published_or_final_version / Pharmacology and Pharmacy / Master / Master of Philosophy

Hyperglycemia is associated with a higher risk for the development of cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis and hypertension. Hyperglycemia-induced generation of reactive oxygen species and the endothelial dysfunction largely account for this phenomenon. Ergothioneine is a naturally occurring amino acid that is abundantly found in mushroom. Numerous benefits have been found associated with ergothioneine such as cation chelating, regulation of gene expression, improvement in immunity and bioenergetics, and of most concern its antioxidative property. The aim of this study was to investigate whether mushroom extract and synthetic ergothioneine can exert protective effect on endothelial cells against oxidative stress. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells served as the cell model. Pyrogallol, hydrogen peroxide and high glucose were used to create the oxidative stress condition in endothelial cells. Biochemical assay was used to measure the viability of the cells. It was found that only the mushroom extract could significantly reduce the cell death induced by pyrogallol. Both the mushroom extract and synthetic ergothioneine significantly decreased the cell death induced by high glucose. However, neither mushroom extract nor synthetic ergothioneine have any positive effect on hydrogen peroxide-induced cell death. These results indicated that mushroom extract and synthetic ergothioneine did exert certain level of protective effect on endothelial cells. However, this protective effect is relatively weak. Besides, it is still unclear if antioxidation is the sole mechanism accounting for the cytoprotective effect of ergothioneine. Further investigation is required to examine if other mechanisms are also involved. / published_or_final_version / Pharmacology and Pharmacy / Master / Master of Medical Sciences

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Key aspects of the basic agronomy Camelina sativa were evaluated under controlled environment conditions and at multiple field locations in 2011 and 2012. Camelina is a highly adaptable crop. It germinates well even under low water availability and has a great potential for yield compensation. The line CDI007 was the most promising genotype with the highest yield potential, the lowest glucosinolate content, and the highest tolerance to downy mildew. The optimum N rate for seed yield varied by year and location: 100 kg N/ha at Truro and Canning in 2011, 120-150 kg N/ha at Canning, Truro and New Glasgow, 160-200 kg N/ha at Fredericton in 2012. N was positively correlated with protein content, but negatively correlated with oil content. Application of sulphur increased protein content at all of the sites and yield at some of the sites. In general, camelina response to S was maximized when N was sufficient.

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