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Stroke is a pathologic condition associated with redox imbalance. This pilot study was designed to evaluate the effect of the consumption of the nutritional supplement ALAnerv on some oxidative stress markers in postacute stroke patients undergoing rehabilitation. To achieve this goal, we assigned 28 patients to 2 study groups: (-)ALA and (+)ALA. Patients in both groups participated in the same rehabilitation program and received comparable standard medications; however, patients in the (+)ALA group received ALAnerv for 2 weeks (2 pills per day). We assessed total and nonproteic thiols, protein carbonyls, ceruloplasmin, oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles, lipid hydroperoxide concentrations, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase activity, and total antioxidant capacity. Regression analysis indicated that supplementation with ALAnerv was responsible for the significant decrease in glucose (p = 0.002) and oxidized LDL particles (p < 0.001) during the study period. For both parameters, the variation in the percent of concentration between the 2 groups during the study period reached statistical significance (p = 0.012 and p < 0.001, respectively). Moreover, Barthel Index values at discharge were significantly influenced by ALAnerv treatment. These preliminary results indicate that ALAnerv might be helpful because it rapidly corrects plasma fasting glucose and corrects serum oxidized LDL particle concentrations, suggesting the need for longer treatment with 2 pills or more per day.

Oxidative stress is an imbalance of oxidants/antioxidants in favor of oxidants as stated by Sies in 1985, and may arise due to excessive sports, physical and mental stress, high altitude exposure, diets, temperature variations, extreme cold or heat weather, smoking, hypoxia, immobilization stress and so on. It is also the main cause of the most common illnesses of the current age: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, infection, chronic fatigue syndrome, depression, malignancy, and neurodegenerative disorders. The early determination of oxidative stress, although important for health, is not always simple and often requires laborious and expensive analysis. Biocrystallization, also called sensitive crystallization, is a simple and inexpensive qualitative method used for almost 100 years in the study of herbs, foods and also in human health for orientation of diagnosis. The method also allows a rapid assessment of the therapeutic effectiveness of remedies or recommended procedures for patients with a certain pathology. In this paper we are looking to answer the following question: is it possible to use this method in order to assess the level of oxidative stress induced by varying environmental or internal factors and to observe the efficiency of the treatment? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paraoxonase 1 (PON1) belongs to a family of enzymes with related functions, being the best studied member. PON1 is a HDL-associated protein of which function is to protect LDL particles from oxidative modifications. The status of PON1 is influenced by different genetic, life style and dietary factors. This short review is aimed to present some new aspects regarding the antioxidant properties of PON1 with emphasis on the influence exerted by different factors. Also, a special attention is paid to the relationship between PON1 and low- and high-density lipoproteins in the context of atherosclerosis which affects the endothelial cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]