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Liver fibrosis is a common, progressive disease that affects millions of patients worldwide. In this study, it was aimed at investigating the effect of white tea on liver fibrosis in an in‐vivo environment by creating an experimental liver fibrosis model on rats. In this study, an experimental liver fibrosis model was created with carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) in Sprague–Dawley rats to investigate the effect of white tea on liver fibrosis. Rats are treated with CCl4 (1 mL/kg) to constitute the liver fibrosis model. White tea was given ad libitum with drinking water. As a result of the study, liver tissue hydroxyproline levels were found to be significantly lower (p =.001) in the white tea group. Histopathologically, it was found that the liver tissue histopathological damage score (LHDS) and fibrosis scoring were significantly lower (p <.001) in the white tea group. However, although it was not statistically significant in the group given white tea, compared with the fibrosis group, it was found that the malondialdehyde (MDA) level in the liver tissues was lower, the glutathione (GSH) level was higher, and the serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were lower. The study explained the effect of white tea on liver fibrosis and suggested that white tea might be beneficial in reducing the progression of liver fibrosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prevention and treatment of hypothermia by active warming in perioperative period care is recommended but scientific evidence of its effectiveness in a clinical setting is scarce. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of warmed intravenous fluids (WIVF) on the core body temperature and the patients' thermal comfort. Baseline data of 105 male patients undergoing TUR-P surgery and bladder irrigation were analyzed. The experimental group was warmed using active WIVF, and the control group's routine care was conducted using a cotton blanket. Body temperature was higher in patients in the experimental group than those in the control group. Repeated measures Manova revealed significantly different core temperature changes between groups (F = 34.446, p =.001). The thermal comfort scores were also higher in the experimental group than in the control group (x 2 = 203.552, p =.001). The findings indicated that WIVF can enhance body temperature and improve the thermal comfort of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The object of the paper is to study the compatibility of φ (Ric) -vector fields on almost pseudo-Ricci symmetric manifolds, briefly A (PRS) n . First, we show the existence of an A (PRS) n whose basic vector field w (X) is a φ (Ric) -vector field by constructing a non-trivial example. Then, we investigate the properties of the Riemann and Weyl compatibility of A (PRS) n under certain conditions. We consider an A (PRS) 4 space-time whose basic vector fields π (X) and ω (X) is φ (Ric) -vector fields of constant length. Moreover, we show that an A (PRS) 4 space-time whose Ricci tensor is of Codazzi type and basic vector field ω (X) is φ (Ric) -vector field is purely electric space-time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we deal with the M-projective curvature tensor on a Sasakian manifold. After defining both weakly M-projective symmetric Sasakian manifolds and weakly M-projective Ricci symmetric Sasakian manifolds, we obtained all the associated 1-forms and the relation among them. Moreover, we investigated a weakly M-projective Ricci symmetric Sasakian manifold having a cyclic parallel M-projective Ricci tensor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acid dissociation constant value (p K) is key parameter for predicting the extent of the ionization of a drug molecule at different pH. The effect of the mobile phase composition on the acid dissociation constant values was studied by measuring the p K values at different acetonitrile concentrations, ranging from 25 to 35 % (v/v). p K values and limiting retention factors of SSZ were calculated chromatographically using equations derived. From calculated p K values, the aqueous p K values of SSZ were calculated by various approaches. Moreover, the correlation established between retention factors and the pH of the water-acetonitrile mobile phase was used to determine the optimum separation condition. Optimized condition was also validated with respect to system suitability, linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection and limit of quantitation, respectively. A Gemini NX C18 column (250 × 4.6 mm I.D., 5 µm particles) was used for all the determinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ionization constant (pKa) is one among the parameter to be estimated with accuracy, irrespective of solubility constraints. In the present study, acid-base behaviour of the piroxicam and tenoxicam was studied. By using the potentiometric method, pKa values of piroxicam and tenoxicam have been determined in different percentage of acetonitrile-water binary mixtures (acetonitrile content between 30 and 45% in volume). Aqueous pKa values of these compounds were calculated by mole fraction and Yasuda-Shedlovsky equations. The experimental pKa values were compared to the corresponding predicted values derived by SPARC and Marvin Sketch software