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Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by inflammation of the knee joint, which is caused by accumulation of cytokines and C-reactive protein (CRP) in the extracellular matrix as an early immune response to infection. The articular cartilage destruction is discernible by elevated tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). In this study, blood samples of knee osteoarthritis patients were analyzed for biochemical and physiological parameters based on the lipid profile, uric acid, total leukocyte count (TLC), hemoglobin percentage (Hb%) and absolute lymphocyte count (ALC). Furthermore, immunological parameters including TNF-α, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and CRP were analyzed. The presence of antibodies against hydroxyl radical modified collagen-II (•OH-collagen-II) was also investigated in arthritis patients using direct binding ELISA. The uric acid and lipid profiles changed extensively. Specifically, increased uric acid levels were associated with OA in both genders, as were enhanced immunological parameters. The TNF-α level also increased in both genders suffering from OA. Finally, auto-antibodies against OH-collagen II antigen were found in the sera of arthritis patients. These results indicated that immunological parameters are better predictors or indexes for diagnosis of OA than biochemical parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since, we previously demonstrated that sequentially extracted methanolic fraction showed marked antioxidant and antidiabetic property in vitro, the present study was design to evaluate the beneficial effects of Phyllanthus virgatus methanolic extract and its partially purified fraction on hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia in streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic rats. The plant extract was subjected to repeated thin layer chromatographic fractionation followed by GC-MS analysis of active fraction. TLC data illustrated the presence of six prominent bands and the prelimnary screening of these bands against a-amylase inhibitory activity showed that the band with Rf value 0.514 has marked inhibitory property (IC50, 48 μg/ml). The diabetic rats were treated for four weeks with methanolic extract of P. virgatus (50 and 10 mg/rat/day), partially isolated active fraction (0.5 and 0.1 mg/rat/day) and glibenclamide (0.1 mg/rat/day). The level of fasting blood glucose (FBG), hemoglobin, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and insulin were significantly alleviated in plant extract and partially purified fraction treated group after 28 days of administration. Moreover, total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), very low density lipoproteincholesterol (VLDL-C) and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were also markedly ameliorated in the entire treatment group, with a maximum restoration observed in group treated with partially purified fraction (0.5 mg/rat/day). The results demonstrate a strong antidiabetic and hypolipidemic impact of plant extract and its partially purified fraction coupled with their potent antioxidative property, which can provide additional benefits in the inhibition of oxidative stress and hence in the prevention and treatment of diabetes as well as diabetes linked hyperlipidemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]