Effects of barakol from Cassia siamea on neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell line: A potential combined therapy with doxorubicin.

Management of neuroblastoma is challenging because of poor response to drugs, chemotherapy resistance, high relapse, and treatment failures. Doxorubicin is a potent anticancer drug commonly used for neuroblastoma treatment. However, doxorubicin induces considerable toxicities, particularly those caused by oxidative-related damage. To minimize drug-induced adverse effects, the combined use of anticancer drugs with natural-derived compounds possessing antioxidant properties has become an interesting treatment strategy. Barakol is a major compound found in Cassia siamea, an edible plant with antioxidant and anticancer properties. Therefore, barakol could potentially be used in combination with doxorubicin to synergize the anticancer effect, while minimizing the oxidative-related toxicities. Herein, the potential of barakol (0.0043-43.0 µM) to synergize the anticancer effect of low-dose doxorubicin (0.5 and 1.0 µM) was investigated. Results indicated that barakol could enhance the cytotoxic effect of low-dose doxorubicin by affecting the cell viability of the treated cells. Furthermore, the co-treatment with barakol and low-dose doxorubicin decreased the levels of intracellular ROS when compared with the control. Moreover, the antimetastatic effect of the barakol itself was studied through its ability to inhibit metalloproteinase-3 (MMP-3) activity and prevent cell migration. Results revealed that the barakol inhibited MMP-3 activity and prevented cell migration in time- and dose-dependent manners. Additionally, barakol was a non-cytotoxic agent against the normal tested cell line (MRC-5), which suggested its selectivity and safety. Taken together, barakol could be a promising compound to be further developed for combination treatment with low-dose doxorubicin to improve therapeutic effectiveness but decrease drug-induced toxicities. The inhibitory effects of barakol on MMP-3 activity and cancer cell migration also supported its potential to be developed as an antimetastatic agent.

Effects of Laughing Training on Serum Cortisol and Nitrite Levels in Thai Private Office Workers.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of the laughing training on serum cortisol and nitrite levels in Thai private office workers. Material and Method: Forty volunteers age 25 to 60 years from private offices were recruited. Thirty eight remaining volunteers were divided into two groups: 20 for the experimental group and 18 for the control group. They were randomly assigned to participate in the training by matching up pairs of subjects with the same level of mean total scores from the Suanprung Stress Test-60 (SPT-60). The program ran and continued from June to July, 2013. The control subjects took a rest in the same room as the experimental group throughout the experiment. The experimental subjects participated in laughing training program for 3 days a week, 1 hour a day for 8 consecutive weeks. At 8.00 AM, eight milliliters of venous blood was drawn from individuals in both control and experimental groups at the beginning and at the end of the training program. Serum cortisol and nitrite were assayed by electro chemiluminescense immunoassay and enhance chemiluminescense using high sensitivity nitrite, respectively. Results: No significant difference was found in the mean of pre-post level of serum cortisol within control and experimental groups. Additionally, pre-level of serum nitrite in the experimental group revealed significant difference from post-level of serum nitrite in control and experimental groups at p<0.05. Conclusion: Laughing training is supposed to promote good health by reducing acute or chronic stress during work. In this present study, laughing training for 8 weeks had significant effect on serum nitric oxide level indirectly determined by serum nitrite level. However, this laughing training program had no significant effect on the serum cortisol concentration.

Association of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms of Endothelin, Orexin and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor Genes with Obstructive Sleep Apnea among Thai Ethnic.

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a complex disorder characterized by repetitive collapse of upper airway during sleep which strongly influenced by genetic factors, especially those affect regulation of the sleep-wake cycle and endothelial function. Objective: This study investigated the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in endothelin (EDNRA), orexin (OX1R, OX2R) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGFR1) receptor genes with risk of OSA in Thai population. Material and Method: All subjects were diagnosed by overnight polysomnography (PSG) before divided into OSA (59) and NOSA (60) groups based on their apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). Serum lipid levels were examined by using enzymatic colorimetric and homogeneous methods. DNAs were extracted and genotyped the SNPs by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and high-resolution melting (HRM) analysis. Genotype distribution were analyzed using Chi-square test of SPSS program version 15.0. Results: The triglycerides level of OSA patients was significantly higher than NOSA (p-value = 0.002). The SNPs in EDNRA (rs5335), OX1R (rs2271933), OX2R (rs2292040, rs10456182) and VEGFR1 (rs11149523) genes showed no association with OSA. However, the SNP (rs17675063) in EDNRA gene showed significant differences in genotype distribution in the subjects with and without OSA (p-value = 0.002, odds ratio = 3.29 and 95% CI = 1.86-5.82). Conclusion: Obstructive sleep apnea, Single nucleotide polymorphisms, Endothelin receptor type A, Orexin receptor 1, Orexin receptor 2, Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor type 1.

