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Liver fibrosis is a health concern that leads to organ failure mediated via production of inflammatory cytokines and fibrotic biomarkers. This study aimed to explore the protective effect of tadalafil, a phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor, against thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver fibrosis. Fibrosis was induced by administration of TAA (200 mg/kg, i.p.) twice weekly for 6 weeks. Serum transaminases activities, liver inflammatory cytokines, fibrotic biomarkers, and liver histopathology were assessed. TAA induced marked histopathological changes in liver tissues coupled with elevations in serum transaminases activities. Furthermore, hepatic content of nitric oxide and tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-6, and interleukin-1 beta were elevated, together with a reduction of interleukin-10 in the liver. In addition, TAA increased hepatic contents of transforming growth factor-beta, hydroxyproline, alpha-smooth muscle actin, and gene expression of collagen-1. Pretreatment with tadalafil protected against TAA-induced liver fibrosis, in a dose-dependent manner, as proved by the alleviation of inflammatory and fibrotic biomarkers. The effects of tadalafil were comparable with that of silymarin, a natural antioxidant, and could be assigned to its anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic properties.Key words: liver fibrosis, thioacetamide, tadalafil, alpha-smooth muscle actin, collagen-1 expression, interleukin-10, rats.La fibrose hepatique est un probleme de sante qui mene a une insuffisance de l'organe par l'intermediaire de la production de cytokines inflammatoires et de biomarqueurs de la fibrose. Cette etude visait a explorer l'effet protecteur du tadalafil, un inhibiteur de la phosphodiesterase-5, contre la fibrose hepatique engendree par la thioacetamide (TAA). La fibrose a ete provoquee par l'administration de TAA (200 mg/kg, i.p.) deux fois par semaine pendant 6 semaines. Nous avons evalue dans le serum l'activite des transaminases ainsi que les taux de cytokines inflammatoires et de marqueurs de la fibrose, et procede a une etude histopathologique. La TAA engendrait dans les tissus hepatiques des modifications histopathologiques marquees, couplees a une hausse de l'activite des transaminases seriques. En outre, les taux hepatiques d'oxyde nitrique et de facteur de necrose tumorale alpha, ainsi que d'interleukine 6 et d'interleukine 1 beta augmentaient alors que les taux d'interleukine 10 diminuaient dans le foie. De plus, la TAA entrainait une augmentation des taux hepatiques de facteur de croissance transformant beta, d'hydroxyproline et d'actine du muscle lisse alpha, ainsi que de l'expression genique du collagene 1. Comme en temoignait l'abaissement proportionnel a la dose des taux de biomarqueurs de l'inflammation et de la fibrose, l'administration prealable de tadalafil permettait de proteger le foie contre la fibrose engendree par la TAA. Les effets du tadalafil etaient comparables a ceux de la silymarine, un antioxydant naturel, et on pouvait les assimiler a ses proprietes anti-inflammatoires et antifibrotiques. [Traduit par la Redaction]Mots-cles: fibrose hepatique, thioacetamide, tadalafil, actine du muscle lisse alpha, expression du collagene 1, interleukine 10, rats., IntroductionLiver fibrosis is a serious healthcare problem with high morbidity and mortality (Almpanis et al. 2016; Altamirano-Barrera et al. 2017). It is a wound-healing response to repeated liver injury (Liu [...]

CO2 laser ablation is a rapid and precise technique for machining microfluidic devices. And also, low-cost epoxy resin (ER) proved the great feasibility of fabricating these devices using the CO2 laser ablation technique in our previous studies. However, such a technique has shown negative impacts on such ER-based microfluidics as rough surface microchannels, and thermal defects. Therefore, incorporating different proportions of boric acid (BA) into epoxy resin formulation was proposed to obviate the genesis of these drawbacks in ER-based microfluidics. The structural and optical properties of plain ER- and B-doped ER-based chips were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and UV/Vis spectral analyses. Furthermore, their thermal properties were studied by thermo-gravimetric (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) analysis. A CO2 laser ablation machine was used in vector mode to draw the designed micro-channel pattern onto plain ER- and B-doped ER-based chips. The quality of microchannels engraved onto these chips was assessed using 3D laser microscopy. This microscopic examination showed a noticeable reduction in the surface roughness and negligible bulge heights in the laser-ablated micro-channels. On the other hand, overall and specific migration using gravimetric methods and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS), respectively, and PCR compatibility test were performed to explore the convenience of these micro-plates for the biological reactions. These findings validated the applicability of B-doped ER-based microfluidics in bio-analytical applications as a result of the effective role of boric acid in enhancing the thermal properties of these chips leading to get micro-channels with higher quality with no effect on the biological reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In order to anticipate the common side effects and to direct the treatment choices, risk stratification scores are an essential tool in the management of ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients. The GRACE risk score (Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events) and the TIMI risk score (Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction) are the two most commonly utilized scores for risk stratification in STEMI. The CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF score, which was recently created, was derived from the CHA2DS2-VASc score. Objective: This study aimed to assess the relationship between patients with STEMI undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and their admission CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF score and short-term clinical outcomes. Subjects and methods: This prospective observational study was done on 100 consecutive STEMI patients treated with primary PCI at Benha University Hospital and Nasser Institute for Research and Treatment Hospital between December 2022 and April 2023. All patients underwent a thorough medical history, physical examination, ECG, and echocardiography. For each patient, we calculated their TIMI, GRACE, and CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF risk scores. Results: The three risk scores CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF, TIMI, and GRACE were statistically significant predictor of in-hospital 3-point MACE. According to our study, high CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF scores > 4 were statistically significantly associated with cardiovascular mortality, the composite endpoint of 3-point MACE, patients requiring cardiopulmonary resuscitation and patients experiencing cardiogenic shock. Additionally, there was a statistically significant correlation between patients with three vessel disease and high CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF scores > 4. High CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF score > 4 was statistically significantly associated with patients' 30-days death from all causes, lethal re-infarction, and 3-point MACE. Conclusion: Every STEMI patient should be assessed by the CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF score to help identify potential high-risk patients (those with a CHA2DS2-VASc-HSF score > 4 points), who should receive more aggressive therapy and vigilant monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]