Ameliorative effect of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni on sperm parameters, in vitro fertilization, and early embryo development in a streptozotocin-induced mouse model of diabetes

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common metabolic disease characterized by high blood sugar levels. It is well known that men with diabetes frequently experience reproductive disorders and sexual dysfunction. In fact, sperm quality has a significant effect on fertilization success and embryo development. The current study aimed to investigate the effect of Stevia rebaudiana hydroalcoholic extract on serum testosterone levels, sperm parameters, in vitro fertilization (IVF) success, and in vitro embryonic developmental potential to reach the blastocyst stage in a streptozotocin (STZ)-induced mouse model of diabetes. In this research, 30 male mice were distributed randomly into control, diabetic (streptozotocin 150 mg/kg) and diabetic + Stevia (400 mg/kg) groups. The results revealed a decrease in body and testis weight and elevated blood fasting blood sugar (FBS) levels in the diabetic group, compared with the control. However, Stevia treatment significantly increased body and testis weight, while serum FBS levels were decreased compared with the diabetic group. In addition, Stevia significantly increased blood testosterone levels compared with the diabetic group. Moreover, sperm parameters were improved considerably by Stevia treatment compared with the diabetic group. Furthermore, Stevia administration significantly promoted IVF success rate and in vitro development of fertilized oocytes compared with the diabetic group. In summary, our data indicated that Stevia enhanced sperm parameters, IVF success, and in vitro embryonic developmental competency in diabetic mice, probably because of its antioxidant effects. Therefore, Stevia could ameliorate sperm parameters that, in turn, increase fertilization outcomes in experimental-induced diabetes.

Acute Necrotizing Encephalopathy of Childhood (ANEC): A Case Report

Acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) is an infrequent disease in childhood with Specific clinical complications. To date, the highest incidence of this disease has been reported in East Asian children. The clinical features of the disease include convulsions, frequent vomiting, and coma. Most of these patients die within days or cause severe neurological complications. The disease is characterized by symmetric and necrotic multifunctional lesions in the thalami and brainstem. We reported a 5-year-old girl infant from Besat Hospital, Sanandaj, Kurdistan, located in west of Iran.

Clinical and CT scan findings in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia: a comparison based on disease severity

Background

The SARS-CoV-2 can cause severe pneumonia and highly impact general health. We aimed to investigate different clinical features and CT scan findings of patients with COVID-19 based on disease severity to have a better understanding of this disease.

Methods

Ninety patients with coronavirus were divided into three categories based on the severity of the disease: mild/moderate, severe, and very severe. Clinical, laboratory, and CT scan findings of the patients were examined retrospectively. Any association between these features and disease severity was assessed.

Results

The mean age and duration of hospitalization of patients increased with increasing the severity of the disease. The most common clinical symptoms were shortness of breath, cough, and fever. As the severity of the disease increased from mild/moderate to very severe, there was an increase in neutrophil counts and a decrease in lymphocytes and white blood cells (WBC) showing excessive inflammation associated with severe forms of COVID-19. Subpleural changes (81%) and ground-glass opacification/opacity (GGO) lesions (73%) of the lung were the most common features in CT images of COVID-19 patients, and interlobular septal thickening (10%) was the lowest CT feature among patients. Regarding the affected parts of the lung in COVID-19 patients, bilateral, peripheral, and multiple lesions had the highest prevalence.

Conclusions

It has been shown that clinical, laboratory, and CT scan findings varied in COVID-19 patients based on disease severity, which need to be considered carefully in timely diagnosis and treatment of this illness.

Metformin Therapy Attenuates Pro-inflammatory Microglia by Inhibiting NF-κB in Cuprizone Demyelinating Mouse Model of Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disorder characterized by reactive gliosis, inflammation, and demyelination. Microglia plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of MS and has the dynamic plasticity to polarize between pro-inflammatory (M1) and anti-inflammatory (M2) phenotypes. Metformin, a glucose-lowering drug, attenuates inflammatory responses by activating adenosine monophosphate protein kinase (AMPK) which suppresses nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB). In this study, we indirectly investigated whether metformin therapy would regulate microglia activity in the cuprizone (CPZ)-induced demyelination mouse model of MS via measuring the markers associated with pro- and anti-inflammatory microglia. Evaluation of myelin by luxol fast blue staining revealed that metformin treatment (CPZ + Met) diminished demyelination, in comparison to CPZ mice. In addition, metformin therapy significantly alleviated reactive microgliosis and astrogliosis in the corpus callosum, as measured by Iba-1 and GFAP staining. Moreover, metformin treatment significantly downregulated the expression of pro-inflammatory associated genes (iNOS, H2-Aa, and TNF-α) in the corpus callosum, whereas expression of anti-inflammatory markers (Arg1, Mrc1, and IL10) was not promoted, compared to CPZ mice. Furthermore, protein levels of iNOS (pro-inflammatory marker) were significantly decreased in the metformin group, while those of Trem2 (anti-inflammatory marker) were increased. In addition, metformin significantly increased AMPK activation in CPZ mice. Finally, metformin administration significantly reduced the activation level of NF-κB in CPZ mice. In summary, our data revealed that metformin attenuated pro-inflammatory microglia markers through suppressing NF-κB activity. The positive effects of metformin on microglia and remyelination suggest that it could be used as a promising candidate to lessen the incidence of inflammatory neurodegenerative diseases such as MS.

