Insight into isolation and elucidation of cytotoxic ergostanoids from the mushroom Sarcosphaera crassa (Santi) Pouzar: An edible mushroom.

Sarcosphaera crassa is a mushroom consumed in Europe and Anatolia after being cooked well. The cytotoxic activity of the extracts of unbaked S. crassa against MCF7, HT29, HeLa cancer cell lines and toxicity against PDF fibroblast healthy cell lines were studied using MTT assay.

Identification of a novel missense mutation in NIPAL4 gene: First 3D model construction predicted its pathogenicity.

Background: The NIPAL4 gene is described to be implicated of Congenital Ichthyosiform Erythroderma (CIE). It encodes a magnesium transporter membrane-associated protein, hypothetically involved in epidermal lipid processing and in lamellar body formation. The aim of this work is to investigate the causative mutation in a consanguineous Tunisian family with a clinical feature of CIE with a yellowish severe palmoplantar keratoderma.

Design, synthesis of novel Triazolones and bis-Triazolones derivatives under ultrasound irradiation and evaluation as potent angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors.

The condensation of several primary amines and diamines with various N-ethoxycarbonyles N-tosylhydrazonates (1a-b), triazolones (2) and bis-triazolone (3) resulted in ethanol under ultrasound irradiation. Compared with the conventional methods, the main advantages of the present procedure are milder conditions, shorter reaction time and higher yields. The newly synthesized compounds were evaluated for angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition.

Proteins oxidation and autoantibodies' reactivity against hydrogen peroxide and malondialdehyde -oxidized thyroid antigens in patients' plasmas with Graves' disease and Hashimoto Thyroiditis.

The aim of this study was to evaluate proteins oxidation in plasmas of two autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD): Graves' disease (GD) and Hashimoto Thyroiditis (HT), and to determine whether oxidative modification of thyroid antigens (T.Ag) enhanced the reactivity of autoantibodies in plasmas of AITD patients compared with the reactivity towards native T.Ag.

A comparative study of nuclear 8-hydroxyguanosine expression in Autoimmune Thyroid Diseases and Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma and its relationship with p53, Bcl-2 and Ki-67 cancer related proteins.

Purpose: To investigate whether the oxidative stress is involved in the evolution of Graves' disease (GD) and Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) into Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma (PTC), 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and cancer related proteins (Bcl-2, p53 and Ki-67) expressions were evaluated in these pathologies.

Patients And Methods: Immunohistochemical method was applied on 25 thyroid tissues. Allred score (AS) serving to evaluate the immunostaining is based on a scale from 0 to 8.

Differential reactive oxygen species production of neutrophils and their oxidative damage in patients with active and inactive systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: Increasing interest is given to the involvement of the innate immunity and especially Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) in the physiopathological process of inflammatory diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Here, we investigated the oxidative burst and damages in SLE patients neutrophils, considering the two phases of the disease, the active and the remission/inactive states.

Methods: This study was conducted on 30 SLE patients and 23 healthy controls.

Oil from pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo L.) seeds: evaluation of its functional properties on wound healing in rats.

Background: Increasing natural drug demand for pharmaceutical uses has encouraged scientifics all over the world to explore medicinal plants recognized as efficient remedies. In this context, extracted oil from pumpkin seeds (Cucurbita pepo L.) is an interesting target, as it is composed with prominent pharmacological properties to possible wound healing treatments.

Evaluation of the effect of c.2946+1G>T mutation on splicing in the SCN1A gene.

Mutations in the SCN1A gene have commonly been associated with a wide range of mild to severe epileptic syndromes. They generate a wide spectrum of phenotypes ranging from the relatively mild generalized epilepsy with febrile seizures plus (GEFS+) to other severe epileptic encephalopathies, including myoclonic epilepsy in infancy (SMEI), cryptogenic focal epilepsy (CFE), cryptogenic generalized epilepsy (CGE) and a distinctive subgroup termed as severe infantile multifocal epilepsy (SIMFE). The present study was undertaken to investigate the potential effects of a transition in the first nucleotide at the donor splice site of intron 15 of the SCN1A gene leading to CGES.

NOS2 variants reveal a dual genetic control of nitric oxide levels, susceptibility to Plasmodium infection, and cerebral malaria.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a proposed component of malaria pathogenesis, and the inducible nitric oxide synthase gene (NOS2) has been associated to malaria susceptibility. We analyzed the role of NOS2 polymorphisms on NO bioavailability and on susceptibility to infection, Plasmodium carrier status and clinical malaria. Two distinct West African sample collections were studied: a population-based collection of 1,168 apparently healthy individuals from the Príncipe Island and a hospital-based cohort of 269 Angolan children.

