Chronic exposure to UV-C can cause sunburn, skin cancer, oxidative stress as well as photo-aging. Many herbs and plant extracts have recently been recognized as a potential source of sunscreen due to their UV-absorbing properties. Aloe vera L., which has been used for therapeutic purposes by humans for centuries, is also among these plants. In this study, it was aimed to reveal the sunscreen properties of the latex and gel parts of A. vera and the effect of these properties on cells exposed to UV rays. In this study, primarily, the lethal effect of UV-C rays on healthy cells was observed over time. Then, the latex and gel parts of the obtained A. vera plant were separated and spread on the surface of petri dishes as a single and double layer. By adding a determined number of cells of the petri dishes, the protection of A. vera against the lethal effect of 1, 1.5 and 2 hours of UV-C exposure was investigated. According to the study findings, it was determined that both parts of A. vera protect cells against UV-C damage. It is quite remarkable that while all the cells in the control group died as a result of UV-C exposure for 2 hours, vitality was still observed in the double layer latex and gel groups. From this point of view, it has been shown in this study that a protective product that can be made using A. vera can prevent the damages that may develop due to UV-C exposure.

Breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer in women, therefore it has become necessary to find more effective and less toxic drugs to minimize the disadvantages of existing chemotherapeutic agents. The potential anticancer properties of masticadienonic acid, tirucallol and pistachionic acid, which are secondary metabolites isolated from Pistacia vera, has not been reported to date against breast cancer cells. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to assess the antitumor effect of these metabolites and investigate their potential as an anticancer agent. The cytotoxic activity of the secondary metabolites was evaluated by the 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide analysis method, and the apoptotic activity in cells was evaluated by DNA fragmentation and caspase-3 enzyme expression by immunocytochemical analysis. Our results showed that masticadienonic acid and tricallol strongly reduced cell profileration of cancer cell lines. We found that these compounds induced apoptotic processes by enhancing caspase-3 expression and DNA fragmentation. These results suggest that it would be desirable to further investigate these compounds for their anti-breast cancer potential.

Pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) is an important cultivated plant in the Southeastern Anatolia region and its fruits are widely used in the food industry. The previous studies mostly focused on the food minerals and components. However, there is no study on chemical components and biological activity of the soft hulls of the pistachio fruits. In this study, it was focused on the acetone and water extracts of the soft hulls of pistachio fruits. Hence, the acetone extract was subjected to sephadex LH-20 column chromatography and fractioned into five fractions (Frs. A-E) according to molecular weight of components. A triterpen compound isolated from the Fr. B by crystallation method and its chemical structure was characterized as masticadienonic acid by spectroscopic methods. The fractions contain a mixture of the anacardic acids 13:1, 15:2, 15:1 and 17:1 and their derivatives according to their spectroscopic data and GC-MS analysis. Shikimic acid used in the synthesis of the oseltamivir, antiviral agent was also purified at high yield (14.36%) from the water extract of the soft hulls of pistachio fruits. In order to explore the antidiabetic properties of the pure compounds, the extracts and the fractions, their inhibition effects were determined on the activities of digestive enzymes (α-glucosidase and α-amylase). All of the extracts, masticadienonic acid and the fractions containing the anacardic acids strongly inhibited the α-glucosidase activity much more than acarbose. However, all applications exhibited much weaker inhibitory properties againts α-amylase, as compaired to the inhibition effect of the acarbose. Furthermore, the treatments of mesocarps of Pistachio fruits acted as much weaker inhibitors against AChE, whereas the acetone extract and its fractions containing different rates of anacardic acids were powerful agents against BChE as strong as neostigmine and galantamine. The cytotoxic activities of the extracts and the compounds against HUVEC, A549 and H1299 cells were also determined using the MTT analysis method and it was determined that the acetone extract and the compounds, masticadienonic and shikimic acids showed cytotoxic effects on the cells

The choice of polymer and its compatibility with drug used determine the fate of nanoparticle in therapy. There has been limited sources about effect of resomer differentiation in nanoparticle related with physical and chemical properties and also biological activities of product. Therefore, we aimed to formulate docetaxel-loaded polylactic-co-glycolic acid nanoparticles with different molecular weights (Resomer 502 and 504) and terminal groups (Resomer 502H and 504H) and to investigate the effect of these resomers on nanoparticle character, prostate cancer, and healthy cells. Docetaxel-loaded PLGA nanoparticles were prepared by single emulsion solvent evaporation method. Surface characterizations were carried out by zeta sizer and scanning electron microscopy. Encapsulation efficiency, in vitro drug release profiles, and cytotoxic activity were determined. Main effect on the surface morphology of nanoparticles was the molecular weight of the polymer. The groups with acid terminal function have higher encapsulation and reaction efficiency. In all formulations, in vitro release was observed after 334h at pH 7.4 and 240h at pH 5.6. Also, the groups with high molecular weight showed selective cytotoxicity. These resomers especially RG 504 and RG 504H have potential to be used as a low-dose and high-efficiency extended-release drug delivery system in the treatment of prostate cancer.

