Therapeutic action of meliacine,a plant-derived antiviral,on HSV-induced ocular disease in mice

Ocular herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) infections remain an important cause of corneal disease which may result in a loss of vision. Meliacine (MA), an antiviral activity present in crude leaf extracts of Melia azedarach L. that inhibits HSV-1 multiplication in vitro, was studied in a murine herpetic stromal keratitis experimental model. Adult Balb/c mice were inoculated with HSV-1 at their corneas after abrasion. MA was administered topically three times a day for 3 consecutive days, beginning at 24 and 96 hr after infection. Infected animals treated or not with MA were monitored for the development of ocular disease by a binocular microscope for 16 days. MA significantly reduced the incidence and the severity of blepharitis, neovascularization and stromal keratitis with respect to untreated infected mice, regardless the schedule of treatment assayed. Histological examination of corneas from MA-treated animals revealed no tissue damage, whereas corneal samples from untreated infected mice showed inflammation, vascularization and necrosis. In uninfected mice treated with MA, we found no evidence of corneal damage and histopathological studies showed no changes in the corneas of these mice. Treatment with MA at 24 hours post-infection (h.p.i.) reduced viral multiplication in the eye by 1-1.5 orders of magnitude. Studies on latency revealed that MA sligthly affected the establishment of a latent infection. Thus, MA proved to exert an antiviral action on the development of herpetic stromal keratitis when supplied by post-treatment. Unexpectedly, treatment with MA after 96h.p.i prevented ocular disease, suggesting an in vivo immunomodulating activity of MA.     

Heavy metal (Pb,Zn, Cd,Fe, and Cu) contents of plant foliage near the Anvil Range lead/zinc mine,Faro, Yukon Territory

Mining and processing of lead (Pb)/zinc (Zn) ore at the Anvil Range mine occurred near the town of Faro in the Yukon Territory, Canada, for approximately 30 years, beginning in 1968. A study was undertaken to examine whether the mining activities had left a detectable "footprint" on the environment in the way of heavy metal phytoaccumulation. Foliage of three native plant species was sampled: bog blueberry (Vaccinium uliginosum), Labrador tea (Ledum groenlandicum), and willow (Salix sp.), at approximately 0.25, 2.5, 12, 30, and 200 (control) km distant from the mill (ore-processing facility at the mine). Foliage samples were oven-dried, wet- or dry-ashed, and analyzed for metal content using ICP-AES. In addition to Pb and Zn, the primary ore constituents, copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and cadmium (Cd), were also assayed. As expected, foliar Pb and Zn concentrations were elevated in plants at the sites closest to the mill, i.e., 0.25 and 2.5 km from the mine facility. Copper and Fe, both essential nutrients for plants, were also elevated in foliage at the sites closest to the mill, but not to a level that would be of concern. Foliar Cd levels were highest in Salix relative to the other species but were not affected by proximity to the mill. Results suggest that Ledum may be the best indicator of high environmental concentrations of Pb, while Salix may be the best indicator of elevated Zn and Cd.     

海洋微藻对蔬菜生长及病原真菌的活性初探

选用病原菌离体抑菌及植物幼苗活休试验的方法,测试了７种海洋微藻对３种蔬菜的幼苗生长,以及对４种蔬菜病原菌的作用。试验表明,经微藻悬浮液喷施处理的蔬菜的苗普遍生长健壮,叶色浓绿,幼苗变黄死亡时间延长３￣１９ｄ,４种微藻对植物病原真蓖有不同程度的抑制作用,认为,海洋微藻肯有促进植物生长和抑制植物病原菌的作用可作为开发生物源农药的新资源。     

Potent suppressive effect of a Japanese edible seaweed, Enteromorpha prolifera (Sujiao-nori) on initiation and promotion phases of chemically induced mouse skin tumorigenesis.

Potent antigenotoxic and anti-tumor promoting activities of a Japanese edible seaweed, Enteromorpha prolifera (Sujiao-nori in Japanese) were previously identified using an in vitro cell culture experiment (Y. Okai, K. Higashi-Okai, S. Nakamura, Y. Yano, S. Otani, Cancer Lett. 87 (1994) 25–32). However, in vivo anti-carcinogenic activity of this seaweed has not been elucidated until now. In the present study, the anticarcinogenic activity of E. prolifera was analyzed using an initiation and promotion model experiment of mouse skin tumorigenesis caused by 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (initiator) and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (promoter). (1) Application of the extract of E. prolifera prior to the treatment with a tumor initiator or promoter caused a significant suppression against skin tumorigenesis, and the combined application of the extract prior to both treatments with initiator and promoter exhibited much stronger suppression against the same skin tumorigenesis. (2) As a possible active principle for the anticarcinogenic activity of the extract, we propose a chlorophyll-related compound, pheophytin-a, which has been recently identified in the extract of this alga as an antigenotoxic substance (Y. Okai, K. Higashi-Okai, J. Sci. Food Agric. 74 (1997) 531–535), and showed significant suppressive effects in the same tumorigenesis experiment. These results suggest that E. prolifera has a potent suppressive activity against chemically induced mouse skin tumorigenesis through the suppression at the initiation and promotion phases, and that pheophytin-a might be partially associated with the in vivo anticarcinogenic activity.     

