Silymarin Inhibits the Progression of Fibrosis in the Early Stages of Liver Injury in CCl4-Treated Rats

Simona Clichici,Diana Olteanu,Andras-Laszlo Nagy,Adrian Oros,Adriana Filip,Petru A. Mircea 한국식품영양과학회 2015 Journal of medicinal food Vol.18 No.3

Liver fibrosis, a common condition occurring during the evolution of almost all chronic liver diseases, is the consequence of hepatocyte injury that leads to the activation of Kupffer cells and hepatic stellate cells (HSC). Silymarin (Si) is a herbal product widely used for its hepatoprotective potential. Our study aims to investigate the effects of two different doses of Silymarin on a CCl4-induced model of liver fibrosis with a focus on the early stages of liver injury. Fifty Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups (n = 10): control group (sunflower oil twice a week); CMC group (carboxymethyl cellulose five times a week, sunflower oil twice a week); CCl4 group (CCl4 in sunflower oil, by gavage, twice a week); CCl4 + Si 50 group (CCl4 twice a week, Silymarin 50 mg/b.w. in CMC five times a week); and CCl4 + Si 200 group (similar to the previous group, with Si 200 mg/b.w.). One month after the experiment began we explored hepato-cytolysis (aminotransferases and lactate dehydrogenase), oxidative stress, fibrosis (histological score, hyaluronic acid), markers of HSC activation (transforming growth factor β1 [TGF-β1], and α-smooth muscle actin [α-SMA] expression by western blot) and activation of Kupffer cells by immunohistochemistry. Our data showed that Si 50 mg/b.w. had the capacity of reducing oxidative stress, hepato-cytolysis, fibrosis, activation of Kupffer cells, and the expression of a-SMA and TGF-β1 with better results than Si 200 mg/b.w. Thus, the usual therapeutic dose of Silymarin, administered in the early stages of fibrotic changes is capable of inhibiting the fibrogenetic mechanism and the progression of initial liver fibrosis.

Phytochemical composition, protective and therapeutic effect on gastric ulcer and a-amylase inhibitory activity of Achillea biebersteinii Afan.

Howaida I. Abd-Alla,Nagwa M. M. Shalaby,Manal A. Hamed,Nagy Saba El-Rigal,Samira N. Al-Ghamdi,Jalloul Bouajila 대한약학회 2016 Archives of Pharmacal Research Vol.39 No.1

Three sesquiterpene lactones [two germacranolides (micranthin and sintenin) and one guaianolide (4b,10adihydroxy- 5b,7b,8bH-guaia-1,11(13)dien-12,8a-olide)] and four derivatives of 3-methoxy flavones (santin, quercetagetin- 3,6,30-trimethyl ether, quercetagetin-3,6-dimethyl ether, and 5,7 dihydroxy 3,30,40-trimethoxy flavone) were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract (EAE) of the aerial parts of Achillea biebersteinii Afan. (Asteraceae). Evaluation of protective and therapeutic effects of EAE against ethanol-induced gastric ulcer in rats was carried. Antiulcer activity evaluation was done through measuring ulcer indices, stomach acidity, gastric volume and lesion counts. Oxidative stress markers; malondialdehyde, glutathione and superoxide dismutase were also estimated. The work was extended to determine the histopathological assessment of the stomach. Gastric ulcer exhibited a significant elevation of the ulcer index and oxidative stress markers. The extract attenuated these increments and recorded protective and therapeutic effects against gastric ulcer. Hyperglycaemia increases the mucosal susceptibility to ulcerogenic stimuli and predisposes gastric ulceration. In vitro a-amylase inhibitory assay was applied to evaluate the post prandial antihyperglycaemia activity. The result showing that the EAE has the ability to reduce starch-induced postprandial glycaemic excursions by virtue of potent intestinal a-amylase inhibitory activity. These findings demonstrated the remarkable potential of A. biebersteinii as valuable source of antiulcer agent with post prandial hyperglycaemia lowering effect.

Effect of Diazinon, an Organophosphate Insecticide, on Plasma Lipid Constituents in Experimental Animals

( Nagi A. Ibrahim ),( Basiouny A. El Gamal ) 생화학분자생물학회 2003 BMB Reports Vol.36 No.5

There has been increasing interest in studying the various effects of organophosphate insecticides in humans and experimental animals. Only a few data are available on the effect of the organophosphate insecticide, diazinon, on lipid metabolism. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of diazinon on plasma lipid constituents in mammalian animals. The plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglycerides (TG), and phospholipids (PL) were measured in albino rats that were orally treated with a single dose of diazinon at a level of LD_(50) or with repeated daily doses at the levels of 1/2, 1/8, and 1/32 LD_(50) for 2, 8, and 32 days, respectively. After a 24 h post-treatment with a single LD,, dose of diazinon, TC was not significantly changed, the HDL-C and PL levels were significantly decreased, but the LDL-C and TG levels were significantly increased. Separate daily oral administrations of diazinon at 1/s LD_(50), 1/8 LD_(50), and 1/32 LD,, doses resulted in a significant decrease in HDL-C and PL, with no significant change in TG. The LDL-C levels were significantly increased and TC showed no significant change with 1/2 LD_(50) and 1/32 LD, doses of diazinon, whereas change with 1/2 LD_(50) and 1/32 LD, doses of diazinon, whereas a significant decrease in the levels of TC, HDL-C, as well as LDL-C, was observed with the 1/8 DL,, dose. These data suggest that diazinon may interfere with lipid metabolism in mammals.