The Covid-19 pandemic, including our country, has affected 34 million people around the world and caused high death rates and still is. One of the most important points in this process is disinfection, and both surface and air disinfectants have been used frequently. Disinfectants, which are extremely diversified in the market, have started to create danger while protecting us from the virus. It is known that the disinfectants used prevent the contagion of the virus, but we do not have clear information about whether they have destructive effects on the healthy cells of the people who use them. Therefore, in our study, it was aimed to determine the effects of hand disinfectants produced by various brands on our healthy cells. In our study, first of all, the most widely used disinfectants were obtained from the market, and then the cytotoxic (lethal) activity of these disinfectants on healthy cells was determined by in vitro MTT ((3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) analysis. As a result of this study, it was observed that apart from the disinfectant containing hypochlorous acid, other disinfectants have cytotoxic activity against healthy human cells. Despite the increasing need during the pandemic process, we recommend that these disinfectant substances, which are put on the market in large numbers and in a wide variety, should be inspected and necessary measures should be taken so that they can be sold after passing through the quality control stages.

The need to search for natural products that offer a safe alternative to drugs and industrial products that often cause side effects and harm human health is growing over the years. In this study, the water and methanol extracts of the anthocyanin-rich red cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata f. rubra) which is available on markets throughout the year, were examined for their antibacterial activity on Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aereus and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, and for their antifungal activity on Yarrowia lipolytica, Candida albicans and Candida maltophilia. The DNA protective activity of extracts on the pBR322 plasmid was evaluated by exposing pBR322 to UV and adding hydrogen peroxide. Furthermore, the MTT assay was performed on the H1299 lung cancer cell line and the HUVEC cell line as a negative control to evaluate the cytotoxicity of the extracts. The red cabbage extracts were found to have no antibacterial or antifungal activity on the tested microorganisms. The results of DNA protective activity have shown that at a concentration of 50 mg/mL there is a DNA protective activity of the extracts. No effect of the red cabbage extracts on the H1299 cell line as shown by MTT assay results. On the other hand, the decrease in the viability of HUVEC cells started at a concentration of 25 μg/mL and above, reaching 70% at 100 μg/ mL for the water extract and 74 % at 100 μg/ mL for the methanol extract. Further studies to investigate the active components of the DNA protective activity in the red cabbage extracts are required. Further studies are also needed to explore the possibility of incorporating these components in cosmetic products such as sunscreens without causing skin damage.

: There are a lot of environmental allergenic factors; pollens, fungal spores, house dust mites, some fooods and drinks. These factors are harmless for many people in despite of making hypersensitivity any people. This sensitivity is calling “allergy’’. Allergens generally has a protein structure and when Charles Blakey’s discovered of pollens making allergenic diseases in 1873 after that pollens have determined a pivotal role to allergenic diseases. The pollens allergenic qualifications have known orginated layers of exine and intine including of glycoproteins, lipoproteins, polysaccaride and proteins. In this study, we investigated that allergenic proteins of Tilia cordata collected from Gaziantep. T. cordata pollen samples were collected during dissemination period and pollen extract prepared. We used Wodehouse method and prepared slides for determination of pollen morfology and were taken photos under light microscopy and measured morphological parameters. Total concentration of pollen proteins was determined using by BCA method. The amount of T.cordata allergen proteins was calculated as standard graph obtained from BSA. The average diameter of the T. cordata pollens diameter was measured as 88,83 µm and allergenic proteins from T. cordata was determined as significantly high. 1259.28 µg/ml concentration of T. cordata protein was measured. We suggested that this study provides important data to the literature by determining the amount of allergenic protein of T. cordata in this region because of differences about the content of allergenic proteins among regions.

Pistacia vera fruit, one of the leading products of today's sweet and snack sector, which has been seen in the history of the kingdom, are able to support daily nutritional needs and treatment of many diseases due to the phenolic and flavonoid content in the literature. Especially the studies on colon cancer and breast cancer are remarkable potential antitumoral activity of pistachio examined. The aim of this study is to examine in more detail the P. vera plant, in which we have previously tested the methanol-hexane extracts of the seed and the test and obtained positive results. As well as observing the cytotoxic activities of the plant extracts and active ingredients obtained from different parts on the lung cancer cells. After counting A549 and HUVEC cell lines which replicated in the medium, were added on 96 well plate. Then, different part of plants extract and 2 major active ingredients also added. Then MTT dye was applied and measured spectrophotometrically. P. vera extracts and active ingredients which studied cytotoxic activity research were found to be effective in all cell lines in general. Particularly P. vera 's remaining after the fruit parts, methanol extract which obtained from waste containing leaf and stem parts and PVK-1 active agent showed selective activity on normal cells and cancer cells, therefore we consider that it has a high therapeutic index. We believe that this plant should be imparted to sciences and health sector with further studies.