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Biomedical subjects

A Ozkul

Publications and source records attributed to A Ozkul.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

A sheeppox virus outbreak in Central Turkey in 2003: isolation and identification of capripoxvirus ovis.

Poxvirus epidemics occur almost every year and cause significant economic losses for small-scale animal producers in Turkey. In this study, the causative agent of the most recent epidemic in Central Anatolia was detected in clinical samples using electron microscopy (EM) and amplified using an in house polymerase chain reaction procedure for the first time. Additionally, the aetiological agent was isolated from a sheep and identified using EM and PCR.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Serological evidence of West Nile Virus (WNV) in mammalian species in Turkey.

In this study, the sera collected from a variety of mammalian species (ass-mules, cat, cattle, dog, horse, human and sheep) in 10 representative provinces of Turkey, were surveyed for the presence of neutralizing antibodies to West Nile virus (WNV). Overall, 1 of 40 (2.5%) ass-mules, 4 of 100 (4%) cattle, 43 of 114 (37.7%) dogs, 35 of 259 (13.5%) horses, 18 of 88 (20.4%) humans and 1 of 100 (1%) sheep, tested positive for WNV-neutralizing antibodies. The results indicate that a wide range of mammals are exposed to a West Nile-related virus and this could contribute to the long-term survival of this virus in the absence of overt disease.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Synthesis, in vitro cytotoxic and antiviral activity of cis-[Pt(R(-) and S(+)-2-alpha-hydroxybenzylbenzimidazole)2Cl2] complexes.

A pair of enantiomeric platinum(II) complexes of cis-[Pt(R(-) and S(+)-HBB)2Cl2] (HBB=2-alpha-hydroxybenzylbenzimidazole) was synthesized and evaluated for its preliminary in vitro cytotoxic activity on the human MCF-7 breast cancer and HeLa cervix cancer cell lines and antiherpes virus activity against bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1). In general, it was found that Pt(II) complexes were less cytotoxic on both cell lines than cisplatin and were comparable to carboplatin. There was no significant difference in cytotoxicity between two enantiomers, and the antiviral test results showed that the Pt(II) complexes and their carrier ligands R(-) and S(+) HBB had no effects inhibiting replication of BHV-1.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

A viral infection of the hand commonly seen after the feast of sacrifice: human orf (orf of the hand).

Orf of the hand is an uncommon zoonotic infection caused by a dermotropic DNA virus that belongs to the Parapoxvirus genus of the family Poxviridae. It is transmitted to humans through contact with infected sheep and goats and is reported as an occupational disease. We report nine cases of human orf seen in the hands of individuals, who were not occupationally exposed, after the feast of sacrifice in Turkey. Three cases were teachers and six out of the nine were housewives. We observed musculoskeletal complications and misdiagnoses. It is important to consider human orf in the differential diagnosis of hand lesions to prevent overtreatment and complications.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Selective apoptotic behaviour of bovine herpesvirus 1 in an epithelial-like microenvironment.

Apoptosis seems to play an important role in the pathogenic profile of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) infection. Nitric oxide (NO) is also important as a signal molecule. In this study, apoptosis was selectively induced in HEp-2 cells in the early stage [1-3 h postinfection (PI)] of BHV-1 multiplication, and this apoptotic process was realised through the caspase-8, and partially through the caspase-3, pathway. BHV-1 infection inhibited staurosporine- (SS-) induced apoptosis only if the SS was added at 6 h PI. The results of this study showed that the 'NO-apoptosis' relation was realised through the caspase-8 pathway ('outer membrane receptor' pathway) at a later stage of infection in apoptosis induced by BHV-1 + SS. Our previous report (Yazici et al., 2004) and this study together showed that BHV-1 might induce and inhibit cell-type-specific pathways of apoptosis.

Apoptosis↗
PubMed2004

Determination and phylogenetic analysis of canine distemper virus in dogs with nervous symptoms in Turkey.

In the present study, canine distemper virus (CDV) was investigated in 20 dogs having nervous signs arousing the clinical suspicion of canine distemper (CD). A total of 13 animals (65%) were stray dogs and had no accurate record about the vaccination history. Clinical examinations revealed that the majority (85%) of the animals showed systemic form characterised by predominantly nervous symptoms accompanied by mild respiratory system signs whilst the remaining cases (15%) recorded mainly respiratory distress. CDV RNA was detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) only in 45% of the suspected cases. Phylogenetic analysis of partial nucleotide sequence of the P gene coding region revealed that the virus is closely related to European strains. Immune responses in 13 cases (65%), which were detected by dot-ELISA, indicated inefficient levels for neutralising functions against CDV. It was postulated that this response could have been mediated by either previous vaccination or mild infection with field strains.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Study of programmed cell death in bovine herpesvirus 1 infected MDBK cells and the possible role of nitric oxide in this process.

