Advances in Traditional Medicine最新文献

The effects of selective inhibitors of phosphodiesterase type 4 (PDE4), rolipram on gastric and brain ischemia/reperfusion injuries were investigated. However, the effects of rolipram on myocardial ischemic/reperfusion (I/R) are not fully understood. Here, it was investigated whether rolipram has protective effects on in vitro and in vivo myocardial I/R. Treatment with rolipram on H9c2 cells significantly inhibited cell death during I/R in a concentration-dependent manner. Rolipram also exerted a profound protective effect on apoptosis by decreasing the apoptosis-induced protein Bax and increasing the inhibitory protein Bcl-2 during I/R. Furthermore, rolipram suppressed the caspase-3 activity in cardiomyocytes exposed to I/R. To further investigate the role of rolipram on in vivo myocardial I/R, in vivo myocardial I/R model was established by ligating left anterior descending artery (LAD) for 1 h followed by 1 h of reperfusion. Compared to ischemic control group, administration of rolipram reduced infarct size and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level against myocardial I/R injury model. These findings indicate that rolipram has protective effect against I/R injury in cardiomyocytes. This beneficial effect is partly dependent on decreased Bax, caspase-3 as well as increased Bcl-2.

During the postpartum period, anxiety emerges as a significant health concern for women, particularly among mothers whose infants are born prematurely. According to Persian Medicine, also known as Traditional Iranian Medicine (PM), anxiety disorders are caused by an imbalance in the brain’s temperament. Recent studies have found a strong connection between one's temperament and overall happiness. Our research aims to explore the link between brain temperament and anxiety levels in mothers of premature infants receiving care in NICUs, drawing upon the principles of PM. In this particular study, 105 mothers with premature infants admitted to NICUs were enrolled based on meeting specific inclusion criteria. The assessment utilized both the “State-Trait Anxiety Inventory” and the “Brain Mizaj Temperament Questionnaire.” The results showed that there was a significant difference in the mean scores of state (overt) anxiety (P = 0.009) and trait (hidden) anxiety (P = 0.006) based on the mothers’ brain temperament, and mothers with a hotter brain temperament had higher levels of overt and hidden anxiety. Consequently, the study’s outcomes suggest a correlation between brain temperament and anxiety levels among mothers with preterm infants hospitalized in NICUs.

Ilex kudingcha C.J. Tseng is a nootropic used throughout Asia that shares a number of metabolites with Ilex paraguariensis used throughout South America. Our previous study using a Drosophila melanogaster rugose model of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) showed that consumption of an Ilex kudingcha extract (IKE) mitigates phenotypic characteristics of ASD and in normal mice, alters gene expression involved in cognition, metabolism, and protein synthesis. This study investigated the effects of IKE on prenatal sodium valproate (VPA) treatment-induced ASD core behavioral deficits and ASD associated behaviors, neurochemical markers and histological changes. IKE administration significantly mitigated these behavioral deficits and damaged Purkinje cells, PTEN expression and oxidative stress and resembled treatment with methylphenidate in its effect upon social behavior. These findings extend our previous study with D. melanogaster and together, indicate that IKE consumption ameliorates ASD-like properties in two animal models of ASD with different etiologies. Potential mechanisms involve reduction of oxidative stress, increased PTEN expression and cerebral Purkinje cell health. These data support further studies of IKE and related species for treatment of ASD.

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Finding a therapeutic agent that is selective, non-toxic to normal cells, and does not develop resistance or unpleasant side effects became the most challenging aspect in cancer therapy. Our study investigates the potential antitumorigenic effects of pomegranate peel extract against human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG₂ cell line. The effect of the extract on cell viability, DNA fragmentation, cell cycle arrest, and expression of cancer related genes in human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line (HepG₂), and normal human hepatocyte cell line (THLE₂) was evaluated using MTT, comet assay, flow cytometry and real time PCR, respectively. Unlike THLE₂ cells, the pomegranate peel extract significantly decreased cell viability accompanied by DNA fragmentation and cell cycle arrest in HepG₂ cells. It also significantly decreased the expression levels of Cyclooxygenase-2, B-cell lymphoma 2, vascular permeability factor, matrix metalloproteinase -9, cyclin B1, and cyclin dependent kinase1 while the expression levels of BCL2-associated X protein, and p21 genes were significantly increased. The obtained results suggest a potential antitumorigenic effect of pomegranate peel extract against HepG₂ cell lines.