Catalase and lipid peroxidation values in serum of Tunisian patients with pemphigus vulgaris and foliaceus.

Pemphigus is an autoimmune disorder resulting from the interaction between autoantibodies and desmoglein. Oxidative stress seems to be responsible for the onset/aggravation of many human diseases. Actually, it is considered as one of the several factors for the etiopathogenesis of pemphigus.

Essential oil of the leaves of Ricinus communis L.: in vitro cytotoxicity and antimicrobial properties.

Background: The aim of the present study was to appraise the antimicrobial activity of Ricinus communis L. essential oil against different pathogenic microorganisms and the cytotoxic activity against HeLa cell lines.

Methods: The agar disk diffusion method was used to study the antibacterial activity of Ricinus communis L.

A new Lactobacillus plantarum strain, TN8, from the gastro intestinal tract of poultry induces high cytokine production.

This study aimed to determine the probiotic potential of 100 strains of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) isolated from different intestinal segments of indigenous poultry in Tunisia. The strains were submitted to a battery of standard tests and criteria commonly used for determining their probiotic properties and attributes. The findings revealed that 19 of the isolates exhibited antimicrobial activity against 4 pathogenic bacteria, and that 4 (TN1, TN8, TN7, and TN13) showed good resistance to pH 3 and 5% bovine bile.

The in-vitro evaluation of antibacterial, antifungal and cytotoxic properties of Marrubium vulgare L. essential oil grown in Tunisia.

Background: In order to validate its antiseptic and anticancer properties with respect to traditional uses, we have screened for the first time the antimicrobial activity of aerial parts of M. vulgare L. essential oil against different pathogenic microorganisms and the cytotoxic activity against HeLa cell lines.

Reactive oxygen species production and antioxidant enzyme expression after Epstein-Barr virus lytic cycle induction in Raji cell line.

In a previous study, we have described oxidative stress during Epstein-Barr virus lytic cycle induction. Oxidative stress was evidenced by the observed high MDA levels and the decreased activities of antioxidant enzymes. We hypothesised that the lower activities of the antioxidant enzymes decrease were the result of either the excessive production of reactive oxygen radical species (ROS) or a negative regulation of the antioxidant enzyme gene expressions.

Antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of inflorescence of Ormenis Africana in vitro and in cell cultures.

Background: The antioxidant potency of the hydroethanolic extract of Ormenis Africana (HEOA), Asteraceae was evaluated with regards to total polyphenol, flavonoid and anthocyanins content. Antioxidant activity has been assessed chemically and biologically. First, the free radical scavenging ability of HEOA was evaluated using two commonly in vitro tests: ABTS and DPPH radicals.

High levels of autoantibodies against catalase and superoxide dismutase in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Introduction: Autoantibodies against the antioxidant enzymes have been described in Epstein-Barr virus-associated diseases. Here, we hypothesize that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which is associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), induces anticatalase and/or antisuperoxide dismutase autoantibodies that inhibit catalase and/or superoxide dismutase activities and thereby contribute to the oxidative stress status described in this pathology.

Methods: Using a standard enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), the levels of immunoglobulin G (IgG), and M (IgM) directed against catalase and superoxide dismutase in the sera of 30 NPC patients and 30 healthy control individuals were evaluated.

Epstein-Barr virus induces an oxidative stress during the early stages of infection in B lymphocytes, epithelial, and lymphoblastoid cell lines.

The study investigates the direct effect of Epstein-Barr virus infection on the oxidative profile of in vitro cultivated human cells. For this purpose, a panel of human EBV target cells presenting heterogeneity in their cellular and culture types (epithelial cells or lymphocytes; primary culture or continuous cell culture) was selected. These cells are purified human B lymphocytes, DG75, 293, and HepG2 cell lines.

A comparative study of oxidant-antioxidant status in stable and active vitiligo patients.

The pathogenetic mechanisms in vitiligo have not been completely clarified. One of the major hypotheses in the pathogenesis of vitiligo is the oxidative stress hypothesis. The active or stable phase of vitiligo is defined on the basis of the progression or appearance of new lesions in the last 3 months and the absence of new lesions or their progression in the last 6 months, respectively.