Ozonation of Brazil nuts (Bertholletia excelsa H.B.K. ): effect of column height on the saturation process and changes in quality / Ozonização de castanha-do-Brasil (Bertholletia excelsa H.B.K. ): efeito da altura da coluna no processo de saturação e alterações na qualidade

The objective of this study is to examine the saturation process in a column containing Brazil nuts and possible changes in the quality of the product. Brazil nut samples were initially placed in a cylindrical PVC column 15 cm in diameter and 110 cm in height. The ozone gas concentrations of 2.5, 4.5, 9.0, and 14.0 mg L-1 and a flow rate of 3.0 L min-1 were applied at a temperature of 25 ºC. Ozone gas was injected at the base of the cylindrical column, and the seed column height values adopted were 0.25, 0.50, and 0.75 m. Saturation concentration and time were determined. To measure possible changes in the quality of ozonized Brazil nuts, moisture and color, as well as qualitative variables of the crude oil were evaluated at the exposure times of 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 h. To evaluate the quality of the crude oil extracted from ozonized nuts, the free fatty acid content, peroxide value, and iodine value were analyzed. Increasing ozonation times increased ozone concentration at all inlet gas concentrations. Saturation time decreased as the inlet gas concentration was increased, at the different product column heights. There was no change in product moisture in response to ozonation. Ozonation did not induce significant changes in color or in the crude oil, due to the triple interaction between column height, ozone concentration, and exposure time. In conclusion, the height of the product's column influences saturation time and concentration during the ozonation process. Considering the color of the product and characteristics of its crude oil, the use of ozone under the conditions adopted in the present study does not affect the quality of Brazil nuts to the point of rendering them unmarketable.

O objetivo do presente trabalho é estudar o processo de saturação em coluna contendo castanha-do-Brasil e possíveis alterações na qualidade do produto. Inicialmente as amostras de castanha-do-Brasil foram acondicionadas em coluna cilíndrica de PVC de 15 cm de diâmetro e 110 cm de altura. Foram adotadas as concentrações do gás ozônio de 2,5, 4,5, 9,0 e 14,0 mg L-1 e vazão de 3,0 L min-1, na temperatura de 25 ºC. O gás ozônio foi injetado na base da coluna cilíndrica e os valores adotados de altura da coluna de grãos foram de 0,25, 0,50, e 0,75 m. Determinaram-se o tempo e a concentração de saturação. Na avaliação de possíveis alterações na qualidade de castanhas-do-Brasil ozonizadas foram determinados a umidade, coloração e variáveis qualitativas do óleo bruto, com tempos de exposição de 0, 3, 6, 9 e 12 h. Para avaliação da qualidade do óleo bruto extraído de castanhas ozonizadas foram analisadas o teor de ácidos graxos livres, o índice de peróxido e o índice de iodo. A elevação do período de ozonização promoveu aumento da concentração do ozônio para todas as concentrações de entrada do gás. No que se refere aos valores de tempo de saturação, à medida que se elevou a concentração de entrada do gás, houve redução do tempo de saturação, nas diferentes alturas de coluna do produto. Não houve variação da umidade do produto em decorrência da ozonização. A ozonização não provocou alterações significativas na cor e no óleo bruto, em decorrência da interação tripla entre altura da coluna do produto, concentração do ozônio e tempo de exposição. É possível concluir que a altura da coluna do produto influencia o tempo e a concentração de saturação, durante o processo de ozonização. O uso do ozônio nas condições adotadas no presente estudo não afeta a qualidade da castanhado-Brasil, considerando-se a cor do produto e características do óleo bruto, de tal forma a inviabilizar a comercialização.