Effect of Diazinon, an Organophosphate Insecticide, on Plasma Lipid Constituents in Experimental Animals

Ibrahim, Nagi A.,El-Gamal, Basiouny A. Korean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biol 2003 Journal of biochemistry and molecular biology Vol.36 No.5

There has been increasing interest in studying the various effects of organophosphate insecticides in humans and experimental animals. Only a few data are available on the effect of the organophosphate insecticide, diazinon, on lipid metabolism. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of diazinon on plasma lipid constituents in mammalian animals. The plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglycerides (TG), and phospholipids (PL) were measured in albino rats that were orally treated with a single dose of diazinon at a level of $LD_{50}$ or with repeated daily doses at the levels of $\frac{1}{2}$, $\frac{1}{8}$, and $\frac{1}{32}$ $LD_{50}$ for 2, 8, and 32 days, respectively. After a 24 h post-treatment with a single $LD_{50}$ dose of diazinon, TC was not significantly changed, the HDL-C and PL levels were significantly decreased, but the LDL-C and TG levels were significantly increased. Separate daily oral administrations of diazinon at $\frac{1}{2}$ $LD_{50}$, $\frac{1}{8}$ $LD_{50}$, and $\frac{1}{32}$ $LD_{50}$ doses resulted in a significant decrease in HDL-C and PL, with no significant change in TG. The LDL-C levels were significantly increased and TC showed no significant change with $\frac{1}{2}$ $LD_{50}$ and $\frac{1}{32}$$LD_{50}$ doses of diazinon, whereas a significant decrease in the levels of TC, HDL-C, as well as LDL-C, was observed with the $\frac{1}{8}$ $LD_{50}$ dose. These data suggest that diazinon may interfere with lipid metabolism in mammals.

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of Marine Structures - A Case Study

Rasha El Gohary,Nagy A. A. Hassan 대한토목학회 2012 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.16 No.5

The purpose of this research is to outline the issues that needed to be considered when establishing an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for ports, harbors, marinas and other related facilities. The study explains the steps done when preparing the EIA study for establishing four jetties in front of four hotels and two jetties in front of two marinas, the site lies within a number of touristic villages in El Sharm El Quible region on the coastal area of the Red Sea, located 34 km south of El Qusair city, Red Sea Governorate. The EIA study includes site selection, baseline environmental, project impact on the environment,environmental impact assessment, mitigation measurement, and environmental management plan. The study will examine all aspects and activities of the study area in terms of the impact on the environmental components, provide the best alternatives to preserve the environment, and avoid potential negative effects during the establishment and operation of the project in order to outline the issues that need to be considered when establishing an EIA for ports, harbors, marinas and other related facilities. However, as each development intervention is unique, the one size fits all is not applicable. Key issues may differ from project to another. Accordingly, specific key issues may be identified through a planning focus meeting and through consultation with the existing community. The purpose of this research is to outline the issues that needed to be considered when establishing an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for ports, harbors, marinas and other related facilities. The study explains the steps done when preparing the EIA study for establishing four jetties in front of four hotels and two jetties in front of two marinas, the site lies within a number of touristic villages in El Sharm El Quible region on the coastal area of the Red Sea, located 34 km south of El Qusair city, Red Sea Governorate. The EIA study includes site selection, baseline environmental, project impact on the environment,environmental impact assessment, mitigation measurement, and environmental management plan. The study will examine all aspects and activities of the study area in terms of the impact on the environmental components, provide the best alternatives to preserve the environment, and avoid potential negative effects during the establishment and operation of the project in order to outline the issues that need to be considered when establishing an EIA for ports, harbors, marinas and other related facilities. However, as each development intervention is unique, the one size fits all is not applicable. Key issues may differ from project to another. Accordingly, specific key issues may be identified through a planning focus meeting and through consultation with the existing community.

AN OVERVIEW OF CAE(Computer-Aided Engineering)

Dennis A.Nagy 한국자동차공학회 1986 한국자동차공학회 기타 간행물 Vol.- No.-

Identifying codes and searching with balls in graphs

Kim, Y.,Kumbhat, M.,Nagy, Z.L.,Patkos, B.,Pokrovskiy, A.,Vizer, M. North Holland ; Elsevier Science Ltd 2015 Discrete Applied Mathematics Vol.193 No.-

Given a graph G and a positive integer R we address the following combinatorial search theoretic problem: What is the minimum number of queries of the form ''does an unknown vertex v@?V(G) belong to the ball of radius r around u?'' with u@?V(G) and r@?R that is needed to determine v. We consider both the adaptive case when the jth query might depend on the answers to the previous queries and the non-adaptive case when all queries must be made at once. We obtain bounds on the minimum number of queries for hypercubes, the Erdos-Renyi random graphs and graphs of bounded maximum degree.

