Antiviral and Antitumor Activity of Licorice Root Extracts.

BACKGROUND: In the search for anti-viral and antitumor substances from natural resources, antiviral and antitumor activities of licorice root extract and purified ingredients were investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Viability of cells was determined by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide method. Antiviral activity was quantified by the selectivity index, defined as the ratio of the 50% cytotoxic concentration (CC50) to the 50% effective concentration against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or herpes simplex virus (HSV)-infected cells (EC50). The tumor specificity was calculated by the ratio of CC50 against human normal oral cells to that against human oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines. Licorice flavonoids and lower molecular polyphenols were subjected to quantitative structure-activity relationship analysis. RESULTS: Alkaline extract of licorice root had higher anti-HIV activity than did water extracts, confirming our previous reports. On the other hand, water extract, especially the flavonoid-rich fraction, had higher anti-HSV activity than did the alkaline extract. The flavonoid-rich fraction was more cytotoxic against human oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines compared to normal oral cells, suggesting their tumor-specific cytotoxicity. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that water and alkaline extracts of licorice root exert different mechanisms of actions against these two viruses. Physicochemical properties, rather than the category of compounds, may be important in determining their anti-HSV activity.

Vocalizations associated with anxiety and fear in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus).

Vocalizations of common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) were examined under experimental situations related to fear or anxiety. When marmosets were isolated in an unfamiliar environment, they frequently vocalized "tsik-egg" calls, which were the combination calls of 'tsik' followed by several 'egg'. Tsik-egg calls were also observed after treatment with the anxiogenic drug FG-7142 (20mg/kg, sc). In contrast, when marmosets were exposed to predatory stimuli as fear-evoking situations, they frequently vocalized tsik solo calls as well as tsik-egg calls. These results suggest that marmosets dissociate the vocalization of tsik-egg and tsik calls under conditions related to fear/anxiety; tsik-egg solo vocalizations were emitted under anxiety-related conditions (e.g., isolation and anxiogenic drug treatment), whereas a mixed vocalization of tsik-egg and tsik was emitted when confronted with fear-provoking stimuli (i.e., threatening predatory stimuli). Tsik-egg call with/without tsik can be used as a specific vocal index of fear/anxiety in marmosets, which allows us to understand the neural mechanism of negative emotions in primate.

Reinforcing and discriminative stimulus properties of music in goldfish.

This paper investigated whether music has reinforcing and discriminative stimulus properties in goldfish. Experiment 1 examined the discriminative stimulus properties of music. The subjects were successfully trained to discriminate between two pieces of music--Toccata and Fugue in D minor (BWV 565) by J. S. Bach and The Rite of Spring by I. Stravinsky. Experiment 2 examined the reinforcing properties of sounds, including BWV 565 and The Rite of Spring. We developed an apparatus for measuring spontaneous sound preference in goldfish. Music or noise stimuli were presented depending on the subject's position in the aquarium, and the time spent in each area was measured. The results indicated that the goldfish did not show consistent preferences for music, although they showed significant avoidance of noise stimuli. These results suggest that music has discriminative but not reinforcing stimulus properties in goldfish.

Visual Wulst analyses "where" and entopallium analyses "what" in the zebra finch visual system.

Quite a lot of studies have tried to elucidate the differences in function of the two telencephalic targets of the avian visual system. We have tried to find out how the two systems are involved in orientation towards a food tray which is either marked by a special pattern or has to be identified by its relation to spatial cues. In this report, we compared in the zebra finch the effects of Wulst lesions on pattern discrimination with Wulst lesion effects on spatial discrimination, and we examined the effect of entopallium lesions on spatial discrimination. Birds with Wulst lesions showed deficits in spatial discrimination, but not in pattern discrimination. Entopallial lesions caused no deficits in spatial discrimination tasks. Combining the present results with a previous study revealing an impairment of pattern discrimination by such entopallial lesions [19], we are able to demonstrate a double dissociation: namely, an impairment of pattern discrimination by entopallial lesions and impairment of spatial discrimination by Wulst lesions, but no effects of the opposite pairing of task and lesion site. The entopallium is thus involved if the food source is identified by a pattern, and the Wulst if it has to be found by spatial cues.

Diurnal changes in salivary amino acid concentrations.

It has been suggested that the features of saliva (e.g. fluidity, secretion and amino acid concentration) reflect physiological and psychological state of primates as well as subprimates, however, studies which revealed the relationship between the circadian rhythm and the concentrations of salivary amino acids have been limited. In order to better understand their physiological role, diurnal changes of salivary amino acids were investigated in three undergraduate students. Salivary amino acids were recovered after deproteinization with 5% trichloroacetic acid and determined by an amino acid analyzer. Most amino acids, except for methionine, cysteine and asparagine, were detected in the saliva. The intake of lunch or amino acid supplement transiently increased the salivary amino acids, and in the latter case, the amino acid levels returned to baseline within 10 minutes. Physical exercise also slightly elevated the salivary amino acid levels. During the university examination period, the secretion of saliva was slightly, but not significantly, increased, accompanied by the elevation of glycine, alanine, ornithine, histidine and threonine, and the decline of lysine, leucine, aspartic acid and hydroxyproline. Salivary amino acid levels may be useful to evaluate stressful conditions.

Multiple biological complex of alkaline extract of the leaves of Sasa senanensis Rehder.

