Effect of curcumin on inflammatory biomarkers and iron profile in patients with premenstrual syndrome and dysmenorrhea: A randomized controlled trial.

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and primary dysmenorrhea are common gynecological problems and inflammation may have a role in their etiology. Curcumin is a polyphenolic natural product for which there is increasing evidence of anti-inflammatory and iron chelation effects. This study assessed the effects of curcumin on inflammatory biomarkers and iron profile in young women with PMS and dysmenorrhea. A sample of 76 patients was included in this triple-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Participants were randomly allocated to curcumin (n = 38) and control groups (n = 38). Each participant received one capsule (500 mg of curcuminoid+ piperine, or placebo) daily, from 7 days before until 3 days after menstruation for three consecutive menstrual cycles. Serum iron, ferritin, total iron-binding capacity (TIBC) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), as well as white blood cell, lymphocyte, neutrophil, platelet counts, mean platelet volume (MPV) and red blood cell distribution width (RDW), were quantified. Neutrophil: lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet: lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and RDW: platelet ratio (RPR) were also calculated. Curcumin significantly decreased the median (interquartile range) serum levels of hsCRP [from 0.30 mg/L (0.0-1.10) to 0.20 mg/L (0.0-1.3); p = 0.041] compared with placebo, but did not show any difference for neutrophil, RDW, MPV, NLR, PLR and RPR values (p > 0.05). The treatment schedule was well-tolerated, and none of markers of iron metabolism statistically changed after the intervention in the curcumin group (p > 0.05). Curcumin supplementation may have positive effects on serum hsCRP, a marker of inflammation, with no any changes on iron homeostasis in healthy women with PMS and dysmenorrhea.

Thymol has anticancer effects in U-87 human malignant glioblastoma cells.

BACKGROUND: Thymol (2-isopropyl-5-methylphenol) is a colorless crystalline derivative of cymene, that possesses pleotropic pharmacological properties, including analgesic, antibacterial, antispasmodic, and anti-inflammatory activities. Thymol has also been recognized for its beneficial effect as an anti-tumor agent, but the precise mechanism for this has not been fully elucidated. We aimed to identifying whether thymol exerts anti-cancer activity in human U-87 malignant glioblastoma (GB) cells (U-87). METHODS AND RESULTS: Cell viability and apoptosis was evaluated in U-87 cells treated with thymol at different concentrations. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, mRNA expressions of apoptosis-related genes and cell cycle characteristics were assessed. The cytotoxic activity of the co-exposure of thymol and temozolomide (TMZ) was also evaluated. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of thymol in the U-87 cells was 230 µM assessed at 24 h after exposure. Thymol did not exhibit any cytotoxic effects on normal L929 cells at this concentration. Thymol treatment increased the expression of Bax and p53, and also increased apoptotic cell death, and excessive generation of ROS. Moreover, the cytotoxic activity of thymol on the U-87 cells may be related to the arrest of the cell cycle at the G0/G1 interface. Combination therapy showed that the cytotoxic effects of thymol synergized with TMZ, and combined treatment had more cytotoxic potential compared to either of the agents alone. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate the potential cytotoxic activities of thymol on U-87 cells. Further studies are required to evaluate the spectrum of the antitumor activity of thymol on GB cells.

Enhancement of In Vitro Production of Volatile Organic Compounds by Shoot Differentiation in Artemisia spicigera.

Callus initiation, shoot formation and plant regeneration were established for Artemisia spicigera, a traditional medicinal plant growing in Armenia, Middle-Anatolia and Iran, and producing valuable volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are mostly represented by monoterpenoids. Optimal callus initiation and shoot production were obtained by culture of hypocotyl and cotyledon explants on MS medium comprising 0.5 mg L-1 naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) and 0.5 mg L-1 6-benzyladenine (BA). Consequently, the shoots were transferred onto the MS media supplemented with 1 mg L-1 of indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) or 1 mg L-1 of NAA. Both types of auxin induced root formation on the shoots and the resulting plantlets were successfully grown in pots. The production of VOCs in callus tissues and regenerated plantlets was studied by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. Although the potential of undifferentiated callus to produce VOCs was very low, an increased content of bioactive volatile components was observed at the beginning of shoot primordia differentiation. Intriguingly, the volatiles obtained from in vitro plantlets showed quantitative and qualitative variation depending on the type of auxins used for the rooting process. The acquired quantities based on total ion current (TIC) showed that the regenerated plantlets using 1 mg L-1 NAA produced higher amounts of oxygenated monoterpenes such as camphor (30.29%), cis-thujone (7.07%), and 1,8-cineole (6.71%) and sesquiterpene derivatives, namely germacrene D (8.75%), bicyclogermacrene (4.0%) and spathulenol (1.49%) compared with the intact plant. According to these findings, in vitro generation of volatile organic compounds in A. spicigera depends on the developmental stages of tissues and may enhance with the formation of shoot primordia and regeneration of plantlets.

Relation of hepcidin gene expression in blood mononuclear cells with iron overload severity among ß-thalassemia major patients.

Iron overload is the main cause of morbidity and mortality in ß-thalassemia major patients, and cardiac iron overload is the most common reason for death in these transfusion-dependent patients. Hepcidin, a liver-derived peptide hormone, plays a key role in plasma iron levels regulation by controlling two main stages, digestive iron absorption in enterocytes, and iron recycling in macrophages. Although hepcidin is mainly secreted from hepatocytes in the liver, it is also synthesized from mononuclear cells consisting of monocytes and lymphocytes. Binding of this molecule to ferroportin, a specific cellular exporter of iron, leads to degradation of the ligand-receptor complex, which reduces the iron overload by lowering the amounts of iron released into the plasma. Likewise, the same mechanism has been proved to be true for lymphocyte-drived hepcidin. The expression levels of hepcidin mRNA were evaluated using quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR) in 50 ß-thalassemia major patients, as well as 25 healthy volunteers as the group of control. There was a significantly positive correlation between the cardiac iron concentration, showed by higher T2 values, and hepcidin levels in the patients (p = 0.028; r = 0.311). However, hepcidin expression levels did not significantly correlate with ferritin and liver iron concentrations. Hepcidin can act as a beneficial marker to determine iron overload degrees, particularly in the heart, in ß-thalassemia major patients and be used as a logical therapeutic agent for treatment of ß-thalassemia disorders.