Despite the known anti-inflammatory effect of fenugreek seeds (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.), the specific mechanism and compounds responsible for this effect have been less studied so far. This research aimed to fractionate the total methanolic extract and investigate their impact on the iNOS expression in J774A.1 macrophage induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The fractions of the total extract were obtained using semi-preparative HPLC. J774A.1 cells were treated with the highest non-toxic concentration of the samples and bacterial LPS (5 μg/ml). After 24 h, treated and untreated cells were used for RNA extraction, and mRNA levels were determined by qRT-PCR analysis. A total of 30 fractions were obtained with 9 main fractions (F3, F6, F9, F12, F15, F18, F21, F24, and F27) selected for cell studies. F9, total extract, and F15 significantly decreased iNOS gene expression compared to the LPS-treated group (up to 99.3%, 84.7% and 76.5% respectively). Overall, these results suggest that the anti-inflammatory effect of fenugreek seeds and/or fractions may be partially due to the suppression of iNOS. This effect can be attributed to various plant compounds, and further isolation may help identify novel anti-inflammatory compounds become a new inflammation. These findings support the potential of both the extract and the fractions as promising candidates for the treatment of inflammation-related diseases in future research.

Natural products provide a promising source of efficient bioactive compounds against oxidative damage. However, the interactions between phytochemicals affect the antioxidant potency. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the in vitro antioxidant potency of twelve plants used in the central north of Morocco and to analyze the combined effect between the most active extracts. The main active plant extracts were subjected to binary and ternary combinations using the simplex-centroid design. Important synergetic effects were observed and the constrained mixture design allowed the optimization of the mixture presenting the highest antioxidant activity at 90.47%. The results from the present work showed that Moroccan plants such as Inula viscosa, Punica granatum and Crataegus oxyacantha could constitute a promising source for developing antioxidants. Moreover, the antioxidant potency can be enhanced using constrained mixture design.

Nanobiotechnology has been emerging as an interesting scientific branch holds its applicability in biology, medicine etc. Exploiting the capacity of biogenic metal nanoparticles in areas like biomedicine and therapeutics with peculiarities such as eco-friendly, cheap and biocompatible, the green synthesized bimetallic nanopaticles, silver-zinc oxide nanopaticles (Ag–ZnO NPs), were chosen to find out their anticancer properties. Herein, the Ag–ZnO NPs were fabricated by using the leaf extract of Capparis zeylanica (C. zeylanica) plant. Further, the Ag–ZnO NPs were subjected to characterization, and they were tested for their anticancer potential on the breast cancer cells, MDA-MB-231.The cell viability study implied that the IC₅₀ value of MDA-MB-231 cells was 43.46 ± 2.56, achieved at a 10 μg/ml concentration of Ag–ZnO NPs. The NPs-treated cancer cells exhibited the ROS-mediated apoptotic changes that were visualized through fluorescent microscopic images using acridine orange/ethydium bromide (AO/EB) staining, 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI), and propidium iodide (PI) staining. The findings of the current study point out that the green Ag–ZnO NPs seem to be an efficient anticancer agent.

During the recent years, much great deal of research has been conducted on potential use of certain herbs and nutraceuticals to manage nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), specifically with those strong biological activities and antioxidant ability. In our research, the goal is to investigation the protective efficacy of the ethanol extract of Crataegus orientalis fruits (COE) aganist lipid accumulation in oleic acid (OA)-induced hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) at the molecular level. Firstly, antioxidant activity and lipoxygenase activity of the C. orientalis were determined in vitro. For induction of lipid accumulation in HepG2, we established an in vitro model using 1 mM OA. The C. orientalis was evaluated for their ability to prevent from lipid accumulation and effects on sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c), acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC1) and fatty acid synthase (FAS) mRNA levels involved in lipid metabolism. The C. orientalis exhibited moderate antioxidant activity against ABTS and DPPH radicals and a significant anti-inflammatory effect against the 5-lipoxygenase enzyme. The results demonstrated that the COE (100 µg/ml) inhibited lipid accumulation (p < 0.01) and was effective in reducing triglyceride (TG) concentration (p < 0.001) and production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in HepG2 cells (p < 0.05). C. orientalis suppressed mRNA expression of lipid metabolism enzymes (ACC1, FAS) and transcription factor SREBP-1c (p < 0.001, p < 0.001 and p < 0.01, respectively). Our findings recommend that C. orientalis fruits are potentially protective against lipid accumulation in hepatocytes and may have beneficial effects in the treatment of the NAFLD.

