Pharmacological, toxicological and neuronal localization assessment of galantamine/chitosan complex nanoparticles in rats: future potential contribution in Alzheimer's disease management.

Purpose: Nasal galantamine hydrobromide (GH)/chitosan complex nanoparticles (CX-NP2) could have an improved therapeutic potential for managing Alzheimer's disease (AD). The current study aimed to investigate if the complexation reaction between GH and chitosan altered the pharmacological and toxicological profiles of the parent drug; GH.

Methods: The nasal administration of CX-NP2 to male Wistar rats for 12 consecutive days was compared to negative control group, and oral and nasal GH solutions treated groups in 3 mg/kg daily GH dose.

FN-Identify: Novel Restriction Enzymes-Based Method for Bacterial Identification in Absence of Genome Sequencing.

Sequencing and restriction analysis of genes like 16S rRNA and HSP60 are intensively used for molecular identification in the microbial communities. With aid of the rapid progress in bioinformatics, genome sequencing became the method of choice for bacterial identification. However, the genome sequencing technology is still out of reach in the developing countries.

Optimal waist circumference cutoff points for the determination of abdominal obesity and detection of cardiovascular risk factors among adult Egyptian population.

Objective: To determine the best anthropometric measurement of obesity, and its optimal cutoff, that best predicts the presence of cardiovascular risk factors among adult Egyptian population.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study including a representative randomly chosen sample of the adult Egyptian population from all Alexandria Districts (the second largest governorate in Egypt) based on the multistage random technique. It included 3209 subjects (1567 men, 1642 women) aged 18-80 years from urban and rural areas.

Additive Renoprotection by Pioglitazone and Fenofibrate against Inflammatory, Oxidative and Apoptotic Manifestations of Cisplatin Nephrotoxicity: Modulation by PPARs.

Nephrotoxicity is a major side effect for the antineoplastic drug cisplatin. Here, we employed pharmacological, biochemical, and molecular studies to investigate the role of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) in cisplatin nephrotoxicity. Rats were treated with a single i.

Assessing the clinical utility of color Doppler ultrasound for ovarian torsion in the setting of a negative contrast-enhanced CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the utility of color Doppler ultrasound (CDU) in the assessment of ovarian torsion following a negative contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) examination.

Methods: This is a retrospective study of women who presented to the ED with abdominal pain and received both a contrast-enhanced CT and CDU within a 24-h period. The abdominal/pelvic CT examinations were evaluated for findings specific to torsion, including ovarian size greater than 5 cm, the presence of free fluid, uterine deviation, fallopian tube thickening, ovarian fat stranding, smooth wall thickening, the presence of the "twisted pedicle" sign, and abnormal ovarian enhancement.

Duplex Doppler Imaging of Dialysis Fistulae and Grafts.

Arteriovenous fistulae and grafts for hemodialysis access are a lifeline in patients with end-stage renal disease. A significant cause of morbidity and mortality in this population is dialysis access dysfunction. Duplex ultrasound imaging is an excellent modality to evaluate arteriovenous fistulae and grafts, the 2 main types of long-term hemodialysis access.

Altered Doppler flow patterns in cirrhosis patients: an overview.

Doppler ultrasonography of the hepatic vasculature is an integral part of evaluating precirrhotic and cirrhotic patients. While the reversal of the portal venous flow is a well-recognized phenomenon, other flow patterns, although not as easily understood, may play an important role in assessing the disease status. This article discusses the different characteristic flow patterns observed from the portal vein, hepatic artery, and hepatic vein in patients with liver cirrhosis or related complications and procedures.

Pioglitazone ameliorates methotrexate-induced renal endothelial dysfunction via amending detrimental changes in some antioxidant parameters, systemic cytokines and Fas production.

Methotrexate (MTX) is widely used in treatment of cancers and autoimmune diseases. However, nephrotoxicity is one of its most important side effects. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma agonist, pioglitazone, is known to exert antiinflammatory and reno-protective effects in various kidney injuries.

Endothelin ETA receptor/lipid peroxides/COX-2/TGF-β1 signalling underlies aggravated nephrotoxicity caused by cyclosporine plus indomethacin in rats.

