Boldine enhances bile production in rats via osmotic and farnesoid X receptor dependent mechanisms.

Boldine, the major alkaloid from the Chilean Boldo tree, is used in traditional medicine to support bile production, but evidence to support this function is controversial. We analyzed the choleretic potential of boldine, including its molecular background. The acute- and long-term effects of boldine were evaluated in rats either during intravenous infusion or after 28-day oral treatment.

Cholesterol effects on endoglin and its downstream pathways in ApoE/LDLR double knockout mice.

Background: The aim of the study was to evaluate whether cholesterol-rich diet affects transforming growth factor-β-RIII (endoglin) levels in blood and 2 endoglin-related pathways in the aorta of ApoE/LDLR double knockout mice.

Methods And Results: Mice were fed either chow diet (CHOW) (n=8) or by 1% cholesterol-rich diet (CHOL) (n=8). Biochemical analysis of cholesterol and endoglin levels in blood, lesion size area, immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis in mice aortas were performed.

Daunorubicin does not induce immunohistochemically detectable endothelial dysfunction in rabbit aorta and femoral artery.

Anthracyclines are one of the most effective anticancer drugs ever developed, but their clinical use has been hampered by the risk of severe cardiotoxicity. In this study, we investigated whether rabbits exposed to a different cumulative dose of anthracycline suffer from immunohistochemically detectable vascular toxicity and endothelial dysfunction. Daunorubicin (3 mg/kg, i.