Previous studies have shown anti-inflammatory potential of alkaline extract of the leaves of Sasa senanensis Rehder (SE). The aim of the present study was to clarity the molecular entity of SE, using various fractionation methods. SE inhibited the production of nitric oxide (NO), but not tumour necrosis factor-α by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated mouse macrophage-like cells. Lignin carbohydrate complex prepared from SE inhibited the NO production to a comparable extent with SE, whereas chlorophyllin was more active. On successive extraction with organic solvents, nearly 90% of SE components, including chlorophyllin, were recovered from the aqueous layer. Anti-HIV activity of SE was comparable with that of lignin-carbohydrate complex, and much higher than that of chlorophyllin and n-butanol extract fractions. The CYP3A inhibitory activity of SE was significantly lower than that of grapefruit juice and chlorophyllin. Oral administration of SE slightly reduced the number of oral bacteria. When SE was applied to HPLC, nearly 70% of SE components were eluted as a single peak. These data suggest that multiple components of SE may be associated with each other in the native state or after extraction with alkaline solution.

Antiviral, antibacterial and vitamin C-synergized radical-scavenging activity of Sasa senanensis Rehder extract.

Sasa senanensis Rehder extract (SE) showed slightly higher cytotoxicity against human squamous cell carcinoma cell lines and human glioblastoma cell lines, as compared with human oral normal cells (gingival fibroblast, pulp cell, periodontal ligament fibroblast), and was more cytotoxic to human myelogenous and T-cell leukemia cell lines. SE showed a bacteriostatic effect on Fusobacterium nucleatum and Prevotella intermedia, but almost completely eliminated hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and methyl mercaptan (CH3SH) produced by these bacteria. SE protected human T-cell leukemia MT-4 cells from the cytopathic effect of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, and its anti-HIV activity was much higher than that of tannins and flavonoids, comparable with that of natural and synthetic lignins. SE also protected the MDCK cells from the cytopathic effect of influenza virus infection. SE synergistically enhanced the superoxide anion and hydroxyl radical-scavenging activity of vitamin C. The present study suggests the functionality of SE as a complementary alternative medicine.

Strategy of auditory discrimination of scale in Java sparrows: they use both "imagery" and specific cues.

We examined whether Java sparrows use imagery of auditory stimuli (imagery is a subject's mental representation of a stimulus by which the subject's behaviour may be governed under stimulus control even in the absence of the physical stimulus). Three types of ascending tone sequences were used. In the intact scale, sequence tones were played in ascending order. In the intact-masked scale, part of the sequence was masked by noise but the remaining scale was identical with the intact scale, whereas in the violated scale, the sequence could be heard as if tones were played slowly (Experiment 1) or quickly (Experiment 2). Subjects were divided into two groups: one group was trained to respond to the intact and intact-masked scales and to suppress response to the violation scale (imagery-positive group). The contingency was reversed for the other (violation-positive) group. In Experiment 1, all the birds acquired discrimination, but successful transfer to novel stimuli was observed only in the imagery-positive group, suggesting that the imagery of the tone sequence was used as a discriminative cue. Experiment 2 confirmed that the stimulus duration was a discriminative cue for both groups, suggesting that the birds also acquired discrimination using only specific cues.

Aconiti tuber increases plasma nitrite and nitrate levels in humans.

Some herbal medicines, including Aconiti tuber (Aconitum carmichaeli Debeaux, Ranunculaceae), have been recognized as being effective for the treatment of a "peripheral uncomfortable feeling of cold (hie)". We hypothesized that these compounds affect peripheral vascular function via the nitric oxide (NO) system, which leads to recovery from "hie". To answer this question, we investigated Aconiti tuber-induced changes in plasma levels of nitrite (p-NO2-) and nitrate (p-NO3-), final nitric oxide-oxidation products measurable in vivo. After written informed consent was obtained, patients suffering from "hie" were treated with several kinds of kampo (Japanese traditional herbal medicine), selected on the basis of traditional theory. Twenty-four patients took kampo formulas, some included Aconiti tuber (n=11; A-group) and others did not (n=13; C-group), for 4 weeks. p-NO2- and p-NO3- levels were measured before the start and after 4 weeks of treatment. In the A-group, the p-NO2- plus p-NO3- (p-NOx) level was significantly increased at 4 weeks (p=0.04), while that of the C-group was not. There was a statistically significant increase in the p-NOx level of the A-group as compared to the C-group (d.f.=1,22, F=9.38, p=0.006). The results suggest that Aconiti tuber may increase NO production in humans.

Basic study on vibrations during tooth preparations caused by high-speed drilling and Er:YAG laser irradiation.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: An Er:YAG laser effectively removes dental hard substance, and causes less pain during tooth preparations than high-speed drilling. This laser was introduced to eliminate the noise, vibration, pressure, and heat associated with the high-speed drilling. However, the difference in tooth vibration caused by the Er:YAG laser and the high-speed drill is unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate tooth vibration obtained with the Er:YAG laser and high-speed drill. STUDY DESIGN/MATERIALS AND METHODS: Each of the five extracted permanent upper first premolars were built up in a plaster box. In this study, a silicone impression material was selected to simulate periodontal tissue. The vibration speed was measured by using a laser Doppler vibrometer. RESULTS: The Er:YAG laser irradiation energy was 50, 100, 145, 199, 300, and 350 mJ. As irradiation energy increased, vibration of the tooth also rose; a high-correlation coefficient was observed between them. We found that only a small amount of the tooth vibration occurred with the Er:YAG laser preparations. The mean vibration speed and standard deviation with the laser were 166 +/- 28 microm/second when the output energy was 145 mJ, whereas those with the high-speed drill were 65 +/- 48 mm/second. The frequency characteristic approached 230 Hz and 5 kHz, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that the high-speed drilling causes greater tooth vibration and has a frequency spectrum near the high sensitivity of hearing compared to the Er:YAG laser. This suggests a potential factor in provoking pain and displeasure during tooth preparation. Future study to examine the relationship of pain and amount of tooth vibration will be planned.