Efficacy evaluation of syringe pump developed for continuous drug infusion.

BACKGROUND: In dental intravenous sedation, continuous intravenous infusion of a low-dose drug requires an infusion pump such as a syringe pump. To develop a new syringe pump for clinical use, the functions of the pump must meet certain international standards. Various safety and efficacy tests must be performed on the syringe pump, as stipulated by these standards, and an approval must be received from the approving agency based on such test results. METHODS: The authors of the present study developed a novel syringe pump and performed efficacy evaluation by testing its infusion speed at 1 and 25 ml/h, and infusion performance testing at 2 and 24 h. Moreover, performance evaluation was conducted by comparing the novel pump to an existing pump with the infusion speed varied from 1 to 5 ml/h. RESULTS: In the efficacy testing on the newly developed syringe pump, infusion with the infusion speed initially set to 1 ml/h resulted in infusion speeds of 1.00 and 0.99 ml/h in the 2- and 24-h assessment, respectively. Changing the infusion speed setting to 25 ml/h resulted in an infusion speed of 25.09 and 23.92 ml/h in the 2- and 24-h assessment, respectively. These results show no significant differences when compared with other commercially available pumps. CONCLUSIONS: The efficacy testing of the newly developed syringe pump showed the accuracy to be within tolerance. Based on these findings, we believe that the newly developed syringe pump is suitable for clinical use.

Zerumbone, Sesquiterpene Photochemical from Ginger, Inhibits Angiogenesis.

Here, we investigated the role of zerumbone, a natural cyclic sesquiterpene of Zingiber zerumbet Smith, on angiogenesis using human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Zerumbone inhibited HUVECs proliferation, migration and tubule formation, as well as angiogenic activity by rat aorta explants. In particular, zerumbone inhibited phosphorylation of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 and fibroblast growth factor receptor-1, which are key regulators of endothelial cell function and angiogenesis. In vivo matrigel plug assay in mice demonstrated significant decrease in vascularization and hemoglobin content in the plugs from zerumbone-treated mice, compared with control mice. Overall, these results suggest that zerumbone inhibits various attributes of angiogenesis, which might contribute to its reported antitumor effects.

Structure-activity relationships of sulfated glycoproteins from Codium fragile on nitric oxide releasing capacity from RAW264.7 Cells.

The effects of sulfate and protein contents as well as molecular weights of the sulfated glycoproteins (NF2) from Codium fragile on the immunomodulation were systematically investigated. The obtained NF2 derivatives displayed various amounts of proteins (2.3-8.7 %) and sulfates (4.3-8.1 %) as well as different molecular weights (47.3-128.0 × 10(3) g/mol). NF2 was not able to stimulate RAW264.7 cells to release NO without its protein moiety, which was essential to activate NF-κB pathway through the degradation and phosphorylation of IκB-α and the subsequent translocation of p65/p50 complex in the cell nucleus. In addition, the proteins in NF2 were required to trigger MAPK pathway for the phosphorylation of ERK1/2, p38, and JNK1/2 as well as the nuclear translocation of c-JUN and c-FOS. However, the protein moiety itself could not activate RAW264.7 cells, thus the complex formation of the polysaccharide and protein moieties in NF2 was pivotal to stimulate macrophage cells.

Anti-inflammatory effect of pristimerin on lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory responses in murine macrophages.

Pristimerin, a quinonemethide triterpenoid derived from Celastraceae and Hippocrateaceae, has recently been found to suppress tumor promotion, metastasis and angiogenesis. In the present study, we evaluated the anti-inflammatory potentials of pristimerin in a cell culture system. Pristimerin suppressed not only the generation of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2, but also the expression of inducible NO synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 induced by lipopolysacharide (LPS) in murine macrophage RAW264.7 cells. Similarly, pristimerin inhibited the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, namely, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6, induced by LPS. The underlying mechanism of the anti-inflammatory action of pristimerin was correlated with down-regulation of nuclear factor-κB and the mitogen-activated protein kinase signal pathway.

XH-14, a novel danshen methoxybenzo[b]furan derivative, exhibits anti-inflammatory properties in lipopolysaccharide-treated RAW 264.7 cells.

BACKGROUND: XH-14 isolated from Salvia miltiorrhiza is a bioactive component and adenosine antagonist. In the present study, we evaluated anti-inflammatory properties of XH-14 in murine macrophages. METHODS: RAW 264.7 murine macrophage cell line was cultured with various concentrations of XH-14 in the absence or presence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). LPS-induced release and mRNA expression of inflammatory mediators were examined by ELISA and real-time PCR. The modification of signal pathways involved in inflammatory reactions was determined by Western blotting analysis. RESULTS: XH-14 suppressed the generation of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2, and the expression of inducible NO synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 induced by LPS. Similarly, XH-14 inhibited the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines induced by LPS in RAW 264.7 cells. The underlying mechanism of XH-14 on anti-inflammatory action was correlated with down-regulation of mitogen-activated protein kinase and activator protein-1 activation. CONCLUSIONS: XH-14 inhibits the production of several inflammatory mediators and so might be useful for the treatment of various inflammatory diseases.

Indirubin-3-monoxime exhibits anti-inflammatory properties by down-regulating NF-κB and JNK signaling pathways in lipopolysaccharide-treated RAW264.7 cells.

OBJECTIVE: Indirubin-3-monoxime (I3M), an indirubin analogue that shows favorable inhibitory activity targeting cyclin-dependent kinase and glycogen synthase kinase, exhibits various biological properties, including chemopreventive, antiangiogenic, and neuropreventive activities. In the present study, we investigated the ability of I3M to regulate inflammatory reactions in macrophages. METHODS: The effects of I3M on inflammation, lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced releases of inflammatory mediators, nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling was examined by ELISA and Western blotting analysis. RESULTS: I3M suppressed not only the generation of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E(2) but also the expression of inducible NO synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 induced by LPS. Similarly, I3M inhibited the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines induced by LPS in RAW264.7 cells, including interleukin (IL)-1ß and IL-6. The underlying mechanism of I3M on anti-inflammatory action was correlated with down-regulation of the NF-κB and MAPK activation. CONCLUSIONS: Our data collectively indicate that I3M inhibited the production of several inflammatory mediators and might be used for the treatment of various inflammatory diseases.