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) is the aetiological agent of many disease types and may predispose infected animals, possibly through immunosuppression, to secondary bacterial infections. Immunosuppression may directly be associated with the induction of programmed cell death (PCD) in some virus-infected cells. Nitric oxide (NO) has an important mediating role against fungal, bacterial, protozoal, viral pathogens and tumours. BHV-1 induced apoptosis between 0.5-3 h postinfection (PI) in MDBK cells; however, between 3 and 6 h PI the PCD response was found to be decreased. It was interesting to see that BHV-I inhibited staurosporin-induced PCD after 1 h. These results showed similarities with those obtained from herpes simplex type I infections in human epithelial cells. PCD response decreased 1 h following caspase-3 inhibitor applications, whereas NO response increased 3 h following infection in the presence of caspase-8 and -9 inhibitory peptides. In conclusion, BHV-1 inhibited the staurosporin-induced apoptotic response and also the NO response. We propose that this inhibition is caspase-3 dependent.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Synthesis, characterization and in vitro cytotoxic, mutagenic and antimicrobial activity of platinum(II) complexes with substituted benzimidazole ligands.

In this study, six Pt(II) complexes bearing 5(6)-H or -CH(3)-2-phenyl or -(2'-pyridyl) or -mercaptomethylbenzimidazole ligands as 'carrier groups' were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR and (1)H-NMR spectra and evaluated for their preliminary in vitro cytotoxic activity to the human RD Rhabdomyosarcoma cell line and mutagenic properties in Salmonella typhimurium strains TA 98 and TA 100 in the absence of the S9 rat liver fraction. The preliminary test results showed that the complexes had slightly greater cytotoxic activity on the RD cell line at 1 microM concentration than cisplatin. Among the compounds tested for their mutagenicity, Pt(II) complexes of 2-(2'-pyridyl)- and 5(6)-methyl-2-(2'-pyridyl)benzimidazoles were found to be mutagenic. A comparative study of the MIC (minimum inhibitory concentration) values indicated that, in general, there were no differences between the poor antimicrobial activity values of the ligands and their Pt(II) complexes with respect to the tested microorganisms. These results suggest that the synthesized Pt(II) complexes should be considered for further antitumor activity studies.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Bone generation on PHBV matrices: an in vitro study.

Bone formation was investigated in vitro by culturing rat marrow stromal osteoblasts in biodegradable, macroporous poly(3-hydroxybutyric acid-co-3-hydroxyvaleric acid) (PHBV) matrices over a period of 60 days. Foams were prepared after solvent evaporation and solute leaching. PHBV solutions with different concentrations were prepared in chloroform: dichloromethane (1:2, v/v). In order to create a matrix with high porosity and uniform pore sizes, sieved sucrose crystals (300-500 microm) were used. PHBV foams were treated with rf-oxygen plasma (100 W 10 min) to modify their surface chemistry and hydrophilicity with the aim of increasing the reattachment of osteoblasts. Osteoblasts were isolated from rat bone marrow and seeded onto PHBV foams. The cell density on and in the foams was determined with MTS assay. MTS results showed that osteoblasts proliferated on PHBV. Twenty-one days after seeding of incubation, growth of osteoblasts on matrices and initiation of mineralization were observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy. Increasing ALP and osteocalcin secretion during 60 days confirmed the osteoblastic phenotype of the derived stromal cells. SEM, histological evaluations and confocal laser scanning microscopy showed that osteoblasts could grow inside the matrices and lead to mineralization. Cells exhibited spindle-like morphology and had a diameter of 10-30 microm. Based on these, it could confidently be stated that PHBV seems to be a promising polymeric matrix material for bone tissue engineering.

Absorbable Implants↗
PubMed2003

Biotypic characterisation of bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in clinical samples.

In this study, bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) was detected and bio-typically characterised in clinical samples using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The RT-PCR technique produced two different amplicons (402 and approx. 680 bp in size) in case of the presence of both biotypes (cp and ncp) in the sample. The mixture of the biotypes as detected by RT-PCR was verified by the immunoplaque assay (IPA). Purification of biotypes was carried out by native plaque isolation and subsequent RT-PCR revealed single products (402 or approx. 680 bp in size) in each clone. The results showed that RT-PCR can be used for accurate molecular differentiation between the BVDV biotypes.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Vacuolating cytotoxic activity of 40 Helicobacter pylori strains isolated from Turkish patients.

