Assessment of Herb-Drug Interaction Potential of Five Common Species of Licorice and Their Phytochemical Constituents.

The dried roots and rhizomes of Glycyrrhiza species (G. glabra, G. uralensis and G. inflata), commonly known as licorice, have long been used in traditional medicine. In addition, two other species, G. echinata and G. lepidota are also considered "licorice" in select markets. Currently, licorice is an integral part of several botanical drugs and dietary supplements. To probe the botanicals' safety, herb-drug interaction potential of the hydroethanolic extracts of five Glycyrrhiza species and their key constituents was investigated by determining their effects on pregnane X receptor, aryl hydrocarbon receptor, two major cytochrome P450 isoforms (CYP3A4 and CYP1A2), and the metabolic clearance of antiviral drugs. All extracts enhanced transcriptional activity of PXR and AhR (>2-fold) and increased the enzyme activity of CYP3A4 and CYP1A2. The highest increase in CYP3A4 was seen with G. echinata (4-fold), and the highest increase in CYP1A2 was seen with G. uralensis (18-fold) and G. inflata (16-fold). Among the constituents, glabridin, licoisoflavone A, glyasperin C, and glycycoumarin activated PXR and AhR, glabridin being the most effective (6- and 27-fold increase, respectively). Licoisoflavone A, glyasperin C, and glycycoumarin increased CYP3A4 activity while glabridin, glyasperin C, glycycoumarin, and formononetin increased CYP1A2 activity (>2-fold). The metabolism of antiretroviral drugs (rilpivirine and dolutegravir) was increased by G. uralensis (2.0 and 2.5-fold) and its marker compound glycycoumarin (2.3 and 1.6-fold). The metabolism of dolutegravir was also increased by G. glabra (2.8-fold) but not by its marker compound, glabridin. These results suggest that licorice and its phytochemicals could affect the metabolism and clearance of certain drugs that are substrates of CYP3A4 and CYP1A2.Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/19390211.2022.2050875 .

The Effect of Broccoli Sprout Extract on Seasonal Grass Pollen-Induced Allergic Rhinitis.

Patients exposed to pollutants are more likely to suffer from allergic rhinitis and may benefit from antioxidant treatment. Our study determined if patients diagnosed with grass-induced allergic rhinitis could benefit from broccoli sprout extract (BSE) supplementation. In total, 47 patients were confirmed with grass-induced allergic rhinitis and randomized to one of four groups: group 1 (nasal steroid spray + BSE), group 2 (nasal steroid spray + placebo tablet), group 3 (saline nasal spray + BSE) and group 4 (saline nasal spray + placebo tablet). Peak Nasal Inspiratory Flow (PNIF), Total Nasal Symptoms Scores (TNSS) and nasal mucus cytokine levels were analyzed in samples collected before and after the 3-week intervention. Comparing before and after the intervention, PNIF improved significantly when comparing Groups 1 and 2, vs. placebo, at various time points (p ≤ 0.05 at 5, 15, 60 and 240 min) following nasal challenge, while TNSS was only statistically significant at 5 (p = 0.03), 15 (p = 0.057) and 30 (p = 0.05) minutes. There were no statistically significant differences in various cytokine markers before and after the intervention. Combining nasal corticosteroid with BSE led to the most significant improvement in objective measures.

Evidence for the utricular origin of the vestibular short-latency-evoked potential (VsEP) to bone-conducted vibration in guinea pig.

Previous studies have shown that the vestibular short-latency-evoked potential (VsEP) in response to the brief head acceleration stimulus is a compound action potential of neurons innervating the otolith organs. However, due to the lack of direct evidence, it is currently unclear whether the VsEP is primarily generated by the activity of utricular or saccular afferent neurons, or some mixture of the two. Here, we investigated the origin of the VsEP evoked by brief bone-conducted vibration pulses in guinea pigs, using selective destruction of the cochlea, semicircular canals (SCCs), saccule, or utricle, along with neural blockade with tetrodotoxin (TTX) application, and mechanical displacements of the surgically exposed utricular macula. To access each end organ, either a dorsal or a ventral surgical approach was used. TTX application abolished the VsEP, supporting the neurogenic origin of the response. Selective cochlear, SCCs, or saccular destruction had no significant effect on VsEP amplitude, whereas utricular destruction abolished the VsEP completely. Displacement of the utricular membrane changed the VsEP amplitude in a non-monotonic fashion. These results suggest that the VsEP evoked by BCV in guinea pigs represents almost entirely a utricular response. Furthermore, it suggests that displacements of the utricular macula may alter its response to bone-conduction stimuli.