Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Properties of Fruiting Body and Submerged Mycelium of Medicinal Mushroom Phellinus robiniae (Agaricomycetes).

This study was conducted to evaluate extraction yield, antioxidant content, antioxidant capacity and antibacterial activity of extracts obtained from submerged mycelium (ME) and fruiting body (FBE) of Phellinus robiniae NTH-PR1. The results showed that yields of ME and FBE reached 14.84 ± 0.

Benefits of glatiramer acetate in the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.

Relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis is a chronic, progressive disorder marked by repeated exacerbations that lead to increases in neurological disability. Glatiramer acetate and the IFN-betas are recommended as first-line agents for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis owing to their potential to reduce frequency and severity of relapses, decrease development of new brain lesions and delay permanent disability. After three decades of study, the preponderance of the evidence suggests that the efficacy of glatiramer acetate is similar to the IFN-betas and new data collected in more naturalistic settings suggest that it may provide improved quality of life, increased productivity and cost-effectiveness.

Activation in mesolimbic and visuospatial neural circuits elicited by smoking cues: evidence from functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Objective: The authors sought to increase understanding of the brain mechanisms involved in cigarette addiction by identifying neural substrates modulated by visual smoking cues in nicotine-deprived smokers.

Method: Event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to detect brain activation after exposure to smoking-related images in a group of nicotine-deprived smokers and a nonsmoking comparison group. Subjects viewed a pseudo-random sequence of smoking images, neutral nonsmoking images, and rare targets (photographs of animals).

Efficacy and safety of atenolol, enalapril, and isradipine in elderly hypertensive women.

Purpose: This trial was designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of three different classes of antihypertensive agents in elderly women.

Patients And Methods: The trial had three phases: 4 to 8 weeks of placebo, 6 weeks of titration, and 16 weeks of maintenance. White women between 60 and 80 years old with sitting diastolic blood pressures (DBPs) from 95 through 114 mm Hg treated with placebo were evaluated by history, physical examination, laboratory studies, and quality-of-life interview.

The effectiveness of labetalol compared to hydrochlorothiazide in hypertensive black patients.

Labetalol and hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) were compared for their efficacy in controlling hypertension of blacks in a prospective, double-blind study. Sixty-one adult patients with mild to moderate hypertension (standing diastolic blood pressure greater than or equal to 95 mm Hg and less than or equal to 114 mm Hg) were randomly selected to receive either labetalol 100 mg twice daily (n = 30) or HCTZ 25 mg twice daily (n = 31). The study was divided into two phases: a 4-week placebo run-in phase, during which all previous antihypertensive medication was discontinued, and a 12-week drug treatment phase.

Evaluation of labetalol in elderly patients with essential hypertension.

Labetalol was evaluated in a multicenter, placebo-controlled study of elderly patients (greater than or equal to 60 years) with mild to moderate essential hypertension. After a placebo-washout period, doses were titrated from 100 mg BID to a maximum of 400 mg BID over a 6-week period. Once blood pressure control (standing diastolic blood pressure [SDBP] less than 90 mm Hg and greater than or equal to 10 mm Hg reduction from baseline) was achieved or the maximum allowable dosage had been given, the dosage remained the same until the end of the study.

Dose-response evaluation of oral labetalol in patients presenting to the emergency department with accelerated hypertension.

Study Objective: Dose-response evaluation of oral labetalol (100, 200, or 300 mg) on heart rate and systemic blood pressure in emergency department patients with hypertensive urgency (diastolic blood pressure, 110 to 140 mm Hg, and no end-organ evidence of hypertensive emergency).

Methods: This acute-treatment, dose-ranging study used a randomized, double-blind, parallel design. Patients with supine diastolic blood pressure of 110 to 140 mm Hg after 30 minutes of bedrest received an oral dose of labetalol.

Comparison of labetalol versus enalapril as monotherapy in elderly patients with hypertension: results of 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.

Purpose: This study compared the safety and efficacy of labetalol and enalapril as antihypertensive therapy for elderly patients.

Patients And Methods: A randomized, open-label, parallel controlled trial was conducted. After completing a 4-week placebo phase, 79 elderly (65 years or older) patients with an average standing diastolic blood pressure (BP) 95 mm Hg or above and 114 mm Hg or less were randomized to receive a 12-week course of either labetalol or enalapril in an open-label design.

Comparison of labetalol and hydrochlorothiazide in elderly patients with hypertension using 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.

The safety and efficacy of labetalol and hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) were compared in a group of 34 patients aged 65 years or older with mild to moderate essential hypertension. After a 4-week placebo run-in period, during which all previous antihypertensive medication was discontinued, patients were randomized to receive either labetalol (100 mg bid) or HCTZ (25 mg bid). The patients' blood pressure and heart rate were evaluated biweekly and drug dosage was titrated (up to 400 mg and 50 mg bid of labetalol and HCTZ, respectively) to achieve a standing diastolic blood pressure less than 90 mm Hg.

Postmarketing comparison of labetalol and propranolol in hypertensive patients.

A survey was conducted to compare the safety and effectiveness of labetalol and propranolol under routine conditions of clinical use. Patients received either labetalol (n = 805) or propranolol (n = 135) twice daily, according to package insert instructions, for six weeks. Every two weeks the patients were evaluated and weight, heart rate, blood pressure, dose, and adverse symptoms were recorded.

Endemic goiter in Vietnam.

Endemic goiter involves about 15% of the population of Vietnam. To define the role of various factors which contribute to endemic goiter in Vietnam, we surveyed 935 people in Vancon, a lowland commune with goiter appearing only in the past decade, and 619 people in Dich Giao, a highland commune with endemic goiter treated erratically with iodized salt. In Dich Giao, cassava, a goitrogenic food, constitutes half of the dietary caloric intake.