Background And Purpose: Cyclosporine (CSA) and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are co-prescribed for some arthritic conditions. We tested the hypothesis that this combined regimen elicits exaggerated nephrotoxicity in rats via the up-regulation of endothelin (ET) receptor signalling.

Experimental Approach: The effects of a 10 day treatment with CSA (20 mg · kg(-1) · day(-1)), indomethacin (5 mg · kg(-1) · day(-1)) or their combination on renal biochemical, inflammatory, oxidative and structural profiles were assessed.

Tissue Doppler-Derived Myocardial Acceleration during Isovolumetric Contraction Predicts Pulmonary Capillary Wedge Pressure in Patients with Significant Mitral Regurgitation.

The aim of this study was to determine whether isovolumic contraction velocity (IVV) and acceleration (IVA) predict pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) in mitral regurgitation. Forty-four patients with mitral regurgitation were studied. PCWP was invasively measured.

Similar and additive effects of ovariectomy and diabetes on insulin resistance and lipid metabolism.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is among the leading causes of death in postmenopausal women. The disruption of ovarian function may contribute to the incidence of T2DM. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of ovariectomy and T2DM on glucose and lipid homeostasis, perilipin levels in adipose tissues, as a lipolytic regulator, and levels of certain adipokines.

Crevicular alkaline phosphatase activity during the application of two patterns of orthodontic forces.

Objective: The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that using a gradually increasing orthodontic force would induce an increased activity of osteoblasts compared to a relatively constant orthodontic force.

Participants And Methods: Twelve orthodontic patients participated in this study. In a split mouth design, one maxillary canine undergoing distal movement received a relatively constant continuous retraction force, while the contralateral canine received a gradually increasing retraction force.

The Differential Immunohistochemical Expression of p53, c-Jun, c-Myc, and p21 Between HCV-related Hepatocellular Carcinoma With and Without Cirrhosis.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) constitutes 70.48% of all liver tumors among Egyptians with multifactorial etiology and complex pathogenesis. HCV infection is the most common risk factor of HCC in Egypt, which commonly develops on top of cirrhosis (HCC-C); however, 15% to 20% of HCC are reported to arise in noncirrhotic livers (HCC-NC).

Celecoxib, but not indomethacin, ameliorates the hypertensive and perivascular fibrotic actions of cyclosporine in rats: role of endothelin signaling.

The immunosuppressant drug cyclosporine (CSA) is used with nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in arthritic conditions. In this study, we investigated whether NSAIDs modify the deleterious hypertensive action of CSA and the role of endothelin (ET) receptors in this interaction. Pharmacologic, protein expression, and histopathologic studies were performed in rats to investigate the roles of endothelin receptors (ETA/ETB) in the hemodynamic interaction between CSA and two NSAIDs, indomethacin and celecoxib.

Comparison of Renal Parenchymal Volume Preservation Between Partial Nephrectomy, Cryoablation, and Radiofrequency Ablation Using 3D Volume Measurements.

Purpose: Small renal masses (SRM) can be managed via a variety of nephron-sparing procedures (NSPs), but the association between choice of NSP and renal parenchymal volume (RPV) preservation is not well understood. We sought to examine RPV preservation after partial nephrectomy (PN) performed via open, robotic, or laparoscopic approaches and thermal ablation (TA) performed via cryoablation (CA) or radiofrequency ablation (RFA).

Patients And Methods: The study was a retrospective review of three institutional databases of patients with a SRM <4 cm treated via one of the five NSPs (open PN, laparoscopic PN, robotic PN, percutaneous CA, or percutaneous RFA).

CT and radiographic appearance of extracranial Onyx(®) embolization.

Onyx(®) (ev3, Irvine, CA, USA) is a liquid embolic agent composed of ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer dissolved in dimethyl sulphoxide used for the treatment of intracranial arteriovenous malformations. Onyx is a preferred embolizing agent due to its unique properties, non-adhesive nature, and durability. In addition to its approved intracranial application, Onyx is also being used successfully in extracranial embolization in areas including extracranial aneurisms and vascular malformations, trauma, gastrointestinal bleeding, and neoplasms.

Comparison of radiation dose from conventional and triple-bolus computed tomography urography protocols in the diagnosis and management of patients with renal cortical neoplasms.

