Vitamins E and C reduce oxidative stress and mitochondrial permeability transition caused by camptothecin – an in vitro study

Camptothecin (CPT), a broad spectrum antineoplastic agent, is known to induce oxidative stress and mitochondria are among the main sources of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). We investigated the merit of vitamins E and C supplementation on CPT-induced mitochondrial alterations in vitro. Following treatment of isolated liver mitochondria with CPT, we assessed the mitochondrial membrane permeability transition (MPT), concentration of malondialdehyde, antioxidants and activities of the enzymes of the respiratory chain and Krebs cycle. Our results provide evidence that CPT caused mitochondrial swelling, increased lipid peroxidation and transition of mitochondrial permeability. The CPT lowered the levels of reduced mitochondrial thiols suggesting that thiol oxidation is the mechanism underlying CPT-induced MPT. Identical experiments were also performed after preincubating the mitochondria with vitamins E and C. It was found that vitamins E and C pretreatment inhibited the deleterious effects of CPT and loss of enzyme activity was restored by antioxidant supplementation. Our results suggest that the toxicity of CPT was mediated by an increase in ROS production by mitochondria. However, the addition of vitamins E or C ameliorated the oxidative stress. We propose that an attempt to counteract the deleterious consequences of chemotherapy with nutritional therapies may be a rational approach in superior patient care especially in a disease like cancer.     

Current trends in diagnosis and treatment strategies of COVID-19 infection

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Coronaviruses are terrifically precise and adapted towards specialized respiratory epithelial cells, observed in organ culture and human volunteers...     

Study of indiscriminate distribution of restrained antimicrobial resistome of different environmental niches

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Prophylactic usage and high persistent nature of several antibiotics have put selective pressure on the native microbial population that led to the...     

Cost Effective Production of Poly-β-Hydroxybutyrate by Bacillus subtilis NG05 Using Sugar Industry Waste Water

The present study describes the treatment of sugar industry waste water and its use as a potential low cost substrate for production of bioplastic by Bacillus subtilis NG05. The B. subtilis NG05 grow at the rate of 0.14 g h^?1 L^?1 of production media used and accumulate the 50.1 % of poly β-hydroxybutyrate (PHB). The phase contrast microscopy revealed the presence of PHB granules in B. subtilis NG05 which was further confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and ¹H-nuclear magnetic resonance. The polymer was further analysed by differential scanning calorimetry. PHB production yield was achieved up to 4.991 g L^?1 with Sugar industry waste water as sole nutrient source. Thus the process provided dual benefits of conversion of a waste material into value added product, PHB and waste management.     

Fetal spina bifida: What we tell the parents

Worldwide, about 150 000 infants are born with spina bifida yearly, making this condition one of the most common fetal central nervous system anomalies compatible with life. Over the last decade, major changes have been introduced in the prenatal diagnosis and management of spina bifida. In this review, we provide a brief summary of the current management of fetal spina bifida and present essential information that should be provided to expecting parents when their fetus has been diagnosed with spina bifida. This information is focused around common parental questions, as encountered in our typical clinical practice, to facilitate knowledge translation.     

Fabrication and Study of Poly (vinyl alcohol) Film Functionalized with Basella alba Stem Extract

Journal of Polymers and the Environment - In this study eco-friendly composite films were prepared based on poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) containing different content of Basella alba stem extract (BA)...     

Performance of comprehensive first trimester fetal anatomy assessment

Objective

Ultrasound assessment of the fetal anatomy and fetal echocardiography are feasible in the first trimester of pregnancy. This study was designed to assess the performance of a comprehensive fetal anatomy assessment in a high-risk population at a tertiary fetal medicine unit.

Methods

A retrospective review of high-risk patients undergoing comprehensive fetal anatomy ultrasound assessment between 11 weeks and 13 + 6 weeks of gestation was conducted. Findings of the early anatomy ultrasound scan were compared with those of the second trimester anatomy scan, and birth outcomes or post-mortem results.

Results

Early anatomy ultrasounds were performed in 765 patients. The sensitivity of the scan for detecting fetal anomalies compared to the birth outcome was 80.5% (95% CI 73.5–86.3) and specificity was 93.1% (95%CI 90.6–95.2). Positive and negative predictive values were 78.5% (95% CI 71.4–84.6) and 93.9% (95% CI 91.4–95.8), respectively. The most missed and overdiagnosed abnormalities were ventricular septal defects. The second trimester ultrasound had sensitivity of 69.0% (95% CI 55.5–80.5) and specificity of 87.5% (95% CI 84.3–90.2).

Conclusions

In a high-risk population, early assessments had similar performance metrics as the second trimester anatomy ultrasound. We advocate for a comprehensive fetal assessment in the care of high-risk pregnancies.