Mina Hemmati, Elham Zohoori, Somayeh Asghari,
Volume 2, Issue 1 (5-2014)
Abstract
Background & Objective: Dyslipidemia increases the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases in diabetic patients. Lipoprotein a, as a cholesterol carrier and competitive inhibitor of plasminogen in the blood coagulation system is considered an atherogenic factor which increases the risk of developing atherosclerosis in diabetic individuals. Based on previous studies, Barberry is thought to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Since increased cholesterol level, especially Lipoprotein a, increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases in people with diabetes, the aim of this study was to evaluate serum levels of Lipoprotein (a) in diabetic rats treated with aqueous extract of Barberry.
Method: In this experimental study, diabetes was induced in 15 mice by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ) and then they were treated orally for 14 days with liquid extract of the said plant in doses of 25 and 100 mg/kg. At the end of the treatment period, mice were kept fasted for 12 hours and then by heart phlebotomy, serum levels of Lipoprotein a, serum levels of glucose, triglycerides, total cholesterol, HDL and LDL were measured in normal and diabetic groups. The results were then analyzed using SPSS version 16, ANOVA and Tukey›s test.
Results: Data analysis showed that the consumption of both oral doses of Berberis vulgaris (Barberry) in diabetic rats causes a significant reduction in serum levels of triglyceride, serum glucose and VLDL(P=0.01).
The extract at both used doses also significantly reduced serum levels of lipoprotein (a) in treated diabetic rats (P=0.012).
Conclusion: Oral administration of the aqueous extract of Berberis vulgaris (Barberry) is effective for reducing triglyceride and glucose levels in diabetic mice. Since Barberry lowers Lipoprotein (a) levels, it can be considered as an anti-atherogenic factor.
Fatemeh Abbasi , Nazanin Mortazavi , Nasser Behnampour , Masoud Mohammadi, Saeed Mohammadi,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (12-2023)
Abstract
Background: Oral cancer is the sixth most common cancer in the world and the third most common cancer in developing countries. Early detection of oral cancer can reduce mortality in several ways. The aim of the present study was to combine the quantitative results of various studies concerning serum and salivary microRNAs for early diagnosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).
Methods: This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Guideline. We searched all the relevant English studies in international databases of PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane, ProQuest, Embase, and Wiley until February 2022. A random-effects model was used to estimate the pooled odds ratio (OR) and its corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) for each study. A total of 672 articles were found. After screening, 93 articles were approved for systematic review. Finally, 5 completely relevant articles were examined in the meta-analysis.
Results: Considering all studies regarding miRNAs, the combined results indicated that AUC = 0.73, with a sensitivity of 71.68% and a specificity of 69.95%, could be used for HNSCC diagnosis. Due to the moderate sensitivity and specificity of miRNAs, they may be able to confirm or exclude suspected cases of this disease, enhancing their utility as clinical diagnostic indicators.
Conclusion: The available data provide evidence that miRNAs, especially MiR-31 expression in the saliva, serum, or plasma, can be used as a diagnostic biomarker for HNSCC patients. However, controlled clinical trials with large sample sizes are needed to validate different miRNAs.