packages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we consider a manifold equipped with semi symmetric metric connection whose the torsion tensor satisfies a special condition. We investigate some properties of the Ricci tensor and the curvature tensor of this manifold . We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for the mixed generalized quasi-constant curvature of this manifold. Finally, we prove that if the manifold mentioned above is conformally flat, then it is a mixed generalized quasi- Einstein manifold and we prove that if the sectional curvature of a Riemannian manifold with a semi symmetric metric connection whose the special torsion tensor is independent from orientation chosen, then this manifold is of a mixed generalized quasi constant curvature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Destruction of drug resistant and invisible micro-tumors requires innovative screening and treatment modalities. Theranostic nanosystems offering multimodal imaging and therapy are attractive platforms with potential to make micro-tumors visible to clinicians. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are intrinsic theranostic agents and act as fluorescence quenchers. They can be easily transformed to multimodal imaging and combination therapy agents by combining them with various adjuvant therapies such as photodynamic therapy. In this study, we developed a highly specific, hybrid theranostic agent that is only activated when it meets with its stimuli at the site of interest. Surface-coated AuNPs were modified with Cathepsin B cleavable peptide (stimuli responsive linker) and Verteporfin (photosensitizer and fluorescence imaging agent). Unless the theranostic system meets with the internal stimuli in tumor cells, fluorescence is quenched due to AuNP-Verteporfin and Verteporfin-Verteporfin interactions. Following cellular internalization of the theranostic agent, fluorescence is gained by Cathepsin B cleavage and phototoxicity is initiated by light. The system was efficiently internalized by SKOV-3 cells and demonstrated high specificity towards its stimuli. In comparison to Verteporfin, ∼14-fold fluorescence increase, 81% fluorescence recovery and comparable toxicity were achieved. The system is a promising candidate for multimodal imaging and dual treatment to destroy the micro-tumors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: A cancer diagnosis is a serious stressor that is associated with anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, and inability to fulfill daily routines. Many pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic options are available to help patients with cancer manage anxiety. OBJECTIVES: This randomized, controlled trial examined the effects of lavender oil aromatherapy on anxiety and sleep quality in patients undergoing chemotherapy. METHODS: 70 patients were randomly assigned to a lavender oil group, a tea tree oil group, and a control group with no oil. A patient identification form, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Pittsburgh Quality Sleep Index (PSQI) were used to measure anxiety and sleep quality before and after chemotherapy. FINDINGS: State anxiety before and after chemotherapy did not vary among groups. The authors compared trait anxiety values before and after chemotherapy and found a significant difference in the lavender group. In addition, a significant change in PSQI measurements before and after chemotherapy was observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Eltrombopag has an off-label indication for haematopoietic cell transplantation in patients experiencing delayed thrombocyte recovery and/or thrombocytopaenia. Aims: To present our centre's experience of using this agent not only for post- haematopoietic cell transplantation thrombocytopaenia but also for poor graft functioning in the post-haematopoietic cell transplantation setting. Study Design: Retrospective cross-sectional study. Methods: Thirty-nine patients who had persistent cytopaenia following haematopoietic cell transplantation and treated with eltrombopag at our centre between October 2011 and December 2021 were retrospectively identified. During this period, 9 (23.1%) and 30 (76.9%) patients who underwent allogeneic transplantations, respectively, received eltrombopag. Results: The female-to-male ratio was 12:27, and the median transplant age was 49 (18-70) years. Eight (20.5%) patients had isolated thrombocytopaenia, 19 (49.4%) had bi-lineage cytopaenia and 12 (30.1%) had pancytopaenia. Patients received a median of 50 mg/day (25-150 mg/day) of eltrombopagfor a median duration of 82 (24-386) days. Nine (23.1%) patients had autologous haematopoietic cell transplantation, and 30 (76.9%) had allogeneic haematopoietic cell transplantation (14 unrelated, 9 sibling and 7 haploidentical). The median donor age was 32 (20-67) years. The median follow-up was 16.4 (1.8-84.3) months. The median pre-treatment platelet count was 11x109/l (1-23), which increased to 41x109/l (6-150). The median platelet count increment was 29.5x109/l (p = 0.001). The pre-treatment median neutrophil count was 1.19x109/l (0.39-5.1), which increased to 2.35x109/l (0.1-5.33) (p = 0.05), and the pre-treatment median haemoglobin was 8.3 (6.2-14) g/dl, which increased to 10 (6.2-14) g/dl (p = 0.001) with eltrombopag. No eltrombopag-related hepatotoxicity occurred; however, 1 (2.6%) patient failed to continue treatment because of two consecutive episodes of deep venous thrombosis. Six (15.4%) patients were unresponsive to eltrombopag and dependent on blood product transfusions. After a median time of 82 days, 61.5% of the patients discontinued eltrombopag successfully. Conclusion: The results confirmed that eltrombopag could provide a rapid, sustained response in patients with poor graft functioning after haematopoietic cell transplantation. This finding is essential given the high rate of non-relapse mortality caused by poor graft functioning after haematopoietic cell transplantation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