Ozone ultrafine bubble water inhibits the early formation of Candida albicans biofilms.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of ozone ultrafine bubble water (OUFBW) on the formation and growth of Candida albicans (C. albicans) biofilms and surface properties of denture base resins. OUFBWs were prepared under concentrations of 6 (OUFBW6), 9 (OUFBW9), and 11 ppm (OUFBW11). Phosphate buffered saline and ozone-free electrolyte aqueous solutions (OFEAS) were used as controls. Acrylic resin discs were made according to manufacturer instructions, and C. albicans was initially cultured on the discs for 1.5 h. A colony forming unit (CFU) assay was performed by soaking the discs in OUFBW for 5 min after forming a 24-h C. albicans biofilm. The discs after initial attachment for 1.5 h were immersed in OUFBW and then cultured for 0, 3, and 5 h. CFUs were subsequently evaluated at each time point. Moreover, a viability assay, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Alamar Blue assay, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) test were performed. To investigate the long-term effects of OUFBW on acrylic resin surface properties, Vickers hardness (VH) and surface roughness (Ra) were measured. We found that OUFBW9 and OUFBW11 significantly degraded the formed 24-h biofilm. The time point CFU assay showed that C. albicans biofilm formation was significantly inhibited due to OUFBW11 exposure. Interestingly, fluorescence microscopy revealed that almost living cells were observed in all groups. In SEM images, the OUFBW group had lesser number of fungi and the amount of non-three-dimensional biofilm than the control group. In the Alamar Blue assay, OUFBW11 was found to suppress Candida metabolic function. The qRT-PCR test showed that OUFBW down-regulated ALS1 and ALS3 expression regarding cell-cell, cell-material adhesion, and biofilm formation. Additionally, VH and Ra were not significantly different between the two groups. Overall, our data suggest that OUFBW suppressed C. albicans growth and biofilm formation on polymethyl methacrylate without impairing surface properties.

Fatigue in post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV2 (PASC) treated with oxygen-ozone autohemotherapy - preliminary results on 100 patients.

OBJECTIVE: Post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV2 infection (PASC) are a novel terminology used to describe post-COVID persistent symptoms, mimicking somehow the previously described chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). In this manuscript, we evaluated a therapeutical approach to address PASC-derived fatigue in a cohort of past-COVID-19 positive patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A number of 100 patients, previously diagnosed as COVID-19 positive subjects and meeting our eligibility criteria, was diagnosed having PASC-related fatigue. They were recruited in the study and treated with oxygen-ozone autohemotherapy (O2-O3-AHT), according to the SIOOT protocol. Patients' response to O2-O3-AHT and changes in fatigue were measured with the 7-scoring Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), according to previously published protocols. RESULTS: Statistics assessed that the effects of O2-O3-AHT on fatigue reduced PASC symptoms by 67%, as a mean, in all the investigated cohort of patients (H = 148.4786 p < 0.0001) (Figure 1). Patients following O2-O3-AHT therapy, quite completely recovered for PASC-associated fatigue, a quote amounting to about two fifths (around 40%) of the whole cohort undergoing ozone treatment and despite most of patients were female subjects, the effect was not influenced by sex distribution (H = 0.7353, p = 0.39117). CONCLUSIONS: Ozone therapy is able to recover normal functionality and to relief pain and discomfort in the form of PASC-associated fatigue in at least 67% of patients suffering from post-COVID sequelae, aside from sex and age distribution.

Oxygen-ozone therapy for the treatment of low back pain: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to review the available literature on the application of oxygen-ozone therapy (OOT) in the treatment of low back pain (LBP), to understand its therapeutic potential and compare it with other available treatment options. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic review was performed on the PubMed and Scopus databases, with the following inclusion criteria: (1) randomized controlled trials (RCTs), (2) published in the last 20 years, (3) dealing with OOT in patients with LBP and herniated disc, (4) comparing the results of OOT with those of other treatments. The risk of bias was assessed by the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. RESULTS: Fifteen studies involving 2597 patients in total were included. Patients in the control groups received different treatments, from oral drugs to other injections, instrumental therapy and even surgery: corticosteroids were used in 5 studies, analgesic therapy in 2 studies; placebo, microdiscectomy, laser-therapy, TENS and postural rehabilitation, percutaneous radiofrequency intradiscal thermocoagulation and psoas compartmental block were tested in the other trials. Looking at the quality of the literature, none of the studies included reached "good quality" standard, 3 were ranked as "fair" and the rest were considered "poor". Comparison of OOT results with other approaches showed that, in the majority of studies, OOT was superior to the control treatment, and also when compared to microdiscectomy, ozone showed non inferiority in terms of clinical outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: The analysis of literature revealed overall poor methodologic quality, with most studies flawed by relevant bias. However, OOT has proven to be a safe treatment with beneficial effects in pain control and functional recovery at short to medium term follow-up.

