Diabetes mellitus is one of the serious global health problems affecting a significant proportion of both developed and developing countries. Overproduction of free radicals and oxidative stress has been associated with the development of diabetic complications. In the present study, the antioxidant effects of metformin (MET), glibenclamide (GLI), and repaglinide (REP) were evaluated in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. The findings from this study may possibly help in understanding the efficacy of these standard drugs in managing the complications arising from diabetes mellitus (DM). Alloxan (130 mg/kg BW) was administered as a single dose to induce diabetes. Four (4) groups of rats (n=6) were used; group 1 served as diabetic control while groups 2, 3, and 4 were the diabetic test groups that received MET (25 mg/kg), GLI (2.5 mg/kg), and REP (0.5 mg/kg), respectively. The result of the study showed significant (p<0.05) improvement in the altered antioxidant enzymes (SOD, CAT) and GSH concentration in diabetic treated rats compared with the diabetic control group. MET and REP produced significant effect on the MDA concentration while GLI showed insignificant reduction in the MDA concentration compared with the diabetic control. Findings from this study suggest that the administration of MET, GLI, and REP exerts significant antioxidant effects in alloxan-induced diabetic rats, thus contributing to the protective effect against oxidative stress-induced damage during diabetic complications.

Globally, cancer is one of the deadliest diseases, needing a meticulous diagnosis and targeted treatment plan to achieve an initial prognosis, followed by precision and optimization in treatment. Nonselective targeting, difficulty in accurately monitoring treatment end-results, serious drug side-effects, and severity of disease resulting in metastasis are the key flaws of traditional techniques. Nanotechnology and nanoparticles possess special features to completely transform the field of diagnosis and treatment of cancer. A holistic strategy that employs a dual function of diagnosis and therapy while utilizing a nanocarrier is referred to as a nanotheranostic. The nanotheranostic framework was created to surmount a variety of biological and physiological obstacles, effectively delivering the cargo to the intended target location, while simultaneously facilitating therapeutic intervention, surveillance, and validation to demonstrate improved treatment effectiveness. As a result, a nanotheranostic platform can be useful for targeted drug delivery, release, and distribution assessment, in addition to patient classification and survival. Nanotheranostic techniques also lead to reduced drug side-effects compared with conventional therapies. In this review, we outline current studies on nanotheranostics and their advantages over conventional treatment strategies, the applications and challenges/limitations of nanotheranostics, and the mechanisms of targeting in breast and prostate cancers.

Diabetes mellitus is one of the major global health burden affecting both developed and developing countries. This study examined the antidiabetic effects of metformin (MET), glibenclamide (GLI) and repaglinide (REP) on biochemical parameters in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. The study will assess the efficacy of these standard drugs in managing the complications arising from diabetes mellitus. Alloxan (130 mg/kg BW) was administered as a single dose to induce diabetes. Four (4) groups of rats (n=6) were used; group 1 served as diabetic control while groups 2, 3 and 4 were the diabetic test groups that received MET (25 mg/kg), GLI (2.5 mg/kg) and REP (0.5 mg/kg) respectively. The effects of these agents on blood glucose, total cholesterol (TC), triacylglycerol (TAG), low density lipoprotein (LDL-C) and high density lipoprotein (HDL-C) concentrations were determined. Also, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine phosphatase (ALP) activities were assayed. The results showed that the blood glucose concentration of diabetic rats treated with MET, GLI and REP were significantly (p<0.05) reduced compared with the diabetic control. Serum total cholesterol, triacylglycerol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations were significantly (p<0.05) reduced while high density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration was significantly (p<0.05) higher in the treated diabetic rats compared with the diabetic control. Also, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase and alanine phosphatase activities were markedly (p<0.05) reduced compared with the diabetic control group. Findings from this study suggest that the administration of MET, GLI and REP exhibited significant reductions in the blood glucose concentrations; hence, significant improvement in the biochemical parameters altered during diabetic associated manifestations. Key words: Diabetes mellitus, metformin, glibenclamide, repaglinide, biochemical parameters.

Zapoteca portoricensis (Jacq) HM. Hernández popularly called “Elugelu” belongs to the Fabaceae family. It is reportedly used in traditional medicine as anti-diarrhoea, anticonvulsant, antispasmodic and in management of autoimmune disorders. The immunomodulatory activity of methanol root extract and fractions of Zapoteca portoricensis was evaluated using three experimental models: neutrophil adhesion, haemagglutination antibody (HA) titre and delayed hypersensitivity (DTH) of an immune response in mice. Five (5) groups of mice (n=5) were used; group I was the normal control; group II was the standard control (levamisole, 2.5 mg/kg) while groups IIIA–C, IVA–C and VA–C received graded doses (25, 50, 100 mg/kg) of methanol extract (ME), ethyl acetate fraction (EF) and methanol fraction (MF), respectively. Sheep red blood cells (SRBCs; 0.1 ml) were injected subcutaneously to sensitize the animals. The study results showed that the methanol fraction (MF) exhibited the highest percentage (46.12%) in neutrophil adhesion followed by the ethyl acetate fraction (EF) (37.06%) at 100 mg/kg dose, respectively, compared with the normal control. The highest percentage increase in both primary and secondary antibody titre was found to be ME (85.19%, 43.20%), EF (91.53%, 102.67%) and MF (128.31%, 111.89%) at 50 mg/kg dose, respectively compared to the normal control. The EF at the doses of 25 and 50 mg/kg produced the highest percentage inhibition (56.57%, 58.33%) in DTH response, respectively, followed by MF (42.46%) at a dose of 25 mg/kg. Oral administration of Z. portoricensis exhibited immunomodulatory effects on specific components of the immune system in mice.