Nigella sativa oil exhibits anti-aging effects in transgenic Alzheimer's Drosophila melanogaster via anti oxidant pathways: survival-rate and life span studies.

In this article we aime to investigate he anti-aging effect of Nigella sativa oil. Transgenic flies engineered under UAS/GAL4 system were acquired from the Bloomington Drosophila stock center. For methodology, (LC50), 30 flies 2-3 days old were divided into four groups, and exposed to diets of 30, 60, 90, and 120 µL/10 g in 3 replicates at a density of 30 flies per vial. Mortality was recorded daily for 7 consecutive days. For survival, (150) 2-3 days adult flies were divided into four groups (I-IV), 100 flies in each group. Group I which served as control fed on 10 g of diet only, group II was fed 10 g of diet only, group III (AB42 + low dose) was fed on 10 g diet +6.39ul NSO, group IV (AB42 + high dose) was fed 10 diet + 12.77ul NSO. The administration lasted for 28 days. For the third phase, a similar protocol was adopted with each group having (400) flies, this phase lasted f till the last fly died. The effect of NSO was assessed by; Studying the mortality daily. Results revealed the lethal concentration of LC50 NSO to be 25.54 mg it was also observed from the study that exposure to NSO in food media at low doses has increased the lifespan of AB-42 treated flies. In conclusion, findings from this study suggest the efficacy of low-dose NSO increased the survival and life span of the AB-42 flies.

Eisenmenger syndrome in pregnancy: a possible cause of neonatal polycythemia and persistent fetal circulation.

A 23-year-old white primigravid woman with Eisenmenger syndrome and hypoxemia was delivered of a male infant at 34 weeks' gestation after spontaneous onset of labor. The infant was small for gestational age, weighing 1670 g. He subsequently developed respiratory distress and was found to have a high hematocrit with clinical and echocardiographic evidence of persistent fetal circulation. After partial exchange transfusion with plasma, the hematocrit, pulmonary vascular resistance, and arterial oxygen tension became normal. The authors suggest that chronic maternal hypoxemia during pregnancy may cause polycythemia and increased pulmonary vascular resistance in the newborn, leading to persistent fetal circulation.

Cardiovascular effects of nasogastric tube feeding in the healthy preterm infant.

Th systemic blood pressure (BP) and heart rate were estimated by the neonatal Dinamap 847 in 16 healthy preterm neonates in active sleep (AS) before, during and after milk feed by indwelling nasogastric tube. The mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) rose by 10.2% (P less than 0.01) and the diastolic pressure by 8.3% (P less than 0.05) during feeding. The systolic and pulse pressures also rose but individual variation rendered these changes insignificant. The heart rate increased by 6.3% (P less than 0.05) 10 min after the end of the feed. The degree of change in BP and heart rate was unrelated to body weight, gestational age, postnatal age, rate of feeding, volume or duration of the feed.

Cranial blood flow and blood pressure changes during sleep in the human neonate.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relation between cranial blood flow (CBF) and arterial blood pressure (BP) in the human newborn. In 29 healthy term neonates simultaneous measurements of CBF using jugular venous occlusion plethysmography and BP using the neonatal Dinamap 847 were performed during active sleep (AS) and quiet sleep (QS) at least 1 h from th end of the last feed. In AS as compared to QS there was significant rise in CBF (P less than 0.001), mean arterial (P less than 0.001), systolic (P less than 0.001), diastolic (P less than 0.005) and pulse pressure (P less than 0.027). There was a significant correlation between change in the mean arterial pressure (MAP) and change in CBF (r=0.37, P less than 0.05). No correlation, however, was found between changes in CBF and changes in systolic, diastolic or pulse pressures.