Recent scientific findings have correlated the gut microbes with homeostasis of human health by delineating their role in pathogen resistance, bioactive metabolization, and immune responses. Foreign materials, like xenobiotics, that induce an altering effect to the human body also influence the gut microbiome to some extent and often limit their use as a result of significant side effects. Investigating the xenobiotic effect of new therapeutic material or edible could be quite painstaking and economically non-viable. Thus, the use of predictive toxicology methods can be an innovative strategy in the food, pharma, and agriculture industries. There are reported in silico, ex vivo, in vitro, and in vivo methods to evaluate such effects but with added drawbacks, such as lower predictability, physiological dissimilarities, and high cost of associated invasive procedures. This review highlights the current and future possibilities with newer modern sensing approaches of economic and time-scale advantages for predicting toxicological responses on gut microbiomes.
The elevated glutathione (GSH) level in cancer cells contributes to the poor response to chemotherapy and necessitates the use of maximum tolerated drug doses, leading to myriad side effects. We have developed a biocompatible and fluorescently trackable nanosystem, iron(III)-bound nanocarbonaceous polyphenol (FeNCP), to modulate the available GSH pool in cancer cells for synergistic effects in treatments with a cytotoxic anticancer drug, doxorubicin (Dox). This nanosystem was designed using a nanoscale carbon system as a platform to generate a GSH-responsive gallic acid−iron complex. The effective interaction between FeNCP and GSH was probed in PBS (pH 7.4) and cell lysates using UV−Vis, fluorescence spectrophotometry, 1 H NMR, flow cytometry, and confocal and transmission electron microscopic studies. The concurrent treatment of cancer cells with subcytotoxic FeNCP and Dox leads to dose reduction indices of Dox of ∼6.1 for HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma) and 6.7 for B16F0 (melanoma) to kill ∼50% of the cell population, which is suggestive of the requirement of a multifold lower dose of Dox. Notably, this combination was relatively more cytotoxic toward cancer cell lines than the model normal cell line, Vero. The increased reactive oxygen species levels in combinatorial treatment reveal that FeNCP serves as a potential candidate for modulating glutathione activity and potentiating cytotoxic effects of Dox. The intelligent multifold design of this nanosystem might enable the applicability in optical detection of GSH and imaging-assisted surgery in the future, in addition to the potential to advance treatment regimens in anticancer chemotherapy.
The success of endosseous implants is directly related to the principle of osseointegration. As the surface topography of a biomaterial has a major impact on osseointegration. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of different surface treatment on the osteoblastic activity of zirconia. A total of 60 samples of Zirconia discs was fabricated and divided into three groups. Group 1[n-20]: Zirconia without treatment; Group 2 [n-20]: Zirconia treatment with sand blasting / acid etching; Group 3 [n-20]: Zirconia treatment with UV light. After, the surface treatment all the three groups were subjected to SEM scanning electron microscope to determine the surface roughness and topography. Human osteoblastic sarcoma cells were seeded on the test material at density of 1 X 104 cells / cm 2 and incubated for 48 hrs at 37 + 1 0 c under humidified atmosphere containing 5% CO 2 . After 48 hours cell seeded test material and glass cover slips was fixed with 2.5% glutaraldehyde. SEM was done to evaluate adhesion of osteoblastic cells and colony formation on the zirconia discs and compared between the groups. There was marked osteoblast adhesion seen in the zirconia discs treated with UV light followed by etching and sand blasting, as compared to zirconia discs without surface treatment. The cell adhesion in Group I Samples were having less spread of Osteoblastic cells and had fewer osteoblastic cell colonies. Group II Samples were having more distinct spread of osteoblastic cells than group I. However, they had fewer osteoblastic cell colonies. The cell adhesion seen in group III (UV Photofunctionalisation) were showing more prominent osteoblast cells that was scattered throughout the Sample and showed better adhesion as compared to Group I and Group II.
Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has radically transformed workplaces, bearing an adverse impact on the mental health of employees. Aim: The current study attempts to gain an understanding of the mental health of employees while working from home (WFH) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Setting and Design: The research followed a mixed-methods design and was conducted across two phases, with participants divided into two subgroups – the WFH subgroup (currently engaging in WFH) and the not working from home (NWFH) subgroup (unable to engage in vocational tasks due to the pandemic). Materials and Methods: The first phase employed quantitative standardized measures of workplace well-being, work and social adjustment, and quality of mental health across 187 participants. The second phase involved in-depth interviews of 31 participants selected from the previous phase, to understand the factors impacting mental health. Results: Strong correlations were recorded between the mental health of an individual and work-related constructs such as workplace well-being and work and social adjustment. The study revealed that participants rated themselves as being significantly more stressed and less productive during the pandemic. Thematic analysis identified the stressors (factors that negatively impact mental health) and enhancers (factors that enhance mental health). Fourteen stressors and 12 enhancers were identified for the WFH group, while five stressors and three enhancers were identified for the NWFH group. Conclusions: The results of the study indicate a significant relationship between the mental health of employees and work-related experiences through the pandemic. Further research on the stressors and enhancers identified through the study can pave the way for effective interventions to promote employee mental health.
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