-
Canine and feline foetal fluids: Volume, hormonal and biochemical characterization during pregnancy.Veterinary Medicine and Science May 2024This study aimed to evaluate the volume, the concentration of steroid hormones, and biochemical composition of the foetal fluids at different gestational ages in dogs...
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
This study aimed to evaluate the volume, the concentration of steroid hormones, and biochemical composition of the foetal fluids at different gestational ages in dogs and cats.
METHODS
Following the ovariohysterectomy, the allantoic and amniotic fluid samples were collected from pregnant bitches and queens and were assigned to different groups according to their gestational age.
RESULTS
The canine and feline allantoic fluid volume increased during pregnancy, reached its maximum values on days 40-49 and then decreased. The canine and feline amniotic fluid volume increased steadily by the last days of pregnancy. In spite of significant changes of sex hormones in the foetal fluids, their concentration and ratios were not significantly different between male and female fetuses. The canine amniotic cortisol concentration increased until days 40-49 and decreased significantly afterwards. The maximum cortisol concentrations in the feline allantoic and amniotic fluids were observed on days 50-60 and 40-49, respectively. During the canine pregnancy, the concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, chloride, sodium, triglyceride, cholesterol, total protein, albumin and the activities of aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), amylase and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) in the amniotic fluid were higher than the allantoic fluid. The magnesium, potassium, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity, creatine and lipase were higher in the allantoic fluid. In the feline allantoic fluid, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, creatinine, albumin and glucose concentrations and the activities of creatine kinase (CK), GGT, LDH and lipase were higher. The ALP, AST activities, sodium and calcium concentrations were higher in the amniotic fluid (p < 0.05).
CONCLUSION
Volume of foetal fluids was determined in dogs and cats. Concentration of sex hormones did not different between male and female fetuses.
Topics: Animals; Cats; Dogs; Female; Pregnancy; Amniotic Fluid; Male; Pregnancy, Animal; Gestational Age; Hydrocortisone; Allantois
PubMed: 38654677
DOI: 10.1002/vms3.1452 -
Molecular Pharmaceutics May 2024Excipients are ubiquitous in pharmaceutical products, and often, they can also play a critical role in maintaining product quality. For a product containing a...
Excipients are ubiquitous in pharmaceutical products, and often, they can also play a critical role in maintaining product quality. For a product containing a moisture-sensitive drug, moisture can be deleterious to the product stability during storage. Therefore, using excipients that interact with moisture in situ can potentially alleviate product stability issues. In this study, the interactive behavior of starch with moisture was augmented by coprocessing maize starch with sodium chloride (NaCl) or magnesium nitrate hexahydrate [Mg(NO)·6HO] at different concentrations (5 and 10%, w/w). The effect of the formulation on drug stability was assessed through the degradation of acetylsalicylic acid, which was used as the model drug. The results showed that coprocessing of the starch with either NaCl or Mg(NO)·6HO impacted the number of water molecule binding sites on the starch and how the sorbed moisture was distributed. The coprocessed excipients also resulted in lower drug degradation and lesser changes in tablet tensile strength during post-compaction storage. However, corresponding tablet formulations containing physical mixtures of starch and salts did not yield promising outcomes. This study demonstrated the advantageous concomitant use of common excipients by coprocessing to synergistically mitigate the adverse effects of moisture and promote product stability when formulating a moisture-sensitive drug. In addition, the findings could help to improve the understanding of moisture-excipient interactions and allow for the judicious choice of excipients when designing formulations containing moisture-sensitive drugs.
Topics: Excipients; Starch; Tablets; Drug Stability; Tensile Strength; Water; Chemistry, Pharmaceutical; Sodium Chloride; Drug Compounding; Aspirin
PubMed: 38647432
DOI: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.4c00031 -
The Journal of Chemical Physics Apr 2024In this study, we present a new equation of state for electrolyte solutions, integrating the statistical associating fluid theory for variable range interactions...
