Alleviation of nicotine-induced reproductive disorder, clastogenicity, and histopathological alterations by fenugreek saponin bulk and nanoparticles in male rats.

Nicotine is the most abundant ingredient in cigarette smoking and has serious side effects on the lung, heart, reproductive system, and many other human organs. Saponins extracted from many plants exhibit multiple biological actions such as anti-cancer effects. Therefore, the possible protective effect of fenugreek saponin (FS) and nanofenugreek saponin (NFS) against nicotine-induced toxicity in male rats was investigated in this study. Animals were divided into a control group and the nicotine (1.5 mg/kg/day), FS (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg/day), or/and NFS (20, 40, and 80 mg/kg/day) administered groups. Micronucleus assay, histopathological, and sperm abnormality examinations as well as measurement of the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) gene expression were conducted. Our findings revealed that nicotine treatment induced significant increases in the incidence of micronucleus, sperm abnormalities, and expression levels of AChE in addition to inducing histopathological changes in rat testis. On the other hand, administration of FS or NFS with nicotine significantly decreased the incidence of micronuclei and the percentage of sperm abnormalities as well as the expression levels of AChE gene. Moreover, nicotine-induced histological alterations were reduced by given FS or NFS with nicotine. In conclusion, nicotine-induced sperm abnormalities, chromosomal damage, and histological injuries were mitigated by administration of FS or NFS with nicotine, and thus, FS and NFS could be used as ameliorating agents against nicotine toxicity.

The Role of Breast Cancer Stem Cells and Some Related Molecular Biomarkers in Metastatic and Nonmetastatic Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) play important role(s) in the development and progression of invasive duct carcinoma (IDC). We assessed the role of BCSC marker expression and the number of mammospheres in cultures of breast cancer (BC) tissues and correlated these data to relevant clinicopathologic features of the patients and overall survival (OS). METHODS: Fresh tumor tissue samples were collected from 44 Egyptian female patients with IDC of the breast and 25 healthy women undergoing reduction mammoplasty as a control. The mammosphere number and the RNA expression levels of some cancer stem cell-related genes (PTEN, PI3K, AKT, Wnt, and ß-catenin) were assessed by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction at different stages of BCSC differentiation compared with control samples. RESULTS: The number of CD44+CD24-/low cells associated significantly at the end of culture with the expression level of Wnt, ß-catenin, and distant metastasis (P < .001, P = .015 and P = .003, respectively). There was significant association between the mammosphere number and CD44+CD24-/low cells as well as AKT expression (P = .040 and .021, respectively). PTEN messenger RNA expressed significantly in BC (P < .05). Wnt-RNA expression associated significantly with high tumor stage, positive lymph node status, Her2-neu overexpression, and metastasis (P = .009, .012, .026, and .001, respectively), whereas OS associated significantly with distant metastasis, Wnt, and PTEN expressions (P < .001, P = .001, P = .014, respectively). CONCLUSION: BCSCs and their related genes (PTEN, PI3K, AKT, Wnt, and ß-catenin) play important roles in the development and progression of BC and they can be used as potential prognostic and predictive biomarkers for patients with BC or as target therapy.