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Background. The main complication of diabetes mellitus is diabetic nephropathy in both types, which is a main reason for renal failure. Echinochrome substance present in sea urchin shells and spines and possesses high antioxidant activity.Aim. is to evaluate the ability of Ech to suppress the progression of diabetic complication in kidney.Materials and methods. Thirty-six male Wistar albino rats were divided into two main groups, type 1 diabetes mellitus and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Both groups divided into control, diabetic and echinochrome subgroups. Type 1 diabetes was induced by single dose of streptozotocin (60 mg/kg, i.p), while type 2 was induced by high fat diet for 4 weeks before the injection with streptozotocin (30 mg/kg, i.p). The treated groups were administrated by echinochrome (1mg/kg body weight in 10% DMSO) daily for 4 weeks.Results. Echinochrome groups showed reduction in the concentrations of glucose, malondialdehyde, urea, uric acid and creatinine. While it caused general increase in glutathione-S-transferase, superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione reduced, nitric oxide and creatinine clearance. The histopathological investigation showed clear improvement in the kidney architecture.Conclusion. Administration of echinochrome improves renal function and ameliorates renal histopathological changes possibly by improvement of glucose metabolism and inhibition of lipid peroxidation process.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a critical hindrance to the success of cancer chemotherapy. The main thing responsible for MDR phenotypes are plasma-membranes associated with adenosine triphosphate (ATP) Binding Cassette (ABC) drug efflux transporters, such as the P-glycoprotein (Pgp) transporter that has the broadest spectrum of substrates. Curcumin (CURC) is a Pgp inhibitor, but it is poorly soluble and bioavailable. To overcome these limitations, we validated the efficacy and safety of CURC, loaded in biocompatible solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), with or without chitosan coating, with the goal of increasing the stability, homogeneous water dispersibility, and cellular uptake. Both CURC-loaded SLNs were 5−10-fold more effective than free CURC in increasing the intracellular retention and toxicity of doxorubicin in Pgp-expressing triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). The effect was due to the decrease of intracellular reactive oxygen species, consequent inhibition of the Akt/IKKα-β/NF-kB axis, and reduced transcriptional activation of the Pgp promoter by p65/p50 NF-kB. CURC-loaded SLNs also effectively rescued the sensitivity to doxorubicin against drug-resistant TNBC tumors, without signs of systemic toxicity. These results suggest that the combination therapy, based on CURC-loaded SLNs and doxorubicin, is an effective and safe approach to overcome the Pgp-mediated chemoresistance in TNBC.

Abstract Nephrotoxicity is a well-known adverse effect of cyclosporine A (CyA) treatment in children with steroid-dependent (SD) and steroid-resistant (SR) nephrotic syndrome (NS). We analyzed nine children (age: 3.3-15.7 years, [...]

Byline: Marie-Helene Said (1), Marie-Paule Layani (2), Simone Colon (3), Grace Faraj (1), Catherine Glastre (4), P. Cochat (1) Keywords: Key wordsaNephritis; Post-infectious glomerulonephritis; Nephrotic syndrome; Acute renal failure; Mycoplasma pneumoniae Abstract: aMycoplasma pneumoniae infection is a rare cause of acute nephritis. Six children (2 girls) aged 5--10 years, admitted for nephritis, had serological tests showing recent Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection. The diagnosis of Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection was based on the presence of serum IgM, detected either by immunofluorescence (IF) (n=1) or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (n=5). Four children had a renal biospy, with analysis of parenchymal Mycoplasma pneumoniae components by indirect IF and polymerase chain reaction. Extrarenal symptoms were: respiratory (n=3), ear, nose, and throat (n=2), gastrointestinal (n=3), hepatic (n=1), neurological (n=1), articular (n=1), and hematological (n=3). The patients presented with acute nephritis (1 had a nephrotic syndrome) or with acute renal failure and proteinuria. Pathological findings included type 1 membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN, n=1), proliferative endocapillary glomerulonephritis (n=2), and minimal change disease (n=1). The patient with type 1 MPGN progressed rapidly towards end-stage renal failure because of a congenital solitary kidney. Among the patients with endocapillary glomerulonephritis, 1 relapsed 6 months later and remained proteinuric, while the other recovered, as did the child with minimal change disease. The search for Mycoplasma pneumoniae antigens and nucleic acids in renal tissue was negative. However, the absence of the microorganism in the kidney is a common feature of post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis. We conclude that Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a rare yet potential cause of acute glomerulonephritis. Author Affiliation: (1) Unite de Nephrologie Pediatrique, Hopital Edouard Herriot and Universite Claude Bernard, F-69437 Lyon Cedex 03, France, FR (2) Laboratoire de Virologie, Hopital Edouard Herriot, Domaine Rockefeller, Lyon, France, FR (3) Laboratoire d'Anatomie Pathologique Renale, Hopital Edouard Herriot, Lyon, France, FR (4) Service de Pediatrie, Centre Hospitalier, Annecy, France, FR Article note: Received: 13 September 1996 / Revised: 16 June 1998 / Accepted: 18 June 1998

Focuses on a thermodynamic model for calculating the dissociation constants of complexes formed between the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Properties that control free energies of binding of PCBs to AhR; Correlation of affinities of PCBs for AhR with corresponding toxic equivalency factors in animals; Applicability of the methodology to other polyhalogenated and related xenobiotics.