PMID: 

Prim Care Diabetes. 2019 02 ;13(1):28-42. Epub 2018 Jul 23. PMID: 30049636

Abstract Title: 

The effect of garlic on lipid profile and glucose parameters in diabetic patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract: 

PURPOSE: Several studies have been published about the effect of garlic on lipid profile and blood glucose in diabetic patients. Which, the results mostly contradict with each other. This study aimed to investigate the effect of garlic on lipid profile and serum glucose levels in diabetic patients using a systematic review and meta-analysis.METHODS: This study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of articles published between 1988 and 2016. For this purpose, two independent researchers searched SID medical information databases including MagIran, Irandoc, Medlib, Iran Medex, Science Direct, Scopus, Google and PubMed using keywords. Data were analyzed using STATA software.RESULTS: After the initial search, 23,000 articles were found, of which 33 had the required criteria for the meta-analysis. In the present study, the total sample under review was 1273 individuals, with a mean of 39 samples per study. Overall, the garlic was more influential than placebo in reducing the levels of lipid parameters including triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), and fasting blood sugar (FBS) and HbA. In the meta-analysis, the concentration of serum TC, LDL, TG, and HDL in the group receiving garlic compared with the placebo showed a significant decreased for 16.87mg/dl (95% CI, -21.01, -12.73) (P=0.001), 9.65mg/dl (95% CI, -15.07, -4.23) (P=0.001), 12.44mg/dl (95% CI, -18.19, -6.69) (P=0.001), and increased for 3.19mg/dl (95% CI, 1.85, 4.53) (P=0.001), respectively. Also, the concentration of serum FBS and HbAserum showed a significant decreased for 10.90mg/dl (95% CI, -16.40, -5.40) (P=0.001) and 0.60mg/dl (95% CI, -0.98, -0.22) (P=0.001), respectively.CONCLUSION: Garlic can reduce lipid profile as well as glucose parameters and be therapeutically effective in patients suffering from cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.

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PMID: 

Helicobacter. 2018 Oct ;23(5):e12532. Epub 2018 Aug 28. PMID: 30155945

Abstract Title: 

The association of garlic with Helicobacter pylori infection and gastric cancer risk: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract: 

BACKGROUND: Garlic may be protective against Helicobacter pylori infection and gastric cancer development. We conducted this study to quantitatively update evidence on garlic intake and gastric cancer with the inclusion of most recent cohort studies and qualitatively summarize epidemiological studies of garlic consumption and Helicobacter pylori infection.MATERIALS AND METHODS: PubMed, Embase, MEDLINE, and Cochrane Library were searched on April 2018. We conducted a meta-analysis to determine whether garlic intake reduced gastric cancer risk using random-effect models and a systematic review to summarize evidence on the association between garlic consumption and Helicobacter pylori infection. Risk of bias was assessed using tools of Cochrane risk of bias and Robins-I for randomized and nonrandomized studies, respectively.RESULTS: Meta-analysis of 18 studies (142 921 subjects) demonstrated high garlic consumption (as comparing the highest category to the lowest) was associated with a reduced gastric cancer risk (OR = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.44-0.57). This association became nonsignificant if only derived from the prospective studies (OR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.66-1.24). Thirteen studies (4889 participants) were included in the systematic review for garlic consumption and Helicobacter pylori infection; ten of which found no significant results. The majority of these studies were poor in quality given the small sample size and high risk of bias.CONCLUSIONS: Pooled evidence, mainly from case-control studies, suggested a significant inverse association of garlic intake with gastric cancer risk. Given the limitations of included studies, current epidemiological evidence is not sufficient to reach any definite conclusion regarding the association of garlic with Helicobacter pylori infection.

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PMID: 

J Clin Dent. 2018 Jun ;29(2):52-56. PMID: 30211991

Abstract Title: 

The Efficacy of Aged Garlic Extract on Gingivitis – A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Abstract: 

OBJECTIVES: To assess gingivitis and gingival bleeding following the consumption of Aged Garlic Extract versus placebo for a period of four months.METHODS: A randomized, controlled, examiner-blind, two-treatment parallel group study was conducted. Participants were stratified and randomly assigned equally to a regimen group using Aged Garlic Extract (AGE) or a control group, based on gender, age, baseline number of bleeding sites, and gingival health status. Assessment was performed at baseline and at one, two, three, and four months. Clinical assessment was conducted by three experienced calibrated examiners.RESULTS: One hundred and fifty-one participants followed the inclusion criteria; 50.3% males, with an average age of 32.7± 8.2 years. Only 134 subjects completed the four-month study (11.3% attrition rate). A statistically significant decrease of the Modified Gingival Index and Gingival Bleeding Index scores was shown for the AGE compared to the placebo group, both between and within groups (p

