It has been estimated that every year, millions of people are affected by neurodegenerative disorders, which complicate their lives and their caregivers’ lives. To date, there has not been an approved pharmacological approach to provide the complete treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. The only available drugs may only relieve the symptoms or slow down the progression of the disease. The absence of any treatment is quite rational given that neurodegeneration occurs by the progressive loss of the function or structure of the nerve cells of the brain or the peripheral nervous system, which eventually leads to their death either by apoptosis or necrotic cell death. According to a recent study, even though adult brain cells are injured, they can revert to an embryonic state, which may help to restore their function. These interesting findings might open a new path for the development of more efficient therapeutic strategies to combat devastating neurodegenerative disorders. Gene and protein therapies have emerged as a rapidly growing field for various disorders, especially neurodegenerative diseases. Despite these promising therapies, the complete treatment of neurodegenerative disorders has not yet been achieved. Therefore, the aim of this review is to address the most up-to-date data for neurodegenerative diseases, but most importantly, to summarize the available delivery systems incorporating proteins, peptides, and genes that can potentially target such diseases and pass into the blood–brain barrier. The authors highlight the advancements, at present, on delivery based on the carrier, i.e., lipid, polymeric, and inorganic, as well as the recent studies on radiopharmaceutical theranostics.
20 January 2023 in Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research
Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is frequently linked with problems of several organ systems, including retinopathy, neuropathy, and nephropathy. Additionally, patients have changes in sexual functioning, such as decreased libido and fertility. Vincamine, a monoterpenoid indole alkaloid, has hypoglycemic and antioxidant effects. Objectives: This research assessed the impact of vincamine on testicular dysfunction in alloxan-induced male rats by measuring fasting blood glucose, oxidative stress, seminal analysis, and histological examination of the testis. Methods: Wister-albino male rats were randomized into the following groups at random: Untreated-healthy, untreated-DM, vincamine-treated (20 mg/kg) DM, vincamine-treated (40 mg/kg) DM, and clomiphene-treated DM (5 mg/kg). On day 14, rats were sacrificed, and semen/blood samples were collected. Sperm count, motility, and morphological abnormalities were noted by microscopic examination. The testis was examined histopathologically and assessed using Johnsen’s score. Results: Compared with the untreated diabetic group, a dosage of 40 mg/kg vincamine generate a significant reduction in fasting blood sugar (FBG). Compared with the untreated diabetic group, the vincamine-treated rats produced greater plasma testosterone levels and Johnsen scores. In the vincamine 20 mg/kg group, sperm concentration was higher than in the vincamine 40 mg/kg group. Conclusions: It is possible that vincamine has a potential preventive effect against diabetes-related reproductive problems attributable to its antioxidant activity and capacity to restore testicular steroidogenesis.
30 July 2022 in Boletin Latinoamericano Y Del Caribe de Plantas Medicinales Y Aromaticas
Diabetes is a metabolic disorder characterized by chronic hyperglycemia. Early treatment is very important in terms of preventing diabetes-related late complications with high treatment costs and increasing the patient’s quality of life. In addition to investigating the pathophysiology of the disease studied, animal experiments pave the way for new approaches in treatments. Although there are many methods that can be used when creating a diabetes model, induction of diabetes with alloxan and streptozotocin are the most preferred ones. The aim of this article is to review the available information on diabetes-related methods, common problems and solutions, with known mechanisms of action, dose and time-determined methods.
17 September 2016 in CBU International Conference Proceedings
In this study, an artificial neural network was developed for estimating Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis sub-groups. Medical analysis and measurements from 75 patients were used to determine the parameters most effective on disease sub-groups. The study used statistical analyses and an artificial neural network that was trained by the determined parameters. The neural network had four inputs: thyroid stimulating hormone, free thyroxine (fT4), right lobe size (RLS), and RLS2 – fT44, and two outputs for three groups: euthyroid, subclinical, and clinical. After training, the network was tested with data collected from 30 patients. Results show that, overall, the neural network estimated the sub-groups with 90% accuracy. Hence, the study showed that determination of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis sub-groups can be made via designed artificial neural network.
1 January 2017 in Haydarpasa Numune Training and Research Hospital Medical Journal