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Objective: To examine light and heat effects on the morphological, histological, and micrometric structure of the prostate of rats. Methods: Thirty adult male rats were divided into three groups. The control group was kept under 20 °C-22 °C and an artificial 12 h/12 h day/night cycle; the temperature group was under normal light and at (42±1) °C heat for 4 to 5 h daily, and the light group was exposed to 8 h/16 h day/night cycle with 20 °C-22 °C. Rats were weighed five times (at the beginning of the study and every seven days). Five milliliters (mL) of their peripheral blood were taken. The tissue staining was performed using the hematoxylin-eosin (H & E) stain and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS). In the following, tissue and cellular reactions to the PAS were examined. Results: Folds were located entirely on the surface of the anterior lobe and periphery of the other lobes. The secretory units in the anterior lobe were more than the lateral lobe. A strong reaction of the secretory cells to the PAS was observed. Testosterone serum levels of the light group also significantly increased compared to the control group (P

Background & Objective: Gamma rays are widely used in medicine despite their harmful effects on health. Our study evaluated the protective effects of melatonin on kidney, heart, and liver tissues. Materials & Methods: Seventy-two adult male Wistar rats were categorized into nine groups. Groups 2 and 3 only received whole-body γ-ray irradiation (WBI) (2.0 Gy), no melatonin, interval time (IT) 8hr and 24hr. Groups 4 and 5 received WBI (8.0 Gy, no melatonin, 8hr and 24hr). Groups 6 and 7 received melatonin at 60 minutes (min) before WBI(2.0 Gy). Groups 8 and 9 received melatonin before WBI(8.0 Gy). All the rats were sacrificed 8 or 24 h after the experiments for laboratory and histopathological analysis. Serum levels of Blood Urea Nitrogen(BUN), Creatinine (Cr), Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), Potassium (K), Gamma-glutamyl Transferase (GGT), Serum Glutamic-Oxaloacetic Transaminase(SGOT), Serum Glutamic-Pyruvic Transaminase(SGPT), Alkaline Phosphatase(ALP), c-reactive protein(CRP), Troponine(TPO) and histological features of liver, heart and kidney tissues were assessed. Statistical analysis was performed by One-Way ANOVA. Results: Our data did not indicate significant differences in BUN, Cr, K, and CRP between groups with or without melatonin treatment (P>0.05); but differences were significant for LDH, GGT, SGOT, SGPT, ALP, and TPO (P

Introduction: Diabetics usually suffer from chronic complications, including microvascular and macrovascular disorders. The capillaries supplying the sexual organs affect normal sexual functions. The erectile process has been shown to be impaired in diabetics. Vascular damage in diabetics may be associated with decreased testosterone production, sperm count, testicular weight, and seminiferous tubule diameter. In this study, we investigated the effects of Aloe vera gel extract (from Sistan and Baluchistan, Iran) on the male genital system in streptozocin-induced diabetic rats. Methods: A total of 24 male Wistar rats were included in the study. Diabetes was induced in 12 rats by intraperitoneal injection of a single dose of streptozotocin (STZ). The rats were divided into four groups. The first and third groups received saline (NaCl) by gavage daily. The second and fourth groups received Aloe vera gel extract daily by gavage. Treatments were continued for 30 days. At the end of the treatment period, blood samples were taken and serum glucose and testosterone levels were measured by photometric methods. Histological examinations were performed on the prostate and testes. Results: Mean weight index, serum levels of glucose and testosterone, mean sperm count, germinal epithelium (GE) thickness, and seminiferous tubule diameter improved significantly in the diabetes+Aloe vera group. Conclusion: We concluded that consumption of Aloe vera gel extract improved sexual complications in diabetic rats.

