In vitro and in vivo studies of Dragon's blood plant (D. cinnabari)-loaded electrospun chitosan/PCL nanofibers: Cytotoxicity, antibacterial, and wound healing activities.

The D. cinnabari plant was loaded into the chitosan (Chn)/polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibers in two forms: resin (D. cinnabari) and its ethyl acetate fraction. The Chn/PCL, Chn/PCL/D. cinnabari (CPD, 1, 3, and 5 %), and Chn/PCL/ethyl acetate extract D. cinnabari (CPED, 1, 3, and 5 %) showed no toxicity against human dermal fibroblast cells. The lactate dehydrogenase assay results indicated that the toxicity of pour, coated D. cinnabari, and CPED nanofibers were lower than 10 and 15 % after 1 and 3 days, respectively. The antibacterial results showed the inhibition zone for ethyl acetate extract D. cinnabari (ED-3 %), the Chn/PCL-2, and CPED3% nanofibers was 8.1, 7.4, 4.2, 5.1 mm, 12.8, 12.4, 21.7, 17.2 mm, and 24.7, 22.9, 37.1, 30.2 mm against S. aureus, B. subtilis, E. coli, and P. aeruginosa, respectively. The antibacterial activity results showed synergistic effect between the Chn/PCL and ethyl acetate extract D. cinnabari occurred. The diameter of wounds (1.50 × 1.50 cm diameter) made on the dorsal surface of rabbits reduced to 1.50 × 0.70, 0.50 × 0.30, 1.00 × 1.00, 0.60 × 0.50, 0.20 × 0.05, and 0.00 × 0.00 cm in the presence of ordinary gauze dressing, silver sulfadiazine, ED-3 %, Chn/PCL-2, CPD3%, and CPED3%nanofibers, respectively, after 14 days.

Efficacy and safety of add-on Viola odorata L. in the treatment of COVID-19: A randomized double-blind controlled trial.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) due to the novel coronavirus has become the highest priority that threatens human health. This situation demands widespread vaccination and the innovation of new therapeutic methods. Despite drug discoveries, the need for approving new medicaments is felt because of adverse effects and lack of efficacy. Several medicinal plants including Viola odorata L. are recommended in traditional Persian medicine for alleviating respiratory infection symptoms. Recent studies showed anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-asthmatic, antitussive, analgesic, and antibacterial activities of sweet violet. These enhance respiratory functions, reduce pulmonary inflammation, and decline mucous membrane edema. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of sweet violet syrup in alleviating the manifestations of COVID-19 infection. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A randomized parallel-group double-blind controlled trial was conducted at Al-Zahra general hospital, Isfahan, Iran. A total of 108 outpatients were enrolled in the study. The patients were randomly allocated to intervention and placebo groups, with 54 patients in each group. The allocation was concealed using sealed opaque envelopes. The intervention group received violet syrup and the control group received placebo syrup, an add-on to the conventional treatment. The outcomes were COVID-19 manifestations, such as dyspnea, cough, myalgia, headache, and diarrhea, considered as outcomes of the study and were evaluated twice using a visual analog scale before the intervention and after 7 days, at the end of the study. Patients were followed daily by phone calls to monitor proper drug consumption and possible side effects. RESULTS: No significant difference was between groups regarding demographic characteristics and vital signs before and after the treatment. Although all symptoms have improved significantly in both groups, patients who received violet syrup recovered faster and the mean severity scores of cough (P = 0.025), myalgia (P = 0.036), headache (P = 0.037), and diarrhea (P = 0.044) decreased greater in comparison to control group. CONCLUSION: This study, the first clinical trial on the effectiveness of Viola odorata on SARS-CoV-2 patients, showed that Viola odorata L. effectively controls prevalent manifestations of COVID-19 including cough, myalgia, headache, and diarrhea. Regarding this survey, the violet syrup can be mentioned as a complementary treatment for viral influenza-like infections in which cough, myalgia, headache, and diarrhea are prominent.

