Objectives
This study was aimed to assess hemostatic disturbances in female patients with established rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in relation to menopausal status and disease activity.
Method
Ninety ...women were included in the study, 42 patients and 48 age-matched healthy controls. There were no differences between the investigated groups regarding the presence of traditional cardiovascular risk factors. Two global hemostatic assays were employed, namely endogenous thrombin potential (ETP) and overall hemostasis potential (OHP). The parameters of the ETP assay (ETP, C-max, t-lag, t-max) and OHP assay (overall coagulation potential (OCP) and overall fibrinolytic potential (OFP)) were assessed. Moreover, the parameters of the fibrin clot (lag time, Max Abs, and slope) were measured by clot turbidity and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Both patients and controls were divided into four subgroups according to menopause status.
Results
The premenopausal controls differed significantly from all other subgroups in terms of diminished levels of ETP (
p
= 0.02), C-max (
p
= 0.01), OCP (
p
= 0.02), OHP (
p
= 0.001), and Max Abs (
p
= 0.008), while OFP (
p
= 0.0001) was increased. This tendency was not seen in the premenopausal RA patients compared with the postmenopausal RA patients. SEM images showed denser clots composed of thinner fibers in samples from RA patients. The disease activity measured by DAS28 correlated with OCP and OHP (
r
= 0.54;
p
= 0.001 and
r
= 0.44;
p
= 0.003, respectively) indicating persistent hypercoagulable condition in the whole group of RA patients.
Conclusions
Our results point towards coagulation activation in premenopausal women with established RA. The patients were well characterized, which enabled assessment in a real-life setting.
Key Points
• Extensive assessment points towards persistent coagulation activation in premenopausal women with established rheumatoid arthritis.
• Impaired thrombin generation and fibrin formation are associated with menopause in healthy women, while rheumatoid arthritis closes the gap within patients regarding menopause.
• Fibrin morphology is unfavorably altered and fibrinolysis is decreased in patients with established rheumatoid arthritis.
• Increased activity of thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) may contribute to impaired fibrinolysis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
This study aimed to estimate the effects of increasing doses of
Allium ursinum
methanol extract on cardiac ischemia/reperfusion injury (I/R) with a special emphasis on the role of oxidative stress. ...Fifty rats were randomly divided into five groups (10 animals per group) depending on the applied treatment as follows: sham, rats who drank only tap water for 28 days and hearts were retrogradely perfused for 80 min without I/R injury, I/R, rats who drank only tap water for 28 days and hearts were exposed to
ex vivo
I/R injury and rats who consumed increasing doses of
A. ursinum
125, 250, and 500 mg/kg for 28 days before I/R injury. Hearts from all rats were isolated and retrogradely perfused according to the Langendorff technique. Parameters of oxidative stress were spectrophotometrically measured in blood, coronary venous effluent, and heart tissue samples. Intake of wild garlic extract for 28 days significantly contributed to the recovery of cardiac function, which was reflected through preserved cardiac contractility, systolic function, and coronary vasodilatory response after ischemia. Also, wild garlic extract showed the potential to modulate the systemic redox balance and stood out as a powerful antioxidant. The highest dose led to the most efficient decrease in cardiac oxidative stress and improve recovery of myocardial function after I/R injury. We might conclude that wild garlic possesses a significant role in cardioprotection and strong antioxidant activity, which implicates the possibility of its use alone in the prevention or as adjuvant antioxidant therapy in cardiovascular diseases (CVD).
This investigation is aimed at examining the effects of pharmacological PostC with potassium cyanide (KCN) on functional recovery, gene expression, cytochrome c expression, and redox status of ...isolated rat hearts. Rats were divided into the control and KCN groups. The hearts of male Wistar albino rats were retrogradely perfused according to the Langendorff technique at a constant perfusion pressure of 70 cmH2O. After stabilisation, control hearts were subjected to global ischemia (5 minutes), followed by reperfusion (5 minutes), while experimental hearts underwent global ischemia (5 minutes) followed by 5 minutes of reperfusion with 10 μmol/L KCN. The following parameters of heart function were measured: maximum and minimum rates of pressure development, systolic and diastolic left ventricular pressure, heart rate, and coronary flow. Levels of superoxide anion radical, hydrogen peroxide, nitrites, and index of lipid peroxidation (measured as thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances) were measured in coronary venous effluent, and activity of catalase was determined in heart tissue. Expression of Bax, Bcl-2, SOD-1, SOD-2, and cytochrome c was studied as well. It was shown that expression of Bax, Bcl-2, and SOD-2 genes did not significantly differ between groups, while expression of SOD-1 gene and cytochrome c was lower in the KCN group. Our results demonstrated that KCN improved the recovery of myocardial contractility and systolic and diastolic function, enhanced catalase activity, and diminished generation of prooxidants. However, all possible mechanisms and potential adverse effects of KCN should be further examined in the future.
The aim of this study was to compare protective effects of ischemic and potential protective effects of pharmacological preconditioning with omeprazole on isolated rat heart subjected to ...ischemia/reperfusion.
The hearts of male Wistar albino rats were excised and perfused on a Langendorff apparatus. In control group (CG) after stabilization period, hearts were subjected to global ischemia (perfusion was totally stopped) for 20 minutes and 30 minutes of reperfusion. Hearts of group II (IPC) were submitted to ischemic preconditioning lasting 5 minutes before 20 minutes of ischemia and 30 minutes of reperfusion. In third group (OPC) hearts first underwent preconditioning lasting 5 minutes with 100 μM omeprazole, and then submitted 20 minutes of ischemia and 30 minutes of reperfusion.