Increased pulmonary embolism in patients with COVID-19: a case series and literature review

There is some recent evidence that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) increases the risk of venous thromboembolism by creating a prothrombotic state. COVID-19 and pulmonary embolism (PE) are both associated with tachypnoea, hypoxemia, dyspnoea, and increased D-dimer. Diagnosis of pulmonary embolism in a patient with COVID-19 compared to an individual without it, using the conventional clinical and biochemical evidence is challenging and somehow impossible. In this study, we reported four male cases affected by COVID-19 and admitted to hospitals in Sanandaj, Iran. The patients were all older adults (ranging between 56 and 95 years of age). Fever, chills, muscle pain, and cough were evident in all the cases. Red blood cell levels were low, and pulmonary embolism was clearly detected on spiral computed tomographic (CT) angiography of the pulmonary circulation of all patients. These cases demonstrated that COVID-19 may lead to pulmonary embolism by causing blood coagulation problems. As COVID-19 continues to cause considerable mortality, more information is emerging which reveals its complicated pathogenicity. In the meantime, venous thromboembolism remains an uncommon finding in patients with COVID-19. It is essential that health care providers perform the necessary diagnostic evaluations and provide appropriate treatment for patients.

A case report of greater saphenous vein thrombosis in a patient with coronavirus (COVID-19) infection

In December 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced a series of pneumonia cases caused by an unknown origin, discovered in Wuhan, China. A dangerous virus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused a disease named acute respiratory syndrome, which was later popularly called coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Patients with acute COVID-19 are at high risk of thrombosis in various blood vessels due to hypercoagulability, blood stasis, and endothelial damage. In this study, we present a case report of a patient with COVID-19, who was hospitalized in one of the hospitals in Sanandaj, Iran. There were symptoms of fever, chills, muscle aches, cough, and tachycardia. Laboratory tests showed high levels of CRP, ESR, Ferritin CLIA, LDH and D-Dimer in this patient. Doppler ultrasound of the patient also revealed an abnormal finding, thrombosis in the right greater saphenous vein. This suggests that COVID-19 may lead to other negative effects through damage to blood vessels.

Vertebral Fractures Due to Metastatic Tumors: A Case Report

Metastasis is responsible for most cancer-related morbidity and mortality. In principle, metastasis is the spread of cancer from the primary site to distant tissues. Pathological consistency may be compromised during metastasis. We report the case of a 55-year-old man with MRI images of the dorsal spine showing the effects of a fifth dorsal collapse. He was referred to our hospital because of back pain, imbalance, inability to walk, and weakness of the lower limb. The histological features of bone tumors were corresponding with cell carcinoma, and bone damage was considered metastatic from a site in the lung. His general situation gently diminished, and He died during radiotherapy.

Acute Ischemic and Hemorrhagic Stroke and COVID-19: Case Series

The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic is the defining global health crisis of our time and the greatest challenge we have faced since the World Wars; it can attack several systems in the body and has high complications and mortality. COVID-19 can cause venous and arterial thromboembolism due to immobility, high inflammation, extensive intravascular blood coagulation, and hypoxia. In this study, we report 5 cases of adults with COVID-19, hospitalized in Tohid Hospital, Sanandaj, Iran. Three patients were male and two were female. The youngest patient was 20 years old and the oldest was 55 years old. All patients had at least one family member with coronavirus. Fever, chills, muscular pain, cough, and tachypnea were present in all patients. Red blood cell (RBC) was observed in all patients at a low level. Computed tomography (CT) scans of all patients showed abnormal findings in different areas of the brain. These cases indicate that COVID-19 may damage blood vessels in the brain and lead to stroke.

