نشریه دانشور پزشکی
پیاپی 152 (فروردین و اردیبهشت 1400)

Evidence suggests that there is a relationship between maternal stress during pregnancy and pregnancy complications. Coping styles are a set of cognitive and behavioral efforts are used to correct a stressful situation and cope with problems and play an essential role in physical and mental health. Effective coping strategies reduce high levels of stress. One of the most important concepts on how to deal with problems and tensions is spiritual health. This study was designed to examine coping styles during pregnancy based on spiritual health.

During a cross-sectional study, 151 pregnant women who were referred to Shaheed Mostafa Khomeini hospital in Tehran in 2020 were selected. Data were collected using Dr. Azizi Spiritual Health Questionnaire, Billings & Moss Coping Questionnaire (1984), perceived stress scale (PSS-14) questionnaire and Demographic Information Questionnaire and entered into SPSS 22 software. Pearson correlation coefficient, t-test, and linear regression analysis were used to analyze the data.

The mean age and gestational age of pregnant women were 30.85±4.26 and 28.81±8.58, respectively. There was a linear inverse relationship between spiritual health and perceived stress (P=0.03) and a positive relationship between spiritual health and problem-oriented coping style (P=0.004).

In pregnancy, spiritual health is positively related to problem-oriented coping style and inversely related to perceived stress.

Gastric adenocarcinoma is highly invasive and patients have poor response to treatment. In this study, the effect of citric acid on viability and apoptosis of the human gastric adenocarcinoma cell line (AGS) examined. Citric acid as a naturally organic acid that found in citrus is considered as a physiological inhibitor of enzymes involved in glycolysis pathway to remove cancer cells.

In this study, 5 × 103 and 5 × 105 cells for bioavailability and apoptosis, respectively, were treated with 400, 800 and 1600 μg/ ml concentrations of citric acid and incubated for 24, 48 and 72 hours. Cell growth was analyzed by MTS kit and apoptosis was analyzed by flowcytometry using an Annexin V-FITC/PI kit according to the manufacturers protocol in both time. Statistical analysis was accomplished by ANOVA and Duncan tests using SPSS 18 softwar.

The results of MTT assay showed that, bioavailability of HT-29 cell line decreased at all concentrations of citric acid in dose and time dependent manner. Also, the results of the Annexin test showed that with increasing concentration of citric acid in dose and time dependent manner, induction of apoptosis in this cell line increases.

Citric acid seems to be helpful as an anticancer agent for the treatment of gastric adenocarcinoma by inducing expression of genes that involved in the apoptosis pathway.

AMPK and PGC-1α proteins are important factors in regulating processes such as mitochondrial biogenesis, maintaining intracellular energy balance, which diabetes can disturb the function of these proteins. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a period high-intensity interval training on the content of AMPK and PGC-1α proteins in the heart muscle tissue of male rats with type 2 diabetes.

In this experimental study, 12 two-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats with a mean weight of 270±20 g were selected. After diabetic induction with STZ and nicotinamide, rats were randomly assigned to two groups, training and control (6 rats in group each). The training group trained for 4 days a week in accordance with the training program for 8 weeks; while the control group did not have any training program. Also, rats did not receive any insulin treatment during the study period. The independent t-test was used to analyze the data. Significance level is considered p≤0.05.

A significant increase was observed in the content of AMPK (P=0.001) and PGC-1α (P=0.0001) proteins in the High-Intensity Interval Training group compared to control.

The results showed that HIIT training could increase ATP and mitochondrial biogenesis by increasing the content of AMPK and PGC-1α proteins.

Lavandula dentata is called Ustukhuddus in Iran .There are some reports about the anticonvulsant effects of Ustukhuddus but, the effect of this plant on epilepsy is not reported yet. In this study the effect of Lavandula dentata on seizures induced by pilocarpine was investigated.