SARS-CoV-2 virus belongs to the beta coronavirus family that cause the inflammatory condition, acute pneumonia, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). ARDS is the most important reason of mortality in patients, characterized as a highly increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion. Inflammasome is a complex, which has an essential role in inflammatory situation, and NOD, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) is the most studied inflammasome that is considered to play vital roles in the virus infection and its pathogenesis. Our search language was limited to English and the search was performed in Web of Science, PubMed and Embase. Based on published articles, our current narrative review first explains the structure of the SARS-Cov2 virus and then describes the function of the NLRP3 inflammasome in relation to COVID-19 and drugs effective in controlling it. The NLRP3 inflammasome activation related to the initiation of inflammatory cascade including important cytokines production and releases such as IL-6, TNF-α and IL-1β. Thus, targeting the NLRP3 as a member of the innate immune system may be helpful for the reduction of ARDS clinical symptoms in COVID-19 patients.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis associated with gradual joint destruction. The current treatment aims to alleviate pain and inflammation and improve the quality of life. Crocin is an active ingredient in saffron, with anti-inflammatory properties. MicroRNAs are small, non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression. We aimed to evaluate the effect of crocin on the gene expression of microRNA-146a, microRNA-155, microRNA-223, and microRNA-21 in OA patients and compare it with a placebo. This study was approved and registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (2015021910507N2) and ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03375814. Forty OA patients were randomly divided into two equal groups, receiving either crocin or placebo. Peripheral blood samples were collected before and four months after the intervention. The pain was assessed using the visual analog scale, and laboratory tests included C-reactive protein and erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The expression levels of microRNA-146a, microRNA-155, microRNA-223, and microRNA-21 genes were evaluated by SYBR Green real-time PCR. The results showed that the gene expression levels of microRNA-21 and microRNA-155 in patients receiving crocin were significantly decreased and increased, respectively. No significant changes were observed in microRNA-146a and microRNA-223 gene expression levels. In conclusion, crocin's anti-inflammatory role might be partly attributed to its effects on the gene expression of microRNA-21 and microRNA-155.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is known to be the most prevalent form of joint disease. We conducted this clinical trial to investigate the effects of KrocinaTM, a natural product containing crocin, on the gene expression of unique transcription factors of various T cell subsets in patients with OA. We collected 40 peripheral blood samples of OA patients receiving Krocina™ and equal number of those who took a placebo (IRCT2015021910507N2, NCT03375814). RNA extraction was performed from the cultured peripheral blood mononuclear cells of the OA patients who received Krocina™ and placebo and SYBR Green Real-time PCR technique was applied to assess the relative gene expression of T-bet, GATA3, ROR-γt, and FOXP3 as the unique transcription factors of various T cell subsets. The relative gene expression of T-bet and ROR-γt insignificantly decreased in the Krocina™ receiving group as compared to the placebo group. In addition, the relative gene expressions of GATA-3 and FOXP3 after the treatment with KrocinaTM showed a significant and insignificant increase, respectively. Moreover, an insignificant decrease was observed in the gene expression of GATA-3 and FOXP3 in the placebo group. A significant and insignificant decrease in the gene expression of T-bet and ROR- γt was detected in the OA patients who received a placebo. GATA-3 is known as a unique transcription factor for the differentiation of T-cells to the Th2 subset. The significant increase in the gene expression of GATA-3 in the patients with OA treated with crocin may suggest the beneficial effect of crocin on shifting towards the Th2 subset and enhancing an anti-inflammatory condition.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the major cause of joint pain and disability. This research was planned to examine the effects of Krocina™, aherbal medicine made of crocin, an ingredient of saffron, in patients with OA. Forty patients suffering from OA were enrolled in our study and randomly divided into two groups, receiving Krocina™ and placebo, and the clinical trial continued for four months.Peripheral blood was taken from all patients and the percentage ofvarious subsets of T cells in addition to the levels of forkhead box protein P3 (FOXP3) and interleukin (IL)-17 were measured by flow cytometry technique. The visualan alog scale (VAS) index analysis decreased significantly in both groups (krocinaTM and placebo) (p

It has been reported that patients with arthritis, osteoarthritis, atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, brain ischemia, diabetes, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) suffer from pro-inflammatory and oxidant related responses. Therefore, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant therapies are used to improve the quality of life of the patients. Saffron is a herbal drug that has immunomodulatory and antioxidant properties. Hence, Saffron and its components have been proposed as therapeutic agents for the treatment of the diseases. Therefore, this review article was designed to collect recent information regarding the effects of saffron and its components on the amelioration of the inflammatory symptoms in the autoimmune and non-autoimmune diseases and anti-cancerous effects from 1999 up to now via searching the Pubmed, Google Scholar, and Scopus databases. Due to fact that several investigations have reviewed the roles played by Saffron on autoimmune and non-autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, mood disorders, and Alzheimer's disease, this review article focuses on other diseases to keep the novelty of the present review for readers.

Background & Objective: Gamma rays are widely used in medicine despite their harmful effects on health. Our study evaluated the protective effects of melatonin on kidney, heart, and liver tissues. Materials & Methods: Seventy-two adult male Wistar rats were categorized into nine groups. Groups 2 and 3 only received whole-body γ-ray irradiation (WBI) (2.0 Gy), no melatonin, interval time (IT) 8hr and 24hr. Groups 4 and 5 received WBI (8.0 Gy, no melatonin, 8hr and 24hr). Groups 6 and 7 received melatonin at 60 minutes (min) before WBI (2.0 Gy). Groups 8 and 9 received melatonin before WBI (8.0 Gy). All the rats were sacrificed 8 or 24 h after the experiments for laboratory and histopathological analysis. Serum levels of Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN), Creatinine (Cr), Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), Potassium (K), Gamma-glutamyl Transferase (GGT), Serum Glutamic-Oxaloacetic Transaminase (SGOT), Serum Glutamic-Pyruvic Transaminase (SGPT), Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP), c-reactive protein (CRP), Troponine (TPO) and histological features of liver, heart and kidney tissues were assessed. Statistical analysis was performed by One-Way ANOVA. Results: Our data did not indicate significant differences in BUN, Cr, K, and CRP between groups with or without melatonin treatment (P>0.05); but differences were significant for LDH, GGT, SGOT, SGPT, ALP, and TPO (P<0.05). The results showed that radiation-induced histopathological effects on the liver, heart, and kidneys were mitigated in the groups six to nine. Conclusion: The existence of significant differences in serum levels of LDH, GGT, SGOT, SGPT, ALP, and TPO in groups (6 to 9) and amelioration of the histopathological effects of irradiation on the liver, heart, and kidneys in the groups six to nine showed that the melatonin (100 mg/kg) is able to protect the body in gamma-radiation (2.0 Gy and 8.0 Gy). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]