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PMID: 

Phytother Res. 2019 Feb ;33(2):243-252. Epub 2018 Oct 29. PMID: 30370629

Abstract Title: 

Effect of garlic supplementation on serum C-reactive protein level: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Abstract: 

The present study was designed to systematically review randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that report on the effects of garlic supplementation on serum C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. We conducted a literature search of Scopus, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar up to January 2018. Weighted mean differences (WMD) were estimated for net change in serum CRP. Subgroup analyses were also performed by duration of study, dose of supplementation, baseline CRP level, and the quality of studies. From 438 articles found and screened in our initial search, nine RCTs with the sum of total sample size of 363 were included in the meta-analysis. Compared with the controls, garlic intake significantly reduced the concentrations of serum CRP by 0.8 mg/L (95% CI [-1.5, -0.1], p = 0.02) with the evidence of heterogeneity among studies. Subgroup analyses showed that garlic significantly lowered CRP by 0.82 mg/L (95% CI [-1.02, -0.62], p 

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PMID: 

Food Funct. 2019 Apr 1 ;10(4):2114-2124. Epub 2019 Mar 28. PMID: 30919867

Abstract Title: 

The protective role of virgin coconut oil on the alloxan-induced oxidative stress in the liver, kidneys and heart of diabetic rats.

Abstract: 

The aim of this study was to investigate the potential protective effect of virgin coconut oil (VCO) on oxidative stress parameters in the liver, kidneys and heart of alloxan-induced (150 mg kgi.p.) diabetes in rats. Our results showed that daily supplementation of VCO (20% of food) for 16 weeks significantly (p

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PMID: 

Int J Cancer. 2011 Jul 1 ;129(1):23-33. Epub 2011 Mar 29. PMID: 21448932

Abstract Title: 

Acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid suppresses invasion of pancreatic cancer cells through the downregulation of CXCR4 chemokine receptor expression.

Abstract: 

Ninety percent of cancer-mediated deaths are due to metastasis of the tumor; however, the mechanisms controlling metastasis remain poorly understood. Thus, no therapy targeting this process has yet been approved. Chemokines and their receptors are mediators of chronic inflammation and have been linked to the metastasis of numerous cancers. More recently, the Cysteine X Cysteine (CXC) chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) has emerged as a key mediator of tumor metastasis; therefore, identification of inhibitors of this receptor has the potential to abrogate metastasis. In this report, we demonstrate that acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid (AKBA), a component of the therapeutic plant Boswellia serrata, can downregulate CXCR4 expression in pancreatic cancer cells. The reduction in CXCR4 induced by this terpenoid was found to be cell-type specific, as its expression was also abrogated in leukemia, myeloma and breast cancer cell lines. Neither proteasome inhibitors nor lysosomal stabilization could prevent the AKBA-induced reduction in CXCR4 expression. This downregulation occurred at the transcriptional level. Suppression of CXCR4 by AKBA was accompanied by the inhibition of pancreatic cancer cell invasion, whichis induced by CXCL12, the ligand for CXCR4. In addition, abrogation of the expression of chemokine receptor by AKBA was found in human pancreatic tissues from orthotopic animal model. AKBA also abolished breast tumor cell invasion, and this effect correlated with the disappearance of both the CXCR4messenger RNA and CXCR4 protein. Overall, our results show that AKBA is a novel inhibitor of CXCR4 expression and, thus, has the potential to suppress the invasion and metastasis of cancer cells.

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PMID: 

Int J Cancer. 2012 May 1 ;130(9):2176-84. Epub 2011 Sep 12. PMID: 21702037

Abstract Title: 

Boswellic acid inhibits growth and metastasis of human colorectal cancer in orthotopic mouse model by downregulating inflammatory, proliferative, invasive and angiogenic biomarkers.