Ozone in Medicine. The Low-Dose Ozone Concept and Its Basic Biochemical Mechanisms of Action in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases.

Low-dose ozone acts as a bioregulator in chronic inflammatory diseases, biochemically characterized by high oxidative stress and a blocked regulation. During systemic applications, "Ozone peroxides" are able to replace H2O2 in its specific function of regulation, restore redox signaling, and improve the antioxidant capacity. Two different mechanisms have to be understood. Firstly, there is the direct mechanism, used in topical treatments, mostly via radical reactions. In systemic treatments, the indirect, ionic mechanism is to be discussed: "ozone peroxide" will be directly reduced by the glutathione system, informing the nuclear factors to start the regulation. The GSH/GSSG balance outlines the ozone dose and concentration limiting factor. Antioxidants are regulated, and in the case of inflammatory diseases up-regulated; cytokines are modulated, here downregulated. Rheumatoid arthritis RA as a model for chronic inflammation: RA, in preclinical and clinical trials, reflects the pharmacology of ozone in a typical manner: SOD (superoxide dismutase), CAT (catalase) and finally GSH (reduced glutathione) increase, followed by a significant reduction of oxidative stress. Inflammatory cytokines are downregulated. Accordingly, the clinical status improves. The pharmacological background investigated in a remarkable number of cell experiments, preclinical and clinical trials is well documented and published in internationally peer reviewed journals. This should encourage clinicians to set up clinical trials with chronic inflammatory diseases integrating medical ozone as a complement.

Ozone inactivation of airborne influenza and lack of resistance of respiratory syncytial virus to aerosolization and sampling processes.

Influenza and RSV are human viruses responsible for outbreaks in hospitals, long-term care facilities and nursing homes. The present study assessed an air treatment using ozone at two relative humidity conditions (RHs) in order to reduce the infectivity of airborne influenza. Bovine pulmonary surfactant (BPS) and synthetic tracheal mucus (STM) were used as aerosols protectants to better reflect the human aerosol composition. Residual ozone concentration inside the aerosol chamber was also measured. RSV's sensitivity resulted in testing its resistance to aerosolization and sampling processes instead of ozone exposure. The results showed that without supplement and with STM, a reduction in influenza A infectivity of four orders of magnitude was obtained with an exposure to 1.70 ± 0.19 ppm of ozone at 76% RH for 80 min. Consequently, ozone could be considered as a virucidal disinfectant for airborne influenza A. RSV did not withstand the aerosolization and sampling processes required for the use of the experimental setup. Therefore, ozone exposure could not be performed for this virus. Nonetheless, this study provides great insight for the efficacy of ozone as an air treatment for the control of nosocomial influenza A outbreaks.

CORonavirus-19 mild to moderate pneumonia Management with blood Ozonization in patients with Respiratory failure (CORMOR) multicentric prospective randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Following positive experience on the use of blood ozonation in SARS-CoV-2, the CORMOR randomized trial was designed to evaluate the adjuvant role of oxygen/ozone therapy in mild to moderate SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia. METHODS: The trial (ClinicalTrial.gov NCT04388514) was conducted in four different Italian centers (April-October 2020). Patients were treated according to best available standard of care (SoC) therapy, with or without O3-autohemotherapy (O3-AHT). RESULTS: A total of 92 patients were enrolled: SoC + O3-AHT (48 patients) were compared to the SoC treatment (44 patients). The two groups differed in steroids therapy administration (72.7% in SoC arm vs. 50.0% in O3-AHT arm; p = 0.044). Steroid therapy was routinely started when it was subsequently deemed as effective for the treatment of COVID-19 disease. No significant differences in mortality rates, length of hospital stay, mechanical ventilation requirement and ICU admission were observed. Clinical improvement in patients with pneumonia was assessed according to a specifically designed score (decrease in SIMEU class, improvement in radiology imaging, improvement in PaO2/FiO2, reduction in LDH and requirement of oxygen therapy ≤ 5 days). Score assessment was performed on day-3 (T3) and day-7 (TEnd) of O3-AHT treatment. A significant increase in the score was reported at TEnd, in the O3-AHT treatment arm (0 [0-1] in the SoC arm vs. 2 [1-3] the O3-AHT arm; p = 0.018). No adverse events related O3-AHT treatment was observed. CONCLUSION: In mild-to-moderate pneumonia due to SARS-CoV-2, adjuvant oxygen/ozone therapy did not show any effect on mortality, or mechanical intubation but show a clinical improvement a day 7 from randomization in a composite clinical endpoint. Larger Randomized prospective studies alone or in combination with steroids are needed to confirm our results.

