Pharmacological activities of a novel phthalic acid ester and iridoid glycoside isolated from the root bark of Anthocleista vogelii Planch.

In this study, a novel phthalic acid ester (1) and a known iridoid glycoside (2) were isolated from the root bark of Anthocleista vogelii. The structures of the novel compound and iridoid glycoside were elucidated on the basis of their chemical and spectral data (UV, FT-IR, EI-MS, 1D and 2D NMR) and found to be phthalic acid ester, 4-ethyl-6-propyl-4,5,6,7-tetrahydro3H-2,8-benzodioxacycloundecine-1,9-dione (1) and sweroside (2). The compounds were evaluated for their in vitro inhibitory activities against pancreatic lipase, α-amylase and αglucosidase, and in vivo laxative activity in rats. The metabolite phthalic acid ester (1) exhibited moderate inhibitory activity against pancreatic lipase (IC50 = 24.43 ± 0.096 µg/mL) and relatively good activity against α-glucosidase (IC50 = 10.28 ± 0.015 µg/mL). Sweroside (2) displayed weak activity against α-glucosidase (IC50 = 40.28 ± 0.063 µg/mL) but significantly (p<0.05) increased the feacal output of the treated animals compared to the normal and sodium picosulfate controls.

Pharmacological activities of a novel phthalic acid ester and iridoid glycoside isolated from the root bark of Anthocleista vogelii Planch

@#In this study, a novel phthalic acid ester (1) and a known iridoid glycoside (2) were isolated from the root bark of Anthocleista vogelii. The structures of the novel compound and iridoid glycoside were elucidated on the basis of their chemical and spectral data (UV, FT-IR, EI-MS, 1D and 2D NMR) and found to be phthalic acid ester, 4-ethyl-6-propyl-4,5,6,7-tetrahydro- 3H-2,8-benzodioxacycloundecine-1,9-dione (1) and sweroside (2). The compounds were evaluated for their in vitro inhibitory activities against pancreatic lipase, α-amylase and α- glucosidase, and in vivo laxative activity in rats. The metabolite phthalic acid ester (1) exhibited moderate inhibitory activity against pancreatic lipase (IC50 = 24.43 ± 0.096 μg/mL) and relatively good activity against α-glucosidase (IC50 = 10.28 ± 0.015 μg/mL). Sweroside (2) displayed weak activity against α-glucosidase (IC50 = 40.28 ± 0.063 μg/mL) but significantly (p<0.05) increased the feacal output of the treated animals compared to the normal and sodium picosulfate controls.

Enhancing agroecosystem productivity with woody perennials in semi-arid West Africa. A meta-analysis.

Soil degradation in semi-arid West Africa can be reversed through an intensified application of organic matter, especially on coarse soils. Woody perennials have been promoted in the region to secure organic matter sources and improve soil productive capacity, yet the mechanisms by which perennials provide benefits to soils and crops remain poorly understood, and no effective, generalizable agronomic recommendations exist. Here, we reviewed the effects of trees and shrubs on soil properties and on crop yields in semi-arid West Africa (< 1000 mm year-1). Specific objectives of this meta-analysis were to (i) describe and (ii) quantify the effects of the presence of woody perennials and of ramial wood amendments on crop productivity and soil characteristics, and (iii) identify general recommendations on the integration of perennials with crops. An iterative keyword search was conducted to gather relevant literature. The search string consisted of four parts: source, practice, responses, and countries of interest. In total, 26 references on agroforestry parklands and 21 on woody amendments were included in the meta-database (314 entries, 155 for parklands, and 159 for ramial wood). We show that (1) the presence of shrubs and trees on agricultural fields had an overall positive but variable effect on soil total C (i.e. + 20 to 75%); (2) millet and sorghum yields were often higher in the presence of shrubs (- 25 to + 120%); (3) more variability was observed in the presence of trees (- 100 to + 200%); and (4) the use of shrub- and tree-based ramial wood resulted in equal or higher cereal yields as compared to the control (- 30 to + 100%). Upscaling the use of biodiversity-driven processes in farming systems of West Africa may provide benefits to overall ecosystems, but species' choice and trade-offs perceived at the farm level, including labour management and low ramial wood availability, should be addressed through future research.

No Detrimental Effect of a Positive Family History on Long-Term Outcomes Following Radical Prostatectomy.

PURPOSE: Overall 1 in 5 patients with prostate cancer has a positive family history. In this report we evaluated the association between family history and long-term outcomes following radical prostatectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients treated with radical prostatectomy were identified from a German registry, and separated into positive first-degree family history vs negative family history (strictly negative, requiring at least 1 male first-degree relative older than 60 years and no prostate cancer in the family). Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards models were used for association analyses with biochemical recurrence-free and prostate cancer specific survival. RESULTS: Median followup for 7,690 men included in the study was 8.4 years. Of the 754 younger patients less than 55 years old 50.9% (384) had a family history compared to 40.4% of the older patients (2,803; p <0.001). The 10-year biochemical recurrence-free (62.5%) and prostate cancer specific survival (96.1%) rates did not differ between patients with vs without a family history, nor between the younger vs older patient groups (all p >0.05). Prostate specific antigen, pathological stage, node stage and Gleason score were the only significant predictors for biochemical recurrence-free survival, while pathological stage, node stage (all p <0.005) and Gleason score (Gleason 7 vs 6 or less-HR 1.711, 95% CI 1.056-2.774, p = 0.03; Gleason 8 or greater vs 6 or less-HR 4.516, 95% CI 2.776-7.347, p <0.0001) were the only predictors for prostate cancer specific survival. CONCLUSIONS: A family history of prostate cancer has no bearing on long-term outcomes after radical prostatectomy.

Behavioral demonstration of a somatosensory neuroprosthesis.

Tactile sensation is critical for effective object manipulation, but current prosthetic upper limbs make no provision for delivering somesthetic feedback to the user. For individuals who require use of prosthetic limbs, this lack of feedback transforms a mundane task into one that requires extreme concentration and effort. Although vibrotactile motors and sensory substitution devices can be used to convey gross sensations, a direct neural interface is required to provide detailed and intuitive sensory feedback. In light of this, we describe the implementation of a somatosensory prosthesis with which we elicit, through intracortical microstimulation (ICMS), percepts whose magnitude is graded according to the force exerted on the prosthetic finger. Specifically, the prosthesis consists of a sensorized finger, the force output of which is converted into a regime of ICMS delivered to primary somatosensory cortex through chronically implanted multi-electrode arrays. We show that the performance of animals (Rhesus macaques) on a tactile task is equivalent whether stimuli are delivered to the native finger or to the prosthetic finger.

A new dimension of the PACU: the dilemma of the ICU overflow patient.

With the increase in the number of critically ill patients needing extended periods of time in the ICU and the subsequent shortage of ICU beds, hospitals have examined ways to use the PACU as an alternative for the short-term critically ill patient. This article identifies common problems encountered by the PACU staff, and the author suggests criteria for establishing and implementing guidelines for successful integration of these short-term critically ill patients without losing sight of the PACU's goals and compromising patient care. The criteria for establishing guidelines were based on the personal experience of the author in developing a program for ICU overflow patients, as well as from experiences of other PACU nurses working in PACUs where successful guidelines currently are used.