T cell receptor excision circles (TRECs) and kappa‐deleting excision circles (KRECs) are DNA fragments potentially indicative of T and B cell development, respectively. Recent thymic emigrants (RTEs) are a subset of peripheral cells that may also represent thymic function. Here, we investigated TREC/KREC copy numbers by quantitative real‐time PCR in the peripheral blood of patients with primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs, n = 145) and that of healthy controls (HCs, n = 86) and assessed the correlation between RTEs and TREC copy numbers. We found that TREC copy numbers were significantly lower in children and adults with PIDs (P <.0001 and P <.002, respectively) as compared with their respective age‐matched HCs. A moderate correlation was observed between TREC copies and RTE numbers among children with PID (r =.5114, P <.01), whereas no significant correlation was detected between RTE values and TREC content in the HCs (r =.0205, P =.9208). Additionally, we determined TREC and KREC copy numbers in DNA isolated from the Guthrie cards of 200 newborns and showed that this method is applicable to DNA isolated from both peripheral blood samples and dried blood spots, with the two sample types showing comparable TREC and KREC values. We further showed that RTE values are not always reliable markers of T cell output. Although additional confirmatory studies with larger cohorts are needed, our results provide thresholds for TREC/KREC copy numbers for different age groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: We aimed to confirm any relation between the manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) polymorphism and risk of ovarian carcinoma as well as to demonstrate any relation between the MnSOD mitochondrial signal sequence polymorphism and plasma MnSOD enzyme levels in women with ovarian carcinoma and healthy subjects. Methods: In a population-based case – control study, we compared 55 cases with ovarian carcinoma and 51 controls regarding the occurrence of the C/T (alanine/valine, A/V) substitution at the −9 position in the mitochondrial signal sequence of the MnSOD gene. Polymerase chain reaction, restriction fragment length polymorphism and Nu-Sieve agarose gel electrophoresis were utilized to perform genotyping. Additionally, MnSOD plasma levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay methodology. Results: There were no statistically significant elevated risks associated with V or A alleles. No statistically significant association between the alleles and plasma MnSOD levels were found. Overall plasma MnSOD levels were found to be significantly higher in the patient group. Conclusions: Although in this study, patients with ovarian carcinoma had significantly higher plasma MnSOD levels than the control group ( P < 0.001), no influence of the allelic distribution on plasma MnSOD levels could be detected in either group. Our results are in disagreement with earlier findings that there was an association between the A allele and increased risk for ovarian carcinoma. Thus, an extended study for a possible association between the MnSOD diallelic polymorphism and risk of ovarian cancer may be warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Plasma and tissue angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) activities are believed to be under genetic control. Increased ACE activity due to the deletion polymorphism of the ACE gene is associated with a wide variety of diseases that exhibit endothelial disturbances. Available reports suggest that the incidence of ACE gene deletion polymorphism associated with preeclampsia varies depending on the study population and geographic location. In this study, we examined the insertion/deletion genotype distribution and the activity of ACE in preeclamptic pregnants. Methods: Ninety-five preeclamptic and 50 normotensive pregnant patients, both in their third trimester, as well as 39 healthy nonpregnant individuals were included in the study. Gene polymorphism was studied by the polymerase chain reaction followed by the agarose electrophoresis. Pearson''s χ2 test was used for the statistical evaluation of the allele frequency, and Student''s t-test for the ACE activity. Results: The presence of D allele was found to be associated with preeclampsia (p<0.05, odds ratio=1.53; df=1; 95% CI=1.007–2.338). The influence of allelic distribution on the enzyme activity was observed in the preeclamptics bearing II genotype, who exhibited significantly lower activity of ACE than that of the patients with the other genotypes (p<0.05). Conclusion: We found an association between the genotype II and low ACE activity in preeclamptic women and an association between D allele frequency and preeclampsia. Pregnancy