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Doxorubicin (DOX) treatment in cancer patients leads to nephrotoxicity. The nephroprotective effect of Berberine (BBR), a herbal ingredient, is well documented as antioxidant and activation of the Nrf2 signalling. This study aimed to investigate if Nrf2 is a major protective mechanism of BBR in DOX animal models. Rats were divided as (n = 6 each): Control, BBR (100 mg/kg, orally), DOX (15 mg/kg, orally), BBR + DOX, and BBR + DOX + brusatol (0.2 mg/kg, i.p./twice per week) (an Nrf2 inhibitor). DOX was given as a single dose (day 10), whereas BBR was administered for 3 weeks on a daily basis. BBR reduced tubular degeneration and improved renal markers in DOX‐treated rats. It also reduced renal nuclear levels of NF‐κB p65, total reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipid peroxides, interleukin‐6 (IL‐6), and tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α), as well as mRNA levels of Bax and cleaved caspase‐3. However, BBR stimulated glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, the transcription of Bcl2, and the mRNA, total cytoplasmic, and nuclear levels of Nrf2 with no effect on the cytoplasmic keap1 levels. All these effects disappeared by brusatol. In conclusion, BBR prevents DOX‐induced renal damage by activating Nrf2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Ellagic acid (EA) is used in traditional medicine to treated hyperlipidaemia. Objective: This study examined if AMPK mediates the anti-steatotic effect of ellagic acid (EA) in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced type 1 diabetes mellitus in rats. Materials and methods: Adult male Wistar rats (130 ± 10 g) were divided into 6 groups (n=8 rats/group) as control, controlþEA, controlþEAþCC an AMPK inhibitor), T1DM, T1DMþEA, and T1DMþEAþCC. The treatments with EA (50 mg/kg/orally) and CC (200 ng/rat/i.p.) were given the desired groups for 12 weeks, daily. Results: In T1DM-rats, EA reduced fasting glucose levels (44.8%), increased fasting insulin levels (92.8%), prevented hepatic lipid accumulation, and decreased hepatic and serum levels of total triglycerides (54% & 61%), cholesterol (57% & 48%), and free fatty acids (40% & 37%). It also reduced hepatic levels of ROS (62%), MDA (52%), TNF-a (62%), and IL-6 (57.2%) and the nuclear activity of NF-jB p65 (54%) but increased the nuclear activity of Nrf-2 (4-fold) and levels of GSH (107%) and SOD (87%). Besides, EA reduced downregulated SREBP1 (35%), SREBP2 (34%), ACC-1 (36%), FAS (38%), and HMG-CoAR (49%) but stimulated mRNA levels of PPARa (1.7-fold) and CPT1a (1.8-fold), CPT1b (2.9-fold), and p-AMPK (4-fold). All these events were prevented by the co-administration of CC. Discussion and conclusions: These findings encourage the use of EA to treat hepatic disorders, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Further in vivo and in vitro studies are needed to validate its potential in clinical medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The date fruit, a nourishing food appreciated worldwide, plays an important role in producing countries’ economic and political aspects. Date palms provide numerous products, including date syrup, alcohol, vinegar, date powder, and sugar. This review was undertaken to summarize information about the common date-derived products, the manufacturing methods used, and the leading countries in the date-derived industry. Additionally, the review highlights the future challenges in developing the date industry. The difficulties that accompanied the preparation of this review included the scarcity of modern and reliable information, especially the statistics related to date-derived products from leading countries involved in this industry. This may be due to the incompleteness of such information or the lack of interest in publishing them in reliable scientific sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of common home processing methods was investigated on the color characteristics, phenolic component, antioxidant activity (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl [DPPH] and ferric-reducing antioxidant power [FRAP] activity) and the levels of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in cowpea pods. The processing methods significantly increased the total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and the activity of antioxidant compounds (DPPH and FRAP). The GABA content sharply decreased in pods after boiling and drying treatment. However, it significantly increased after fermentation. The fermented cowpea pods displayed the highest content of phenolics, flavonoids, GABA and anthocyanin as well as antioxidant activity. Hence, these traditional domestic preparation methods could be recommended for the food industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated if the nephroprotective effect of Curcumin in streptozotocin-induced type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) in rats involves downregulation/inhibition of p66Shc and examined the underlying mechanisms. Rats were divided into 4 groups (n = 12/group) as control, control + Curcumin (100 mg/kg), T1DM, and T1DM + Curcumin. Curcumin was administered