Potential use of Indonesian basil (Ocimum basilicum) maceration to increase estradiol and progesterone synthesis and secretion to improve prenatal growth of offspring using female albino rats as an animal model

Background and Aim:

Basil is well known as a medicinal plant that contains high essential oils and antioxidant compounds that have the potential to improve ovarian development. Thus, basil may have the potential to improve the growth and development of the uterus and placenta for optimal prenatal growth of offspring. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of Indonesian basil maceration on gonad development of mature female albino rats.

Materials and Methods:

Fifteen 8-week-old female Sprague-Dawley rats, at the diestrus stage of the estrus cycle, were divided into three different treatment groups: Control group (mineral water), bas-low group (1% of basil maceration), and bas-high group (5% of basil maceration). Basil maceration was dissolved and administered in mineral drinking water, and the treatments were given for 20 days (4 estrus cycles). At the end of the treatment period, serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), estradiol, and progesterone (Pg) were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The relative weight of the ovary and uterus; diameter and length of uterine cornual; vascularization of uterus; the diameter of uterine glands; the number of primary, secondary, and tertiary de Graaf follicles; the number of corpora luteum; as well as the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the ovary were determined.

Results:

There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the serum FSH level of rats treated with basil maceration drinking water doses of 1% and 5% compared to the control group. However, serum estradiol and Pg concentrations in the 1% and 5% basil maceration groups were significantly higher (p<0.05) than those of the control group. Furthermore, 1% and 5% basil maceration significantly increased the uterus’s relative weight, diameter, and vascularization. Serum estradiol concentrations contributed to the elevated expression of VEGF compared to Pg.

Conclusion:

Administration of basil maceration for 20 days before mating could improve follicle growth and development, eventually increasing estradiol synthesis and secretion, thus improving the uterus’s preparation for implantation. This makes basil maceration an attractive candidate in clinical research to enhance the growth and development of the uterus and placenta, which will better support the optimum prenatal growth and development of embryos and fetuses, resulting in superior offspring.

A 1-Year Investigation of Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase-Producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae Isolated from Bovine Mastitis at a Large-Scale Dairy Farm in Japan

In a large-scale dairy farm, it is important to take countermeasure of prevention against mastitis of dairy cows, and it is especially important to establish hygiene and risk management to prevent the emergence and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In this study, we have performed bacteriological testing of clinical and subclinical mastitis and investigation of antimicrobial resistance bacteria in a large-scale farm for 1 year. The bacteria isolated most frequently from 1,549 samples of 952 cow, including cows with recurring mastitis were Staphylococcus non-aureus (SNA) (27.6%), followed by Escherichia coli (18.9%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (12.3%). Although Staphylococcus aureus was isolated at 7.7% from milk sample, no methicillin-resistant S. aureus was found. The incidence of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing E. coli was 1.4% and ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae was 1.4% of all samples, even though third- and fourth-generation cephalosporins were not used for antimicrobial treatment of mastitis in this farm. Although these genotypes of ESBL-producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae were mainly composed of CTX-M-15 and TEM-1 and CTX-M-2 and TEM-116, respectively, there was no spread and persist of predominant clonal type. Appropriate farm management, such as segregation and culling of infected animals and monitors of trends in antimicrobial resistance among mastitis pathogens, may have contributed these results.

PROLONGED LIFESPAN OF AGING RAT AFTER XENOTRANPLANTATION OF HUMAN UMBILICAL CORD MESENCHYMAL STEM CELLS (hUC-MSCs)

Currently, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for implementing regenerative medicine in aging become interest in medical research science, especially in degerative disease and other aging problems. This research was aimed to determine the effectiveness of hUC-MSCs on inhibiting the aging process through the lifetime of the rat and the effect of intravenous administration of hUC-MSCs in phisiologycally aging female rat on the blood analysis. This study was used 40 aged female rats with 29-30 months of age divided into four groups with 10 rats each. The control rat group was given physiological NaCl (0.9%) 0.5 mL, and the treated rat group was given hUC-MSCs 1x107 cells/kg body weight in 0.5 mL NaCl 0.9%, was injected intravenously in caudo lateralis tail vein with stratified frequency; one time injection (SC1), three times injections (SC3) and five times injections (SC5). Perifer blood was collected from retro-ortbital sinus vein 30 days before and after injection of hUC-MSCs for hematology and blood chemistry analysis. Based on the results were obtained, it indicated that hUC-MSCs increased the survival of aging rat were in treatment group, life span of rats was extended up to 40 months compared to the average life of control rat aged up to 34±2 months. The injection of hUC-MSCs 1x107 cells/kg of body weight with one, three and five times injection were affected to blood profiles and blood chemistry with correlation were low. The conclusions are hUC-MSCs extend the lifespan of aging rat and were affect the blood in general but in normal range of aging rat, affect in ALT and creatinin as tissue repair and tolerated by aging rat.

Detection and identification of adhesins involved in adhesion of Campylobacter jejuni to chicken skin

Campylobacter jejuni is the leading cause of bacterial food poisoning worldwide. Chickens are considered to be one of the major reservoirs of Campylobacter infection in humans due to colonization of their intestinal tract. When the chickens are slaughtered and processed, the entire skin of the carcass becomes contaminated with campylobacters. We observed that the number of C. jejuni attached to chicken skin was reduced significantly after treatment of the skin with sodium hydroxide followed by washing with PBS, implying that adhesion factors involved in binding to C. jejuni may exist on skin. Such potential binding-related proteins present in alkaline extracts of the skin surface were detected by a two-dimensional overlay assay and identified by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Chicken serum albumin (CSA) was identified as a major protein in these alkaline extracts and confirmed by ELISA to bind specifically to C. jejuni. Moreover, using the same approach, flagellar hook protein E (FlgE) and major outer membrane protein (MOMP) in C. jejuni were identified as bacterial adhesins that bound to the CSA. The ability to bind CSA was also confirmed using recombinant FlgE and MOMP of C. jejuni expressed in Escherichia coli. The present findings suggest that adhesins expressed on C. jejuni cells may bind specifically via proteins present on the skin, as well as by physical attachment.

Aerotolerance and multilocus sequence typing among Campylobacter jejuni strains isolated from humans, broiler chickens, and cattle in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan

Campylobacter jejuni is one of the leading causes of human gastroenteritis in Japan. As chickens and cattle are common reservoirs for C. jejuni, this microaerophilic, stress-sensitive bacterium can overcome and survive various stress conditions during zoonotic transmission, particularly foodborne, to humans. How C. jejuni overcomes stress conditions is, however, unclear. In the present study, 70 C. jejuni strains isolated from various sources (26 human, 20 broilers, and 24 cattle isolates) in Miyazaki, Japan, from 2010 to 2012, were subjected to multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and aerotolerance testing (aerobic shaking at 200 rpm). The results demonstrated that C. jejuni strains from Miyazaki belonged to 12 clonal complexes (CCs) and 43 sequence types (STs). CC-21 and CC-460 were mainly detected in human clinical strains. Most tested strains were aerotolerant, and only one (1.4%) was deemed sensitive to aerobic stress. Approximately 40% strains survived the 24-hr vigorous aerobic shaking at 200 rpm, and these hyper-aerotolerant strains were more prevalent in broiler and cattle isolates than in human isolates. Phylogenetic analysis divided the strains into five clusters, each showing a different pattern of host association. Thus, we have demonstrated for the first time that C. jejuni strains with increased tolerance to aerobic stress are highly prevalent in broilers and cattle in Miyazaki, Japan, and that certain clonal populations are frequently implicated in human infection in this area.