Current Issue : July - September Volume : 2014 Issue Number : 3 Articles : 7 Articles
Background. Osteosarcoma is a highly malignant bone tumour. After the second relapse, the 12-month postrelapse disease-free\r\nsurvival (PRDFS) rate decreases below 20%. Oral Etoposide is often used in clinical practice after surgery as an ââ?¬Å?adjuvantââ?¬Â outside\r\nany protocol and with only limited evidence of improved survival. Viscum album fermentatum Pini (Viscum) is an extract of\r\nmistletoe plants grown on pine trees for subcutaneous (sc) injection with immunomodulatory activity. Methods. Encouraged by\r\npreliminary findings, we conducted a study where osteosarcoma patients free from disease after second metastatic relapse were\r\nrandomly assigned to Viscum sc or Oral Etoposide. Our goal was to compare 12-month PRDFS rates with an equivalent historical\r\ncontrol group. Results. Twenty patients have been enrolled, with a median age of 34 years (range 11ââ?¬â??65) and a median follow-up\r\ntime of 38.5 months (3ââ?¬â??73). The median PRDSF is currently 4 months (1ââ?¬â??47) in the Etoposide and 39 months (2ââ?¬â??73) in the Viscum\r\ngroup. Patients getting Viscum reported a higher quality of life due to lower toxicity. Conclusion. Viscum shows promise as adjuvant\r\ntreatment in prolonging PRDFS after second relapse in osteosarcoma patients. A larger study is required to conclusively determine\r\nefficacy and immunomodulatory mechanisms of Viscum therapy in osteosarcoma patients....
Ethnopharmacological Relevance. TZQ-F has been traditionally used in Traditional ChineseMedicine as a formula for the treatment\r\nof diabetes. Aim of the Study. This study aims to compare the pharmacologic effects and gastrointestinal adverse events between\r\nTZQ-F and acarbose. Methods. The double-blind randomized placebo-controlled fivefold crossover study was performed in 20\r\nhealthy male volunteers. Plasma glucose, plasma IRI, and plasma C-peptide were measured to assess the pharmacologic effects.\r\nFlatus and bowel activity were measured to assess the adverse event of gastrointestinal effect. Results. 3 and 4 tablets of TZQ\r\ndecreased the Cmax of plasma glucose compared with that of the previous day and with placebo. 3 tablets also decreased Cmax\r\nof plasma C-peptide compared with placebo. 4 tablets increased Cmax of plasma insulin after breakfast and the AUC of plasma\r\nC-peptide after breakfast and dinner. 2 tablets did not decrease plasma glucose and elevated the Cmax and AUC of C-peptide after\r\nbreakfast and dinner, respectively. Acarbose 50mg decreased the Cmax of plasma insulin and C-peptide after breakfast and the\r\nCmax of plasma glucose and C-peptide after dinner.The subjects who received TZQ did not report any abdominal adverse events.\r\nConclusions. 3 tablets of TZQ have the same effects as the acarbose...
Drosophila is one of the oldest andmost powerful genetic models and has led to novel insights into a variety of biological processes.\r\nRecently, Drosophila has emerged as a model system to study human diseases, including several important neurodegenerative\r\ndiseases. Because of the genomic similarity between Drosophila and humans, Drosophila neurodegenerative diseasemodels exhibit a\r\nvariety of human-disease-like phenotypes, facilitating fast and cost-effective in vivo genetic modifier screening and drug evaluation.\r\nUsing these models, many disease-associated genetic factors have been identified, leading to the identification of compelling\r\ndrug candidates. Recently, the safety and efficacy of traditional medicines for human diseases have been evaluated in various\r\nanimal disease models. Despite the advantages of the Drosophila model, its usage in the evaluation of traditional medicines is only\r\nnascent.Here, we introduce the Drosophila model for neurodegenerative diseases and some examples demonstrating the successful\r\napplication of Drosophila models in the evaluation of traditional medicines....
Reduced or defective melanin skin pigmentation may cause many hypopigmentation disorders and increase the risk of damage to\r\nthe skin triggered byUVirradiation.Ginsenosides Rb1 and Rg1 havemanymolecular targets including thecAMP-response elementbinding\r\nprotein (CREB), which is involved in melanogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of ginsenosides Rb1 and\r\nRg1 on melanogenesis in human melanocytes and their related mechanisms. The effects of Rb1 and Rg1 on cell viability, tyrosinase\r\nactivity, cellular melanin content and protein levels of tyrosinase, microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF), and\r\nactivation of CREB in melanocytes were assessed. Results showed that Rb1 or Rg1 significantly increased cellular melanin content\r\nand tyrosinase activity in a dose-dependent manner. By contrast, the cell viability of melanocytes remained unchanged. After\r\nexposure to Rb1 or Rg1, the protein levels of tyrosinase, MITF, and phosphorylated CREBwere significantly increased. Furthermore,\r\npretreatmentwith the selective PKAinhibitor H-89 significantly blocked the Rb1- or Rg1-induced increase of melanin content. These\r\nfindings indicated that Rb1 and Rg1 increased melanogenesis and tyrosinase activity in human melanocytes, which was associated\r\nwith activation of PKA/CREB/MITF signaling. The effects and mechanisms of Rb1 or Rg1 on skin pigmentation deserve further\r\nstudy....
