Intestinal mucositis poses a significant concern associated with cancer therapy. This study aims to investigate the protective and/or healing effect of fig seed oil (FSO) on 5‐fluorouracil (5‐FU)‐induced intestinal mucositis by targeting inflammatory markers and histologic changes in rats. Albino Wistar adult rats were randomly divided into four groups, including three male and three female animals. All the animals in the four groups had a normal standard diet and water throughout the experimental period, which lasted up to 11 days. Rats were administered FSO 0.6 mL (mucositis FSO group) and FSO 0.2 mL (mucositis FSO‐R group) daily throughout the experiment. These two groups and one additional group (mucositis group) were given an intraperitoneal injection of 5‐FU (300 mg/kg) on Day 5 of the experiment. In contrast, the fourth group (Control group) was given an intraperitoneal saline injection on Day 5 of the experiment. FSO treatment ameliorated 5‐FU‐induced intestinal mucositis. On immunohistologic examination, FSO suppressed significantly the activation of NF‐κB and expression of IL‐β and TNF‐α of the harvested intestinal tissue. The reduced dose FSO (mucositis FSO‐R) was as effective as the full dose (mucositis FSO) in suppressing IL‐β and TNF‐α production, but was not as effective as the full dose in suppressing NF‐κB. On light microscopy, FSO attenuated significantly 5‐FU‐induced anomalies, such as the reduction of intestinal villus length and Goblet cell count. The reduced dose FSO (mucositis FSO‐R) was as effective as the full dose (mucositis FSO) in restoring villus length, but was not as effective as the full dose in restoring Goblet cell count. The findings of the study suggest that FSO inhibits 5‐FU‐induced intestinal mucositis via modulation of mucosal inflammation.

Objective. Scleroderma, or systemic sclerosis (SSc), is a chronic autoimmune connective disease with an unknown etiology and poorly understood pathogenesis. The striking array of autoimmune, vascular, and fibrotic changes that develop in almost all patients makes SSc unique among connective tissue diseases. Although no animal model developed for SSc to date fully represents all features of human disease, some animal models that demonstrate features of SSc may help to better understand the pathogenesis of the disease and to develop new therapeutic options. In this review, we aimed to evaluate skin fibrosis and lung involvement in a bleomycin (BLM)-induced mouse model and to evaluate the differences between studies. Methods. A systematic literature review (PRISMA guideline) on PubMed and EMBASE (until May 2023, without limits) was performed. A primary literature search was conducted using the PubMed and EMBASE databases for all articles published from 1990 to May 2023. Review articles, human studies, and non-dermatological studies were excluded. Of the 38 non-duplicated studies, 20 articles were included. Results. Among inducible animal models, the BLM-induced SSc is still the most widely used. In recent years, the measurement of tissue thickness between the epidermal-dermal junction and the dermal-adipose tissue junction (dermal layer) has become more widely accepted. Conclusions. In animal studies, it is important to simultaneously evaluate lung tissues in addition to skin fibrosis induced in mice by subcutaneous BLM application, following the 3R (replacement, reduction, and refinement) principle to avoid cruelty to animals.

Diabetes is a metabolic disease characterized by hyperglycemia due to impaired insulin secretion, activity, or both. Carbohydrate counting, known for optimal metabolic control, plays in the therapeutic strategy in diabetes. In the last decade, an increasing amount of research has been conducted on carbohydrate counting, and the literature on this topic has been published in academic journals. This bibliometric analysis aimed to comprehensively review and analyze publications from this period, shedding light on trends, developments, and key contributors. The Expanded Science Citation Index published by the Institute for Scientific Information Web of Science, which covers English-language articles published from 1993 to 2024, was used. We selected “carbohydrate counting”, “carbohydrate count”, “carbohydrate counts”, “carbohydrate counts”, and similar words as “TOPIC” to search for related articles. All basic information about each article were collected, including authors, countries, citations, and keywords. The findings emphasized the need for continued research in this area and to learn more about studies showing the relationship between carbohydrate counting and the pathophysiology of diabetes, treatment, complications, and technologies. This analysis summarizes the general trends and key findings of research on carbohydrate counting over the past years and provides guidance for future research.

Objective This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of Pycnogenol (PYC) and its antioxidant and antiapoptotic effect in an experimental hypoxic–ischemic (HI) rat model. Study Design A total of 24 Wistar albino rats who were on the seventh postnatal day were divided into three groups with developed HI brain injury model under the sevoflurane anesthesia: 40 mg/kg PYC was given to Group A, saline was given to Group B, and the sham group was Group C. Neuronal apoptosis was investigated by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling and immunohistochemically stained manually with primer antibodies of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β. Results The neuronal cell injury was statistically lower in the PYC treatment group. Conclusion This is the first study that investigates the role of PYC in the HI brain injury model. PYC reduces apoptosis and neuronal injury in the cerebral tissue of the rats. PYC may be a protective agent against hypoxic–ischemic encephalopathy. Key Points

Preklinik çalışmalar, tıp bilimlerinin farklı disiplinlerdeki birçok araştırmanın temelini oluşturmaktadır. Bu çalışmaların önemli bir bölümünde yer alan deney hayvanları; biyolojik, fizyolojik ve patolojik mekanizmaları anlamak, sistem yanıtlarını incelemek ve türler arasındaki ilişkileri ortaya çıkarmak için kullanılan canlı organizmalardır. Deney hayvanları araştırmalarında standardizasyon, deneysel bulgulara etki eden biyolojik ve çevresel faktörlerin benzer olmasını ifade eder. Böylece, benzer araştırma prosedürleri sabit koşullarda bir başka laboratuvarda uygulandığında, eşdeğer ve birbiri ile karşılaştırılabilir sonuçların alınması sağlanır. Standardizasyonu etkileyen öncelikli faktörler, deney içi ve deneyler arası varyasyonların bütünü olarak değerlendirilmektedir. Bu varyasyon kaynakları ile deneyler etkilenir ve farklı bulguların ortaya çıkmasına sebep olur. Standardizasyonun asıl amacı, deneydeki varyasyonları azaltmaktır. Varyasyonların azaltılması istatistiksel olarak çalışmalarda kullanılan hayvan sayısının azaltılmasını ve hayvan refahının artmasını sağlar. Ayrıca, varyasyonların azaltılması zaman ve para israfını da önler. Standardize deneyler; tekrar edilebilirliğe, laboratuvarlar arası karşılaştırılabilirliğe ve bilimsel güvenilirliğe olanak sağlar. Araştırmanın hipotezine uygun deneysel süreç yönetiminin planlanması, prosedürlerdeki yanlılığın en aza indirilmesi, eğer varsa araştırmaya uygulanan iyileştirme tekniklerinin belirtilmesi bilimsel araştırmaların kalitesini artırır. Deney hayvanları araştırmalarında deneysel tasarımdan itibaren uygulanan standardizasyon ile nitelikli araştırmalar artar, bilimsel ilerlemeye katkı sağlar. Dolayısıyla bu derlemenin amacı, güncel paradigmalar ışığında hayvan deneylerinin standartlaştırılmasında, kullanılan deney hayvanlarının çevre, barınma, beslenme koşullarının ve uygulanan deneysel yöntemlerin sabit tutulması ile kontrol altına alınmasının önemini vurgulamak, bu konuda farkındalık yaratmak ve standardize olan ya da olmayan deneylerin hayvan refahı ve araştırma sonuçları üzerindeki etkilerini ortaya koymaktır.