ABSTRACT
Echinacea (E.) purpurea herb is commonly known as the purple coneflower, red sunflower and rudbeckia. In this paper, we report the curative efficacy of an Echinacea extract in gamma-irradiated mice. E. purpurea was given to male mice that were divided into five groups (control, treated, irradiated, treated before irradiation & treated after irradiation) at a dose of 30 mg/kg body weight for 2 weeks before and after irradiation with 3 Gy of gamma-rays. The results reflected the detrimental reduction effects of gamma-rays on peripheral blood hemoglobin and the levels of red blood cells, differential white blood cells, and bone marrow cells. The thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARs) level, Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSPx) activities and DNA fragmentation were also investigated. FT-Raman spectroscopy was used to explore the structural changes in liver tissues. Significant changes were observed in the microenvironment of the major constituents, including tyrosine and protein secondary structures. E. purpurea administration significantly ameliorated all estimated parameters. The radio-protection effectiveness was similar to the radio-recovery curativeness in comparison to the control group in most of the tested parameters. The radio-protection efficiency was greater than the radio-recovery in hemoglobin level during the first two weeks, in lymphoid cell count and TBARs level at the fourth week and in SOD activity during the first two weeks, as compared to the levels of these parameters in the control group.
Subject(s)
Animals , Male , Mice , Antioxidants/isolation & purification , Blood Cell Count , DNA Fragmentation/drug effects , Echinacea/chemistry , Erythrocytes/drug effects , Gamma Rays , Glutathione Peroxidase/metabolism , Leukocytes/drug effects , Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects , Liver/drug effects , Phytotherapy , Plant Extracts/pharmacology , Radiation-Protective Agents/isolation & purification , Random Allocation , Superoxide Dismutase/metabolismABSTRACT
In order to clarify, the status of fibrinolytic system in patients with chronic renal failure undergoing regular haemodialysis, palsmingen [PLG], tissue plasminogen activator [tPA], alpha [1]. Antitrypsin [alpha [1]-AT], alpha Antiplasmin [alpha [2], AP] and Plasmingen activator inhibitor -I [PAI] had been estimated immediately before and after haemodialysis in 20 patients with primary chronic renal failure on regular haemodialysis undergoing 4-5 hours of regular haemodialysis treatment [RDT] [3] times a week. Duration of haemodialysis [HD] was 8-99 months. These values were compared with those obtained from 20 matched healthy control subjects. PLG, alpha [2] AP and PAI values decreased in CRF patients under RDT than normal control values, while no significant differences had been found before and after dialysis. No significant differences had been found between control group and CRF patients under RDT in case of tPA and alpha [1], AT. Also no difference had been found before and after dialysis in case of alpha [1] AT. However, a highly significant increase had been found between before and after dialysis in case of tPA. So, increased fibrinolytic activity druing HD is probably chiefly due to the effect of extracoporal circulation using the artificial kidney with the release of tPA from vessel walls and consequent consumption of PAI-l. It is probable that plasminogen activator is a feature of many, if not all, forms of extracorporal circulation