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There are many plants with interesting pharmaceutical activities but Aloe vera is probably the most applied medicinal plant worldwide. Since biblical …

There are many plants with interesting pharmaceutical activities but Aloe vera is probably the most applied medicinal plant worldwide. Since biblical …

A wound dressing is very crucial component in wound healing process. Bioactive dressings play important role in wound sterilization and promote tissue healing and growth. The present work investigated the preparation of AgNPs in solid-state using acacia gum as both reductant and stabilizing agent. Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) was employed as activating agent and pH mediator. Acacia is a naturally occurring mixture of polysaccharides and glycoproteins. The obtained particles were in the range of 50 nm. The work was extended to evaluate the antimicrobial of AgNPs treated gauze cotton fabrics against gram positive (S. aureus), gram negative (P. aeruginosa) bacteria, C. albicans (yeast); and A. Niger (fungus). The inhibition zone of the as prepared silver nanoparticles was found to be 24 mm against both types of bacteria, 23 mm against C. albicans (yeast), and inactive against A. Niger (fungus). On the other hand, the treated gauze showed bactericidal behavior and a clear zone was found underneath the samples on the agar plate. The reduction percent in number of bacterial colonies of treated gauze fabrics in comparison to control Pseudomonas aeruginosa culture showed a reduction up to 100%. The aforementioned results promote the acquirement of bioactive antibacterial wound dressing.

What is Aloe Vera? Aloe Vera is a cactus-like plant which grows in the tropics. The stems are short, growing to a maximum height of 3 1/2 feet. The leaves are thick, green and fleshy, containing a gel-like substance, which is used for several medicinal purposes. It actually stores water in the leaves. The leaves are Read More

Fucoidan, a fucose-containing sulfated polysaccharide with diverse biological functions, is mainly recovered from brown algae. In this study, we utilized a compressional-puffing process (CPP) to pretreat Sargassum crassifolium (SC) and extracted fucoidans from SC by warm water. Three fucoidan extracts (SC1: puffing at 0 kg/cm2; SC2: puffing at 1.7 kg/cm2; and SC3: puffing at 6.3 kg/cm2) were obtained, and their composition, and antioxidant and neuroprotective activities were examined. The results suggest that CPP decreased the bulk density of algal samples, expanded the algal cellular structures, and eliminated the unpleasant algal odor. The extraction yields of fucoidans were increased and impurities of fucoidans were decreased by increasing the pressures used in CPP. The SC1–SC3 extracts displayed various characteristics of fucoidan as illustrated by the analyses of composition, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and molecular weight. All three extracts SC1–SC3 showed antioxidant activity dose-dependently. Although both SC1 and SC2 possessed high and similar neuronal protective properties, SC2 showed a higher extraction yield, higher efficacy in the reversion of H2O2-induced cytotoxicity in rat pheochromocytoma PC-12 cells, and lower impurities compared with SC1, and thus SC2 is suggested as a good candidate for a therapeutic agent in the preventive treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Sulfated polysaccharides and their lower molecular weight oligosaccharide derivatives from marine macroalgae have been shown to possess a variety of biological activities. The present paper will review the recent progress in research on the structural ...

Background: Uterine sarcomas and carcinosarcoma are associated with unfavorable prognosis. The regimens that are used in chemotherapy are associated with high incidence of side effects and usually do not significantly increase patients’ survival rates. In this study we investigated the activity and interactions between gemcitabine and fucoidan, the natural compound known for its anti-tumor properties, in human sarcomas and carcinosarcoma cell models. Methods: SK-UT-1, SK-UT1-B (carcinosarcoma), MES-SA (leiomyosarcoma), and ESS-1 (endometrial stromal sarcoma) cell lines were used for the experiments. Cells were incubated in the presence of gemcitabine, fucoidan, and mixtures, after the incubation the MTT tests were performed. In order to assess the interactions between tested compounds isobolographic analysis was performed. Additional assessments of apoptosis and cell cycle were done. Results: Additive effect of combined treatment with gemcitabine and fucoidan was observed in ESS-1 and SK-UT-1 cell line. Although the supra-additive (synergistic) effect noticed in SK-UT-1B cell line. It was not possible to determine the interactions of fucoidan and gemcitabine in MES-SA cell line due to insufficient response to treatment. Addition of fucoidan to gemcitabine enhances its proapoptotic activity, what was observed especially in ESS-1 and SK-UT-1B cell lines. The arrest of cell cycle induced by mixture of gemcitabine and fucoidan, superior comparing gemcitabine alone was observed in SK-UT-1B. Conclusions: Obtained data showed that a combination of fucoidan and gemcitabine in uterine endometrial stromal sarcoma and carcinosarcoma cell lines has additive or even synergistic effect in decreasing cell viability. Furthermore, this drug combination induces apoptosis and arrest of cell cycle. The resistance of uterine leiomyosarcoma cell line, justifies searching for other drugs combinations to improve therapy efficacy.