Themain reasons for taking daily dietary supplements are tomaintain good health, to improve homeostasis, and to create conditions\r\nfor reducing the risk of disease. Due to growing market demand, the search for effective, nontoxic, natural compounds with\r\nantioxidant and ergogenic properties has increasingly become amatter of interest. This paper describes how a specific combination\r\nof fungal supplements can help improve the performance of endurance athletes.We report the effects of a brief 3-month trial of two\r\nfungal supplements, Ganoderma lucidum and Cordyceps sinensis (3 capsules of O. sinensis and 2 capsules of G. lucidum per day), in\r\n7 healthy male volunteers, aged between 30 and 40 years, who are all amateur cyclists that participate in ââ?¬Å?Gran Fondoââ?¬Â cycling races.\r\nThis trial investigated the effects of fungal supplements on the level of physical fitness of the athletes by monitoring and comparing\r\nthe following biomarkers just before and after physical exertion: the testosterone/cortisol ratio in the saliva and oxidative stress\r\n(DPPH free radical scavenging activity). A decrease of more than 30% in the testosterone/cortisol ratio after race compared to\r\nbefore race was considered as a risk factor for nonfunctional overreaching (NFO) or the overtraining syndrome (OTS). The results\r\nshow that, after 3 months of supplementation, the testosterone/cortisol ratio changed in a statistically significant manner, thereby\r\nprotecting the athletes from NFO and OTS. Antioxidant activity was measured by quantifying the scavenging ability of the human\r\nserumon the synthetic free radical DPPH. After 3months of fungal supplementation, the data demonstrate an increased scavenger\r\ncapacity of free radicals in the athletesââ?¬â?¢ serum after the race, thereby protecting the athletes from oxidative stress....
Jitai tablet (JTT) is a traditional Chinese medicine used to treat neuropsychiatric disorders.We previously demonstrated that JTT\r\ntreatment led to increased level of dopamine transporter (DAT) in the striatum, thus indicating that JTT might have therapeutic\r\npotential for Parkinson�s disease (PD), which is characterized by dysregulated dopamine (DA) transmission and decreased striatal\r\nDAT expression. The aim of this study was to investigate the neuroprotective effect of JTT on MPTP-induced PD mice. Using\r\nlocomotor activity test and rotarod test, we evaluated the effects of JTT (0.50, 0.15, or 0.05 g/kg) on MPTP-induced behavioral\r\nimpairments. Tyrosine hydroxylase TH-positive neurons in the substantia nigra and DAT and dopamine D2 receptor (D2R) levels\r\nin the striatum were detected by immunohistochemical staining and/or autoradiography. Levels of DA and its metabolites were\r\ndetermined by HPLC. In MPTP-treated mice, behavioral impairments were alleviated by JTT treatment. Moreover, JTT protected\r\nagainst impairment of TH-positive neurons and attenuated the MPTP-induced decreases inDAT andD2R. Finally, high dose of JTT\r\n(0.50 g/kg) inhibited the MPTP-induced increase in DA metabolism rate. Taken together, results from our present study provide\r\nevidence that JTT offers neuroprotective effects against the neurotoxicity of MPTP and thus might be a potential treatment for PD....
The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is now on the increase. Evidence from studies carried out globally has\r\nestablished that CAM use is very common and varies among populations. This study investigated patterns of CAM use, perceived\r\nbenefits, and associated harm with CAM use among adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted in three local government\r\nareas of Enugu urban, Southeast Nigeria. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from all consenting\r\nadult participants aged between 18 and 65 years. Of the 732 participants interviewed, 62.8% were females while 37.2% were males.\r\nMajority (84.7%) of the participants had used CAM at one time or another. The most commonly used CAM product was the\r\nbiological products, followed by spiritual therapy. The major route of administration for CAM products was oral and about 40%\r\nof the participants combined CAM with conventional medicine. Majority (78.6%) of CAM users benefited from CAM products\r\nafter using them while a few complained of adverse reactions. As CAM is gaining widespread acceptance and use, there is need\r\nfor clinical trial on the benefits and adverse effects associated with the use of CAM to facilitate proof of efficacy and safety of the\r\nproducts....
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