The key performance indicators of projection-based light field visualization

Peter A. Kara,Roopak R. Tamboli,Oleksii Doronin,Aron Cserkaszky,Attila Barsi,Zsolt Nagy,Maria G. Martini,Aniko Simon 한국정보디스플레이학회 2019 Journal of information display Vol.20 No.2

At the time of writing this paper, light field visualization has entered the professional environments in the industry and has also become commercially available. It is not yet present on the consumer market, however, and its widespread emergence is expected in the following decade, with affordable end user devices and a vast variety of applications and contents. The successful integration of this technology into people’s everyday lives essentially depends on the visualization quality, which is achieved through excellence in terms of the key performance indicators of the display system and the content it visualizes. In this paper, the key performance indicators of light field visualization for both display and content are reviewed. Beyond providing a comprehensive review of the vital parameters of visualization quality, this paper discusses the ongoing and future relevant research efforts, demonstrates the practical uses of the technology, highlights certain dependencies between the indicators, and addresses issues of perceived quality with regard to the lack of compliance with the requirements and visual thresholds.

Beneficial Effects of Silymarin After the Discontinuation of CCl4-Induced Liver Fibrosis

Simona Clichici,Diana Olteanu,Adriana Filip,Andras-Laszlo Nagy,Adrian Oros,Petru A. Mircea 한국식품영양과학회 2016 Journal of medicinal food Vol.19 No.8

Silymarin (Si) is a herbal product with hepatoprotective potential, well-known for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory properties. We have recently demonstrated that the usual therapeutic doses of Si are capable of inhibiting the progression of incipient liver fibrosis. We aimed at further investigating the benefits of Si administration upon liver alterations after the hepatotoxin discontinuation, using CCl4 to induce liver injuries on rats. CCl4 administration induces first of all oxidative stress, but other mechanisms, such as inflammation and liver fibrosis are also triggered. Fifty Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups (n = 10). The control group received sunflower oil twice a week for 8 weeks. Carboxymethyl cellulose group received sunflower oil twice a week, for 8 weeks and CMC daily, for the next 2 weeks. CCl4 group received CCl4 in sunflower oil, by gavage, twice a week, for 8 weeks. CCl4 + Si 50 group received CCl4 twice a week, for 8 weeks, and then 50 mg/body weight (b.w.) Silymarin for the next 2 weeks. CCl4 + Si 200 group was similar to the previous group, but with Si 200 mg/b.w. Ten weeks after the experiment had begun, we assessed inflammation (IL-6, MAPK, NF-κB, pNF-κB), fibrosis (hyaluronic acid), TGF-β1, MMP-9, markers of hepatic stellate cell activation (α-SMA expression), and proliferative capacity (proliferating cell nuclear antigen). Our data showed that Silymarin administered after the toxic liver injury is capable of reducing inflammation and liver fibrosis. The benefits were more important for the higher dose than for the usual therapeutic dose.

Effect of Addition of Rare Earth Elements on the Microstructure, Texture, and Mechanical Properties of Extruded ZK60 Alloy

S. Najafi,M. Sabbaghian,A. Sheikhani,P. Nagy,K. Fekete,J. Gubicza 대한금속·재료학회 2023 METALS AND MATERIALS International Vol.29 No.6

Microstructure, texture and mechanical properties of extruded ZK60 alloys containing different rare earth (RE) elementswere studied. Two alloys containing 1 and 2 wt% Ce-rich lanthanides as well as two other alloys with 1 and 2 wt% Y wereprepared and denoted as ZK60–1RE, ZK60–2RE, ZK60–1Y and ZK60–2Y, respectively. The results showed that the additionof RE elements refined the grain size of the ZK60 alloy, and Y had a more significant effect on the grain size reduction. The finer grain size in the ZK60–1Y and ZK60–2Y alloys (2.3 and 2.1 μm, respectively) compared to ZK60–1RE andZK60–2RE alloys (6.2 and 3.7 μm, respectively) was attributed to the pinning effect of very fine secondary phases on grainboundaries. While the ZK60–1Y alloy exhibited a fiber texture with a slight rotation of < 1010 > poles around the extrusiondirection, the ZK60–1RE alloy showed a new texture component known as RE texture. Moreover, there were no changes inthe fiber-like texture component of ZK60–2RE and ZK60–2Y alloys. The mechanical properties of the alloys were assessedby shear punch test. Accordingly, the addition of RE and Y elements enhanced the shear strength, and the maximum ultimateshear strength of 176 MPa was obtained for the ZK60–2RE alloy. The higher dislocation density, the lower volume fractionof dynamically recrystallized regions compared to other alloys, and the large fraction of secondary phase particles wereresponsible for this high strength value.