Antinociceptive and Antihyperglycemic Effects of Melissa officinalis Essential Oil in an Experimental Model of Diabetes

Objective

The efficacy of oral administration of Melissa officinalis essential oil (MOEO) on hyperalgesia was investigated using the formalin test in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats.

Materials and Methods

Animals were divided into control, MOEO-treated control (0.01, 0.02 and 0.04 mg/day), diabetic and MOEO-treated diabetic (0.01, 0.02 and 0.04 mg/day) groups. Nociceptive testing was performed on male adult Wistar rats 4 weeks after the onset of hyperglycemia. At the end of the experiment, all rats were weighed and plasma glucose measurements were performed.

Results

Diabetes was associated with significant hyperalgesia during both phases of the formalin test. MOEO (0.04 mg/day) completely reversed hyperalgesia in diabetic rats, while MOEO (0.02 and 0.04 mg/day) caused less intensive nociceptive behaviors during both phases of the test in control rats. MOEO at both high doses restored euglycemia and reduced the body weight of treated diabetic animals compared to untreated diabetic animals. The 0.01-mg dose of MOEO did not alter pain responses in the control or diabetic groups compared to their respective controls.

Conclusions

This study shows that chronic administration of MOEO displays efficacy in an experimental model of diabetic hyperalgesia. MOEO may therefore show promise as a treatment for painful diabetic neuropathy.Key Words: Hyperalgesia, Diabetes, Melissa officinalis, Rats     

Bacterial Analysis of Peri-implantitis and Chronic Periodontitis in Iranian Subjects

Chronic periodontitis (CP) and peri-implantitis (PI) are multifactorial diseases of tooth and implant supporting apparatus. Bacterial invasion and consequent host immune response seem to play a role in relevant pathogenesis. The structural differences between tooth and implant pose preferential biofilm colonization. This study was aimed to compare the prevalence of bacteria in CP and PI. Clinical and radiographic examination performed over 69 individuals referred to Shahid Beheshti Dental School (Tehran, Iran) and four groups categorized: CP (n=22), HP (n=21), PI (n=13) and HI (n=13). The mean age was 45.6 years, 55% of participants were female and 45% were male. Bacterial samples were collected by paper point method and transferred to Institute of Odontology, University of Gothenburg (Gothenburg, Sweden) for checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization. Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to compare distribution of bacteria in four groups. Significant differences were observed for T. forsythia, P. intermedia, C. rectus, P. endodontic, P. gingivalis, T. denticola and P. tannerae (P<0.05). The most prevalent bacteria in CP and PI were T. forsythia and P. gingivalis, respectively. In conclusion, bacterial prevalence differs significantly between tooth and implant. The most prevalent bacteria in Iranian subpopulation do not necessarily bear a resemblance to other populations. The type of implant surface may influence the biofilm. Other studies should be conducted to corroborate these findings.     

Antidiabetic effect of Phlomis anisodonta: effects on hepatic cells lipid peroxidation and antioxidant enzymes in experimental diabetes.

The present study investigated the effects of aerial parts of Phlomis anisodonta methanolic extract (PAE) on streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats by measuring fasting blood glucose, serum insulin, change in body weight, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), lipid peroxidation (LPO), and liver antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). Male Wistar rats were randomly divided into six groups of six animals. Treatment of diabetic rats with oral administration of PAE at doses of 100, 200 and 400 mg kg(-1) for 10 days resulted in a significant reduction in fasting blood glucose, and an increase in serum insulin levels in comparison with diabetic control group. PAE also protected rats from STZ-induced loss in body weight. Hepatic FRAP increased and LPO in diabetic rats decreased after treatment by PAE at doses of 200 and 400 mg kg(-1). PAE-treated diabetic rats at three doses indicated a significant increase in hepatic SOD, CAT, and GPx activities. These results suggest that PAE is beneficial in the control of diabetes by reduction of blood glucose and increasing insulin levels and combating oxidative stress by activation of hepatic antioxidant enzymes.     

