Antioxidant, antiapoptotic, antigenotoxic, and hepatic ameliorative effects of L-carnitine and selenium on cadmium-induced hepatotoxicity and alterations in liver cell structure in male mice.

L-carnitine (LC) and selenium (Se) have significant protective and antioxidant effects on several tissues. Cadmium (Cd), widely used in some industries and emitted from fossil fuels, is a heavy metal having a number of side effects, including hepatotoxicity. This study aims to assess the ameliorative function of both LC and SeCl4 on cadmium chloride (CdCl2)-induced liver toxicity. In total, 70 male mice included in this study were allocated to seven groups: control, CdCl2, LC, SeCl4, CdCl2 plus SeCl4, CdCl2 plus LC, CdCl2 plus SeCl4 and LC groups. Hepatic aminotransferase (aspartate aminotransferase [AST] and alanine transaminase [ALT]) activity and tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-α] levels, as well as the antioxidant biomarkers (superoxide dismutase [SOD], glutathione reductase [GRx], glutathione-S-transferase [GST] and catalase [CAT], were examined. Histological and transmission electron microscopic [TEM] variations in the liver were used as indicators of liver damage after the administration of CdCl2-alone or CdCl2 with LC, SeCl4, or both. Genotoxic effects of CdCl2 were also evaluated and the possible roles of SeCl4 and/or LC on the expression of the antioxidant enzymes were studied. Results showed that administration of LC and SeCl4 decreased CdCl2-induced increase in ALT and AST levels and reduced oxidative stress to normal levels. In addition, LC combined with SeCl4 had a highly synergistic effect and elevated significantly the enzymatic antioxidants and decreased lipid peroxidation levels compared with those in the CdCl2-treated group. It is clear from the data that both LC and SeCl4 inhibit liver injury and improve the redox state in mice.

Ameliorative effect of bone marrow-derived stem cells on injured liver of mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni.

The technique of stem cells or hepatocytes transplantation has recently improved in order to bridge the time before whole-organ liver transplantation. In the present study, unfractionated bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) were harvested from the tibial and femoral marrow compartments of male mice, which were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM) with and without hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), and then transplanted into Schistosoma mansoni-infected female mice on their 8th week post-infection. Mice were sacrificed monthly until the third month of bone marrow transplantation, serum was collected, and albumin concentration, ALT, AST, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities were assayed. On the other hand, immunohistopathological and immunohistochemical changes of granuloma size and number, collagen content, and cells expressing OV-6 were detected for identification of liver fibrosis. BMSCs were shown to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells. Serum ALT, AST, and ALP were markedly reduced in the group of mice treated with BMSCs than in the untreated control group. Also, granuloma showed a marked decrease in size and number as compared to the BMSCs untreated group. Collagen content showed marked decrease after the third month of treatment with BMSCs. On the other hand, the expression of OV-6 increased detecting the presence of newly formed hepatocytes after BMSCs treatment. BMSCs with or without HGF infusion significantly enhanced hepatic regeneration in S. mansoni-induced fibrotic liver model and have pathologic and immunohistopathologic therapeutic effects. Also, this new therapeutic trend could generate new hepatocytes to improve the overall liver functions.

First record of anisakid juveniles (Nematoda) in the European seabass Dicentrarchus labrax (family: Moronidae), and their role as bio-indicators of heavy metal pollution.

This study assessed the anisakid nematode distribution pattern in the fish collected from coasts of Mediterranean Sea, Egypt, during the period September 2010-April 2011. Two hundred thirty out of 300 (76.7%) Dicentrarchus labrax (European seabass) marine fishes belonging to family Moronidae were dissected and found to be infected with larva three nematodes. The larvae had been studied by light and scanning electron microscopy. The present work represents the first record of the presence of the parasite in this fish in the Mediterranean Sea. The concentrations of some heavy metals (Pb, Zn, Fe, Cd, Cu, Mn, Ni) in parasites as well as in tissues of fish were measured. The presented results showed that the nematode parasites are able to accumulate heavy metals in their tissues and in some cases that they are able to accumulate large amounts of heavy metals in a higher amount than host tissues. This demonstrated their sustainability as bioindicators of environmental pollution by removing heavy metals and help in the survival of fish.

Effect of the change in energy reserves on the entomopathogenic nematode efficacy.

The free-living infective juveniles of the entomopathogenic nematodes are non-feeding, so the stored energy reserves in these juveniles are of great importance. The relationship between the energy reserves and the efficacy of the entomopathogenic nematodes of genera Heterorhabditis and Steinernema was studied. New progenies of S. riobrave and H. bacteriophora (ISK-2 strains), were obtained using the continuous culturing method of nematode juveniles (IJs), for the several cycles under the optimum condition of the temperature (25 degrees C) and nematode density (20 IJs/ larva), inside the host Galleria mellonella. Thus, the nematode efficacy was maximized with a high conservation of energy reserves. The results showed that there was an increase in the penetration rate and the virulence through the new progenies of S. riobrave and H. bacteriophora than in the original progenies, with an increase in the energy reserves.