilage tissue has promoting effects in nerve regeneration.

Synthesis of Cyclodextrin-Based Multifunctional Biocompatible Hydrogels and Their Use in the Prevention of Intrauterine Adhesions (Asherman's Syndrome) after Surgical Injury.

Asherman's syndrome, which can occur during the regeneration of damaged uterine tissue after surgical interventions, is a significant health problem in women. This study aimed to acquire and characterize cyclodextrin-based hydrogels, which can be used to prevent Asherman's syndrome, and investigate their effectiveness with biomedical applications. A series of hydrogels were synthesized from the cross-linking of ß-cyclodextrin and different polyphenols with epoxy-functional PEG. Their chemical, physical, and biological properties were subsequently determined. The results demonstrated that the cyclodextrin-based hydrogels had a porous structure, high swelling ratio, good injectability, drug release ability, and antioxidant activity. Cell culture results illustrated that the hydrogels had no significant cytotoxicity toward L929 fibroblast cells. Considering all properties, the ß-CD-PEG-600-Ec hydrogel showed the most satisfactory properties rather than other ones. The potential of this hydrogel in preventing Asherman's syndrome was evaluated in a rat model. The results revealed that the ß-estradiol- and melatonin-loaded cyclodextrin-based multifunctional hydrogel group both structurally and mechanically showed an antiadhesion effect in the uterus and a therapeutic effect on the damage with the ß-estradiol and melatonin that it contains compared to the Asherman (ASH) group. This double drug-loaded hydrogel can be a promising candidate for preventing Asherman's syndrome due to its versatile properties.

Vitamin E effects on developmental disorders in fetuses and cognitive dysfunction in adults following acrylamide treatment during pregnancy.

We investigated the effects of acrylamide (AA) and vitamin E treatment during pregnancy on brain tissues of fetuses and on adult rats. Pregnant rats were divided into five groups: control, corn oil, vitamin E, AA, vitamin E +AA. The rats administered AA received10 mg/kg/day and those administered vitamin E received 100 mg/kg/day both by via oral gavage for 20 days. On day 20 of pregnancy, half of the pregnant rats were removed by cesarean section in each group. Morphological development parameters were measured in each fetus and histopathological, biochemical and genetic analyses were conducted on the fetuses. The remaining pregnant rats in each group gave birth to the fetuses vaginally and biochemical, histopathological, genetic and cognitive function tests were conducted when the pups were 8 weeks old. AA administration caused adverse effects on fetus number, fetal weight, crown-rump length, placenta and brain weight. AA negatively affected malondialdehyde, reduced glutathione, total oxidant and antioxidant status, brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels, brain tissue morphology, histopathology error score and gene expression (BDNF/ß-actin mRNA ratio) in fetuses. AA administration caused disruption of biochemical, histopathological and cognitive functions in adult rats. Vitamin E provided protection against neurotoxicity in both fetuses and adult rats. We conclude that exposure to AA during pregnancy should be avoided and adequate amounts of antioxidants, such as vitamin E, should be consumed.

Thymoquinone protection against 2, 3, 7, 8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin induced nephrotoxicity in rats.

We investigated the effects of thymoquinone (TQ) on kidney tissues of Wistar rats with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) induced nephrotoxicity. We used 50 rats divided into five groups; control, corn oil, TCDD, TQ, TCDD + TQ. We found that malondialdehyde (MDA), total oxidant status (TOS), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, interleukin 6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels in the TCDD treated group increased significantly compared to the other groups, while reduced glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and total antioxidant status (TAS) levels decreased in the TCDD group. In the TQ treated group, we found that GSH, SOD, CAT, TAS levels increased and MDA, TOS, IL-6 and TNF-α levels decreased compared to the other groups. The effects of TCDD on oxidative stress parameters, inflammatory markers and histological changes were ameliorated by TQ treatment.

Effects of Melatonin and Dexamethasone on Facial Nerve Neurorrhaphy.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of topical and systemic administrations of melatonin and dexamethasone on facial nerve regeneration. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In total, 50 male albino Wistar rats underwent facial nerve axotomy and neurorrhaphy. The animals were divided into 5 groups: control, topical melatonin, systemic melatonin, topical dexamethasone, and systemic dexamethasone. Nerve conduction studies were performed preoperatively and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 weeks after drug administrations. Amplitude and latency of the compound muscle action potentials were recorded. Coapted facial nerves were investigated under light and electron microscopy. Nerve diameter, axon diameter, and myelin thickness were recorded quantitatively. RESULTS: Amplitudes decreased and latencies increased in both the melatonin and dexamethasone groups. At the final examination, the electrophysiological evidence of facial nerve degeneration was not significantly different between the groups. Histopathological examinations revealed the largest nerve diameter in the melatonin groups, followed by the dexamethasone and control groups (p<0.05). Axon diameter of the control group was smaller than those of the melatonin (topical and systemic) and topical dexamethasone groups (p<0.05). The melatonin groups had almost normal myelin ultrastructure. CONCLUSION: Electrophysiological evaluation did not reveal any potential benefit of dexamethasone and melatonin in contrast to histopathological examination, which revealed beneficial effects of melatonin in particular. These agents may increase the regeneration of facial nerves, but electrophysiological evidence of regeneration may appear later.

