Effects of aqueous extracts of dried calyx of sour tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) on polygenic dyslipidemia: A randomized clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE: Dyslipidemia has been considered as a major risk factor for coronary heart disease. Alternative medicine has a significant role in treatment of dyslipidemia. There are controversial findings regarding the effects of sour tea on dyslipidemia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of aqueous extract of dried calyx of sour tea on polygenic dyslipidemia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This clinical trial was done on 43 adults (30-60 years old) with polygenic dyslipidemia that were randomly assigned to the intervention and control groups. The control group was trained in lifestyle modifications at baseline. The intervention group was trained for lifestyle modifications at baseline and received two cups of sour tea daily, and both groups were followed up for 12 weeks. Lipid profile was evaluated at baseline, and six and 12 weeks following the intervention. In addition, dietary and physical activity assessed at baseline for twelve weeks. RESULTS: Mean concentration of total cholesterol, HDL-C and LDL-C significantly decreased by up to 9.46%, 8.33%, and 9.80%, respectively, after 12 weeks in the intervention group in comparison to their baseline values. However, LDL-C/HDL-C ratio significantly increased by up to 3.15%, following 12 weeks in the control group in comparison to their baseline values. This study showed no difference in lipid profiles between the two groups, except for HDL-C concentrations. CONCLUSION: sour tea may have significant positive effects on lipid profile of polygenic dyslipidemia subjects and these effect might be attributed to its anthocyanins and inflation factor content. Therefore, sour tea intake with recommended dietary patterns and physical activity can be useful in regulation of lipid profile in patients with polygenic dyslipidemia.

Antiviral screening of four plant extracts against acyclovir resistant herpes simplex virus type-1.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) causes serious infections particularly in immunocompromised patients. Methanolic extract of four plants were evaluated for their anti-viral effects against acyclovir resistant HSV-1 in HeLa cell line. The 50% cytotoxic concentration (CC50) as well as the effective minimal cytotoxic concentration of each plant extract were evaluated by MTT assay. Antiviral effects of the plant extracts on HSV-1 were examined at different concentrations of the extract. The effective minimal cytotoxic concentration was evaluated at different times of virus replication after infection. Virus titration was assessed by tissue culture infectious dose 50 (TCID50) method. Among the 4 plant extracts evaluated only Mentha pulegium L. extract was shown to exert the highest antiviral activity, with selectivity index (SI) 10.25. Direct treatment of HSV-1 with Mentha pulegium L. extract resulted in 1.7 log10 TCID50 reduction in virus titers after one hour. The highest reduction in HSV-1 infectivity was obtained 1 hour after the infection of the cells with virus resulting in 2.1 log10 TCID50 reduction as compared to the control. The antiviral effects of Mentha pulegium L. extract on HSV-1 after virus infection was more remarkable than the virucidal activity.

Etiology and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Pattern of Pathogenic Bacteria in Children Subjected to UTI: A Referral Hospital-Based Study in Northwest of Iran.

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is 1 of the most common bacterial diseases in children with a considerable resistance to antimicrobials. This 5 years prospective study was carried out to determine the frequency of isolation and antimicrobial resistance patterns of uropathogens among children subjected to urine culture at Tabriz Children Educational-Health Care Center, in the northwest of Iran. Organisms were isolated using standard culture techniques. Frequency of UTI among children examined by urine culture was 3.6%. The isolated bacteria were Escherichia coli (71.4%), followed by Klebsiella spp. (9.6%), Enterococcus spp. (6.4%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (4.2%), Serratia spp. (4.2%), and Enterobacter spp. (4.2%). E coli resistance levels were 11% for nitrofurantoin, 15% for ciprofloxacin, 25% for nalidixic acid, and 30% to 75% for amikacin, gentamicin, ceftriaxone, ceftizoxime, cefotaxime, and co-trimoxazole. Among the tested antibiotics, ciprofloxacin, showed the highest activity (100%) against Klebsiella and P aeruginosa isolates followed by amikacin, nalidixic acid, and gentamicin. Overall, the highly active antibiotic against Gram-negative and Gram-positive organisms was amikacin and then ciprofloxacin. On the other hand, the empirical initial therapy with co-trimoxazole and third-generation cephalosporins would be inadequate for more cases of UTI in the study area. Moreover, susceptibility testing should be carried out on all clinical isolates, and the empirical antibiotic treatment changed accordingly.

