Satureja bachtiarica ameliorate beta-amyloid induced memory impairment, oxidative stress and cholinergic deficit in animal model of Alzheimer's disease.

Extracellular deposition of Beta-amyloid peptide (Aß) is the main finding in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), which damages cholinergic neurons through oxidative stress and reduces the cholinergic neurotransmission. Satureja bachtiarica is a medicinal plant from the Lamiaceae family which was widely used in Iranian traditional medicine. The aim of the present study was to investigate possible protective effects of S. bachtiarica methanolic extract on Aß induced spatial memory impairment in Morris Water Maze (MWM), oxidative stress and cholinergic neuron degeneration. Pre- aggregated Aß was injected into the hippocampus of each rat bilaterally (10 µg/rat) and MWM task was performed 14 days later to evaluate learning and memory function. Methanolic extract of S.bachtiarica (10, 50 and 100 mg/Kg) was injected intraperitoneally for 19 consecutive days, after Aß injection. After the probe test the brain tissue were collected and lipid peroxidation, Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity and Cholin Acetyl Transferees (ChAT) immunorectivity were measured in the hippocampus. Intrahipocampal injection of Aß impaired learning and memory in MWM in training days and probe trail. Methanolic extract of S. bachtiarica (50 and 100 mg/Kg) could attenuate Aß-induced memory deficit. ChAT immunostaining revealed that cholinergic neurons were loss in Aß- injected group and S. bachtiarica (100 mg/Kg) could ameliorate Aß- induced ChAT reduction in the hippocampus. Also S. bachtiarica could ameliorate Aß-induced lipid peroxidation and AChE activity increase in the hippocampus. In conclusion our study represent that S.bachtiarica methanolic extract can improve Aß-induced memory impairment and cholinergic loss then we recommended this extract as a candidate for further investigation in treatment of AD.

Cr (VI) induced oxidative stress and toxicity in cultured cerebellar granule neurons at different stages of development and protective effect of Rosmarinic acid.

Chromium (Cr) is a widespread metal ion in the workplace, industrial effluent, and water. The toxicity of chromium (VI) on various organs including the liver, kidneys, and lung were studied, but little is known about neurotoxicity. In this study, neurotoxic effects of Cr (VI) have been investigated by cultured cerebellar granule neurons (CGNs). Immature and mature neurons were exposed to different concentrations of potassium dichromate for 24 h and cytotoxicity was measured by MTT assay. In addition, immature neurons were exposed for 5 days as regards cytotoxic effect in development stages. The reactive oxygen species (ROS), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and the protective effect of Rosmarinic acid on mature and immature neurons exposed to potassium dichromate, were measured. Furthermore, lipid peroxidation, glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and acetylcholinesterase activity in mature neurons were assessed following exposure to potassium dichromate. The results indicate that toxicity of Cr (VI) dependent on maturation steps. Cr (VI) was less toxic for immature neurons. Also, Cr (VI) induced MMP reduction and ROS production in both immature and mature neurons. In Cr (VI) treated neurons, increased lipid peroxidation and GPx activity but not acetylcholinesterase activity was observed. Interestingly, Rosmarinic acid, as a natural antioxidant, could protect mature but not immature neurons against Cr (VI) induced toxicity. Our findings revealed vulnerability of mature neurons to Cr (VI) induced toxicity and oxidative stress.

Ferulago angulata Methanolic Extract Protects PC12 Cells Against Beta-amyloid-induced Toxicity.

Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an age-dependent neurodegenerative disease. Beta-amyloid (Aß)-induced neurotoxicity has a pivotal role in AD pathogenesis; therefore, the modulation of Aß toxicity is the promising therapeutic approach to control the disease progression. Medicinal plants because of their multiple active ingredients are effective in complex diseases, such as AD. Therefore, several studies have studied medicinal plants to find an effective treatment for AD. Ferulago angulata is a medicinal plant with antioxidant and neuroprotective activity. The present study was done to assess the protective effect of the methanolic extract of Ferulago angulate on Aß-induced toxicity and oxidative stress in PC12 cells. Methods: The methanolic extract of aerial parts of the plant was prepared by the maceration method. PC12 cells were cultured according to a standard protocol. PC12 cells were incubated for 24 hours with Aß alone, and Aß in combination with various concentrations of the F. angulata extract. Cell viability was determined by the methyl thiazole tetrazolium (MTT) assay. Also, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and the activity of acetylcholine esterase (AChE), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and caspase-3 enzymes were measured. Results: The extract dose-dependently protected PC12 cells against Aß-induced cell death. Also, Aß increased ROS production, AChE, and caspase-3 activity, and decreased the GPx activity, which all were ameliorated by F. angulata extract. Conclusion: F. angulata extract protects against Aß-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis. These effects may be due to the antioxidant and anticholinesterase activity of the extract. It is recommended to assess F. angulata extract as an anti-AD agent. Highlights: Ferulago angulata extract dose-dependently ameliorates Aß-induced cytotoxicity in PC12 cells.Aß induced oxidative stress in PC12 cells, which was attenuated by the F. angulata extract.Aß increased acetylcholinesterase activity in PC12 cells, which was prevented by the F. angulata extract. Plain Language Summary: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common form of dementia in the elderly with a complex pathophysiology. Beta-amyloid (Aß)- induced neurotoxicity plays a pivotal role in AD progression. So far, there is no cure for AD. Medicinal plants contain various pharmacologically active compounds that make them suitable for the treatment of complex diseases. In this study, the anti-AD effect of F. angulata extract was investigated by assessing its protective effect against Aß-induced toxicity in PC12 cells F. angulata extract improved Aß-induced toxicity by diminishing oxidative stress and apoptosis. Therefore, F. angulata extract merits further studies for use in the treatment of AD.