Administration of omeprazole before ischemia induction had protective effect on myocardium function recovery especially regarding to values of systolic left ventricular pressure and dp/dt max. Also our findings are that values of coronary flow did not change between OPC and IPC groups in last point of reperfusion.
Based on our results it seems that ischemic preconditioning could be used as first window of protection after ischemic injury especially because all investigated parameters showed continuous trend of recovery of myocardial function. On the other hand, preconditioning with omeprazole induced sudden trend of recovery with positive myocardium protection, although less effective than results obtained with ischemic preconditioning not withstand, we must consider that omeprazole may be used in many clinical circumstances where direct coronary clamping for ischemic preconditioning is not possible.
. and
L. are perennial herbaceous plants, belonging to the
family. Several classes of bioactive compounds, such as iridoid glycosides, phenolic compounds, anthraquinones and triterpenes, as well as ...small amounts of tannins, saponins, essential oils have been isolated from
species so far. Plants belonging to this genus have a long history of use in a traditional medicine for the treatment of many diseases and conditions. The main application of
is as diuretic, choleretic and as the treatment for gout and epilepsy. On the other hand,
has been used to treat hysteria, epilepsy, as vulnerary. Over the past decades, numerous papers have been published referring to the chemical constituents presented in
and
extracts. Additionally, chemical composition and pharmacological effects of
have been investigated, however data related to the effects of
is limited. In this review, we summarized the current knowledge on the phytochemical and pharmacological properties of
. Finally, we proposed directions for future research in this field, which can improve our understanding of the potential health benefits of
species.
Allium ursinum L. is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the Alliaceae family. Several classes of bioactive compounds have been isolated from A. ursinum so far, among them sulfur and phenolic ...compounds as quantitatively the most distributed constituents, responsible for pharmaceutical eff ects of the plant. Small amounts of steroidal glucosides, lecitins, fatty acids and several amino acids, as well as the essential oil are also present in A. ursinum. This plant species is characterized by a long history of use in traditional medicine in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease, as digestive stimulant, antimicrobial agent, as a remedy in respiratory problems, insomnia and fainting. Despite its widespread use for medicinal purposes since the ancient time, studies referring to its pharmacological activity are still lacking. In this review, we summarized the current knowledge related to the phytochemical and pharmacological properties of Allium ursinum. This study may be a starting point for future researches in this field, which would fully clarify therapeutic potential of A. ursinum and make it a possible candidate for medicinal product.
The aim of our study was to determine a chemical composition of methanol extract of Galium verum as well as to assess its effects on functional recovery and redox status of isolated rat heart after ...ischemia. Rats were divided into control and G. verum group, which included animals treated with 500 mg/kg of methanol extract of G. verum for 28 days. Parameters of heart function and oxidative stress markers were estimated. Cell morphology was evaluated by hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining. Our results demonstrated for the first time that G. verum extract preserved cardiac contractility, systolic, and diastolic function as wells as structural damage of the heart after ischemia. Furthermore, G. verum extract modulated the activity of antioxidant enzymes and alleviated the production of pro-oxidants.
Background/Aim. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is a method which increases oxygen solubility in plasma up to 20 times. This effect is very important in the treatment of circulatory disorders, which ...reduces oxygenation and leads to increased production of inflammatory mediators and free oxygen radicals. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of HBOT on the oxidative stress parameters in the patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methods. This prospective study included 18 females with SLE American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria, average age 52.2 ? 8.82 years, treated with HBOT for 60 min/day, with average partial oxygen pressure of 2.2 atmospheres absolute (ATA), during 10 days, in combination with appropriate medication therapy for SLE. The following parameters were determined in the serum: C-reactive protein (CRP), hemoglobin, creatinine, albumin, complement 3 (C3), antinuclear antibodies (ANA), glomerular filtration rate (GFR) using the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) formula. In the urine, parameters of oxidative stress were spectrofotometrically determined: levels of superoxide anion radical (O2 ??), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), nitrites (NO2-) and concentration of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS). In hemolysate, the parameters of antioxidant protection: superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and reduced gluthatione (GSH), were measured. The samples for the analysis were collected three times: before HBOT (initial values), after 10 days of HBOT and 1 month after beginning the treatment in relation to the initial value. Results. We noticed a statistically significant (p < 0.05) decrease in a level of O2 ??, both after 10 days and after 1 month of HBOT (8.26 ? 13.62; 8.39 ? 4.94; 11.92 ? 6.86 nmol/mL, respectively). Values of other parameters of oxidative stress such as NO2-, TBARS and H2O2- showed no significant difference during the monitored period. Regarding the parameters of antioxidant the protection, we revealed slightly higher value of GSH after treatment (initial value: 66.34 ? 16.31; after 10 days of HBOT 79.43 ? 36.77; after 1 month of HBOT69.72 ? 22.32 ?mol/mL red blood cells) which was held after a month, but it was not statistically significant. Activity of SOD and CAT, before and after HBOT, did not change significantly. Conclusion. Our results suggested the potential beneficial effects of HBOT on redox status in the patients with SLE by decreasing the levels of O2??.
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