orally to control or diabetic rats for 12 weeks daily. As compared to diabetic rats, Curcumin didn't affect either plasma glucose or insulin levels but significantly reduced serum levels of urea, blood urea nitrogen, and creatinine, and concurrently reduced albumin/protein urea and increased creatinine clearance. It also prevented the damage in renal tubules and mitochondria, mesangial cell expansion, the thickness of the basement membrane. Mechanistically, Curcumin reduced mRNA and protein levels of collagen I/III and transforming growth factor- β-1 (TGF-β1), reduced inflammatory cytokines levels, improved markers of mitochondrial function, and suppressed the release of cytochrome-c and the activation of caspase-3. In the kidneys of both control and diabetic rats, Curcumin reduced the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), increased mRNA levels of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) and gamma-glutamyl ligase, increased glutathione (GSH) and protein levels of Bcl-2 and MnSOD, and increased the nuclear levels of nuclear factor2 (Nrf2) and FOXO-3a. Besides, Curcumin reduced the nuclear activity of the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), downregulated protein kinase CβII (PKCβII), NADPH oxidase, and p66Shc, and decreased the activation of p66Shc. In conclusion, Curcumin prevents kidney damage in diabetic rats by activating Nrf2, inhibiting Nf-κB, suppressing NADPH oxidase, and downregulating/inhibiting PKCβII/p66Shc axis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Ellagic acid (EA) is used in traditional medicine to treated hyperlipidaemia., Objective: This study examined if AMPK mediates the anti-steatotic effect of ellagic acid (EA) in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced type 1 diabetes mellitus in rats., Materials and Methods: Adult male Wistar rats (130 ± 10 g) were divided into 6 groups ( n  = 8 rats/group) as control, control + EA, control + EA + CC an AMPK inhibitor), T1DM, T1DM + EA, and T1DM + EA + CC. The treatments with EA (50 mg/kg/orally) and CC (200 ng/rat/i.p.) were given the desired groups for 12 weeks, daily., Results: In T1DM-rats, EA reduced fasting glucose levels (44.8%), increased fasting insulin levels (92.8%), prevented hepatic lipid accumulation, and decreased hepatic and serum levels of total triglycerides (54% & 61%), cholesterol (57% & 48%), and free fatty acids (40% & 37%). It also reduced hepatic levels of ROS (62%), MDA (52%), TNF-α (62%), and IL-6 (57.2%) and the nuclear activity of NF-κB p65 (54%) but increased the nuclear activity of Nrf-2 (4-fold) and levels of GSH (107%) and SOD (87%). Besides, EA reduced downregulated SREBP1 (35%), SREBP2 (34%), ACC-1 (36%), FAS (38%), and HMG-CoAR (49%) but stimulated mRNA levels of PPARα (1.7-fold) and CPT1a (1.8-fold), CPT1b (2.9-fold), and p-AMPK (4-fold). All these events were prevented by the co-administration of CC., Discussion and Conclusions: These findings encourage the use of EA to treat hepatic disorders, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Further in vivo and in vitro studies are needed to validate its potential in clinical medicine.

This study investigated if the nephroprotective effect of Curcumin in streptozotocin-induced type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) in rats involves downregulation/inhibition of p 66 Shc and examined the underlying mechanisms. Rats were divided into 4 groups (n = 12/group) as control, control + Curcumin (100 mg/kg), T1DM, and T1DM + Curcumin. Curcumin was administered orally to control or diabetic rats for 12 weeks daily. As compared to diabetic rats, Curcumin didn't affect either plasma glucose or insulin levels but significantly reduced serum levels of urea, blood urea nitrogen, and creatinine, and concurrently reduced albumin/protein urea and increased creatinine clearance. It also prevented the damage in renal tubules and mitochondria, mesangial cell expansion, the thickness of the basement membrane. Mechanistically, Curcumin reduced mRNA and protein levels of collagen I/III and transforming growth factor- β-1 (TGF-β1), reduced inflammatory cytokines levels, improved markers of mitochondrial function, and suppressed the release of cytochrome-c and the activation of caspase-3. In the kidneys of both control and diabetic rats, Curcumin reduced the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), increased mRNA levels of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) and gamma-glutamyl ligase, increased glutathione (GSH) and protein levels of Bcl-2 and MnSOD, and increased the nuclear levels of nuclear factor2 (Nrf2) and FOXO-3a. Besides, Curcumin reduced the nuclear activity of the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), downregulated protein kinase CβII (PKCβII), NADPH oxidase, and p 66 Shc, and decreased the activation of p 66 Shc. In conclusion, Curcumin prevents kidney damage in diabetic rats by activating Nrf2, inhibiting Nf-κB, suppressing NADPH oxidase, and downregulating/inhibiting PKCβII/p 66 Shc axis., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest No conflict of interest is associated with this work., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)