Abstract In the present study two species were selected based on their highest presence values to study the response to the severe drought conditions in desert: these were Zilla spinosa and Leptadenia pyrotechnica. The results showed that soil water content and organic matter of Wadi El-Assiuty were very low over the study period. The estimated pH values in the soil solution at the different studied stands tended to be slight alkaline. Total soluble salts were generally higher during summer versus winter. The water content in the studied plants increased significantly during summer. The selected species increased their content of chlorophyll a and b in summer. The stability index of chlorophyll a and b was significantly higher in summer than that estimated in winter. Calcium and magnesium were accumulated in considerable amounts. Ca+2 was the main accumulated cation whereas its concentration were higher than magnesium. Z. spinosa accumulated more sulphates in summer than in winter. Phosphates appeared in low amounts in all the investigated plants. In L. pyrotechnica tissue, Na+ concentration correlated negatively with those found in soil during summer. In winter Na+ and SO4 correlated positively and K+ correlated negatively in Z. spinosa. The studied species showed slightly increase in soluble sugars accumulation. Soluble protein content in Z. spinosa and L. pyrotechnica decreased significantly during winter season. Amino acids content was low and varied between the two investigated species. It seemed that the Z. spinosa is better adapted than L. pyrotechnica to drought conditions, prevailing in the area under study. This judgement can be concluded by the average metabolic potentiality in the species, whereas soluble metabolites (soluble sugars and soluble proteins) were relatively much higher than in the case of L. pyrotechnica.

The electronic structure of the ternary layered transition metal dichalcogenide compounds of ZrSxSe2−x, where 0 ≤ x ≤ 2, has been studied by means of high resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) used in conjunction with synchrotron radiation facilities. The crystals were grown by the chemical vapor transport technique using iodine as a transport agent. They are found to be degenerate extrinsic n-type semiconductors with an indirect bandgap character. The experimental valence band structure of the complete series of ZrSxSe2−x is reported along the major symmetry azimuthal directions in the Brillouin zone parallel to the layers. The results show that the binding energies of the topmost valence band shift almost linearly with the composition parameter x. Further, an emission from the conduction band minimum observed just below the Fermi edge enabled us to estimate the energy gap values. The electronic structure deduced from the photoemission measurements are discussed and compared to band structure calculations.

GexSe50Te50−x (x = 5, 15, 20, 35 at.%) bulk glasses were synthesized by the melt quenching method. The amorphous nature of the investigated glasses was determined by X-ray diffraction. Results of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) of the studied compositions under non-isothermal conditions were reported and discussed. The glass transition temperature (Tg), onset crystallization temperature (Tc), and crystallization peak temperature (Tp) were determined from DSC traces at different heating rates. It was found that the values of Tg, Tc, and Tp rely on both composition and heating rate. A double crystallization stages were observed in the DSC results. Various kinetics parameters such as the glass transition energy (Eg), crystallization activation energy (Ec), and rate constant (Kp) were calculated. The glass-forming ability of the studied compositions was discussed as function of the determined kinetics parameters.

GexSe50Te50−x (x = 5, 15, 20, 35 at.%) bulk glasses were synthesized by the melt quenching method. The amorphous nature of the investigated glasses was determined by X-ray diffraction. Results of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) of the studied compositions under non-isothermal conditions were reported and discussed. The glass transition temperature (Tg), onset crystallization temperature (Tc), and crystallization peak temperature (Tp) were determined from DSC traces at different heating rates. It was found that the values of Tg, Tc, and Tp rely on both composition and heating rate. A double crystallization stages were observed in the DSC results. Various kinetics parameters such as the glass transition energy (Eg), crystallization activation energy (Ec), and rate constant (Kp) were calculated. The glass-forming ability of the studied compositions was discussed as function of the determined kinetics parameters.

Spermatids are extremely sensitive to genotoxic exposures since during spermiogenesis only error-prone non homologous end joining (NHEJ) repair pathways are available. Hence, genomic damage may accumulate in sperm and be transmitted to the zygote. Indirect, delayed DNA fragmentation and lesions associated with apoptotic-like processes have been observed during spermatid elongation, 27 days after irradiation. The proliferating spermatogonia and early meiotic prophase cells have been suggested to retain a memory of a radiation insult leading later to this delayed fragmentation. Here, we used meiotic spread preparations to localize phosphorylate histone H2 variant (γ-H2AX) foci marking DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) in elongated spermatids. This technique enabled us to determine the background level of DSB foci in elongated spermatids of RAD54/RAD54B double knockout (dko) mice, severe combined immunodeficiency SCID mice, and poly adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-ribose polymerase 1 (PARP1) inhibitor (DPQ)-treated mice to compare them with the appropriate wild type controls. The repair kinetics data and the protein expression patterns observed indicate that the conventional NHEJ repair pathway is not available for elongated spermatids to repair the programmed and the IR-induced DSBs, reflecting the limited repair capacity of these cells. However, although elongated spermatids express the proteins of the alternative NHEJ, PARP1-inhibition had no effect on the repair kinetics after IR, suggesting that DNA damage may be passed onto sperm. Finally, our genetic mutant analysis suggests that an incomplete or defective meiotic recombinational repair of Spo11-induced DSBs may lead to a carry-over of the DSB damage or induce a delayed nuclear fragmentation during the sensitive programmed chromatin remodeling occurring in elongated spermatids.

