This study was conducted with intention to reveal the quantitative values of feto-maternal nutrition exchange in smokers placentas, considering the great importance of harmful influence of smoking in pregnancy. The study was done on 90 human placentas. We have divided them into three groups: 30 placentas of moderate smokers, 30 placentas of heavy smokers and control group (non-smokers). Stereologic analysis was done with multipurpose test system M42. Pregnant smokers (both moderate and heavy) had significantly lower length density of the blood vessels compared to the control group. Significantly higher surface density of the blood vessels was found in the pregnant heavy smokers. The least absolute length density of the resorption villi's blood vessels was in the pregnant heavy smokers and it was significantly lower compared to pregnant moderate smokers and control group. In the group of the pregnant heavy smokers there was statistically higher average absolute surface of the blood vessels. The intensity of smoking effects the structural changes of the placenta. Intensity of smoking during pregnancy had a great impact on the proportion of the morphologic changes of the placentas. It leads to hypoxia, which in turn may be the cause of fetal growth and developmental retardation.
Since their discovery, fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, and graphene attract significant attention of researches in various scientific fields including biomedicine. Nano-scale size and a possibility for diverse surface modifications allow carbon nanoallotropes to become an indispensable nanostructured material in nanotechnologies, including nanomedicine. Manipulation of surface chemistry has created diverse populations of water-soluble derivatives of fullerenes, which exhibit different behaviors. Both non-derivatized and derivatized fullerenes show various biological activities. Cellular processes that underline their toxicity are oxidative, genotoxic, and cytotoxic responses.The antioxidant/cytoprotective properties of fullerenes and derivatives have been considered in the prevention of organ oxidative damage and treatment. The same unique physiochemical properties of nanomaterials may also be associated with potential health hazards. Non-biodegradability and toxicity of carbon nanoparticles still remain a great concern in the area of biomedical application. In this review, we report on basic physical and chemical properties of carbon nano-clusters--fullerenes, nanotubes, and grapheme--their specificities, activities, and potential application in biological systems. Special emphasis is given to our most important results obtained in vitro and in vivo using polyhydroxylated fullerene derivative C₆₀(OH)₂₄.
Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterised by thrombophilic state and circulating antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) including anti beta2-GPI.
Objectives
Since than it became one of the most systemic conditions. In the last three and half decades, a variety of clinical manifestations involving almost all organs and tissues (cardiac, pulmonary, neurological, renal, cutaneous, hematologic, gastrointestinal, ocular, skeletal and endocrinology), have been described associated with antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL).
Methods
Our study comprises a total of 608 patients: 420 primary APS (PAPS) patients and 188 SLE patients with secondary APS (SAPS). aPL analysis included detection of aCL, aß2GPI, and LA.
Results
Thrombosis was diagnosed in 46.5% patients, with higher prevalence in PAPS compared to SAPS patients: 51.2% and 38.3%, respectively, p=0.045. Pseudoinfective endocarditis was observed in 12.8% secondary APS patients and 3.1% in primary APS patients (p=0.004). 30% of the patients with high levels of aCL IgG antibodies had valve thickening and dysfunction, as compared to 4.1% without valve abnormalities (p=0.002). Presence of ß2GPI IgG was significantly related to stroke, and overall ß2GPI (IgG and IgM) positivity was significantly related to TIA in SAPS patients. Valvular manifestations were significantly related to TIA in both groups of patients and were independent risk factors for TIA in PAPS (OR 3.790 CI 1.597–8.998 p=0.003: table 2). In PAPS, epilepsy correlated with ß2GPI-IgM, migraine with aCL-IgM, thrombocytopenia with aCL-IgM, aCL-IgG, anti ß2GPI-IgG and LA. Livedo reticularis was more prominent in PAPS with high levels of aCL-IgG. Skin ulcerations were more prevalent in aCL-IgM positive SAPS patients and epilepsy more frequently had high levels of anti ß2GPI-IgG in SAPS.
