Fibrinogen gamma-A chain precursor in CSF: a candidate biomarker for Alzheimer's disease.

Background: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) may be valuable for exploring protein markers for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The prospect of early detection and treatment, to slow progression, holds hope for aging populations with increased average lifespan. The aim of the present study was to investigate candidate CSF biological markers in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD and compare them with age-matched normal control subjects.

Natural compounds,fraxin and chemicals structurally related to fraxin protect cells from oxidative stress.

Coumarins comprise a group of natural phenolic compounds found in a variety of plant sources. In view of the established low toxicity, relative cheapness, presence in the diet and occurrence in various herbal remedies of coumarins, it appears prudent to evaluate their properties and applications further. The purpose of this study is to investigate cellular protective activity of coumarin compound, fraxin extracted from Weigela florida var.

Methyl gallate and chemicals structurally related to methyl gallate protect human umbilical vein endothelial cells from oxidative stress.

Methyl gallate (meGAL) is known as one of major antioxidants. To investigate whether meGAL protects human cells from oxidative stress, meGAL extracted from Korean medicinal plant, Cercis chinensis leaves, was primarily screened using cell viability assay against oxidative stress. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were treated with three different concentrations of meGAL for indicated time.