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Background: Oligodendrocytes are myelin-producing cells, which develop from oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) and may be damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS) and traumatic brain injuries. Promotion of neural stem cell (NSC) differentiation into oligodendrocytes in vivo is a viable strategy to replace the lost myelinating cells and restore motor functions in such debilitating diseases. Crocus sativus L. or saffron has been used as a spice since ancient times. Saffron and its major active component, crocin, are well-known for their medicinal and neuroprotective activities. The current study aimed at assessing the effect of saffron extract and crocin on the differentiation of NSCs into OPCs. Methods: To isolate NSCs, 14-day embryonic rats cortices were cultured, using the neurosphere assay. NSCs were cultured in a complete NSC medium under 4 different treatment conditions: 1, Negative control group, 10 ng/mL of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF); 2, Positive control group, 10 ng/mL of bFGF plus 30 ng/mL of platelet-derived growth factor-AA (PDGF-AA); 3, Crocin group, crocin extract plus 10 ng/mL of bFGF; and 4, Saffron group, saffron extract plus 10 ng/mL of bFGF in 2 or 5 days. The level of Olig2 protein, an early OPC marker, was evaluated by flow cytometry 2 days after the treatment. The level of sox10 mRNA expression, involving in OPC maturation processes, was assessed in the study groups via quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), 5 days after the treatment. All the experiments were done in triplicate. The data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA with Graph Pad Prism version 6.01; P < 0.05 was considered as the level of significance. Results: The present data demonstrated that, similar to the positive control group, the rate of olig2+ cells in the crocin and saffron extract groups did not exceed 80% indicating that these components could significantly increase olig2 expression in NSC differentiation compared with that of the negative controls (P < 0.05). Moreover, the mean expression level of sox10 gene in the positive control, saffron and crocin groups was 1 ± 0.012, 0.72 ± 0.13, and 0.835 ± 0.015, respectively, which significantly higher than that of the negative control group (P < 0.05). Conclusions: It can be concluded that crocin and saffron are the proper alternatives for PDGF-AA in the enhancement of NSC differentiation into oligodendrocytes.

Transportation is an inevitable husbandry practice which animals encounter in the livestock industry and raises considerable interest both in economic and animal welfare terms. With respect to the growing interest in using acute phase proteins as health and welfare indicators, the aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of road transportation on the concentrations of fibrinogen, haptoglobin, serum amyloid A, and ceruloplasmin in Iranian dromedary camels. Ten clinically healthy Iranian dromedary camels, five males and five females, were selected and subjected to a journey of approximately 300 km in a truck by road during the late summer. Blood samples were collected immediately before loading at 8:30 a.m., after 1 h transportation, at 9:30 a.m., and at the end of the journey after unloading at 1:30 pm. A final blood sample was taken 24 h after arrival. Blood concentrations of plasma proteins, including fibrinogen, haptoglobin, serum amyloid A, ceruloplasmin, total protein, and albumin, were measured using validated methods. Mean basal pre-transport concentrations of fibrinogen (3.10 ± 0.47 g/l), haptoglobin (0.3 ± 0.04 g/l), serum amyloid A (9.77 ± 0.62 μg/ml), and ceruloplasmin (0.096 ± 0.01 g/l) did not change significantly during and after road transportation. In addition, transportation had no significant effects on basal plasma concentrations of total protein (60.8 ± 6.1 g/l) and albumin (38.3 ± 2.1 g/l). No significant difference was observed in any parameter between sexes at each sampling time. We conclude that stressful conditions during the journey under hot summer environmental conditions were not severe enough to trigger an acute phase response. The value of the investigated plasma parameters as welfare indicators in dromedary camel over short transportation would be limited. Taken together, this plasma protein profile may be of value for future research on acute phase proteins as potential markers of health and welfare and to develop a baseline for practical applications in dromedary camels.

This work analyzes the effects of radiofrequency-electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) exposure on the reproductive system of male rats, assessed by measuring circulating levels of FSH, LH, inhibin B, activin B, prolactin, and testosterone. Twenty adult male Sprague–Dawley rats (180 ± 10 g) were exposed to 900 MHz RF-EMF in four equal separated groups. The duration of exposure was 1, 2, and 4 h/day over a period of 30 days and sham-exposed animals were kept under the same environmental conditions as the exposed group except with no RF-EMF exposure. Before the exposure, at 15 and 30 days of exposure, determination of the abovementioned hormone levels was performed using ELISA. At the end of the experiment, FSH and LH values of the long time exposure (LTE) group were significantly higher than the sham-exposed group (p

Transportation is often considered as one of the main causes of stress raising considerable interest, both in economic and animal welfare terms. The objective of the current study was to determine physiological response of dromedary camels to road transportation in relation to circulating levels of cortisol, thyroid hormones and some serum biochemical factors during summer conditions. Ten Iranian dromedary camels, five males and five females, were selected for the study. The study was conducted on three consecutive days in August 2008. At first day, blood samples were collected at 08:30 A.M., 09:30 A.M. and 01:30 P.M. to determine any possible variation in individual measurements due to diurnal changes or as a result of food and water deprivation for 5 h. Travel commenced on day 2 at 08:30 A.M. for 5 h, with a total of about 300 km traveled. At second day, blood samples were collected immediately before loading, at 08:30 a.m., after 1 h transport, at 09:30 A.M., and on the end of transportation, after unloading, at 01:30 P.M. Final blood sample was taken 24 h after arrival. In the current study no significant difference was observed in any parameter between sexes at each sampling time. The data related to day before transport had no significant differences between different times except for values obtained for cortisol that at 01:30 P.M. showed a significant decrease in comparison with data at 08:30 and 09:30. Circulating cortisol, T(4), T(3) and fT(4) levels was significantly higher after transportation compared with pre-transport values and returned to basal values within 24 h after transport. Transportation had effects on metabolism as demonstrated by increase in serum concentrations of glucose, NEFA, and urea nitrogen. Serum concentrations of glucose, NEFA, and urea nitrogen returned to basal values in final bleeding at 24 h after transport termination. In the current study transportation had no significant effects on serum concentrations of fT(3), triglycerides, cholesterol, beta-hydroxybutyrate, albumin and total protein. Taken together, the results obtained for short road transportation of dromedary camels showed a strong physiological response and provide some biomarkers for stress detection in this species. Further research to validate these potential biomarkers is necessary.