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Frontiers in Endocrinology 2023Environmental pollution and infertility are two modern global challenges that agonize personal and public health. The causal relationship between these two deserves... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Protective effects of melatonin against the toxic effects of environmental pollutants and heavy metals on testicular tissue: A systematic review and meta-analysis of animal studies.
BACKGROUND
Environmental pollution and infertility are two modern global challenges that agonize personal and public health. The causal relationship between these two deserves scientific efforts to intervene. It is believed that melatonin maintains antioxidant properties and may be utilized to protect the testicular tissue from oxidant effects caused by toxic materials.
METHODS
A systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science to identify the animal trial studies that evaluated melatonin therapy's effects on rodents' testicular tissue against oxidative stress caused by heavy metal and non-heavy metal environmental pollutants. Data were pooled, and standardized mean difference and 95% confidence intervals were estimated using the random-effect model. Also, the risk of bias was assessed using the Systematic Review Centre for Laboratory animal Experimentation (SYRCLE) tool. (PROSPERO: CRD42022369872).
RESULTS
Out of 10039 records, 38 studies were eligible for the review, of which 31 were included in the meta-analysis. Most of them showed beneficial effects of melatonin therapy on testicular tissue histopathology. [20 toxic materials were evaluated in this review, including arsenic, lead, hexavalent chromium, cadmium, potassium dichromate, sodium fluoride, cigarette smoke, formaldehyde, carbon tetrachloride (CCl4), 2-Bromopropane, bisphenol A, thioacetamide, bisphenol S, ochratoxin A, nicotine, diazinon, Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), Chlorpyrifos (CPF), nonylphenol, and acetamiprid.] The pooled results showed that melatonin therapy increased sperm count, motility, viability and body and testicular weights, germinal epithelial height, Johnsen's biopsy score, epididymis weight, seminiferous tubular diameter, serum testosterone, and luteinizing hormone levels, testicular tissue Malondialdehyde, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione levels. On the other hand, abnormal sperm morphology, apoptotic index, and testicular tissue nitric oxide were lower in the melatonin therapy arms. The included studies presented a high risk of bias in most SYRCLE domains.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, our study demonstrated amelioration of testicular histopathological characteristics, reproductive hormonal panel, and tissue markers of oxidative stress. Melatonin deserves scientific attention as a potential therapeutic agent for male infertility.
SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO, identifier CRD42022369872.
Topics: Animals; Male; Melatonin; Environmental Pollutants; Semen; Testis; Antioxidants
PubMed: 36793277
DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1119553 -
Se Pu = Chinese Journal of... Jan 2023Glutathione (GSH) is vital for oxidative stress resistance and heavy metals detoxification. It is significant to develop a sensitive and accurate quantitative GSH...
Glutathione (GSH) is vital for oxidative stress resistance and heavy metals detoxification. It is significant to develop a sensitive and accurate quantitative GSH approach for the toxicity mechanism for studying heavy metals in cells. A high-sensitive capillary electrophoresis-laser induced fluorescence (CE-LIF) detection approach was proposed in this study to detect GSH content in cells. The approach employed HepG2 cells as an object and 2,3-naphthalenedicarboxaldehyde (NDA) with the active group of aromatic -dialdehyde as a labeling reagent. The effects of buffer solution types, pH, additives on the GSH reaction rate with NDA, and the sensitivity of NDA-GSH were systematically investigated. The sensitivity of NDA-GSH and the reaction rate of GSH with NDA were compared in tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (Tris) buffer solution at pH 7.4 or 9.2 and borate-Tris buffer solution at pH 9.2. The results revealed that the NDA-GSH sensitivity was the highest and the reaction rate of GSH and NDA was the fastest in borate buffer solution at pH 9.2. The effects of the four additives on the sensitivity of NDA-GSH were further compared. The best additive was revealed to be -cyclodextrin (-CD). GSH reacted with NDA to reach equilibrium within 5 min under the optimal experimental conditions, and the electrophoretic signal of NDA-GSH could be seen in 3 min. Quantitative analysis of GSH in HepG2 cells was performed using an external standard approach by determining a series of GSH standard solutions. The results revealed that the approach had a good linear relationship with the peak area vs. concentration (0.01-20.00 mmol/L) of GSH. