New cytotoxic polyacetylene alcohols from the Egyptian marine sponge Siphonochalina siphonella.

Three new polyacetylenic alcohols, siphonellanols A-C (1-3), together with two known polyacetylenic alcohols (4-5), were isolated from the CHCl3-soluble fraction of the methanolic extract of the marine sponge Siphonochalina siphonella, collected in Egypt. The structures of 1-3 were determined by spectroscopic analyses of their 1D-, 2D-NMR, and MS spectra and by comparisons with reported data. The cytotoxicity assay revealed that 1-3 exhibited moderate cytotoxic activities against a human cervical cancer cell line (HeLa), a human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7), and a human lung cancer cell line (A549) with IC50 values ranging from 25.9 to 69.2 µM.

Adolescent tramadol use and abuse in Egypt.

BACKGROUND: Tramadol abuse liability is underestimated and the evidence of abuse and dependence is emerging. It has many health and social consequences especially in adolescents. Tramadol abuse has not been well studied in Egypt. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and associated correlates of tramadol use and abuse among school students in Egypt. METHODS: A total of 204 students, aged 13-18 years, from six schools in Zagazig, Egypt, were screened for tramadol use using The Drug Use Disorders Identification Test and a urine screen for tramadol. RESULTS: The prevalence of tramadol use was 8.8% among school students and the average age at onset of tramadol use was 16.5 ± 1.1. Some 83% of the users were using tramadol alone while the rest (17%) were using a combination of tramadol, alcohol, and cannabis. Two-thirds of these students started with tramadol as the first drug after the onset of tobacco smoking. Over one third of tramadol users had drug-related problems and 6% had dependence. There was a significant association between tramadol use and older age, male gender, and smoking. Drug-related problems were negatively correlated with age at onset of tramadol use. CONCLUSIONS: Tramadol use was common among adolescents and over one third of tramadol users had drug-related problems. Population-based longitudinal studies are needed to investigate tramadol use and the possible role of tramadol as a gateway drug in the development of substance abuse in Egypt.