Academic Journal
Curative and protective effects of fenugreek seeds extract-loaded zinc oxide nanoparticles against lung damage and intestinal dysplasia induced by experimental cryptosporidiosis.
| Title: | Curative and protective effects of fenugreek seeds extract-loaded zinc oxide nanoparticles against lung damage and intestinal dysplasia induced by experimental cryptosporidiosis. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Hassan ZR; Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt; Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Benha National University (BNU) Qalyubia, Egypt. Electronic address: zenabramadan.medg@azhar.edu.eg., Shaaban YM; Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Mahmoud EM; Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Ahmed HG; Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Mohammed Ali AM; Department of Histology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Elshora SZ; Department of Histology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Koullah MT; Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Fahmy RKE; Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Seliem N; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Badr University in Cairo (BUC), Cairo, Egypt., Sedira MH; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Mohamed SA; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine for Girls Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt., Samir M; Department of Pathology Faculty of Medicine Assiut, Al-Azhar University, Assiut, Egypt., Zakaria M; Department of Educational Central Lab, Women College, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt; Department of Pharmaceutical Production Technology, Faculty of Applied Health Science Technology, October Technological University, Giza, Egypt., Atta SA; Department of Immunology Theodor Bilharz Research Institute Giza, Egypt; Department of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research Center, Misr University for Science and Technology, Giza, Egypt., Dahpy MA; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt; Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Armed Forces College of Medicine (AFCM), Cairo, Egypt. |
| Source: | Experimental parasitology [Exp Parasitol] 2026 Oct; Vol. 289, pp. 109198. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Sep 09. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Academic Press Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 0370713 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1090-2449 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00144894 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Exp Parasitol Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: Orlando, FL : Academic Press Original Publication: New York. |
| MeSH Terms: | Zinc Oxide*/therapeutic use , Zinc Oxide*/administration & dosage , Plant Extracts*/therapeutic use , Plant Extracts*/administration & dosage , Plant Extracts*/pharmacology , Cryptosporidiosis*/drug therapy , Cryptosporidiosis*/complications , Cryptosporidiosis*/pathology , Trigonella*/chemistry , Lung Diseases*/prevention & control , Lung Diseases*/parasitology , Lung Diseases*/drug therapy, Lung/pathology ; Lung/parasitology ; Lung/drug effects ; Thiazoles/therapeutic use ; Thiazoles/administration & dosage ; Thiazoles/pharmacology ; Intestines/pathology ; Intestines/parasitology ; Seeds/chemistry ; Cyclin D1/metabolism ; Cyclin D1/analysis ; Oxidative Stress/drug effects ; Caspase 3/metabolism ; Intestinal Diseases/prevention & control ; Intestinal Diseases/parasitology ; Intestinal Diseases/drug therapy ; Animals ; Mice ; Nitro Compounds ; Male ; Female ; Nanoparticles ; Parasite Egg Count ; Random Allocation |
| Abstract: | Cryptosporidiosis is a global health concern that causes mortality and morbidity in children and immunocompromised patients. The currently available anticryptosporidial agent, nitazoxanide (NTZ), has limited efficacy in cases of low immunity. This study aimed to evaluate the curative and protective effects of fenugreek (FNK) extract-loaded zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) against lung damage and intestinal dysplasia induced by experimental cryptosporidiosis. Eighty mice were divided into eight groups (ten mice per subgroup): non-infected non-treated, infected non-treated, infected receiving ZnO NPs, infected receiving NTZ, infected receiving FNK extract, infected receiving FNK- loaded ZnO NPs, infected receiving NTZ-loaded ZnO NPs, and infected receiving both NTZ and FNK extract-loaded ZnO NPs. Assessment parameters included oocyst shedding counts, histopathological and cyclin D1 immunohistochemical analysis in intestinal and lung tissues, evaluation levels of serum IL-17 levels and tissue oxidative stress markers (MDA, NO, SOD, and CAT), and expression of apoptotic gene markers (BCL-2 and caspase-3). The results demonstrated that treatment with ZnO NPs loaded NTZ and FNK extract yielded the most significant reduction in oocyst shedding, along with marked improvement in lung damage and intestinal dysplasia. Furthermore, this treatment was associated with negative cyclin D1 expression, near-normal levels of IL-17 and oxidative stress markers, and normalized BCL-2 and caspase-3 expression. Thus, the curative and protective activity of NTZ in cryptosporidiosis was enhanced when combined with FNK extract and loaded onto ZnO NPs. (Copyright © 2026 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that there is no financial funding or conflict of interest. AI technology was not used to write or edit this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Albendazole; BCL-2; Caspase-3; Cryptosporidiosis; Cyclin D1; Fenugreek; IL-17; Nitazoxanide; Oxidative stress markers; ZnO NPs |
| Substance Nomenclature: | SOI2LOH54Z (Zinc Oxide) 0 (Plant Extracts) SOA12P041N (nitazoxanide) 0 (Thiazoles) 0 (Nitro Compounds) 136601-57-5 (Cyclin D1) EC 3.4.22.- (Caspase 3) 68990-15-8 (fenugreek seed meal) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260909 Date Completed: 20261007 Latest Revision: 20261007 |
| Update Code: | 20261008 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.exppara.2026.109198 |
| PMID: | 42716365 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1090-2449 |
|---|---|
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.exppara.2026.109198 |