In this study, we present a new equation of state for electrolyte solutions, integrating the statistical associating fluid theory for variable range interactions utilizing the generic Mie form and binding Debye-Hückel theories. This equation of state underscores the pivotal role of ion-ion association in determining the properties of electrolyte solutions. We propose a unified framework that simultaneously examines the thermodynamic properties of electrolyte solutions and their electrical conductivity, given the profound impact of ion pairing on this transport property. Using this equation of state, we predict the liquid density, mean ionic activity coefficient, and osmotic coefficient for binary NaCl, Na2SO4, and MgSO4 aqueous solutions at 298.15 K. Additionally, we evaluate the molar conductivity of these systems by considering the fraction of free ions derived from our equation of state in conjunction with two advanced electrical conductivity models. Our results reveal that, while ion-ion association has a minimal influence on the modification of the predicted properties of sodium chloride solutions, their impact on sodium and magnesium sulfate solutions is considerably more noticeable.
PubMed: 38639315
DOI: 10.1063/5.0198308 -
Environmental Science and Pollution... May 2024While previous studies have addressed the desirable effects of biochar (BC) or magnesium nanoparticles (Mg NPs) on salinity stress individually, there is a research gap...
While previous studies have addressed the desirable effects of biochar (BC) or magnesium nanoparticles (Mg NPs) on salinity stress individually, there is a research gap regarding their simultaneous application. Additionally, the specific mechanisms underlying the effects of BC and Mg NPs on salinity in Physalis alkekengi L. remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the synergistic effects of BC and Mg NPs on P. alkekengi L. under salinity stress conditions. A pot experiment was conducted with salinity at 100 and 200 mM sodium chloride (NaCl), as well as soil applied BC (4% v/v) and foliar applied Mg NPs (500 mg L) on physiological and biochemical properties of P. alkekengi L. The results represented that salinity, particularly 200 mM NaCl, significantly reduced plant yield (58%) and total chlorophyll (Chl, 36%), but increased superoxide dismutase (SOD, 82%) and catalase (CAT, 159%) activity relative to non-saline conditions. However, the co-application of BC and Mg NPs mitigated these negative effects and improved fruit yield, Chl, anthocyanin, and ascorbic acid. It also decreased the activity of antioxidant enzymes. Salinity also altered the fatty acid composition, increasing saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), while decreasing monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs). The heat map analysis showed that fruit yield, anthocyanin, Chl, and CAT were sensitive to salinity. The findings can provide insights into the possibility of these amendments as sustainable strategies to mitigate salt stress and enhance plant productivity in affected areas.
Topics: Physalis; Salt Stress; Fatty Acids; Charcoal; Magnesium; Salinity; Metal Nanoparticles; Chlorophyll
PubMed: 38637482
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-024-33329-3 -
Environmental Research Jul 2024Exploring the potential of new models for mapping groundwater quality presents a major challenge in water resource management, particularly in Kanchanaburi Province,...
Exploring the potential of new models for mapping groundwater quality presents a major challenge in water resource management, particularly in Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand, where groundwater faces contamination risks. This study aimed to explore the applicability of random forest (RF) and artificial neural networks (ANN) models to predict groundwater quality. Particularly, these two models were integrated into cross-validation (CV) and bootstrapping (B) techniques to build predictive models, including RF-CV, RF-B, ANN-CV, and ANN-B. Entropy groundwater quality index (EWQI) was converted to normalized EWQI which was then classified into five levels from very poor to very good. A total of twelve physicochemical parameters from 180 groundwater wells, including potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, chloride, sulfate, bicarbonate, nitrate, pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, and total hardness, were investigated to decipher groundwater quality in the eastern part of Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand. Our results indicated that groundwater quality in the study area was primarily polluted by calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonate and that the RF-CV model (RMSE = 0.06, R = 0.87, MAE = 0.04) outperformed the RF-B (RMSE = 0.07, R = 0.80, MAE = 0.04), ANN-CV (RMSE = 0.09, R = 0.70, MAE = 0.06), and ANN-B (RMSE = 0.10, R = 0.67, MAE = 0.06). Our findings highlight the superiority of the RF models over the ANN models based on the CV and B techniques. In addition, the role of groundwater parameters to the normalized EWQI in various machine learning models was found. The groundwater quality map created by the RF-CV model can be applied to orient groundwater use.
Topics: Thailand; Groundwater; Water Quality; Neural Networks, Computer; Machine Learning; Water Pollutants, Chemical; Environmental Monitoring
PubMed: 38636644
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.118952 -
European Journal of Cardio-thoracic... Mar 2024In this study, we evaluated if modified Del Nido cardioplegia delivers comparable cardiac protection in comparison to Custodiol® in patients undergoing isolated... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
OBJECTIVES
In this study, we evaluated if modified Del Nido cardioplegia delivers comparable cardiac protection in comparison to Custodiol® in patients undergoing isolated minimally invasive mitral valve repair.
