Bioactivities of Lentinus polychrous and Ganoderma lucidum (Agaricomycetes) Polysaccharide Extracts.

This study aimed to compare the bioactivities of Lentinus polychrous polysaccharide extracts with Ganoderma lucidum. Three hot water-extracted polysaccharide fractions of L. polychrous (LPE), including immature fruiting bodies (im-LPE), mature fruiting bodies (ma-LPE), and mycelium (my-LPE), were analyzed for their phytochemical contents and bioactivities (e.g., anticancer, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory effects) compared with G. lucidum extract (GLE). Although GLE had the highest total phenolic and protein contents and lower carbohydrate content than LPE, im-LPE showed strong inhibition on HepG2 cell proliferation as did GLE. GLE and LPE showed antiviral effects on herpes simplex virus-1 and the relative antiproliferative activity was from im-LPE > my-LPE > ma-LPE. However, im-LPE showed the best protective activity on the viral attachment step with some virucidal effects. Moreover, all LPE showed selective and stronger inhibitory effects on LPS-induced RAW264.7 macrophages than those of GLE on genetic expression. Considering the 50% inhibitory concentration values, my-LPE possessed the strongest inhibitory activity on the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase. However, ma-LPE had the strongest inhibitory effects on interleukin-1ß and tumor necrosis factor-α gene expression. The extracts increased splenocyte proliferation under mycohaemagglutinin induction with a relative order of my-LPE > GLE > ma-LPE = im-LPE. In conclusion, LPE showed positive effects and stronger activity than G. lucidum. L. polychrous may have potential for use as an ingredient in functional foods.

Effects of Aged Garlic Extract on Cholinergic, Glutamatergic and GABAergic Systems with Regard to Cognitive Impairment in Aß-Induced Rats.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been linked to the degeneration of central cholinergic and glutamatergic transmission, which correlates with progressive memory loss and the accumulation of amyloid-ß (Aß). It has been claimed that aged garlic extract (AGE) has a beneficial effect in preventing neurodegeneration in AD. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the effects of AGE on Aß-induced cognitive dysfunction with a biochemical basis in the cholinergic, glutamatergic, and GABAergic systems in rats. Adult male Wistar rats were orally administered three doses of AGE (125, 250, and 500 mg/kg) daily for 65 days. At day 56, they were injected with 1 µL of aggregated Aß (1-42) into each lateral ventricle, bilaterally. After six days of Aß injection, the rats' working and reference memory was tested using a radial arm maze. The rats were then euthanized to investigate any changes to the cholinergic neurons, vesicular glutamate transporter 1 and 2 proteins (VGLUT1 and VGLUT2), and glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) in the hippocampus. The results showed that AGE significantly improved the working memory and tended to improve the reference memory in cognitively-impaired rats. In addition, AGE significantly ameliorated the loss of cholinergic neurons and increased the VGLUT1 and GAD levels in the hippocampus of rat brains with Aß-induced toxicity. In contrast, the VGLUT2 protein levels did not change in any of the treated groups. We concluded that AGE was able to attenuate the impairment of working memory via the modification of cholinergic neurons, VGLUT1, and GAD in the hippocampus of Aß-induced rats.

Neuroprotective Effects of Aged Garlic Extract on Cognitive Dysfunction and Neuroinflammation Induced by ß-Amyloid in Rats.

