Antioxidant,anticholinesterase and tyrosinase inhibition activities,and fatty acids of Crocus mathewii – A forgotten endemic angiosperm of Turkey

Context We report the first ever chemical/biochemical study on Crocus mathewii Kerndorff (Iridaceae) – a Turkish endemic angiosperm. This plant has never been explored for its phytochemistry and bioactivities.

Objective This study explores C. mathewii corm and aerial parts for the chemical and biological properties of hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol and water fractions of the extracts.

Material and methods Plant material (20 g) was extracted by methanol (250?mL?×?5, 3 days each) and fractioned into hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol and water. All fractions were subjected to β-carotene–linoleic acid, DPPH^·, ABTS^·+, CUPRAC, metal chelating and tyrosinase inhibition activities. Hexane fractions were submitted to GC–MS analysis.

Results Ethyl acetate fractions showed excellent IC₅₀ values in DPPH^· (aerial 36.21?±?0.76 and corm 33.87?±?0.02?mg/L) and ABTS^·+ (aerial 33.01?±?0.79 and bulb 27.87?±?0.33?mg/L); higher than the IC₅₀ of the standard α-tocopherol (DPPH 116.25?±?1.97; ABTS 52.64?±?0.37?mg/L), higher than BHA in DPPH (57.31?±?0.25?mg/L), but slightly lower in ABTS (19.86?±?2.73?mg/L). Methanol extract of aerial parts also showed higher activity than α-tocopherol in DPPH (85.56?±?11.51?mg/L) but slightly less (72.90?±?3.66?mg/L) than both the standards in ABTS. Linoleic (aerial 53.9%, corm 43.9%) and palmitic (aerial 22.2%, corm 18%) were found as the major fatty acids.

Discussion and conclusion Some fractions of C. mathewii showed higher antioxidant activities than the standards. There is a need to explore more about this plant.     

Protective effects of thymoquinone and methotrexate on the renal injury in collagen-induced arthritis

The goal of this investigation was to study the protective effects of thymoquinone (TQ) and methotrexate (MTX) on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in rats. On day 0 under ether anesthesia, the experimental groups were immunized with 0.5 mg native chick collagen II (CII) solubilized in 0.1 M acetic acid and emulsified in Freund's incomplete adjuvant. Control rats were gavaged with vehicle, whereas CII was administered intradermally. In addition, arthritis treated with TQ group received TQ (10 mg kg(-1) bw by gavage once a week for 3 weeks starting on day 0); and arthritis treated with MTX group received MTX (MTX was suspended in corn oil and administered by gavage at 1 mg kg (-1) bw once a week for 3 weeks starting on day 0). A significant decrease in the incidence and severity of arthritis by clinical and radiographic assessments was found in recipients of therapy, compared with that of controls. The MTX treatment significantly (P<0.01) decreased the elevated serum NO, urea and creatinine in arthritic rats. Likewise, TQ treatment was also able to reduce significantly (P<0.05) serum NO, urea and creatinine levels, but to lesser extent than MTX. The histopathologic abnormalities are consistent with the hydropic epithelial cell degenerations and moderate tubular dilatation in the some proximal and distal tubules. The severity of the degenerative changes in most of the shrunken glomerules and vascular congestion were also observed in arthritic animals. Preventive treatment of TQ and especially MTX significantly inhibited kidney dysfunction and this histopathologic alterations. These studies indicate that TQ can be used similar to MTX as a safe and effective therapy for CIA and may be useful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.     

Composition,antimicrobial activity and in vitro cytotoxicity of essential oil from Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume (Lauraceae)

The essential oil from the bark of Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume was analyzed by GC–MS and bioassays were carried out. Nine constituents representing 99.24% of the oil were identified by GC–MS. The major compounds in the oil were (E)-cinnamaldehyde (68.95%), benzaldehyde (9.94%) and (E)-cinnamyl acetate (7.44%). The antimicrobial activity of the oil was investigated in order to evaluate its efficacy against 21 bacteria and 4 Candida species, using disc diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration methods. The essential oil showed strong antimicrobial activity against all microorganisms tested. The cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of the essential oil on ras active (5RP7) and normal (F2408) fibroblasts were examined by MTT assay and acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining, respectively. The cytotoxicity of the oil was quite strong with IC₅₀ values less than 20 μg/mL for both cell lines. 5RP7 cells were affected stronger than normal cells. Morphological observation of apoptotic cells indicated the induction of apoptosis at the high level of the oil, especially in 5RP7 cells. The present study showed the potential antimicrobial and anticarcinogenic properties of the essential oil of cinnamon bark, indicating the possibilities of its potential use in the formula of natural remedies for the topical treatment of infections and neoplasms.     

