Co-administration of saffron and chamomile: to determine the efficacy as an adjuvant therapy for mild to moderate depression in human subjects. A pilot randomized clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the combined effects of chamomile and saffron herbs as an adjuvant therapy in patients with metabolic alterations associated with mild to moderate depression. METHODS: The prospective, randomised, blinded, end-point pilot study was conducted at the Aga Khan University, Karachi, from August to October 2020, and comprised patients with mild to moderate depression with or without diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidaemia. The subjects were randomised into intervention group A, which was given herbal tea sachets containing saffron 1mg and chamomile 20mg for twice a day oral use for a month along with medications, and control group B, which was advised to continue their routine medications. Data was collected at baseline and post-intervention using Patient Health Questionnaire-9 for assessing depression severity, and blood samples for cholesterol estimations. Data was analysed using SPSS 20. RESULTS: Of the 50 subjects, 25(50%) were in each of the two groups. Cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein and depression values were significantly better in group A than in group B (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Potential benefits of combined doses of chamomile and saffron were found in depressive patients by improving metabolic alterations.

Interactions of Apigenin and Safranal with the 5HT1A and 5HT2A Receptors and Behavioral Effects in Depression and Anxiety: A Molecular Docking, Lipid-Mediated Molecular Dynamics, and In Vivo Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The current study utilizes in silico molecular docking/molecular dynamics to evaluate the binding affinity of apigenin and safranal with 5HT1AR/5HT2AR, followed by assessment of in vivo effects of these compounds on depressive and anxious behavior. METHODS: The docking between apigenin and safranal and the 5HT1A and 5HT2A receptors was performed utilizing AutoDock Vina software, while MD and protein-lipid molecular dynamics simulations were executed by AMBER16 software. For in vivo analysis, healthy control (HC), disease control (DC), fluoxetine-, and apigenin-safranal-treated rats were tested for changes in depression and anxiety using the forced swim test (FST) and the elevated plus-maze test (EPMT), respectively. RESULTS: The binding affinity estimations identified the superior interacting capacity of apigenin over safranal for 5HT1A/5HT2A receptors over 200 ns MD simulations. Both compounds exhibit oral bioavailability and absorbance. In the rodent model, there was a significant increase in the overall mobility time in the FST, while in the EPMT, there was a decrease in latency and an increase in the number of entries for the treated and HC rats compared with the DC rats, suggesting a reduction in depressive/anxiety symptoms after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our analyses suggest apigenin and safranal as prospective medication options to treat depression and anxiety.

The Potential Utility of Lead Compound, E18, in Inhibiting Docking of SARS-CoV-2 by inhibiting ACE2-B0AT1 Complex.

Null.

Ameliorative effects of half-dose saffron and chamomile combination on Psycho-endocrinological changes in a diabetic murine model.

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder with an increasing prevalence worldwide. Reduction in blood insulin level alters brain function by inducing oxidative stress with changes in dopamine and norepinephrine neurotransmission, ultimately leading to neuropsychological symptoms. The efficacy of currently available psychotropic drugs is not satisfactory. Therefore, this study was conducted to explore the beneficial effects of a combination of the natural herbs, saffron and chamomile, in treating diabetes and its resultant neuropsychological effects using a rodent model of diabetes mellitus. METHOD: The rats were randomly divided in to eight groups (n = 10), healthy control (HC), diabetic control (DC) and six groups of diabetic rats treated with various concentrations and combinations of saffron and chamomile. Diabetic treatment groups individually received methanolic extract and water decoction of chamomile (30 mg/kg) and saffron (10mg/kg) and their combined half doses (saffron 5mg/kg and chamomile 15mg/kg) for two weeks. Open field test (OFT) and forced swim test (FST) were used to measure the anxiolytic and antidepressant effects of herbs, respectively. Finally, biochemical, and neurochemical estimations were made. RESULTS: The present study suggests the therapeutic effects of herbs especially in co-administrated decoction, against diabetes with improved antioxidant profile and enhanced levels of dopamine and norepinephrine. Anxiolytic and antidepressant effects were evident with improvements in the OFT and FST. Examination of the cortex of the diabetic group revealed cellular damage and tangle formation, which indicates advanced stages of dementia. CONCLUSION: This study shows that the use of a combination of saffron and chamomile improves diabetes control and reduces its related psychiatric effects.

Collagen nerve protector in rat sciatic nerve repair: A morphometric and histological analysis.

Peripheral nerve repair is often complicated by fibroblastic scar formation, nerve dysfunction, and traumatic neuroma formation. Use of bio-absorbable protective wraps may improve outcomes of these repairs. This study histologically compared the incidence of neuroma formation, connective tissue proliferation, and axonal regrowth in transected rat sciatic nerves repaired with and without tubular collagen nerve sleeves. Twenty Sprague-Dawley rats underwent unilateral sharp sciatic nerve transection and microscopic nerve repair with four epineural sutures and were randomly treated with or without an encircling collagen nerve sleeve. Normal nerves from the contralateral sciatic nerve were also examined. At sacrifice three months later, the nerves were evaluated for traumatic neuroma formation, perineural scar formation, and morphometric analysis. Histological examination of normal and repaired nerves by a neuropathologist demonstrated healing, minimal Wallerian degeneration and no traumatic neuroma formation. Distal section analysis (nine nonwrapped, 10 wrapped), revealed no significant differences in total fascicular area, myelinated fibers per nerve, fiber density, myelin area per nerve, myelinated fiber diameter, axon diameter, myelin thickness, or G-ratio. Significantly greater (P = 0.005) inner epineural connective tissue formation was observed in nonwrapped nerves (0.62 mm(2) +/- 0.2) versus wrapped nerves (0.35 mm(2) +/- 0.16). The ratio of connective tissue to fascicular area was larger in nonwrapped (1.08 +/- 0.26) versus wrapped nerves (0.63 +/- 0.22) (P < 0.001). This study demonstrated decreased inner epineural connective tissue formation with use of a collagen nerve wrap during primary repair of peripheral nerve transection in a rat sciatic nerve model.

A species dependent response to the pro-epileptic drug pentylentetrazole in birds.

Epilepsy is common disorder that affects over 50 million people worldwide. Birds remain a promising yet largely under-explored model of epilepsy. This study reports the comparison of the response of two species of birds, Australian Parrots (APs) and Sparrows (SPs), to a pro-epileptic drug, Pentylenetetrazole (PTZ). PTZ injections caused myoclonic jerks (MCJs) and tonic clonic seizures (TCSs) in both species. The frequency of MCJs in APs was greater at the dose of 75mg/kg compared to both 50mg/kg and 25mg/kg while it was not significantly different in SPs. The comparison of APs and SPs showed that the frequency of MCJs was greater in APs compared to SPs at 25mg/kg and 75mg/kg while its latency was reduced at 25mg/kg and 50mg/kg. Interestingly SPs had a reduced latency of TCSs compared to APs at 75mg/kg. Glutamatergic and Gabaergic cell count was conducted to determine an association with the epileptic response to PTZ. The Glutamatergic cell counts for SPs was significantly greater than APs and conversely the Gabaergic cell counts in APs was higher compared to SPs. The reason for this difference in findings needs to be further investigated. This study shows that birds, and APs and SPs in particular, are a valid, interesting and under-explored model of epilepsy that should be further explored in order to understand the mysteries of epilepsy.