A study of the association between cognitive abilities and dietary intake in young women.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive abilities comprise activities that relate to receiving and responding to information from the environment, internal processing, making complex decisions, and then responding to this in the context of behavior. AIM: The current study investigated the association between dietary intake and seven aspects of cognitive abilities among healthy young women. METHODS: The study was carried out among 182 women aged 18-25 years. A valid and reliable food frequency questionnaire containing 65 food items was used to estimate dietary intake. Neuropsychological function and cognitive abilities of participants were determined using standard questionnaires. RESULTS: Significant differences were found in depression, anxiety, stress, physical, and mental health-related quality of life as well as daytime sleepiness for the participants in different quartiles of cognitive abilities score (p<0.05). Participants in the fourth quartile of cognitive abilities score consumed significantly higher energy, carbohydrate, protein, calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin A, thiamin, and riboflavin compared to those in the lowest quartile (p<0.05). There were strong correlations between total cognitive abilities score and dietary sodium, calcium, phosphorus, and thiamin (p<0.05). Using stepwise multiple linear regression analysis, iron and thiamin were statistically significant factors for the prediction of cognitive abilities. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate that neurocognitive function is related to dietary macro and micronutrients including energy, carbohydrate, protein, calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin A, thiamin, and riboflavin on cognitive performance among young women without memory deficit.

Chemical composition and antibacterial and cytotoxic activities of Allium hirtifolium Boiss.

Allium hirtifolium Boiss. known as Persian shallot, is a spice used as a traditional medicine in Iran and, Mediterranean region. In this study, the chemical composition of the hydromethanolic extract of this plant was analyzed using GC/MS. The result showed that 9-hexadecenoic acid, 11,14-eicosadienoic acid, and n-hexadecanoic acid are the main constituents. The antibacterial activity of the shallot extract was also examined by disk diffusion and microdilution broth assays. It was demonstrated that Persian shallot hydromethanolic extract was effective against 10 different species of pathogenic bacteria including methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), methicillin sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA), Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella typhimurium, Proteus mirabilis, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Specifically, the minimum concentration of the extract which inhibited bacterial growth (MIC values) was 1.88 mg/mL for most of the gram-positive bacteria. This concentration was not much different from the concentration that was safe for mammalian cells (1.50 mg/mL) suggesting that the hydromethanolic extract of Persian shallot may be a safe and strong antibacterial agent.

Free Radical Scavenging Potential and Essential Oil Composition of the Dorema glabrum Fisch. C.A. Mey Roots from Iran.

INTRODUCTION: Dorema glabrum is an endangered species that grow in Transcaucasia and North West of Iran. The plant has extensive uses e.g. as an herbal remedy or food additive in these regions. The chemical composition of hydrodistilled oil of D. glabrum growing in Iran was analyzed by GC-MS for the first time. METHODS: The essential oil of air-dried roots was obtained by hydrodistillation using a Clevenger type apparatus. The oil was sub-jected to GC-MS analysis and its free radical scavenging properties were determined by DPPH method. RESULTS: Thirty four constituents were identified that represented 81.6% of the total oil. The main compounds were delta-Cadinene (12.77%), beta-bisabolene (7.48%), alpha-Fenchyl acetate (6.32%), Copaene (5.68%) and Cubenol (5.42%). The essential oil had weak free radical scavenging properties with the RC50 value of 2.24 mg/mL. CONCLUSION: Present work is the first report on chemical composition of the essential oil obtained from D. glabrum roots. GC-MS Analysis showed that the oil was rich in sesquiterpenes. It deems that weak free radical scavenging activity of the oil is due to absence of potent antioxidant compounds.

Assessment of the antibacterial activity of phenylethanoid glycosides from Phlomis lanceolata against multiple-drug-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus.

Three phenylethanoid glycosides, forsythoside B (1), phlinoside C (2) and verbascoside (3), were isolated from the methanol extract of the leaves of Phlomis lanceolata, an Iranian medicinal plant, by reversed-phase preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and the structures of these compounds were elucidated conclusively by ultraviolet (UV), mass spectrometry (MS) and a series of 1D and 2D nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses. The antibacterial properties of 1-3 against five multi-drug-resistant (MDR) strains of Staphylococcus aureus have been assessed by the rapid and robust microtitre-plate-based serial dilution method. While compounds 1 and 3 showed considerable activities against all five strains, compound 2 was inactive at the test concentrations.

GC-MS analysis of the essential oils, and the isolation of phenylpropanoid derivatives from the aerial parts of Pimpinella aurea.

A combination of vacuum liquid chromatography (VLC) and preparative thin layer chromatography (PTLC) of the dichloromethane extract of the aerial parts of the Iranian plant Pimpinella aurea afforded two phenylpropanoids, erythro-1'-(4-methoxyphenyl)-propan-1',2'-diol (1) and erythro-1'-[4-(sec-butyl)-phenyl]-propan-1',2'-diol (2), the latter being a natural product. The structures of these compounds were determined by spectroscopic means. The antioxidant properties of these compounds were assessed by the DPPH assay. The GC-MS analysis of the essential oils of P. aurea provided a chemical profile that was significantly different from the previously published reports.