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) of GSH were determined using signal-to-noise ratios of 3 (=3) and 10 (=10), which were 0.006 μmol/L and 0.020 μmol/L, respectively. The approach's spiked recoveries were 95.7%-112.6%, with relative standard deviations of the approach being 3.8%-5.0% (=3). This approach offers high sensitivity, good stability, accuracy, and reliability. To study the relationship between the toxicity of arsenic and chromium on HepG2 cells and the content of GSH in HepG2 cells, the effects of arsenic and chromium with different valences on cell viability were analyzed. The results illustrated that the cytotoxicity of potassium dichromate (Cr(Ⅵ)) was the strongest. The variations of GSH content in HepG2 cells stimulated with arsenite (As(Ⅲ)), arsenate (As(Ⅴ)), chromium chloride (Cr(Ⅲ)), and Cr(Ⅵ) were analyzed by the proposed approach and analysis of intracellular GSH imaging. The results revealed that the stimulation group i. e. analyzed doses (low-dose 2 mg/L, high-dose 5 mg/L) of As(Ⅲ), As(Ⅴ), and Cr(Ⅲ) had no obvious effect on GSH content in HepG2 cells compared with the control group, whereas high-dose Cr(Ⅵ) can significantly reduce GSH content in HepG2 cells. Considering the analysis of cytotoxicity of As(Ⅲ), As(Ⅴ), Cr(Ⅲ), and Cr(Ⅵ), it shows that the content of GSH in HepG2 cells is related to cytotoxicity, and the content of GSH will decrease with the increase in cytotoxicity.
Topics: Arsenic; Fluorescence; Reproducibility of Results; Borates; Glutathione; Chromium; Electrophoresis, Capillary; Lasers
PubMed: 36633080
DOI: 10.3724/SP.J.1123.2022.04018 -
Cureus Dec 2022Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is one of the most common skin disorders seen among patients attending dermatology clinics in India. Patch testing is the gold...
BACKGROUND
Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is one of the most common skin disorders seen among patients attending dermatology clinics in India. Patch testing is the gold standard for diagnosing ACD. The clinical-epidemiological pattern of ACD and the allergen-causing it may be different in different geographic locations. Finding the profile of allergens commonly causing ACD in a particular region will help to formulate prevention strategies for the development of ACD.
AIM AND OBJECTIVE
The primary aim of the study was to find out the clinical-epidemiological distribution of allergic contact dermatitis and to identify the common allergens causing it by patch testing in this region of India.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 111 cases of ACD were included in the study. Clinico epidemiological profiles of all patients were documented. The patch testing was performed in the outpatient department using the antigens of the Indian Standard Series kit (Systopic Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India). Patches were removed after 48 hours (two days) of application. The first reading was taken 15 to 20 minutes after the removal of patches on day two. A second reading was taken on day four (96 hours of application) to confirm the presence of an allergic reaction. Results: The patch test was found to be positive in 69% of cases. It was observed that male persons from lower socioeconomic status were getting ACD on most accounts. Potassium dichromate (PDC) was found to be the most common allergen (30.43%) followed by parthenium (26.08%), para-phenylenediamine (PPD) (21.73%), nickel sulfate (18.84%), chlorocresol (15.94%), black rubber (14.49%), cobalt sulfate (13.04%), and wool alcohols (7.24%) respectively.
CONCLUSION
Our study showed potassium dichromate is the commonest allergen causing ACD in this part of the country. The importance of patch testing lies mainly in educating the patient regarding the avoidance of exposure to particular allergens to avoid the development of new ACD as well as an exaggeration of pre-existing ACD.
PubMed: 36601177
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.32119 -
Materials (Basel, Switzerland) Dec 2022The environmental impact and availability of ingredients are vital for the new generation of rocket propellants. In this context, several novel composite propellants...
