1,721,116 research outputs found
Momordica charantia, a nutraceutical approach for inflammatory related diseases
Full text linkMomordica charantia, commonly called bitter melon, is a plant belonging to Cucurbitaceae family known for centuries for its pharmacological activities, and nutritional properties. Due to the presence of many bioactive compounds, some of which possess potent biological actions, this plant is used in folk medicine all over the world for the treatment of different pathologies, mainly diabetes, but also cancer, and other inflammation-associated diseases. It is widely demonstrated that M. charantia extracts contribute in lowering glycaemia in patients affected by type 2 diabetes. However, the majority of existing studies on M. charantia bioactive compounds were performed only on cell lines and in animal models. Therefore, because the real impact of bitter melon on human health has not been thoroughly demonstrated, systematic clinical studies are needed to establish its efficacy and safety in patients. Besides, both in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that bitter melon may also elicit toxic or adverse effects under different conditions. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of anti-inflammatory and anti-neoplastic properties of bitter melon, discussing its pharmacological activity as well as the potential adverse effects. Even if a lot of literature is available about bitter melon as antidiabetic drug, few papers discuss the anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties of this plant
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Allergy and the eye
No full textAbstract
The eye represents an ideal and frequent site for the allergic reactions. The term 'allergic conjunctivitis' refers to a collection of disorders that affect the lid, conjunctiva and/or cornea. Even though the diagnosis is essentially clinical, local tests such as cytology, conjunctival provocation and tear mediator analysis can be performed. The immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated mechanism does not explain completely the severity and the clinical course of chronic allergic ocular diseases such as vernal (VKC) and atopic keratoconjunctivitis (AKC), which are probably also related to T cell-mediated responses, massive eosinophil attraction and activation and non-specific hypersensitivity. An altered balance between T helper type 1 (Th1) and Th2 cells and between Th1- and Th2-types of cytokines is thought to be responsible of the development of ocular allergic disorders. New findings suggest that a wide range of cytokines, chemokines, proteases and growth factors are involved by complex interwoven interactions rather than distinct and parallel pathways. In addition, several non-specific enzymatic systems may be activated during acute and chronic allergic inflammation, thus contributing to the complex pathogenesis of the disease. Current drug treatment for ocular allergy targets the key mechanisms involved in the development of clinical disease: mast cells with mast cell stabilizers, histamine with histamine receptor antagonists and inflammation with corticosteroids, severe inflammation with immunomodulators. None of these agents lacks side effects and none abolishes signs and symptoms completely. New therapeutic strategies are still needed to respond to the complex pathogenesis of severe forms of ocular allergy such as VKC and AKC
Twenty-four hour ambulatory antroduodenal manometry in normal subjects (co-operative study)
No full textCircadian antroduodenal motor activity was studied in 40 normal subjects by means of a portable recording system consisting of a computerized data logger and a probe with microtransducers. The quantitative and qualitative characteristics of contraction events during the interdigestive and digestive periods, as well as during the awake and asleep periods, were analysed. The composition and timing of meals and night recumbence were standardized. In spite of the high interindividual variability in motor parameters, significant differences in the characteristics of interdigestive and digestive periods between waking and sleep states were found. This paper confirms the existence of a circadian variation in antroduodenal motor activity and provides reference values from a large series of normal subjects that can be used for statistical comparisons with those obtained from patients recorded with the same method
Transcriptional network inference and master regulator analysis of the response to ribosome-inactivating proteins in leukemia cells
No full textGene-regulatory networks reconstruction has become a very popular approach in applied biology to infer and dissect functional interactions of Transcription Factors (TFs) driving a defined phenotypic state, termed as Master Regulators (MRs). In the present work, cutting-edge bioinformatic methods were applied to re-analyze experimental data on leukemia cells (human myelogenous leukemia cell line THP-1 and acute myeloid leukemia MOLM-13 cells) treated for 6 h with two different Ribosome-Inactivating Proteins (RIPs), namely Shiga toxin type 1 (400 ng/mL) produced by Escherichia coli strains and the plant toxin stenodactylin (60 ng/mL), purified from the caudex of Adenia stenodactyla Harms. This analysis allowed us to identify the common early transcriptional response to 28S rRNA damage based on gene-regulatory network inference and Master Regulator Analysis (MRA). Both toxins induce a common response at 6 h which involves inflammatory mediators triggered by AP-1 family transcriptional factors and ATF3 in leukemia cells. We describe for the first time the involvement of MAFF, KLF2 and KLF6 in regulating RIP-induced apoptotic cell death, while receptor-mediated downstream signaling through ANXA1 and TLR4 is suggested for both toxins
A novel endoesophageal magnetic device to prevent gastroesophageal reflux.
No full textBackground Endoscopic methods to prevent gastroesophageal reflux (GER) show scarce effectiveness and may narrow the esophageal lumen more or less stiffly, sometimes impairing bolus transit and leading to dysphagia. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the possibility of reinforcing lower esophageal sphincter (LES) tone by implanting endoluminally a magnetic device. Materials and methods The device consists of two small magnetic plaques to be implanted in the submucosa close to LES with opposite polarities facing so that they attract one other, closing the esophageal lumen. The magnets were implanted by means of a special endoluminal device in five esophageal-gastric ex vivo specimens taken from swine. Variation in endoluminal pressure at the LES level was measured by means of slow pull-through of a thin side-hole manometric catheter in each specimen, before and after insertion of the magnets.
Results The new high-pressure zone exhibited a length of about 2 cm and a pressure of 14.2 ± 1.27 mmHg [mean ± standard deviation (SD)], significantly (p\ 0.001) higher than that measured before insertion of the magnetic valve (1.5 ± 0.26 mmHg).
Conclusions The present research demonstrates that it is possible to create at the LES level a dynamic closure of a value considered sufficient to prevent GER, by implanting in the esophageal submucosa of anatomical specimens a magnetic device by means of a special endoluminal probe. Once effectiveness and tolerability of magnets covered by
a biocompatible sheath have been demonstrated in vivo, this device could become a simple and effective nonsurgical solution to GER
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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