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Between 1975 to 2016 childhood obesity in children aged 5 to 19 increased from 1% to 6 and 8% in girls and boys respectively (WHO). The Global Nutrition Report 2020 revealing that childhood obesity will exceed underweight by 2022 and which would be due in particular to the existence of a strong association between eating disorders and obesity. This study focuses on the impact of eating behaviour, eating habits and lifestyle on the weight status of 219 children aged 7 to 12 in the peri-urban area of Casablanca, Morocco.

Esophageal foreign bodies ingestion is a worldwide surgical issue in pediatric age group while less likely in adults. We estimate endoscopic, clinical and therapeutic sides of this situation in the surgical department in Al-Hussein Teaching Hospital, Karbala city, Iraq and in Al-Sader Medical City, Najaf city, Iraq. The study made to revise our experience for all patients admitted to our hospitals with a diagnosis of oesophagal foreign bodies and their treatments and outcome. The medical registrations resolved concerning demographic information, symptoms presented, investigation and treatments. We revised 109 (61 males and 48 females) patients ranged from 4 months to 65 years with (median age of 2 years). Coins most repeatedly ingested objects (27.5%), miscellaneous metal objects (17.4%), batteries (13.8%) and food (9.2%). The clinical features we encountered vomiting (27.5%), dysphagia (22.9%), asymptomatic (15.6%), drooling and food refusal (12.8 %) and foreign body sensation (8.3%). Usually X-ray screen finding the foreign body in 89(81%) patients. Magill forceps and rigid oesophagoscope performed within six hours from admission under general anaesthesia and from 12-48 from time of ingestion. Foreign body Impaction in the hypopharynx and the upper part of the oesophagus (68.8%) middle part (23%) and the lower part (8.2 %).100(91.7%) patients recovered completely without any complications,9 (18.3%) patient get bleeding, mucosal ulceration and infection which treated successfully.

Background: Lavender belongs to the Labiatae family and possesses antioxidant acivity. Objective: The present study was conducted to evaluate the protective effect of lavender extract on infarct volume and its possible mechanisms in an experimental model of stroke. Methods: Lavender extract (100, 200 mg/kg body weight, ip) was injected for 20 consecutive days. Two hours after the last dose, cerebral artery ligation surgery was performed and 24 hours after induction of ischemia, infarct volume was assessed. Also the amount of serum nitric oxide (NO) level was measured. Results: Treatment of rats with lavender extract at a dose of 200 mg for 20 days resulted in a significant decrease in the infarct volume caused by stroke in penumbra area (cortex) and the core (sub-cortical) of brain compared to the control (P=0.044, P=0.047, consecutively). Lavender extract at a dose of 200 mg significantly increased blood levels of nitric oxide. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that Lavender extract protects brain against ischemia and reduces infarct volume in rats subjected to ischemia. The mechanism may be related to augmentation in endogenous antioxidant defense in the rat brain. Lavender plant extracts with increasing levels of endothelial nitric oxide, by inhibiting the decrease in cerebral blood flow reduced infarct volume.

A series of new quinazoline derivatives has been recently reported as potent multi-acting histone deacetylase (HDAC), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) inhibitors. HER2 is one of the major targets for the treatment of breast cancer and other carcinomas. Three-dimensional structure-activity relationship (3DQSAR) is a well-known technique, which is used to drug design and development. This technique is used for quantitatively predicting the interaction between a molecule and the active site of a specific target. For each 3D-QSAR study, a three-dimensional model is created from a large curve fit to find a fitting between computational descriptors and biological activity. This model could be used as a predictive tool in drug design. The best model has the highest correlation between theoretical and experimental data. Self-Organizing Molecular Field Analysis (SOMFA), a grid-based and alignment-dependent 3D-QSAR method, is employed to study the correlation between the molecular properties and HER2 inhibitory potency of the quinazoline derivatives. Before presentation of inhibitor structures to SOMFA study, conformation of inhibitors was determined by AutoDock4, HyperChem and AutoDock Vina, separately. Overall, six independent models were produced and evaluated by the statistical partial least square (PLS) analysis. Among the several generated 3D-QSARs, the best model was selected on the basis of its statistical significance and predictive potential. The model derived from the superposition of docked conformation with AutoDock Vina with reasonable crossvalidated q2 (0.767), non cross-validated r2 (0.815) and F-test (97.22) values showed a desirable predictive capability. Analysis of SOMFA model could provide some useful information in the design of novel HER2 kinase inhibitors with better spectrum of activity., EXCLI Journal ; Vol. 12, 2013

