Methotrexate (MTX), a folate antagonist agent, is mainly used in treatment of malignant tumors and autoimmune diseases. The present study was undertaken to determine whether antioxidant vitamin (vitamin A) could ameliorate methotrexate induced oxidative stress in male rabbits. Twenty male rabbits were randomly assigned into four groups. Group 1: control group, Group 2: MTX-treated group (received 20 mg/kg MTX intraperitoneally), Group 3: Vit.A treated group received 5000 IU Vit.A orally) and Group 4: MTX+Vit.A treated group received MTX 20 mg/kg plus 5000 IU vit.A). After 4 weeks of treatment, blood samples were collected by cardiac puncture to determine the serum malondialdehyde (MDA), as a good indicator for lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress. The results showed that there was a significant increase (p<0.05) in serum MDA level in MTX-treated group compared with control group. Also, the results revealed that there was a significant decrease (p<0.05) in serum MDA level in MTX+Vit.A treated group in comparison with MTX-treated group. The present study suggests that the administration of vit.A with MTX is associated with reduction in oxidative stress, and therapeutic role in reduced toxicity of MTX.
Background: Recently increasing number of people are using mouthwashes for general and oral care while the primary appeal of a mouthwash is an aid to breath freshness and cleansing the mouth, the majority of mouthwashes also claim to have antiseptic properties. The aim of this study is to determine the antimicrobial effectiveness of eight types of mouthwashes against Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans in vitro. Materials and methods: Agar diffusion technique was used to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of eight types of mouthwashes against Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans isolated from the oral cavities of patients attending dental clinics at college of dentistry - Baghdad Uni
... Show MoreABSTRACT The role of specific amino acids namely cysteine, methionine, threonine and asparagine in the protection provided by vamin solution against B-lactam inhibition to E. coli was evaluated in vitro. In minimal medium, Cells were treated with 32 ug/ml of penicillin G, carbencillin, hostacillin, cloxacillin and cephalotin in the presence of specific amino acid supplementations. Deletion of specific amino acids from the media abolished the protection provided by vamin. Threonine was essential for the protection of cells against all tested antibiotics, while cysteine was essential for protection against carbencillin and cephalotin Deletion of methionine or asparagine abolished the protec- tion against carbencillin and to a less extent ce
... Show MoreThe inhibitory effect of Eucalyptus rostrata leaves extraction was investigated on multiple-antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria (E.coli and S. aureus), isolated from Iraqi patients. The minimum inhibitory concentrations in a final concentration of 10 mg/ml. Tow fold dilutions was done from (12.5- 100) mg/ ml to examine the antibacterial effect of different concentrations of the plant extract on both bacteria. The study results revealed that Eucalyptus rostrata extract has a potential inhibitory effect on both gram negative and gram positive species. The current study supports the traditional approach of using Eucalyptus rostrata leaves extraction in treatment trails against bacterial infections.
Background:Plant-derived compounds have action alongside Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and numerous compounds, inhibit efflux pumps and hence have become known as efflux pump inhibitors. Clarithromycin is a macrolide antibiotic used to treat pharyngitis, tonsillitis, acute maxillary sinusitis and acute bacterial exacerbation of chronic bronchitis the antibacterial range is the similar as erythromycin but it is active against Mycobacterium avium complex, M.leprae and atypical mycobacteria. The in vitro antibacterial activity results of different boswellic acid compounds discovered alpha keto-boswellic acid (AKBA) to be the preponderance potent antibacterial compound alongside Gram-positive pathogens, but it showed no significant a
... Show MorePurpose: To assess the antioxidant and antineoplastic effects of Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn. on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells. Materials and Methods: Human squamous cell carcinoma HSCC cells were tested for cytotoxicity by a methanol extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa (MEHSP). After 24, 48, and 72 ...
The current study aimed to synthesize silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) in a safe and eco-friendly biological method using green tea extract, characterize them using UV-vis spectroscopy, FTIR, XRD, FESEM, and AFM tools, then investigate their antioxidant potentials against DPPH and their cytotoxicity toward lymphoma cells using MTT and ethidium bromide/propidium iodide dual staining assays, and their genotoxic capacities by assessing their effects on the gene expression of p53, caspase3, bcl-2, and bax genes by qPCR and DNA fragmentation. Results confirmed the synthesis of silver nanoparticles; the UV-vis results showed a peak of absorbance at 414 nm; FTIR analysis showed absorbance bel
... Show MoreThis study did the isolation, purification, and identification of the fungus Phytophthora cinnamomi of some infected plants, including Chili pepper, cucumber, and eggplant. The green parts of Pimpinella anisum plant were grounded to a semi-powdered state. Phenols, alkaloids and terpenes were extracted from this plant, then the anti-fungal activity was evaluated at different concentrations of 5% and 10%. The percentage of radial growth inhibition of fungi with plant extracts was measured after seven days of incubation. The results showed that the terpene extract was the most effective against fungi and the alkaloid extract had the least antifungal activity. the percentage of radial growth inhibition was
... Show MoreLeishmania is one of the protozoan parasites that are transferred to human by infected sand flies and gives rise to a range of diseases entitled as Leishmaniasis. More than 20 known species of Leishmania can infect humans and cause various clinical symptoms. Three most known clinical manifestations are Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL), Mucocutaneous Leishmaniasis (MCL) and Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) (kala-azar or black fever). The difference in the clinical form dependent on several factors: species of Leishmania, type of vector that transmits the Leishmania, and the immune status of an infected individual. The current drugs which are used as anti-leishaminial treatment are characterized by enormou
... Show MoreThe manganese doped zinc sulfide nanoparticles were synthesized by simple aqueous chemical reaction of manganese chloride, zinc acetate and thioacitamide in aqueous solution. Thioglycolic acid is used as capping agent for controlling the nanoparticle size. The main advantage of the ZnS:Mn nanoparticles of diameter ~ 2.73 nm is that the sample is prepared by using non-toxic precursors in a cost effective and eco-friendly way. The structural, morphological and chemical composition of the nanoparticles have been investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersion spectroscopy (EDS) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The nanosize of the prepared nanoparticles was elucidated by Scan
... Show MoreIn this work we study the influence of the laser pulse energy and ablation time on the aluminum nanoparticles productivity during nanosecond laser ablation of bulk aluminum immersed in liquid.
Aluminum nanoparticles were synthesized by pulsed laser ablation of Al targets in ethanol for 3-8 minutes using the 1064 nm wavelength of a Nd:YAG laser with energies of 300-500 mJ per pulse.The laser energy was varied between 300 and 500 mJ/pulse, whereas the ablation time was set to 5 minutes. UV-Visible absorption spectra was used for the characterization and comparison of products.