Relationship between long non-coding RNA MALAT1 and HOTAIR expression with sperm parameters, DNA and malondialdehyde levels in male infertility.

BACKGROUND: Sperm quality is a complex index used to evaluate the fertility potential of men. The long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) MALAT1 participate in sperm development and HOTAIR have critical roles in the regulation of oxidative stress responses. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship of lncRNA MALAT1 and HOTAIR expression with sperm parameters, DNA fragmentation and malondialdehyde (MDA)levels in sperm fertility. METHODS: In this experimental study, semen samples (n = 30 fertile, n = 30 infertile) men were collected and evaluated for sperm parameters by computer-aided sperm analysis(CASA). Sperm DNA integrity quality was assessed by the Acridine orange(AO) test. MDA levels were determined by the Thiobarbituric acid reaction method. The expression of MALAT1 and HOTAIR was detected by RT-PCR. RESULTS: We observed a decreased level of MALAT1and HOTAIR expression in the infertile men (p < 0.001). The relative expression level of MALAT1and HOTAIR showed a positive correlation with motility and morphology (p < 0.001). Subsequently, we found the DNA damage and MDA levels was negatively correlated with expression level of genes of sperm (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: In this study the low expression of MALATI and HOTAIR resulted in the high level of MDA, DNA damage, and reduced motility of sperm. This study suggests the therapeutic opportunities in respect to MALATI and HOTAIR expression in the sperm function.

Comparison of a portable Vis-NIR hyperspectral imaging and a snapscan SWIR hyperspectral imaging for evaluation of meat authenticity.

The performance of visible-near infrared hyperspectral imaging (Vis-NIR-HSI) (400-1000 nm) and shortwave infrared hyperspectral imaging (SWIR-HSI) (1116-1670 nm) combined with different classification and regression (linear and non-linear) multivariate methods were assessed for meat authentication. In Vis-NIR-HSI, total accuracies in the prediction set for SVM and ANN-BPN (the best classification models) were 96 and 94 % surpassing the performance of SWIR-HSI with 88 and 89 % accuracy, respectively. In Vis-NIR-HSI, the best-obtained coefficient of determinations for the prediction set (R2p) were 0.99, 0.88, and 0.99 with root mean square error in prediction (RMSEP) of 9, 24 and 4 (%w/w) for pork in beef, pork in lamb and pork in chicken, respectively. In SWIR-HSI, the best-obtained R2p were 0.86, 0.77, and 0.89 with RMSEP of 16, 23 and 15 (%w/w) for pork in beef, pork in lamb and pork in chicken, respectively. The results ascertain that Vis-NIR-HSI coupled with multivariate data analysis has better performance rather than SWIR-HIS.

The Feasibility of Two Handheld Spectrometers for Meat Speciation Combined with Chemometric Methods and Its Application for Halal Certification.

Handheld visible-near-infrared (Vis-NIR) and near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy can be cost-effective, rapid, non-destructive and transportable techniques for identifying meat species and may be valuable for enforcement authorities, retail and consumers. In this study, a handheld Vis-NIR (400-1000 nm) and a handheld NIR (900-1700 nm) spectrometer were applied to discriminate halal meat species from pork (halal certification), as well as speciation of intact and ground lamb, beef, chicken and pork (160 meat samples). Several types of class modeling multivariate approaches were applied. The presented one-class classification (OCC) approach, especially with the Vis-NIR sensor (95-100% correct classification rate), was found to be suitable for the application of halal from non-halal meat-species discrimination. In a discriminant approach, using the Vis-NIR data and support vector machine (SVM) classification, the four meat species tested could be classified with accuracies of 93.4% and 94.7% for ground and intact meat, respectively, while with partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), classification accuracies were 87.4% (ground) and 88.6% (intact). Using the NIR sensor, total accuracies of the SVM models were 88.2% and 81.5% for ground and intact meats, respectively, and PLS-DA classification accuracies were 88.3% (ground) and 80% (intact). We conclude that the Vis-NIR sensor was most successful in the halal certification (OCC approaches) and speciation (discriminant approaches) for both intact and ground meat using SVM.

