ABSTRACT
Asthma is one of the most common causes of office visits in the primary care and emergency care settings. Individuals are often able to maintain symptomatic control with long-term pharmacological therapy. Exacerbations of asthma commonly occur due to exposure to triggers such as viruses, pollutants, and allergens. While it is widely accepted that exposure to immunoglobulin E food allergens can exacerbate asthma symptoms, there is little evidence examining delayed immunoglobulin G-mediated reactions to food. Here we present two clinical cases of individuals who experienced a reduction in asthma symptoms, decreased dependence on pharmacological therapies, and increased quality of life by eliminating foods that demonstrated reactivity to immunoglobulin G levels identified through serum testing.
El asma es una de las causas más frecuentes de visita a la consulta del médico de atención primaria y a urgencias. A menudo los pacientes pueden controlar sus síntomas con tratamiento farmacológico de larga duración. Las exacerbaciones del asma ocurren por lo general debido a exposición a desencadenantes como virus, contaminantes y alérgenos. Si bien se acepta por lo general que la exposición a alérgenos alimentarios que causan la producción de inmunoglobulina E puede exacerbar los síntomas de asma, hay poca evidencia al examinar las reacciones retardadas a alimentos mediadas por inmunoglobulina G. Presentamos aquí dos casos clínicos de individuos que experimentaron una reducción de los síntomas de asma, disminución en su dependencia a tratamientos farmacológicos y una mejora en su calidad de vida eliminando alimentos que demostraron reactividad a los niveles de inmunoglobulina G identificados mediante análisis de suero.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Resurgences of Staphylococcus aureus infection continue globally, with antibiotic resistance increasing dramatically, making these infections more difficult to treat. S. aureus epidemics impose public health threats, and economic burdens on health care costs worldwide, presenting challenges modern medicine struggles to control. OBJECTIVE: In order to answer today's call for effective treatments against S. aureus, we evaluated and compared various botanical extracts that have historically been suggested as useful for their antimicrobial properties against S. aureus. DESIGN: Briefly, S. aureus cultures were treated with selected botanical extracts and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) determined. In addition, to obtain more quantitative measures on bacterial growth, 24-hour growth studies were done to examine the temporal activity and stability of various botanicals on bacterial replication. RESULTS: The antimicrobial activity observed for the botanical extracts used in this comparative evaluation of efficacy included both bacteriostatic and bacteriocidal activity against S. aureus. Highly effective botanicals including Salvia officinalis, Eucalyptus globulus, Coleus forskohlii, Coptis chinensis, Turnera diffusa, and Larrea tridentata exhibited MIC values ranging from 60 to 300 µg/mL and a 10(6)-fold reduction in bacterial replication. Arctostaphylos uva-ursi and Allium sativum were slightly less effective, exhibiting MIC values ranging from 90 to 400 µg/mL and a 10(5)-fold reduction, while Anemopsis californica gave MIC value of 360 µg/mL and a 10(4)-fold reduction in bacterial replication. Many botanicals, especially at lower doses, had an initial inhibitory effect followed by a recovery in bacterial replication. Such botanicals included E. globulus, C. chinensis, T. diffusa, A. californica, and Berberis vulgaris. CONCLUSIONS: Our data demonstrate that S. officinalis, E. globulus, C. forskohlii, A. uva-ursi, C. chinensis, T. diffusa, A. californica, A. sativum, and L. tridentata all show promising direct antimicrobial activity against S. aureus. For many of these botanicals, strong bacteriocidal activity was observed at higher concentrations, but even at lower concentrations, bacteriostatic activity was evident. Other botanicals including B. vulgaris, Baptisia tinctoria, and Glycyrrhiza glabra showed moderate activity against S. aureus, while Schisandra chinensis, Echinacea angustifolia, and Polygonum multiflorum were shown to be ineffective.