Micronutrients in food have been found to have chemopreventive effects, supporting the conclusions from epidemiologie studies that consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables reduces cancer risk. The present study was carried out to evaluate the role of querctin (Q) and sodium gluconate (GNA) supplementation separately or in combination in ameliorating promotion of colon tumor development by dimethyl-hydrazine (DMH) in mice. Histopathological observation of colons in mice treated with DMH showed goblet cell dysplasia with inlammatory cell iniltration. This pathological inding was associated with signiicant alteration in oxidative stress markers in colon tissues and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels in plasma. Mice co-treated with GNA and Q showed mild changes of absorptive and goblet cells and inlammatory cell iniltration in lamina properia, with improvement in oxidative stress markers. In conclusion, indings of the present study indicate signiicant roles for reactive oxygen species (ROS) in pathogenesis of DMH-induced colon toxicity and initiation of colon cancer. Also, they suggest that Q, GNA or the combination of both have a positive beneicial effect against DMH induced colonic cancer induction in mice.

Micronutrients in food have been found to have chemopreventive effects, supporting the conclusions from epidemiologie studies that consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables reduces cancer risk. The present study was carried out to evaluate the role of querctin (Q) and sodium gluconate (GNA) supplementation separately or in combination in ameliorating promotion of colon tumor development by dimethyl-hydrazine (DMH) in mice. Histopathological observation of colons in mice treated with DMH showed goblet cell dysplasia with inlammatory cell iniltration. This pathological inding was associated with signiicant alteration in oxidative stress markers in colon tissues and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels in plasma. Mice co-treated with GNA and Q showed mild changes of absorptive and goblet cells and inlammatory cell iniltration in lamina properia, with improvement in oxidative stress markers. In conclusion, indings of the present study indicate signiicant roles for reactive oxygen species (ROS) in pathogenesis of DMH-induced colon toxicity and initiation of colon cancer. Also, they suggest that Q, GNA or the combination of both have a positive beneicial effect against DMH induced colonic cancer induction in mice.

Micronutrients in food have been found to have chemopreventive effects, supporting the conclusions from epidemiologie studies that consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables reduces cancer risk. The present study was carried out to evaluate the role of querctin (Q) and sodium gluconate (GNA) supplementation separately or in combination in ameliorating promotion of colon tumor development by dimethyl-hydrazine (DMH) in mice. Histopathological observation of colons in mice treated with DMH showed goblet cell dysplasia with inlammatory cell iniltration. This pathological inding was associated with signiicant alteration in oxidative stress markers in colon tissues and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels in plasma. Mice co-treated with GNA and Q showed mild changes of absorptive and goblet cells and inlammatory cell iniltration in lamina properia, with improvement in oxidative stress markers. In conclusion, indings of the present study indicate signiicant roles for reactive oxygen species (ROS) in pathogenesis of DMH-induced colon toxicity and initiation of colon cancer. Also, they suggest that Q, GNA or the combination of both have a positive beneicial effect against DMH induced colonic cancer induction in mice.

Micronutrients in food have been found to have chemopreventive effects, supporting the conclusions from epidemiologie studies that consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables reduces cancer risk. The present study was carried out to evaluate the role of querctin (Q) and sodium gluconate (GNA) supplementation separately or in combination in ameliorating promotion of colon tumor development by dimethyl-hydrazine (DMH) in mice. Histopathological observation of colons in mice treated with DMH showed goblet cell dysplasia with inlammatory cell iniltration. This pathological inding was associated with signiicant alteration in oxidative stress markers in colon tissues and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels in plasma. Mice co-treated with GNA and Q showed mild changes of absorptive and goblet cells and inlammatory cell iniltration in lamina properia, with improvement in oxidative stress markers. In conclusion, indings of the present study indicate signiicant roles for reactive oxygen species (ROS) in pathogenesis of DMH-induced colon toxicity and initiation of colon cancer. Also, they suggest that Q, GNA or the combination of both have a positive beneicial effect against DMH induced colonic cancer induction in mice.

The liver is accountable for many critical functions within the body and loss of those functions can cause significant damage to the body. Liver disease is a extensive term that covers all aspects that cause the liver to fail to perform its proper functions. Acute liver failure indicates the development of severe acute liver injury with impaired synthetic function without preexisting of clinical liver disease. However, chronic liver disease is characterized by destruction of the hepatic tissue. Early changes, such as fatty liver can progress via inflammation and fibrosis to cirrhosis. The main causes for liver dysfunction include dyslipidemia, obesity, viral and parasitic infection, drugs and environmental pollution, alcohol abuse, autoimmunity, and genetic defective such as hemochromatosis. The present review almost covers all the previous aspects that lead to liver dysfunction.