Treatment of pilocarpine-induced epileptic seizures in adult male mice / Tratamento de crises epilépticas induzidas por pilocarpina em camundongos adultos machos

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders affecting most social, economic and biological aspects of human life. Most patients with epilepsy have uncontrolled seizures and drug side effects despite the medications. Patients with epilepsy often have problems with attention, memory, and information processing speed, which may be due to seizures, underlying causes, or anticonvulsants. Therefore, improving seizure control and reducing or changing the anti-epileptic drugs can solve these problems, but these problems will not be solved in most cases. In this work, we looked at the effects of pioglitazone, a Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor agonist used to treat type 2 diabetes, on pilocarpine-induced seizures in mice. The Racine scale was used to classify pilocarpine-induced convulsions. After that, all of the animals were beheaded, and the brain and hippocampus were dissected. Finally, biochemical techniques were used to determine the levels of Malondialdehyde and Catalase activity, as well as Superoxide Dismutase and Glutathione Reductase in the hippocampus. The results of this investigation suggest that pioglitazone's antioxidant action may play a key role in its neuroprotective properties against pilocarpine-induced seizure neuronal damage.

A epilepsia é um dos distúrbios neurológicos mais comuns que afetam a maioria dos aspectos sociais, econômicos e biológicos da vida humana. A maioria dos pacientes com epilepsia tem convulsões não controladas e apresenta efeitos colaterais de medicamentos. Pacientes com epilepsia, geralmente, têm problemas de atenção, memória e velocidade de processamento de informações, ocasionados por convulsões, causas subjacentes ou anticonvulsivantes. Portanto, melhorar o controle das crises e reduzir ou alterar as drogas antiepilépticas pode resolver esses problemas, mas, na maioria dos casos, eles não serão resolvidos. Neste trabalho, analisamos os efeitos da pioglitazona, um agonista do receptor ativado por proliferador de peroxissoma usado para tratar diabetes tipo 2, em convulsões induzidas por pilocarpina em camundongos. A escala de Racine foi usada para classificar as convulsões induzidas pela pilocarpina. Em seguida, todos os animais foram decapitados, e o cérebro e o hipocampo foram dissecados. Finalmente, técnicas bioquímicas foram utilizadas para determinar os níveis de atividade do malondialdeído e da catalase, bem como da superóxido dismutase e glutationa redutase no hipocampo. Os resultados desta investigação sugerem que a ação antioxidante da pioglitazona pode desempenhar um papel fundamental em suas propriedades neuroprotetoras contra o dano neuronal convulsivo induzido pela pilocarpina.

Insulin in combination with pioglitazone prevents advanced cachexia in 256-Walker tumor-bearing rats: effect is greater than treatment alone and is associated with improved insulin sensitivity.

BACKGROUND: Insulin (INS) resistance and hypoinsulinemia commonly observed in cancer-carrying, can contribute to cachexia. However, the effects of INS and INS sensitizers, such as pioglitazone (PIO), particularly when used in combination therapy, on cancer cachexia have not been evaluated sufficiently. We investigated the effects of INS and PIO, at various doses, either isolated or combined, on cachexia in Walker-256 tumor-bearing rats (TB rats). METHODS: INS or INS + PIO were administered in TB rats, for 6 or 12 days, starting from the day of tumor cells inoculation. RESULTS: INS at 18 or 27 U/kg (12-days treatment), but not 9 U/kg, reduced fat loss and slightly prevented weight loss. However, INS 18 U/kg + PIO 5, 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg (6 or 12-day treatment) reduced fat loss and markedly prevented weight loss but did not affect muscle wasting. While TB rats lost weight (37.9% in 12 days), TB rats treated with INS 18 U/kg + PIO 5 mg/kg showed pronounced weight gain (73.7%), which was greater than the sum (synergism) of the weight gains promoted by isolated treatments with INS 18 U/kg (14.7%) or PIO 5 mg/kg (13.1%). The beneficial effect of the INS 18 U/kg + PIO 5 mg/kg on weight loss was associated with improved INS sensitivity, as indicated by the higher blood glucose clearance constant (kITT), decreased levels of free fatty acids and triacylglycerols (INS resistance-inducing factors) in the blood, and increased expression of p-Akt (INS signaling pathway protein) in adipose tissue. CONCLUSIONS: The combined treatment with INS 18 U/kg + PIO 5 mg/kg was more effective in preventing advanced cachexia in TB rats than each treatment alone, emerging as the best approach, considering the lower dosage and higher efficacy. This combination completely preserved adipose mass and markedly reduced weight loss through a synergistic mechanism linked to improved insulin sensitivity. These findings provide new insights into the importance of drug combinations in effectively combating fat loss in advanced cachexia.

Pioglitazone, a Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor-γ Agonist, Downregulates the Inflammatory Response in Cutaneous Leishmaniasis Patients Without Interfering in Leishmania braziliensis Killing by Monocytes.

Patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) due to Leishmania braziliensis infection have an exacerbated inflammatory response associated with tissue damage and ulcer development. An increase in the rate of patients who fail therapy with pentavalent antimony has been documented. An adjuvant therapy with an anti-inflammatory drug with the potential of Leishmania killing would benefit CL patients. The aim of the present study was to investigate the contribution of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ) activation by pioglitazone in the regulation of the inflammatory response and L. braziliensis killing by monocytes. Pioglitazone is an oral drug used in the treatment of diabetes, and its main mechanism of action is through the activation of PPAR-γ, which is expressed in many cell types of the immune response. We found that activation of PPAR-γ by pioglitazone decreases the inflammatory response in CL patients without affecting L. braziliensis killing by monocytes. Our data suggest that pioglitazone may serve as an adjunctive treatment for CL caused by L. braziliensis.

Vertebral fractures in adult women with type 2 diabetes mellitus / Fracturas vertebrales en mujeres adultas con diabetes mellitus tipo 2

Introduction. Diabetes is a chronic disease associated with important comorbidities. Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is associated with a three times increased risk of hip fracture but reports describing potential associations with vertebral fractures (VF) are contradictory. Our objective was to evaluate the factors involved in the prevalent VF in women with and without T2DM. Materials and methods. A cross-sectional design was used and the relationship between morphometric VF and T2DM in adult women was evaluated. The cases were adult women with morphometric VF and the controls were adult women without VF. Thoracic and spinal radiographs in lateral and antero-posterior projections were obtained. Bone mineral density (BMD) values of the lumbar spine (L-BMD) were measured by DXA. Results. A greater number of women with T2DM were found in the VF group (61% vs 31.5%). Non-T2DM women with VF were significantly older and with lower L-BMD than non-T2DM without VF. We observed a negative correlation between age and L-BMD (r=-0.463) in non-T2DM women, but not in the T2DM with FV group. T2DM was a risk factor for prevalent VF with OR of 3.540 (IC95% 1.750-7.160). Conclusion. Our study showed a higher prevalence of T2DM in the VF group. T2DM women with VF were younger and had higher L-BMD than non-T2DM women, L-BMD did not correlate with age and VF were not distributed according to BMD-L and age. (AU)

Introducción. La diabetes es una enfermedad crónica asociada con comorbilidades importantes. La diabetes tipo 2 (DM2) se asocia con un riesgo tres veces mayor de fractura de cadera pero la asociación con fracturas vertebrales (FV) es contradictoria. Nuestro objetivo fue evaluar los factores involucrados en las FV prevalentes en mujeres adultas con y sin DM2. Materiales y métodos. Se realizó un diseño transversal y se evaluó la relación entre FV morfométrica y DM2 en mujeres adultas. Los casos fueron mujeres adultas con FV morfométricas y los controles fueron mujeres adultas sin FV. Se obtuvieron radiografías torácicas y espinales en proyecciones lateral y anteroposterior. Los valores de densidad mineral ósea (DMO) de la columna lumbar (DMO-L) se midieron por DXA. Resultados. Se observó un mayor número de mujeres con DM2 en el grupo de FV (61% frente a 31.5%). Las mujeres sin DM2 con FV eran significativamente mayores y con una DMO-L más baja que las mujeres sin DM2 sin FV. Observamos una correlación negativa entre la edad y la DMO-L (r= -0.463) en mujeres sin DM2 y FV, pero no en DM2 con FV. La DM2 fue un factor de riesgo para FV prevalente con un OR 3.540 (IC95% 1.750-7.160). Conclusión. Nuestro estudio demostró una mayor prevalencia de DM2 en el grupo de FV. Las mujeres con DM2 y FV eran más jóvenes y tenían mayor DMO-L que las mujeres sin DM2, la DMO-L no correlacionó con la edad y las FV no se distribuyeron de acuerdo a la DMO-L y edad. (AU)

PPAR-γ agonist pioglitazone reduces microglial proliferation and NF-κB activation in the substantia nigra in the 6-hydroxydopamine model of Parkinson's disease.

BACKGROUND: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPAR-γ) agonists have received much attention in research because of their neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects that reduce cell death and halt the progression of neurodegeneration. Thus, this study observed the pioglitazone effects on the main inflammatory markers after 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion. METHODS: The effects of a 5-day administration of the PPAR-γ agonist pioglitazone (30 mg/kg) in male Wistar rats that received bilateral intranigral infusions of 6-OHDA. After surgery, the rats were evaluated in the open-field test on days 1,7,14, and 21. Immediately after the behavioral tests on day 21, the rats were euthanized, and the substantia nigra was removed to analyze the expression of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and IκB by western blot. To immunohistochemical, animals were intracardially perfused, with brain removal that was frozen and sectioned, being selected slices of the SNc region to detect tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) immunoreactivity, microglia activation (Iba-1) and NF-κB translocation in the nucleus. RESULTS: Pioglitazone protected rats against hypolocomotion and 6-OHDA-induced dopaminergic neurodegeneration on day 7. Decreases in the microglial activation and the NF-κB expression were observed, and the p65 activation was inhibited. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that pioglitazone may be a potential adjuvant for the treatment of Parkinson`s disease because of its effects on pathological markers of the progression of neurodegeneration.

Nanoemulsion strategy of pioglitazone for the treatment of skin inflammatory diseases.

Pioglitazone (PGZ) is a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor agonist. Its role in the inflammatory response modulation paves the way for additional therapeutic applications. The purpose of this study was to develop a pioglitazone nanoemulsion (PGZ-NE) in order to investigate its anti-inflammatory efficacy on the skin. To that end, an NE vehicle developed for skin delivery was optimized and characterized. The resulting PGZ-NE showed good anti-inflammatory efficacy by decreasing the expression of inflammatory cytokines IL-6, IL-1ß and TNF-α. The properties of the developed nanocarrier allowed achievement of a high permeation flux of PGZ through the skin as well as a high retained amount in the skin, likely due to the depot effect of ingredients, which assured a prolonged local action, with good skin tolerability among participating individuals. Consequently, these results suggest that PGZ-NE may be used as an alternative treatment for inflammatory skin diseases such as rosacea, atopic dermatitis or psoriasis.

Seguridad cardiovascular de los antidiabéticos orales / Cardiovascular safety of oral antidiabetics

Resumen La Diabetes Mellitus tipo 2 (DM-2) es un equivalente de riesgo cardiovascular. Existe una gran variedad de fármacos para el control de la glicemia en los pacientes con DM-2, los cuales tienen diferencias en su perfil cardiovascular, unos han demostrado un beneficio en la reducción de riesgo de eventos cardiovasculares, otros tienen un efecto neutro, y en el caso de otros fármacos como las sulfonilureas y las tiazolinedionas existe dudas sobre su seguridad cardiovascular. Sien do DM-2 un equivalente de riesgo coronario, es fundamental tomar en cuenta el perfil de riesgo cardiovascular de estos medicamentos a la hora de iniciar alguna de estas drogas y no solo su eficacia para controlar los niveles de glicemia. El objetivo de esta revisión es comentar sobre los estudios más recientes que evalúan el riesgo cardiovascular con el uso de los distintos antidiabéticos orales.

Abstract Cardiovascular Safety of Oral Antidiabetics Diabetes Mellitus type 2 (DM-2) is an equivalent of cardiovascular risk. There is a wide variety of drugs for the glycemic control in patients with DM-2, which have differences in their cardiovascular profile, some have shown a benefit in reducing the risk of cardiovascular events, others have a neutral effect, and in the case of other drugs such as sulfonylurea and thiazolidinedione, there are doubts about their cardiovascular safety. Being DM-2 an equivalent of coronary risk, it is essential to consider the cardiovascular risk profile of these medicines when starting any of these drugs and not only their effectiveness in controlling glycaemia levels. The objective of this review is to comment on the most recent studies evaluating cardiovascular risk with the use of different oral antidiabetics.