In this study we examined the in vitro vacuolating cytotoxic activity of Helicobacter pylori, which is a gram-negative microaerophilic curved bacterium and a causative agent of gastritis, peptic ulcer and gastric ulcer. A vacuolating cytotoxin assay was performed to assess the vacuolating activity of 40 strains (20 gastritis, 11 gastric ulcer, and 9 duodenal ulcer), which were obtained from patients undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. The Vero cell line was used in the cytotoxic assay. Of the 40 isolates, 24 (12 gastritis, 6 gastric ulcer, 6 duodenal ulcer) were cytotoxic for the Vero cell line at 1:4 and 1:8 dilutions. Thus, vacuolating cytotoxin of H. pylori affects the Vero cell line, but it seems there is no correlation between the positivity of the strains and the risk of any particular H. pylori disease.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Bovine herpesvirus 5 glycoprotein E is important for neuroinvasiveness and neurovirulence in the olfactory pathway of the rabbit.

Glycoprotein E (gE) is important for full virulence potential of the alphaherpesviruses in both natural and laboratory hosts. The gE sequence of the neurovirulent bovine herpesvirus 5 (BHV-5) was determined and compared with that of the nonneurovirulent BHV-1. Alignment of the predicted amino acid sequences of BHV-1 and BHV-5 gE open reading frames showed that they had 72% identity and 77% similarity. To determine the role of gE in the differential neuropathogenesis of BHV-1 and BHV-5, we have constructed BHV-1 and BHV-5 recombinants: gE-deleted BHV-5 (BHV-5gEDelta), BHV-5 expressing BHV-1 gE (BHV-5gE1), and BHV-1 expressing BHV-5 gE (BHV-1gE5). Neurovirulence properties of these recombinant viruses were analyzed using a rabbit seizure model (S. I. Chowdhury et al., J. Comp. Pathol. 117:295-310, 1997) that distinguished wild-type BHV-1 and -5 based on their differential neuropathogenesis. Intranasal inoculation of BHV-5 gEDelta and BHV-5gE1 produced significantly reduced neurological signs that affected only 10% of the infected rabbits. The recombinant BHV-1gE5 did not invade the central nervous system (CNS). Virus isolation and immunohistochemistry data suggest that these recombinants replicate and spread significantly less efficiently in the brain than BHV-5 gE revertant or wild-type BHV-5, which produced severe neurological signs in 70 to 80% rabbits. Taken together, the results of neurological signs, brain lesions, virus isolation, and immunohistochemistry indicate that BHV-5 gE is important for efficient neural spread and neurovirulence within the CNS and could not be replaced by BHV-1 gE. However, BHV-5 gE is not required for initial viral entry into olfactory pathway.

Alphaherpesvirinae↗
PubMed2000

Chlamydia and atherosclerotic coronary arterial disease in Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: Chlamydia pneumoniae, which is a Gram(-) intracellular bacteria, besides being a respiratory pathogen, is thought to play an active role in the progress of acute myocardial infarction and chronic coronary artery disease. In this study we aim to determine the frequency of C. pneumoniae in coronary artery lesions of Turkish people. METHODS AND RESULTS: The atherosclerotic material taken from 8 cases by directional atherectomy and from 23 cases by surgical endarterectomy and examined by indirect immunofluorescence (IIFA) test and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). C. pneumoniae positivity was 32.3% (10/31) by IIFA and 29.0% (9/31) by PCR while the evaluation of the methods together yield a positivity of 35.5% (11/31). CONCLUSIONS: A statistically significant difference could not be established between C. pneumoniae positive and negative groups according to age and the classical atherosclerotic risk factors such as diabetes mellitus, smoking, hypercholesterolaemia, hypertension, family history; besides, a statistically significant difference could not be found between the presence of C. pneumoniae and the severity and clinical picture of coronary artery disease.

Chlamydia Infections↗
PubMed2000

Virological and serological studies on the role of PI-3 virus, BRSV, BVDV and BHV-1 on respiratory infections of cattle. I. The detection of etiological agents by direct immunofluorescence technique.

Nasal cells extracted from nasal swabs obtained from 95 cattle with signs of respiratory disease, out of eleven different herds, were tested for BHV-1, PI-3 virus, BRSV and BVDV using direct immunofluorescence technique. Viral antigen positive samples were detected in seven out of eleven herds examined. Of the 95 individual diseased cattle, 19 were found positive for at least one viral antigen. It was found that especially BHV-1 and PI-3 virus are important causative agents in cattle respiratory disease, both or in combination with other pathogenic agents. Multiple infection in virologically positive herds were observed in six (9.8%) of 61 animals tested. The findings reveal that single or multiple infections of selected viruses may be present in an important range in cattle and that direct immunofluorescence technique as a rapid method, based on the detection of viral antigen in nasal swab samples, is useful to establish the viral aetiology of acute bovine respiratory disease caused by these viruses, particularly in the diagnosis of mixed viral infections.

Animals↗