Salem Yasin

Prevalence and risk factors for anabolic-androgenic steroid abuse among Jordanian collegiate students and athletes

BACKGROUND The study was conducted to measure the extent of androgenic steroids abuse among two targeted groups in Jordan, college students and athletes, and the risk factors associated with this abuse. METHODS Five hundred and three Jordanian collegiate students and 154 bodybuilding athletes completed a three section questionnaire that investigated demographic information, prevalence of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) and attitude towards steroids abuse. RESULTS Of the investigated collegiate students, 4.2% were current users, while the percentage rose to 26% among the athletes; the mean age of users in the two groups was 19.9 and 28.1 years, respectively. Almost one-third of the students started abusing AAS before the age of 15 years while more than half of the athletes started between the ages of 15 and 18 years. Knowing where and how to get the drugs has not been a problem for either the students or the athletes as their friends and coaches were the major sources. The main reasons for using AAS have been found to help improving athletic performance and physical appearances. CONCLUSION Abusing AAS is starting to become a public health concern that implies the need to implement educational programmes, which will educate and warn adolescents and mentors about the negative side effects of AAS abuse on the health of users.

Utility of the oestrogen-dependent vaginal candidosis murine model in evaluating the efficacy of various therapies against vaginal Candida albicans infection

The efficacy of yogurt treatment against vaginal candidosis (VC) was examined using an oestrogen‐dependent vaginal candidosis (EDVC) murine model. The EDVC mouse model was constructed by inoculating mice with viable Candida albicans cells under pseudo‐oestrus conditions. Vaginal fungal burden in the various mouse groups was evaluated at several time points following the induction of VC. Untreated and yogurt‐treated naïve mice exhibited background levels of VC (<6000 CFU per mouse). Candida albicans colonisation in untreated EDVC mice was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that in yogurt‐treated EDVC mice at days 20–30. Metronidazole‐treated naïve mice developed persistent C. albicans vaginal colonisation at significantly lower levels (P < 0.05) than that in untreated or metronidazole‐treated EDVC mice. Lactobacillus was only detected in the reproductive tracts of yogurt‐treated naïve and EDVC mice. These findings suggest that the presence of Lactobacillus in the reproductive tract can suppress C. albicans growth and the antibiotics may predispose to VC.

Pathogenicity for humans of human rhinovirus type 2 mutants resistant to or dependent on chalcone Ro 09-0410.

Mutants of human rhinovirus type 2 (HRV-2) resistant to and dependent on the antirhinoviral compound chalcone Ro 09-0410 were selected in cell culture under clean laboratory conditions. A total of 42 volunteers were challenged with either the drug-resistant mutant [SR2-410(r)] (15 volunteers), the drug-dependent mutant [SR2-410(d)] (15 volunteers), or a wild-type HRV-2 which had a similar passage level in vitro as the mutants but without the drug (12 volunteers). Of volunteers challenged with the wild-type HRV-2, 33, 67, and 82% developed cold symptoms, shed virus, and showed serological evidence of infection, respectively. In contrast, only 13, 27, and 23% of volunteers challenged with the drug-resistant mutant developed colds, shed virus, and showed serological evidence of infection, respectively. None of the volunteers challenged with the drug-dependent virus became infected or had symptoms of colds. These results demonstrate that a drug-resistant rhinovirus was capable of infecting humans and producing disease, although its infectivity was reduced when compared with that of the wild type. In contrast, a drug-dependent virus had lost its ability to infect humans.

Rates of Infection and Phylogenetic Analysis of GB Virus-C among Kuwaiti and Jordanian Blood Donors

Objectives: GB virus-C/hepatitis G virus (GBV-C/HGV), collectively known as GBV-C, has been reported to be associated with non-A-E hepatitis. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of infection and genotypic characteristics of GBV-C among Kuwaiti and Jordanian blood donors. Methods: A total of 334 plasma/serum samples from healthy blood donors in Kuwait (n = 130) and Jordan (n = 204) were screened using RT-PCR/nested PCR of the 5′-untranslated region (5′-UTR). Phylogenetic analysis was conducted by sequencing the 5′-UTR region of the randomly picked clones representative of the two populations. Results: The results obtained showed that the rate of GBV-C infection in healthy Kuwaiti and Jordanian blood donors was 24.6 and 9.8%, respectively. Sequence analysis of the 5′-UTR using 4 and 6 clones from healthy Kuwaiti and Jordanian blood donors, respectively, revealed the prevalence of the European/North American genotype 2 when compared to the 6 reference genotypes in GenBank. Conclusion: GBV-C/HGV was detectable at rates relatively comparable with other regions in the world in Kuwaiti and Jordanian blood donors, although the significance of which remains controversial. More interesting is the dominance of GBV-C genotype 2 among the two populations, which remains to be explained.

2-deoxy-D-Glucose Synergizes with Doxorubicin or L-Buthionine Sulfoximine to Reduce Adhesion and Migration of Breast Cancer Cells

BACKGROUND Cancer metastasis depends on cell motility which is driven by cycles of actin polymerization and depolymerization. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and metabolic oxidative stress have long been associated with cancer. ROS play a vital role in regulating actin dynamics that are sensitive to oxidative modification. The current work aimed at studying the effects of sub-lethal metabolic oxidative stress on actin cytoskeleton, focal adhesion and cell migration. MATERIALS AND METHODS T47D human breast cancer cells were treated with 2-deoxy- D-glucose (2DG), L-buthionine sulfoximine (BSO), or doxorubicin (DOX), individually or in combination, and changes in intracellular total glutathione and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were measured. The expression of three major antioxidant enzymes was studied by immunoblotting, and cells were stained with fluorescent- phalloidin to evaluate changes in F-actin organization. In addition, cell adhesion and degradation ability were measured. Cell migration was studied using wound healing and transwell migration assays. RESULTS Our results show that treating T47D human breast cancer cells with drug combinations (2DG/BSO, 2DG/DOX, or BSO/DOX) decreased intracellular total glutathione and increased oxidized glutathione, lipid peroxidation, and cytotoxicity. In addition, the drug combinations caused a reduction in cell area and mitotic index, prophase arrest and a decreased ability to form invadopodia. The formation of F-actin aggregates was increased in treated T47D cells. Moreover, combination therapy reduced cell adhesion and the rate of cell migration. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that exposure of T47D breast cancer cells to combination therapy reduces cell migration via effects on metabolic oxidative stress.

