- Home
- A-Z Publications
- Reviews on Recent Clinical Trials
- Previous Issues
- Volume 19, Issue 3, 2024
Reviews on Recent Clinical Trials - Volume 19, Issue 3, 2024
Volume 19, Issue 3, 2024
-
-
The Power of the Underutilized and Neglected Medicinal Plants and Herbs of the Middle East
Authors: Mohamad H. Shahrajabian and Wenli SunThe Middle east and North Africa harbour many native species with pharmaceutical and nutraceutical potential. Since the beginning of history, food and herbal medicinal plants have been an essential part of human lives and the traditional Middle Eastern healthcare system. The notable medicinal plants that have been mentioned in the Bible, which are common in West Asia and some regions of North Africa, are Aloe vera, anise, balm, cassia, cinnamon, cumin, flax, and fig. Chemical components of Aloe vera are aloin, sinapinic acid, catechin, chromone, myricetin, quercitrin and syringic acid. Anethole, safrole, and estragole are the main chemical components of anise. The chemical components of cassia are coumarin, emodin, cinnamyl alcohol, and cinnamaldehyde. The major chemical ingredients of cumin are terpinene, cuminaldehyde, sabinene, thujene, and thymoquinone. The goal of this article is to review the considerable health benefits and pharmaceutical benefits of medicinal herbs and plants that have been neglected and underutilized in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as to promote their utilization. On the basis of the results, the experimented neglected medicinal plant can offer various advantages when used together with conventional medicinal treatments for various health conditions, such as palliative care in managing the side effects of conventional treatments, access to a wider range of treatments, increased patient satisfaction, and improved emotional and mental well-being. Moreover, consuming medicinal plants may help to manage and prevent diabetes, cancer, and heart disease with notable anti-tumor, and anti-inflammatory properties.
-
-
-
Characterization of Intrinsically Disordered Proteins in Healthy and Diseased States by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
Authors: Mohamad H. Shahrajabian and Wenli SunIntroduction: Intrinsically Disordered Proteins (IDPs) are active in different cellular procedures like ordered assembly of chromatin and ribosomes, interaction with membrane, protein, and ligand binding, molecular recognition, binding, and transportation via nuclear pores, microfilaments and microtubules process and disassembly, protein functions, RNA chaperone, and nucleic acid binding, modulation of the central dogma, cell cycle, and other cellular activities, post-translational qualification and substitute splicing, and flexible entropic linker and management of signaling pathways. Methods: The intrinsic disorder is a precise structural characteristic that permits IDPs/IDPRs to be involved in both one-to-many and many-to-one signaling. IDPs/IDPRs also exert some dynamical and structural ordering, being much less constrained in their activities than folded proteins. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a major technique for the characterization of IDPs, and it can be used for dynamic and structural studies of IDPs. Results and Conclusion: This review was carried out to discuss intrinsically disordered proteins and their different goals, as well as the importance and effectiveness of NMR in characterizing intrinsically disordered proteins in healthy and diseased states.
-
-
-
Primary Paraganglioma of the Prostate: A Systematic Review of the Literature for A Rare Entity
Background: Paragangliomas of the urinary tract are exceptionally uncommon, and sporadic case reports of primary paraganglioma of the prostate have been reported in the literature. Methods: Systematic research in PubMed/Medline and Scopus databases concerning primary prostatic paraganglioma was performed by two independent investigators. Results: This analysis included 25 adult males, with a mean age of 49.8 ± 22.4 years. 32% of included patients had a history of hypertension. Problems during urination (52%), blood loss (44%), either as hematuria or hemospermia, and catecholamine-related symptoms (36%) comprised the most frequently reported clinical manifestations. Digital rectal examination found a palpable nodule in 36% of patients, while prostatic specific antigen (PSA) was normal in all tested patients. Abdominal ultrasound (44%), computed tomography (44%) and magnetic resonance imaging (28%) helped to identify the primary lesion. 24-hour urine epinephrine, norepinephrine and vanillylmandelic acid (VMA) levels were elevated in 90%, 80% and 90% of included patients. Open surgical excision of the mass was performed in 40%, transurethral resection in 8%, open radical prostatectomy in 24%, transurethral resection of the prostate in 16% and robot-assisted radical prostatectomy in 4% of included patients. Conclusion: Due to atypical clinical manifestation and scarcity of prostatic paraganglioma, urologists should be aware of this extremely rare entity.
