Chronic toxicity study of neosaxitoxin in rats.

Neosaxitoxin (NeoSTX) is a specific reversible blocker of voltage gated sodium channels on excitable cells. In the last decade, it has been tested in a number of interesting clinical trials, however there is still little information available on mammalian toxicity. Rats were treated for 12 weeks with doses of 1, 3 or 6 μg/kg of subcutaneous NeoSTX.

Honey flavonoids inhibit Candida albicans morphogenesis by affecting DNA behavior and mitochondrial function.

Aim: Candida albicans is a pathogenic yeast, which forms a range of polarized and expanded cell shapes. We aimed to determine the correlation between honey extract (HFE) activity and changes in C. albicans cell cycle, morphology and subcellular organelles.

Rice bran enzymatic extract-supplemented diets modulate adipose tissue inflammation markers in Zucker rats.

Objective: Chronic low-grade inflammation in obesity is characterized by macrophage accumulation in white adipose tissue and adipokine production deregulation. Obesity also is characterized by oxidative stress related to inflammatory signaling. The aim of this study was to analyze whether dietary supplementation with a rice bran enzymatic extract (RBEE), rich in bioactive compounds with antioxidant and hypocholesterolemic properties, would ameliorate the inflammatory state existing in visceral adipose tissue of obese Zucker rats.

Rice bran enzymatic extract restores endothelial function and vascular contractility in obese rats by reducing vascular inflammation and oxidative stress.

Background: Rice bran enzymatic extract (RBEE) used in this study has shown beneficial activities against dyslipidemia, hyperinsulinemia and hypertension. Our aim was to investigate the effects of a diet supplemented with RBEE in vascular impairment developed in obese Zucker rats and to evaluate the main mechanisms mediating this action.

Methods And Results: Obese Zucker rats were fed a 1% and 5% RBEE-supplemented diet (O1% and O5%).

Anti-apoptotic activity of hydroxytyrosol and hydroxytyrosyl laurate.

Hydroxytyrosol (HyT) is a polyphenol primarily released in olive mill wastewater and in olive oil. In animal and cell model studies, HyT and its metabolites have strong antioxidant and antimicrobial activities, as well as beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system and in several human diseases. Differently, many researchers reported that HyT down-regulates tumor cell viability and cell cycle progression, and induces reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and apoptosis.

Anti-inflammatory activity of a honey flavonoid extract on lipopolysaccharide-activated N13 microglial cells.

Neuroinflammation is an important contributor to pathogenesis of age-related neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease. Accumulating evidence indicates that inhibition of microglia-mediated neuroinflammation may become a reliable protective strategy for neurodegenerative processes. Flavonoids, widely distributed in the vegetable kingdom and in foods such as honey, have been suggested as novel therapeutic agents for the reduction of the deleterious effects of neuroinflammation.

Mitochondria accumulate large amounts of quercetin: prevention of mitochondrial damage and release upon oxidation of the extramitochondrial fraction of the flavonoid.

Quercetin uptake in Jurkat cells is extremely rapid and associated with a remarkable accumulation of the flavonoid, dependent on its binding to intracellular components. Cell-associated quercetin is biologically active, quantitatively consumed to promote survival in the presence of reactive species, such as peroxynitrite (ONOO(-)), or reduction of extracellular oxidants via activation of plasma membrane oxidoreductases. In alternative, quercetin is very slowly released upon post-incubation in drug-free medium, an event significantly accelerated by extracellular albumin.