Neuroinflammation is pathological evidence of Alzheimer's disease (AD) that likely starts as a host defense response to the damaging effects of the ß-amyloid (Aß) deposits in the brain. The activation of microglia may promote the neurodegenerative process through the release of proinflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα), which may lead to neuronal damage and eventual death. Aged garlic extract (AGE) has been reported to have multiple biological activities, including anti-inflammatory effects. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the effect of AGE on Aß (1-42)-induced cognitive dysfunction and neuroinflammation. Adult male Wistar rats were given AGE (125, 250, and 500 mg/kg BW, body weight), orally administered, daily for 56 days. They were then injected with 1 µL of aggregated Aß (1-42) into the lateral ventricles; bilaterally. Seven days later, their recognition memory was evaluated using a novel object recognition (NOR) test. Then the rats were sacrificed to investigate the alteration of microglia cells, IL-1ß and TNFα in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. The results indicated that AGE at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg BW significantly improved short-term recognition memory in cognitively impaired rats. In addition, AGE significantly minimized the inflammatory response by reducing the activation of microglia and IL-1ß to the levels found in the control, which is similar to the results found in Celebrex-treated rats. In conclusion, AGE may be useful for improving the short-term recognition memory and relieve the neuroinflammation in Aß-induced rats.

Transversus menti muscle in a thai cadaver / Músculo transversus menti en un cadaver tailandés

In submental and around the mouth areas, the superfacial muscles are considered in surgery of some deformities of mouth angle. Herein, we report a rare case of the Transversus menti muscle (TM) in a Thai 74 year-old male cadaver. This TM originated from both sides of the oblique line of depressor anguli oris and formed as transverse fibers in submental area. Their fiber ran under the chin and was superficial to platysma muscle. The TM was innervated and supplied by mandibular branches of facial nerve and small branches of the submental artery. This report attempted to discuss the possible function and clinical significance of the TM.

Alrededor de la boca y en áreas submentonianas, los músculos superficiales son considerados en la cirugía de algunas deformidades del ángulo de la boca. Este estudio presenta un caso raro de músculo transversus menti (TM), en un cadáver tailandés de sexo masculino de 74 años de edad. El músculo TM se originó a partir de los dos lados de la línea oblicua del músculo depresor del ángulo oral y se formó como fibras transversales en el área submentoniana. Sus fibras se desplazaron debajo del mentón y superficialmente al platisma. El músculo TM estaba inervado e irrigado por ramos mandibulares de nervio facial y pequeñas ramas de la arteria submentoniana. Se discute su posible función y el significado clínico del músculo TM.

Increased in situ intestinal absorption of phytoestrogenic diarylheptanoids from Curcuma comosa in nanoemulsions.

Curcuma comosa has long been used as a gynecological medicine. Several diarylheptanoids have been purified from this plant, and their pharmacological effects were proven. However, there is no information about the absorption of C. comosa components to support the formulation usage. In the present study, C. comosa hexane extract and the mixture of its two major compounds, (4E,6E)-1,7-diphenylhepta-4,6-dien-3-ol (DA1) and (6E)-1,7-diphenylhept-6-en-3-ol (DA2), were formulated into nanoemulsions. The physical properties of the nanoemulsions and the in situ intestinal absorptions of DA1 and DA2 were evaluated. The results demonstrated the mean particle sizes at 0.207 ± 0.001 and 0.408 ± 0.014 µm, and the zeta potential at -14.57 ± 0.85 and -10.47 ± 0.32 mV for C. comosa nanoemulsion (C.c-Nano) and mixture of diarlylheptanoid nanoemulsions (DA-Nano), respectively. The entrapments of DA1 and DA2 were 76.61% and 75.41%, and 71.91% and 71.63% for C.c-Nano and DA-Nano, respectively. The drug loading ratios of DA1 and DA2 were 351.47 and 614.53 µg/mg, and 59.48 and 126.72 µg/mg for C.c-Nano and DA-Nano. The intestinal absorption rates of DA1 and DA2 were 0.329 ± 0.015 and 0.519 ± 0.026 µg/min/cm2 in C.c-Nano, and 0.380 ± 0.006 and 0.428 ± 0.036 µg/min/cm2 in DA-Nano, which were five to ten times faster than those in oil. In conclusion, the formulation in nanoemulsion forms obviously increased the intestinal absorption rate of diarylheptanoids.

The effect of ovariectomy on learning and memory and relationship to changes in brain volume and neuronal density.