A plethora of publications have reported several cytotoxic effects associated with chronic consumption of thermoxidized palm oil. This research aims to investigate the effects of garlic and Aloe vera on liver function and hepatic cytoarchitecture in rats fed thermoxidized palm oil diet.,Thirty-five male albino Wistar rats weighing 150-180 g were used for this study. They were randomly assigned into five groups (n = 7): control, thermoxidized palm oil diet fed (TPO), TPO plus garlic juice (TPO + G), TPO plus Aloe gel (TPO + A) and TPO plus garlic/Aloe gel (TPO + G + A). The TPO diet was prepared by mixing 15 g of cooled thermoxidized palm oil with 85 g of rat feed. The juice and gel were orally administered at doses of 2.00 ml/kg and 19.12 ml/kg, respectively. After 3 months of feeding and administration, the animals were sacrificed using standard methods and blood collected via cardiac puncture for analysis.,Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alkaline phosphatase were significantly increased (p < 0.001) in the TPO group compared to the control. This increase was reduced (p < 0.001) in all the treated groups compared to TPO, with the greatest decrease (p < 0.001) seen in TPO + A. Total bilirubin was increased (p < 0.001) in the TPO group compared to the control, whereas there was a significant decrease (p < 0.001) in all the treated groups. Serum proteins and plasma fibrinogen were lowered (p < 0.001) in the TPO group compared to the control but increased progressively in all the treated groups. TPO induced prominent histopathological derangements of the liver tissues. However, there were marked improvements following treatment with garlic and Aloe vera.,The results obtained in this study have revealed that chronic consumption of thermoxidized palm oil is hazardous to health by inducing hepatotoxicity, as seen in increased ALT, AST and total and unconjugated bilirubin and decreased total protein. However, these debilitating effects were seen to be greatly ameliorated following garlic juice and Aloe vera gel administration. If these results are to be extrapolated to humans, then the chronic consumption of thermoxidized palm oil diet should be seriously discouraged.

(2020). Aloe vera and Honey Solution and Their Ethanolic Extraction Solution Could Act on Metastasis-Regulating Processes in Walker 256 Tumor Tissues In Vivo?. Nutrition and Cancer. Ahead of Print.

Aloe vera ethanol extract (AVE) reportedly has significant anti-influenza virus activity, but its underlying mechanisms of action and constituents have not yet been completely elucidated. Previousl...

The best prebiotics and probiotics come from these foods. Nurture your microbiome and good gut bacteria.

Aloe vera (Aloe barbadensis) is a perennial, drought-resisting, succulent plant belonging to Liliaceae family.

Due to antitumor and antioxidant activities, there has been increasing interest in fucoidans, sulfated polysaccharides, from brown algae. Currently, t…

Gum Arabic is a natural gummy exudate gained from the trees of Acacia species (Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal), Family: Fabaceae. Gum Arabic considers as a dietary fiber with a high percentage of carbohydrates and low protein content. Sugars arabinose and ribose were originally discovered and isolated from gum Arabic and it is representing the original source of these sugars. A gum emanation from trees occurs under stress conditions such as heat, poor soil fertility, drought, and injury. Mainly gum is produced in belt region of Africa, mainly Sudan, Chad, and Nigeria. In the food industry, it is used in confectionery; in the pharmaceutical industry, it is used as emulsifier, film coating and others. Traditionally the gum used for chronic renal failure, digestive discomfort, and others. Although gum Arabic considered as an inert substance, recent information demonstrated multiple pharmacological and medical effects, such as weight reduction, antihypertensive, antihyperlipidemic, anticoagulant, antibacterial, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, nephroprotective and other effects.