Abstract: 

Numerous cancer therapeutics were originally identified from natural products used in traditional medicine. One such agent is acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid (AKBA), derived from the gum resin of the Boswellia serrata known as Salai guggal or Indian frankincense. Traditionally, it has been used in Ayurvedic medicine to treat proinflammatory conditions. In this report, we hypothesized that AKBA can affect the growth and metastasis of colorectal cancer (CRC) in orthotopically implanted tumors in nude mice. We found that the oral administration of AKBA (50-200 mg/kg) dose-dependently inhibited the growth of CRC tumors in mice, resulting in decrease in tumor volumes than those seen in vehicle-treated mice without significant decreases in body weight. In addition, we observed that AKBA was highly effective in suppressing ascites and distant metastasis to the liver, lungs and spleen in orthotopically implanted tumors in nude mice. When examined for the mechanism, we found that markers of tumor proliferation index Ki-67 and the microvessel density cluster of differentiation (CD31) were significantly downregulated by AKBA treatment. We also found that AKBA significantly suppressed nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation in the tumor tissue and expression of proinflammatory (cyclooxygenase-2), tumor survival (bcl-2, bcl-xL, inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP-1) and survivin), proliferative (cyclin D1), invasive (intercellular adhesion molecule 1 and matrix metalloproteinase-9) and angiogenic C-X-C (CXC) receptor 4 and vascular endothelial growth factor) biomarkers. When examined for serum and tissue levels of AKBA, a dose-dependent increase in the levels of the drug was detected, indicating its bioavailability. Thus, our findings suggest that this boswellic acid analog can inhibit the growth and metastasis of human CRC in vivo through downregulation of cancer-associated biomarkers.

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PMID: 

Environ Toxicol Pharmacol. 2014 Jul ;38(1):58-70. Epub 2014 May 14. PMID: 24908637

Abstract Title: 

Boswellia ovalifoliolata abrogates ROS mediated NF-κB activation, causes apoptosis and chemosensitization in Triple Negative Breast Cancer cells.

Abstract: 

The present study was aimed to evaluvate the apoptogenic potential of ethanolic extract of leaves from Boswellia ovalifoliolata (BL EthOH) and to unravel the molecular mechanisms implicated in apoptosis of Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) cells. BL EthOH was cytotoxic against TNBC cells like MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-453 with IC₅₀ concentrations 67.48 ± 5.45 and 70.03 ± 4.76 μg/ml, respectively. Apoptotic studies showed that BL EthOH was able to induce apoptosis and western blot studies demonstrated that BL EthOH significantly decreased the Phospho-NF-κB (ser536), PCNA, anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 expression and increased the expression of pro-apoptotic protein Bax, in MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-453 cell lines when compared with untreated cells. Besides, BL EthOH has synergistic chemosensitizing effects on TNBC cells and increased the cytotoxicity of doxorubicin and cisplatin.

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PMID: 

Nutrients. 2018 Nov 20 ;10(11). Epub 2018 Nov 20. PMID: 30463296

Abstract Title: 

Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and Their Polyphenol Content Are Inversely Associated with Sleep Duration: Prospective Associations from the UK Women's Cohort Study.

Abstract: 

This study aims to investigate the prospective associations between fruit and vegetable (FV) intakes and their polyphenol content with subsequent sleep duration in UK women. In this study, 13,958 women with ~4 years of follow-up in the UK Women's Cohort Study were included in the analyses. FV intakes were assessed at baseline using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), and average hours of sleep per day were self-reported in follow-up. Polyphenol intake was calculated by matching FV items from the FFQ with the Phenol-Explorer database. Linear regression models, adjusting for confounders, were used for the analyses. Consuming an additional portion of apples, kiwi, oranges, pineapple, and 100% pure juice were associated with shorter sleep. Similarly, an additional portion of cabbage, celery, aubergine, olives, and peppers were inversely associated with sleep duration. An additional gram of total polyphenols was associated with shorter sleep by 18 min (99% CI -31 to -4,

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PMID: 

Niger J Clin Pract. 2019 Oct ;22(10):1328-1334. PMID: 31607720

Abstract Title: 

Evaluation of the effect of honey on the healing of tooth extraction wounds in 4- to 9-year-old children.

Abstract: 

Objective: The aim of the this study was to evaluate the effect of honey on the healing of tooth extraction wounds in children 4‒9 years of age.Subjects and Methods: In the present randomized clinical trial, 51 patients, 4‒9 years of age were selected randomly. All the subjects required extraction of one deciduous molar tooth. The subjects were randomly assigned to two groups. In group 1, after extraction of the tooth, the dentist used a cotton swab applicator to place a layer of honey on a piece of gauze moistenedwith normal saline solution (NSS) and placed it on the socket. In group 2, honey was not used; rather, NSS was applied. On days 3 and 7 after tooth extraction, the wound sizes were measured.Results: In both groups, the wound sizes decreased significantly on the third day compared with baseline and on the seventh day compared with the third day (P

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