The loss of sex hormones in postmenopausal women has been suggested to be involved in cognitive degenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease. In the present study, ovariectomized (OVX) and control rats were tested for 4 months in a Morris water maze (MWM) task to track their memory status. Thereafter, postmortem frozen brain sections were analyzed to determine if changes in brain area volumes and neuronal density were related to changes in cognitive ability. A modified artificial-land-mark-based method was used to assure the fidelity of the three dimensions (3D) reconstructed structures. Volumetric areas of the hippocampus, cortex, caudate putamen (cpu), and cerebellum were estimated from the reconstructions, and neuron densities of CA1 and CA3 subregions of the hippocampus were measured in an adjacent second series of Nissl-stained sections. Compared to the control rats, OVX rats displayed memory impairments, beginning in the second month after the ovariectomy (p < .05). Assessments at the end of the study demonstrated that OVX (compared to control) rats displayed reduced brain volume in the hippocampus and neocortex and in the brain as a whole. In contrast, when compared to controls, the volumes of cpu and cerebellum of OVX rats increased slightly. CA3 neuron density of OVX (compared to controls) rats was significantly lower, but the CA1 neuron density was significantly higher. In conclusion, ovariectomy impaired spatial memory and led to morphological changes in cognitive centers of rat brain. The results demonstrate that the 3D reconstructed method is useful for the study of brain morphological abnormality in rats.

Duplicated axillary arch muscles arising from the latissimus dorsi.

Many origins and insertions of an axillary muscular slip (also known as Langer's or axillary arch muscles) have been documented previously. In this report, we found duplicated axillary arch muscles (two variant muscular slips) originating from the inferolateral border of the right side latissimus dorsi muscle. Obviously, these axillary arch muscles can be distinguished as short and long muscular strips. While the origin was the same, the short muscular slip inserts into the fascia covering on the pectoralis minor, whereas the longer one inserts on/into the aponeurosis of pectoralis major. For the surgery in the axillary region, this rare variation should be considered a cause of surgical interventions.

Pharmacokinetics and organ distribution of diarylheptanoid phytoestrogens from Curcuma comosa in rats.

Curcuma comosa is widely used as a traditional herbal medicine for gynecological diseases in South East Asia. Previous studies reported that it has phytoestrogenic activity, and several diarylheptanoids were found to be the active constituents. In this study, the pharmacokinetics profile and organ distribution of three active compounds of C. comosa hexane extract were investigated. Rats were separately administered C. comosa hexane extract intravenously at the dose of 125 mg/kg and orally at the doses of 125 and 250 mg/kg body weight, after which blood and target organs were collected at specified time intervals from 0 to 24 h. HPLC was used to measure the concentration of three major compounds, (6E)-1,7-diphenylhept-6-en-3-one (DPH1), (4E,6E)-1,7-diphenylhepta-4,6-dien-3-ol (DPH2), and (6E)-1,7-diphenylhept-6-en-3-ol (DPH3), which were found to be present in the blood and tissues and were subsequently used as markers. In the intravenous study, the volumes of distribution (V(d)) were 1.06, 8.57, and 6.56 L/kg and clearance values (CL(s)) were 0.28, 5.56, and 3.39 L/kg/h for DPH1, DPH2, and DPH3, respectively. After oral administration, the three major compounds of both doses reached a maximum systemic concentration at 2 h with maximum concentration (C(max)) of 0.85, 0.17, and 0.53 mg/L for the lower dose and 1.46, 0.17, and 0.61 mg/L for the higher dose. The bioavailabilities were 31.2, 24.01, and 31.56% for lower dose and 22.61, 17.66, and 17.73% for higher dose with a terminal half-life (t(1/2)) of 10.86, 6.3, and 4.62 h for lower dose and 3.85, 2.77, and 2.10 h for higher dose for DPH1, DPH2, and DPH3, respectively. These three major compounds are all found distributed in the brain, liver, kidneys, ovaries, and uterus after oral and intravenous administration and their related pharmacokinetic parameters are described. This study provides the essential pharmacokinetic data for diarylheptanoid phytoestrogenic compounds of C. comosa extract which are required for clinical dose and dosage design.

