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Fulltext Apoptosis Induction by Polygonum minus is related to antioxidant capacity, alterations in expression of apoptotic-related genes, and S-phase cell cycle arrest in HepG2 cell line

Mohd Ghazali MA, Al-Naqeb G, Krishnan Selvarajan K, Hazizul Hasan M, Adam A

Biomed Res Int, 2014;2014:539607.
PMID: 24955361 DOI: 10.1155/2014/539607

Polygonum minus (Polygonaceae) is a medicinal herb distributed throughout eastern Asia. The present study investigated antiproliferative effect of P. minus and its possible mechanisms. Four extracts (petroleum ether, methanol, ethyl acetate, and water) were prepared by cold maceration. Extracts were subjected to phytochemical screening, antioxidant, and antiproliferative assays; the most bioactive was fractionated using vacuum liquid chromatography into seven fractions (F1-F7). Antioxidant activity was measured via total phenolic content (TPC), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Antiproliferative activity was evaluated using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Most active fraction was tested for apoptosis induction and cell cycle arrest in HepG2 cells using flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. Apoptotic-related gene expression was studied by RT-PCR. Ethyl acetate extract was bioactive in initial assays. Its fraction, F7, exhibited highest antioxidant capacity (TPC; 113.16 ± 6.2 mg GAE/g extract, DPPH; EC50: 30.5 ± 3.2 μg/mL, FRAP; 1169 ± 20.3 μmol Fe (II)/mg extract) and selective antiproliferative effect (IC50: 25.75 ± 1.5 μg/mL). F7 induced apoptosis in concentration- and time-dependent manner and caused cell cycle arrest at S-phase. Upregulation of proapoptotic genes (Bax, p53, and caspase-3) and downregulation of antiapoptotic gene, Bcl-2, were observed. In conclusion, F7 was antiproliferative to HepG2 cells by inducing apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, and via antioxidative effects.
Fulltext A Simple HPLC-UV Method for the Determination of Glutathione in PC-12 Cells

Appala RN, Chigurupati S, Appala RV, Krishnan Selvarajan K, Islam Mohammad J

Scientifica (Cairo), 2016;2016:6897890.
PMID: 27127683 DOI: 10.1155/2016/6897890

A highly sensitive and simple HPLC-UV method was developed and validated for the assay of glutathione (GSH) in PC-12 cells. Glutathione is a major intracellular antioxidant having multiple biological effects, best known for its cytoprotective effects against cell damage from reactive oxygen species and toxic reactive metabolites and regulating the cellular redox homeostasis. Due to its own sulfhydryl (SH) group, GSH readily reacts with Ellman's reagent to form a stable dimer which allows for quantitative estimation of GSH in biological systems by UV detection. The separation was achieved using a C8 column with a mobile phase consisting of phosphate buffer adjusted to pH 2.5 (mobile phase A) and acetonitrile (mobile phase B), running in a segmented gradient manner at a flow rate of 0.8 mL/min, and UV detection was performed at 280 nm. The developed HPLC-UV method was validated with respect to precision, accuracy, robustness, and linearity within a range of 1-20 μg/mL. Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were 0.05 and 0.1 μg/mL, respectively. Furthermore, the method shows the applicability for monitoring the oxidative stress in PC-12 cells.
Significance of circumsporozoite-specific antibody in the natural transmission of Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax, and Plasmodium malariae in an aboriginal (Orang Asli) population of central peninsula Malaysia

Gordon DM, Davis DR, Lee M, Lambros C, Harrison BA, Samuel R, et al.

Am J Trop Med Hyg, 1991 Jul;45(1):49-56.
PMID: 1867348

Two hundred and seventy-five Orang Asli volunteers living in nine villages in the Pos Legap Valley of Perak State, peninsular Malaysia, participated in a prospective study designed to characterize the epidemiological, parasitological, and entomological characteristics of Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, and P. malariae malaria transmission. Prevalence rates for the three plasmodial species at initiation of the study ranged from 56% in the 0-4-year-old age group to 0% in individuals over the age of 40. Entomological surveys were conducted, enabling us to determine mosquito salivary gland-positive rates and entomological inoculation rates of 1.2 infectious mosquito bites per person per month for P. falciparum, 2.4 for P. vivax, and 0.3 for P. malariae. Cumulative incidence rates over the 16 weeks of the study, following radical cure of all volunteers, were 22.5% for P. falciparum, 12.7% for P. vivax, and 1.5% for P. malariae. The median baseline antibody titer against the immunodominant repetitive B cell epitope of P. falciparum or P. vivax circumsporozoite protein was significantly higher for volunteers who did not become parasitemic. Volunteers were selected for further study if they had evidence of being challenged with P. falciparum sporozoites during the study, based on a two-fold or greater increase in antibody titer against the immunodominant repetitive B cell epitope of the circumsporozoite protein. Resistance to infection was seen in six of 10 individuals who had high (greater than 25 OD units) baseline ELISA titers, compared with only three of 24 individuals who had low baseline ELISA titers (chi 2 P less than 0.02). A similar analysis for P. vivax did not show a significant correlation.
Effect of dental pulp stem cells in MPTP-induced old-aged mice model

Gnanasegaran N, Govindasamy V, Simon C, Gan QF, Vincent-Chong VK, Mani V, et al.

Eur J Clin Invest, 2017 Mar 30.
PMID: 28369799 DOI: 10.1111/eci.12753

BACKGROUND: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease caused by the loss of dopaminergic (DA-ergic) neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) and represented as a huge threat to the geriatric population. Cell replacement therapies (CRTs) have been proposed as a promising strategy to slow down or replace neuronal loss. Among the widely available cell sources, dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) portray as an attractive source primarily due to their neural crest origin, ease of tissue procurement and less ethical hurdles.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: We first demonstrated the in vitro differentiation ability of DPSCs towards DA-ergic-like cells before evaluating their neuro-protection/neuro-restoration capacities in MPTP-induced mice. Transplantation via intrathecal was performed with behavioural assessments being evaluated every fortnight. Subsequent analysis investigating their immuno-modulatory behaviour was conducted using neuronal and microglial cell lines.
RESULTS: It was apparent that the behavioural parameters began to improve corresponding to tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), dopamine transporter (DAT) and dopamine decarboxylase (AADC) immunostaining in SN and striatum as early as 8-week post-transplantation (P < 0·05). About 60% restoration of DA-ergic neurons was observed at SN in MPTP-treated mice after 12-week post-transplantation. Similarly, their ability to reduce toxic effects of MPTP (DNA damages, reactive oxygen species and nitric oxide release) and regulate cytokine levels was distinctly noted (P < 0·05) upon exposure in in vitro model.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that DPSCs may provide a therapeutic benefit in the old-aged PD mice model and may be explored in stem cell-based CRTs especially in geriatric population as an attempt towards 'personalized medicine'.