Aim This study evaluated serum levels of zinc in patient with CD compare to healthy subjects. Background Celiac disease (CD) is characterized by small intestinal malabsorption of nutrients as a consequence of ingestion of wheat gluten. Zinc is an essential trace element that it has vital biological functions. Patients and methods Sera of 30 celiac cases and 30 healthy normal cohorts as control group were obtained. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer was employed for estimating serum zinc level. Results Zinc concentrations in patients diagnosed with CD were significantly lower than healthy subjects (75.97±12 compared with 92.83±18, P-value < 0.0001). Conclusion The result of this study shows that serum zinc concentration is decreased in celiac patients compare to healthy controls. Serum zinc may thus be a marker of CD in adults presenting with gastrointestinal symptoms.

Objective: Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have a potential application for cell therapy, however, their biological nature is not well-understood. EPCs also possess some stemness features, such as their clonogenicity and differentiation capacity. The main aim of this study was to evaluate the expression of certain transcription factors regulating selfrenewal property of stem cells. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from fresh human blood of several volunteers and were cultured in fibronectin- coated plates. EPCs were identified based on their morphology and growth characteristic. Then, the expression of some markers implicated in self-renewal capacity was assessed in the isolated cells using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR) and immunocytochemistry. Results: Expression of the cell surface markers, CD31 and CD34, was determined by RT-PCR and immunocytochemistry. Furthermore, these cells had the ability for Di-ACLDL incorporation as well as attachment to lectin I. EPCs did not express the main stem cell markers, like OCT4-A, Nanog, and Sox2; nevertheless, they expressed the weaker pluripotent markers, including OCT4B and OCT4-B1 spliced variants, such as Nucleostemin and ZFX. Furthermore, the expression of Nucleostemin and ZFX genes revealed a decreasing pattern from days 4th to 11th. Conclusion: The main regulators of stem cell self-renewal genes, including OCT4-A, Nanog, and Sox2 are not expressed in EPCs. Forced expression of these genes can elevate the stemness property and clinical application of EPCs.

Objective: Assessment of functional recovery of neural stem cells (NSCs) and (-)-deprenyl,in a contusive spinal cord injury model in rats.Materials and Methods: A total of 24 female Sprague Dawley rats were randomly, butequally (n=6), allocated into the following groups: control, sham, NSC graft and NSCgraft + (-)-deprenyl. All animals were laminectomized at the T13 level. Contusion wasperformed according to the weight dropping technique in the control, NSC and NSC graft+ (-)-deprenyl groups. Daily injections of 0.1 mg/kg (ip) (-)-deprenyl were administered tothe NSC graft + (-)-deprenyl group and an equal amount of saline into the other groupsfor 14 days. The NSC graft and NSC graft + (-)-deprenyl groups received stereotaxicinjections of 100,000 labelled NSCs at day nine after injury. Behavioral Basso, Beattieand Bresnahan (BBB) test was carried out in all groups at day one (after the contusionday) and at the end of each week for eight weeks. In addition, cavity and spared tissuevolume at the site of injury and number of motoneurons at frozen sections of spinal cordwere obtained and compared by ANOVA. Differentiation of grafted NSCs into astrocytes,oligodendrocytes and neurons were evaluated by immunohistochemistry.Results: Motor ability of the NSC graft + (-)-deprenyl group in comparison with the controland NSCs groups increased significantly at the end of the study. The mean volumeof spared spinal cord and mean number of motoneurons significantly increased in theNSCs and NSC graft + (-)-deprenyl groups compared with the control group. Immunohistochemicalevaluations revealed that the grafted NSCs were alive at the end of the studyand differentiated into astrocyes, oligodendrocytes and neurons in both the NSCs andNSC graft + (-)-deprenyl groups. In addition, in the NSCs graft group, transplanted cellsmainly concentrated around the cavity and showed less differentiation, while in the NSCsgraft + (-)-deprenyl group transplanted cells were more scattered and differentiated intoone of the above mentioned cell lines.Conclusion: The results of the present study indicate that (-)-deprenyl and NSCs, probablyvia protection of motoneurons, spinal cord tissue and replacement of lost cells, improvesmotor recovery in a contusive SCI model in rats.