Curcuma comosa prevents the neuron loss and affects the antioxidative enzymes in hippocampus of ethanol-treated rats.

Curcuma comosa Roxb. is widely used as a gynaecological traditional medicine in South-East Asia and recent behavioral studies have shown that C. comosa extract significantly improved the spatial memory in rats. The present study investigated the protective effects of Curcuma comosa hexane extract on the ethanol (EtOH)-induced oxidation in rat brains. Young female Wistar rats were given 20% of EtOH intraperitoneally to induce the oxidative stress. Subsequently, C. comosa hexane extract was intraperitoneally co-administered at the doses of 100 and 250 mg kg(-1) b.wt. to the EtOH-induced rats for 14 days. The neuron densities of CA1, CA3 and CA4 areas of the hippocampus were counted and the activities of hippocampal Catalase (CAT), Glutathione Peroxidase (GPx) and Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) were determined. EtOH significantly decreased the neuron densities in Cornu Ammonis (CA), including CA1 and CA3 areas; however, the decrease was prevented by C. comosa co-administration. EtOH administration also increased the CAT and GPx activities in the hippocampus which were reversed by C. comosa co-administration. Moreover, C. comosa administration increased the SOD activity in a dose-dependent manner in the EtOH treated groups. C. comosa prevented the neuron loss in the hippocampus caused by EtOH. The possible neural protective mechanism may involve with the changes in activities of the antioxidant enzymes in the hippocampus.

Effect of Curcuma comosa and estradiol on the spatial memory and hippocampal estrogen receptor in the post-training ovariectomized rats.

Curcuma comosa was reported to have uterotrophic effects in ovariectomized (OVX) rats. The present study aims to investigate the plant estrogenic-like effects of C. comosa hexane extract on spatial memory and estrogen receptors (ER) in the hippocampus. Female rats received 5 days' Morris water maze training before the ovariectomy, followed by the daily intraperitoneal administration of C. comosa hexane extract at a dose of 250 and 500 mg/kg body weight for 4 weeks. Estradiol (10 µg/kg body weight) was used as the positive control. OVX significantly increased the latency of the animal to the platform, while estradiol and both doses of C. comosa hexane extract reversed the memory impairments. By using the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction technique, C. comosa hexane extract was shown to produce a selective increase of the ER alpha subtype but not beta subtype in hippocampus, while estradiol increased both of them. C. comosa did not affect spatial memory, learning ability, and ER mRNA levels in the sham OVX rats. In conclusion, C. comosa hexane extract improved the spatial memory of the OVX rats, which was similar to estrogen. The influence on the memory changes might be selectively related to ER alpha in the hippocampus.

Protective effect of Cratoxylum formosum extract against acid/alcohol-induced gastric mucosal damage in rats.

Cratoxylum formosum is an edible plant that is commonly consumed among the people in Northeast Thailand. This study aimed to investigate the gastroprotective effect of the ethanolic extract of C. formosum leaves (C. formosum ethanolic extract [CFE]). Gastric ulceration was induced in Wistar male rats by oral administration of acid/alcohol. Oral dosing with CFE at 250 and 500 mg/kg of body weight after the acid/alcohol induction significantly decreased the number of bleeding spots, area of bleeding, ulcer score, and ulcer index. Pretreatment with 500 mg/kg CFE significantly prevented the gastric damage. Histological studies of the acid/alcohol-induced animals indicated the gastric inflammation with lesion depth through the mucosal layer. Whereas the gastric lesion of the CFE-treated animals at both 250 and 500 mg/kg doses was decreased to be one-fourth of the mucosal layers, pretreatment with 500 mg/kg CFE prior to acid/alcohol induction completely protected against the mucosal damage. Biochemical analysis of gastric mucosa revealed a significant decrease of malondialdehyde in the CFE-treated group in a dose-response manner. These findings suggest that the gastroprotective activity of CFE could be mediated possibly through its antioxidant effect.

