Current status and future prospects of Echinococcus multilocularis vaccine candidates: A systematic review.

The larval stages of Echinococcus multilocularis (E. multilocularis) are what cause the zoonotic disease known as alveolar echinococcosis (AE). Identifying the antigens that trigger immune responses during infection is extremely important for the development of vaccines against Echinococcus infections. Several studies conducted in recent decades have described the specific traits of the protective antigens found in E. multilocularis and their role in immunizing different animal hosts. The objective of the current systematic review was to summarize the findings of relevant literature on this topic and unravel the most effective vaccine candidate antigens for future research. A comprehensive search was conducted across five databases, including ProQuest, PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science, until March 1, 2023. Two reviewers autonomously conducted the screening and evaluation of data extraction and quality assessment. In the present study, a total of 41 papers matched the criteria for inclusion. The study findings indicate that the combination of Em14-3-3 and BCG is widely considered the most often employed antigens for E. multilocularis immunization. In addition, the study describes antigen delivery, measurement of immune responses, adjuvants, animal models, as well as routes and doses of vaccination. The research indicated that recombinant vaccines containing EMY162, EM95, and EmII/3-Em14-3-3 antigens and crude or purified antigens containing ribotan-formulated excretory/secretory antigens exhibited the most favorable outcomes and elicited protective immune responses.

Protective Effect of Opuntia dillenii Haw Fruit against Lead Acetate-Induced Hepatotoxicity: In Vitro and In Vivo Studies.

Lead is one of the most common environmental contaminants in the Earth's crust, which induces a wide range of humans biochemical changes. Previous studies showed that Opuntia dillenii (OD) fruit possesses several antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The present study evaluates OD fruit hydroalcoholic extract (OHAE) hepatoprotective effects against lead acetate- (Pb-) induced toxicity in both animal and cellular models. Male rats were grouped as follows: control, Pb (25 mg/kg/d i.p.), and groups 3 and 4 received OHAE at 100 and 200 mg/kg/d + Pb (25 mg/kg/d i.p.), for ten days of the experiment. Thereafter, we evaluated the levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), catalase (CAT) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) in serum, and liver histopathology. Additionally, the cell study was also done using the HepG2 cell line for measuring the direct effects of the extract on cell viability, oxidative stress MDA, and glutathione (GSH) and inflammation tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) following the Pb-induced cytotoxicity. Pb significantly increased the serum levels of ALT, AST, ALP, and MDA and liver histopathological scores but notably decreased CAT activity compared to the control group (p < 0.001 for all cases). OHAE (100 and 200 mg/kg) significantly reduced the levels of serum liver enzyme activities and MDA as well as histopathological scores while it significantly increased CAT activity compared to the Pb group (p < 0.001-0.05 for all cases). OHAE (20, 40, and 80 µg/ml) concentration dependently and significantly reduced the levels of MDA and TNF-α, while it increased the levels of GSH and cell viability in comparison to the Pb group (p < 0.001-0.05 for all cases). These data suggest that OHAE may have hepatoprotective effects against Pb-induced liver toxicity both in vitro and in vivo by its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities.

Efficacy of probiotics for managing infantile colic due to their anti-inflammatory properties: a meta-analysis and systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Infantile colic (IC) is excessive crying in otherwise healthy children. Despite vast research efforts, its etiology remains unknown. PURPOSE: Most treatments for IC carry various side effects. The collection of evidence may inform researchers of new strategies for the management and treatment of IC as well as new clues for understanding its pathogenesis. This review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficacy and possible mechanisms of probiotics for mananaging IC. METHODS: Ten papers met the study inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the meta-analysis was conducted using Review Manager (RevMan) software and a random-effects model. RESULTS: This meta-analysis revealed that probiotics are effective for treating infantile colic, while the review showed that this efficacy may be due to their anti-inflammatory effects. CONCLUSION: Probiotics may be an important treatment option for managing infantile colic due to their anti-inflammatory properties.

Effective Medicinal Plants in the Treatment of the Cyclic Mastalgia (Breast Pain): A Review.

INTRODUCTION: Mastalgia is the most common benign breast disorder during the fertility period of women. So far a wide range of natural or complementary medicines is used to cure mastalgia. Sanitary organizations need complete and suitable details to help women, for making the proper decision for alternative treatment based on the evidence. The aim of the present study is to introduce medicinal plant-based treatments about mastalgia and summarizes clinical trials about this disorder. METHOD: The articles were provided using mixture of keywords including cyclic pain, breast, treatment, therapeutics, therapy, clinical trial, herbal, drug, mastalgia and all the probable terms, in national and international databases SID, Iran Medex, Magiran, PubMed, Scopus, Medline, Science direct and Cochrane library, in both Persian and English languages. All cross-sectional and review articles about herbal treatment of mastalgia until 2018 November were studied. RESULTS: Nineteen articles from all of the available articles (45 cases) and a sample size about of (1987 cases) were included in our study. The articles were clinical trials. The results revealed that mastalgia could be healed by Nigella sativa, Vitex agnus-castus, curcumin, Hypericum perforatum, Citrus sinensis, wheat germ, and Ginkgo biloba. CONCLUSION: Most of the evaluated medicinal plants possessing antioxidant compounds with anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties, exhibited healing effects in the treatment of mastalgia. Thus, medicinal plants can be considered in the treatment of mastalgia; however, further investigations are needed to obtain more details about their probable side effects.

Opuntia dillenii: A Forgotten Plant with Promising Pharmacological Properties.