-
-
-
Procalcitonin and qSOFA as a Marker of Mortality in Sepsis.
Authors: Ashaq H. Parrey, Manzoor Koka, Basharat Kassana and Mohd IsmailBackground: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. The qSOFA and procalcitonin are currently used for both diagnostic as well as prognostic purposes. Objective: To explore the combined use of day one procalcitonin level and qSOFA scores for prognostication of sepsis-related mortality. Design: This was a prospective observational study. Participants: All patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria for sepsis with an age of more than 16 years were enrolled in the study. Results: In this study of 211 patients, 15 patients died (7.1%) during hospital stay. Among the 15 patients who died, the highest mortality of 29.4% was seen in patients with qSOFA of “3”, qSOFA of “2” had a mortality of 12.8%, qSOFA of “1” had a mortality of 1% and qSOFA of “0” had zero mortality. In this study, procalcitonin had a statistically significant positive correlation/association with both qSOFA and mortality. Conclusion: The qSOFA and procalcitonin at presentation to the emergency department in septic patients have a significant correlation with mortality in patients hospitalized with sepsis. Obtaining these two parameters at presentation will help in managing aggressively these patients who at presentation have higher qSOFA and procalcitonin levels.
-
-
-
Gender Differences in Patients with Prolactinoma: Single-center Ukrainian Experience
Introduction: Prolactinomas are the most common type of pituitary gland tumors that secrete overly prolactin. They account for approximately 60% of all hormone-secreting hypophysis tumors. Aim: This study aims to analyze gender differences in patients with prolactinomas who were operated on transsphenoidal surgery and conduct a single-center retrospective analysis of patient data. Material and Methods: This study evaluated the medical records of 109 patients (61 females and 48 males) from 2009 to 2019 at Feofaniya Clinical Hospital of the State Administration of Affairs in Kyiv, Ukraine. The primary criterion for including patients was a Serum Prolactin (PRL) level of over 100 ng/ml and the presence of a pituitary adenoma (PA) as observed on MRI. Additionally, the histological examination needed to confirm the presence of Prolactin-Secreting Pituitary Adenomas (PSPAs) without plurihormonal activity through both microscopy and immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. Results: Significant differences in preoperative PRL levels were not observed. However, males had significantly larger tumor sizes and prevalence of macroadenomas. In male patients, the preoperative PLR levels showed a weak negative correlation with age (r=-0.304, p < 0.036) and a positive correlation with tumor size (r=0.555, p < 0.001) and cavernous sinus invasion (r=0.339, p < 0.018). In females, preoperative PRL was significantly associated only with tumor size and Knosp grade. Conclusion : Prolactin-Secreting Pituitary Adenomas (PSPAs) are more common in women than men and are characterized by larger and more invasive tumors with high PRL levels at diagnosis. The PRL level and tumor size before surgery can predict early biochemical remission in both males and females with an accuracy of 58.3% and 68.8%, respectively.
-
-
-
Effect of Iron Deficiency Anemia on Blood Glucose and Insulin Resistance in Women with Type II Diabetes: A Single-group, Clinical Interventional Study
Aims: Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is one of the disorders recently associated with an increase in insulin resistance (IR) and, consequently, diabetes mellitus (DM) affection by causing oxidative stress. In this study, we look at how IDA may contribute to developing type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM), controlling diabetes, and reducing IR in women with T2DM. Methods: In this single group, clinical interventional study, we enrolled 40 women with T2DM and IDA. Before and after intervention with ferrous sulfate tablets, their blood glucose (BG) levels and IR levels were evaluated. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Qom University of Medical Sciences (ethics code: IR.MUQ.REC.1397.031) and registered at the Iranian Center for Clinical Trials (No. IRCT20170215032587N3). A significant level was considered p <0.05. Result: The mean age of patients was 48.18 ± 4.6 years, with 5.3-5.8 years duration of T2DM. After the intervention, the mean fasting blood glucose (FBG) level reached 198.53 ± 48.11 to 170.93 ± 37.41, which was significant (p <0.0001). Also, hemoglobin A1C level reached from 8.49 ± 0.9 to 7.96 ± 0.58, which was significant (p <0.0001). Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) demonstrating a significant reduction of IR levels after intervention with ferrous sulfate tablets (p <0.018). Conclusions: IDA treatment in patients with T2DM can significantly reduce the BG and IR levels. To better control BG, checking iron status and its correction may provide better clinical outcomes in these patients.