Objective: In this investigation Murine Embryonic Stem (ES) cells were differentiatedinto endothelial cells.Materials and Methods: Murine ES cells (CCE cell line) exposed to Alpha-MEM medium containing 10% FBS for 4 days. Then obtained Flk-1 (Flk-1:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor 2) Positive cells were cultuted inEndothelial Growth Medium-2 (EGM-2) until the last day of experiment. Differentiatedcells were evaluated by immunocytochemistry, RT-PCR and Tube FormationAssays.Results: When the ES cells cultured in collagen coated dishes containingAlpha-MEM & FBS, Flk-1 positive cells were obtained. After transfering Flk-1positive cells into fibronectin coated dishes containing EGM2, the cells wereassumed a relatively uniform endothelial cell morphology and could be propagatedand expanded. Immunocytochemical and RT-PCR analysis of differentiatedcells showed that they take up acetylated low-density lipoprotein (LDL), express Flk-1, CD31 and bind the BS-l lectin. When placed in Matrigel, these MurineES cell–derived endothelial cells formed capillary-like structures characteristicof endothelial cellsConclusion: ES cell–derived endothelial cells provide a novel means to examine the mechanisms of endothelial cell development, and may open up new therapeutic strategies.

* BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of phacoemulsification and foldable intraocular lens, combined with trabeculectomy (phacotrabeculectomy) in patients with coexisting cataract and glaucoma. * PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 53 consecutive eyes which underwent phacotrabeculectomy and posterior chamber intraocular lens (PCIOL) were matched and compared with 53 eyes that had trabeculectomy followed by phacoemulsification and posterior chamber intraocular lens (mean interval 3.2 month). The 2 groups were first matched by diagnostic group and subsequently for the closest possible match with other successive variables, including age, gender, race and preoperative glaucoma medications. Mean intraocular pressure (IOP) reduction, visual acuity, antiglaucoma medications, and surgical success as well as complications were compared in both groups. * RESULTS: Mean IOP reduction was 14.5±4.1 mmHg in the two-stage group compared to 15.1±3.9 in the phacotrabeculectomy group at 6 months followup (P * CONCLUSION: Phacotrabeculectomy provides IOP control statistically comparable to two-stage surgery with earlier visual rehabilitation. [Ophthalmic Surg Lasers 1999;30:260-265.]

Literature studies have suggested that morphology and motility parameters are not discriminatory value with respect to identification of normal mature sperm with intact DNA during Intra Cytoplasm Sperm Injection (ICSI). Thus, sperm surface markers, such as hyaluronic acid (HA) binding, have proposed to be useful for sperm selection for ICSI. Therefore, during this study the efficiency of HA sperm selection method was compared to routine ICSI procedure. Background: Semen samples from 50 couples were collected on the day of oocyte recovery. Semen analysis was carried out according to WHO criteria. For preparation dishes, hyaluronic acid was placed in dish. Denude oocytes were randomly divided to HA and control groups in G-oocyte drops under oil in a dish prepared for ICSI. For HA-ICSI, sperm were selected according to their binding ability to HA and the best morphology and motility. The percentage of fertilization, cleavage rate, embryo quality, implantation and pregnancy rate were compared between two groups with SPSS-11.5 software. Methods: Unlike percentage fertilization which was significantly higher in the HA group compared to the control group (P = 0.020), cleavage and embryo quality rate in the HA group on the second and third day the mean number of embryos per transfer was not significantly different between the two groups (P = 0.06). However, the cleavage rate in HA group was, close to be significantly higher on the second day (P = 0.066). Implantation and pregnancy rates were also significantly higher in the HA group compared to the control group. Findings: The results of this study suggest that HA sperm selection may improve the ICSI outcome. Conclusion: Hyaluronic acid (HA), Fertilization, Pregnancy, Implantation, Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). Key words