[STEROIDAL GENINS AND GLYCOSIDES OF SPIROSTAN AND FUROSTAN SERIES AS ANTHELMINTHIC AGENTS].

It was established that steroidal genins and their glycosides of the spirostan series and (especially) furostan series show anticestodal activity against Hymeiolepis nana species. Search for anthelminthic agents in the indicated series of compounds is a promising direction of research.

[EXPERIMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF THE IMMUNOTROPIC EFFECTS OF ARABINOGALACTAN AND PECTINACEOUS POLYSACCHARIDES ISOLATED FROM FERULA KUCHISTANICA.]

It is established that arabinogalactan and pectinaceous polysaccharides isolated from Ferula kuchistanica are capable of stimulating a primary immune response in mice by increasing the number of antibody-producing cells in the spleen in response to immunization with sheep red blood cells in both intact animals (on average by 51.0%; p < 0.005) and those with secondary immunodeficiency caused by irradiation (on average by 164.4%; p < 0.005). The treatment with compounds studied also significantly increased the functional condition of cells of the mononuclear phagocyte system (on average by 27.0%; p < 0.005).

[Stress-protective properties of phytoecdysteroids].

Introduction of phytoecdysteroids (ecdysterone, turkesterone and ñyasterone) to rats subjected to prolonged immobilization stress significantly decreased involution of the thymus and spleen, contributed to normalization of increased mass of adrenal glands, and restored their content of ascorbic acid and cholesterol. In the liver of stressed animals, phytoecdysteroids prevented sharp decrease in the glycogen concentration, showed a clear trend toward normalization of the ratio of lactic and pyruvic acids, maintained homeostasis of macroergic phosphorus compounds, and increased the activity of antioxidant enzymes that inhibit lipid peroxidation. With respect to the stress-protective activity, the studied phytoecdysteroids are in some cases superior to eleutherococcus extract.

[Evaluation of the efficacy of antiparasitic drugs in the treatment of concurrent parasitic diseases in patients with HIV infection and in those with pulmonary tuberculosis].

The efficacy of albendazole (400 mg taken once), mebendazole (100 mg taken once), and metronidazole (0.5 g thrice daily for 7 days) was evaluated when treating ascariasis, enterobiosis, and blastocystosis, respectively, in patients with HIV infection and in those with pulmonary tuberculosis. Metronidazole-resistant lambliasis was treated with exdisten (5 mg four times for 10 days) in 30.4% of the patients with HIV infection and in 43.3% of those with tuberculosis. Most HIV infected patients received antiretroviral therapy (ARVT). All the tuberculosis patients took isoniazid, ethambutol, pyrazinamide, rifampicin, and streptomycin. Efficiency was monitored by triple coproscopy at an interval of 5-7 days and by additional examinations using the method of Ritchii et al. There was parasitological cure (decreased infection rate for blastocystosis) and clinical improvement as positive changes in symptoms, such as nausea, weakness, headache, weight loss, and others, in all the patients with concomitant ascariasis, enterobiosis, and lambliasis. ARVT and antituberculosis drugs were observed to be better tolerated in all cases.

[Blastocystis hominis and nonpathogenic enteric protozoa in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis and those with HIV infection].

Blastocystis hominis and nonpathogenic enteric protozoa were diagnosed in 300 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis mainly of its infiltrative form and 500 with Stages II and III HIV infection; the patients received antituberculosis therapy (ATT) and antiretroviral therapy (ART), respectively. Control groups included 200 Tashkent dwellers and 350 patients with various noninfectious diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Triple coproscopy was made. B. hominis was significantly more frequently detected in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis and those with HIV infection than in healthy individuals: in 53.6 +/- 2.9, 42.2 +/- 2.2, and 18.0 +/- 2.5, respectively (P < 0.01). Only did the tuberculosis or HIV-infected patients show a high intensity of B. hominis infection, which was accompanied by recurring diarrhea and nausea. The high activity of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase was observed in 20% of the patients with tuberculosis + blastocytosis; that of alkaline phosphatase was seen in 25%. The tuberculosis or HIV-infected patients were more frequently found to have Chylomastix mesnili, Jodamoeba butschlii, and Endolimax nana. The specific features of intestinal colonization seem to reflect changes in local immunity; the drugs included into ATT and ART have no substantial effects on the viability of protozoa.

[The efficacy of ecdystene versus metronidazole in the treatment of lambliasis].

Ecdisten, the drug designed on the basis of the phytoecdisteroid ecdisterone isolated from Rhaponticum carthamoides, was used in the treatment of first diagnosed (primary) and persistent (resistant to traditional lambliacides) lambliasis. A control group received metronidazole. Daily parasitological monitoring of lamblia elimination while treating with ecdisten in a daily dose of 20 mg for 10 days indicated the absence of lamblia in 70% of the patients with primary lambliasis on days 3 to 5; in the remaining 30%, parasitic elimination was accomplished on days 6-7 of treatment. In the patients with persistent lambliasis, the parasites were eliminated in 43.2% of cases on days 4-5 and in 56.6% on days 6-10. Metronidazole just on the second day of therapy caused parasitic elimination in 28.6% of the patients. All the patients were freed from lamblia within 5 days. Improvement occurred more rapidly with ecdisten treatment; immunological normalization was seen when ecdisten was used. Seven-ten-day course of ecdisten is sufficient for the treatment of primary lambliasis; when persistent lambliasis is treated, its course should be prolonged. If required, the course may be repeated, by increasing the daily dose.

[Ecdysten in the treatment of giardiasis]. / Ekdisten v lechenii liamblioza.

The drug ecdisten as tablets is the natural compound ecdisteron was extracted from Rhaponticum carthamoides (Willd.) Jljin. Ecdisten was tested in the treatment of 32 and 3 patients with persistent and acute giardiasis, respectively. A ten-day course of ecdisten, 5 mg 3 or 4 times a day, resulted in a clinical and parasitological recovery in 22 (68.7%) and 3 patients, respectively. After the reuse of a ecdisten course in 4 patients with persistent giardiasis wherein its initial dose was increased, recovery was achieved in 3 cases, the efficacy of the agent was 78.1%. Ecdisten should be used to treat giardiasis, in its chronic pattern or resistance to conventional giardicial agents.