Effects of Heracleum persicum ethyl acetate extract on the growth, hyphal ultrastructure and aflatoxin biosynthesis in Aspergillus parasiticus.

The ethyl acetate extract of leaves, seeds and flowers of Heracleum persicum, a medicinal plant of Iran (family Apiaceae) inhibited growth and aflatoxin (AF) production of Aspergillus parasiticus. On the basis of total dry weight growth inhibition by the leaf extract ranged from 17.1 to 36.9 %, by the flower extract from 32.2 to 75.6 %, and by the seed extract from 27.5 to 74.9 %. Production of AFB1 and AFG1 was inhibited in a dose-dependent manner, with a reduction of 88.5-100 % at the highest concentration of 8,000 µg/ml tested. The flower extract decreased ergosterol content of hyphae most significantly. Electron microscopy further revealed structural defects in the treated A. parasiticus including disruption of cytoplasmic membranous compartments, detachment of plasma membrane from the cell wall, and disorganization of hyphal compartments. Collapsed hyphae without conidiation, shorter branches and undifferentiated hyphal tips were also evident. The results indicate that H. persicum extract exerts antifungal and anti-AF activities by disrupting plasma membrane integrity and permeability mainly through interference with ergosterol biosynthesis. These results show that H. persicum can serve as a potent and safe alternative for inhibiting toxigenic aspergilli growth and thus preventing AF contamination of foods and feeds.

Natural oils enhance IL-10 and IFN-γ production by human PBMCs cultured with Malassezia furfur.

BACKGROUND: Malassezia furfur is a lipophilic yeast that causes skin disease. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the level of IL-10, IFN-γ and IL-12P70 in co-incubation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with M. furfur grown in the presence of some different types of natural oils. METHODS: PBMCs were obtained from blood samples of normal volunteers. M. furfur was cultured in different culture media containing almond oil, fish oil, walnut oil, full-fat milk, and a fat-free medium; and the yeasts grown were harvested and used for co-incubation with PBMCs in vitro. The IFN-γ, IL-10, and IL-12P70 levels were measured at different time intervals using ELISA methods. RESULTS: Generally, IFN-γ and IL-10 levels in the co-incubation of yeasts with walnut oil group (WOG) and fish oil group (FOG) were higher than those in the almond oil group (AOG) and full-fat milk group (FFMG). Although the IL-12P70 was higher in groups such as AOG, FOG, and WOG; the increase was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrated that the type of fat used by M. furfur in the culture media can influence the immune response and increasesIFN-γ and IL-10 levels in an early time point of the culture system.

Effect of Matricaria chamomilla L. flower essential oil on the growth and ultrastructure of Aspergillus niger van Tieghem.

The antifungal activity of Matricaria chamomilla L. flower essential oil was evaluated against Aspergillus niger with the emphasis on the plant's mode of action at the electron microscopy level. A total of 21 compounds were identified in the plant oil using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) accounting for 92.86% of the oil composition. The main compounds identified were alpha-bisabolol (56.86%), trans-trans-farnesol (15.64%), cis-beta-farnesene (7.12%), guaiazulene (4.24%), alpha-cubebene (2.69%), alpha-bisabolol oxide A (2.19%) and chamazulene (2.18%). In the bioassay, A. niger was cultured on Potato Dextrose Broth medium in 6-well microplates in the presence of serial two fold concentrations of plant oil (15.62 to 1000 microg/mL) for 96 h at 28 degrees C. Based on the results obtained, A. niger growth was inhibited dose dependently with a maximum of approximately 92.50% at the highest oil concentration. A marked retardation in conidial production by the fungus was noticed in relation to the inhibition of hyphal growth. The main changes of hyphae observed by transmission electron microscopy were disruption of cytoplasmic membranes and intracellular organelles, detachment of plasma membrane from the cell wall, cytoplasm depletion, and complete disorganization of hyphal compartments. In scanning electron microscopy, swelling and deformation of hyphal tips, formation of short branches, and collapse of entire hyphae were the major changes observed. Morphological alterations might be due to the effect on cell permeability through direct interaction of M. chamomilla essential oil with the fungal plasma membrane. These findings indicate the potential of M. chamomilla L. essential oil in preventing fungal contamination and subsequent deterioration of stored food and other susceptible materials.

