Immunological parameters in patients suffering from alcohol-dependence syndrome.

Alcohol abuse is a major cause of abnormal liver development and activity. In addition to enzymatic malfunction, alcohol and its metabolites induce changes in the levels of some liver antigens, resulting in immunological disturbance. The purpose of the present study is to correlate the severity of liver function impairment with the length of alcohol abuse, in order to be able to use such tests as indicative of the severity of Alcohol Dependence Syndrome. Thirty-one alcohol abusers were allocated to three groups on the basis of the levels of their liver enzymes, and were tested for a variety of immunological parameters and skin reactions. The data indicate that even though not all immunological values measured differed significantly from the control values, in those that did (granulocytes, lymphocytes, CD4/CD8 ratio, C3, IgG, IgM and some skin positive reactions), the biggest difference was between the healthy volunteers and the group with the longest abuse period. It is suggested that changes in selected immunological parameters in alcohol abusers may indicate the severity of their liver dysfunction.

Effect of quercetin, caffeic acid and caffeic acid phenylethyl ester, solubilized in non-ionic surfactants, on histamine release in vivo and in vitro.

A practical hindrance in using many therapeutic agents is their limited solubility in aqueous matrixes. This is usually overcome by incorporating the active compounds in a matrix, with the aid of a non-ionic surfactant. Three water-insoluble natural polyphenols with inherent biological activity, quercetin (CAS 117-39-5), caffeic acid and caffeic acid phenylethyl ester, were solubilized in water, with the aid of Tween 80 (an esterified and polyethoxylated derivative of sorbitan), Solutol HS15 (a polyethoxylated derivative of 12-hydroxy-stearic acid), Cremophor RH40 (a ricinoleic acid derivative) or Cremophor EL and the effect of the solubilized polyphenols on histamine release was studied in vitro (mast cells) and in vivo in the rat. In vivo Cremophor EL alone increased, and Tween 80 decreased histamine plasma levels. All four groups injected with solubilized quercetin exhibited a decrease in their plasma histamine levels. Caffeic acid solubilized in Cremophor RH40 decreased histamine levels, too. In vitro Tween 80 increased histamine release in a dose-dependent mode. Quercetin in vitro inhibited histamine release in all solubilizers used. It is concluded that the ability of the studied polyphenols to release histamine is not only depending on the condition of the storage vesicles in the mast cells, but also on the surfactant used to solubilize them.

Synergism between ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) and anti-tuberculosis drugs on growth of mycobacteria.

Ethanolic extract of propolis exerts a strong anti-bacterial activity, in addition to antifungal, antiviral and antiprotozoal properties. In previous studies from these laboratories we have demonstrated that the intensity of the bactericidal activity of EEP is correlated with the virulence of the mycobacteria tested, and that EEP has a synergistic effect with antibiotics on growth of staphylococcus aureus. In the present study we investigated whether the same synergism and correlation exists between EEP and some anti-tuberculosis drugs on tuberculosis mycobacteria with different degrees of virulence. Six standard strains and 11 wild strains of mycobacteria were exposed for 30 days to EEP, with or without streptomycin, rifamycin, isoniazid or ethambutol. Out of the 17 strains, 8 were resistant to at least two standard antibiotics, and were considered "multi-resistant strains". The rest were either susceptible or resistant to only one of the antimycobacterial drugs. Antagonism was recorded only in one case, when Staphylococcus aureus were treated with a mixture of EEP and ethambutol, suggesting that a chemical bond could have been formed between this anti-tuberculosis antibiotic and one of the active components of the ethanol extract of propolis.

Correlation between virulence of various strains of mycobacteria and their susceptibility to ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP).

Ethanol extract of propolis (EEP) has antibacterial, antiviral, antiprotozoal and antifungal properties, in addition to many biological effects. Our laboratory has demonstrated a synergistic effect of EEP and antibiotics on the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, and suggested that the bactericidal effect of EEP was expressed mainly on virulent mycobacteria rather than on non-virulent (attenuated) ones. The present study was designed to reconfirm the latter finding, by subjecting 17 different mycobacteria strains to EEP, and evaluating whether there is a correlation between the virulence of the mycobacteria strains studied and their susceptibility to EEP. Our findings demonstrate that while the four non-virulent strains studied are not susceptible to EEP, out of the 13 virulent strains studied seven are susceptible and six are resistant to it. These results suggest that while there is no full correlation between virulence of the mycobacteria tested and their susceptibility to EEP, the few strains that were resistant to EEP were non-virulent.