123 research outputs found
Metabolic and cardiovascular effects of berberine: from preclinical evidences to clinical trial results.
No full textBerberine is a plant alkaloid with various biological activities. A large body of literature support different pharmacological actions of berberine that could be interesting in the management of metabolic diseases associated with high cardiovascular disease risk, such as mixed hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome and Type 2 diabetes. Numerous preclinical in vitro and in vivo studies support all these effects. Moreover, it seems that berberine also exerts anti-inflammatory and antiproliferative effects that could play a role in the development of atherosclerosis and its clinical consequences. Recently, the metabolic effects of berberine have also been demonstrated in humans, opening new perspectives for the use of this molecule in patient therapy. Larger and longer studies need to be carried out to implement the definition of the therapeutic role of berberine in humans
Impact of physical activity on inflammation: Effects on cardiovascular disease risk and other inflammatory conditions
No full textSince the 19th century, many studies have enlightened the role of inflammation in atherosclerosis, changing our perception of "vessel plaque due to oxidized lipoproteins", similar to a "rusted pipe", towards a disease with involvement of many cell types and cytokines with more complex mechanisms. Although "physical activity" and "physical exercise" are two terms with some differences in meaning, compared to sedentary lifestyle, active people have lower cardiovascular risk and lower inflammatory markers. Activities of skeletal muscle reveal "myokines" which have roles in both the immune system and adipose tissue metabolism. In vitro and ex-vivo studies have shown beneficial effects of exercise on inflammationmarkers. Meanwhile in clinical studies, some conflicting results suggested that type of activity, exercise duration, body composition, gender, race and age may modulate anti-inflammatory effects of physical exercise. Medical data on patients with inflammatory diseases have shown beneficialeffects of exercise on disease activity scores, patient well-being and inflammatory markers. Although the most beneficial type of activity and the most relevant patient group for anti-inflammatory benefits are still not clear, studies in elderly and adult people generally support anti-inflammatoryeffects of physical activity and moderate exercise could be advised to patients with cardiovascular risk such as patients with metabolic syndrome
Preclinical and clinical evidence of nephro- and cardiovascular protective effects of glycosaminoglycans.
No full textDespite advances in pharmacological treatment, diabetic nephropathy is still the leading cause of end-stage renal disease and an important cause of morbidity and mortality in diabetics Glycosaminoglycans are long, unbranched mucopolysaccharides that play an important role in establishing a charge-selective barrier that restricts the passage of negatively charged molecules, such as albumin and other proteins, at the level of the glomerular basal membrane Their loss is associated with loss of selectivity and proteinuria Extensive preclinical evidence and some clinical trials suggest that glycosaminoglycans replacement is associated with improvement of glomerular selectivity and of proteinuria Sulodexide could also have some other effects, potentially useful to reduce the renal damage and the cardiovascular disease associated with proteinuria, such as improvement of haemorheological and blood lipid parameters, an endothelium protective effect and anti-inflammatory action This review will discuss the evidence supporting the potential nephroprotective effects of sulodexide and other glycosaminoglycan
Metformin and its clinical use: new insights for an old drug in clinical practice
No full textMetformin is generally recommended as first-line treatment in type 2 diabetes, especially in overweight patients, but in recent years new indications for its use have emerged. Metformin has been found to be safe and efficacious both as monotherapy and in combination with all oral antidiabetic agents and insulins. If metformin use during pregnancy and the lactation period is supported by few data, it could be indicated for women with polycystic ovary syndrome, since it could diminish circulating androgens and insulin resistance, thus ameliorating the ovulation rate. Metformin seems to reduce cancer risk, which appears to be increased in diabetics, and is a promising agent for oncoprevention and chemotherapy combinations. Moreover, metformin could find a place in the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Lactic acidosis could be decreased by avoiding metformin use in patients with hypovolemia, sepsis, renal impairment, hypoxic respiratory diseases and heart failure, in the preoperative period and before intravenous injection of contrast media
Berberine: metabolic and cardiovascular effects in preclinical and clinical trials
No full textArrigo FG Cicero1, Sibel Ertek21Internal Medicine, Aging and Kidney Diseases Department, Sant’Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy; 2Ufuk University, Medical Faculty, Dr Ridvan Ege Hospital, Department of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, Ankara, TurkeyAbstract: Berberine is a plant alkaloid with numerous biological activities. A large body of preclinical in vitro and in vivo studies support different pharmacological actions of berberine that could be potentially useful in the management of metabolic diseases associated with high cardiovascular disease risk, such as mixed hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and type 2 diabetes. Moreover, it seems that berberine also exerts anti-inflammatory and antiproliferative effects that could play a role in the development of atherosclerosis and its clinical consequences. Recently, the metabolic effects of berberine have been demonstrated in humans, opening new perspectives for the use of this molecule in patient therapy. Larger and longer clinical studies need to be carried out to implement the definition of the therapeutic role of berberine in humans.Keywords: berberine, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cholestero
Natural sources of antidyslipidaemic agents: is there an evidence-based approach for their prescription?
