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Biomedical subjects

C Day

Publications and source records attributed to C Day.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

Traditional plant medicines as treatments for diabetes.

More than 400 traditional plant treatments for diabetes mellitus have been recorded, but only a small number of these have received scientific and medical evaluation to assess their efficacy. Traditional treatments have mostly disappeared in occidental societies, but some are prescribed by practitioners of alternative medicine or taken by patients as supplements to conventional therapy. However, plant remedies are the mainstay of treatment in underdeveloped regions. A hypoglycemic action from some treatments has been confirmed in animal models and non-insulin-dependent diabetic patients, and various hypoglycemic compounds have been identified. A botanical substitute for insulin seems unlikely, but traditional treatments may provide valuable clues for the development of new oral hypoglycemic agents and simple dietary adjuncts.

Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2↗

Glycaemic effects of traditional European plant treatments for diabetes. Studies in normal and streptozotocin diabetic mice.

Twelve plants used for the traditional treatment of diabetes mellitus in northern Europe were studied using normal and streptozotocin diabetic mice to evaluate effects on glucose homeostasis. The plants were administered in the diet (6.25% by weight) and/or as decoctions or infusions in place of drinking water, to coincide with the traditional method of preparation. Treatment for 28 days with preparations of burdock (Arctium lappa), cashew (Anacardium occidentale), dandelion (Taraxacum officinale), elder (Sambucus nigra), fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum), guayusa (Ilex guayusa), hop (Humulus lupulus), nettle (Urtica dioica), cultivated mushroom (Agaricus bisporus), periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus), sage (Salvia officinale), and wild carrot (Daucus carrota) did not affect the parameters of glucose homeostasis examined in normal mice (basal plasma glucose and insulin, glucose tolerance, insulin-induced hypoglycaemia and glycated haemoglobin). After administration of streptozotocin (200 mg/kg) burdock and nettle aggravated the diabetic condition, while cashew, dandelion, elder, fenugreek, hop, periwinkle, sage and wild carrot did not significantly affect the parameters of glucose homeostasis studied (basal glucose and insulin, insulin-induced hypoglycaemia, glycated haemoglobin and pancreatic insulin concentration). Guayusa and mushroom retarded the development of hyperglycaemia in streptozotocin diabetes and reduced the hyperphagia, polydipsia, body weight loss, and glycated haemoglobin. Mushroom also countered the initial reduction in plasma insulin and the reduction in pancreatic insulin concentration, and improved the hypoglycaemic effect of exogenous insulin. These studies suggest the presence of potentially useful antidiabetic agents in guayusa and mushroom.

Animals↗

Clinical and pharmacologic correlations in cyclosporine-induced gingival hyperplasia.

Cyclosporine-induced gingival hyperplasia was investigated in a clinical study of 100 patients over a period of 2 1/2 years. Seventy percent of the patients exhibited at least mild gingival hyperplasia. For doses within the therapeutic range, no direct correlation was found between the oral dose or the serum trough concentration of cyclosporine and the severity of gingival hyperplasia. The presence of dental plaque was found to be related to the presence of gingival hyperplasia, but only a weak correlation existed between the abundance of plaque and the severity of gingival hyperplasia. Children and especially adolescents had a greater risk of developing cyclosporine-induced gingival hyperplasia than adults had. In 21 patients followed for 1 to 18 months after cessation of cyclosporine therapy, induced gingival hyperplasia was found to be clinically reversible.

Adolescent↗

Role of adrenal glands in the development of abnormal glucose and insulin homeostasis in genetically obese (ob/ob) mice.

This study evaluates the role of adrenal hormones in the development of hyperinsulinaemia and impaired glucose homeostasis in genetically obese hyperglycaemic C57BL/6J ob/ob mice. Lean (+/?) and obese mice were bilaterally adrenalectomised or sham operated at 5 weeks of age, and glucose tolerance was examined after 7 and 14 days. Adrenalectomy temporarily reduced food intake and body weight gain in lean mice, and improved glucose tolerance without a significant change in plasma insulin concentrations at both intervals studied. In obese mice adrenalectomy permanently reduced body weight gain and food intake to values comparable with lean mice. Glucose tolerance was improved in adrenalectomised obese mice at both intervals studied, resulting in plasma glucose concentrations similar to adrenalectomised lean mice. Plasma insulin concentrations during the tolerance tests were reduced in adrenalectomised obese mice, but remained higher than in lean mice. Adrenalectomy did not improve the poor insulin response to parenteral glucose in obese mice. The results indicate that adrenal hormones play an important role in the development of glucose intolerance and contribute to the hyperinsulinaemia in obese (ob/ob) mice, in part by promoting hyperphagia.

Adrenal Glands↗

Presentation and evaluation of sexual misuse in the emergency department.

Children who have been sexually abused develop a variety of emotional and physical complaints, often unrelated to the genital area. Emergency department records of children diagnosed as being sexually abused were reviewed for the period covering January 1984 through June 1985. Of 26,000 patients seen, 300 cases of sexual abuse were identified. Of these, 57 were patients who presented with initial complaints other than sexual abuse. The data were analyzed for age, sex, chief complaint, time of presentation, physical findings, and person accompanying the child. The most common presenting complaints of these 57 patients were abdominal pain (26%) and vaginal symptoms (26%) The latter included pruritus, discharge, and bleeding. Other complaints included rectal bleeding or constipation (9%), chronic urinary tract infection (5%), straddle injury (4%), and suicide attempt (2%). The remaining 26% included fever, respiratory infections, sore throat, asthma, bronchitis, obesity, mastoiditis, and weight loss. Because resident physicians are instructed to conduct complete anal and genital examinations on all patients, sexual misuse was often diagnosed with seemingly unrelated complaints. A protocol developed for use in the emergency department is described.

Child↗

Cerasee, a traditional treatment for diabetes. Studies in normal and streptozotocin diabetic mice.

Cerasee, a wild variety of Momordica charantia is traditionally prepared as a tea for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in the West Indies and Central America. To investigate a possible hypoglycaemic effect, concentrated aqueous extracts of cerasee were administered to normal and streptozotocin diabetic mice. In normal mice, intraperitoneal administration of cerasee improved glucose tolerance after 8 hr, and in streptozotocin diabetic mice the level of hyperglycaemia was reduced by 50% after 5 hr. Chronic oral administration of cerasee to normal mice for 13 days improved glucose tolerance. The cerasee extracts did not significantly alter plasma insulin concentrations, suggesting that cerasee may exert an extrapancreatic effect to promote glucose disposal.

Administration, Oral↗

Isoenzyme pattern of HPRT in murine erythrocytes: control by an autosomal locus.

A locus on chromosome 7 controls the electrophoretic mobility of hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) isoenzymes in mouse erythrocytes, but not in several other tissues. This locus is designated Hma (HPRT mobility alteration) and maps very close to the Hbb locus. The A/J, AKR/J, AU/SsJ, BALB/cJ, CBA/J, C3H/HeJ, DBA/2J, LP/J, RF/J, SEA/Gn, ST/BJ, and 129/J strains and our population of Swiss albino mice have the Hmaa allele. Hmaa is dominant to Hmab, which is found in the C57BL/6J, C57BL/KsJ, C58/J, LT/Sv, MA/MyJ, SJL/J, and SWR/J strains. Both alleles are found in feral Mus musculus. In our conditions, homozygotes for Hmab have two major bands of HPRT activity after electrophoresis of extracts of erythrocytes and of other tissues. Heterozygotes and Hmaa homozygotes have three bands in erythrocyte extracts but two band in other tissues.

Alleles↗