Mean Platelet Volume is Associated with Diabetic Macular Edema in Patients with Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus

Aim: To evaluate the effect of the platelet indices on the stage of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and diabetic macular edema (DME). Methods: In this retrospective study, the mean platelet valume (MPV), Plateletcrit (PCT), platelet (PLT), and platelet distribution width (PDW) of 199 diabetic patients and 76 healthy subjects were enrolled. The participants were divided into four groups. The first group was healthy control; the second group consisted of diabetic patients without DR; the third group was nonproliferative DR (NPDR); and the fourth group was proliferative DR (PDR). Results: Significant differences were found only in MPV and PCT values between patients with diabetes and healthy participants (8.6±0.96 fL vs 8.32±0.9 fL, P=0.011, 0.216± 0.58 vs 0.202±0.52, P=0.038). Comparing the groups, a statistically significant difference in MPV values was found between groups 4 and 1 (8.91±.7 fL vs 8.32±0.9 fL P=0.001) and between groups 4 and 3 (8.91±.7 fL vs 8.42±0.9 fL P=0.014). The MPV values of patients with DME were significantly higher than those of diabetic patients without DME (8.87±0.80 fL vs 8.45±0.97 fL). Conclusion: High MPV values may be an important risk factor for the development of PDR and DME in patients with diabetic retinopathy.     

The effect of socioeconomic factors on quality of life after treatment in patients with head and neck cancer

PURPOSE: To determine the effect of socioeconomic factors on quality of life (QoL) after treatment in patients with head and neck carcinoma (HNC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study population included 50 HNC patients seen in their control examinations after radiotherapy during a 2-month interval and who were willing to complete the Short-Form 36 QoL questionnaire. Socioeconomic, demographic, and tumor- and treatment-related factors were analyzed for their effect on physical component summary score (PCS) and mental component summary score (MCS) using the Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS: All patients received radiotherapy, and 33 patients (66%) underwent surgery for the primary tumor and/or neck disease. Chemotherapy was given in 9 patients (18%). Mean PCS and MCS were 47.9 (range, 24.8-59.3) and 46.7 (range, 22-63.3) for the whole patient population. There was no significant factor affecting PCS. Education level of "middle school or higher," perceived economic status of "medium or higher," social security status of not being "absent or minimally covered," and unilateral type of neck surgery were found to increase MCS significantly. According to separate linear regression analyses performed for three socioeconomic variables, the most significant factor for MCS was social security status compared with education level and perceived economic status. It was the only parameter that retained its significance when all five parameters were combined in a linear regression model. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that educational status, perceived economic status, and social security status showed a significant effect on the QoL of HNC patients after radiotherapy. When all variables were taken into account, only "social security status" remained significant.     

CYP1A1 gene polymorphism and polycystic ovary syndrome

The aim of this study was to assess the rates of variant alleles of cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). It was designed as a case-control study in Hacettepe University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Genetics. Forty-eight patients with PCOS served as the study group. Ninety-six regularly cycling women with no clinical and biochemical evidence of hyperandrogenism and polycystic ovary appearance served as the controls. The CYP1A1 variant alleles of all patients were determined via polymerase chain reaction. The rate of the CYP1A1 isoleucine (Ile)/valine (Val) allele was significantly higher in patients with PCOS than in the controls (OR: 7.8, 95% CI: 3.45-17.52, P < 0.001). However, there was no statistically significant difference in the distribution of Val/Val genotype (OR: 4.0, 95% CI: 0.60-26.73). The rate of any Val genotype (Ile/Val or Val/Val) was significantly higher in patients with PCOS compared with the control group (OR: 7.4, 95% CI: 3.33-16.46, P < 0.001). In conclusion, the patients with PCOS had a 7.8-fold higher frequency of CYP1A1 Ile/Val genotype and a 7.4-fold higher frequency of CYP1A1 of any Val genotype (Ile/Val or Val/Val).     

Factors affecting live birth rate in intrauterine insemination cycles with recombinant gonadotrophin stimulation

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to identify the prognostic factors that influence the outcome of ovarian stimulation with intrauterine insemination (IUI) cycles using gonadotrophins in couples with unexplained and mild male-factor subfertility. A total of 838 cycles in 456 women with unexplained and mild male-factor subfertility attending a university-based infertility clinic was evaluated. Of these cycles, 139 resulted in pregnancy (16.6% per cycle) and 96 out of 98 ongoing pregnancies resulted in live term birth. Live birth rate per patient and per cycle was 21.1% and 11.4%, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that duration of infertility (P = 0.034), type of infertility (P = 0.003), aetiology of infertility (P = 0.004), number of treatment cycles (P = 0.0001) and number of dominant follicles before human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG; P = 0.024) were significant independent factors to predict clinical pregnancy. The duration of infertility (P = 0.043), number of treatment cycles (P = 0.0001) and number of dominant follicles before HCG (P = 0.024) were significant independent factors to predict live birth. In conclusion, for subfertile couples having shorter duration of subfertility, multifollicular response to gonadotrophins and in their first treatment cycle are more likely to succeed a live birth with IUI treatment using recombinant gonadotrophins.     

Neurophysiologic basis of Back-Shu and Huatuo-Jiaji points

Acupuncture, a method of traditional Chinese medicine that uses Back-Shu and Huatuo-Jiaji points, is especially effective for treating diseases of the visceral organs. Applying acupuncture on Back-Shu points affects visceral organs in many ways. For example, it dilates the bronchus, affects the heartbeat, stomach motility, urinary bladder contractions and so on. Acupuncture's effects can be explained as viscero-cutaneous, cutaneo-visceral, cutaneo-muscular, and viscero-muscular reflexes. Segmental dispersion of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems is related to the location of Back-Shu points. Changes in visceral organs caused by application of acupuncture can be explained as modulation of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems.