Antioxidant potential of two red seaweeds from the Brazilian coasts.

In this work, in vitro antioxidant activity of two Brazilian red seaweeds, Gracilaria birdiae and Gracilaria cornea, was characterized. The total phenolic content, the radical-scavenging activity and the antioxidant activity were determined in two solvent extracts of the algae. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) allowed identification of important antioxidant compounds. The ethanol extract of G. birdiae was found to have the highest value of total phenolic content: 1.13 mg of gallic acid equiv (GAE)/g of extract. The radical-scavenging activity of G. birdiae and G. cornea extracts has been evaluated at different extract concentrations; the IC(50) values of ethanolic extracts of G. cornea and G. birdiae were 0.77 and 0.76 mg mL(-1), respectively, while for methanolic extracts, the IC(50) values of G. cornea and G. birdiae were 0.86 and 0.76 mg mL(-1), respectively. The antioxidant activities of these two seaweeds' extracts as assessed by the ß-carotene-linoleic acid assay were equally high, achieving values of ß-carotene oxidation inhibition of up to 40%. Finally, in the methanolic extracts, LC-MS/MS allowed identification in both algae of two important antioxidants: apigenin and gallic acid.

Utilização de medicamentos e risco de interações medicamentosas em idosos atendidos pelo Programa de Atenção ao Idoso da Unijuí / Use of medications and risk of drug interactions in the elderly population at the Elderly Care Program in Unijuí

Idosos utilizam elevado número de medicamentos, apresentando alto potencial para desenvolver interações medicamentosas. Objetivou-se verificar o perfil de utilização de medicamentos e conhecer possíveis interações medicamentosas em idosos acompanhados pelo Programa de Atenção ao Idoso (PAI) da Unijuí. Os dados foram coletados em julho de 2009. Classificaramse os medicamentos no sistema Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical e possibilidades de interações segundo Drug Interaction Facts. De março/2008 até julho/2009 o PAI atendeu 31 idosos, estando 16 em acompanhamento, os quais apresentaram média de 78,4 ± 6,8 anos e utilizaram 83 medicamentos, com média de 5,2 ± 3,7/ idoso. Os fármacos mais prevalentes foram os que atuam no aparelho cardiovascular, no sistema nervoso e para o trato alimentar e metabolismo. Verificaram-se 36 possíveis interações entre 9 pacientes, com média de 4/idoso. O fármaco mais envolvido foi digoxina. Quanto a classificação, 4 apresentaram nível de significância 1, dez nível 2, cinco nível 3, sete nível 4 e dez nível 5. O número de possíveis interações verificadas foi expressivo, entretanto nem todos os idosos apresentarão reações relacionadas às interações, mas apresentaram o risco. Portanto, é importante que prescritores conheçam a influência de um fármaco sobre outro. Seria necessário treinamento intensivo para intervenção farmacêutica, sendo o relacionamento com o médico indispensável.

Elderly people take a large number of medicines, entailing a high risk of developing drug interactions. The aim was to study the profile of medicines prescribed and the possible drug interactions in the public Elderly Care Program (PAI) run at Unijuí, a university in south Brazil. The data were collected in July 2009. The Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) Classification System was used to classify medicines, while the potential interactions were classified with the aid of Drug Interaction Facts. Between March 2008 and July 2008, the PAI attended 31 elderly patients, of whom 16 were monitored, with a mean age of 78.4 ± 6.8 years. This group received 83 medicines, making an average of 5.2 ± 3.7 medicines/patient. The most prevalent drugs were those acting on the cardiovascular system, nervous system, digestive tract and metabolism. There were 36 possible interactions in 9 patients, an average of 4 interactions per patient. The drug most frequently involved was digoxin. The interactions were classified as follows: 4 at level 1, 10 at level 2, 5 at level 3, 7 at level 4 and 10 at level 5. This number of possible interactions is considerable; although not all elderly patients show the effects of the drug interactions, they do run the risk. Therefore, it is highly important that prescribers are familiar with the drug interactions. For the pharmacist to help the patient, intensive training for pharmaceutical intervention and a good relationship with the doctor are indispensable.