Objectives: Cervical degenerative disc disease (CDD) significantly compromises patients’ quality of life through the induction of radiculopathy and myelopathy. This study endeavored to compare the clinical and radiological outcomes of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in patients presenting with single-, two-, and three-level CDD. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 94 patients who underwent ACDF between December 2018 and December 2023. Patients were categorized into single-level (n = 36), two-level (n = 40), and three-level (n = 18) CDD groups. Preoperative and postoperative radiological (X-ray, MRI) and clinical (Japanese Orthopedic Association [JOA], Visual Analog Scale [VAS]) data were rigorously analyzed. Results: Statistically significant improvements in postoperative JOA and VAS scores were observed across all cohorts. Notably, the three-level CDD group exhibited a significantly lower JOA improvement rate compared to the single-level group (p = 0.040). All groups demonstrated a marked increase in cervical lordosis and disc height postoperatively (p < 0.05). Patients undergoing three-level ACDF presented with lower JOA scores than those undergoing single- or two-level procedures. Logistic regression analysis identified that the preservation of the disc height significantly correlated with a higher likelihood of achieving a greater JOA improvement. Conclusions: ACDF is established as a safe and efficacious surgical intervention for patients with single-, two-, and three-level CDD. The implementation of hybrid prostheses appears to be instrumental in maintaining lordosis in multilevel ACDF. Three-level ACDF is associated with diminished JOA improvement rates compared to single-level ACDF. Further longitudinal, multicenter investigations are warranted to validate these findings.

Cancer is a significant public health problem in both developed and developing countries. Phytotherapy studies have gained importance due to the side effect of standard cancer therapy protocols. Viburnum opulus, belongs to the Caprifoliaceae family, is used in the treatment of various diseases. Anticarcinogenic effects of Viburnum opulus have also been reported. The aim of this study is to compare the cytotoxic effect of Gilaburu juice extract given at various doses against EAT cell in culture. The juice of the fermented Gilaburu fruit were centrifuged filtered through a 50 kDa filter and the fraction below 50 kDa was lyophilized. The EAT cells in the ascitic fluid from the previously prepared stock animal were counted and plated on 96 well plates. The first group of five was determined as the control group and the other groups were given 50–100–200 μg/mL Gilaburu extract. At the end of 3, 24 and 48 h cultured periods, the cells were counted and the number of viable and dead cells was noted. The number of dead and alive cells in control and experimental groups did not change after 3 hours period but there were 50% dead cells in experimental groups after 24 h culture period.

Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer causing high mortality rates among women worldwide. This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of Pistacia terebinthus (terebinth) resin extract (TRE) on the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line. In the study, the cytotoxic dose of the resin extract in MDA-MB-231 cells was evaluated by MTS analysis. The effect of TRE on apoptosis was examined by Hoechst staining. Caspase-3 and cleaved caspase-3 protein expressions were determined by western blot analysis. Based on the outcomes of our MTS analysis, the IC50 dose of TRE was calculated at 56.54 μg/mL during a 24-h application period. With Hoechst staining analysis, an increase was observed in cells that underwent apoptotic change at 10 and 100 μg/ml TRE concentrations compared to the control. At 25 and 50 μg/mL TRE concentrations, no apoptotic change was found in comparison to the control; however, a significant drop in the number of viable cells was observed because 200, 300, and 500 μg/mL TRE concentrations were above the toxic dose. The caspase-3 protein expression level was significantly higher in cells treated with 100 μg/ml TRE compared to the control group, while there was no significant change in cleaved caspase-3 protein expression. It was thought that P. terebinthus resin might cause cell death in MDA-MB-231 cells via caspase-independent apoptosis pathway or other cell death pathways, and it was concluded that it could be a supportive treatment for breast cancer treatment.