A total of 75 male rats weighing 200-250 grams were divided into five groups of 15, which included: 1- control saline 2- control extract 3- Epileptic group 4- Epileptic group treated with single doses of lavender extract 200 mg / Kg  5- epileptic group treated with repeated dose of lavender extract (200 mg / Kg). The induction of seizures in all three groups was done by intra-peritoneal injection of pilocarpine hydrochloride (380 mg / kg).  Brain malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione was measured. Statistical analysis was carried out using one way ANOVA or Kruskal–Wallis oneway analysis of variance by ranks followed by post-hoc tukey test.

The administration of Lavandulla dentata in the pretreatment groups delayed the onset of status epilepticus (SE), reduced the duration of SE and decreased the mortality rate compared to the epileptic group. Pretreated extract increased significantly brain glutathione levels 24 hours after pilocarpine administration, but did not exhibit inhibitory effect on brain MDA.

Lavendula dentata reduced significantly seizure intensity and the mortality rate due to SE induced by pilocarpine administration. It seems that antioxidant activity such as brain glutathione enhancement was partly responsible for such results.

Hypertension is a combination of physiological and psychological factors. To control the disease, in addition to medical interventions, the patient's emotions must also be managed. This study aimed to determine the effect of spiritual well-being on alexithymia in patients with hypertension.

This quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2020. The sample consisted of 60 hypertensive patients referred to Ashrafi Hospital in Isfahan who met the inclusion criteria. Samples were selected as available and assigned to the intervention and control groups with an online random number table. The intervention group participated in eight 90-minute spiritual training sessions, but this intervention was not performed on the control group. The data collection tool before and after the intervention was the Toronto Emotional Dysfunction Scale. Data were analyzed by descriptive (mean, standard deviation, number, percentage) and inferential tests (independent t-test, paired t-test, Chi-square Tests) in SPSS 16 software.

Before the education the mean score of alexithymia in the intervention group was 69.53 ± 6.37 and in the control group was 71 ± 5.10 which was not significantly different (P =0.49). After the intervention, the mean scores in the intervention group was 60.92 ±10.43 and in the control group was 71.32 ± 5.14, which had a significant difference (P =0.002). The mean score of alexithymia in describing emotions before and after the intervention was not significantly different (P= 0.27); But after the intervention, the mean total score of alexithymia and other subscales were significantly lower than before (P =0.003).

Spiritual well-being educations were effective on alexithymia. Therefore, these educations can be offered in the support program for patients with hypertension.

The brain is exceptionally susceptible to oxidative stress that may be caused by a high cholesterol diet. Hypercholesterolemia and oxidative stress are the major risk factors for many diseases such as cognitive abnormalities and various central nervous system disorders. This study aimed to evaluate the antioxidant and enzyme modulation activities of hydro-alcoholic extract of Trachyspermum ammi in the brain homogenates of adult Wistar rats.

In this experimental study, 28 male rats in the weight range of 190-220 g were divided into four different groups including control, Control plus Ajwain extract, HF, and Ajwain extract-treated high cholesterol-fed groups. Rats were fed a high-cholesterol diet (high-fat group) or a normal diet (control group) for eight weeks. The extract was injected intraperitoneally into rats at a dose of 250 mg/kg weight for three weeks once a day. The activity of butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), catalase (CAT), reduced glutathione (GSH), and reactive oxygen species (ROS) activities were measured by relevant kits in homogenous tissue of the rat brain. Finally, the results were analyzed by one-way ANOVA statistical test.

Our study showed that the levels of BChE, Catalase, GSH significantly reduced in the high-fat group compared to the control group after eight weeks and the ROS levels significantly increased in the high-fat group compared to the control (p < 0.01). Levels of BChE, catalase and reduced glutathione were significantly increased compared to the high-fat group after treatment with Ajwain extract (p <0.01).

Antioxidants and anticholinesterase inhibitors may provide appropriate therapies that improve oxidative stress and reduced cognitive function associated with neurodegenerative diseases.