The environmental impact and availability of ingredients are vital for the new generation of rocket propellants. In this context, several novel composite propellants were prepared based on the "greener" oxidizer (PSAN), a micronized aluminum-magnesium alloy fuel, iron oxide powder burn rate modifier, triethylene glycol dinitrate (TEGDN) energetic plasticizer and a polyurethane (PU) binder. The novelty of this study is brought by the innovative procedure of synthesizing and combining the constituents of these heterogeneous compositions to obtain high-performance "eco-friendly" rocket propellants. The polymorphism shortcomings brought by ammonium nitrate in these energetic formulations have been solved by its co-crystallization with potassium salts (potassium nitrate, potassium chromate, potassium dichromate, potassium sulphate, potassium chlorate and potassium perchlorate). Polyester-polyol blends, resulting from recycled post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) glycolysis, were utilized for the synthesis of the polyurethane binder, especially designed for this type of application. To adjust the energetic output and tailor the mechanical properties of the propellant, the energetic plasticizer TEGDN was also involved. The performance and safety characteristics of the novel composites were evaluated through various analytical techniques (TGA, DTA, XRD) and specific tests (rate of combustion, heat of combustion, specific volume, chemical stability, sensitivity to thermal, impact and friction stimuli), according to NATO standards, providing promising preliminary results for further ballistics investigations.
PubMed: 36556767
DOI: 10.3390/ma15248960 -
Veterinary Sciences Nov 2022Coccidiosis is one of the most common infectious diseases that causes digestive problems in rabbits, leading to global economic losses. This study was conducted to...
Coccidiosis is one of the most common infectious diseases that causes digestive problems in rabbits, leading to global economic losses. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of bile obtained from sheep gallbladder on the sporulation and morphology of oocysts and sporozoites affecting rabbit liver cells and to determine the best concentration for sporulation inhibition. Sporulation inhibition per milliliter was measured in samples exposed to five concentrations of sheep bile (SB) in a 2.5% potassium dichromate solution: 12.5%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% concentrations for oocysticidal activity and 125, 250, 500, 750, and 1000 μg/mL concentrations for antisporozoidal activity. A bioassay was performed to assess the in vitro anticoccidial activity of sheep bile against oocysts and sporozoite sporulation. In this assay, six-well plates with 5 mL of bile containing 1000 oocysts showed unsporulated oocysticidal activity after 48, 72, and 96 h and antisporozoidal activity after 12 and 24 h. A chemical assay was performed via infrared spectroscopy to investigate the presence of several anticipated active chemical compounds in sheep bile. Sheep bile was able to inhibit oocysts at 100% and 75% concentrations by about 91% and 81%, respectively. In addition, SB had the highest inhibition of sporozoite viability (92%) at a concentration of 1000 μg/mL and had the lowest inhibition of 8% at a concentration of 125 μg/mL. An increase in the incubation time and a higher dose generally increased the inhibition rate. The results showed that sheep gallbladder bile is effective due to its inhibitory potential and effect on the coccidian oocyst sporulation of . Further studies are needed to determine the precise active chemicals present in SB and their modes of action and application in vivo.
PubMed: 36548819
DOI: 10.3390/vetsci9120658 -
Toxicology Reports 2022Previous studies from our laboratory showed that prenatal exposure to hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), caused premature ovarian failure and decreased pregnancy rates and...
