Effects of three different doses of endosulfan respectively designated as low, medium and high on cytochrome P450(Cyt.P450), glutathione S-transferase(GST) activity and glutathione content (GSH) of hepatic and extra hepatic tissues of rat were determined after 24 hours of treatment. Endosulfan caused induction of cyt. P450 in liver, lung and brain at all the three doses tested while in kidney, spleen and heart either induction or reduction took place and was unrelated with dosages of endosulfan. Similarly, GST activity significantly changed in extra hepatic tissues while liver GST activity did not record any significant alteration under the experimental conditions. The GSH content also showed changes (increase/decrease) unrelated to endosulfan dosages in different organs. Thus, the effects varied with organ and dosages. As these metabolic parameters are involved in biotransformation of many endogenous molecules as well, the study may throw some light on physiological disturbances due to changes in metabolizing system on one side and organ specificity in toxic action of endosulfan on the other.

Chicken interferon-α (chIFN-α) is an important antiviral cytokine and represents one of the first lines of the chicken’s innate immune system. The current study is the first-ever report of chicken IFN (chIFN) production in Pakistan. In this study, we have used live and UV-irradiated Newcastle disease virus (NDV) to induce the expression of chIFN-α in chicken embryo fibroblast (CEF) cells. ChIFN-α was partially purified in a two-step protocol; ultracentrifugation followed by treatment with anti-chIFN-β antibodies. The purified chIFN-α was ana-lysed via sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and the in vitro antiviral potential of chIFN-α was determined against the H9N2 avian influenza virus (AIV) via a cytopathic inhibition assay. The relative mRNA level of the IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs) in the IFN-stimulated CEF cells was measured at various time intervals by a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). The stability of natural chIFN-α to the temperature, pH, and ultraviolet (UV) light was also determined. The in vivo therapeutic potential of chIFN-α was determined in 7-day-old broiler chickens challenged with AIV. We found that a higher chIFN-α expression level was induced by the UV-irradiated NDV in the CEF cells as compared to the live NDV. The UV-irradiated NDV induced the maximum IFN production in the CEF cells at 24 h post-infection. Two bands of 21 kDa on SDS-PAGE confirmed the presence of the chIFN-α protein. The cytopathic inhibition assay indicated the strong antiviral activity of chIFN-α against AIV. Our results of the stability analysis showed that chIFN-α was stable at a wide range of temperatures and pH levels. However, a little exposure to UV-light resulted in a significant loss of antiviral activity. We also observed that the antiviral activity of chIFN-α is related to the expression levels of the antiviral ISGs. The results of the in vivo study showed that the chIFN-α therapy via the oral route resulted in a significant improvement in the tracheal pathology of chickens challenged with AIV. In conclusion, we suggest that chIFN-α could be an important therapeutic tool to control avian influenza infection in poultry.

The novelty of this project is to describe how chronic diabetes altered the haematological and uterine indicators in a time dependent-manner that were reversed by camel milk (CM) therapy in pregnant and non-pregnant rat models. Fifty-four female rats were divided into three groups: Placebo (N), diabetic control (DC) and diabetic treated (DT) with CM at 40 ml/kg/24 h for 90 days. A single intact male was introduced into every group for mating at day 60 of the experiment. The sample collection was undertaken at day 30 and 60 of the non-pregnant rats and at day 90 immediately after parturition for the pregnant rats. At every collection, the dam’s blood, as well as the uteri and neonatal kidneys were collected and subjected to a paraffin tissue preparation technique for a histological evaluation. The data revealed that at day 30, the uterine endo- and myometrium remained unaffected by diabetes, but at day 60, a significant reduction in the uterine indicators from diabetes was observed. However, the CM restored the uterine histology in the DT. At 90 day, chronic diabetes showed (P < 0.05) a harmful effect on the pregnant uterus which was reversed (P < 0.05) by the CM. The RBC (red blood cell) indices, platelets, and leucocyte counts were severely affected by the diabetes and protected by the CM at every point of collection. The kidney tissues of the neonate rats, delivered by the dams, in the DC presented a significant (P < 0.05) shrinkage in the cortex and glomeruli while the CM potentially reversed these changes. These results will help to understand the chronic diabetes effects on the uterus and neonate’s renal genesis, and the role of camel milk in the management of chronic pre-gestational diabetes.