Maoto, a Traditional Japanese Herbal Medicine, Inhibits Uncoating of Influenza Virus

We previously reported in randomized controlled trials that maoto, a traditional herbal medicine, showed clinical and virological efficacy for seasonal influenza. In this study, a culturing system for influenza was used to test the effect of maoto. A549 cells in the culture were infected with influenza virus A (PR8) and followed after treatment with maoto; the virus titers in the culture supernatant, intracellular viral proteins, and viral RNA were determined. When infected cells were cultured with maoto for 24 hr, the virus titer and protein were significantly reduced compared with medium only. Other subtypes, A/H3N2, H1N1pdm, and B, were also inhibited by maoto. Proliferation of viral RNA in a 6 hr culture was inhibited by maoto in the early phase, especially in the first 30 min. Focusing on the entry step of the influenza virus, we found that endosomal pH, regulated by vacuolar-type H+ ATPase (V-ATPase) located in the membrane, was increased when treated with maoto. We also found that uncoating of influenza viruses was also inhibited by maoto, resulting in the increase of the number of virus particles in endosomes. These results strongly suggest that the inhibition of endosomal acidification by maoto results in blocking influenza virus entry to cytoplasm, probably through the inhibition of V-ATPase. The present study provides evidence that supports the clinical use of maoto for the treatment of influenza

Antibacterial Activity of Hypericum Erectum

In recent years, the potential of oral care in preventing aspiration pneumonia has been recognized. Consuming drinks is thought to be an easy and effective method of oral care, and the antibacterial activities of various drinks have been examined. However, the side effects associated with, for example, caffeine as an ingredient in tea (e.g. sleep disorders) need to be taken into consideration. As yet, a safe caffeine-free tea to be taken orally to prevent aspiration pneumonia has not been reported. Thus, in the present study we evaluated the antibacterial effects of hot water extracts of four teas, namely Hypericum Erectum, Crataegus cuneata, Rosa canina, and Matricaria rectita, thought to be caffeine-free. The effects of the extracts against 19 bacteria and 1 fungus were investigated by the dilution plate technique. In addition, the components of the teas were analyzed by HPLC analysis. The strongest antibacterial activity was observed for the hot water extract of H. erectum, which exhibited significant activity against oral bacteria, including Streptococcus oralis. However, the H. erectum extract did not kill microbiota, such as Escherichia coli and Lactobacillus casei. Neither hypericin nor caffeine, both of which have notable side effects, were detected in the H. erectum extract following HPLC analysis. These results suggest that H. erectum tea may be a good candidate for simple, safe oral care to prevent aspiration pneumonia in the elderly

Influence of Hepatectomy on Body Temperature Change in Rats

Abdominal surgery, especially liver resection and transplantation, increases body temperature during and after surgery, but the precise mechanism (s) underlying this effect are not well understood. The present study thus sought to investigate this phenomenon using an experimental rat model. Specific pathogen-free male Sprague-Dawley rats, 5 weeks of age, underwent a two-thirds partial hepatectomy (PH), one-third splenectomy, or left kidney resection, and then rectal temperature was measured for 5 consecutive days after surgery. Rectal temperature increased in PH rats to a peak on day 4, but no change in temperature was detected after splenectomy and kidney resection. In the second part of the study, we examined the influence of gadolinium chloride and interleukin-1β monoclonal antibody (IL-1β mAb) on the increase in rectal temperature following PH. Treatment of rats with 20mg/kg gadolinium chrolide or 200µg IL-1β mAb inhibited the PH-induced increase in rectal temperature and decrease in IL-1β and prostaglandin E2, which act as pyrogens to change the thermoregulatory set point in the hypothalamus. These results suggest that abdominal surgery, especially liver resection, caused an increase in endogenous pyrogen production that results in increased body temperature

Oral immunotherapy combined with omalizumab for high–risk cow’s milk allergy : a randomized controlled trial

We evaluated the efficacy and safety of oral immunotherapy (OIT) combined with 24 weeks of omalizumab (OMB) at inducing desensitization in children with cow’s milk allergy (CM) compared with an untreated group. The present study was a prospective randomized controlled trial. Sixteen patients (age, 6–14 years) with high IgE levels to CM were enrolled in the present study. Patients were randomized 1:1 to receive OMB-OIT group or untreated group. The primary outcome was the induction of desensitization at 8 weeks after OMB was discontinued in OMB-OIT treated group and at 32 weeks after study entry. None of the 6 children in the untreated group developed desensitization to CM while all of the 10 children in the OIT-OMB treated group achieved desensitization (P < 0.001). A significantly decreased wheal diameter in response to a skin prick test using CM was found in the OMB-OIT treated group (P < 0.05). These data suggest that OIT combined with OMB using microwave heated CM may help to induce desensitization for children with high-risk CM allergy. This prospective randomized controlled trial was intended for 50 participants but was prematurely discontinued due to overwhelming superiority of OMB combined with microwave heated OIT over CM avoidance