Evaluation of Effect of Taxus baccata Leaves Extract on Bronchoconstriction and Bronchial Hyperreactivity in Experimental Animals

The present investigation was undertaken to evaluate the bronchodilating effect and bronchial hyperreactivity of alcoholic extract of Taxus baccata Linn. (AET) leaves in experimental animals. Bronchodilator activity of AET was studied on the histamine and acetylcholine aerosol induced bronchospasm in guinea pigs and bronchial hyperreactivity was studied on bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in the egg albumin sensitized guinea pigs and by histopathological studies. In vitro mast cell stabilizing activity was studied using compound 48/80 as a degranulating agent. Treatment with AET (200 and 400 mg/kg, p.o., for 7 days) showed significant protection against histamine and acetylcholine aerosol induced bronchospasm in guinea pigs. Significant decrease in the total leukocyte and differential leukocyte count in the BALF of the egg albumin sensitized guinea pigs was observed by administration of AET (200 and 400 mg/kg, p.o., for 15 days). AET dose dependently protected the mast cell disruption induced by compound 48/80. These results suggest that AET not only has bronchodilating activity but also decreases bronchial hyperreactivity by decreasing the infiltration of inflammatory cells in the airway and inhibiting the release of histamine like mediators from the mast cell by stabilizing it

Catalytic oxidation of a model volatile organic compound (toluene) with tetranuclear Cu(II) complexes

A tetranuclear Cu(II) cubane [Cu2(μ-1κONO’:2κOO’:3κO-HL)(μ-1κONO’:2κOO’-HL)]2‧4dmf (1) derived form (2,3-dihydroxybenzylidene)-2-hydroxybenzohydrazide (H3L) was synthesized at room temperature and characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, ESI-MS and single crystal X-ray diffraction. The known tetranuclear Cu(II) open-cubane [Cu(HL)]4‧4EtOH (2) was synthesized from the same pro-ligand following a similar method or the reported one. The different tautomeric forms (keto and enol) of the organic ligands in 1 and 2 explain their different structural features. Both complexes were screened as catalysts for the peroxidative oxidation of toluene with tert-butyl hydroperoxide, achieving benzaldehyde and o-cresol as the main products. Complex 1 exhibits the highest activity (maximum product yield of 11%). © 2021 Elsevier B.V

Enhanced attentional bias towards sexually explicit cues in individuals with and without compulsive sexual behaviours

Compulsive sexual behaviour (CSB) is relatively common and has been associated with significant distress and psychosocial impairments. CSB has been conceptualized as either an impulse control disorder or a non-substance ‘behavioural’ addiction. Substance use disorders are commonly associated with attentional biases to drug cues which are believed to reflect processes of incentive salience. Here we assess male CSB subjects compared to age-matched male healthy controls using a dot probe task to assess attentional bias to sexually explicit cues. We show that compared to healthy volunteers, CSB subjects have enhanced attentional bias to explicit cues but not neutral cues particularly for early stimuli latency. Our findings suggest enhanced attentional bias to explicit cues possibly related to an early orienting attentional response. This finding dovetails with our recent observation that sexually explicit videos were associated with greater activity in a neural network similar to that observed in drug-cue-reactivity studies. Greater desire or wanting rather than liking was further associated with activity in this neural network. These studies together provide support for an incentive motivation theory of addiction underlying the aberrant response towards sexual cues in CSB