Previous studies from our laboratory showed that prenatal exposure to hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), caused premature ovarian failure and decreased pregnancy rates and litter size. Exposure to the endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) can cause X-chromosome aneuploidy of the oocytes, increasing chromosome missegregation and risk of infertility, autoimmune diseases, cancers, and various genetic disorders. Cr(VI) is an EDC that is widely used in numerous industries. Environmental exposure to Cr(VI) caused detrimental reproductive effects in women and health effects in infants from California. Women with occupational Cr(VI) exposure experienced infertility, pregnancy loss, spontaneous abortion, and stillbirth. However, the adverse effects of Cr(VI) on oocyte development and quality have not been reported. Mitochondrial membrane potential and function are the critical determinants of oocyte quality in natural pregnancies and successful assisted reproductive techniques. The cytoskeletal machinery of the oocytes orchestrates the meiotic division of the oocytes, whereas cortical granules (CGs) prevent polyspermy. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to examine whether the mechanism by which Cr(VI) compromises oocyte quality and morphology is by altering cytoskeleton dynamics and mitochondrial function of the metaphase II (MII) oocytes. Rats were treated with environmentally relevant doses of Cr(VI) (1 and 5 ppm potassium dichromate) in drinking water from postnatal day (PND) 22-28, followed by superovulation and retrieval of MII oocytes. The data indicate that Cr(VI) exposure disrupted F-actin structure and distribution pattern, compromised mitochondrial function, altered CGs distribution, increased dysmorphic and degenerated oocytes, delayed first polar body extrusion, and caused infertility.
PubMed: 36518455
DOI: 10.1016/j.toxrep.2022.02.002 -
Materials (Basel, Switzerland) Nov 2022Aluminum alloys and their welding structures have been widely used in aviation, aerospace, automobiles, ships, and other industrial fields. The non-uniform nature of...
Fluorinated Siloxane Modified Layered Double Hydroxide Sealing Film to Enhance the Corrosion Resistance of Anodic Oxide Film of Fricition Stir Welding Joint of Aluminum Alloys.
Aluminum alloys and their welding structures have been widely used in aviation, aerospace, automobiles, ships, and other industrial fields. The non-uniform nature of welding structures of aluminum alloys causes intractable corrosion problems. Anodizing and subsequent sealing processes are common and effective methods to improve the corrosion resistance of welding structures. However, traditional sealing processes like hot water sealing and potassium dichromate sealing are criticized due to energy consumption or toxicity. In this work, a layered double hydroxide (LDH) sealing process with subsequent fluorinated siloxane modification is proposed to improve the corrosion resistance of the anodic oxide film of friction stir welding joints of typical aluminum alloys. The obtained sealing film with typical lamelliform structures of LDH grows well at the defects of oxidation film and also smoothens the sample surface. The hydrophobicity of the film can separate the corrosive medium from the sample surface and further enhance corrosion resistance. As a result, the corrosion current of the welded sample in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution plummets about 3~4 orders of magnitude compared to the initial state without anodizing, indicating superior corrosion resistance brought by this method.
PubMed: 36431593
DOI: 10.3390/ma15228105 -
Indian Journal of Dermatology 2022Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is a type IV hypersensitivity reaction, and The European Standard Series (ESS) Patch Test (PT) is widely used in determining the...
BACKGROUND
Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is a type IV hypersensitivity reaction, and The European Standard Series (ESS) Patch Test (PT) is widely used in determining the possible responsible allergens causing ACD. The dynamic nature of the industrial products, socioeconomic and environmental factors cause the frequency of common allergens to change over the years and among different regions.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
This study aimed to retrospectively evaluate the results of ESS PT of our centre in the last decade, and determine the current spectrum of allergens and their clinical relevance.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The data of patients who underwent ESS PT in our clinic between January 2010 and March 2020 were included in the study. The patient files were examined retrospectively. The clinical relevance was evaluated according to the COADEX system. Statistical analysis used: SPSS for Windows version 23.0 software program.
RESULTS
The data of 1037 patients [623 (60.1%) female, 414 (39.9%) male] were analysed. The mean age was 38.34 ± 14.55 years. The five most common allergens were nickel sulphate (23.1%), cobalt chloride (12%), potassium dichromate (9.5%), Fragrance mix II (7.3%) and balsam of Peru (5.7%). According to the COADEX coding system, current relevance was detected in 319 (49.3%) of 646 patients who had a positive reaction to any substance in the patch test.
CONCLUSION
Our study showed that with increasing awareness in society, the tendency to avoid some well-known allergenic substances and consumer products causes changes in common allergens. These results prove the value of long-term surveillance of contact allergy.
PubMed: 36386088
DOI: 10.4103/ijd.ijd_965_21 -
Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Mar 2023Budesonide (BUD), a glucocorticoids drug, inhibits all steps in the inflammatory response. It can reduce and treat inflammation and other symptoms associated with acute...
