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Objective: This research was performed to investigate the efficacy of complex rehabilitation combined with pharmacopuncture treatment for the children with neuromotor system diseases. Methods: Fifty (50) patients aged from 5 to 15 yr old were compared. Twenty (20) patients received conventional treatments and complex rehabilitation as a control group, and fifty (50) patients received complex rehabilitation with pharmacopuncture. At their first visits, the patients had checkups and neurological scales, and after 10 days of pharmacopuncture treatments and 55 days of rehabilitation, they also took neurological scales. We studied the pre and post effects of the treatment group. Results: The number of patients with ankle joint disorder and contracture, knee joint contracture, steppage, horsey hoof, shoulder weakness and contracture, radio-carpal joint disorder and contracture, arm hypotrophia, arm atrophia, leg hypotrophia and total atrophia decreased after treatments. Conclusion: This study showed the efficacy of pharmacopuncture combined with complex rehabilitation for the treatment of neuromotor system diseases.

Curcumin is a polyphenol compound derived from the rhizomes of Curcuma longa that exhibits antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and antimicrobial properties. However, its low solubility in aqueous solutions, low absorption following oral administration, and rapid degradation limit its use as a functional food material. In this study, a hydroxypropyl methylcellulose-based solid dispersion of curcumin (DW-CUR 20) was prepared and its bioavailability was evaluated. In addition, its therapeutic efficacy as a hepatoprotective agent was investigated using the model of tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP)-induced hepatocyte damage. The rat plasma pharmacokinetic study showed that the oral curcumin bioavailability of DW-CUR 20 significantly increased compared to that of non-formulated curcumin. DW-CUR 20 showed a concentration-dependent hepatocyte protective effect on t-BHP-induced HepG2 cells. DW-CUR 20 inhibited the release of lactate dehydrogenase and decreased apoptosis-related proteins such as Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase, cleaved caspase-7 and cleaved caspase-8 on t-BHP-treated HepG2 cells. These findings suggest that DW-CUR 20 could be a promising formulation for enhancing the therapeutic efficiency of curcumin and for improving the safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assessed the inhibitory effects of Garcinia cambogia extract on the cytochrome P450 enzymes in vitro. G. cambogia extract was incubated with cytochrome P450 isozyme-specific substrates in human liver microsomes and recombinant CYP2B6 isozyme, and the formation of the marker metabolites was measured to investigate the inhibitory potential on cytochrome P450 enzyme activities. The results showed that G. cambogia extract has significant inhibitory effects on CYP2B6 activity in a concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, the inhibition was potentiated following preincubation with NADPH, indicating that G. cambogia extract is a time-dependent inhibitor of CYP2B6. Meanwhile, hydroxycitric acid, the major bioactive ingredient of G. cambogia extract, did not exhibit significant inhibition effects on cytochrome P450 enzyme activities. G. cambogia extract could modulate the pharmacokinetics of CYP2B6 substrate drugs and lead to interactions with those drugs. Therefore, caution may be required with respect to concomitant intake of dietary supplements containing G. cambogia extract with CYP2B6 substrates., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.)

Objectives: Bufonis venonum (BV) is toad venom and is the dried, white secretions of the auricular and the skin glands of toads. This study was performed to evaluate the toxicity of intravenous injection of Bufonis venonum pharmacopuncture (BVP) through a single- dose test with sprague-dawley (SD) rats., Methods: Twenty male and 20 female 6-week-old SD rats were injected intravenously in the caudal vein with BVP or normal saline. The animals were divided into four groups with five female and five male rats per group: the control group injected with normal saline, the low-dosage group injected with 0.1 mL/animal of BVP, the medium-dosage group injected with 0.5 mL/ animal of BVP and the high-dosage group injected with 1.0 mL/animal of BVP. We performed clinical observations every day and body weight measurements on days 3, 7 and 14 after the injection. We also conducted hematology, serum biochemistry, and histological observations immediately after the observation period., Results: No mortalities were observed in any experimental group. Paleness occurred in the medium- and the high-dosage groups, and congestion on tails was observed in females in the medium- and the high-dosage groups. No significant changes in weight, hematology, serum biochemistry, and histological observations that could be attributed to the intravenous injection of BVP were observed in any experimental group., Conclusion: The lethal dose of intravenously-administered BVP in SD rats is over 1.0 mL/animal.