Ovarian vein thrombosis after coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection in a pregnant woman: case report

Corona virus outbreak started in December 2019, and the disease has been defined by the World Health Organization as a public health emergency. Coronavirus is a source of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) due to complications such as over-coagulation, blood stasis, and endothelial damage. In this study, we report a 26-year-old pregnant woman with coronavirus who was hospitalized with a right ovarian vein thrombosis at Besat Hospital in Sanandaj. Risk classification for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) disease is of crucial importance for the forecast of coronavirus.

The effect of adding Rosmarinic and Ascorbic acids to vitrification media on fertilization rate of the mice oocyte: An experimental study

Background

Oocytes vitrification is a pivotal step for the widespread and safekeeping of animal genetic resources. Oocytes endure notable morphological and functional damage during cryopreservation. Oxidative stress is one of the adverse effects that vitrification imparts on oocytes.

Objective

In the present study, we investigated the antioxidant effect of Rosmarinic and Ascorbic acids on the quality and fertilizing ability of frozen-thawed mice oocyte.

Materials and Methods

In this experimental study, germinal vesicle oocytes obtained from two-months-old (30–40gr) NMRI mice were randomly divided into four groups. The basic cryoprotectants were 7.5% (v/v) ethylene glycol+7.5% (v/v) Propanediol as an equilibration media. Vitrification medium contained 15% (v/v) ethylene glycol+15% (v/v) propanediol, and 0.5 M sucrose. In the first group (Control), nothing was added to vitrification mediums, whereas, in the second and third groups, 0.5 mmol/L of Ascorbic acid and 105 µmol/L of Rosmarinic acid were added into vitrification medium, respectively. The cumulative concentration of Rosmarinic and Ascorbic acids were added to group 4. Mouse oocytes were vitrified and preserved for one month. The thawed oocytes were transferred into the α-MEM medium (Alpha Minimum Essential Medium) and maintained in this medium for 24 hr, to be matured and reach the metaphase II stage.

Results

The addition of Rosmarinic and Ascorbic acids to the vitrification solution improved the survival, maturation of Germinal vesicles, fertilization rate, and finally development to 4-cell stage. Maturation rates to 4-cell stage for Ascorbic acid, Rosmarinic acid, and both of them together were 80%, 80.76%, and 86.61%, respectively.

Conclusion

These results indicate that the addition of a cumulative concentration of 0.5 mmol/L Ascorbic acid and 105 µmol/L of Rosmarinic acid to the cryopreservation solution for the mouse immature oocytes would be of significant value (p< 0.01).

Combined Effect of Retinoic Acid and Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor on Maturation of Mouse Oocyte and Subsequent Fertilization and Development

Background

Many autocrine and paracrine elements that are produced within follicular niche have been the focus of much in vitro maturation (IVM) research. The present study was carried out to compare retinoic acid (RA) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) efficacy on IVM of mouse oocytes, and their further dual consumption to reach an optimal protocol.

Materials and Methods

In this experimental study, germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes obtained from two-months-old NMRI mice were randomly divided into control, sham and three experimental groups. The basic culture medium was α-MEM supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS), 50 mg/l streptomycin, 60 mg/l penicillin and 10 ng/ ml epidermal growth factors. Each of the experimental groups received one of the following treatments: RA (2 µM), bFGF (20 ng/ml) or combination of RA and bFGF with the indicated concentrations. After 24 hours, capacitated spermatozoa were added to in vitro matured oocytes. Five hours later, the oocytes were cultured in fresh droplets of M2 medium for 24 hours and assessed for cleavage to the two-cells stage.

Results

As compared with the control group, the rate of maturation was significantly increased in the RA (P<0.001) and bFGF+RA (P<0.02) groups with 58 ± 10 and 57 ± 3.46, respectively. The rate of maturation was significant in the RA (P<0.02) and bFGF+RA (P<0.03) groups, in comparison with the bFGF group. The bFGF+RA group had higher rate (83 ± 1.52) of two-cells development, than control (33 ± 1, P<0.001).

Conclusion

Our findings showed beneficial effects of 2 µM RA and 20 ng/ml bFGF combination on mouse oocyte IVM.