The effects of acrylamide and vitamin E on kidneys in pregnancy: an experimental study.

Objectives: The objective of this study is to investigate possible damages to kidney tissues of pregnant rats and their fetuses exposed to acrylamide during pregnancy and possible protective effects of vitamin E against these damages. Material and methods: Rats were randomly assigned to five groups of control, corn oil, vitamin E, acrylamide, vitamin E + acrylamide, six pregnant rats in each. Mother and fetal kidney tissues were examined for malondialdehyde (MDA), reductase glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidant status (TOS), urea, creatine, trace elements such as Zn and Cu in the serum and histopathological analyses were conducted. Results: It was determined that acrylamide, administered during pregnancy, statistically significantly increased MDA and TOS levels, maternal serum urea, creatinine, and Zn levels, while it decreased GSH, TAS, SOD, and CAT levels (p ≤ .05) when compared with all other groups in the kidney tissues of pregnant rats and their fetuses and caused tubular degeneration, hemorrhage, narrowing, and closure in Bowman's space, and, in the E vitamin group, it statistically significantly increased GSH, TAS, SOD, CAT, urea, creatinine, and Zn levels when compared with other groups and lowered TOS and MDA levels to those of the control group (p < .05) and there were no differences between the groups histologically. Conclusion: It was observed that acrylamide administered during pregnancy caused oxidative stress in kidney tissues of mother rats and their fetuses, resulting in tissue damage, and vitamin E application, which is considered to be a powerful antioxidant, inhibited oxidative stress.

Protective Effects of Alpha-Lipoic Acid on Methotrexate-Induced Oxidative Lung Injury in Rats.

OBJECTIVE: Oxidative stress is one of the major causes of methotrexate induced lung injury (MILI). Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA), which occurs naturally in human food, has antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities. The aim of this study was to research the potential protective role of ALA on MILI in rats. METHODS: Twenty one rats were randomly subdivided into three groups: control (group I), methotrexate (MTX) treated (group II), and MTX+ALA treated (group III). Lung injury was performed with a single dose of MTX (20 mg/kg) to groups 2 and 3. On the sixth day, animals in all groups were sacrificed by decapitation and lung tissue and blood samples were removed for histological examination and also measurement the levels of interleukin-1-beta (IL-1ß), malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), myeloperoxidase (MPO), and sodium potassium-adenosine triphosphatase (Na+/K+ATPase). RESULTS: In MTX group tissue GSH, Na+/K+ATPase activities were lower, tissue MDA, MPO and plasma IL-1?, TNF-? were significantly higher than the other groups. Histopathological examination showed that lung injury was less severe in group 2 according to group 3. CONCLUSIONS: Oxidative damage of MTX in rat lung is partially reduced when combined with ALA.

Acrylamide applied during pregnancy causes the neurotoxic effect by lowering BDNF levels in the fetal brain.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to elucidate the possible mechanism of neurotoxic effect of acrylamide (AA) applied during pregnancy on fetal brain development and to show the effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on AA toxicity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four groups were formed with 9 pregnant rats each as control (C), acrylamide (AA), N-acetylcysteine (NAC), acrylamide plus N-acetylcysteine (AA plus NAC) groups. Caesarian section was implemented on the 20th day of pregnancy. Malondialdehyde (MDA), reduced glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were analyzed and histopathologic examinations were performed in brain tissues of the fetuses. RESULTS: Our data indicated that AA caused necrotic death and hemorrhagic damages in fetal brain tissue with decreasing BNDF levels and increasing oxidative stress. N-acetylcysteine prevented the toxic effects of its on fetal brain (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Our study indicated that acrylamide has toxic effects in the fetal brain and N-acetylcysteine prevents its toxic effect.

Protective role of intratympanic nigella sativa oil against gentamicin induced hearing loss.

OBJECTIVE: Aminoglycosides, used to combat with life-threatening infections, have a substantial risk of hearing loss. Nigella sativa is an annual herbaceous plant and used for treatment of many diseases for ages. We aimed to investigate the protective role of intratympanic nigella sativa oil against gentamicin induced hearing loss in an animal model. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Twenty eight guinea pigs were randomly divided into four groups: i-control, ii- Intratympanic nigella sativa oil (IT-NSO), iii- Intraperitoneal gentamicin (IP-G) and iv- Intraperitoneal gentamicin and intratympanic nigella sativa oil (IP-G + IT-NSO). Preoperative and postoperative hearing thresholds were determined with auditory brainstem response with click and 8 kHz tone-burst stimuli. Histological analysis of the cochlea specimens were performed under light microscope. Semiquantitative grading of the histological findings was carried out and compared between the groups. RESULTS: Highest posttreatment hearing thresholds were detected in IP-G group. Posttreatment mean hearing threshold of the IP-G group with click stimulus was significantly higher than the IP-G + IT-NSO group (p = 0.004). whereas the difference was not significant with 8 kHz tone-burst stimulus (p = 0.137). Both IP-G and IP-G + IT-NSO groups had significantly higher hearing thresholds compared to control and IT-NSO groups (p > 0.05). Histological examination of the control and IT-NSO groups demonstrated normal appearance of cochlear nerve, stria vascularis and organ of Corti. IP-G group showed the most severe histological alterations including hydropic and vacuolar degenerations, hair cell damage and deformation of the basilar mambrane. Histological evidence of damage was significantly reduced in IP-G + IT-NSO group compared to IP-G group. CONCLUSION: Addition of intratympanic NSO to systemic gentamicin was demonstrated to have beneficial effects in hearing thresholds which was supported by histological findings.