A meta-analysis of ozone effect on tooth bleaching.

This systematic review assessed the effectiveness of ozone (O3) in the color change of in-office tooth bleaching in vital teeth (TB) and the sensitivity control. Only randomized controlled clinical trials were included. Seven databases were used as primary search sources, and three additional sources were searched to capture the "grey literature" partially. The JBI tool was used to assess the risk of bias. TB was assessed using the ΔELab color change metric comparing tooth color pre- and post-bleaching. We meta-analyzed the ΔELab estimates per method and calculated the absolute standardized mean difference using random-effect models. The GRADE approach assessed the certainty of the evidence. The ΔELab estimates ranged from 1.28 when the O3 was used alone to 6.93 when combined with hydrogen peroxide (HP). Two studies compared O3 and HP alone, but their TB was similar (SMD = - 0.02; 95%CI: - 0.54; 0.49). The bleaching effectiveness for the combination of O3 + HP compared to HP was similar (SMD = 0.38; 95%CI: - 0.04; 0.81). Thus, based on the available literature, our findings suggest that O3 is not superior to the conventional technique using HP on the change of tooth color. The O3 did not present sensitivity when used alone. When O3 was used in combination with HP, patients reported hypersensitivity only when O3 was applied before HP, i.e., no sensitivity was perceived when O3 was applied after HP.

Intravenous ozonized saline therapy as prophylaxis for healthcare workers (HCWs) in a dedicated COVID-19 hospital in India - A retrospective study.

OBJECTIVE: In the current pandemic, Health Care Workers (HCWs) are at a high risk of developing COVID-19. Preventive methods like the use of personal protective equipment, isolation, social distancing, and chemoprophylaxis show limited benefit. Despite standard prophylaxis, many of the HCWs develop COVID-19. Medical ozone therapy has immunomodulatory, antioxidant and antiviral effect, and, therefore, it can be explored as prophylaxis for COVID-19. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We conducted a retrospective controlled cohort study. IV ozonized saline was administered once a day for a total of 4 days in one month in addition to standard prophylaxis for COVID-19 to HCWs in a dedicated COVID hospital. Fresh ozonized saline was prepared for every administration and was given over 1 hour. RESULTS: There were 235 HCWs, 64 received the ozone prophylaxis and 171 did not. The incidence of COVID-19 was significantly (p=0.04) lesser in HCWs that received ozone prophylaxis (4.6%) as compared to those who did not (14.03%). The benefit was seen irrespective of the risk of exposure. In the red zone, 8.69% of the HCWs who received ozone prophylaxis tested positive as opposed to 15.3% of those who did not. In the orange zone, 4.34% of the HCWs who received ozone prophylaxis tested positive, remarkably lesser than those who did not (20%). In the green zone, none of the HCWs who received ozone prophylaxis tested positive; however, 3.4% of the HCWs who did not receive ozone prophylaxis tested positive. No major adverse events were noted. CONCLUSIONS: IV ozonized saline can be used in addition to the standard prophylactic regimen for the prevention of COVID-19 in HCWs. Prospective larger studies are required to establish the potency of IV ozonized saline as prophylaxis.

The possibilities of using the effects of ozone therapy in neurology.

