potential therapeutic effect of melatonin in reflux esophagitis

Melatonin is synthesized not only in the pineal gland, but also in different organs, the special attention has been directed to the digestive tract where total quantity of melatonin is considerably greater than in the pineal gland. Many drugs were used for the treatment of reflux esophagitis such as omeprazote [a proton pump inhibitor] which is widely used antiulcer drug and has been demonstrated to protect against esophageal mucosal injury. The aim of this study is to evaluate the role of exogenous melatonin in the treatment of reflux esophagitis in human either alone and in combination with omeprazole therapy. 36 persons were divided into 4 groups [control patients with reflux esophagitis treated by melatonin for 4, 6 and 8 weeks, patients with reflux esophagitis treated with omeprazole for same periods, and patients with reflux esophagitis treated with combination of melatonin and omeprazole for same periods]. Each group consisted of 9 persons. Persons were subjected to thorough history taking, clinical examination, investigations [laboratory, encioscopic, record of esophageal motility, pH-metry]. Melatonin has a role in improvement of Gastro-esophageal reflux disease [GERD] either used alone or in combination with omeprazole. Meanwhile, omeprazole [a proton pump inhibitor] alone is better used in treatment of GERD than melatonin alone. The present study showed that oral melatonin is a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of GERD. It is an effective line of treatment in relieving epigastric pain and heart burn. However, further studies are required to confirm the efficacy and long-term safety of melatonin before it can be recommended for routine clinical use

Superoxide dismutase in some gstrointestinal malignancies

Erythrocyte Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase [SOD] plays an important role in protecting cells from injury due to oxidative stress hence the role of SOD in cancer has been suggested [Oberley et al, 1979].The present study was done aiming to assess erythrocyte Cu/Zn SOD activity in some gastro-intestinal malignancies. These included 55 patients classified into hepatocellular carcinoma group [HCC; n= 25], and early colorectal cancer group [early CRC; n = 30], and in addition a group of 10 apparently healthy adults [control group] of matched age and sex was selected. Erythrocyte Cu/Zn SOD activity was determined by spectrophotometric method. The results revealed significant decrease of SOD activity in HCC before surgery as compared to their respective values in control group. Surgery induced insignificant increase of erythrocyte SOD activity in these patients. In early CRC group, LDH,CEA and erythrocyte Cu/Zn SOD levels was significantly increased in comparison to control group; however the levels of these parameters were decreased to normal range after surgical resection. In conclusion, SOD activity varies according to the cell type malignancies but in all of them reflect response of tumor to therapy