Hepatoprotective effects of crocin on biochemical and histopathological alterations following acrylamide-induced liver injury in Wistar rats.

The objective of the present study is the treatment of oxidative damage caused by acrylamide induced oxidative stress in rats with the administration of a strong antioxidant, namely crocin. High acrylamide (AA) levels have genotoxic, carcinogenic and neurotoxic effects on living organisms. In the present study, 40 Wistar rats were randomly divided into four equal groups. These groups were control, acrylamide (25mg/kg), crocin (50mg/kg), acrylamide+crocin (25mg/kg acrylamide and 50mg/kg crocin) groups. At the end of the application, biochemical and histological variations were examined in liver and blood samples. It was observed that acrylamide administration significantly decreased liver GSH and TAS levels when compared to the control group. On the contrary, it was also observed that AST, ALT, ALP, SOD and CAT activities and TOS and MDA levels increased as a result of acrylamide administration. Histopathological examinations demonstrated inflammatory cell infiltration, hepatocellular necrosis and hemorrhage areas in AA group liver sections. Furthermore, intracytoplasmic vacuolization was detected in hepatocytes. After crocin treatment, it was observed that GSH and TAS levels increased while AST, ALT, ALP, SOD and CAT activities and TOS and MDA levels decreased. Significant decreases were observed in inflammatory cell infiltration and vascular congestion in liver sections and intracytoplasmic vacuolization in hepatocytes after the crocin treatment, while no hepatocellular necrosis and hemorrhages were observed. In the present study, it was demonstrated that crocin treatment removed acrylamide induced liver damage due to the strong antioxidant properties of crocin.

The histopathologic effects of L-carnitine in Sodium Taurocholate Induced Severe Pancreatitis Model.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the histopathologic effects of L-carnitine (LC) in an experimental severe pancreatitis (SP) model induced with sodium taurocholate (STC). SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: LC is an amino acid-like molecule that plays an active role in transporting fatty acids and producing Acetyl CoA in mitochondrial matrix for ß-oxidation to provide energy which is needed for metabolism. It has ameliorative effects on cell injury demonstrated in many studies. The present study focuses on evaluating histopathologic effects of LC in an experimental SP model. METHODS: This experimental study in rats was conducted at the Experimental Animal Research Laboratory of the Faculty of Medicine of Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey. Thirty-two Spraque-dawley male rats were divided into 4 groups in a randomized fashion: control (C) group, L-carnitine (LC) group, pancreatitis (P) group, pancreatitis and L-carnitine (P+LC) group. Pancreatitis was induced by a retrograde pancreatic duct injection of 4% sodium taurocholate and L-carnitine was administered 200 mg/kg/day in treatment group. Rats were euthanized with cardiac puncture under anesthesia at 48th hour of the experiment for biochemical and histopathological examination. RESULTS: In (P+LC) group, the histopathological findings of the pancreatitis were markedly reduced. Acinar cell degeneration was rarely seen. Interlobular and intralobular inflammation and edema was generally mild. The pancreatic damage score of (P+LC) group was significantly lower than that of the (P) group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: This study revealed that l-carnitine has a significant histopathologic protective effect on acinar cell degeneration in STC-induced SP model in rats.

Calculation of melatonin and resveratrol effects on steatosis hepatis using soft computing methods.

In this work, beneficial effects of melatonin and resveratrol drugs on liver damage in rats, induced by application of acute and chronic carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) have been examined. The study consists of three main stages: (1) DATA ACQUISITION: light microscopic images were obtained from 60 rats separated into 10 groups after the preparation of liver tissue samples for histological examination. Rats in first five experimental groups for the four-day and the other five groups for twenty-day were examined. (2) Data processing: by the help of histograms of oriented gradient (HOG) method, obtaining low-dimensional image features (color, shape and texture) and classifying five different group characteristics by using these features with artificial neural networks (ANNs), and support vector machines (SVMs) have been provided. (3) Calculation of drug effectiveness: firstly to determine the differences between group characteristics of rats, a pilot group has been selected (diseased group-CCl4), and the responses of ANN and SVM trained by HOG features have been calculated. As a result of ANN, it has been seen that melatonin and resveratrol drugs have %65.62-%75.12 positive effects at the end of the fourth day, %84.12-%98.89 positive effects on healing steatosis hepatis at the end of the twentieth day respectively and as a result of SVM, it has been seen that melatonin and resveratrol drugs have %62.5-%68.75 positive effects at the end of the fourth day, %45.12-%60.89 positive effects on healing steatosis hepatis at the end of the twentieth day respectively.