Iron overload patients with unknown etiology from national survey in Japan.

Transfusion is believed to be the main cause of iron overload in Japan. A nationwide survey on post-transfusional iron overload subsequently led to the establishment of guidelines for iron chelation therapy in this country. To date, however, detailed clinical information on the entire iron overload population in Japan has not been fully investigated. In the present study, we obtained and studied detailed clinical information on the iron overload patient population in Japan. Of 1109 iron overload cases, 93.1% were considered to have occurred post-transfusion. There were, however, 76 cases of iron overload of unknown origin, which suggest that many clinicians in Japan may encounter some difficulty in correctly diagnosing and treating iron overload. Further clinical data were obtained for 32 cases of iron overload of unknown origin; median of serum ferritin was 1860.5 ng/mL. As occurs in post-transfusional iron overload, liver dysfunction was found to be as high as 95.7% when serum ferritin levels exceeded 1000 ng/mL in these patients. Gene mutation analysis of the iron metabolism-related genes in 27 cases of iron overload with unknown etiology revealed mutations in the gene coding hemojuvelin, transferrin receptor 2, and ferroportin; this indicates that although rare, hereditary hemochromatosis does occur in Japan.

Preventive effects of Pueraria mirifica on bone loss in ovariectomized rats.

OBJECTIVE: Effects of Pueraria mirifica on bone loss in fully mature ovariectomized rats are examined. METHODS: Two series of experiments were performed. In the first series, rats were kept with their ovaries intact and divided into two groups; initial control (IC) and sham control (SH). The IC rats were sacrificed on day 1 and their data were kept as baseline control. The SH rats were subjected to sham operation on day 0 and gavaged daily with distilled water for 90 days. In the second series, rats were subjected to ovariectomy, divided into five groups and gavaged daily with 0.1mg/kg B.W./day of 17-alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE), 0, 10, 100 and 1000mg/kg B.W./day of P. mirifica (P0, P10, P100 and P1000, respectively) for 90 days. Changes of bone mineral density and bone mineral content were measured using peripheral Quantitative Computerized Tomography. RESULTS: Bone loss was significantly induced by ovariectomy and it was dose-dependently prevented by P. mirifica treatment for 90 days. The preventive effects of P. mirifica on bone loss depended on bone types (axial or long bone), bone sites (metaphysis or diaphysis), and bone compartments (trabecular and cortical). At P100 and P1000, bone loss was completely prevented both in trabecular bone mineral density and content. The effects of P. mirifica were, as expected, comparable to that in the EE group. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that P. mirifica may be applicable to treat the osteoporosis in menopausal women; however, an undesirable side effect on stimulating reproductive organs should be concerned.

Pueraria mirifica, a phytoestrogen-rich herb, prevents bone loss in orchidectomized rats.

OBJECTIVE: Estrogens and estrogen-like substances have been reported to play an important role in male bone homeostasis and to prevent bone loss. Pueraria mirifica (Leguminosae), a Thai herbal plant, containing a high amount of phytoestrogens was a choice of interest for this study. We examined the effects of crude P. mirifica on bone loss and influences on reproductive organs in male rats. METHODS: Using fully mature and orchidectomized (ORX) rats, the effects of 0, 10, 100 and 1000 mg/kgB.W./day of P. mirifica and 0.1mg/kg B.W./day of 17 alpha-ethinylestradiol (a positive control) were evaluated on bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) measured with a peripheral Quantitative Computerized Tomography (pQCT) densitometry. RESULTS: Bone loss in trabecular and cortical bones of the various sites of axial bone (fourth lumbar vertebral body) and long bones (tibia and femur) after ORX was dose-dependently prevented by P. mirifica. The effects were specific on bone types and sites. The weights of the accessory sex organs, seminal vesicle and ventral prostrate gland, which significantly decreased after 3-month of ORX, were not altered by P. mirifica. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that P. mirifica treatment may be useful to prevent an osteoporosis in elderly hypogonadism subjects without influences on reproductive organs.

Long-term treatment effects of Pueraria mirifica phytoestrogens on parathyroid hormone and calcium levels in aged menopausal cynomolgus monkeys.

To determine the effect of Pueraria mirifica (PM) on serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) and calcium levels on aged menopausal monkeys (Macaca fascicularis), subjects were treated with 10, 100, or 1,000 mg/day of PM. Blood samples were collected every 5 days for 30, 90, and 60 days during pre-treatment, treatment, and post-treatment periods, respectively. Sera were assayed for PTH, estradiol, and calcium levels. PM-1,000 had the strongest effect on the decrease in PTH (0.001