Objectives: Bufonis venonum (BV) is the dried white secretions of the auricular and skin glands of the toads Bufo bufo gargarizans or Bufo melanosticus Schneider. This study was performed to evaluate the toxicity of intramuscularly- administered Bufonis venonum pharmacopuncture (BVP) and to calculate its approximate lethality through a single-dose test with Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats., Methods: Twenty male and 20 female 6-week-old SD rats were injected intramuscularly with BVP or normal saline. The animals were divided into four groups with five female and five male rats per group: the control group injected with normal saline at 0.5 mL/animal, the low-dosage group injected with 0.125 mL/animal of BVP, the medium-dosage group injected with 0.25 mL/animal of BVP and the high-dosage group injected with 0.5 mL/animal of BVP. All injections were in the left thighs of the rats. After administration, we conducted clinical observations everyday and body weight measurements on days 3, 7 and 14 after the injection. We also carried out hematology, serum biochemistry, and histological observations on day 15 after treatment., Results: No mortalities were observed in any experimental group. No significant changes in weight, hematology, serum biochemistry, and histological observations that could be attributed to the intramuscular injection of BVP were observed in any experimental group., Conclusion: Lethal dose of BVP administered via intramuscular injection in SD rats is over 0.5 mL/animal.

Objectives: Radix Ginseng has been used for thousands of years to treat a wide variety of diseases. Radix ginseng has also been used as a traditional medicine for boosting Qi energy and tonifying the spleen and lungs. Traditionally, its effect could be obtained orally. Nowadays, a new method, the injection of herbal medicine, is being used. This study was performed to investigate the single-dose intravenous toxicity of water-soluble ginseng pharmacopuncture (WSGP) in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats., Methods: All experiments were carried out at Biotoxtech, an institute authorized to perform non-clinical studies under the regulation of Good Laboratory Practice (GLP). At the age of six weeks, 40 SD rats, 20 male rats and 20 female rats, were allocated into one of 4 groups according to the dosages they would receive. The WSGP was prepared in the Korean Pharmacopuncture Institute under the regulation of Korea-Good Manufacturing Practice (K-GMP). Dosages of WSGP were 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mL/animal for the experimental groups, and normal saline was administered to the control group. The rat's general conditions and body weights, the results of their hematological and biochemistry tests, and their necropsy and histopathological findings were investigated to identify the toxicological effect of WSGP injected intravenously. The effect was examined for 14 days after the WSGP injection. This study was performed under the approval of the Institutional Animal Ethics Committee of Biotoxtech., Results: No deaths were found in this single-dose toxicity test on the intravenous injection of WSGP, and no significant changes in the rat's general conditions and body weights, the results on their hematological and biochemistry test, and their necropsy findings were observed during the test. The local area of the injection site showed minial change. The lethal dose was assumed to be over 1.0 mL/animal in both sexes., Conclusion: These results indicate that WSGP is safe at dosages up to 1 mL/animal.

Objectives: The aims of the study were to test the single-dose intravenous toxicity of Daebohwalryeok pharmacopuncture (DHRP) in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats and to estimate the crude lethal dose., Methods: The experiments were conducted at Biotoxtech Co., a Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) laboratory, according to the GLP regulation and were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of Biotoxtech Co. (Approval no: 110156). The rats were divided into three groups: DHRP was injected into the rats in the two test groups at doses of 10 mL/kg and 20 mL/kg, respectively, and normal saline solution was injected into the rats in the control group. Single doses of DHRP were injected intravenously into 6 week old SD rats (5 male and 5 female rats per group). General symptoms were observed and weights were measured during the 14 day observation period after the injection. After the observation period, necropsies were done. Then, histopathological tests were performed. Weight data were analyzed with a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) by using statistical analysis system (SAS, version 9.2)., Results: No deaths and no statistical significant weight changes were observed for either male or female SD rats in either the control or the test groups during the observation period. In addition, no treatment related general symptoms or necropsy abnormalities were observed. Histopathological results showed no DHRP related effects in the 20 mL/kg DHRP group for either male or female rats., Conclusion: Under the conditions of this study, the results from single-dose intravenous injections of DHRP showed that estimated lethal doses for both male and female rats were above 20 mL/kg.