Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the plasma soluble tumour necrosis factor related apoptosis-inducing ligand (sTRAIL) level in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to evaluate the relationship between sTRAIL and disease activity. Material and Methods: 19 RA patients, and as a control group 31 primary Sjogren’s syndrome (pSS) patients and 24 healthy subjects were included in the study. Disease activity of RA patients was calculated by the Disease Activity Score-28 (DAS-28). Plasma sTRAIL concentrations were measured by the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: Mean plasma sTRAIL concentration in RA patients (1751 ± 635 pg/ml) was higher than in disease control patients with pSS (1234 ± 625 pg/ml) and in healthy controls (1181 ± 304 pg/ ml) (p=0.002). In RA patients, there was no correlation between mean DAS-28 score and plasma sTRAIL levels. And also, there was no correlation between sTRAIL levels and laboratory parameters indicating disease activity such as the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP). conclusion: Plasma sTRAIL levels were significantly higher in RA regardless of disease activity. These findings suggest that sTRAIL may have an important role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis.
In this study, modification of glassy carbon electrode with electrochemically reduced graphene oxide (ERGO) and acid treated multi-walled carbon nanotubes (A-MWCNT) was investigated for the voltammetric determination of LEV in body fluids and pharmaceutical products. Different combinations of GO, ERGO, MWCNT and A-MWCNT were searched and the best results obtained with GC/ERGO/A-MWCNT electrode. The prepared modified electrode showed electrocatalytic acitivity towards LEV oxidation by increasing oxidation peak currents 293 times. Characterizations of the modified electrode was performed with cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and raman measurements. The highest oxidation peak current was observed at pH value of 2.0. The oxidation peak currents of LEV increased linearly with the concentration of LEV in the range of 0.01 m M and 10 m M. The detection limit of the prepared sensor was determined as 0.0063 m M. After three weeks’ storage, the prepared electrode showed high stability by preserving 93% of its original activity towards 1.0 m M LEV. The prepared electrode successfully discriminates the voltammetric response of LEV from that of other fluoroquinolone antibiotics (enoxacin, norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin). Finally, the performance of the prepared electrode was tested in the determination of LEV in human blood serum, urine and pharmaceutical samples.
To investigate the prevalence of pseudoexfoliation syndrome (PEX) and its associations with ocular and systemic diseases in a population sample aged over 40y.
To investigate the role of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) in form-deprivation myopia (FDM).
Watermelon ( Citrullus lanatus) flesh and seeds were dried and pulverized, and their extracts were diffused to sterile discs for the evaluation of anti-microbial activity. The disc-diffusion technique was used to assess anti-bacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pasteurella multocida, Yersinia enterocolitica, Serratia marcescens, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Xanthomonas campestris, Staphylococcus aureus . Anti-fungal activity against the yeasts Candida albicans and Rhodotorula glutinis was also examined. Standard anti-biotics were also tested as controls. Watermelon flesh and seed extracts were found to be effective against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria and yeasts. The extracts were also screened for anti-oxidant activity using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) free-radical-scavenging assay, total reducing ability using the Fe 3+ –Fe 2+ transformation method and ferrous ion (Fe 2+ )-chelating activity. Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and α-tocopherol were used as reference anti-oxidant radical scavenger compounds. The most potent anti-bacterial activity was demonstrated by watermelon–ethanol extract (inhibition zone 30 mm) against K. pneumoniae, and the most potent anti-fungal activity was demonstrated by watermelon–acetone extract (inhibition zone 26 mm) against R. glutinis. Watermelon–ethanol and watermelon seed–ethanol extracts both demonstrated marked anti-oxidant activity. These results highlight that watermelon fruit and seed extracts have potential for the development of efficient, safe and cost-effective natural anti-oxidant compounds for application in the functional food industries.