BackgroundHerbal supplements are widely used in the treatment of various liver disases, but some of them may also induce liver injuries. Regarding the infuence of thyme and its constituents on the liver, conflicting results have been reported in the literature. The objective of this study was to examine the influence of two commonly used pharmaceutical formulations containing thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.), tincture and syrup, on carbon tetrachloride-induced acute liver injury in rats.MethodsChemical composition of investigated formulations of thyme was determined by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Activities of enzyme markers of hepatocellular damage in serum and antioxidant enzymes in the liver homogenates were measured using the kinetic spectrophotometric methods. Liver morphology was characterized by light microscopy using routine hematoxylin and eosin staining.ResultsThymol was found to be predominant active constituent in both tincture and syrup. Investigated thyme preparations exerted antioxidant effects in liver by preventing carbon tetrachloride-induced increase of lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, co-treatment with thyme preparations reversed the activities of oxidative stress-related enzymes xanthine oxidase, catalase, peroxidase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase, towards normal values in the liver. Hepatotoxicity induced by carbon tetrachloride was reflected by a marked elevation of AST and ALT activities, and histopathologic alterations. Co-administration of thyme tincture resulted in unexpected exacerbation of AST and ALT values in serum, while thyme syrup managed to reduce activites of aminotransferases, in comparison to carbon tetrachloride-treated animals.ConclusionsDespite demonstrated antioxidant activity, mediated through both direct free radical scavenging and activation of antioxidant defense mechanisms, thyme preparations could not ameliorate liver injury in rats. Molecular mechanisms of diverse effects of thyme preparations on chemical-induced hepatotoxicity should be more in-depth investigated.

As proper wound management is crucial to reducing morbidity and improving quality of life, this study evaluated for the first time the wound healing potential of H. italicum essential oil (HIEO) prepared in the form of ointment and gel in streptozotocin-induced diabetic wound models in rats. After creating full-thickness cutaneous wounds, forty-eight diabetic rats were divided into six groups: (1) negative control; (2) positive control; (3) ointment base; (4) gel base; (5) 0.5% HIEO ointment (6) 0.5% HIEO gel. Wound healing potential was determined by the percentage of wound contraction, hydroxyproline content, redox status, and histological observation. A significant decrease in the wound size was observed in animals treated with HIEO formulations compared with other groups. The HIEO groups also showed a higher level of total hydroxyproline content, and more pronounced restitution of adnexal structures with only the underlying muscle defect indicating the incision site. Hence, our results legitimate the traditional data of the pro-healing effect of HIEO because HIEO in both formulations such as gel and ointment exhibited the significant wound repairing effect in the incision wound model.

The respiratory capillariid nematode Eucoleus aerophilus (Creplin, 1839) infects wild and domestic carnivores and, occasionally, humans. Thus far, a dozen of human infections have been published in the literature but it cannot be ruled out that lung capillariosis is underdiagnosed in human medicine. Also, the apparent spreading of E. aerophilus in different geographic areas spurs new studies on the epidemiology of this nematode. After the recognition of the first human case of E. aerophilus infection in Serbia, there is a significant merit in enhancing knowledge on the distribution of the nematode. In the present work the infection rate of pulmonary capillariosis was investigated in 70 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from the northern part of Serbia by autopsy. The estimated infection rate with Eucoleus aerophilus was 84%. In contrast, by copromicroscopic examination only 38% of foxes were positive. In addition, 10 foxes were investigated for the closely related species in nasal cavity, Eucoleus boehmi, and nine were positive. Our study demonstrates one of the highest infection rates of pulmonary capillariosis in foxes over the world.

Developmental and/or epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs) are a group of devastating genetic disorders, resulting in early-onset, therapy-resistant seizures and developmental delay. Here we report on 22 individuals from 15 families presenting with a severe form of intractable epilepsy, severe developmental delay, progressive microcephaly, visual disturbance and similar minor dysmorphisms. Whole exome sequencing identified a recurrent, homozygous variant (chr2:64083454A > G) in the essential UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (UGP2) gene in all probands. This rare variant results in a tolerable Met12Val missense change of the longer UGP2 protein isoform but causes a disruption of the start codon of the shorter isoform, which is predominant in brain. We show that the absence of the shorter isoform leads to a reduction of functional UGP2 enzyme in neural stem cells, leading to altered glycogen metabolism, upregulated unfolded protein response and premature neuronal differentiation, as modeled during pluripotent stem cell differentiation in vitro. In contrast, the complete lack of all UGP2 isoforms leads to differentiation defects in multiple lineages in human cells. Reduced expression of Ugp2a/Ugp2b in vivo in zebrafish mimics visual disturbance and mutant animals show a behavioral phenotype. Our study identifies a recurrent start codon mutation in UGP2 as a cause of a novel autosomal recessive DEE syndrome. Importantly, it also shows that isoform-specific start-loss mutations causing expression loss of a tissue-relevant isoform of an essential protein can cause a genetic disease, even when an organism-wide protein absence is incompatible with life. We provide additional examples where a similar disease mechanism applies.

2 52 Running title: Loss of UGP2 causes a severe epileptic encephalopathy 53 54 55 Abstract: 60 Developmental and/or epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs) are a group of devastating genetic 61 disorders, resulting in early onset, therapy resistant seizures and developmental delay. Here we 62 report on 12 individuals from 10 families presenting with a severe form of intractable epilepsy, 63 severe developmental delay, progressive microcephaly and visual disturbance. Whole exome 64 sequencing identified a recurrent, homozygous variant (chr2:64083454A>G) in the essential UDP-65 glucose pyrophosphorylase (UGP2) gene in all probands. This rare variant results in a tolerable 66Met12Val missense change of the longer UGP2 protein isoform but causes a disruption of the start 67 codon of the shorter isoform. We show that the absence of the shorter isoform leads to a reduction 68 of functional UGP2 enzyme in brain cell types, leading to altered glycogen metabolism, upregulated 69unfolded protein response and premature neuronal differentiation, as modelled during pluripotent 70 stem cell differentiation in vitro. In contrast, the complete lack of all UGP2 isoforms leads to 71 differentiation defects in multiple lineages in human cells. Reduced expression of Ugp2a/Ugp2b in 72 vivo in zebrafish mimics visual disturbance and mutant animals show a behavioral phenotype. Our 73 study identifies a recurrent start codon mutation in UGP2 as a cause of a novel autosomal recessive 74 DEE. Importantly, it also shows that isoform specific start-loss mutations causing expression loss of a 75 tissue relevant isoform of an essential protein can cause a genetic disease, even when an organism-76 wide protein absence is incompatible with life. We provide additional examples where a similar 77 disease mechanism applies. 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 3 Introduction: 88 Developmental and/or epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs) are a heterogeneous group of genetic 89 disorders, characterized by severe epileptic seizures in combination with developmental delay or 90 regression 1 . Genes involved in multiple pathophysiological pathways have been implicated in DEEs, 91 including synaptic impairment, ion channel alterations, transporter defects and metabolic processes 92 such as disorders of glycosylation 2 . Mostly, dominant acting, de novo mutations have been identified 93 in children suffering from DEEs 3 , and only a limited number of genes with a recessive mode of 94 inheritance are known so far, with a higher occurrence rate in consanguineous populations 4 . A recent 95 cohort study on DEEs employing whole exome sequencing (WES) and copy-number analysis, 96however, found that up to 38% of diagnosed cases might be caused by recessive genes, indicating 97 that the importance of this mode of inheritance in DEEs has been underestimated 5 . 98