Differential response related to genotoxicity between eggplant (Solanum melanogena) skin aqueous extract and its main purified anthocyanin (delphinidin) in vivo

Anthocyanins are the largest group of water-soluble pigments in the plant kingdom. A number of studies have demonstrated that anthocyanins present antioxidant capacity and show inhibitory effects on the growth of some cancer cells. Thus, the goal of this study was to evaluate both the antimutagenicity/antigenotoxicity and mutagenicity/genotoxicity of aqueous extract obtained from the Solanum melanogena, a possible novel source of anthocyanin, and its main purified anthocyanin extract (delphinidin), using the single cell (comet) assay and micronucleus test. Pretreatment with higher doses of the purified anthocyanin (10 and 20 mg/kg b.w.) led to a statistically significant reduction (p < 0.05) in the frequency of micronuclei in polychromatic erythrocytes induced by cyclophosphamide. The pattern of reduction ranged from 48% to 57% independent of concentration. No apparent: genotoxicity and mutagenicity was found for either the anthocyanin or delphinidin extracts. Taken together, these results suggest that mice pre-treated with specific compounds present in anthocyanins (delphinidin) displayed a lower incidence of mutations induced by cyclophosphamide. This finding emphasizes the potential of natural colorants to prevent mutations and also the applicability of genotoxic evaluation for improving health. Furthermore, the results presented here could be an additional argument to support the use of anthocyanins in the diet. (c) 2006 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Discrepancies between clinical diagnoses and autopsy findings

Autopsy examination is considered to be an essential element for medical auditing and teaching. Despite the significant progress in diagnostic procedures, autopsy has not always confirmed the clinical diagnosis. In the present study, we compared the diagnosis recorded on medical charts with reports of 96 autopsies performed at the University Teaching Hospital of the Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu, Botucatu, SP, Brazil, between 1975 and 1982, and of 156 autopsies performed at the same institution between 1992 and 1996. The clinical diagnosis of the basic cause of death was confirmed at autopsy in 77% of cases. The percent confirmation fell to 60% when the immediate terminal cause of death was considered, and in 25% of cases, the terminal cause was only diagnosed at autopsy. The discrepancies between clinical and autopsy diagnosis were even larger for secondary diagnoses: 50% of them were not suspected upon clinical diagnosis. Among them, we emphasize the diagnosis of venous thromboses (83%), pulmonary embolisms (80%), bronchopneumonias (46%) and neoplasias (38%). Iatrogenic injuries were very frequent, and approximately 90% of them were not described in clinical reports. Our results suggest that highly sensitive and specific diagnostic tests are necessary but cannot substitute the clinical practice for the elaboration of correct diagnoses.

Taenia saginata: Differential diagnosis of human taeniasis by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism assay

Speciation of Taenia in human stool is important because of their different clinical and epidemiological features. DNA analysis has recently become possible which overcomes the problems of differentiating human taeniid cestodes morphologically. In the present study, we evaluated PCR coupled to restriction fragment length polymorphism to differentiate Taenia solium from Taenia saginata eggs present in fecal samples from naturally infected patients. A different Dral-RFLP pattern: a two-band pattern (421 and 100 bp) for T saginata and a three-band pattern (234, 188, and 99 bp) for T solium was observed allowing the two species to be separated.. The lower detection limit of the PCR-RFLP using a non-infected fecal sample prepared with a given number of T saginata eggs was 34 eggs in 2 g stool sediment. The 521 bp mtDNA fragment was detected in 8 out of 12 Taenia sp. carriers (66.6%). of these, three showed a T solium pattern and five a T saginata pattern. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Differential alterations in the activity of matrix metalloproteinases within the nervous tissue of dogs in distinct manifestations of visceral leishmaniasis

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Differential regulation of MMP-13 expression in two models of experimentally induced periodontal disease in rats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Water deprivation-induced sodium appetite and differential expression of encephalic c-Fos immunoreactivity in the spontaneously hypertensive rat

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Damage to the central amygdala produces differential encephalic c-fos expression in the water deprivation-partial rehydration protocol

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Melatonin reduces LH, 17 beta-estradiol and induces differential regulation of sex steroid receptors in reproductive tissues during rat ovulation

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Differential morphofunctional characteristics and gene expression in fast and slow muscle of rats with monocrotaline-induced heart failure

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Differential MMP-2 and MMP-9 Activity and Collagen Distribution in Skeletal Muscle from pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) During Juvenile and Adult Growth Phases

Here, we evaluated collagen distribution and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities in skeletal muscle of pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) during juvenile and adult growth phases. Muscle samples from juvenile and adult fishes were processed by histochemistry for collagen system fibers and for gelatin-zymography for MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities analysis. Picrosirius staining revealed a myosept, endomysium, and perimysium-like structures in both growth phases and muscle types, with increased areas of collagen fibers in adults, mainly in red muscle. Reticulin staining showed that reticular fibers in the endomysium-like structure were thinner and discontinuous in the red muscle fibers. The zymography revealed clear bands of the pro-MMP-9, active-MMP-9, intermediate-MMP-2, and active-MMP-2 forms in red and white muscle in both growth phases. MMP-2 activity was more intense in juvenile than adult muscle fibers. Comparing the red and white muscle types, MMP-2 activity was significantly higher in red muscle in adult phase only. The activity of MMP-9 forms was similar in juvenile red and white muscles and in the adult red muscle, without any activity in adult white muscle. In conclusion, our results show that, in pacu, the higher activities of MMP-2 and -9 are associated with the rapid muscle growth in juvenile age and in adult fish, these activities are related with a different red and white muscle physiology. This study may contribute to the understanding muscle growth mechanisms and may also contribute to analyse red and the white muscle parameters of firmness and softness, respectively, of the commercial product. Anat Rec, 292:387-395, 2009. (C) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.