Psychosocial concerns and interventions for patients and their identified support givers to help cope with acute manifestations of advanced coronary artery diseases

Advanced coronary artery disease is a chronic condition and often has acute exacerbations requiring multiple hospitalizations. Such hospitalizations profoundly affect the patients and their families, caregivers, and friends. Therefore, this article focuses on the most common psychosocial concerns experienced during acute episodes and has implications for patients and their families along the continuum from the acute to the chronic phases. In each of the sections of this article, we will include (1) identification of these common psychosocial concerns, (2) assessment, and (3) psychosocial interventions used to address these concerns in patients during the acute phase and as patients and their families transition to the chronic phase of cardiovascular disease management.     

Biochemical characterization,anti-inflammatory properties and ulcerogenic traits of some cold-pressed oils in experimental animals

Context: Cold-pressed oils (CPO) are commercially available in the market and characterized by their health-promoting properties.

Objective: Clove oil (CLO), coriander seed oil (COO) and black cumin oil (BCO) were evaluated for their bioactive lipids. Pharmacological screening was performed to evaluate acute toxicity, anti-inflammatory and ulcerogenic effects as well as histopathological changes in tissues of albino rats fed with CPO.

Materials and methods: Fatty acids, tocols and total phenolics were analyzed. The acute toxicity test for each CPO was estimated during 14 d. Carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema was used for assessment of anti-inflammatory activity of CPO. Animals were fasted overnight, and via oral gavage given indomethacin (10?mg/kg) or CPO (400?mg/kg) to investigate ulcerogenecity. Histopathological changes in liver, kidney, heart, spleen and stomach were screened.

Results: Amounts of α-, β-, γ- and δ-tocopherols in CLO were 1495, 58, 4177 and 177?mg/kg oil, respectively. In COO, α, β, γ and δ-tocopherols were 10.0, 18.2, 5.1 and 34.8%, respectively. In BCO, β-tocotrienol was the main constituent. CLO, COO and BCO contained 4.6, 4.2 and 3.6?mg GAE/g, respectively. Acute toxicity test determined that 400?mg/kg of CPO to be used. In the carrageenan model of inflammation, pretreatment of rats with indomethacin (10?mg/kg) or CLO (400?mg/kg) induced a significant (p?Conclusions: CPO, particularly CLO, could minimize acute inflammation.     

The inhibitory effects of garlic and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Panax ginseng</Emphasis> extract standardized with ginsenoside Rg3 on the genotoxicity,biochemical, and histological changes induced by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid in male rats

Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) is widely used in food and other industries to sequester metal ions and to prevent their disadvantageous effects. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the protective effect of Panax ginseng extract standardized with ginsenoside Rg3 (ginsenoside Rg3 content was 3.6% w/w, i.e., 36 μg/mg P. ginseng extract) and garlic against EDTA-induced biochemical, genotoxic, and histological changes in rats. Forty male rats were divided into eight treatment groups and treated for 7 days as follows: the control group, the group treated with EDTA (20 mg/kg b.w) and the groups treated with P. ginseng extract (20 mg/kg b.w), garlic (5 mg/kg b.w), P. ginseng plus garlic alone or in combination with EDTA. In vivo bone marrow micronucleus test and random amplified polymorphism DNA-PCR (RAPD-PCR) method were performed to assess the antigenotoxic effect of both protective agents. The results indicated that EDTA administration caused a significant decrease in the serum biochemical parameters and antioxidant enzymes activity. The administration also increased lipid peroxidation and the incidence of micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (MnPCEs), caused appearance of some changes in polymorphism band patterns, and induced different histopathological lesions in the livers, kidneys, and testis. Treatment with P. ginseng, garlic alone or plus EDTA significantly improved all the tested parameters. Moreover, P. ginseng extract was found to be more effective than garlic in restoring the parameters that were altered by EDTA.     

The anti-Alzheimer potential of Tamarindus indica: an in vivo investigation supported by in vitro and in silico approaches

Tamarindus indica Linn. (Tamarind, F. Fabaceae) is one of the most widely consumed fruits in the world. A crude extract and different fractions of T. indica (using n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and n-butanol) were evaluated in vitro with respect to their DPPH scavenging and AchE inhibition activities. The results showed that the dichloromethane and ethyl acetate fractions showed the highest antioxidant activities, with 84.78 and 86.96% DPPH scavenging at 0.10 μg mL⁻¹. The n-hexane, dichloromethane, and ethyl acetate fractions inhibited AchE activity in a dose-dependent manner, and the n-hexane fraction showed the highest inhibition at 20 μg mL⁻¹. The results were confirmed by using n-hexane, dichloromethane, and ethyl acetate fractions in vivo to regress the neurodegenerative features of Alzheimer''s dementia in an aluminum-intoxicated rat model. Phytochemical investigations of those three fractions afforded two new diphenyl ether derivative compounds 1–2, along with five known ones (3–7). The structures of the isolated compounds were confirmed via 1D and 2D NMR and HRESIMS analyses. The isolated compounds were subjected to extensive in silico-based investigations to putatively highlight the most probable compounds responsible for the anti-Alzheimer activity of T. indica. Inverse docking studies followed by molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) and binding free energy (ΔG) investigations suggested that both compounds 1 and 2 could be promising AchE inhibitors. The results presented in this study may provide potential dietary supplements for the management of Alzheimer''s disease.

In vivo anti-Alzheimer''s and antioxidant potential of Tamarindus indica supported by molecular docking.