alone did not have an effect on the ACE activity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: The study aimed to assess problems experienced by patients taking oral chemotherapy and their medication adherence. Material and Method: The study used a comparative and descriptive research model and involved 122 patients who were treated through oral chemotherapy in the rheumatology and oncology polyclinics of hospitals at Uludağ University and Eskişehir Osmangazi University and agreed to participate in the study. The data of the study were collected using a descriptive characteristics questionnaire form and an oral chemotherapy adherence scale. Results: The study sample comprised 47.3% rheumatology patients and 52.7% oncology patients. Of the rheumatology patients, 69.8% received treatment because of rheumatoid arthritis. Of the oncology patients, 27.1% received treatment because of colorectal cancer and 54.2% because of breast cancer. The mean of oral medication taken by rheumatology patients was 4.41±4.40 number/day while that taken by oncology patients was 4.51±2.96 number/day. As for oral chemotherapeutics, all patients in the rheumatology group used methotrexate; while of the oncology group, 32.9% used xeloda, 3.4% capecitabine; 24.1% femara; and 22.4% tamoxifen and other oral cytotoxic drugs at lower levels. A total of 35.7% of the rheumatology group and 64.3% of the oncology group experienced problems in the prescription of oral chemotherapeutics. A total of 35.3% of rheumatology patients and 64.7% of oncology patients were not able to establish adequate and effective communication with health professionals. Also, 18.9% of rheumatology patients and 13.8% of oncology patients reported to experience a lack of motivation. A total of, 18.9% of rheumatology patients and 16.9% of oncology patients stated that the medication treatment affected their daily lives in a negative way. No difference was observed between the distribution of oral chemotherapy medication adherence scores of both groups, which were found to be poor (rheumatology=76; oncology=79), (p=0.157). Conclusion and Recommendations: The mean number of medications taken orally by rheumatology and oncology patients on a daily basis was high. Among these medications, the frequency of use and diversity of oral chemotherapeutics in oncology patients was higher than those in rheumatology patients. Factors such as lack of motivation and decrease in self-esteem had negative impact on medication adherences of patients given oral chemotherapeutic. Planning the education of nurses about medications according to the needs of patients, increasing patients' motivations for the process of treatment, and supporting patients for this process in nursing care of oncology and rheumatology patients will enhance the medication adherence of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this study is to identify the adherence to antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic medications of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) patients, and to determine the total number physicians they visited in different healthcare centers for the control and treatment of diabetes, the rate of achieving glycemic and lipid targets and the relationship between these variables. Material and Methods: A survey was administered to find out the rate of achieving target levels of lipid and HbA1C in type 2 DM patients and the factors that affect adherence to treatment (i.e. the number and type of healthcare centers visited for diabetes and the number of physicians visited) as well as the rate of resort to complementary medicine and the methods used. Results: A total of 400 DM patients -- i.e. 226 (56.5%) women aged between 51 and 65 years and 174 (43.5%) men aged between 52 and 67 -- were included in this study. We found that patients visited minimum 1 and maximum 4 physicians. The comparison of patients by the number of physicians they visited suggests that the values of fasting glucose, HbA1C, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotien and total cholesterol were statistically lower and the level of high-density was higher in patients that visited 2 or fewer physicians. Discussion: It becomes more difficult to achieve target values and ensure adherence to treatment when patients seek help from more than one or two physicians for the follow-up of DM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is crucial to develop nanocarrier systems to detect and treat drug-resistant micro tumors to prevent recurrence and/or metastasis of cancer. Due to their exceptional features such as biocompatibility, easy surface modification, serving as imaging and therapeutic agent, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) draw attention as theranostic agents. It is beneficial to combine AuNPs with a second imaging and/or treatment modality such as photodynamic therapy (PDT). PDT is a non-mutagenic treatment approach in which photosensitizer is activated with light, generating reactive oxygen species and/or free radicals to destroy tumor cells. With the aim of developing "off-on" theranostic system, citrate stabilized spherical 13 nm AuNPs were densely coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG). To advance the theranostic feature of PEGylated AuNPs, they were further functionalized with FDA-Approved photosensitizer, Verteporfin (BPD-MA). Due to