Effect of two different extracts of red maca in male rats with testosterone-induced prostatic hyperplasia

Aim： To determine the effect of two different extracts of red maca in male rats. Methods： Prostatic hyperplasia was induced in male rats with testosterone enanthate （TE）. The study comprised six groups： one control group （group 1）, one group treated with TE （group 2）, two groups treated with TE and aqueous extract of red maca （groups 3 and 4）, one group treated with hydroalcoholic extract of red maca （group 5） and one group treated with finasteride （0.1 mg, group 6）. Differences in the aqueous extract dependent on the length of time of boiling, whether for 2 or 3 hours, for groups 3 and 4 was assessed. Extracts of red maca contained 0.1 mg of benzylglucosinolate. Thereafter, a doseresponse effect of different doses of benzylglucosinolates （0.02-0.08 mg） in red maca extracts was assessed. Results： Prostate weight was similar in rats treated with freeze-dried aqueous extract of red maca prepared after 2 and 3 hours of boiling. Freeze-dried aqueous extract of red maca, hydroalcoholic extract of red maca and finasteride reduced prostate weight in rats with prostatic hyperplasia. No difference was observed between the data obtained from aqueous extract or hydroalcoholic extract of red maca. A dose dependent reduction of prostate weight was observed with the increase of the dose of benzylglucosinolates in red maca extracts. Conclusion： The present study showed that hydroalcoholic or aqueous extract of red maca containing 0.1 mg of benzylglucosinolate can reduce prostate size in male rats in which prostatic hyperplasia had been induced by TE.     

Skeletal actions of intermittent parathyroid hormone: effects on bone remodelling and structure

Intermittent administration of parathyroid hormone peptides has anabolic skeletal effects and reduces fracture risk in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis but the cellular and structural mechanisms by which these effects are mediated have not been fully established. In cancellous and endocortical bone, there is evidence that both modelling and remodelling-based formation contribute to the increase in bone mass although the contribution of these at different time points in the response to PTH has not been established. Despite the large increase in spine bone mineral density, however, significant increases in iliac crest cancellous bone volume and trabecular thickness have not been consistently demonstrated, possibly reflecting site-specific differences in PTH-induced skeletal effects and/or the large sampling and measurement variance associated with assessment of iliac crest cancellous bone volume and structure. In iliac crest cortical bone, increased cortical thickness has been demonstrated, due at least in part to increased endosteal bone formation; there is also some evidence for increased formation on periosteal surfaces. At some sites an increase in cortical porosity may also occur and the overall effects on cortical bone strength, particularly at the hip, remain to be established. Studies in iliac crest bone indicate a trend towards a lower mineralisation density of bone matrix and increased heterogeneity of mineralisation, consistent with new bone formation. In addition, there is a reduction in mineral crystallinity and a shift towards more divalent collagen cross-links, indicating a change towards a younger bone profile.

The potential clinical implications of these effects on bone are currently unknown. The stimulatory effect of PTH peptides on bone formation may favour their use in low turnover bone disease and in states of advanced bone loss. Furthermore, if beneficial effects on cortical bone strength are confirmed, efficacy at non-vertebral sites might be superior to those observed with antiresorptive drugs. Better definition of the effects of intermittent PTH administration on cancellous and cortical bone remodelling and structure at different skeletal sites may inform these speculations and is an important area for future research.     

Circumcision in Australia: prevalence and effects on sexual health

The results from a telephone survey in 2001-02 of a probability sample of Australian households including 10,173 men aged 16-59 (response rate 69.4%) are used to assess the prevalence of circumcision across social groups in Australia and examine lifetime history of sexually transmissible infection (STI), sexual difficulties in the last year, sexual practices including masturbation, and sexual attitudes. More than half (59%) of the men were circumcised. Circumcision was less common among younger men (32% aged <20) and more common among the Australian born (69%). After correction for age, circumcision was unrelated to reporting STI, but appeared to protect against penile candidiasis. Circumcision was unrelated to most sexual difficulties, but circumcised men were less likely to report physical pain during intercourse or trouble keeping an erection; reasons for this are unknown. There were no significant differences in practices at last sexual encounter with a female partner or in masturbation alone. Circumcised men had somewhat more liberal sexual attitudes. Neonatal circumcision was routine in Australia until the 1970s. It appears not to be associated with significant protective or harmful sexual health outcomes. This study provides no evidence about the effects on sexual sensitivity.     

