Clinical trials have shown that low glycemic index (GI) nutrition reduces mean blood glucose concentrations and insulin secretions. The aim of the present study was to determine the GI values of various monofloral (citrus, milk-vetch, chestnut, thyme, lime, pine) honeys of Turkey, and the effect of their consumption on glucose metabolism. Processing data from 20 healthy volunteers, GI values were determined from the glycemia values by using the incremental area method. Serum insulin and C-peptide levels were also measured before and 120 min after the test. The GI values of citrus, thyme, lime, chestnut, pine, and milk-vetch honeys were found to be 44.9, 52.6, 55.3, 55.5, 58.8, and 69, respectively. Serum insulin and C-peptide values after honey consumption were relatively lower than those after reference food (glucose) consumption. By the end of the 120 min, serum insulin levels were significantly higher, while a significant decrease was observed after the consumption of chestnut honey (P < 0.05). Citrus and thyme honeys were determined to have low GI, while serum insulin levels were significantly lower after the consumption of chestnut honey. Long-term research is needed to compare the effects of honey consumption on healthy and diabetic individuals.

Background: Viral infections are among the most common problems in health-care practice. Natural products offer great promise as potentially effective antiviral drugs. Propolis is a honeybee product with biological properties and therapeutic applications. We aimed to investigate the antiviral activity of different extracts of Standardized Propolis Preparations (M.E.D.®) with glycol, ethanol, glycerol and soya oil, against herpes simplex type-1 (HSV-1) and type 2 (HSV-2) viruses. Methods: Chemical composition and antiviral activity of each extract were determined. The selective index (SI=CC ₅₀ /EC ₅₀ ) was determined as a parameter to indicate the in vitro antiviral activity of the extracts compared with acyclovir as the control. Results: SI values of glycol, ethanol, glycerol, soya oil extracts and acyclovir were determined as 6.8, 4.1, 2.2, 3.3 and 6.3 against HSV-1, and as 6.4, 7.7, 1.9, 4.2 and 2.9 against HSV-2, respectively. Glycolic propolis extract was found to possess a greater antiviral activity than acyclovir for both HSV-1 and 2, while glycolic, ethanolic and soya oil preparations were found to have more significant activity than acyclovir for HSV-2. Conclusions: It was determined that standardized propolis preparations have antiviral bioactivity against HSV.

Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is an aggressive malignant neoplasm of the secretory glands. Conventional chemotherapy has poor effectiveness against metastatic ACC. Thus, a novel effective therapy is needed against metastatic ACC. A majority of ACCs (up to 94%) express c-kit. Imatinib is monoclonal antibody with specific activity against c-kit but has not been found to be effective in treating patients with ACC in which c-kit is overexpressed and activated. The NF-κB and mTOR pathways have been shown that ubiquitously and concurrently activated, indicating that the inhibition of these pathways may represent a novel treatment approach for patients with ACC. Curcumin has been shown to inhibit NF-κB and NF-κB-related pathways. 43-year-old patient was diagnosed ACC from submandibular salivary gland. After complete resection of tumor adjuvant radiotherapy was initiated. Seven years later multiple lung metastases were detected and ACC was confirmed by re-biopsy. First-line chemotherapy failed. NF-κB and c-kit were overexpressed in the metastatic specimens. Therefore, we treated the patient with metastatic chemoresistant ACC with imatinib 400mg/day and intravenous curcumin 225mg/m(2) twice a week plus oral bioavailable curcumin Arantal(®) 2×84mg/day. At 24 months, we observed near complete anatomic and complete metabolic response. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a patient with a c-kit-positive ACC that is successfully treated with the combination of imatinib and curcumin in an integrative approach.

İlknur Topal, Necdet Özçelik, and Ali Timuçin Atayoğlu. Korean J Pain 2022;35:468-74. https://doi.org/10.3344/kjp.2022.35.4.468