Objective: To retrospectively compare the radiation dose of triple-bolus computed tomography (TBCT) and conventional CT (CCT) urography protocols, analyze the effects of body mass index (BMI) on radiation dose in each group, and assess image quality.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the images of patients who underwent CCT or TBCT imaging in the management of renal cortical neoplasms. We used standard volumetric CT dose index (CTDIvol) and dose length product (DLP) to estimate radiation exposure.

Phenotypic and molecular characterization of plasmid mediated AmpC β-lactamases among Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., and Proteus mirabilis isolated from urinary tract infections in Egyptian hospitals.

The incidence of resistance by Enterobacteriaceae to β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitors combination is increasing in Egypt. Three phenotypic techniques, comprising AmpC disk diffusion and inhibition dependent methods using phenylboronic acid (PBA) and cloxacillin, were compared to PCR based method for detection of plasmid mediated AmpC β-lactamase in common urinary tract isolates. A total of 143 isolates, including E.

Role of nitrergic and endothelin pathways modulations in cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in male rats.

Although the protective role of either nitric oxide (NO) or endothelin (ET) receptors modulation on the severity of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity has been recognized in previous studies including our own, the possible interaction between the two pathways remains obscure. In this study, we tested for the first time the possible interaction between the nitrergic and endothelin pathways in cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in male rats. Sprague Dawley male rats were divided into four groups: control (given a single dose of normal saline, i.

Impaired peripheral glucose sensing in F1 offspring of diabetic pregnancy.

Maternal diabetes can induce permanent changes in glucose homeostasis that can occur pre- and post-natal and leads to type 2 diabetes in adulthood. This study aimed to investigate the effect of maternal diabetes on the F1 offspring peripheral glucose sensing and mitochondrial biogenesis in an attempt to clarify the mechanism of diabetogenic programming. Two groups of female Wistar rats were used (diabetic and control); diabetes was neonatally induced by STZ injection to 5-day old rats.

Selective ET(A) receptor blockade protects against cisplatin-induced acute renal failure in male rats.

The present study aims to investigate the possibility that inhibiting the physiological function of endothelin-1 (ET-1) by blocking its receptors would significantly decrease the nephrotoxic effect of cisplatin. Therefore the study was designed to investigate the effect of treatment with BQ-123, the selective endothelin receptor-A (ET(A)) blocker, and bosentan, the non-selective endothelin receptor blocker, on the cisplatin-induced structural, functional, and biochemical alterations in the rat kidney. Rats were divided into four groups: control (given a single dose of normal saline, i.

Celecoxib offsets the negative renal influences of cyclosporine via modulation of the TGF-β1/IL-2/COX-2/endothelin ET(B) receptor cascade.

Endothelin (ET) signaling provokes nephrotoxicity induced by the immunosuppressant drug cyclosporine A (CSA). We tested the hypotheses that (i): celecoxib, a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor, counterbalances renal derangements caused by CSA in rats and (ii) the COX-2/endothelin ET(B) receptor signaling mediates the CSA-celecoxib interaction. Ten-day treatment with CSA (20 mg/kg/day) significantly increased biochemical indices of renal function (serum urea, creatinine), inflammation (interleukin-2, IL-2) and fibrosis (transforming growth factor-β₁, TGF-β₁).

Novel, congenital iliac arterial anatomy: Absent common iliac arteries and left internal iliac artery.

Congenital anomalies of the iliac arterial system are rare and can be associated with ischemia. With an increase in vascular imaging and interventions, such anomalies are likely to be encountered with greater frequency. We present the case of a 25-year-old female who was incidentally found to have absence of the common iliac arteries bilaterally and the left internal iliac artery, a constellation not previously reported in the literature.

Next-generation sequence assembly: four stages of data processing and computational challenges.

Decoding DNA symbols using next-generation sequencers was a major breakthrough in genomic research. Despite the many advantages of next-generation sequencers, e.g.

In utero exposure to itraconazole during different gestational periods of rats.

The present study aimed to investigate the teratogenic and genotoxic effects of itraconazole administered orally to pregnant rats on gestation days 1-7 (implantation), 8-14 (organogenesis) and 14-20 (fetal developmental period) at doses 75, 100 or 150 mg/kg b.wt. The results indicated that itraconazole had embryolethal effect when administered at a dose of 150 mg/kg b.