Differential Attachment of Pulmonary Cells on PDMS Substrate with Varied Features.

Cancer is now a global concern, and control of the function of cancer cells is recognized as an important challenge. Although many aggressive chemical and radiation methods are in practice to eliminate cancer cells, most of them imply severe adverse toxic effects on patients. Taking advantage of natural physical differences between cancer and normal cells might benefit the patient with more specific cytotoxicity and fewer adverse effects. Physical factors are the main means that can influence cell-biomaterial interaction. To explore the importance of attachment phenomena on cancer cells in this research, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrates with varied stiffness and roughness were synthesized and lung cancer cell's behavior on these surfaces was examined. To achieve diverse surface topography SDBD plasma was used at various exposure times, and different stiffness was obtained by changing in curing agent amount. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and tensile modulus were employed to the characterization of roughness and stiffness respectively. Lung cancer cell survival and growth were studied by MTT and image processing analysis. The results indicated that softer and rougher surface made lung cancer cells to die. The number of detached cells, mean space of the detached cells, cellular coverage of surface, and the ratio of detached/ all cellular coverage were significantly affected by roughness and stiffness. Therefore, physical factors can control cell function, especially in lung cancer cells and these results might provide a strong base to help cancer cell removal.

Melissa officinalis Acidic Fraction Protects Cultured Cerebellar Granule Neurons Against Beta Amyloid-Induced Apoptosis and Oxidative Stress.

OBJECTIVE: Extracellular deposition of the beta-amyloid (Aß) peptide, which is the main finding in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), leads to oxidative damage and apoptosis in neurons. Melissa officinalis (M. officinalis) is a medicinal plant from the Lamiaceae family that has neuroprotective activity. In the present study we have investigated the protective effect of the acidic fraction of M. officinalis on Aß-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in cultured cerebellar granule neurons (CGN). Additionally, we investigated a possible role of the nicotinic receptor. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was an in vitro experimental study performed on mice cultured CGNs. CGNs were pre-incubated with different concentrations of the acidic fraction of M. officinalis for 24 hours, followed by incubation with Aß for an additional 48 hours. CGNs were also pre-incubated with the acidic fraction of M. officinalis and mecamylamin, followed by incubation with Aß. We used the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay to measure cell viability. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, lipidperoxidation, and caspase-3 activity were measured after incubation. Hochst/annexin Vfluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)/propidium iodide (PI) staining was performed to detect apoptotic cells. RESULTS: The acidic fraction could protect CGNs from Aß-induced cytotoxicity. Mecamylamine did not abolish the protective effect of the acidic fraction. AChE activity, ROS production, lipid peroxidation, and caspase-3 activity increased after Aß incubation. Preincubation with the acidic fraction of M. officinalis ameliorated these factors and decreased the number of apoptotic cells. CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that the protective effect of the acidic fraction of M. officinalis was not mediated through nicotinic receptors. This fraction could protect CGNs through antioxidant and anti-apoptotic activities.

Chlorpyrifos Toxicity in Mouse Cultured Cerebellar Granule Neurons at Different Stages of Development: Additive Effect on Glutamate-Induced Excitotoxicity.

OBJECTIVE: Chlorpyrifos (CPF) is a neurotoxic organophosphorus (OP) insecticide. Its mechanism of action includes oxidative stress, excitotoxicity, and inhibition of the acetylcholinesterase enzyme (AChE). The aim of the present study is to investigate CPF toxicity in mature and immature cerebellar granule neurons (CGNs), as well as its effect on glutamate induced excitotoxicity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was an in vitro experimental study performed on mice cultured CGNs. Immature and mature neurons were exposed to different concentrations of CPF (1-1000 µM) and glutamate (10-600 µM) for 48 hours after which we used the MTT assay to measure cytotoxicity. Immature neurons had exposure to CPF for 5 days in order to evaluate the cytotoxic effect on developing neurons. Mature neurons received sub-lethal concentrations of CPF (10, 100 µM) combined with different concentrations of glutamate. AChE activity and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation were assessed after treatments. RESULTS: Immature CGNs had increased sensitivity to CPF toxicity compared to mature neurons. We observed significantly greater ROS production in immature compared to mature neurons, however AChE activity was more inhibited in mature neurons. Although CPF toxicity was not well correlated with AChE inhibition, it correlated well with ROS production. Glutamate toxicity was potentiated by sub-lethal concentration of CPF, however glutamate induced ROS production was not affected. The results suggested that CPF potentiated glutamate toxicity by mechanisms other than oxidative stress. CONCLUSION: CPF toxicity differed in mature and immature neurons. Potentiated glutamate toxicity by CPF implied that CPF exposure might be a risk factor for neurodegenerative disease.