Current Issue : January - March Volume : 2019 Issue Number : 1 Articles : 5 Articles
Doxorubicin (DOX) is a very potent and effective anticancer agent. However, the effectiveness\nof DOX in osteosarcoma is usually limited by the acquired drug resistance. Recently, Vitamin D (Vit-D)\nwas shown to suppress the growth of many human cancer cells. Taken together, we synthesized DOX-Vit\nD by conjugating Vit-D to DOX in order to increase the delivery of DOX into cancer cells and mitigate\nthe chemoresistance associated with DOX. For this purpose, MG63 cells were treated with 10 .. M DOX or DOX-Vit D for 24 h. Thereafter, MTT, real-time PCR and western blot analysis were used to determine\ncell proliferation, genes and proteins expression, respectively. Our results showed that DOX-Vit D,\nbut not DOX, significantly elicited an apoptotic signal in MG63 cells as evidenced by induction of\ndeath receptor, Caspase-3 and BCLxs genes. Mechanistically, the DOX-Vit D-induced apoptogens were\ncredited to the activation of p-JNK and p-p38 signaling pathway and the inhibition of proliferative\nproteins, p-Akt and p-mTOR. Our findings propose that DOX-Vit D suppressed the growth of MG63\ncells by inducing apoptosis while inhibiting cell survival and proliferative signaling pathways. DOX-Vit\nD may serve as a novel drug delivery approach to potentiate the delivery of DOX into cancer cells....
The presence of gamma-oryzanol in rice bran oil can be 10â??20-fold higher than tocopherol\nand tocotrienol. Gamma-oryzanol has various pharmacological properties. The objective of this\nstudy was to evaluate the effectiveness of rice bran extract as a gastroprotective in reducing lesions\nin ethanol-induced acute gastric ulcer models in rat, using the ionic liquid-microwave-assisted\nextraction (IL-MAE) method. Rice bran extract was obtained using the IL-MAE method with ionic\nliquid (IL), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [BMIM]BF4 (concentration 0.7 M), and a\nratio of solid/liquid of 15 g/mL, 15 min extraction time, and 10% microwave power. The rats were\npretreated with rice bran extract at different doses (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg body weight; BW) for\nseven days and subsequently exposed to acute gastric lesions induced by 80% ethanol. Omeprazole\n(36 mg/kg BW) was used as a standard anti-ulcer drug. The ulcer index, gastric juice acidity, and\nmucus levels were measured to assess the degree of gastroprotection. The results showed that the oral\nadministration of rice bran extract at a dose of 400 mg/kg BW significantly inhibited the development\nof ulcer formation by 66.75% and reduced gastric acid levels. Moreover, gamma oryzanol and\nomeprazole protected the gastric mucosa from ethanol-induced gastric lesions by increasing the level\nof gastric mucus. Rice bran extract is effective as a gastroprotective therapy sourced from natural\ningredients in treating the incidence of gastric ulcers. Most likely, this is related to gamma oryzanol\nas a bioactive compound contained in rice bran (Oryza sativa L.)....
Picria fel-terrae extract has been investigated for its hepatoprotective activity. This current\nstudy was conducted to evaluate the subchronic toxic effect of Picria fel-terrae Lour. leaf extract.\nThe subchronic toxicity of ethanol extract of P. fel-terrae leaf was evaluated by OECD (Organization\nfor Economic Cooperation and Development) guidelines. The extract at doses of 125, 250, 500,\n1000 mg/kg body weight (BW) were orally administered to the test animals for 90 days. Signs of\ntoxicity and mortality were observed for 90 days and 118 days. The biochemistry, hematology,\nmacropathology, relative organ weight and histopathology examination was also performed.\nThe macroscopic and microscopic examinations of liver, lung, kidney, spleen and heart displayed\nnormal color and texture after treatment, with ethanol extract P. fel-terrae leaf at doses of 125 and\n250 mg/kg BW. The signs of toxicity, mortality, macroscopic and microscopic changes, as well as\nincreasing biochemistry parameters were observed after treatment, with extract at the dose of 500 and\n1000 mg/kg BW. However, the abnormal value of biochemistry parameters was returned to normal\nwhen the treatment was stopped. There was no effect on hematological parameters at all doses of\nextract. The ethanol extract P. fel-terrae leaf is untoxic for long-term use at dose 125 and 250 mg/kg\nBW. The toxic effect of P. fel-terrae at 500 and 1000 mg/kg BW was reversible....
Multiple myeloma (MM) is the most common cancer affecting the bone and bone marrow\nand remains incurable for most patients; novel therapies are therefore needed. Bortezomib (Btz)\nis an FDA-approved drug for the treatment of patients with MM. However, its severe side effects\nrequire a dose reduction or the potential discontinuation of treatment. To overcome this limitation,\nwe conjugated Btz to a bisphosphonate (BP) residue lacking anti-osteoclastic activity using a\nnovel chemical linker and generated a new bone-targeted Btz-based (BP-Btz) proteasome inhibitor.\nWe demonstrated that BP-Btz, but not Btz, bound to bone slices and inhibited the growth of MM cells\nin vitro. In a mouse model of MM, BP-Btz more effectively reduced tumor burden and bone loss with\nless systemic side effects than Btz. Thus, BP-Btz may represent a novel therapeutic approach to treat\npatients with MM....
Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy metal occurring in the environment as an industrial\npollutant. The systematic accumulation of Cd in the human body may lead to major health problems.\nQuercetin (QE) is a natural flavonoid widely distributed in plants and is a part of human diet.\nMany studies have demonstrated the multiple benefits of QE to humans in protecting cells of our\nbodies. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of QE and Cd on the proliferation of\nastrocytoma 1321N1 cells. Results indicated that the simultaneous exposure of the cells to 200 .. QE and 16 .. Cd significantly reduced cell viability to 6.9 ± 1.6% with respect to vehicle-treated\ncells. Other experiments of QE pre-treatment followed by the exposure to Cd alone or with QE\nindicated significant but decreased ability of QE or Cd to reduce proliferation of the cells compared\nto their co-incubation. Our study suggested a synergetic anti-proliferative interaction of Cd and QE\nin malignantly transformed cells. This adds new information regarding the biological effects of QE....
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