A 10-Year Cardiovascular Risk in Adults with Different Levels of Spiritual Health: Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study

Background:Previous studies have shown that spiritual experience may reduce cardiovascular disease (CVDs). However, little is known about the relationship between spiritual health and the gender-specific risk of CVDs in communities with different cultures.Methods:A total of 3249 individuals (53.7% female, 75.0% middle-aged) participated in the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS) from 2015 to 2017 were included. Based on the ACC/AHA pooled cohort equation, CVD risk over ten years was examined. Spiritual health was measured using a developed tool for measuring spiritual health in Muslim populations (SHIMA-48). Linear regression models were used to assess the association between spiritual health and ACC/AHA risk scores. The natural logarithm scale was calculated to consider the normal distribution hypothesis of the regression model.Results:The current results suggest a slight but significant increase in the mean of spiritual health in women compared to men in both cognitive/emotional and behavioral dimensions (P < 0.001). In both sexes, a higher prevalence of smoking was observed in participants with lower levels of spiritual health (P < 0.004). In men, compared to those with a low level of spiritual health (the first tertile), the logarithm of the ACC-AHA risk score was reduced by 0.11 (P = 0.004) and 0.18 (P < 0.001) for those in the second and third tertiles of spiritual health, respectively. This result may be attributed to higher cigarette smoking among the latter group. Similar results were not observed in women.Conclusions:Current results indicate a gender-specific association between spiritual health and cardiovascular disease risk. Our findings imply that promoting spiritual health can be considered an effective strategy in future preventive interventions, primarily by controlling the desire to smoke in men.     

Factors affecting the recruitment and retention of pharmacists to practice sites in rural and remote areas of New South Wales: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVE: To explore factors affecting recruitment and retention of pharmacists in rural/remote areas of New South Wales (NSW). DESIGN: Qualitative semistructured in-depth interviews. SETTING: Primary care--rural/remote community pharmacies. PARTICIPANTS: Purposive sample of 12 community pharmacists. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Factors affecting recruitment and retention of pharmacists in rural/remote areas of NSW. RESULTS: Respondents reported a variety of personal and professional reasons for taking up rural practice, including previous rural experience and a preference for working in rural over metropolitan areas. The main factor affecting retention in rural areas was the high level of professional satisfaction and interprofessional rapport. Perceived reasons for the current under-supply of pharmacists to rural/remote areas of NSW included changing demographics of the pharmacy undergraduate degree programs and pharmacy workforce, and negative perceptions of rural pharmacy practice and rural lifestyle. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified factors believed to affect recruitment and retention of pharmacists in rural/remote areas. There appears to be considerable overlap between the factors, with different weightings of importance for different individuals. The lack of consensus for a proposed method of resolving this problem highlights its complexity and the need for further studies in this area.     

Antisense-mediated melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein downregulation sensitizes G361 melanoma cells to cisplatin

Malignant melanoma is an aggressive form of skin cancer that is highly resistant to conventional therapies. The melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein is a potent inhibitor of apoptosis and is overexpressed in melanoma cells, but undetectable in most normal tissues including melanocytes. We designed 20-mer phosphorothioate antisense oligonucleotides complementary to five putatively single-stranded sites on the melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein mRNA and investigated their ability to sensitize G361 melanoma cells to cisplatin. Inhibition of melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein mRNA and protein expression were measured by real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunoblotting. Cell viability and apoptosis were quantitated by colorimetric viability assays and by annexin V staining, respectively. Oligonucleotide M706 was identified as the most efficient antisense sequence which downregulated melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein mRNA and protein levels in G361 cells by 68 and 78%, respectively. The specificity of target downregulation was confirmed using scrambled sequence control oligonucleotides that only marginally decreased melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein expression. Whereas downregulation of melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein moderately inhibited cell growth by 26%, in combination with cisplatin, this resulted in a supra-additive effect with almost 57% reduction in G361 cell viability compared with cisplatin alone (17%) (P<0.05). Cell death was mainly due to apoptosis as demonstrated by a 3- to 4-fold increase in annexin V-positive cells and typical morphological changes compared with controls. In summary, we describe a new antisense oligonucleotide that efficiently downregulates melanoma inhibitor of apoptosis protein expression and sensitizes melanoma cells to cisplatin.