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This study explores the effects of halibut oil cream on different phases of wound healing and assess its potential as a supplement for promoting wound healing in rats. The study randomly assigned five groups of male wistar rats to receive different treatments: a vehicle-control group (water-soluble cream base), a positive-control group (Povidone-iodine ointment, PI-5%), and three halibut oil cream formulation (HBOF) treatment groups with strengths of 3, 9, and 27%. An excision wound model was used to induce injury and daily as well as terminal wound healing indices such as wound area contraction, relative wound area percentage, inflammatory and proliferative phases, oxidative stress, and cytokine levels were recorded. Compared to the vehicle control group, both the PI-5% and HBOF treatment groups significantly promoted wound healing. They demonstrated reduced wound size and oxidative stress in regenerated skin tissue. Histopathological examination revealed a marked increase in collagen production, and analysis of cytokine levels indicated enhanced efficacy. These effects can be attributed to the high hydroxyproline content of halibut oil. The findings of this study suggest that topically applying halibut oil cream may serve as a useful supplement for promoting wound healing in rats. The omega-3 fatty acids and other components present such as vitamin A and D in the cream formulation demonstrated beneficial effects on wound size reduction, oxidative stress reduction, collagen production, and cytokine efficacy.

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Graphical Abstract depicting the experimental procedure for studying wound healing. Albino Wistar rats were utilized to create a 500 mm² wound, with varying concentrations of HBOF applied topically from day (D) 1 to 15. The control group received treatment with a water-soluble cream base, while the standard group was treated with Povidone Iodine 5%. On day 16, the skin surrounding the wounds of all animals was carefully dissected, and biochemical, cytokine level, and histopathological evaluations were performed on the skin specimens. Throughout the study, measurements were taken for body weight, the inflammatory phase (D1-5), the proliferative phase (D5-15), and wound area contraction (D1-15).

Dillenia excelsa, a medicinal plant found in Brunei Darussalam, has been traditionally used by locals for treating various ailments. The present study aims to investigate the presence of phytochemicals, antioxidant properties, antibacterial activities and wound healing potential of methanolic extracts of the leaves, fruits, flowers and bark of Dillenia excelsa. Phytochemical screening using frothing test, Salkowski test, Dragendorff’s test and ferric chloride test revealed the presence of saponins, steroids, terpenoids, alkaloids and tannins. The total phenolic content (TPC) investigated using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent and total flavonoid contents (TFC) assessed using aluminium chloride colorimetric assay yielded the highest value of 106.3 ± 2.6 mg gallic acid equivalent per gram (GAE/g) of crude leaves extract and 23.1 ± 0.5 mg quercetin equivalent per gram (QE/g) of crude leaves extract, respectively. The antioxidant capacities of the extracts were assessed and showed the leaves extract has the highest 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity and ferric ion reducing antioxidant power with the value of 156.2 ± 59.3 mg GAE/g of crude extract and 2.77 ± 0.33 mg Trolox equivalent per gram (TE/g) of crude extract, respectively. Antibacterial activities against two gram-positive and two gram-negative strains using agar well diffusion method revealed only the flowers extract showed inhibition against Bacillus subtilis with minimum inhibitory concentration of 40 mg/mL. The in vivo wound healing potential was also carried out using male Wistar rats. The high dose leaves extract (50% w/w) showed the highest reduction in wound size at day 7, 10 and day 14 compared to the control groups and other treatment groups. Based on this present study, D. excelsa was shown to have the potential to promote wound healing and may serve as part of the armamentarium to traditional and complementary medicine.