Pharmacological characterization of 1-(5-chloro-6-(trifluoromethoxy)-1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl)-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylic acid (JNJ-42041935), a potent and selective hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor

The hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) prolyl hydroxylase (PHD) enzymes represent novel targets for the treatment of anemia, ulcerative colitis, and ischemic and metabolic disease inter alia. We have identified a novel small-molecule inhibitor of PHD, 1-(5-chloro-6-(trifluoromethoxy)-1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl)-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylic acid (JNJ-42041935), through structure-based drug design methods. The pharmacology of JNJ-42041935 was investigated in enzyme, cellular, and whole-animal systems and was compared with other compounds described in the literature as PHD inhibitors. JNJ-42041935, was a potent (pK(I) = 7.3-7.9), 2-oxoglutarate competitive, reversible, and selective inhibitor of PHD enzymes. In addition, JNJ-42041935 was used to compare the effect of selective inhibition of PHD to intermittent, high doses (50 μg/kg i.p.) of an exogenous erythropoietin receptor agonist in an inflammation-induced anemia model in rats. JNJ-42041935 (100 μmol/kg, once a day for 14 days) was effective in reversing inflammation-induced anemia, whereas erythropoietin had no effect. The results demonstrate that JNJ-42041935 is a new pharmacological tool, which can be used to investigate PHD inhibition and demonstrate that PHD inhibitors offer great promise for the treatment of inflammation-induced anemia.     

Situational analysis of teaching and learning of medicine and nursing students at Makerere University College of Health Sciences

Background

Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS) in Uganda is undergoing a major reform to become a more influential force in society. It is important that its medicine and nursing graduates are equipped to best address the priority health needs of the Ugandan population, as outlined in the government’s Health Sector Strategic Plan (HSSP). The assessment identifies critical gaps in the core competencies of the MakCHS medicine and nursing and ways to overcome them in order to achieve HSSP goals.

Methods

Documents from the Uganda Ministry of Health were reviewed, and medicine and nursing curricula were analyzed. Nineteen key informant interviews (KII) and seven focus group discussions (FGD) with stakeholders were conducted. The data were manually analyzed for emerging themes and sub-themes. The study team subsequently used the checklists to create matrices summarizing the findings from the KIIs, FGDs, and curricula analysis. Validation of findings was done by triangulating information from the different data collection methods.

Results

The core competencies that medicine and nursing students are expected to achieve by the end of their education were outlined for both programs. The curricula are in the process of reform towards competency-based education, and on the surface, are well aligned with the strategic needs of the country. But implementation is inadequate, and can be changed:? Learning objectives need to be more applicable to achieving competencies.? Learning experiences need to be more relevant for competencies and setting in which students will work after graduation (i.e. not just clinical care in a tertiary care facility).? Student evaluation needs to be better designed for assessing these competencies.

Conclusion

MakCHS has made a significant attempt to produce relevant, competent nursing and medicine graduates to meet the community needs. Ways to make them more effective though deliberate efforts to apply a competency-based education are possible.

     

Cardiac arrhythmia: a simple conceptual framework

This review presents a simple trigger-substrate model of arrhythmogenesis and its application to the generation of reentrant ventricular arrhythmias. We demonstrate its broad applicability to the understanding of arrhythmic phenomena in a wide range of both hereditary and acquired arrhythmic disorders.     

Factors Associated with Parent–Child Communication About HIV/AIDS in the United States and Kenya: A Cross-Cultural Comparison

This study explored parent–child communication about HIV/AIDS among two populations disproportionately affected by HIV. Similar computer-assisted surveys were completed by parents of pre-teens, including 1,115 African American parents of 9–12-year-old children in southeastern US and 403 parents of 10–12-year-old children in Nyanza Province, Kenya. Multivariate analyses identified factors associated with parental report of ever talking to their child about HIV/AIDS. Twenty-nine percent of US parents and 40% in Kenya had never talked to their pre-teen about HIV/AIDS. In both countries, communication was more likely if parents perceived their child to be ready to learn about sex topics, had gotten information to educate their child about sex, and had greater sexual communication responsiveness (skill, comfort, and confidence communicating about sexuality). Programs are needed that help parents assess children’s readiness to learn about sexual issues; access accurate information about adolescent sexual risks; and acquire the responsiveness needed to discuss sexual issues, including HIV/AIDS.     

Location of gliomas in relation to mobile telephone use: a case-case and case-specular analysis

The energy absorbed from the radio-frequency fields of mobile telephones depends strongly on distance from the source. The authors' objective in this study was to evaluate whether gliomas occur preferentially in the areas of the brain having the highest radio-frequency exposure. The authors used 2 approaches: In a case-case analysis, tumor locations were compared with varying exposure levels; in a case-specular analysis, a hypothetical reference location was assigned for each glioma, and the distances from the actual and specular locations to the handset were compared. The study included 888 gliomas from 7 European countries (2000-2004), with tumor midpoints defined on a 3-dimensional grid based on radiologic images. The case-case analyses were carried out using unconditional logistic regression, whereas in the case-specular analysis, conditional logistic regression was used. In the case-case analyses, tumors were located closest to the source of exposure among never-regular and contralateral users, but not statistically significantly. In the case-specular analysis, the mean distances between exposure source and location were similar for cases and speculars. These results do not suggest that gliomas in mobile phone users are preferentially located in the parts of the brain with the highest radio-frequency fields from mobile phones.