Influence of ezetimibe on ADMA-DDAH-NO pathway in rat liver subjected to partial ischemia followed by global reperfusion.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated effect of ezetimibe on selected parameters determining NO level in rat liver subjected to ischemia reperfusion (IR). METHODS: Rats received ezetimibe (5 mg/kg) (groups E0 and EIR) or saline solution (groups C0 and CIR) intragastrically for 21 days. Then, the livers of CIR and EIR underwent ischemia (60 min) and reperfusion (4 h). Blood samples were obtained before surgery to estimate activities of aminotransferases, and just before ischemia and during reperfusion to estimate asymmetric and symmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA, SDMA) and arginine (Arg) levels. After IR, dimethylarginine dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH) activity and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) protein concentration were measured in liver homogenates. DDAH and protein arginine methyltransferase (PRMT) mRNA were quantified by real-time PCR in liver tissue samples. RESULTS: In CIR, the ADMA level was significantly higher compared to all other groups in 30 min and to E0 group in 120 min of reperfusion. In EIR, ADMA was low, compared to non-ischemic groups. At 30 and 120 min of reperfusion, in non-ischemic groups the level of Arg and Arg/ADMA ratio were significantly higher than in ischemic groups and E0 was the group with the highest levels of those parameters of all. In CIR, eNOS protein concentration was significantly lower than in ezetimibe-treated groups. Activity of DDAH was significantly higher in E0 than in non-treated groups. In ischemic groups, DDAH mRNA expression was significantly higher than in non-ischemic ones and PRMT mRNA expression was significantly higher in C0 than in all other groups. CONCLUSIONS: Influence of ezetimibe on ADMA/DDAH/NO pathway demonstrated in this work may suggest protective properties of this drug on rat livers injured by IR and, to a lower extent, on livers non-subjected to IR.

Non-cytotoxic organic-inorganic hybrid bioscaffolds: An efficient bedding for rapid growth of bone-like apatite and cell proliferation.

Synthesis and characterization of organic-inorganic macroporous hybrid scaffolds were investigated. The materials were prepared by combining 2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate (HEMA) and triethoxyvinylsilane (TEVS) chemically modified by Ca2+ and PO43- ions via sol-gel route. In this study we have constructed a sugar-based cracks-free three-dimensional (3D) network with interconnected porous architecture within the range of 150-300µm and rough topography. The obtained results revealed that both topography and composition of prepared materials allow rapid growth of the bone-like apatite (HAp) layer on their surface after soaking in biological medium. Preliminary studies have shown that hybrids covered by HAp are non-cytotoxic and allow cell proliferation that make them a promising scaffolds in the field of bone regenerative medicine. The materials were mainly characterized by powder X-ray diffraction analysis (PXRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) and transmission electron microscopy-energy-dispersive spectroscopy (TEM-EDS).