Search

Recently, biomolecules from natural products have paved the way for novel drug in the treatment of some diseases in vitro and in vivo models as diabetes, cancer and infertility. As such, we aimed to evaluate the capacity of Oleuropein (OLE), the major bio-phenol in olive leaf, to protect human sperm against bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) inducing sperm oxidative stress and defective sperm functions. The toxic effect of OLE on human sperm was firstly investigated by evaluating sperm parameters after incubation during 60 minutes with different concentrations. Determined non-toxic concentration was then used to evaluate the capacity of OLE to protect sperm against LPS oxidative damages and sperm parameters alterations. Thus, sperms were consecutively incubated with LPS (10 µg/mL) and OLE (40 µg/mL) during 60 minutes, then submitted to sperm parameters analysis and oxidative stress assessment by measuring malondialdehyde (MDA), carbonyl groups (CG) levels and the activity of some antioxidant enzymes: superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). A significant decrease of sperm parameters as well as a significant increase in MDA levels, CG levels, SOD and CAT activities was found after stimulation by LPS. However, a non-significant difference was shown comparing sperms treated by LPS and OLE with LPS-treated control sperms. Consequently, despite the high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory capacity of OLE reported in diverse cells, this phenolic compound seems to be not appropriate to protect human sperm in vitro against induced LPS oxidative stress and seems to have a "double-edged sword" behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dental decay is known in the world as the most common human infectious disease. Ascending process of dental caries index in the world shows the failure of oral disease prevention. Streptococcus mutans bacteria cause acid damage and tooth decay by producing acid over time. Nanomaterials with suitable functionality, high permeability, extremely large surface area, significant reactivity, unique mechanical features, and non-bacterial resistance can be considered as promising agents for antimicrobial and antiviral applications. In this study, nickel oxide (NiO) nanoparticles with size range from 2 to 16 nm containing Stevia natural sweetener were eco-friendly synthesized via a simple method. Additionally, their various concentrations were evaluated on S. mutans bacteria by applying the broth dilution method. The results demonstrated that these spherical NiO nanoparticles had efficient bacteriostatic activity on this gram-positive coccus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background This epidemiological study was carried out in Sfax (south of Tunisia) and focused on genital Chlamydia trachomatis (C. trachomatis) genovar distribution. Methods One hundred and thirty seven genital samples from 4067 patients (4.2%) attending the Habib Bourguiba University hospital of Sfax over 12 years (from 2000 to 2011) were found to be C. trachomatis PCR positive by the Cobas Amplicor system. These samples were genotyped by an in house reverse hybridization method. Results One hundred and eight (78.8%) samples contained only one genovar and 29 (21.2%) samples contained two or three genovars. Genovar E was the most prevalent (70.8%) single genovar and it was detected in 90.6% of all the cases. Genovars J, C and L1-L3 were not detected in our samples whereas ocular genovars A and B were in 5 cases. All the five cases were mixed infections. Men had more mixed infections than women (p=0.02) and were more frequently infected by genovars F and K (pNeisseria gonorrhoeae were also significantly more frequently infected with mixed genovars (p=0.04). Conclusions In conclusion, we have reported a high prevalence of genovar E and of mixed infections in our study population. Such data could have implications for the control and vaccine development of C. trachomatis in Tunisia.

Salmonella is a leading cause of foodborne diseases worldwide. The use of antibiotics in food-producing animals may contribute to the development of antimicrobial resistance in nontyphoidal Salmonella. The development of resistance to potent antimicrobials such as fluoroquinolones and extended-spectrum β-lactamases is a significant public health problem. The present study was conducted to examine the occurrence and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella isolates obtained from food samples. Salmonella was cultured according to ISO 6579:2002 method, and antimicrobial resistance was evaluated with the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method. Forty-five Salmonella isolates were recovered, and a high Salmonella prevalence was detected in clams (7 of 20 samples, 35%), chicken (28 of 97 samples, 28.9%) and cow's milk (10 of 80 samples, 12.5%). Salmonella Enteritidis (n = 19) and Salmonella Kentucky (n = 18) were the most prevalent isolates. Multidrug resistance was found in 31.1% of the isolates (14 of 45); 84, 46, 28, and 17% of the isolates were resistant to nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, amoxicillin–clavulanic acid, and both ofloxacin and cefotaxime, respectively. The isolates resistant to cefotaxime were screened by PCR for the genes for TEM β-lactamase, extended-spectrum β-lactamases (CTX and OXA), and AmpC β-lactamases (FOX, MOX, DHA, ACC, CIT, and EBC). One Salmonella Kentucky isolate from milk harbored an AmpC gene (FOX), and the same serotype isolated from chicken carried the EBC AmpC determinant. The blaTEM gene was detected in all nonsusceptible isolates. We also screened isolates with reduced fluoroquinolone susceptibility for the presence of transferable plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance determinants. Three qnr genes (qnrB, qnrD, and qnrS) were detected in four isolates (two from milk and two from chicken). To our knowledge, this is the first report of the AmpC FOX and EBC gene families and the qnrD gene within a foodborne pathogen in Tunisia. These findings highlight the emergence of multidrug-resistant Salmonella isolates with decreased susceptibility to fluoroquinolones and third-generation cephalosporins, which are drugs commonly used for the treatment of Salmonella infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the in vitro and the in vivo antioxidant capacities of Allium sativum (garlic) extract against deltamethrin-induced oxidative damage in rat’s brain and kidney. The in vitro result showed that highest extraction yield was achieved with methanol (20.08%). Among the tested extracts, the methanol extract exhibited the highest total phenolic, flavonoids contents and antioxidant activity. The in vivo results showed that deltamethrin treatment caused an increase of the acetylcholinesterase level (AChE) in brain and plasma, the brain and kidney conjugated dienes and lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels as compared to control group. The antioxidant enzymes results showed that deltamethrin treatment induced a significantly decrease (p < 0.01) in brain and kidney antioxidant enzymes as catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) to control group. The co-administration of garlic extract reduced the toxic effects in brain and kidney tissues induced by deltamethrin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]