CARD15 variants in patients with sporadic Parkinson's disease.

Recent reports have proven the importance of genetic factors and inflammation in the pathogenesis of sporadic Parkinson's disease (PD). In the current study, the frequency of CARD15/NOD2 gene variants (R702W, G908R, L1007fs), previously associated with Crohn's disease--a common inflammatory bowel disease, have been examined in a group of 308 sporadic PD patients and 220 healthy controls. Significantly higher frequency of total CARD15 variant alleles in PD patients (13.0%) compared to the controls (8.0%, p<0.02) was observed. 24.0% of PD patients carried at least one CARD15 variant allele compared to 15.5% of healthy controls (p<0.02, OR=1.73). The results of the study suggest, that the polymorphism in CARD15/NOD2 gene may be a risk factor for sporadic PD development, and support the concept of inflammatory pathogenesis of PD.

Effect of quercetin on experimental hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis in rabbits.

Cardiovascular disease is currently the leading cause of death in the West, and a search for factors limiting its occurrence is ongoing. Accumulated data indicate that quercetin, the major flavonol in the plant kingdom, may possess beneficial effects in atherosclerosis. The present study aimed at determination of effects of quercetin on hyperlipidemia and development of atherosclerotic lesions in two animal models, i.e. diet induced hyperlipidemia and aortic atherosclerosis, and in injured carotid artery in rabbits fed high-fat diet for 12 and 4 weeks, respectively. It was demonstrated that quercetin was effective in reducing serum triglycerides and cholesterol levels elevated by high-fat diet, after 12 weeks of the experiment. This activity was less prominent in the 4-week study in injured carotid artery rabbit model. Hypolipemic properties of the flavonoid were associated with the reduced formation of atherosclerotic plaques, both in the aorta (12-week study) as well as within injured carotid artery (4-week study) in high-fat diet-fed animals. The surface of the intima covered with atherosclerotic plaques in high-fat diet-fed rabbits was 24.6 +/- 33.1% in comparison to 0.7 +/- 1.3% (p < 0.05) in quercetin and high-fat diet supplemented animals. It is evident from the present study that quercetin possesses both hypolipemic and antiatherogenic properties.

Efeito da hiperlipidemia experimental na farmacocinetica da procainamida e acecainida / Effect of experimental hyperlipidemia on the pharmacokinetics of procainamide and acecainide

O objetivo da experiencia foi determinar o efeito da hiperlipidemia experimental na farmacocinetica da procainamida (PA) e N-acetilprocainamida (NAPA), cujo nome oficial e acecainida. A experiencia foi realizada em um periodo de dois meses em 20 coelhos, machos, divididos aleatoriamente em dois grupos: controle e experimental (deixado em dieta rica em gorduras). Depois dos dois meses foram realizadas determinacoes farmacocineticas em todos os animais. Apos administracao estomacal (por sonda) de procainamida em dose de 40 mg/kg, foi coletado sangue para as determinacoes, durante um periodo de 12 horas. Para calculos, foi tomado o modelo de dois compartimentos para administracao extravascular. Foi observada diminuicao da concentracao da PA e NAPA no sangue, diminuicao do volume de distribuicao e aumento da depuracao total. A presente experiencia demonstrou o efeito da hiperlipidemia experimental na farmacocinetica de PA e NAPA, seguido de aumento da velocidade de eliminacao do farmaco do organismo