Determination of anticholinesterase and antioxidant activities of methanol and water extracts of leaves and fruits of Chamaerops humilis L.

The present study was carried out to investigate the antioxidant activity of the water and methanol extracts of leaves and fruits extracts of Chamaerops humilis L. by using ABTS cation radicals and cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC). Anticholinesterase effect of the extracts was tested against both AChE and BChE using a microplate-reader assay based on the Ellman method. The methanol extracts of C. humilis leaves contained relatively higher content of flavonoids and total phenolics than those of fruits. All the extracts were found to have different levels of antioxidant activity in the systems tested. The leave extract showed the highest value of antioxidant activity, based on ABTS radical-scavenging activity, while the fruit water extract showed the highest value (0.53±0.50 µg/mL) of cupric reducing antioxidant activity.  Our data indicates that both methanol and water fruit extract were active for BChE inhibition (31.65 ± 0.37 and 30.19 ± 0.56%) respectively, whereas, all leave extracts did not show any activity against BChE. The present study demonstrated that the methanol and water extracts fractions of C. humilis have different responses with different antioxidant methods. Our results suggest that the C. humilis could be used as a source of antioxidant agents and may be beneficial in the AD treatment

Simultaneous quantification of phenolic acids and flavonoids in Chamaerops humilis L. using LC–ESI-MS/MS

<div><p>Abstract In this study, heated reflux extraction method has been used to identify the phenolic compounds from C. humilis var. argentea leaflets, rachis and fruits. Extractions were performed in both ultrapure water and 80% methanol solvents. The efficiency of procedures was determined in terms of the quality and quantity of phenolic acids and flavonoids identified. Chamaerops extracts have been characterized by high concentrations of phenolic compounds, which play a crucial role in protection against various diseases. LC-MS/MS was used to determine the chemical profile of various extracts obtained from Chamaerops. The results showed that the major components in leaflets and fruits extracts were quinic, malic and chlorogenic acids. In addition, nine minor acidic components were identified. On the other hand, rutin and hesperidin were found to be the major flavonoids. The methanol extract was shown as being the most efficient to identify phenolic compounds in C. humilis.</p></div

Increased risk of severe COVID-19 in hospitalized patients with SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant infection: a multicentre matched cohort study

International audienceBackground: The impact of the variant of concern (VOC) Alpha on the severity of COVID-19 has been debated. We report our analysis in France.Methods: We conducted an exposed/unexposed cohort study with retrospective data collection, comparing patients infected by VOC Alpha to contemporaneous patients infected by historical lineages. Participants were matched on age (± 2.5 years), sex and region of hospitalization. The primary endpoint was the proportion of hospitalized participants with severe COVID-19, defined as a WHO-scale > 5 or by the need of a non-rebreather mask, occurring up to day 29 after admission. We used a logistic regression model stratified on each matched pair and accounting for factors known to be associated with the severity of the disease.Results: We included 650 pairs of patients hospitalized between Jan 1, 2021, and Feb 28, 2021, in 47 hospitals. Median age was 70 years and 61.3% of participants were male. The proportion of participants with comorbidities was high in both groups (85.0% vs 90%, p = 0.004). Infection by VOC Alpha was associated with a higher odds of severe COVID-19 (41.7% vs 38.5%-aOR = 1.33 95% CI [1.03-1.72]).Conclusion: Infection by the VOC Alpha was associated with a higher odds of severe COVID-19

Evaluation of a quality improvement intervention to reduce anastomotic leak following right colectomy (EAGLE): pragmatic, batched stepped-wedge, cluster-randomized trial in 64 countries

Background Anastomotic leak affects 8 per cent of patients after right colectomy with a 10-fold increased risk of postoperative death. The EAGLE study aimed to develop and test whether an international, standardized quality improvement intervention could reduce anastomotic leaks. Methods The internationally intended protocol, iteratively co-developed by a multistage Delphi process, comprised an online educational module introducing risk stratification, an intraoperative checklist, and harmonized surgical techniques. Clusters (hospital teams) were randomized to one of three arms with varied sequences of intervention/data collection by a derived stepped-wedge batch design (at least 18 hospital teams per batch). Patients were blinded to the study allocation. Low- and middle-income country enrolment was encouraged. The primary outcome (assessed by intention to treat) was anastomotic leak rate, and subgroup analyses by module completion (at least 80 per cent of surgeons, high engagement; less than 50 per cent, low engagement) were preplanned. Results A total 355 hospital teams registered, with 332 from 64 countries (39.2 per cent low and middle income) included in the final analysis. The online modules were completed by half of the surgeons (2143 of 4411). The primary analysis included 3039 of the 3268 patients recruited (206 patients had no anastomosis and 23 were lost to follow-up), with anastomotic leaks arising before and after the intervention in 10.1 and 9.6 per cent respectively (adjusted OR 0.87, 95 per cent c.i. 0.59 to 1.30; P = 0.498). The proportion of surgeons completing the educational modules was an influence: the leak rate decreased from 12.2 per cent (61 of 500) before intervention to 5.1 per cent (24 of 473) after intervention in high-engagement centres (adjusted OR 0.36, 0.20 to 0.64; P &lt; 0.001), but this was not observed in low-engagement hospitals (8.3 per cent (59 of 714) and 13.8 per cent (61 of 443) respectively; adjusted OR 2.09, 1.31 to 3.31). Conclusion Completion of globally available digital training by engaged teams can alter anastomotic leak rates. Registration number: NCT04270721 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov)