Investigation of the Antinociceptive Activity of the Hydroethanolic Extract of Junglas nigra Leaf by the Tail-Immersion and Formalin Pain Tests in Rats.

Background: Juglans (J.) nigra leaf is obtained from a plant that is used in traditional medicine in some countries to alleviate inflammatory diseases. Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of J. nigra extract on acute nociceptive and inflammatory pain in rats. Methods: Antinociceptive activity was examined in Wistar rats by the tail-immersion and formalin tests. Motor function was assessed using the rotarod test. Plant extract was administered intraperitoneally. Results: In the tail-immersion test, the maximal antinociceptive effect of the plant extract (100-330 mg/kg) was about 24-30% and is the result of the effect of a high concentration of ethanol. In the formalin test, the plant extract (41.3-330 mg/kg) significantly and dose-dependently inhibited nociception in both phases of the test with similar maximal effects of about 76% and 85%. Only the plant extract at the dose of 330 mg/kg caused a significant time-dependent reduction in time spent on the rotarod. Conclusions: In rats, the preventive systemic administration of the hydroethanolic extract of J. nigra leaf reduced chemically but not thermally induced pain. Higher efficacy was obtained in pain associated with inflammation and tissue injury. The antinociceptive effect is dose-dependent and may be limited by motor impairment.

Effects of different dietary regimes alone or in combination with standardized Aronia melanocarpa extract supplementation on lipid and fatty acids profiles in rats.

This study investigated different dietary strategies, high-fat (HFd), or standard diet (Sd) alone or in combination with standardized Aronia melanocarpa extract (SAE), as a polyphenol-rich diet, and their effects on lipids and fatty acids (FA) in rats with metabolic syndrome (MetS). Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into two groups: healthy and rats with MetS, and then depending on dietary patterns on six groups: healthy rats fed with Sd, healthy rats fed with Sd and SAE, rats with MetS fed with HFd, rats with MetS fed with HFd and SAE, rats with MetS fed with Sd, and rats with MetS fed with Sd and SAE. 4 weeks later, after an overnight fast (12-14 h), blood for determination of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), index of lipid peroxidation (measured as TBARS), and FA was collected. Increased FA and lipid concentration found in MetS rats were reduced when changing dietary habits from HFd to Sd with or without SAE consumption. Consumption of SAE slightly affects the FA profiles, mostly palmitoleic acid in healthy rats and PUFA in MetS + HFd rats. Nevertheless, in a high-fat diet, SAE supplementation significantly decreases n-6/n-3 ratio, thereby decreasing systemic inflammation. Further researches are warranted to confirm these effects in humans.

Standardized Aronia melanocarpa Extract as Novel Supplement against Metabolic Syndrome: A Rat Model.

The aim of our study was to examine the effects of different dietary strategies, high-fat (HFd) or standard diet (Sd) alone or in combination with standardized oral supplementation (0.45 mL/kg/day) of Aronia melanocarpa extract (SAE) in rats with metabolic syndrome (MetS). SAE is an official product of pharmaceutical company Pharmanova (Belgrade, Serbia); however, the procedure for extraction was done by EU-Chem company (Belgrade, Serbia). Rats were divided randomly into six groups: control with Sd, control with Sd and SAE, MetS with HFd, MetS with HFd and SAE, MetS with Sd and MetS with Sd and SAE during 4 weeks. At the end of the 4-week protocol, cardiac function and liver morphology were assessed, while in the blood samples glucose, insulin, iron levels and systemic redox state were determined. Our results demonstrated that SAE had the ability to lower blood pressure and exert benefits on in vivo and ex vivo heart function. Moreover, SAE improved glucose tolerance, attenuated pathological liver alterations and oxidative stress present in MetS. Obtained beneficial effects of SAE were more prominent in combination with changing dietary habits. Promising potential of SAE supplementation alone or in combination with different dietary protocols in triggering cardioprotection should be further examined in future.

Kinetic modeling and optimization of maceration and ultrasound-extraction of resinoid from the aerial parts of white lady's bedstraw (Galium mollugo L.).

In this paper, extraction of resinoid from the aerial parts of white lady's bedstraw (Galium mollugo L.) using an aqueous ethanol solution (50% by volume) was studied at different temperatures in the absence and the presence of ultrasound. This study indicated that ultrasound-assisted extraction was effective for extracting the resinoid and gave better resinoid yields at lower extraction temperature and in much shorter time than the maceration. A phenomenological model was developed for modeling the kinetics of the extraction process. The model successfully describes the two-step extraction consisting of washing followed by diffusion of extractable substances and shows that ultrasound influences only the first step. The extraction process was optimized using response surface methodology (RMS) and artificial neural network (ANN) models. For the former modeling, the second-order polynomial equation was applied, while the second one was performed by an ANN-GA combination. The high coefficient of determination and the low MRPD between the ANN prediction and the corresponding experimental data proved that modeling the extraction process in the absence and the presence of ultrasound using ANN was more accurate than RSM modeling. The optimum extraction temperature was determined to be 80 and 40 °C, respectively for the maceration and the ultrasound-assisted extraction, ensuring the highest resinoid yield of 22.0 g/100g in 4h and 25.1g/100g in 30 min, which agreed with the yields obtained experimentally for the same time (21.7 and 25.3g/100g, respectively).

[Development of pharmacy in the Leskovac region for the period from liberation from the Turks until World War II].

From the historical point of view, there are three time periods when the process of modernization of Serbian society took place. First period includes the interval from the beginning of the 19th century until the end of World War I, when the Serbian country was reestablished as Serbian Knezevina (princedom) and in 1882 as Serbian Kingdom. Second period includes an interval from the unity of Serbia into the Kingdom of Serbs, Croatians and Slovenians, which was established at the end of World War I (1918) and in 1929 changed the name into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, which lasted until the end of World War II. The third period includes time after World War II. In this paper, the social-economical conditions in the Leskovac area during the first two periods of modernization were described, as well as the pharmacy development emphasizing the characteristic of the pharmaceutics. The Leskovac area belongs to most recently liberated areas in Serbia, i.e. Leskovac was liberated at the end of 1877. Nevertheless, the first pharmacy was opened in Leskovac in 1862, during the reign of the Turks. The authors being the people from Leskovac as well as the pharmacists believe that they contributed to better overview of the activities of people from modernization period, paying them well-deserved recognition.

[The history of the first pharmacy of Leskovac region].

This paper explains the social and healthcare related conditions in the Leskovac region during 18th and 19th century, and the foundation of the first pharmacy in Serbia. Based on the available historical facts and private documents, the history of the origin and activities of the first pharmacy in the Leskovac region during the Turkish reign in 1862 is presented.The paper also mentions the founder, Dr. Alexiadis (Greek by origin), who was a doctor working in pharmaceutical industry, as well as his son Mgr.Ph. Djordje Aleksic, born in 1847 in Ioannina (Greece) and graduated from the Pharamacy Faculty in Constantinople in 1875, who later became the owner. After graduation, Mgr.Ph. Djordje Aleksic came in Leskovac and took over the "Hipokrat" pharmacy from his father, and started pharmacy business in Leskovac in the true meaning of that word.