In Vitro Differentiation of Insulin Secreting Cells from Mouse Bone Marrow Derived Stage-Specific Embryonic Antigen 1 Positive Stem Cells

OBJECTIVE

Bone marrow has recently been recognized as a novel source of stem cells for the treatment of wide range of diseases. A number of studies on murine bone mar- row have shown a homogenous population of rare stage-specific embryonic antigen 1 (SSEA-1) positive cells that express markers of pluripotent stem cells. This study focuses on SSEA-1 positive cells isolated from murine bone marrow in an attempt to differentiate them into insulin-secreting cells (ISCs) in order to investigate their differentiation potential for future use in cell therapy.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study is an experimental research. Mouse SSEA-1 positive cells were isolated by Magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS) followed by characteriza- tion with flow cytometry. Induced SSEA-1 positive cells were differentiated into ISCs with specific differentiation media. In order to evaluate differentiation quality and analysis, dithizone (DTZ) staining was use, followed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), immunocytochemistry and insulin secretion assay. Statistical results were analyzed by one-way ANOVA.

RESULTS

The results achieved in this study reveal that mouse bone marrow contains a population of SSEA-1 positive cells that expresses pluripotent stem cells markers such as SSEA-1, octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (OCT-4) detected by immunocytochem- istry and C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCR4) and stem cell antigen-1 (SCA-1) detected by flow cytometric analysis. SSEA-1 positive cells can differentiate into ISCs cell clusters as evidenced by their DTZ positive staining and expression of genes such as Pdx1 (pancreatic transcription factors), Ngn3 (endocrine progenitor marker), Insulin1 and Insulin2 (pancreaticβ-cell markers). Additionally, our results demonstrate expression of Pdx1 and Glut2 protein and insulin secretion in response to a glucose challenge in the differentiated cells.

CONCLUSION

Our study clearly demonstrates the potential of SSEA-1 positive cells to differentiate into insulin secreting cells in defined culture conditions for clinical ap- plications.

Intravenous transplantation of very small embryonic like stem cells in treatment of diabetes mellitus

BACKGROUND

Diabetes Mellitus (DM), simply known as diabetes, refers to a group of metabolic diseases in which there are high blood sugar levels over a prolonged period. In this study, the feasibility and safety of intravenous transplantation of Very Small Embryonic Like stem cells (VSELs) were investigated for diabetes repair, and finally the migration and distribution of these cells in hosts were observed.

METHODS

Mouse bone marrow VSELs were isolated by Fluorescent Activating Cell Sorting (FACS) method by using fluorescent antibodies against CD45, CXCR4 and Sca1 markers. Sorted cells were analyzed for expression of oct4 and SSEA1 markers with immunocytochemistry staining method. To determine multilineage differentiation, sorted cells were differentiated to Schwann, osteocyte and beta cells. Ten days after the establishment of a mouse model of pancreas necrosis, DiI-labeled VSELs were injected into these mice via tail vein. Pancreases were harvested 4 weeks after transplantation and the sections of these tissues were observed under fluorescent microscope.

RESULTS

It was proved that CD45-, CXCR4+, and Sca1+ sorted cells express oct4 and SSEA1. Our results revealed that intravenously implanted VSELs could migrate into the pancreas of hosts and survive in the diabetic pancreas. In treated groups, blood glucose decreased significantly for at least two month and the weights of mice increased gradually.

CONCLUSION

This study provides a strategy for using VSELs for curing diabetes and other regenerative diseases, and the strategy is considered an alternative for other stem cell types.

In vitro Therapeutic Effects of Low Level Laser at mRNA Level on the Release of Skin Growth Factors from Fibroblasts in Diabetic Mice

BACKGROUND

Numerous in vitro reports suggest that Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) affects cellular processes by biostimulation, however most of them emphasize on using visible light lasers which have low penetration. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of infrared laser light (which is more useful in clinic because of its higher penetration) on secretion of Fibroblast Growth Factor (FGF), Platelet Derived Growth Factor (PDGF) and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF), as important growth factors in wound healing.

METHODS

Fibroblasts were extracted from the skin of 7 diabetic and 7 nondiabetic mice and cultured. Cell cultures of experimental group were irradiated with single dose of LLLT (energy density of 1 J/cm (2)) using an 810 nm continuous wave laser and the control group was not irradiated. Secretion of growth factors by skin fibroblasts were quantified through real time poly-merase chain reaction.

RESULTS

Diabetic irradiated group showed significant increase in FGF (p = 0.017) expression, although PDGF increased and VEGF decreased in both diabetic and nondiabetic irradiated groups, but these variations were not statistically significant.

CONCLUSION

These results suggest that LLLT may play an important role in wound healing by stimulating the fibroblasts.