Nitrites

Bacopa monniera (L.) Wettst is a renowned plant in the Ayurvedic system of medicine. The present study seeks to identify the anti-inflammatory activity of two fractions from the methanolic extract of Bacopa, viz. the triterpenoid and bacoside-enriched fractions. The ability of these two fractions to inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 was tested using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated peripheral blood mononuclear cells and peritoneal exudate cells in vitro.

Methyl mercury (MeHg) is a ubiquitous environmental pollutant leading to neurological and developmental deficits in animals and human beings. Bacopa monniera (BM) is a perennial herb and is used as a nerve tonic in Ayurveda, a traditional medicine system in India. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether Bacopa monniera extract (BME) could potentially inhibit MeHg-induced toxicity in the cerebellum of rat brain. Male Wistar rats were administered with MeHg orally at a dose of 5 mg/kg b.w. for 21 days.

The purposes of these studies were to quantify the concentrations of total nitrate and nitrite (NO(x)(-)) cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP), and nitrotyrosine over skin surface in normal weight healthy volunteers (n = 64) compared to overweight/obese subjects (n = 54). A semi-circular plastic tube was taped to the skin along acupuncture points (acupoints), meridian line without acupoint (MWOP), and nonmeridian control and filled with a 2-Phenyl-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-3-oxide-1-oxyl solution for 20 min.

INTRODUCTION: Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is a bioactive polyphenol of green tea and exerts potent anti-inflammatory effects by inhibiting signaling events and gene expression. Interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) is the principal cytokine linked to cartilage degradation in osteoarthritis (OA). The objective of this study was to evaluate the global effect of EGCG on IL-1β-induced expression of proteins associated with OA pathogenesis in human chondrocytes. METHODS: Primary OA chondrocytes were pretreated with EGCG (10 to 100 uM) and then stimulated with IL-1β (5 ng/ml) for 24 hours.

OBJECTIVE AND BACKGROUND: To assess renoprotective effects of a blueberry-enriched diet in a rat model of hypertension. Oxidative stress (OS) appears to be involved in the development of hypertension and related renal injury. Pharmacological antioxidants can attenuate hypertension and hypertension-induced renal injury; however, attention has shifted recently to the therapeutic potential of natural products as antioxidants. Blueberries (BB) have among the highest antioxidant capacities of fruits and vegetables.

The current study was designed to test the hypothesis that inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS)-mediated lipid free radical overproduction exists in an insulin-resistant rat model and that reducing the accumulation of toxic metabolites is associated with improved insulin signaling and metabolic response. Lipid radical formation was detected by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy with in vivo spin trapping in an obese rat model, with or without thiazolidinedione treatment.

The oxidation and nitration of unsaturated fatty acids by oxides of nitrogen yield electrophilic derivatives that can modulate protein function via post-translational protein modifications. The biological mechanisms accounting for fatty acid nitration and the specific structural characteristics of products remain to be defined. Herein, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is identified as the primary endogenous substrate for fatty acid nitration in vitro and in vivo, yielding up to 10(5) greater extent of nitration products as compared with bis-allylic linoleic acid.

Nitric-silica baths had beneficial myoadaptive and analgesic effect on patients with reflex dorsopathy syndromes. Balneotherapy combined with the treatment by sinusoidal modulated currents, massage, and remedial gymnastics was efficacious in alleviating musculotonic and orthopedic problems in patients with lumbar osteochondrosis. This effect was more pronounced than with the use of gas-bubble baths due to the improvement of trophic processes in the muscular tissue of the affected back and limb regions.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present work was to evaluate the effect of a hexane crude extract (HCE) of Pterodon emarginatus on the oxidative and nitrosative stress induced in skeletal muscle, liver and brain of acutely exercised rats. METHODS: Adult male rats were subjected to acute exercise by standardized contractions of the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle (100 Hz, 15 min) and treated orally with the HCE (once or three times with a fixed dose of 498 mg/kg), before and after acute exercise.

Little is known about the effect of dietary nitrate on the nitrate/nitrite/nitric oxide cycle in older adults. We examined the effect of a 3-day control diet vs high-nitrate diet, with and without a high-nitrate supplement (beetroot juice), on plasma nitrate and nitrite kinetics and blood pressure using a randomized 4-period crossover controlled design. We hypothesized that the high-nitrate diet would show higher levels of plasma nitrate/nitrite and lower blood pressure compared with the control diet, which would be potentiated by the supplement.