Generative and vegetative parts of the cactuses have had a long-lasting position in folk medicine and their effects could partly be confirmed in scientific experiments. Nowadays, the cactus, fruits, and cladodes are the focus of many studies because of their desirable properties. Therefore, the summarized reports of valuable properties of medicinal plants may be a good way to familiarize researches with a new source of drugs with lower side effects and higher efficacy. Opuntia dillenii, a well-known member of the Cactaceae family, is used as a medicinal plant in various countries and grows in the desert, semi-desert, tropical and sub-tropical areas. It shows diverse pharmacological activities such as: antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective, hypotensive etc. OD fruit also possesses valuable constitutes for instance: betalains, ascorbic acid, total phenol, protein as well as essential elements which suggest the significant potential of this plant as a complementary therapy against several pathological conditions. This review describes experimental evidence about pharmacological and therapeutic potential of OD in order to give the basis of its application in the prevention and treatment of some chronic diseases. More studies on OD can help better understanding of its pharmacological mechanism of action to explain its traditional uses and to identify its potential new therapeutic applications.

Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Oxidant Activity of Portulaca oleracea Extract on LPS-Induced Rat Lung Injury.

Acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are classified as two lung complications arising from various conditions such as sepsis, trauma, and lung inflammation. Previous studies have shown that the extract of the leaves of Portulaca oleracea (PO) possesses anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activities. In the present study, the effects of PO (50⁻200 mg/kg) and dexamethasone (Dexa; 1.5 mg/kg) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI were investigated. Subsequentially, the lung wet/dry ratio; white blood cells (WBC); levels of nitric oxide (NO); myeloperoxidase (MPO); malondialdehyde (MDA); thiol groups formation; super oxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities; and levels of interleukin (IL)-1ß, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, IL-6, IL-10, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß in the broncho alveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were evaluated in order to demonstrate the anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of PO. Our results show that PO suppresses lung inflammation by the reduction of IL-ß, IL-6, TNF-α, PGE2, and TGF-ß, as well as by the increase of IL-10 levels. We also found that PO improves the level of WBC, MPO, and MDA, as well as thiol group formation and SOD and CAT activities, compared with the LPS group. The results of our investigation also show that PO significantly decreased the lung wet/dry ratio as an index of interstitial edema. Taken together, our findings reveal that PO extract dose-dependently displays anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activity against LPS-induced rat ALI, paving the way for rational use of PO as a protective agent against lung-related inflammatory disease.

Protective effects of hydro-ethanolic extract of Terminalia chebula on primary microglia cells and their polarization (M1/M2 balance).

Teminalia chebula (TC) has been traditionally used in the Iranian traditional medicine (ITM) and Ayurvedic medicine primarily for neurologic disorders and inflammation. Mainly, its fruits have been applied for CNS disorders. The effects of Terminalia chebula as herbal medicine with anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties were aimed on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced microglial inflammation. Cytotoxicity of TC extract (0-80) µg/ml on microglial cells was evaluated using the MTT assay. Also, the protective effect of TC extract concentrations with specified amount of LPS-induced mice microglial cells was studied. The concentrations of TNF-α (Tumor Necrosis Factor-α), IL-1ß (Interleukin-1ß), IL-6 and PGE-2 (Prostaglandin-E2) were evaluated using ELISA. Gene expression of TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-6, COX-2 (Cyclooxygenase-2), iNOS and arginase-1 was also evaluated using the Real-Time PCR method. Nitrite oxide and urea were measured using biochemical methods. The studied concentrations of TC extract did not affect the viability of microglial cells but significantly protected the viability after treatment with LPS. The concentrations and expression levels of pro-inflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-6, PGE-2, COX-2) were significantly decreased after TC extract treatment in LPS-induced microglial cells with dose dependent manner. The extract also significantly decreased the levels of nitric oxide, increased urea and down regulated the expression of nitric oxide synthesis while arginase-1 expression was enhanced. Our results suggest that TC extract reduces inflammation in microglial cells and can be used as a potential anti-inflammatory agent in central nervous system inflammatory diseases.

Comparison of honey and dextrose solution on post-operative peritoneal adhesion in rat model.

BACKGROUND: Peritoneal adhesion between abdominal organs is a complication of surgery. It causes major complications like pain, bowel obstruction, infertility and increases risk of death. Honey is known to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties potentially relevant for adhesive protection. METHODS: Thirty rats were divided into five groups: negative control without any surgical procedure (normal group), control group treated with normal saline, experimental group I treated with 1ml of 10% honey, experimental group II treated with honey at half concentration of group I (honey0.5), and positive control group receiving 1ml of dextrose 5%. Inflammatory, growth and angiogenesis factors (TNF-α, Il-6, IL-1ß, TGF-ß1 and VEGF) of the adhesion tissue were assessed using ELISA. Antioxidant factors (NO, GSH and MDA) were also assessed using biochemical procedures. RESULTS: The difference between peritoneal adhesion scores, TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-6, TGF-ß1, VEGF, NO, GSH and MDA value of all groups was strongly significant (p<0.001). We showed that honey can decrease peritoneal adhesion (p<0.001), TNF-α (p<0.001), IL-1ß (p<0.001), IL-6 (p<0.001), TGF-ß1 (p<0.001), VEGF (p<0.001), NO (p<0.001), MDA (p<0.001) and increase GSH (p<0.001) compared with control group. Honey 0.5 also significantly decreased peritoneal adhesion (p<0.001), TNF-α (p<0.001), IL-1ß (p<0.01), IL-6 (p<0.001), VEGF (p<0.001), NO (p<0.001), MDA (p<0.01) and increase GSH (p<0.001) compared with control group. CONCLUSIONS: We find that honey can decrease inflammatory, growth and angiogenesis factors which can advance peritoneal adhesion and increase antioxidant factors. Honey could serve as a protective agent for peritoneal adhesion.