OBJECTIVES: The beneficial effects of ozone therapy consist mainly of the promotion of blood circulation: peripheral and central ischemia, immunomodulatory effect, energy boost, regenerative and reparative properties, and correction of chronic oxidative stress. Ozone therapy increases interest in new neuroprotective strategies that may represent therapeutic targets for minimizing the effects of oxidative stress. METHODS: The overview examines the latest literature in neurological pathologies treated with ozone therapy as well as our own experience with ozone therapy. The effectiveness of treatments is connected to the ability of ozone therapy to reactivate the antioxidant system to address oxidative stress for chronic neurodegenerative diseases, strokes, and other pathologies. Application options include large and small autohemotherapy, intramuscular application, intra-articular, intradiscal, paravertebral and epidural, non-invasive rectal, transdermal, mucosal, or ozonated oils and ointments. The combination of different types of ozone therapy stimulates the benefits of the effects of ozone. RESULTS: Clinical studies on O2-O3 therapy have been shown to be efficient in the treatment of neurological degenerative disorders, multiple sclerosis, cardiovascular, peripheral vascular, orthopedic, gastrointestinal and genitourinary pathologies, fibromyalgia, skin diseases/wound healing, diabetes/ulcers, infectious diseases, and lung diseases, including the pandemic disease caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus. CONCLUSION: Ozone therapy is a relatively fast administration of ozone gas. When the correct dose is administered, no side effects occur. Further clinical and experimental studies will be needed to determine the optimal administration schedule and to evaluate the combination of ozone therapy with other therapies to increase the effectiveness of treatment.

The effect of the platelet-rich plasma and ozone therapy on tendon-to-bone healing in the rabbit rotator cuff repair model.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to histologically and biomechanically investigate the effects of local PRP and ozone therapy (O2O3) on tendon-to-bone healing in a rabbit model of the supraspinatus tendon tear. METHODS: Four groups were formed to have seven rabbits in each group: repair, R; repair + PRP, RP; repair + ozone, RO; and repair + PRP + ozone, RPO. The supraspinatus tendon was detached by sharp dissection from the footprint and an acute tear pattern was created. Thereafter, tendon repair was performed with the transosseous technique. In the RP group, PRP, and in the RPO group, PRP + O2O3 mixture was injected to the tendon repair site. In the RO group, O2O3 gas mixture was injected into subacromial space three times a week for a total of 4 weeks. The study was ended at postoperative 6th week. RESULTS: When compared with the R group, a statistically significant increase was observed in the biomechanical strength of the RP and RPO groups. The highest increase in biomechanical strength was detected in the RPO group. The histology of the RO and RPO groups showed better collagen fiber continuity and orientation than the R and RP groups. CONCLUSIONS: The results obtained from this study show that the ozonized PRP can be used as biological support to increase tendon-to-bone healing. However, these results need to be supported by clinical studies.

Paravertebral intramuscular ozone therapy in lumbar disc hernia: A comprehensive retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Clinical studies assessing the impacts of ozone on the musculoskeletal framework are slowly expanding. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we analyzed the impact of paravertebral ozone treatment (OT) injection treatment on distress and disability in patients with lumbar disc hernia (LDH). METHODS: The records of 432 patients with L4-5 and L5-S1 LDH were examined retrospectively. 298 patients who met the inclusion criteria and who provided written informed consent were divided into two groups. Each group received 15 sets of physiotherapy at a rate of five sets every week (study group (n= 139), control group (n= 159)). Six OT injections were applied solely to the study group, two days per week. A visual pain score (VAS) was set up for distress and the Oswestry Disability Questionnaire (ODI) for disablement was administered when the groups were called to control before treatment, towards the end of the treatment, and three months after the treatment ended. RESULTS: The groups had significantly reduced (p< 0.05) VAS and ODI scores following and three months after the treatment contrasted with their scores before the treatment. The Physiotherapy + OT group had significantly lower (p< 0.05) VAS and ODI scores than the physiotherapy group following and three months after the treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Paravertebral OT injection is quite a safe and helpful treatment technique in LDH patients. Further studies should be conducted to investigate the long-term outcomes of the paravertebral OT application.