Budesonide (BUD), a glucocorticoids drug, inhibits all steps in the inflammatory response. It can reduce and treat inflammation and other symptoms associated with acute lung injury such as COVID-19. Loading BUD into bilosomes could boost its therapeutic activity, and lessen its frequent administration and side effects. Different bilosomal formulations were prepared where the independent variables were lipid type (Cholesterol, Phospholipon 80H, L-alpha phosphatidylcholine, and Lipoid S45), bile salt type (Na cholate and Na deoxycholate), and drug concentration (10, 20 mg). The measured responses were: vesicle size, entrapment efficiency, and release efficiency. One optimum formulation (composed of cholesterol, Na cholate, and 10 mg of BUD) was selected and investigated for its anti-inflammatory efficacy in vivo using Wistar albino male rats. Randomly allocated rats were distributed into four groups: The first: normal control group and received intranasal saline, the second one acted as the acute lung injury model received intranasal single dose of 2 mg/kg potassium dichromate (PD). Whereas the third and fourth groups received the market product (Pulmicort® nebulising suspension 0.5 mg/ml) and the optimized formulation (0.5 mg/kg; intranasal) for 7 days after PD instillation, respectively. Results showed that the optimized formulation decreased the pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, and TGF-β contents as well as reduced PKC content in lung. These findings suggest the potentiality of BUD-loaded bilosomes for the treatment of acute lung injury with the ability of inhibiting the pro-inflammatory cytokines induced COVID-19.
Topics: Rats; Animals; Budesonide; Rats, Wistar; COVID-19; Acute Lung Injury; Cytokines; Cholesterol
PubMed: 36228754
DOI: 10.1016/j.xphs.2022.10.001 -
Nanoscale Advances Nov 2021Carbon nanomaterials such as carbon dots (0D), carbon nanotubes (1D), graphene (2D), and graphite (3D) have been exploited as electrode materials for various... (Review)
Review
Carbon nanomaterials such as carbon dots (0D), carbon nanotubes (1D), graphene (2D), and graphite (3D) have been exploited as electrode materials for various applications because of their high active surface area, thermal conductivity, high chemical stability and easy availability. In addition, due to the strong affinity between carbon nanomaterials and various catalysts, they can easily form metal carbides (examples: ionic, covalent, interstitial and intermediate transition metal carbides) and also help in the stable dispersion of catalysts on the surface of carbon nanomaterials. Thermally expanded graphite (TEG) is a vermicular-structured carbon material that can be prepared by heating expandable graphite up to 1150 °C using a muffle or tubular furnace. At high temperatures, the thermal expansion of graphite occurred by the intercalation of ions (examples: SO , NO , Li, Na, K, ) and oxidizing agents (examples: ammonium persulfate, HO, potassium nitrate, potassium dichromate, potassium permanganate, ) which helped in the exfoliation process. Finally, the obtained TEG, an intumescent form of graphite, has been used in the preparation of composite materials with various conducting polymers (examples: epoxy, poly(styrene--acrylonitrile), polyaniline, ) and metal chlorides (examples: FeCl, CuCl, and ZnCl) for hydrogen storage, thermal energy storage, fuel cells, batteries, supercapacitors, sensors, The main features of TEG include a highly porous structure, very lightweight with an apparent density (0.002-0.02 g cm), high mechanical properties (10 MPa), thermal conductivity (25-470 W m K), high electrical conductivity (106-108 S cm) and low-cost. The porosity and expansion ratio of graphite layers could be customized by controlling the temperature and selection of intercalation ions according to the demand. Recently, TEG based composites prepared with metal oxides, chlorides and polymers have been demonstrated for their use in energy production, energy storage, and electrochemical (bio-) sensors (examples: urea, organic pollutants, Cd, Pb, ). In this review, we have highlighted and summarized the recent developments in TEG-based composites and their potential applications in energy storage, fuel cells and sensors with hand-picked examples.
PubMed: 36133482
DOI: 10.1039/d1na00109d