Effect of rose oil on Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease in comparison with omeprazole: A double-blind controlled trial.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) as one of the most common ailments of gastrointestinal system diminishes quality of life and impairs physical functioning and work productivity. Proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs), such as omeprazole play a more dominant role in amelioration of GERD symptoms; nonetheless, there is a growing concern about their side effects. According to traditional Persian medicine (TPM), the use of rose oil is recommended to alleviate GERD symptoms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Therefore, a randomized double-blind controlled trial was performed on 70 subjects who were randomly enrolled in two groups and received either rose oil softgel or omeprazole capsule combined with the placebo. Data were collected within 3 sessions of visit using the Mayo-gastroesophageal reflux questionnaire (GERQ). RESULTS: Although, our findings showed that reflux symptoms were decreased in both groups after receiving medicine and the decrement was significant in treatment group, before and after the intervention, this decrease was not significant between two groups. CONCLUSION: Given that the rose oil used in this study was produced according to the Iranian method and effective ingredients of Rosa damascena were preserved in sesame oil in production process, it seems that effectiveness of this product can be due to its tonic and enlivening properties. Consumption of rose oil soft capsule alleviates cardinal GERD symptoms similar to omeprazole. It seems that rose oil can have the same effects as PPIs in treatment of GERD but with no side effects due to its different mechanisms of action.

Formulation, Standardization, and a Preliminary Before-After Clinical Trial on Effect of a Traditional Herbal Formula (Maqliasa) on Manifestations of Ulcerative Colitis.

BACKGROUND: Ulcerative Colitis (UC) is a chronic condition that represents a group of intestinal disorders causing prolonged inflammation of the digestive tract. Nowadays, efforts to investigate new remedies have led to a committed movement toward the integration of traditional and complementary medicine into mainstream medicine. In Traditional Persian Medicine (TPM), Maqliasa is one of the most frequent gastrointestinal prescriptions which is claimed to be effective in both remission and recurrent phases of UC. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this pilot study was to examine the effect of Maqliasa on UC symptoms. METHODS: Through a non-randomized before-after uncontrolled clinical trial, 13 outpatients with active UC were enrolled in the study. They continued their conventional drug regimens plus Maqliasa capsules (2 capsules t.i.d.) for 28 days. Three visits were arranged for each patient- the first admission, day 14th admission and day 28th admission. The patients were evaluated by Lichtiger Colitis Activity Index. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The Lichtiger colitis activity index improved in the study group was compared to the corresponding baseline values: baseline score: 7.8 ± 0.5; after two weeks: 5.9 ± 0.6 (P=0.002); after four weeks: 3.6 ± 0.5 (P=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study showed the promising effect of Maqliasa in the treatment of active UC. However, due to some of the limitations of the study, conducting future high-quality randomized clinical trials would be crucial.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Cholesterol Have a Main Role in Antidepression Diet of Iranian Traditional Medicine.

Depression is one of the major health problems of our world. Recent studies have revealed the relationship between diet and depression. In Iranian traditional medicine, there is a therapeutic diet that is recommended in melancholic diseases like depression. One of the main components of this diet is meat. Meats are divided into 2 groups: recommended and abstinent. The aim of this study was to clarify the logic of this diet through comparing nutritional elements of the 2 groups with each other. For this purpose, prominent books on Iranian traditional medicine were searched for abstinent and recommended meats traditionally prescribed for depressed patients. The results of each group were compared with the other by using Mann-Whitney Test (SPSS version 16). The results showed that recommended meats contain higher amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids ( P = .01) especially omega-3 ( P = .03). Both groups contain high amounts of cholesterol. Iranian traditional medicine recommends consumption of meats that contains cholesterol with omega-3 fatty acids in depression.

Non-polyphenolic compounds of a specific kind of dried grape (Maviz) inhibit memory impairments induced by beta-amyloid peptide.

OBJECTIVES: Although grape has been recently the topic of many investigations, Maviz (a kind of dried one) has remained neglected. The aim of this study was to assess anti-Alzheimer activity of Maviz. METHODS: To reach this goal, total phenolic content (TPC) of ethanolic (Eth) and aqueous (Aq) extracts were determined and radical scavenging activity was assayed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl. Chemical compositions of each extract were also determined via GC-Mass. Behavioral changes were studied via passive avoidance and Morris water maze in Aß-induced model of Alzheimer's disease. Catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) determination were also done on rats' hippocampus. RESULTS: The results showed that seed Eth extract has a high level of TPC and radical scavenging activity. However, this extract had surprisingly no effect on memory and CAT and SOD activities. In contrast, fruit Aq and Eth extracts (containing furfurals as major compounds) inhibited memory impairment (P < 0.001) and elevated brain levels of CAT and SOD(P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: It seems that Maviz non-phenolic compounds-most probably 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and other similar derivatives-are responsible for these actions.

