Free oxygen radicals and insufficient antioxidant enzymes have been implicated in the pathogenesis of hypercholesterolemia (HC). Trace elements function as cofactors in antioxidant enzymes. Antioxidant system and trace elements were investigated in many different studies including HC, but these subjects have not been investigated as a whole in these patients. The aim of the present study was to investigate the antioxidative system and trace elements in hypercholesterolemic patients given fluvastatin therapy. We examined malondialdehyde (MDA), copper zinc-superoxide dismutase (CuZn-SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities together with copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn) levels in erythrocytes of 35 patients with HC and 27 healthy control subjects. It was found that in patients with HC, erythrocyte MDA was significantly higher than those of controls and erythrocyte CuZn-SOD and GSH-Px activities were significantly lower in patients with HC. Erythrocyte iron levels were significantly higher than those of controls, and erythrocyte copper and zinc levels were significantly lower in patients with HC. Plasma lipid levels and the oxidative state were analyzed in statin-treatment groups given fluvastatin therapy before and after a 3-mo treatment period. In conclusion, we found that fluvastatin has significant antioxidant properties and these effects might be very important in managing dyslipidemia by improving endothelial function.

In the past decade, extensive research on dielectric properties of biological tissues led to characterization of dielectric property discrepancy between the malignant and healthy tissues. Such discrepancy enabled the development of microwave therapeutic and diagnostic technologies. Traditionally, dielectric property measurements of biological tissues is performed with the well-known contact probe (open-ended coaxial probe) technique. However, the technique suffers from limited accuracy and low loss resolution for permittivity and conductivity measurements, respectively. Therefore, despite the inherent dielectric property discrepancy, a rigorous measurement routine with open-ended coaxial probes is required for accurate differentiation of malignant and healthy tissues. In this paper, we propose to eliminate the need for multiple measurements with open-ended coaxial probe for malignant and healthy tissue differentiation by applying support vector machine (SVM) classification algorithm to the dielectric measurement data. To do so, first, in vivo malignant and healthy rat liver tissue dielectric property measurements are collected with open-ended coaxial probe technique between 500 MHz to 6 GHz. Cole-Cole functions are fitted to the measured dielectric properties and measurement data is verified with the literature. Malign tissue classification is realized by applying SVM to the open-ended coaxial probe measurements where as high as 99.2% accuracy (F1 Score) is obtained.

AIM: To investigate the effects of systemic application of Theranekron on peripheral nerve healing after compression type peripheral nerve injury. MATERIAL and METHODS: Twenty-one female Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into 3 groups (n=7): Control (C), injury (I), and Theranekron (T). The right sciatic nerves of rats in the I and T groups were compressed via an aneurysm clip for 5 minutes and 0.3 ml Theranekron D6 was applied via subcutaneous administration once a week in the T group for a total period of four weeks. Nerve conduction velocity and proximal and distal latency of the rats were measured at the end of day 30. The right sciatic nerves of the rats were then removed and myelin damage grading, axon counting, fibrosis assessment, caspase-3, and NF-kB immunochemical staining were performed. The data were analysed statistically and a p value of less than 0.05 was considered to be significant. RESULTS: Axonal degeneration, vacuolization and myelin destruction were found to be markedly greater in group T. Fibrosis and caspase-3 immunoreactivity were less intense in group T. There was a statistically significant difference in the electrophysiological results of groups I and T. However, there were no statistically significant differences in axon number and NF-kB immunochemical evaluation of groups I and T. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study show that Theranekron decreases axonal and myelin damage after sciatic nerve injury and that this neuroprotective effect of Theranekron can be attributed to its anti-inflammatory effect on pro-inflammatory cytokine levels.

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Background:We aimed to test the methylene blue (MB) as a dye and also to test its antioxidant activities in devascularization-induced liver injury. Methods: Twenty rats weighing 240-280 g were randomly divided into two groups, each containing 10 rats. High-grade liver injury was induced by using a pair of long pliers with blades. MB was injected into portal vein of the rats with no hepatic injury (Group 1; control group) and those with injured livers (Group 2; injury group). Liver and hepatic function tests, paraoxonase, stimulated paraoxonase, arylesterase activity, total antioxidant, and oxidant status were evaluated before and 24 h after MB injection. Results: MB did not stain the non-perfused area. Total antioxidant status decreased signifi cantly in Group 2 at hour 24 compared to Group 1. In Group 2, total antioxidant status was lower at hour 24 compared to hour 0. Total oxidant status in Group 2 at hour 0 increased signifi cantly compared to Group 1. Total oxidant status in Group 2 at hour 24 was lower compared to that at hour 0. Lipid peroxidation parameters did not alter due to devascularization. Conclusion: MB is useful in defi ning the devascularization area. Moreover, it showed to have a benefi cial effect on oxidant status (Tab. 3, Fig. 3, Ref. 25). Text in PDF www.elis.sk.

Differentiating human adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) towards Schwann cells produces an unstable phenotype when stimulating factors are withdrawn. Here, we set out to examine the role of glial growth factor 2 (GGF-2) in the maintenance of Schwann-like cells. Following ASC differentiation to Schwann-like cells, stimulating factors were withdrawn such that cells either remained in media supplemented with all stimulating factors, GGF-2 alone, or underwent complete withdrawal of all factors. Furthermore, each stimulating factor was also removed from the growth medium individually. At 72 hours, gene (qRT-PCR) and protein (ELISA) expression of key Schwann cell factors were quantified and cell morphology was analysed. Cells treated with GGF-2 alone reverted to a stem cell morphology and did not stimulate the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), regardless of the concentration of GGF-2 in the growth medium. However, GGF-2 alone increased the expression of Krox20, the main transcription factor involved in myelination, relative to those cells treated with all stimulating factors. Cells lacking fibroblast growth factor were unable to maintain a Schwann-like morphology, and those lacking forskolin exhibited a downregulation in BDNF production. Therefore, it is likely that the synergistic action of multiple growth factors is required to maintain Schwann-like phenotype in differentiated ASCs.

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Objectives:This paper presents the design and construction of a viable pupillometer system and demonstrates its merits with extensive validation tests.Materials and Methods:A web camera was modified by removing its infrared filter and mounted on a chin rest. Light emitting diodes (LEDs) operating at infrared and visible spectra were integrated to provide background and light stimulus, respectively. The LEDs were controlled by a microprocessor board. Stimulation was presented using a periodic paradigm with variable period and duty cycle. Videos of both pupils were recorded at 30 frames/second and processed offline using software developed in-house. The overall system was validated with data gathered from individuals with healthy vision under different stimulation paradigms. Temporal variations in pupil size were determined and analyzed statistically.Results:The analysis revealed that the pupil sizes were accurately measured from the video frames provided that reflections from both infrared and visible lights remain outside the pupil. The system achieved moderate to excellent repeatability scores (87.8 and 86.8% for short 1 second and long 2 second pulses, respectively), which demonstrated its effectiveness and confirmed that it can be used reliably as a pupillometer.Conclusion:The proposed pupillometer system produces useful, quantitative data characterizing pupillary light response. However, further development and implementation are needed to potentially turn it into a low-cost alternative for other studies involving the autonomic nervous system, cognitive function, drug metabolism, pain response, psychology, fatigue, and sleep disorders.