Curcuma comosa improves learning and memory function on ovariectomized rats in a long-term Morris water maze test.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Curcuma comosa extract and some purified compounds from this plant have been reported to have estrogenic-like effects, and estrogen improves learning in some animals and potentially in postmenopausal women; therefore, this study tested the hypothesis that Curcuma comosa and estrogen have similar beneficial effects on spatial learning and memory. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Curcuma comosa hexane extract, containing 0.165 mg of (4E,6E)-1,7-diphenylhepta-4,6-dien-3-one per mg of the crude extract, was orally administered to ovariectomized Wistar rats at the doses of 250 or 500 mg/kg body weight. 17beta-estradiol (10 microg/kg body weight, subcutaneously) was used as a positive control. Thirty days after the initiation of treatment, animals were tested in a Morris water maze for spatial learning and memory. They were re-tested every 30 days and a final probe trial was run on day 119. RESULTS: Compared to control rats, OVX rats displayed significant memory impairment for locating the platform in the water maze from day 67 after the surgery, onward. In contrast, OVX rats treated with either Curcuma comosa or estrogen were significantly protected from this decline in cognitive function. Further, the protection of cognitive effects by Curcuma comosa was larger at higher dose. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that long-term treatment with Curcuma comosa has beneficial effects on learning and memory function in rats.

Serum gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase and alkaline phosphatase of people in Khon Kaen, the northeastern Thailand.

Serum gamma-glytamyl transpeptidase (GGT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) of the normal population in Northeastern Thailand were measured. The median serum GGP and ALP levels of females was significantly lower than the values for males, i.e., 21 (range=9-260) versus 32 (range=9-459) and 73 (range= 20-428) versus 83 (range=13-171) U/L, respectively. Serum ALP level tended to increase with age in both male and female populations, whereas serum GGT level did not show any age dependence. Serum GGT and ALP levels of cigarette smokers were significantly higher than those of the non-smokers. Alcohol, coffee or tea drinking also resulted in higher serum GGT value whereas serum ALP values were not changed. Beta l nut chewing caused only lower serum GGT but not serum ALP values. The total population in Ban Fang district seemed to have lower serum GGT than those in Chonnabot district. The results from our study give the base line data of serum GGT and ALP in a Thai population. We also confirm the association of serum GGT with cigarette smoking, alcohol and coffee/tea drinking which are risk factors of cancer.

Serum antioxidant vitamin levels of people in Khon Kaen, northeastern Thailand.

Three antioxidant vitamins, the alpha- and beta-carotenes as well as vitamin E, were measured in sera of a normal population in Northeastern Thailand using HPLC. The mean serum beta-carotene level of females was significantly higher than the value for males, i.e, 37.55 (95%CI=34.59-40.51) versus 32.97 (95% CI=30.01-35.93) micro/dl. The beta-carotene level tended to decrease as age increased, particularly in the male population. The mean serum beta-carotene level was also higher in females than in males, i.e., 7.08 (95%CI=6.57-7.59) and 6.26 (95% CI=5.77-6.75) micro/dl, respectively. The average serum alpha-tocopherol (Vitamin E) level of the whole population was 1.08 (95% CI=1.04-1.12) micro/dl and did not show age or sex differences. In general, the serum antioxidant vitamins of smokers were lower than those of the non-smokers but a significant difference was observed only for alpha-tocopherol. Alcohol drinking resulted in slightly lower serum beta-carotene values, whereas coffee or tea drinking and betel nut chewing did not cause any differences with these three antioxidant vitamins. However, we report higher in serum beta-carotene levels of people in Ban Fang district than in Chonnabot district. The results from our study give the base line data of serum antioxidant vitamins in a Thai population and also suggest future intensive study on the relationship of dietary intake and cancer prevention.