Accelerated Electron Ionization-Induced Changes in the Myenteric Plexus of the Rat Stomach.

The influence of accelerated electrons on neuronal structures is scarcely explored compared to gamma and X-rays. This study aims to investigate the effects of accelerated electron radiation on some pivotal neurotransmitter circuits (cholinergic and serotonergic) of rats' myenteric plexus. Male Wistar rats were irradiated with an electron beam (9 MeV, 5 Gy) generated by a multimodality linear accelerator.

Hypoglycemic Effects of Extracts Obtained from Endemic Degen and Neič.

The increasing prevalence of diabetes mellitus, together with the limited access of many patients to conventional antidiabetic drugs and the side effects resulting from their use, are the reason for the ever-increasing need for new agents. One of the most important strategies used in the therapy of this disease is to reduce the postprandial blood glucose level by inhibiting the carbohydrate-degrading enzymes α-amylase and α-glucosidase. The purpose of the present study was to provide in vitro evidence for the potential hypoglycemic effect of leaf and inflorescence aqueous extracts of Bulgarian endemic species Degen and Neič.

Phytochemical Constituents and Pharmacological Potential of Rhizomes.

L. is a plant distributed in a number of geographical areas whose rhizome has been used for centuries as an anti-inflammatory and analgesic remedy. This review aims to summarize the current knowledge of the chemical composition and biological activity of the extracts or individual compounds of the rhizome.

Naturally present metal ions in plants could interfere with common antioxidant assays.

Most of the commonly applied assays used to assess antioxidant properties of plant extracts exploit the ability of some biologically active metabolites to participate in oxidation-reduction reactions with metal ions. On the other hand, most plants contain different chelated metal ions whose levels depend on the geographic origin, soil, and environmental pollutions. In this study the levels of redox-active metal ions in three plant sources were measured and extracts of these botanicals were treated with Chelex - an ion exchanger that is noteworthy for its ability to bind transition metal ions.

Vibrational frequencies and infrared intensities of the hydrogen-bonded complexes of nitrous acid with ethers: ab initio and DFT studies.

The vibrational spectra of the binary complexes formed by HONO-trans and HONO-cis with dimethyl and diethyl ethers have been investigated using ab initio calculations at the SCF and MP2 levels with 6-311++G(d,p) basis set and B3LYP calculations with 6-31G(d,p) and 6-31+G(d,p) basis sets. Full geometry optimisation was made for the complexes studied. The accuracy of the ab initio calculations have been estimated by comparison between the predicted values of the vibrational characteristics (vibrational frequencies and infrared intensities) and the available experimental data.