Experimental evaluation of anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive and antipyretic activities of clove oil in mice.

Background: Clove oil of Eugenia caryophyllata (Myrtaceae) is a light yellowish fluid obtained from dried flower buds. Clove oil is used traditionally to relieve toothache.

Aim: The aim of the present work was to study the anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive and antipyretic potential of clove oil in mice.

Sleep complaints and daytime sleepiness among pharmaceutical students in Tripoli.

Background: The effect of sleep difficulties has achieved a great deal of attention recently, with university students considered as a homogenized population, particularly affected by sleep habits.

Aim: The objective of this study was to investigate whether Libyan college students experience sleep disturbance during their academic programmes.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the college of Pharmacy, Tripoli University, during February 2010.

Antinociceptive activity of Mentha piperita leaf aqueous extract in mice.

Background: Mentha piperita L. (Labiatae) is an herbaceous plant, used in folk medicine for the treatment of several medical disorders.

Methods And Results: In the present study, the aqueous extract of Mentha piperita leaf, at the i.

In vivo effects of Faizol Ubat Batuk, a herbal product on aminopyrine metabolism in rat hepatocytes.

Traditional medicines, in particular herbal products, have been used abundantly over the years in curing several diseases. Pharmacological interactions of herbal products with modern drugs, however, remain to some extent unknown. Herein, we examined whether co-administration of Faizol Ubat Batuk (FUB), a mixture of aqueous extract of different plants, modifies the metabolism of aminopyrine, a conventional analgesic drug, in rat liver.

Suppression of Th2-driven airway inflammation by allergen immunotherapy is independent of B cell and Ig responses in mice.

Allergen-specific immunotherapy (IT) uniquely renders long-term relief from allergic symptoms and is associated with elevated serum levels of allergen-specific IgG and IgA. The allergen-specific IgG response induced by IT treatment was shown to be critical for suppression of the immediate phase of the allergic response in mice, and this suppression was partially dependent on signaling through FcγRIIB. To investigate the relevance of the allergen-specific IgG responses for suppression of the Th2-driven late-phase allergic response, we performed IT in a mouse model of allergic asthma in the absence of FcγRIIB or FcγRI/FcγRIII signaling.

Allergen-specific subcutaneous immunotherapy in allergic asthma: immunologic mechanisms and improvement.

Allergic asthma is a disease characterized by persistent allergen-driven airway inflammation, remodeling, and airway hyperresponsiveness. CD4(+) T-cells, especially T-helper type 2 cells, play a critical role in orchestrating the disease process through the release of the cytokines IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13. Allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT) is currently the only treatment with a long-term effect via modifying the natural course of allergy by interfering with the underlying immunological mechanisms.

1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 potentiates the beneficial effects of allergen immunotherapy in a mouse model of allergic asthma: role for IL-10 and TGF-beta.

1alpha,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1,25(OH)(2)D(3)), a potent inhibitor of NF-kappaB expression, can prevent the maturation of dendritic cells in vitro leading to tolerogenic dendritic cells with increased potential to induce regulatory T cells. Herein, we investigated whether the combination of allergen immunotherapy with 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) potentiates the suppressive effects of immunotherapy and whether the immunoregulatory cytokines IL-10 and TGF-beta are involved in the effector phase. OVA-sensitized and challenged BALB/c mice displayed airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) and increased serum OVA-specific IgE levels, bronchoalveolar lavage eosinophilia, and Th2 cytokine levels.

Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase-dependent tryptophan metabolites contribute to tolerance induction during allergen immunotherapy in a mouse model.

Background: The tryptophan-catabolizing enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) has been implicated in immune suppression and tolerance induction.

Objective: We examined (1) whether IDO activity is required during tolerance induction by allergen immunotherapy or for the subsequent suppressive effects on asthma manifestations and (2) whether tryptophan depletion or generation of its downstream metabolites is involved.

Methods: Ovalbumin (OVA)-sensitized and OVA-challenged BALB/c mice that display increased airway responsiveness to methacholine, serum OVA-specific IgE levels, bronchoalveolar eosinophilia, and TH2 cytokine levels were used as a model of allergic asthma.