-
-
-
Evaluation of Urolithin A Efficacy in Heart Failure Patients with Reduced Ejection Fraction: A Randomized, Double-blind, Crossover, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial
Background: Mitochondrial dysfunction and impaired mitophagy are integral to myocyte loss and the progression of heart failure. Urolithin A (UA), a microbiota-produced metabolite of ellagitannins and ellagic acid, is a known stimulator of mitophagy and mitochondrial biogenesis that has shown cardioprotective effects in experimental models. Methods: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled 2×2 crossover trial was conducted on 10 patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). The trial design involved two 4- week intervention periods of UA (500 mg BID) and placebo, separated by a 2-week washout phase. The patients underwent two-dimensional echocardiogram examination as well as blood sampling at the beginning and end of each period. Results: All patients completed the study. The results failed to reveal any significant effect of UA supplementation on echocardiographic measures (LVEF, LVEDD, LVESV, and TAPSE). Plasma concentrations of pro-BNP, glucose, and CRP (p >0.05) were also not altered. Serum HDL-C levels were increased with UA compared with placebo (+6.46 ± 2.33 mg/dL, p =0.026), whereas other lipid indices (LDL-C, triglycerides, total cholesterol, and VLDL-C) remained Conclusion: The results of the present study do not support any positive effect of UA supplementation in improving echocardiographic and biochemical indices of HFrEF. Further studies with higher doses of UA and longer supplementation duration are encouraged to be conducted.
-
Volumes & issues
-
Volume 19 (2024)
-
Volume 18 (2023)
-
Volume 17 (2022)
-
Volume 16 (2021)
-
Volume 15 (2020)
-
Volume 14 (2019)
-
Volume 13 (2018)
-
Volume 12 (2017)
-
Volume 11 (2016)
-
Volume 10 (2015)
-
Volume 9 (2014)
-
Volume 8 (2013)
-
Volume 7 (2012)
-
Volume 6 (2011)
-
Volume 5 (2010)
-
Volume 4 (2009)
-
Volume 3 (2008)
-
Volume 2 (2007)
-
Volume 1 (2006)
Most Read This Month
Most Cited Most Cited RSS feed
-
-
-
COVID-19 Vaccinations: Summary Guidance for Cancer Patients in 28 Languages: Breaking Barriers to Cancer Patient Information
Authors: Davide Mauri, Konstantinos Kamposioras, Lampriani Tsali, Mario Dambrosio, Berardino De Bari, Nadia Hindi, Carl Salembier, Joanna Nixon, Tzachanis Dimitrios, Flippo Alongi, Hassan Hameed, Antonios Valachis, Konstantinos Papadimitriou, Stefanie Corradini, Lazar Popovic, Jindrich Kopecky, Andres Rodriguez, Katarina Antunac, Junlin Yi, Jozsef Lovey, Primoz Strojan, Haytham Saraireh, Ranveig Røtterud, Marzanna Chojnacka, Santa C. Olalla, Natalia Chilingirova, Ramon Andrade De Mello, Giovanna Araujo Amaral, Farsid Arbabi, Radu Vidra, Erjeta Rapushi, Dan Takeuchi, Chirstos Christopoulos, Irina Ivanova, Igor Djan, Branka Petricevic, Francesco Cellini, Iglika Mihaylova, Natalija Dedic Plavetic, Cvetka Grašič Kuhar, Elena Takeuchi, Pantelis Kountourakis, Panagiotis Ntellas, Ioanna Gazouli, Stefania Gkoura, Salih Yuce, Özlem ER, Chait Yasmina, Gireesh Kumaran, Orges Spahiu, Aasim Yusuf, Paulina Gono, Kathi Apostolidis and Maria Tolia
-
-
-
-
Deep Neck Infections: Decisional Algorithm for Patients with Multiple Spaces Involvement
Authors: Filippo Ricciardiello, Salvatore Mazzone, Pasquale Viola, Gianluca Guggino, Giuseppe Longo, Alberto Napolitano, Giuseppe Russo, Giulio Sequino, Flavia Oliva, Pasquale Salomone, Marco Perrella, Giovanni M. Romano, Pietro Cinaglia, Teresa Abate, Maurizio Gargiulo, Davide Pisani and Giuseppe Chiarella
-
- More Less