Current Issue : October - December Volume : 2020 Issue Number : 4 Articles : 5 Articles
Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine if Porphyra tenera extract (PTE) has\nimmune-enhancing effects and is safe in healthy adults. Methods: Subjects who met the inclusion\ncriteria were recruited for this study. Enrolled subjects (n = 120) were randomly assigned to either the PTE group (n = 60) and were\ngiven 2.5 g/day of PTE (as PTE) in capsule form or the placebo group (n = 60) and were given\ncrystal cellulose capsules with the identical appearance, weight, and flavor as the PTE capsules for\n8 weeks. Outcomes were assessed based on measuring natural killer (NK) cell activity, cytokines\nlevel, and upper respiratory infection (URI), and safety parameters were assessed at baseline and\n8 weeks. Results: Compared with baseline, NK cell activity (%) increased for all effector cell-to-target\ncell ratios in the PTE group after 8 weeks; however, changes were not observed in the placebo group\n(p < 0.10). Subgroup analysis of 101 subjects without URI showed that NK cell activity in the PTE\ngroup tended to increase for all effector cell/target cell (E:T) ratios (E:T = 12.5:1 p = 0.068; E:T = 25:1\np = 0.036; E:T = 50:1 p = 0.081) compared with the placebo group. A significant difference between\nthe two groups was observed for the E:T = 25:1 ratio, which increased from 20.3 12.0% at baseline\nto 23.2 12.4% after 8 weeks in the PTE group (p = 0.036). A significant difference was not observed\nin cytokine between the two groups. Conclusion: PTE supplementation appears to enhance immune\nfunction by improving NK cell activity without adverse effects in healthy adults....
The aim of this study was to investigate whether statistically significant differences exist\nregarding pain and the impact on oral quality of life of orthodontic treatment. A conventional brackets\nsystem was compared with low-friction brackets. A total of 90 patients (male = 35, female = 55) were\nchosen for this randomized clinical trial. Pain was assessed at 4, 8, and 24 hours and 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and\n7 days after the start of treatment using the McGill Pain Questionnaire. Oral health-related quality\nof life (OHRQoL) was assessed using the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) questionnaire.\nOral quality of life was assessed at one month, with patients with low-friction brackets describing\nlower levels of pain. The patients with conventional brackets indicated a worse impact on their\nquality of life compared to the group with low-friction brackets. Statistically significant differences\nwere found between the groups, with maximum pain observed between the first 24 and 48 hours,\nand the values of minimum pain are reached after 7 days. The pain and impact on oral quality of life\nwas statistically worse in patients with conventional brackets compared to patients with low-friction\nbrackets. The type of bracket system used was therefore shown to influence patientsâ?? perceptions of\npain and impact on their OHRQoL....
Although several recent studies reported that probiotics might be beneficial for allergic\nrhinitis (AR), the effect of probiotics on AR is not consistent and have not been reproduced between\nstudies. We aimed to determine the effcacy and safety of probiotic NVP-1703, a mixture of\nBifidobacterium longum and Lactobacillus plantarum, in subjects with perennial AR. Adult subjects with\nperennial AR received either NVP-1703 (n = 47) or placebo (n = 48) for four weeks. Total nasal symptom\nscores (TNSS), rhinitis control assessment test (RCAT), blood eosinophil count, allergen-specific\nIgE, and immunological parameters in serum and urine were compared at baseline and after four\nweeks. TNSS changes from baseline at weeks 1, 3, and 4 were significant between the NVP-1703 and\nplacebo groups (p = 0.033, 0.031, and 0.029, respectively). RCAT score showed significant differences\nbetween the NVP-1703 and placebo groups (p = 0.049) at week 4. Dermatophagoides farinae-specific IgE\nlevels and serum IL-10 levels were significantly different between the NVP-1703 and placebo groups\n(p = 0.033 and p = 0.047, respectively). IL-10/IL-4 and IL-10/IL-13 ratios were different between the\nNVP-1703 and placebo groups at week 4 (p = 0.046 and 0.018, respectively). NVP-1703 treatment\nreduced urinary prostaglandin F2 and leukotriene E4 levels (p > 0.05). Therefore, NVP-1703 can be\ntreatment option for perennial AR....
Background: Currently, the immunogenicity of influenza vaccines is assessed by\ndetecting an increase of hemagglutination inhibition (HI) antibodies. As neuraminidase (NA)-based\nimmunity may be significant in protecting against influenza infection, detection of neuraminidase\ninhibiting (NI) antibodies may improve the assessment of the immunogenicity of influenza vaccines.\nMethods: We investigated the immune response to NA in people after immunization with live\ninfluenza vaccines (LAIVs). A number of A/H7NX or A/H6NX viruses were used to detect NI\nantibodies, using an enzyme-linked lectin assay (ELLA). Results: Seasonal LAIV immunization\nstimulated an increase in NI antibodies not only to homologous A/H1N1 influenza, but also to\nA/H1N1pdm09 and A/H5N1 influenza. After A/17/California/09/38 (H1N1) pdm09 LAIV vaccination,\nthere was no statistical relationship between post-vaccinated antibody seroconversion and two surface\nglycoproteins in serum samples obtained from the same individuals (p = 0.24). Vaccination with LAIV\nof H5N2, H2N2, H7N3, and H7N9 subtypes led to 7%â??29.6% NI antibody seroconversions in the\nabsence of HI antibody conversions. There was relatively low coordination of hemagglutinin (HA)\nand NA antibody responses (r = 0.24â??0.59). Conclusions: The previously noted autonomy for HI and\nNI immune responses was confirmed when assessing the immunogenicity of LAIVs. Combining the\ntraditional HI test with the detection of NI antibodies can provide a more complete assessment of\nLAIV immunogenicity....
Chronic hyperglycemia increases oxidative stress, activates inflammatory pathways and\nreduces nerve growth factor (NGF) among diabetic patients, which contribute to development\nof diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Tocotrienol-Rich Vitamin E (Tocovid) possesses potent\nantioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties which are postulated to target these pathogeneses in\norder to ameliorate DPN. This study aims to evaluate the effects of Tocovid on nerve conduction\nparameters and serum biomarkers among diabetic patients. This multicenter, prospective,\nrandomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted on 80 eligible participants.\nThe intervention group (n = 39) was randomly allocated to receive 200 mg of Tocovid twice a\nday, and the control group (n = 41) received placebo twice a day. At the end of eight weeks,\nthe nerve conduction parameters, as assessed by nerve conduction study, as well as serum biomarkers\n(NGF, malondialdehyde, vascular cell adhesion molecule 1, tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 and\nthromboxane B2) were compared between the two groups. Compared to placebo, Tocovid significantly\nimproves the nerve conduction velocities of all nerves (+1.25 m/s, interquartile range [IQR] 3.35,\np < 0.001, median nerve; +1.60 m/s, IQR 1.80, p < 0.001, sural nerve; +0.75 m/s, IQR 2.25, p < 0.001,\ntibial nerve). Meanwhile, the levels of serum NGF were significantly higher in the Tocovid group\nas compared to placebo at eight weeks post-intervention. Participants receiving Tocovid illustrated\nhighly significant improvement in terms of nerve conduction velocities for all nerves tested after\neight weeks of supplementation. In addition, Tocovid supplementation elevated the levels of serum\nNGF, in which its increase is postulated to reflect enhanced neuronal functions. This novel finding\nsuggests that Tocovid could be a disease-modifying agent targeting serum NGF to improve nerve\nconduction velocities....
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