EVALUATION OF THE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CAPACITY OF BETA-SITOSTEROL IN RODENT ASSAYS.

BACKGROUND: Beta-sitosterol (BS) is a compound discovered to be present in numerous plants. A number of interesting biomedical properties have been attributed to BS, including immuno-modulating and anti-inflammatory activities. Therefore, the aim of this report was to evaluate its anti-inflammatory capacity by applying various rodent experimental tests. METHODS: To carry out the objective of the study we applied the methods indicated here. Two of the adopted methods were based on the passive reverse Arthus reaction: the rat paw edema test and the rat pleurisy assay. We also applied two methods related with the non-specific acute inflammation: the mouse ear edema test, and the mouse mieloperoxidase activity assay. RESULTS: The results obtained in all tests established a significant anti-inflammatory potential of BS. In the rat paw edema test we found an inhibitory effect which goes from 50-70%; in the rat pleurisy assay our findings with respect to the volume of pleural exuded showed a reduction of 46%, as well as a 20% low amount of neutrophils in comparison with the level of the control group. In the mouse ear edema test we found a mean inflammatory inhibition of 75%, and with respect to mieloproxidase activity the results showed a significant inhibition induced by the three doses of BS. CONCLUSIONS: In the present study we determined a potent anti-inflammatory capacity of BS in specific and non-specific types of acute inflammation in rodents.

Análisis molecular por PCR múltiple anidada para virus de la familia herpes en la parálisis facial periférica idiopática / Molecular analysis by multiplex nested PCR for herpes virus family in idiopathic peripheral facial paralysis

En el Instituto Nacional de Rehabilitación, la parálisis facial periférica idiopática (PFPI) ocupa uno de los diez primeros lugares de atención. Su etiología aún es desconocida; sin embargo, se han identificado los virus de la familia herpes (HSV) como posibles agentes causales. Objetivo: Detectar el ADN de virus HSV-1 y HVS-2, citomegalovirus (CMV) y varicela zóster (VZV) en pacientes con PFPI y correlacionar su presencia con la presentación clínica de la enfermedad. Métodos: Se extrajo el ADN de la fracción leucocitaria de 62 muestras de pacientes con PFPI. La amplificación del ADN viral se realizó por PCR múltiple anidada con oligonucleótidos específicos para cada virus. La determinación de IgG e IgMse realizó por el método de ELISA. Resultados: La PCR mostró 22 (35.5%) casos positivos para HSV-1,1(1.6%) para HSV-2, 1 (1.6%) para VZV, 3 (4.8%) para CMV. La seroprevalencia mostró que 55 (88.7%) casos presentaron niveles altos de IgG para HSV-1 y 2, 2 (3.22%) para IgG-VZV y 5 (8.1%) para IgMCMV. Tanto los casos positivos como los negativos para HSV-1 no establecieron diferencias significativas con la edad, sexo, lateralidad, síntomas, grado de parálisis facial y la temporada en la que se presentó la parálisis. Conclusión: El virus más frecuente encontrado en nuestros pacientes fue el HSV-1 lo que sugiere una fuerte asociación entre la presencia de HSV-1 y la aparición de PFPI...

Bell's palsy. A prospective, longitudinal, descriptive, and observational analysis of prognosis factors for recovery in Mexican patients.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prognosis factors in Mexican patients with Bell's palsy. DESIGN: We designed a prospective, longitudinal, descriptive, and observational analysis. Two hundred and fifty one patients diagnosed with Bell's palsy at the National Institute of Rehabilitation were included. We studied the sociodemographic characteristics, seasonal occurrence, sidedness, symptoms, and therapeutic options to determine the prognostic factors for their recovery. RESULTS: Thirty-nine percent of patients had a complete recovery and 41.5% had an incomplete recovery. Marital status, gender, etiology, symptoms, sidedness, House-Brackmann grade, and treatments did not represent significant prognostic factors for recovery. Age > 40 years (OR = 2.4, IC 95% 1.3-4.3, p = 0.002) and lack of physical therapy (OR = 6.4, IC 95% 1.4-29.6, p = 0.006) were significant prognostic factors for incomplete recovery. Familial palsy resulted to be a protective prognostic factor against an incomplete recovery (OR = 0.54, IC 95% 0.28-1.01, p = 0.039). This protection factor was only significant in female patients (OR = 0.41, p = 0.22) but not in male patients (OR = 1.0, p = 0.61). CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of cases with incomplete recovery was high. The age > 40 years and lack of physical therapy were the only significant prognostic factors for an incomplete recovery.