Conclusions
In this cross-section analysis of a large cohort of APS patients we analysed that APS patients can be presented with a wide variety of thrombotic and nonthrombotic manifestations. The key the success is multidisciplinary approach in all time of patient's life. Antiphospholipid syndrome is really a disease with protean faces.
References
[1] Hughes GR. The antiphospholipid syndrome: ten years on. Lancet1993; 342:341–4. [2] Ardalan MR, Vahedi A. Antiphospholipid syndrome: A disease of protean face. J Nephropathology 2013; 2(1):81–4. [3] . Stojanovich L, Markovic O, Marisavljevic D, at all. Influence of antiphospholipid antibody levels and type on thrombotic manifestations: results from the Serbian National cohort study. Lupus 2011; 0: 1–8. [4] Stojanovich L, Kontic M, Djokovic A, et al. Association between systemic non-criteria APS manifestations and antibody type and level: results from the Serbian national cohort study. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2013; 31(2):234–42.
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgement: Funding: This work was supported by research grant number 175041, and TR 32040 for 2011–2018, issued by the Ministry of Science of the Republic of Serbia.
Radiotherapy-induced toxicity is a major dose-limiting factor in anti-cancer treatment. Ionizing radiation leads to the formation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) that are associated with radiation-induced cell death. Investigations of biological effects of fullerenol have provided evidence for its ROS/RNS scavenger properties in vitro and radioprotective efficiency in vivo. Therefore we were interested to evaluate its radioprotective properties in vitro in the human erythroleukemia cell line. Pre-treatment of irradiated cells by fullerenol exerted statistically significant effects on cell numbers and the response of antioxidative enzymes to X-ray irradiation-induced oxidative stress in cells. Our study provides evidence that the pre-treatment with fullerenol enhanced the enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase in irradiated K562 cells.
The cytotoxicity of the diterpene alcohol, phytol, was evaluated by using the MTT assay in vitro against seven tumour cells and one normal cell of human origin. The compound tested induced concentration-dependent cytotoxic response in all cell lines, demonstrating to be most and least effective against the breast adenocarcinoma MCF-7 and the prostate adenocarcinoma PC-3 cells, respectively (IC50 8.79 ± 0.41 μM and 77.85 ± 1.93 μM). The IC50 values towards the other five tumours (HeLa, HT-29, A-549, Hs294T and MDA-MB-231) ranged from 15.51 to 69.67 μM. However, mild toxicity was detected against the foetal lung fibroblast MRC-5 cells at the concentrations used (IC50 124.84 ± 1.59 μM). According to the experimental data obtained, this cost-effective natural product widely present in the biosphere may inspire the development of new drug-like substances with improved cytotoxic activity on breast cancer.
Introduction: The objective of the study was to determine frequency and to compare frequency of the abnormal colposcopic images in patients with low and high grade pre-invasive lesions of cervix.Methods: Study includes 259 patients, whom colposcopic and cytological examination of cervix was done. The experimental group of patients consisted of patents with pre-invasive low grade squamousintraepithelial lesion (LSIL) and high grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL), and the control group consisted of patients without cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN).Results: In comparison to the total number of satisfactory fi ndings (N=259), pathological findings were registered in N=113 (43.6 %) and abnormal colposcopic fi ndings in N=128 (49.4%). The study did notinclude patients with unsatisfactory fi nding N=22 (8.5%). Abnormal colposcopic image is present most frequently in older patients but there are no statistically important difference between age categories(Pearson Chi-Square 0.47, df -3, p=0.923). Frequency of abnormal colposcopic fi ndings (N=128) is the biggest in pathological cytological (N=113) and HSIL 58 (45.3%), LSIL 36 (28.1%). There is statisticallysignifi cant difference in frequency of abnormal colposcopic images in patients with low-grade in comparison to patients with high-grade pre-invasive cervix lesions (Chi-Square test, Pearson Chi-Square 117.14,df-12 p<0.0001).Conclusion: Thanks to characteristic colposcopic images, abnormal epithelium is successfully recognized, but the severity grade of intraepithelial lesion cannot be determined.