Publications by authors named "Shara F Rapa"

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is a pyrimidine analogue used as an antineoplastic agent to treat multiple solid tumors. Despite its use and efficacy, it also has important side effects in healthy cells, including skin reactions, related to its pro-oxidant and pro-inflammatory potential. Although there are numerous remedies for chemotherapy-induced skin reactions, the efficacy of these treatments remains limited.

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The intestines are recognized as the main source of chronic inflammation in chronic kidney disease (CKD) and, among other cells, macrophages are involved in modulating this process as well as in the impaired immune response which also occurs in CKD patients. In this study, we evaluated the effect of Indoxyl Sulfate (IS), a protein bound uremic toxin poorly eliminated by hemodialysis, on inflammatory, oxidative stress and pro-apoptotic parameters, at the intestinal level in mice, on intestinal epithelial cells (IEC-6) and on primary murine peritoneal macrophages. C57BL/6J mice were treated with IS (800 mg/kg i.

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Intestinal epithelial barrier impairment plays a key pathogenic role in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). In particular, together with oxidative stress, intestinal epithelial barrier alteration is considered as upstream event in ulcerative colitis (UC). In order to identify new products of natural origin with a potential activity for UC treatment, this study evaluated the effects of plumericin, a spirolactone iridoid, present as one of the main bioactive components in the bark of (Woodson).

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Background: Almond skins are rich in bioactive compounds that undergo oxidation/degradation phenomena and are poorly soluble in water, reducing in vivo absorption and bioavailability, factors that influence the pharmacological activity of an active product. We developed a dried acetonic almond skins extract/cyclodextrin complex to improve extract solubility, dissolution rate and biological activity.

Methods: A lyophilized acetonic almond skin extract was produced.

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Phytochemical investigations of an extract of the aerial parts of led to the isolation of 14 labdane-type diterpenoids, of which compounds -, , and - turned out to be new natural products, while the remaining compounds were isolated for the first time from the genus . Their structures were elucidated using 1D- and 2D-NMR and mass spectrometry, and their absolute configurations were determined by quantum chemical calculation methods. Furthermore, DP4+ NMR chemical shift probability calculations were performed for compounds -, in order to elucidate the orientation of the ambiguous chiral center at C-15, prior to absolute configuration determination.

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Article Synopsis
  • Intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) are crucial for gut health, but can be damaged by issues like chemotherapy, leading to complications such as gastrointestinal mucositis, which worsens patient outcomes.
  • Researchers studied the effects of pomegranate juice extract on IEC-6 cells under inflammation and chemotherapy conditions, finding that it significantly reduced harmful inflammatory factors and oxidative stress.
  • The results indicate that pomegranate could be a beneficial supplement in managing intestinal inflammation and oxidative stress related to chemotherapy-induced mucositis.
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The interest towards nutraceuticals able to counteract drug side effects is continuously growing in current chemotherapeutic protocols. In the present study, we demonstrated that smoothies containing mixtures of and L. cv.

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Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are characterized by an inflammatory and oxidative stress condition in the intestinal tissue. In this study, we evaluated the effect of plumericin, one of the main bioactive components of Himatanthus sucuuba (Woodson) bark, on intestinal inflammation and oxidative stress, both in vitro and in vivo. The effect of plumericin (0.

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Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a debilitating pathology with various causal factors, culminating in end stage renal disease (ESRD) requiring dialysis or kidney transplantation. The progression of CKD is closely associated with systemic inflammation and oxidative stress, which are responsible for the manifestation of numerous complications such as malnutrition, atherosclerosis, coronary artery calcification, heart failure, anemia and mineral and bone disorders, as well as enhanced cardiovascular mortality. In addition to conventional therapy with anti-inflammatory and antioxidative agents, growing evidence has indicated that certain minerals, vitamins and plant-derived metabolites exhibit beneficial effects in these disturbances.

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Inflammation and oxidative stress are always more recognized as responsible for chronic disease at the intestinal level. Currently, a growing interest is addressed to the discovery of diet-derived products which have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This work aims to characterize the pharmacological potential of dehydrated potatoes.

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Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by an oxidative stress status, driving some CKD-associated complications, even at the gastrointestinal level. Indoxyl Sulfate (IS) is a protein-bound uremic toxin, poorly eliminated by dialysis. This toxin is able to affect the intestinal system, but its molecular mechanism/s in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) remain poorly understood.

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