No full textNumerous randomized clinical trials, systematic reviews and meta-analyses have confirmed the antidyslipidaemic activity of different dietary supplements, nutraceuticals and herbal remedies. International guidelines for cardiovascular disease prevention have begun to consider dietary supplements as an evidence-based approach to improve patients’ plasma lipid levels. They already suggest to increasing or supplementing the dietary intake of soluble fibre (especially psyllium), soy proteins, plant sterols, niacin, and fish oil. Among the nutraceuticals, mevacoline and policosanol are both able to reduce plasma LDL-C by a mean of 20%. A preliminary clinical study of berberine has shown it to be the most powerful antihyperlipidaemic natural compound, reducing plasma LDL-C by 25% and triglycerides by 35%. Among the herbal remedies, several placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials have confirmed the anti-Numerous randomized clinical trials, systematic reviews and meta-analyses have confirmed the antidyslipidaemic activity of different dietary supplements, nutraceuticals and herbal remedies. International guidelines for cardiovascular disease prevention have begun to consider dietary supplements as an evidence-based approach to improve patients’ plasma lipid levels. They already suggest to increasing or supplementing the dietary intake of soluble fibre (especially psyllium), soy proteins, plant sterols, niacin, and fish oil. Among the nutraceuticals, mevacoline and policosanol are both able to reduce plasma LDL-C by a mean of 20%. A preliminary clinical study of berberine has shown it to be the most powerful antihyperlipidaemic natural compound, reducing plasma LDL-C by 25% and triglycerides by 35%. Among the herbal remedies, several placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials have confirmed the antihypercholesterolaemic, and antihypertriglyceridaemic properties of aged garlic powder, artichoke leaf extracts, guggul, and fenugreek. Single small clinical trials have also suggested that Korean ginseng, green tea, onion, yarrow, holy basil and arjun have an antihypercholesterolaemic effect
Hypertension and diabetes incidence: attention to the confounding factors.
No full textMultimorbidity, defined as the coexistence of two or more chronic diseases, is a common phenomenon. Numerous efforts to establish a standardized instrument to assess the level of multimorbidity have failed until now, and indices are primarily characterized by their high heterogeneity
Rice Bran oil
No full textThe prevention of cardiovascular disease events is related to a complex management of conventional and non conventional risk factors. The first approach to reduce the cardiovascular disease risk is a correct dietary approach. Rice bran and its main components have demonstrated theri property to improve the plasma lipid pattern of rodents, rabbits, non-human primates and humans, reducing total plasma cholesterol and trigyceride concentration and increasing the high density lipoprotein cholesterol level
Relationship between calcium metabolism, insulin like growth factor-1 and pulse pressure in normotensive, normolipidemic, non-diabetic subjects: a preliminary observation.
No full textIntroduction: Recent evidence suggests an interaction between bone metabolism and blood pressure (BP) regulation. The aim of our study was to evaluate endocrinological and metabolic factors related to pulse pressure (PP) in normotensive, normolipidaemic, non-smoker subjects.
Material and methods: We consecutively enrolled 156 adults (37 males, 119 females) in summer 2009. The BP and body mass index (BMI) were recorded, and serum samples were taken for 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-OHD), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), growth hormone (GH), parathormone (PTH), calcium, albumin, phosphorus, glucose, triglyceride and cholesterol levels.
Results: In the postmenopausal group, PP was significantly associated with age and BMI, while in premenopausal patients it was inversely related to ionized calcium. In men, a reverse relationship was present between GH and IGE-1 levels and PP.
Conclusions: The PP was predicted by different parameters in different genders and these predictors change even in the same gender before and after menopause. Well-known predictors of PP such as age and BMI were more pronounced in postmenopausal women, but none of the groups showed a relationship between PP and 25-OHD or PTH
Apprentissage de la langue du pays d’accueil comme langue d’intégration (ALPALI). Un moyen novateur d’intégration et de co-existence : le cas en France
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