Maternal exposure to iron oxide nanoparticles is associated with ferroptosis in the brain: A chicken embryo model analysis

Ferroptosis is a form of cell death associated with iron-dependent lipid peroxidation. We used a chicken embryo model to investigate if ferroptosis was implicated in the molecular mechanism underlying the potential effects of maternal exposure to iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) on the developing brain. One hundred and eighty fertilized eggs were randomly divided into six groups (30 eggs/group; 10 eggs/replicate). Groups I and II received maghemite (γ-Fe₂O₃) NPs (MGMNPs), while groups III and IV received magnetite (Fe₃O₄) NPs (MGTNPs). Both MGMNP and MGTNP were administrated at the concentrations of 100 and 250 ppm. One group (placebo) received saline, and the other remained untreated (control). The compounds were given by in ovo method (0.3 ml/egg) only once on the first day of the embryonic period. Samples from cerebral tissue were collected on day 20 for histopathological, biochemical and gene expression analyses. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and malondialdehyde (MDA) increased; glutathione peroxidase (GPX) expression and activity decreased in IONPs-treated groups. Ferroptotic cells appeared in the cerebral tissue following exposure to the low dose of MGMNP and MGTNP. Oxidative stress and ferroptotic cells were more evident for MGMNP compared to MGTNP. The low dose of MGMNP and MGTNP induced more severe oxidative stress in the cerebral tissue. According to the results, maternal exposure to IONPs is associated with ferroptosis in the brain. This work could encourage future researches to investigate inhibitors of ferroptosis as a protective strategy against iron-induced cell injuries and cell death.     

Impact of yield and quality-related traits of sugarcane on sugar recovery

Sugar recovery of Pakistani sugarcane varieties is relatively low as compared to the rest of the world while very little work is done on this aspect. The current study was conducted to tackle this issue and to assess the effect of quality and yielding traits on final sugar recovery. Sixty genotypes of sugarcane were sown during 2013 and data was collected at different growth stages during maturity and post maturity. Correlation studies indicated that polarity (0.77**) and purity (0.73**) were positively and significantly correlated with sugar recovery while brix% (-0.21**), fiber contents (-0.21**) and number of leaves per plant (-0.33**) were significant and negatively correlated with sugar recovery. Furthermore, leaf area was positively and significantly correlated with internode length (0.63**). Path coefficient analysis indicated that highest direct effect on sugar recovery was shown by purity (2.92), followed by brix% (2.48), and leaf area (0.66) which confirms that these traits could contribute more towards an increase of sugar recovery. Overall values of higher direct and indirect effects were observed by purity. The results of the current studies indicate that sugar recovery can be improved by focusing on purity, brix%, and leaf area.