METHODS
From January 2018 to October 2021, all patients undergoing non-emergent isolated minimally invasive mitral valve repair were included in this study. The cardioplegia was chosen at the surgeons' discretion. The primary end points of this study were peak postoperative cardiac enzyme levels. Secondary end points were in-hospital mortality, hospital stay, occurrence of cardiac arrhythmias, pacemaker implantations, postoperative lactate and sodium levels and postoperative incidence of renal failure requiring dialysis.
RESULTS
A total of 355 patients were included in this study. The mean age of patients was 57. After propensity score matching, a total of 156 pairs were identified. There was no difference in cross-clamp time between both groups. Postoperative creatine kinase levels were higher in patients receiving Custodiol on the 1st and 2nd postoperative days. Creatine kinase isoenzyme MB levels were higher in patients receiving Custodiol on the 2nd postoperative day (0.5 ± 0.2 vs 0.4 ± 0.1 µmol/l s; P < 0.001). Postoperative Troponin T concentrations were similar between both groups. Maximum lactate concentrations were higher in patients receiving Custodiol on the day of surgery (2.4 ± 1.9 vs 2.0 ± 1.1 mmol/l; P = 0.04). The overall hospital stay was longer in patients receiving Del Nido cardioplegia (10.6 ± 3.2 vs 8 ± 4.1 days; P < 0.01).
CONCLUSIONS
Modified Del Nido cardioplegia based on Ionosteril® solution offers equivalent protection compared to Custodiol for isolated minimally invasive mitral valve repair.
Topics: Humans; Female; Male; Middle Aged; Heart Arrest, Induced; Cardioplegic Solutions; Mitral Valve; Potassium Chloride; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures; Procaine; Mannitol; Glucose; Aged; Histidine; Retrospective Studies; Postoperative Complications; Calcium Chloride; Mitral Valve Insufficiency; Magnesium Sulfate; Electrolytes; Lidocaine; Solutions; Sodium Bicarbonate
PubMed: 38627243
DOI: 10.1093/ejcts/ezae161 -
The Journal of Physical Chemistry. B Apr 2024Complex molten chloride salt mixtures of uranium, magnesium, and sodium are top candidates for promising nuclear energy technologies to produce electricity based on...
Complex molten chloride salt mixtures of uranium, magnesium, and sodium are top candidates for promising nuclear energy technologies to produce electricity based on molten salt reactors. From a local structural perspective, LaCl is similar to UCl and hence a good proxy to study these complex salt mixtures. As fission products, lanthanide salts and their mixtures are also very important in their own right. This article describes from an experimental and theory perspective how very different the structural roles of MgCl and NaCl are in mixtures with LaCl. We find that, whereas MgCl becomes an integral part of multivalent ionic networks, NaCl separates them. In a recent article ( , , 21751-21762) we have called the disruptive behavior of NaCl "the spacer salt effect". Because of the heterogeneous nature of these salt mixtures, there are multiple structural motifs in the melt, each with its particular free energetics. Our work identifies and quantifies these; it also elucidates the mechanisms through which Cl ions exchange between Mg-rich and La-rich environments.
PubMed: 38624173
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.4c01429 -
International Journal of Molecular... Apr 2024Salt is frequently introduced in ecosystems, where it acts as a pollutant. This study examined how changes in salinity affect the survival and development of zebrafish...
Salt is frequently introduced in ecosystems, where it acts as a pollutant. This study examined how changes in salinity affect the survival and development of zebrafish from the two-cell to the blastocyst stage and from the blastocyst to the larval stage. Control zebrafish embryos were cultured in E3 medium containing 5 mM Sodium Chloride (NaCl), 0.17 mM Potassium Chloride (KCL), 0.33 mM Calcium Chloride (CaCl), and 0.33 mM Magnesium Sulfade (MgSO). Experiments were conducted using increasing concentrations of each individual salt at 5×, 10×, 50×, and 100× the concentration found in E3 medium. KCL, CaCl, and MgSO did not result in lethal abnormalities and did not affect early embryo growth at any of the concentrations tested. Concentrations of 50× and 100× NaCl caused embryonic death in both stages of development. Concentrations of 5× and 10× NaCl resulted in uninflated swim bladders in 12% and 65% of larvae, compared to 4.2% of controls, and caused 1654 and 2628 genes to be differentially expressed in blastocysts, respectively. The ATM signaling pathway was affected, and the Sonic Hedgehog pathway genes Shh and Ptc1 implicated in swim bladder development were downregulated. Our findings suggest that increased NaCl concentrations may alter gene expression and cause developmental abnormalities in animals found in affected ecosystems.
