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Problem statement: Tartrazine (FD and C Yellow No. 5) is an orange-colored widely used in food products, drugs and cosmetics. This color has a potential toxicological risk. The current study evaluated the effect of sub-chronic consumption of tartrazine on the male reproductive system. Approach: Tartrazine was administered to adult male mice in drinking water at doses of 0, 0.1, 1 and 2.5% for 13 weeks. After that period, the weights of testes, epididymides and seminal vesicles were determined. Sperm counts in the testis and epididymides, motility, morphology and testis histology were assessed. Results: Body weight gain, absolute and relative testis, epididymis and seminal vesicles weights did not change. However, sperm count was decreased and sperm abnormalities were increased in the 2.5% tartrazine treated groups compared to the control. Sperm motility and histological changes in testis were observed in the middle and high treated groups. Conclusion/Recommendations: We concluded that excessive tartrazine consumption can have adverse effects on the male reproductive function. We suggested conducting surveys among the population to estimate their daily intake. Key words: Subchronic toxicity, tartrazine, sperm counts, motility, morphology, mouse, INTRODUCTION Synthetic organic dyes were developed to provide a more economical and extensive array of colorants. By the early 1990's, natural and synthetic color additives were used extensively to color [...]

Echinops spinosissimus Turra subsp. bovei (Asteraceae) is a medicinal plant in western Algeria. Traditionally, roots and inflorescences are employed as hypertensive agents and in the treatment of hemorrhoids. The current study evaluates the chemical composition, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and wound-healing properties of the root methanolic extract from E. spinosissimus subsp. bovei . The content of total phenolics, flavonoids, and tannins was determined. In addition, the phenolic profile was typified. The studied plant extract resulted in being primarily composed of Apigenin, Kaempferol, and their derivatives. The total phenolic content was equal to 95.31 ± 2.90 mg GAE/g DW, while the number of flavonoids and condensed tannins was 16.01 ± 0.16 mg CE/g DW and 8.30 ± 0.65 mg CE/g DW, respectively. The methanolic extract was found to exhibit antioxidant activity towards the DPPH radical, with an IC 50 of 7.99 ± 0.28 mg/mL and a TAC of 30.30 ± 0.54 mg AAE/g DW, as well as an antibacterial effect, especially against P. aeruginosa . No significant wound-healing property was observed, even though the histopathological observations showed enhanced wound-healing quality. According to our evidence, E. spinosissimus could represent a source of phytochemicals with potential beneficial effects for human health in terms of antioxidant and antibiotic properties, although further investigations on this species are needed.

Aim: The families of hospitalised preterm infants risk depression and post-traumatic stress and the preterm infants risk re-hospitalisation. The French neonatal society's aim was to review the literature on how the transition from hospital to home could limit these risks and to produce a position paper., Methods: A systematic literature review was performed covering 1 January 2000 to 1 January 2018, and multidisciplinary experts examined the scientific evidence., Results: We identified 939 English and French papers and 169 are quoted in the position paper. Most studies stressed the importance of early, personalised and progressive involvement of the family. Healthcare staff and families should assess discharge preparations jointly. This evaluation should assess the capacities of the newborn infant, with regard to its physiological maturity. It should also assess the family's ability to supply the medical, psychological and social assistance required before and after discharge. There should be a structured follow-up process that includes effective communication, various tools, interventions, networks, health and social professionals., Conclusion: Discharge preparations may improve the transition from hospital to home and the outcomes for the parents and newborn preterm infant. This early family-centred approach should be structured, coordinated and based on individual needs and circumstances., (© 2019 Foundation Acta Paediatrica. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Pseudomonas aeruginosa employs both N-acylhomoserine lactone and 2-alkyl-4(1H)-quinolone (AQ)-mediated interbacterial signalling for the orchestration of a genome-wide gene regulatory network. Despite the many advances that have been made in understanding the target genes of quorum sensing regulation, little is known on how quorum sensing systems are influenced by environmental cues. In this study, we show that AQ production is modulated by an orphan P. aeruginosa sensor kinase. Transcriptional studies of the sensor kinase (MxtR) mutant demonstrated that an induced expression of MexT, a LysR-type transcriptional regulator, largely determined the global transcriptional profile. Thereby, overexpression of the MexT-regulated MexEF-OprN efflux pump led to a delayed expression of the AQ biosynthetic genes and of AQ-dependent virulence factors. Furthermore, we demonstrated that autophosphorylation of MxtR was inhibited by ubiquinone, the central electron carrier of respiration in in vitro experiments. Our results elucidate on a mechanism by which P. aeruginosa senses environmental conditions and adapts by controlling the production of interbacterial AQ signal molecules. A regulatory function of a sensor kinase may indicate that there is a pre-emptive role of adaptation mechanisms that are turned on under distinct environmental conditions and that are important for efficient colonization and pathogenesis., (© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)

Integron are genetic elements able to carry, capture and shuffle the genes embedded in gene cassettes. The attC recombination sites adopt a stable secondary structure when single-stranded that is necessary for their recombination. In this study, we evaluated the impact of the structure of the attC site on expression of the 3' gene in class 1 integrons. This was analysed by substituting the attC of the bla(IMP-8) gene cassette with various mutated attC sites spanning a wide range of sizes and secondary structures, and measuring the integron-dependent translation of the 3'aac(6')-Ib7 gene. In the resulting constructs, the 5'-attC site differentially affected the expression of the aac(6')-Ib7 gene. Contrary to what was expected from their proposed role as Rho-independent transcription terminators, the transcription of the aac(6')-Ib7 gene was not affected by the various attC sites. Mutations of natural sites revealed that destabilization of the potential stem-loop structure of the attC site in the transcript could enhance the expression of the 3' gene. In particular, the presence of a translated open reading frame was shown to increase translation of the 3' gene. These findings might be explained by the capacity of the stem-loop structures to impede ribosome progression.

The expression of virulence determinants in Pseudomonas aeruginosa is coordinately regulated in response to both the social environment--commonly referred to as quorum sensing--and to environmental cues. In this study we have dissected the various independent regulation levels for pyocyanin production, which is influenced by the homoserine lactone- and Pseudomonas quinolone signal (PQS)-mediated quorum-sensing systems as well as by iron and phosphate availability. We demonstrate that the phosphate regulon is involved in the transcriptional activation of rhlR and the augmentation of PQS and pyocyanin production under phosphate limitation. However, we also observed an enhancement of rhlR transcription under low-iron medium conditions and after the addition of PQS that was independent of the phosphate regulon. These results highlight the complexity of secondary metabolite production in P. aeruginosa via environmental cues and the quorum-sensing system.