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a highly prevalent health problem worldwide and is associated with different risk factors, including hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and obesity. This condition ...

Aloe vera plant extracts are ubiquitous in foods, cosmetics, and medicine. Like all plants, these extracts contain an array of potential bioactives or glycans, ...

Aloe vera attenuated IMN-induced gastropathy in rats by the reduction of oxidative stress, inflammation, and improvement of gastric histopathology.

A previous study revealed that fucoidan inhibited mast cell degranulation through the upregulation of galectin-9 in blood. The purpose of this study is to elucidate its mechanism using ovalbumin (OVA) induced anaphylaxis model mice (BALB/c, Female, 5-week-old) and mast cell line (RBL-2H3 cells). Oral administration of fucoidan after sensitization with OVA/Al(OH)3 inhibited reduction of rectal temperature induced by activation of mast cells. Fucoidan increased galectin-9 mRNA expression only in colonic epithelial cells. These results suggested that fucoidan could suppress the allergic symptoms in sensitized mice by inducing galectin-9 production from colonic epithelial cells. In addition, to check the influence of galectin 9 on the degranulation of mast cells, RBL-2H3 cell lines were treated directly with recombinant galectin-9. As expected, galectin-9 inhibited degranulation of RBL-2H3 cells pre-bound with IgE. Moreover, the residual amounts of IgE on RBL-2H3 cells were decreased by an addition of galectin-9. It was demonstrated that galectin-9 could remove IgE even if IgE was already bound to mast cells and suppress the mast cells degranulation induced by antigen. This study shows that fucoidan might become an effective therapeutic agent for patients already developed type I allergic diseases.

Fucoidan refers to a group of sulphated polysaccharides obtained from brown seaweed, with numerous biological activities. In this study, fucoidan was …

Background: Applying a cooling treatment from outside the body is one way to lower fever in children. Midwives commonly perform a warm water compress in their care, but it is considered less effective. Thus, compress with Aloe Vera Barbadensis Miller is proposed in this study as an alternative treatment. Objective: To examine the effect of Aloe Vera Barbadensis Miller compress in reducing body temperature in children with fever. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with pretest and posttest with control group design. Forty children were recruited, with twenty of them assigned in each group. Purposive sampling was performed to select the sample. A digital rectal thermometer was used to measure the temperature. Independent t- test and paired test were used for data analysis. Results: Findings showed that the Aloe Vera compress group showed a higher decrease of body temperature compared to the warm water compress group. The difference of body temperature after 20 minutes in the experiment group was 1.435 while in the control group was only 1.085. There were statistically significant differences in body temperature between the experiment and control group (p=0.013). Conclusion: Aloe Vera Barbadensis Miller compress is an effective alternative therapy in reducing body temperature in children with fever.  It is recommended for midwives to apply this intervention to reduce body temperature significantly.

Background: Intensive care units (ICUs) admissions due to sepsis represent 2 to 11%. Although there are well stablished&nbsp; therapeutic available, it still is the major cause of death in most ICUs and the leading cause of acute kidney injury. The objective of this work was to evaluate the role of Aloe vera extract on survival rates and kidney histopathology of mice submitted to sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture. Methods and Findings: Twenty six mice were distributed into four groups: Sham - surgery simulation (N=5); Control - Cecal ligation and puncture was performed (N=7); Aloe - Surgery simulation and treatment with Aloe vera extract (N=7); and Sepsis + Aloe - Cecal ligation and puncture was performed followed by treatment with Aloe vera extract (N=7). The animals were observed until death. Kidneys were analysed by histopathology. Kruskall-Wallis test was used to compare the histopathological results. Survival analysis was assessed by Kaplan-Meier statistics and compared using log rank test. A significance level of 5% was adopted. The survival time ranged from 19 hours for the Control group up to 24 hours for the animals of Sepsis + Aloe group, corresponding to a survival time of 1.26 times greater (p0.05). Conclusions: Aloe vera extracts delays mortality but does not attenuate kidney injury in sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture in mice.

A poloxamer-pluronic-mastic gum-gum acacia wound dressing