Jordanian population data on the PCR-based loci: LDLR, GYPA, HBGG, D7S8 and GC

Genotype and allele frequency distributions for PM polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based genetic markers were determined in a Jordanian sample population. Results were obtained using the AmpliType PM PCR Amplification and typing kit. All loci were in agreement with the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium expectations. The predominant alleles for LDLR, GYPA, HBGG, D7S8 and GC loci were B, A, B, A and C respectively. No statistically significant variation was detected in allele frequencies of these loci in Jordanians compared to that in Israeli Arab, U.S Caucasian and Japanese populations. Data presented here can be used to estimate the frequency of a specific DNA profile in the Jordanian population for forensic analyses and paternity testing.

Cephalostatin 1 analogues activate apoptosis via the endoplasmic reticulum stress signaling pathway

Abstract The current study was conducted to compare the cytotoxicity of two stereospecific cephalostatin 1 analogues (CAs) against several human normal cell types and cancer cell lines and to determine their cytotoxic mechanism. Both CA analogues induced apoptosis and were cytotoxic with 50% growth inhibition (GI50) at ˜1 &mgr;M or less in six human cancer cell lines but neither analogue at 10 &mgr;M killed more than 14% of any of three types of normal human cells suggesting their cytotoxicity is cancer‐specific. CA treatment inhibited clonogenic tumor growth and activated caspase 3 and 9 but not caspase 8. CA‐induced apoptosis was inhibited by the pan caspase inhibitor indicating the importance of caspase activation. CA treatment released smac/DIABLO but not cytochrome c from mitochondria and induced phosphorylation of eIF‐2 and the activation of procaspase 4 in cancer cells, similar to cell treatment with thapsigargin, a known endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress inducer. Finally, cells pretreated with a caspase 4 inhibitor were resistant to CA‐induced apoptosis. In conclusion, both CAs induced apoptosis by triggering ER stress. Because of their ease of synthesis and low GI50, these cephalostatin analogues represent promising anticancer drugs. Graphical abstract Figure. No Caption available.

TCRVß clonotypic analysis of vaginal T lymphocytes during experimental vaginal candidiasis in the murine system

To further understand the role of localized T cells in protection against vaginal candidiasis (VC), vaginal T lymphocyte TCRVβ repertoir was evaluated during experimental VC. RNA was extracted from lymphocytes of naive and estrogen-treated Candida albicans-infected mice and RT-PCRed using TCRVβ primers corresponding to 24 common TCRVβ genes. All TCRVβ rearrangements were detected in vaginal T cells and thymocytes of naive mice. Although, the full complement of TCRVβ repertoire was detectable in vaginal T cells at days 14 and 21 post-infection, there was overrepresentation of TCRVβs 1, 6, 10 and 15 at day 14 and TCRVβs 1, 4, 6, 8.3, 10, 13, 14 and 18 at day 21. Expression of all TCRVβ rearrangements in vaginal T cells raises the possibility of an extrathymic developmental origin. Time-dependent overrepresentation of specific TCRVβs during VC may indicate infection-related specific T cell clonal expansion.

Jordanian population data on five STR forensic loci: D16S539, TPOX, CSF1PO, Penta D, and Penta E

The allele distributions at five STR loci, D16S539, TPOX, CSF1PO, Penta D, and Penta E have been determined. None of the five loci were found to deviate from Hardy-Weinberg expectations according to the results of the G (homogeneity) test.

Isolation and Preliminary Characterization of Chalcone Ro 09-0410-Resistant Human Rhinovirus Type 2

We have isolated a human rhinovirus type-2 (HRV-2) mutant that is resistant to the antiviral agent chalcone Ro 09-0410 (4′-ethoxy-2′-hydroxy-4, 6′-dimethoxychalcone). This Ro 09-0410-resistant HRV-2 mutant (SR2-0410) exhibited altered biological properties when compared with the parental wild-type (wt) HRV-2. It was unstable when exposed to acid and heat in the presence of the drug, was incapable of producing plaques and produced an early cytopathic effect (CPE) at high temperatures (35°C and 37°C). Furthermore, compared with the parental wild-type, it showed a reduced ability to be neutralized by an anti-HRV-2 polyclonal serum and monoclonal antibodies. This SR2-0410 mutant demonstrated cross-resistance to other synthetic anti-rhinovirus compounds, which are also thought to bind to the viral capsid protein (VPI), such as 4′,6-dichloroflavan, 3-methoxy-6-[4-(3-methylphenyl)-I-piperazinyl] pyridazine (R 61837) and WIN 51711 (5-[7-[4-(4,5-dihydro-2-oxazolyl) phenoxyl] heptyl]-3-methyl-isoxazole). Furthermore, it was also resistant to various antiviral combinations synergistic against HRV-2. However, it was still sensitive to enviroxime [2-amino-I-(isopropyl sulphonyl)-6-benzimidazole phenyl ketone oxime], which has a different mode of action and is thought to interfere with viral RNA synthesis.