Hollow fiber liquid phase microextraction followed by high performance liquid chromatography for determination of ultra-trace levels of Se(IV) after derivatization in urine, plasma and natural water samples.

In the present work, a simple and high sensitive method based on hollow fiber liquid phase microextraction (HF-LPME) was developed followed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for determination of ultra-trace amounts of Se(IV) after derivatization in biological and natural water samples. Se(IV) was complexed with o-phenylenediamine to form piazselenol. The formed piazselenol was extracted into 20 microL of 1-octanol located in the lumen of a hollow fiber and the solution was injected into HPLC-UV for analysis. Using the Taguchi method, an orthogonal array design (OAD), OA(16) (4(5)) was employed to optimize the HF-LPME of piazselenol. The effect of five experimental factors (each factor at four levels) including the volume of the organic phase, extraction time, pH of the solution, stirring rate and ionic strength on the extraction efficiency of piazselenol was studied and optimized. The maximum extraction efficiency of piazselenol was obtained at 20 microL of 1-octanol as the extracting solvent, 30 min extraction time, pH 2, stirring rate of 500 rpm and 30% (w/v) NaCl. Under the optimum conditions, preconcentration factors up to 130 were achieved and the relative standard deviation (%RSD) of the method was <3.7% for different concentrations of Se(IV). The calibration curves were obtained in the ranges of 0.2-100 and 0.05-10 microgL(-1) for the 11 and 50 mL of the sample volumes with reasonable linearity, respectively (r(2)> 0.995). The limits of detection (LOD) were 0.1 and 0.02 microgL(-1) for the 11 and 50 mL sample volumes, respectively (S/N - 3). Finally, the applicability of the proposed method was evaluated by the extraction and determination of Se(IV) in the plasma, urine and water samples.

Inhibitory effects of Satureja hortensis L. essential oil on growth and aflatoxin production by Aspergillus parasiticus.

In an effort to screen the essential oils of some Iranian medicinal plants for novel aflatoxin (AF) inhibitors, Satureja hortensis L. was found as a potent inhibitor of aflatoxins B1 (AFB1) and G1(AFG1) production by Aspergillus parasiticus NRRL 2999. Fungal growth was also inhibited in a dose-dependent manner. Separation of the plant inhibitory substance(s) was achieved using initial fractionation of its effective part (leaf essential oil; LEO) by silica gel column chromatography and further separation by reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). These substances were finally identified as carvacrol and thymol, based on the interpretation of 1H and 13C NMR spectra. Microbioassay (MBA) on cell culture microplates contained potato-dextrose broth (PDB) medium (4 days at 28 degrees C) and subsequent analysis of cultures with HPLC technique revealed that both carvacrol and thymol were able to effectively inhibit fungal growth, AFB1 and AFG1 production in a dose-dependent manner at all two-fold concentrations from 0.041 to 1.32 mM. The IC50 values for growth inhibition were calculated as 0.79 and 0.86 mM for carvacrol and thymol, while for AFB1 and AFG1, it was reported as 0.50 and 0.06 mM for carvacrol and 0.69 and 0.55 mM for thymol. The results obtained in this study clearly show a new biological activity for S. hortensis L. as strong inhibition of aflatoxin production by A. parasiticus. Carvacrol and thymol, the effective constituents of S. hortensis L., may be useful to control aflatoxin contamination of susceptible crops in the field.