Silymarin is proclaimed to be a blend of flavonolignans or phytochemicals. An era of new generation of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) has commenced to have facet effect in swaying of the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Nonetheless, this therapy has serious side effects that jeopardize its efficacy. This study is aimed at probing the effects of ribavirin (RBV) and sofosbuvir (SOF) along with silymarin as an adjunct therapy on hematological parameters and markers of obscured oxidative stress. The effect of DAAs along with silymarin was also examined on variable sex hormone level and liver function markers such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and bilirubin. The study was followed to determine viral load and viral genotypes. A total of 30 patients were randomly divided into two equal groups comprising the control group ( n = 15 ) and treatment group ( n = 15 ). The control group was solely administered with DAAs (SOF and RBV; 400 mg/800 mg each/day). Conversely, the treatment group was dispensed with DAAs, but with adjunct therapy of silymarin (400 mg/day) along with DAAs (400/800 mg/day) over period of 8 weeks. Sampling of blood was performed at pre- and posttreatment levels for the evaluation of different propound parameters. Our data showed that silymarin adjunct therapy enhances the efficiency of DAAs. A decrease in menace level of liver markers such as ALT, ALP, AST, and bilirubin was observed ( p > 0.05 ). The adjunct therapy concurrently also demonstrated an ameliorative effect on hematological indices and oxidative markers, for instance, SOD, TAS, GSH, GSSG, and MDA ( p < 0.05 ), diminishing latent viral load. The silymarin administration was also found to revamp the fluster level of sex hormones. Our outcomes provide evidence that systematic administration of silymarin effectively remits deviant levels of hematological, serological, hormonal, and antioxidant markers. This demonstrates a possibly unique role of silymarin in mitigating hepatitis C.

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Anemia is associated with poor health outcomes, and the prevalence of anemia is a significant public health indicator for both developed and developing countries. Iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most common type of anemia, which often develops during pregnancy. A cross-sectional study was conducted in the urban areas of Quetta city among the women of reproductive age (15-49 years) to update the status of IDA in the region. The study participants ( n = 216 ) were selected on a random basis, and the samples were further distributed by age. Overall, 75% of females were nonanemic, and among those that were anemic, 2% were severe, 13% were moderately, and 10% were mildly anemic. Among the IDA-affected women, 83% were non-pregnant. Age-wise distribution of IDA revealed no significant difference among different age groups, but numerically higher observations were recorded in the age groups of less than 30 years. The highest number of moderately IDA-affected women (15%) were in the age group 15-19 with the following IDA indicating parameters: hemoglobin 9.64 g/dl, mean corpuscular volume 63.11 fl, mean corpuscular hemoglobin 20.40%, red cell distribution 19.28%. This study will be beneficial for illustrating the requirement and the development of a program to raise extended awareness in the Quetta communities to overcome the negative health effects of IDA on the female population.

A new species, Otacilia dadongshanica Liu, sp. nov. (♂♀) is firstly described from Jiangxi Province, China. The new species is diagnosed and illustrated with photographs. A distribution map is also given.

The aim of this study was to examine the influence of immune modulators on the immune competence of broiler chickens. In three experiments (n=240 chicks in each), the immune modulators vitamin C (500 mg/l), vitamin E (200 mg/l), dietary nucleotides (100 mg/l) and DNA (100 mg/l) extracted from chicken liver were separately offered on days 1-21, 1-42 and 22-42 in experiments 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Under standard broiler management conditions, birds were divided into five treatment groups of 48 with four replicates. Commercial pre-starter feed, starter feed and finisher feed were offered on days 1-12, 13-25 and 26-42, respectively. Birds were vaccinated against Newcastle disease virus and infectious bursal disease. Relative lymphoid organ weights were recorded on day 42. Hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assay was performed against Newcastle disease virus on a weekly basis, whilst a hemagglutination (HA) assay was performed to determine immunity against total sheep red blood cell (SRBC) , mercaptoethanol-2 resistant (IgG) and mercaptoethanol-2 sensitive (IgM) antibodies on weeks 3, 4, 5 and 6. Lymphoid organ weight showed non-significant difference (P>0.05), with numerically higher weight in immune modulator groups.The vitamin E supplemented group had highest HI antibody titers (7.22±0.25, 7.36±0.18 and 6.55±0.38).In experiments 1 and 2, supplementation with immune modulators had significant (P<0.05) effects on total SRBC, IgG and IgM titers. In conclusion, vitamin E showed better immuno-modulatory effect followed by vitamin C, nucleotides and DNA, respectively. Supplementation of immuno-modulators at early age (1 to 21 days) showed more promising effect on immune performance of broiler chickens.

Micronutrients support immune functions and are essential for optimized health and production of animals. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of vitamin E and vitamin C, alone or in combinations, on growth and antioxidant capacity of neonate dairy calves. For this purpose, eighteen female Holstein Friesian calves were selected. Experimental treatments were; T0 or control (milk without vitamin supplementation), T1 (milk supplemented with 250mg of vitamin E), T2 (milk supplemented with 500mg of vitamin E), T3 (milk supplemented with 1000mg of vitamin C), T4 (milk supplemented with 250mg of vitamin E and 1000mg of vitamin C) and T5 (milk supplemented with 500mg of vitamin E and 1000mg of vitamin C). Experimental treatments were started from the third day till 60th days of calf’s life. Blood was collected in clot-activator tubes for TAC at day 01, 30 and 60. Body measurements were noted during 1st, 3rd, 6th and 9th week of this trial. Results showed that the TAC was significantly high in T1 group during first month. At the end of the trial (day 60), TAC were highest in T0 and T1comparetively. The wither height, heart girth and body length were significant in supplemented groups compared to control. In conclusion, it is asserted that the supplementation of vitamin E and vitamin C have beneficial effect on growth and antioxidant capacity of neonate calves.

A study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of Salmonella spp. in processed raw frozen and fresh poultry meat sold in retail markets and shops of Quetta, Pakistan. A total of 200 samples (100 each of fresh and frozen meat samples) were randomly collected from retailers during the period of March to September 2016. Out of 200 samples tested, 66 (33%) were found to be contaminated with Salmonella spp. The contamination rate of frozen samples was 30% as compared to 36% of fresh meat samples. Out of 66 Salmonella positive samples, the most prevalent sero-groups identified were S. enteritidis (43.9%) followed by S. typhimurium (30.3%), S. gallinarum (16.6%), S. pullorum (7.6%) and S. typhi (1.5%). Our findings highlight the magnitude of Salmonella contamination in chicken meat sold in the city of Quetta and demonstrate the efficacy of biochemical characterization and typing through multiplex PCR. The results indicate an urgent need for applying proper food hygiene practices in the Quetta region to reduce the incidence of foodborne diseases.