Ozone inhalation induces exacerbation of eosinophilic airway inflammation and Th2-skew immune response in a rat model of AR.

BACKGROUND: Ozone (O3) exposure elicits allergic rhinitis (AR) exacerbations by mechanisms that remain poorly understood. We used a rat model to investigate the effects of O3 on eosinophilic airway inflammation and Th2-related response. METHODS: Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were sensitized and challenged with ovalbumin (OVA) to make AR models. Three groups of AR rats were exposed respectively to 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 ppm of O3 for 2 h daily over 6 weeks consecutively and studied 24 h later. Normal rats exposed to O3 alone were used as controls. Nasal symptoms and OVA-specific immunoglobulin E (OVA-sIg E) in the serum were evaluated. Inflammatory cells in nasal lavage fluid (NLF) were classified and counted. Cytokines protein levels in NLF were assessed by ELISA. The pathological changes in the nasal mucosa were examined by histology. RESULTS: The combination of allergen and repeated O3 exposure in rats induced a significant increase of the number of sneezes, nasal rubs, amount of nasal secretion and OVA-sIgE in the serum, accompanied by enhancement of eosinophils in NLF and nasal mucosa. The increase of interleukin-5 (IL-5), IL-13, Eotaxin and decrease of INF-γ protein levels in NLF were detected in AR rats after O3 inhalation. Hematoxylin and eosin staining showed disordered arrangement of the nasal mucosa epithelium and eosinophilic infiltration in a concentration-dependent manner. CONCLUSIONS: O3 inhalation deteriorated symptoms in AR rats, and the possible mechanism is that ozone co-exposure could enhance the expression of Th2 cytokines, eosinophilic airway inflammation dose-dependently. The observation is helpful for us to understand the synergistic effect of O3 in the air pollution and allergen on aggravating allergic rhinitis.

Ozone as adjuvant support in the treatment of COVID-19: A preliminary report of probiozovid trial.

The evaluation of new therapeutic resources against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) represents a priority in clinical research considering the minimal options currently available. To evaluate the adjuvant use of systemic oxygen-ozone administration in the early control of disease progression in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. PROBIOZOVID is an ongoing, interventional, randomized, prospective, and double-arm trial enrolling patient with COVID-19 pneumonia. From a total of 85 patients screened, 28 were recruited. Patients were randomly divided into ozone-autohemotherapy group (14) and control group (14). The procedure consisted in a daily double-treatment with systemic Oxygen-ozone administration for 7 days. All patients were treated with ad interim best available therapy. The primary outcome was delta in the number of patients requiring orotracheal-intubation despite treatment. Secondary outcome was the difference of mortality between the two groups. Moreover, hematological parameters were compared before and after treatment. No differences in the characteristics between groups were observed at baseline. As a preliminary report we have observed that one patient for each group needed intubation and was transferred to ITU. No deaths were observed at 7-14 days of follow up. Thirty-day mortality was 8.3% for ozone group and 10% for controls. Ozone therapy did not significantly influence inflammation markers, hematology profile, and lymphocyte subpopulations of patients treated. Ozone therapy had an impact on the need for the ventilatory support, although did not reach statistical significance. Finally, no adverse events related to the use of ozone-autohemotherapy were reported. Preliminary results, although not showing statistically significant benefits of ozone on COVID-19, did not report any toxicity.

Ozone-induced changes in oxidative stress parameters in brain regions of adult, middle-age, and senescent Brown Norway rats.

