This study was conducted to investigate the pathogenesis process of E. ahsata and its morphological, pathological, and distribution of lesions in the involved tissues during 42 days of infection. Twelve lambs were randomly divided into two groups including the control and the infected groups after confirmation of their health. The animals in the experiment group were orally infected with 1× 105 sporulated oocysts. From 7 days after inoculation (DAI), the feces were sampled and oocysts per gram of feces (OPG) were individually examined for each lamb. . At 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, and 42 DAI, one lamb from each group was necropsied and the abomasum, small and large intestine, mesenteric lymph nodes, spleens, and livers were grossly investigated. From 21 to 42 DAI, mild to severe clinical lesions such as congestion and edema were seen on the mucosal surface of the small intestine associated with white and small foci about 1-2 mm, especially jejunum and ileum. From 7 DAI to the end of the study various stages of the parasite life cycle, infiltration of inflammatory cells, epithelial hyperplasia of villi, and destruction of villi epithelium were seen.  The results showed that E. ahsata was pathogenic in lambs and the macro and microscopic lesions were mostly seen in the jejunum.

The study analyzed the histomorphometry of the mature female Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) stomach with the aid of ImageJ software. The different histological parts were identified using a compound microscope. Five mature laying female Japanese quail were collected and necropsied. The digestive organs, particularly proventriculus and gizzard, were collected and processed for tissue staining. Histological identification and measurement of thickness and depth of various structures were subsequently performed. Comparable to other avian species, the proventriculus was comprised of four layers: thin tunica serosa (22.69 µm), tunica muscularis (235.07 µm) with outer longitudinal and inner circular smooth muscle layers, thick tunica submucosa (2,164.37 µm) containing glands, and innermost tunica mucosa (553.42 µm) with papillae. The gizzard was characterized by four tunics: thin tunica serosa (60.44 µm), thick tunica muscularis (1,480.07 µm), tunica submucosa (112.25 µm), and tunica mucosa (456.15 µm) where the glands, crypts, and koilin can be found. The findings suggest that the histology of proventriculus and gizzard of the Japanese quail have no remarkable difference compared to other poultry species. However, the histomorphometry of the organs examined had remarkable variations as compared to other avians.

Sepsis is the main mortality factor in patients undergoing surgery and its treatment currently includes cardiac resuscitation and reducing the immediate risk of infection. Troxerutin is a common compound in vegetables, fruits, and seeds and has several biological activities, including anti-platelet, anti-serotonin, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory effects. Accordingly, we hypothesized that it can decrease interleukin 1 (IL-1) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-a) levels in the serum of rats with sepsis. Twenty-four adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. The rats were equally and randomly divided into 3 groups: sham operation group, control group, and treatment group. Both the control and treatment groups underwent surgical cecal ligation and perforation. Troxerutin (130 mg/kg) was injected subcutaneously twice a day to the animals of the treatment group for 3 days or until the animals’ death. Surviving rats were euthanized after 1.5 ml of blood samples were taken 3 days after the cecal ligation and perforation. IL-1 and TNF-a were measured by the blood serum ELISA assay. The differences in mortality rates were significant between the control group and the other two groups (p = 0.008). The results showed a significant increase in IL-1 and TNF-a in the control group compared to the sham group (p < 0.05). In addition, the levels in the treatment group significantly decreased compared to the control group (p < 0.05). In conclusion, our results indicate that troxerutin could increase survival in rats developing septic shock by reducing pro-inflammatory cytokines including IL-1 and TNF-a.

Aptamers are oligonucleotides that can be easily synthesized and bind to their targets with high affinity and specificity. Several aptamers specific to soluble factors of coagulation cascade have been produced, however, aptamers specific to platelet cell membrane molecules have not been reported yet. We aimed to discover DNA aptamers that specifically bind to human platelets. The cell-SELEX method was used for aptamer discovery. Synthetic 79 nucleotides length single-strand oligonucleotides were used as a library. Ultra-pure platelets were prepared using differential centrifugation steps and magnetic-bead-assisted removal of contaminating cells. The FITC-labeled forward primer was used for amplification of the selected oligonucleotides by PCR, and Lambda exonuclease was used for digestion of the lagging strand. After 12 rounds of cell-SELEX, selected oligos were amplified and cloned to pTG19-T vector, transfected into E. coli  (TOP10) and sequenced. Sequences of aptamers from 200 individual positive colonies were aligned and seven clusters were identified. Representative aptamers were amplified and their affinity, specificity, and digestibility of their targets were evaluated. Interferences of the aptamers to two platelet function tests were also investigated. Affinity (KD) of the representative aptamers were between 109 and 340 nM. Trypsin exposure of the platelets completely abolished the binding of the 7 aptamers to the targets. The binding of the four aptamers fully protected their target molecules from digestion. No one of the aptamers changed the parameters of the platelet function tests. Seven aptamers specific to platelets were identified and characterized. These aptamers may have potentially diverse applications in the diagnosis or treatment of platelet disorders.