Carnosol Is a Potent Lung Protective Agent: Experimental Study on Mice.

INTRODUCTION: Oxidative stress has been implicated in various disease states and ischemia/reperfusion injury is a direct consequence of oxidative stress in lung transplantation. Because the success rate of organ transplantation in which ischemia/reperfusion is inevitable is highly influenced by oxidative stress, development of strategies to control oxidative stress would be beneficial. Here we identified natural compounds to reduce oxidative stresses in isolated mouse lungs. METHODS: We screened compounds associated with antioxidative stress in 200 plant extracts by monitoring the activities of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2). Compounds found to ameliorate antioxidative stress were enriched and mice were administered the extract orally every day for 1 week. Then, the lungs were isolated and cultured in the culture medium at 37 °C. Lung damage was monitored by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) released in the culture medium. Arterial (left ventricle) blood gas levels were also monitored after hilar clamping. RESULTS: We found that Callicarpa longissima extract was rich in NRF2 activators. The responsible compounds were carnosic acid and its oxidative product, carnosol. Carnosol induced heme-oxygenase 1 (HO-1) expression, which is downstream of NRF2, more efficiently than carnosic acid. CONCLUSIONS: Lungs from mice treated with C longissima extract were less damaged than those from control mice and accompanied by HO-1 induction. These results suggest that carnosol is a candidate compound to increase the success rate of lung transplantation.

[Surgical treatment for the second double lung cancers following chemotherapy for small cell lung cancer].

We report a case with surgery for the 2nd primary double lung cancers-adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma which developed in the right upper lobe after 5 years successful control by chemotherapy for small cell lung cancer in the left upper lobe. Long term survivors with small cell lung cancer have recently increased as a result of progress of chemotherapy. Therefore, 2nd primary lung cancer is not rare after the treatment for the initial small cell lung cancer. Although several causes have been proposed on the development of 2nd primary lung cancer after small cell lung cancer treatment, smoking history was strongly suggested as a cause in this case. Careful follow-up especially focusing on 2nd primary lung cancer development is necessary for patients after successful treatment for small cell lung cancer.