static quenching between BPD-MA and AuNPs as well as in between nearby BPD-MA molecules, the fluorescence of the ground state complex is quenched and the system is in "off" state. When BPD-MA molecules are cleaved from the AuNPs surface and diffuse away, fluorescence is recovered. Consequently, the system switches to the "on" state. Among the various mole ratios of BPD-MA carrying conjugates prepared, the most promising candidate was selected based on stability, quenching factor, and fluorescence recovery rate. The conjugate was further decorated with D-α-Tocopherol succinate (VitES) to increase the therapeutic efficacy of the theranostic agent via enhancing cellular uptake. Our results showed that it was possible to achieve as high as 80 times fluorescence quenching when the system was "off". As the system switched from "off" to "on" state, 51% of the fluorescence was recovered. When BPD-MA was immobilized on the PEGylated AuNPs, the phototoxic effect of BPD-MA increased twice against the MCF-7 cell line. Moreover, the developed system showed four times more phototoxicity than BPD-MA alone after it was decorated with VitES. Since the developed system is capable of dual imaging (computed tomography and fluorescence) and dual treatment (PDT and hyperthermia), it potentially offers superior imaging and therapy options for various types of in vitro / in vivo applications. [Display omitted] • Fluorescence-based "off-on" theranostic system was developed • The system yielded 80 times fluorescence quenching and 51% fluorescence recovery. • Toxicity of Verteporfin increased twice in vitro when it was anchored to the system. • Four times more toxicity was achieved when it was decorated with D-α-Tocopherol Succinate. • Apoptosis mechanism was promoted in 61% of the cells treated with the developed theranostic agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the effects of paraoxonase (PON1) 192 polymorphism on serum PON1 activity and the impact of phenotypic expression on the risk and prognosis of Turkish children with membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN). Eighteen children with biopsy-proven Type I MPGN (10 boys, 8 girls) and age-matched 53 healthy controls were included in the study. PCR (polymerase chain reaction), RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) and agarose gel electrophoresis techniques were used to determine the PON1 192 genotype. PON1 activity was measured by spectrophotometric assay of p-nitrophenol production following addition of paraoxon. We found that PON1 192 genotype distribution (AA, AB, BB) in MPGN patients were 61.1%, 22.3%, 16.6% and 15.1%, 35.8%, 49.1% in controls, respectively. The frequency of AA genotypes was significantly higher in the MPGN group (0.611) compared with the healthy controls (0.151) ( p < 0.001). Although the serum PON1 activity was lower in MPGN patients (103.3 ± 55.2 U/l) than the healthy controls (130.9 ± 71.2 U/mol), the difference was not statistically significant ( p = 0.0563). In the genotypes of patients and controls classified according to PON1 A/B polymorphism; serum PON1 activities were significantly increased ( p < 0.001, ANOVA) in the order of PON1 AA, AB and BB in both MPGN patients (82.4, 91.7 and 173.6 U/l) and healthy controls (85.9, 119.9 and 193.1 U/l), respectively. There was a significant relationship between the poor prognosis and having AA genotype and low PON1 activity. Of the 8 patients with poor prognosis, 7 had genotype AA and the remaining one was AB heterozygote. Our results suggest that homozygosity for the A allele might have an important role on the risk for developing MPGN and may also be associated with the poor prognosis of disease. In conclusion, we suggest that the PON1 activities are affected by PON1 genetic variability in Turkish patients with MPGN. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is an enzyme (EC 1.5.1.20), that reduces 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate to 5-methyltetrahydrofolate, a carbon donor for the homocysteine to methionine conversion. MTHFR is a keyenzyme that regulates folate metabolism which has an important role in DNA synthesis, DNA repair and methylation. The association between MTHFR C677T polymorphism and breast cancer has been investigated in several previous studies. Some researchers have shown an association between C677T polymorphism and breast cancer, but not all researchers found this association however. This study was designed to investigate, in the Turkish population, the association of MTHFR C677T polymorphism and breast cancer. Forty women patients with breast cancer and 68 healthy women were included in the study. MTHFR gene polymorphism was determined by the PCR-RFLP method. SPSS 10.0 for windows was used to determine statistical significance. No differences were observed in the distribution of MTHFR genotypes or allele frequencies in the cases versus the controls. It was found that the frequencies of MTHFR polymorphism were 55%, 40%, 5% for CC, CT, TT genotype in patients and 56%, 38%, 6% in healthy controls respectively. Furthermore, association was observed among family history, metastatic risk and MTHFR genotypes in patients. Our data fail to support a relationship between MTHFR C677T and the risk for breast cancer. It may be that there are ethnic differences in terms of this relationship. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]