A critical part of community based human health risk assessment following chemical exposure is identifying sources of susceptibility. Life stage is one such susceptibility. A prototypic air pollutant, ozone (O3) induces dysfunction of the pulmonary, cardiac, and nervous systems. Long-term exposure may cause oxidative stress (OS). The current study explored age-related and subchronic O3-induced changes in OS in brain regions of rats. To build a comprehensive assessment of OS-related effects of O3, a tripartite approach was implemented focusing on 1) the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) [NADPH Quinone oxidoreductase 1, NADH Ubiquinone reductase] 2) antioxidant homeostasis [total antioxidant substances, superoxide dismutase, γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase] and 3) an assessment of oxidative damage [total aconitase and protein carbonyls]. Additionally, a neurobehavioral evaluation of motor activity was compared to these OS measures. Male Brown Norway rats (4, 12, and 24 months of age) were exposed to air or O3 (0.25 or 1 ppm) via inhalation for 6 h/day, 2 days per week for 13 weeks. A significant decrease in horizontal motor activity was noted only in 4-month old rats. Results on OS measures in frontal cortex (FC), cerebellum (CB), striatum (STR), and hippocampus (HIP) indicated life stage-related increases in ROS production, small decreases in antioxidant homeostatic mechanisms, a decrease in aconitase activity, and an increase in protein carbonyls. The effects of O3 exposure were brain area-specific, with the STR being more sensitive. Regarding life stage, the effects of O3 were greater in 4-month-old rats, which correlated with horizontal motor activity. These results indicate that OS may be increased in specific brain regions after subchronic O3 exposure, but the interactions between age and exposure along with their consequences on the brain require further investigation.

Diets enriched with coconut, fish, or olive oil modify peripheral metabolic effects of ozone in rats.

Dietary factors may modulate metabolic effects of air pollutant exposures. We hypothesized that diets enriched with coconut oil (CO), fish oil (FO), or olive oil (OO) would alter ozone-induced metabolic responses. Male Wistar-Kyoto rats (1-month-old) were fed normal diet (ND), or CO-, FO-, or OO-enriched diets. After eight weeks, animals were exposed to air or 0.8 ppm ozone, 4 h/day for 2 days. Relative to ND, CO- and OO-enriched diet increased body fat, serum triglycerides, cholesterols, and leptin, while all supplements increased liver lipid staining (OO > FO > CO). FO increased n-3, OO increased n-6/n-9, and all supplements increased saturated fatty-acids. Ozone increased total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, branched-chain amino acids (BCAA), induced hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance, and changed gene expression involved in energy metabolism in adipose and muscle tissue in rats fed ND. Ozone-induced glucose intolerance was exacerbated by OO-enriched diet. Ozone increased leptin in CO- and FO-enriched groups; however, BCAA increases were blunted by FO and OO. Ozone-induced inhibition of liver cholesterol biosynthesis genes in ND-fed rats was not evident in enriched dietary groups; however, genes involved in energy metabolism and glucose transport were increased in rats fed FO and OO-enriched diet. FO- and OO-enriched diets blunted ozone-induced inhibition of genes involved in adipose tissue glucose uptake and cholesterol synthesis, but exacerbated genes involved in adipose lipolysis. Ozone-induced decreases in muscle energy metabolism genes were similar in all dietary groups. In conclusion, CO-, FO-, and OO-enriched diets modified ozone-induced metabolic changes in a diet-specific manner, which could contribute to altered peripheral energy homeostasis.

Comparison of Ultrasound-Guided Local Ozone (O2-O3) Injection Versus Corticosteroid Injection in Patients With Mild to Moderate Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: Recently, ozone injection has been used to treat various musculoskeletal diseases. This study was performed to compare ultrasound-guided corticosteroid versus ozone injections in the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome. DESIGN: Forty patients with mild to moderate carpal tunnel syndrome were enrolled and randomly placed in one of the two groups of receiving a corticosteroid or ozone injection under ultrasound guidance. To determine the effectiveness of both injection techniques and compare their outcomes, visual analog scale and scores of Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire, as well as ultrasound and electrodiagnostic criteria, were followed at 0, 6, and 12 wks after the injection. RESULTS: Both groups showed improvement in visual analog scale and Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire at week 6, and this improvement continued until the 12th week after the injections. However, electrodiagnostic values of sensory nerve action potentials and compound motor action potentials latency, and ultrasound carpal tunnel syndrome criteria showed significant improvement only among the subjects in the corticosteroid group at 6 and 12 wks after the injection (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Ozone might be as effective as corticosteroid injection in reducing pain and improving the function. Objective improvements in electrodiagnostic and ultrasound criteria of carpal tunnel syndrome were shown only among patients after corticosteroid injection.