Topics: Animals; Hedgehog Proteins; Sodium Chloride; Water; Zebrafish; Calcium Chloride; Ecosystem; Sodium Chloride, Dietary; Larva; Perciformes; Gene Expression
PubMed: 38612913
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25074104 -
Medicine Apr 2024Gitelman syndrome (GS), also known as familial hypokalemia and hypomagnesemia, is a rare autosomal recessive inherited disease caused by primary renal desalinization...
RATIONALE
Gitelman syndrome (GS), also known as familial hypokalemia and hypomagnesemia, is a rare autosomal recessive inherited disease caused by primary renal desalinization caused by impaired reabsorption of sodium and chloride ions in the distal renal tubules. We report a case of clinical and genetic characteristics of GS accompanied with Graves disease and adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH)-independent adrenocortical adenoma.
PATIENT CONCERNS
The patient is a 45 year old female, was admitted to our hospital, due to a left adrenal gland occupying lesion as the chief complaint.
DIAGNOSIS
The patient was finally diagnosed as GS with Graves disease and adrenocortical adenoma.
INTERVENTIONS
Potassium magnesium aspartate (1788 mg/d, taken orally 3 times a day (supplement a few times a day, intake method, treatment duration). Contains 217.2 mg of potassium and 70.8 mg of magnesium, and potassium chloride (4.5 g/d, taken orally 3 times a day (supplement a few times a day, intake method, and treatment duration); Potassium 2356 mg), spironolactone (20 mg/d, taken orally once a day (supplement a few times a day, intake method, treatment duration). After 3 months of treatment, the patient's blood potassium fluctuated between 3.3-3.6 mmol/L, and blood magnesium fluctuated between 0.5-0.7 mmol/L, indicating a relief of fatigue symptoms.
OUTCOMES
On the day 6 of hospitalization, the symptoms of dizziness, limb fatigue, fatigue and pain were completely relieved on patient. In the follow-up of the following year, no recurrence of the condition was found.
LESSONS
The novel c.1444-10(IVS11)G > A variation may be a splicing mutation. The compound heterozygous mutations of the SLC12A3 gene may be the pathogenic cause of this GS pedigree.
Topics: Female; Humans; Middle Aged; Gitelman Syndrome; Adrenocortical Adenoma; Magnesium; Graves Disease; Fatigue; Potassium; Solute Carrier Family 12, Member 3
PubMed: 38608089
DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000037770 -
Clinical and Experimental Reproductive... Apr 2024This study investigated the metabolic status of the spent culture media from embryos of patients with repeated implantation failure (RIF) undergoing in vitro...
OBJECTIVE
This study investigated the metabolic status of the spent culture media from embryos of patients with repeated implantation failure (RIF) undergoing in vitro fertilization-intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles in comparison with the embryos from healthy fertile women.
METHODS
Metabolite levels in spent culture media were assessed and compared between embryos from RIF patients (n=35) and oocyte donors as controls (n=15). Protein levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) were determined using Western blotting. Concentrations of glucose, pyruvate, and lactate were measured using spectrophotometry. Ionic colorimetric assay kits were utilized to analyze the concentrations of sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium ions. High-performance liquid chromatography was employed to measure the concentrations of glutamic acid, aspartic acid, methionine, phenylalanine, and histidine.
RESULTS
Glucose consumption and lactate secretion were higher in the control group than in the RIF group. The magnesium concentration was significantly higher in the control group than in the RIF group, but glutamic acid and aspartic acid concentrations were lower in the control group than in the RIF patients (p<0.05). The levels of IGF-1, sodium, calcium, chloride, methionine, histidine, and phenylalanine did not show statistically significant differences between the two groups.
CONCLUSION
The metabolic profile of the culture medium of the embryos in the RIF group differed from that of the control group. These findings suggest potential factors that may affect implantation capacity in RIF patients and provide a new perspective on embryo selection.
PubMed: 38599889
DOI: 10.5653/cerm.2023.06429