An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the hepatotoxic effects in the progeny of dams treated with methimazole, monocrotophos (MCP) and lead acetate. Female pregnant albino rats of Wistar kyoto strain were divided into five groups and treated as follows, from day 3 of pregnancy till weaning of pups on postnatal day (PND) 21. Group 1 served as sham control, group 2 received methimazole 0.02% in drinking water, group 3 received MCP (0.3 mg/kg orally), group 4 received lead acetate at 0.2% in drinking water and group 5 received MCP + lead acetate. Thyroid hormone profile was recorded on 14 thday of gestation in dams. Eight pups from each group were euthanized on PND 21 and 90, and liver tissues were collected for analysis. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), protein carbonyls and reduced glutathione (GSH) of liver were studied on PND 21 and 90, while the activities of Na +/K+ATPase and Mg 2+ATPase in the liver were studied on PND 90. T3, T4, GSH, Na+/K+ATPase and Mg2+ATPase were significantly (P<0.05) decreased, while TBARS and protein carbonyls were significantly (P < 0.05) increased in all the test groups as compared to group 1. From this study, it is concluded that both MCP and lead acetate have a possible influence on thyroid gland of dams as the thyroid profile was altered significantly and the hepatotoxic effects were comparable to those induced by methimazole.

Partial sacrectomy is a radical procedure that benefits a select group of patients with locally advanced primary or recurrent rectal cancer with posterior extension and carries potential for significant morbidity. This study was done to evaluate the morbidity and oncological outcome of patients who underwent partial sacral resection for rectal cancer in a tertiary cancer center. Seventeen patients underwent partial sacrectomy during the period from 2011 to 2015. Eleven patients had primary and six had recurrent rectal cancer. All patients were evaluated with MRI pelvis and metastatic evaluation with CT scan of the chest and abdomen and PET scan in patients with recurrent cancer. All patients had resection below the level of S2/S3 junction or lower. Three patients were females and the remaining were males. Median age was 56 years. Overall morbidity was 76% and most common morbidity was wound related. The mean estimated relapse-free survival (RFS) for patients treated for primary rectal cancer was 20.3 months (95% confidence interval (CI), 12.8-27.9) and the mean estimated overall survival (OS) 23.9 months. Estimated mean RFS for patients who were operated for recurrent rectal cancer was 25.6 months (95% CI, 17.7-33.5) and the median RFS was yet to reach. Estimated mean OS was 29.7 months (95% CI, 15.5-43.8) and the median OS was 39.6 months. Partial sacrectomy below the level of S2/S3 junction is a safe approach to facilitate en bloc resection of locally advanced primary and recurrent rectal cancer extending posteriorly with loss of plane with sacrum. In selected patients, this approach can improve survival at the cost of high morbidity.

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Aim: To investigate the nephrotoxicity induced by the combined exposure of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) and its amelioration with N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC). Materials and Methods:To evaluate the nephrotoxicity of Pb and Cd, the present study was taken up with a total of 48 male wistar rats, divided uniformly into eight groups each with 6 rats. Groups I and II were kept as untreated control and NAC control, respectively. Groups III, IV and V served as toxic control groups viz., Pb, Cd and combination of Pb+ Cd @ 1000, 300 and 1000+300 ppm, respectively. Whereas groups VI, VII and VIII were co exposed with NAC and served as therapeutic groups (Pb, Cd and combination of Pb+ Cd @ 1000, 300 and 1000+300 ppm, respectively and NAC @ 300mg/ kg). The experiment was carried out for 3 months and kidney tissues were collected for histopathological and electron microscopic study at the end of the experiment.Results: Histopathological examination of kidney tissue revealed marked alterations and electron microscopic observations also showed marked ultrastructural changes and these changes were more pronounced in Pb and Cd co exposure group (group 5) than the Pb and Cd alone exposed groups (groups 3 and 4), respectively. We also observed a significant (p<0.05) elevation in the serum creatinine levels. Use of the NAC counteracted the all toxic effects by chelating these metals, thereby reducing their accumulation and NAC also demonstrated its antioxidant properties, as judged by a significant reduction in the serum creatinine levels. Conclusion:We conclude that the co-existence of these metals showed a positive pharmacodynamic interaction and significant improvement was noticed after NAC therapy.