超声测量分析在青少年近视诊断中的应用

目的探讨眼超声测量分析在青少年近视诊断中的作用。方法将青少年近视组和正常视力组的眼轴长度和晶体厚度的测量结果进行对比,提出区别近视性质的方法。结果轴性近视占５４．７７％,混合性占１６．８９％,调节性占１０．３６％,其他１７．９８％。结论超声测量分析可以区别近视性质。     

中药对实验性骨关节炎膝旁骨内压的影响

为观察中药对骨关节炎的治疗作用，将新西兰纯种大白兔１８只随机分３组，Ａ为对照组，Ｂ为中药治疗组，Ｃ为开窗治疗组。通过结扎股静脉及臀下静脉造成膝骨关节炎模型。造模后６周开始，Ａ组给以普通饲料，Ｂ组服用含中药的饲料，Ｃ组于膝旁经骨皮质开窗，治疗６周。分别于造模前后及治疗后（Ｃ组在开窗前）作膝旁骨内压测定。结果显示，结扎静脉后骨内压立即升高（Ｐ＜０．０１），治疗后Ａ组变化不显著（Ｐ＞０．０５），Ｂ、Ｃ组骨内压均下降显著（Ｐ＜０．０５），Ｃ组在开窗前与取材前比较有显著差异（Ｐ＜０．０５）。表明手术结扎静脉能有效造成骨内持续高压，益气、活血、化湿的中药能有效降低骨内高压，减轻关节症状，延缓骨关节炎的发生和发展。     

国产山姜属药用植物资源

对国产山姜属药用植物资源进行了调查，初步整理出30种2变种；并列出分种检索表。     

Cytotoxic and antitumour principles from Ixora coccinea flowers

The antitumour activity of Ixora coccinea L. (Rubiaceae) flowers was studied in comparison to intraperitoneally transplanted Dalton's lymphoma (ascitic and solid tumours) and Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) tumours in mice. Intraperitoneal administration of 200 mg/kg of the active fraction (AF) of the I. coccinea flower increased the life-span of DLA and EAC ascitic tumour-bearing mice by 113 and 68%, respectively. The AF showed less activity against solid tumours (DLA) as compared to ascitic tumours. The same active fraction showed 50% cytotoxicity to DLA, EAC and Sarcoma-180 (S-180) cells in vitro at concentrations of 18, 60 and 25 μg/ml, respectively. It was not toxic to normal lymphocytes, whereas it was toxic to transformed lymphocytes from leukaemic patients, acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) and chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML) and K-562 suspension cell cultures. The AF inhibited tritiated thymidine incorporation in cellular DNA.     

Comparison of the effects of crude extract of spinach-beet leaves and equivalent amounts of chlorophyll and chlorophyllin in modifying the clastogenic activity of chromium (VI) oxide in mice in vivo

The anticlastogenic activities of a crude extract of leaves of spinach-beet (Beta vulgaris var. benghalensis Hort.) and equivalent amounts of chlorophyll extracted from the leaves and of synthetic chlorophyllin in reducing cytotoxicity were compared following exposure of mice in vivo to a known clastogen chromium (VI) oxide. Male Swiss albino mice were administered orally the vegetable extract for 7 consecutive days and then exposed to the clastogen by gavage (20 mg/kg b wt). For comparison, equivalent amounts of extracted chlorophyll and synthetic chlorophyllin were administered to the mice, 2 h before exposure to the same dose of the metal. Chromosomes were studied from bone marrow cells 24 h after exposure, following colchicine-hypotonic-fixative-flame drying-Giemsa staining schedule. Chlorophyllin and the crude extract, when given alone, did not induce chromosomal aberrations and reduced the clastogenic effects induced by chromium (VI) oxide to a statistically significant level, indicating a protective action. Chlorophyll, however, produced a significant increase of chromosomal aberrations compared with control, when administered alone and was not able to reduce the clastogenicity of the metallic salt to a significant level.     

Biological screening of Italian medicinal plants for antibacterial activity

Some 68 plant extracts from 65 species belonging to 25 families were investigated for antibacterial activity against eight gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. Of the 68 extracts, 64 (94.1%) exhibited inhibitory effects against one or more microorganisms. Furthermore, among the active extracts, 12 from 11 species exhibited a broad spectrum of activity. Discussion on the probable chemical components responsible for this activity is included.