Physiopathology of Dementia in Iranian Traditional Medicine.

Recently, an article published in this journal by Dr Seifaddini and colleagues. In that article, the authors tried to connect dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, with a condition mentioned in Iranian traditional medical condition, Raoonat and Homgh In this condition, intellectual functions of the brain are disturbed and therefore, learning and decision-making abilities are damaged. This condition is not age limited and affects thinking ability but not memory. On the other hand, there is a condition described in Iranian traditional medicine, which completely matches with Alzheimer's disease. This condition is explained under the title of Nesyan (forgetfulness). Nesyan has 5 subdivisions, one of which is caused by the inclination of the brain normal temperament to more coldness and dryness. By performing animal studies, we have recently shown that this kind of Nesyan is related with Alzheimer's disease. Studies on the traditional recommendations on treatment of this kind of Nesyan can be useful in treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

Treatment of Alzheimer's disease in Iranian traditional medicine.

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease with a high prevalence in recent years. Dramatic growth in AD prevalence has increased the importance of more researches on AD treatment. History has shown that traditional medicine can be a source of inspiration to find new therapies. OBJECTIVES: This study tried to codify the recommendations of Iranian traditional medicine (ITM) by studying the main medical manuscripts. The second purpose was to compare these findings with new medical information. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cardinal traditional medical and pharmacological texts from 10th to 18th century were searched for traditional terms of dementia (Nesyan, Fisad-uz-Zekr, Faramooshkari) focused on treatment methods. The findings were classified into three groups: lifestyle recommendations, dietary approaches, and drug therapies. These findings were compared with new medical findings. RESULTS: ITM has dietary recommendations for dementia such as increasing consumption of nuts, poultry and eggs, milk, and grape products (like raisin and currant). These compounds are full of unsaturated fatty acids, cholesterol, and polyphenolic compounds. New findings suggest that these substances can help in prevention and treatment of AD. ITM has some lifestyle considerations like increasing physical and mental activities, listening to music, attending musical feasts, and smelling specific perfumes. New medical findings confirm nearly all of these recommendations. Along with the aforementioned items, treatment with natural medicines is in the first line of traditional treatment of dementia. New investigations show that many of these herbs have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory factors and acetylcholine esterase inhibitory effects. A few of them also have N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) blocking activity. When these herbs are put together in traditional formulations, they can comprehensively fight against the disease. CONCLUSIONS: More ethnopharmacological and ethnomedical studies on ITM antidementia therapy can be followed by fruitful results.

Comparison between Complementary Dietary Treatment of Alzheimer Disease in Iranian Traditional Medicine and Modern Medicine.

BACKGROUND: Dietary notifications have been introduced recently for Alzheimer Disease (AD). In Iranian old medical manuscripts, there are some nutritional recommendations related to Nesyan (AD equivalent). The aim of this article was to compare dietary recommendations of Iranian traditional medicine (ITM) with novel medical outcomes. METHODS: 1) Searching for dietary recommendations and abstinences described in ITM credible manuscripts; 2) Extracting fatty components of ITM diet according to the database of the Department of Agriculture of the USA; 3) Statistical analysis of fatty elements of traditionally recommended foods via Mann-Whitney Test in comparison with elements of the abstinent ones; 4) Searching for AD dietary recommendations and abstinences which currently published in medical journals; 5) Comparing traditional and new dietary suggestions with each other. RESULTS: 1) Traditionally recommended foods are fattier than abstinent ones (P<0.001). There are meaningful differences between unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) (P<0.001), saturated fatty acids (P<0.001), and cholesterol (P<0.05) of recommended foods and abstinent ones. 2) Traditionally recommended diet is also fattier than the abstinent diet (4.5 times); UFAs of the recommended diet is 11 times more than that of the abstinent one; it is the same story for cholesterol (1.4 times); 3) Recent studies show that diets with high amounts of UFAs have positive effects on AD; a considerable number of papers emphasizes on probable positive role of cholesterol on AD; 4) Traditional recommended diet is in agreement with recent studies. CONCLUSION: ITM recommended diet which is full of unsaturated fatty acids and cholesterol can be utilized for complementary treatment of AD.