Effects of Laughing Training on Stress Levels in Thai Private Office Workers.

BACKGROUND: Laughing is a kind of well known alternative medicine used to treat stressful persons or depressive patients to relax. The laughing program used in this study was initially designed by Thai psychiatrists. It consists of deep diaphragmatic breathing exercises, voice expression, facial expression exercises and aerobic exercises, which are expected to promote good health. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of the laughing training on stress levels in Thai private office workers. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Thirty-eight subjects whose age 25-60 years were recruited to enroll in this program. They were randomly divided into two groups: 20 people for the experimental group and 18 persons for the control group. The experimental subjects participated in laughing program for 3 days/week, 60 minutes/day for 8 consecutive weeks. The program took place from June to July 2013. The level of stress was assessed using the Suanprung stress test-60 (SPST-60). The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test dependent and t-test independent with p < 0.05 considered significant. RESULTS: After they joined the laughing program, no significant difference was found in the mean scores of the level of stress between the control and experimental groups. However, the sensitivities to the arousal events in the experimental group had a tendency to decrease. CONCLUSION: Laughing training may be used as a tool to promote better health. There was no significant difference in the stress levels after the program was ended except a decrement tendency in the sensitivities to the arousal events. For further study, duration and intensity of the course may be adjusted for a more effective training program.

The Pilot Study of the Effect of Meditation to the Serum Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) of Medical Students, Srinakharinvirot University.

BACKGROUND: Mindfulness meditation is a method to decrease stress and increase memory. So, mindfulness meditation should increase serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of mindfulness meditation on the serum BDNF of medical students. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The study group consisted of 30 male and female second-year medical students that volunteered to participate in the study, aged 19.1 ± 0.55 year olds (range 18-20) from Srinakharinwirot University. Their blood was drawn to measure BDNF before and after a four-day mindfulness meditation programme. The comparison of serum BDNF levels before and after meditation were analysed by paired t-test. RESULTS: The subjects were 66.77%female and 33.33% male. The average serum BDNF level before the meditation was 17.67 ng/ml (SD 3.58). After meditation, there was a decrease in serum BDNF to 17.34 ng/ml, which was however not statistically significant (SD 4.04, p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The levels of blood BDNF decreases slightly after practising meditation. We plan to investigate the reason in the future.

Effects of mindfulness meditation on serum cortisol of medical students.

BACKGROUND: Mindfulness meditation is a method to relax the mind that decreases stress, which otherwise would increase serum cortisol. So, mindfulness meditation should decrease serum cortisol. OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of mindfulness meditation on mental health by using Thai GHQ28 questionaire and study the effect of mindfulness meditation on stress by using serum cortisol. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Volunteer subjects were 30 second year medical students, aged 19.1 +/- 0.55 year olds (range 18-20) from Srinakharinwirot University. They were screened by Thai GHQ28 and blood was drawn to measure cortisol at 8:00 am before and after a four-day mindfulness meditation programme. The comparison of Thai GHQ28 scores and serum cortisol levels before and after meditation were analysed by paired t-test. RESULTS: The subjects were 66.77% female and 33.33% male. The average score of Thai GHQ28 before and after the mindfulness meditation was 1.50 (SD 2.53) and 0.77 (SD 2.08) respectively. The average serum cortisol levels before mindfulness meditation was 381.93 nmol/L (SD 97.74) becoming significantly lower after mindfulness meditation 306.38 nmol/L (SD 90.95). The difference was statistically significant in cortisol level, but not statistically significant in Thai GHQ28. CONCLUSION: Mindfulness meditation lowers the cortisol levels in the blood suggesting that it can lower stress and may decrease the risk of diseases that arise from stress such as psychiatric disorder, peptic ulcer and migraine. Then, mindfulness meditation should be used in combination with standard treatment.