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In this study, we examined the antihyperglycemic and antidiabetic effects of a novel synthesized molecule, the Ethyl (S)-2-(1-cyclohexylsulfamide carbamoyloxy) propanoate (ESP1b), in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic Wistar rats. Experimental diabetes mellitus was produced by a single intraperitoneal injection of STZ (55mg/kg b.w.). Seven day post-injection, animals have received ESP1b orally at the doses of 5, 10 and 20mg/kg b.w. daily for 28 days. This resulted in a clear decline, in a dose dependent manner, of blood glucose levels during the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and the four weeks of treatment period. ESP1b at 20mg/kg b.w. has alleviated body weight loss, improved plasma insulin concentration and at the same time markedly decreased the values of glycosylated hemoglobin, lipoproteins and atherogenic ratios. Additionally, ESP1b notably restored renal as well as hepatic functions tests. Histopathological examinations of pancreatic tissue also confirmed the previous biochemical findings. Considering the obtained results, it may be concluded that ESP1b possess a potent antihyperglycemic activity in STZ-diabetic rats possibly related to an insulin-secretagogue effect, which may be responsible for the moderate decrease in blood glucose concentration observed in normal rats administrated with this tested compound., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the protective effect of selenium against arsenic-induced oxidative damage in experimental rats. Males were randomly divided into four groups where the first was served as a control, whereas the remaining groups were respectively treated with sodium selenite (3 mg/kg b.w.), sodium arsenite (5.55 mg/kg b.w.) and a combination of sodium arsenite and sodium selenite. Changes in liver enzyme activities, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) level, antioxidants and reduced glutathione (GSH) contents were determined after 3 weeks experimental period. Exposure of rats to As caused a significant increase in liver TBARS compared to control, but the co-administration of Se was effective in reducing its level. The activities of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) of As-treated group were found lower compared to the control and the Se-treated group. The co-administration of Se had an additive protective effect on liver enzyme activities compared to As-treated animals. On the other hand, a significant increase in plasmatic activities of AST, ALT and ALP was observed in As-treated group. The latter was also exhibited a decrease in body weight and an increase in liver weight compared to the control. The co-administration of Se has decreased the activities of AST, AST and ALP and improved the antioxidant status as well. Liver histological studies have confirmed the changes observed in biochemical parameters and proved the beneficial role of Se. To conclude, results suggest that As exposure enhanced an oxidative stress by disturbing the tissue antioxidant defense system, but the Se co-administration protected liver tissues against As intoxication probably owing to its antioxidant properties., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

The Skikda bay is located in the northern part of Algeria. The area is in contact with a petrochemical industrial complex, which raw materials and final products contaminate the surrounding areas via atmospheric pollution as well as effluents, which are dumped into seawaters. To establish the effects of these pollutants and waste disposal on the vicinity of the bay, several samples were taken at different distances along the bay and the outfall pipes of the industrial complex. Subsequently, several chemical analyses were made to analyze the concentrations of hydrocarbons, CO[2], Ca(+2) and Mg(+2), chlorides and phosphates and the alkalinity present into the samples. Several concentrations of the above constituents are reported as a function of the different sites.

Objective: To investigate the effect of low-Zn diet on (65)Zn turnover and content in non-insulin dependent diabetes (NIDDM)., Material and Methods: Male 8-9 weeks old, genetically diabetic mice (C57BL/KsJdb/db) and non-diabetic heterozygote litter-mates (C57BL/KsJdb/+) were fed on a diet containing 1 mg zinc/kg (low-zinc groups) or 54 mg zinc/kg (control groups), and injected subcutaneously with (65)Zn. Body weight gain was recorded regularly, whereas (65)Zn body loss was measured by whole-body counting in the two mouse genotypes over a 28 days period. At the end of the experiment, pancreatic Zn, femur Zn and non-fasting blood glucose levels were determined., Results: All mice fed on the low-Zn diet showed a marked reduction in whole-body (65)Zn loss compared with animals fed on the control diet. In the low Zn groups, the loss of (65)Zn from the diabetic mice was significantly greater than that of heterozygote mice. This difference was not observed in the control groups. Body-weight gain was not affected by low zinc diet for the two genotypes. However, blood glucose levels were elevated in the low-Zn groups and the possible reasons for these observations are discussed., Conclusion: The present study demonstrates that there is almost a dramatic decrease in (65)Zn turnover rate immediately following the introduction of the low zinc diet to the animals, but the diabetic mice were less able to reduce zinc loss compared to non diabetic ones. It was also found that the effect of reduced zinc intake on glucose utilization in the genetically diabetic mouse, occurred before any significant tissue zinc depletion became apparent.

By using a 3-carboxymethyloxime dexamethasone derivative coupled to bovine serum albumin we have prepared specific anti-dexamethasone antibodies in rabbits. These antibodies were then purified by affinity chromatography and administered to a second set of rabbits. One of them produced anti-idiotypic antibodies able to impede the [3H] dexamethasone binding of the initial anti-dexamethasone antibodies and to displace the [3H] dexamethasone-antibodies complexes towards high molecular weight species in gel filtration experiments. Moreover these antibodies we were also able to impede the binding of [3H] dexamethasone to the rat liver glucocorticoid receptor and to recognize the highly purified receptor using Western blot analysis.