Efficacy and safety of cumaru syrup as complementary therapy in mild persistent asthma: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study

Amburana cearensis is a medicinal plant known as "cumaru". It is used in Northeast Brazil in the treatment of respiratory diseases. This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, with the aim of evaluating the efficacy and safety of cumaru syrup as complementary therapy in mild persistent asthma. The study consisted of 3 phases, pre-treatment, treatment and post-treatment. The primary efficacy outcome was comparison of the changes reported by patients of the cumaru and placebo groups after treatment, using the "Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire" (AQLQ). The secondary outcome was the effect of cumaru syrup on lung function based on spirometry. The results showed that in the cumaru group, the proportion of patients who had global improvement in asthma symptoms was significantly greater (61.90%, P=0.0009) than in the placebo group (9.52%). Only the spirometric parameters Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) and Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second (FEV1) showed significant intergroup differences in post-treatment (P0.05). Adverse events were reported by 3 patients (14.29%) in the cumaru group and 3 patients (14.29%) in the placebo group. All adverse events were considered non-serious and mild.Amburana cearensis é uma planta medicinal conhecida como "cumaru". No Nordeste do Brasil é usada no tratamento de doenças respiratórias. Este é um estudo randomizado, duplo-cego e controlado por placebo, com o objetivo de avaliar a eficácia e segurança do xarope de cumaru como terapia complementar da asma persistente leve. O estudo consistiu de três fases, pré-tratamento, tratamento e pós-tratamento. A variável primária para determinação da eficácia foi a comparação das mudanças referidas pelos pacientes dos grupos cumaru e placebo após o tratamento, usando o "Questionário sobre Qualidade de Vida na Asma" (QQVA). A variável secundária foi o efeito do xarope de cumaru na função pulmonar baseado na espirometria. Os resultados mostraram que no grupo cumaru, a proporção de pacientes com melhora global dos sintomas da asma foi significativamente maior (61,90%, P=0.0009) que no grupo placebo (9,52%). Somente os parâmetros espirométricos, capacidade vital forçada (CVF) e volume expiratório forçado no primeiro segundo (VEF1), mostraram diferença intergrupo significtivas no pós-tratamento (P0.05). Eventos adversos foram reportados por 3 pacientes (14,29%) no grupo cumaru e 3 (14,29%) no grupo placebo. Todos os eventos adversos foram não sérios e leves

Planning and Conducting a Pharmacogenetics Association Study

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/169261/1/cpt2270.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/169261/2/cpt2270_am.pd

Large-scale gene-centric meta-analysis across 39 studies identifies type 2 diabetes loci

To identify genetic factors contributing to type 2 diabetes (T2D), we performed large-scale meta-analyses by using a custom similar to 50,000 SNP genotyping array (the ITMAT-Broad-CARe array) with similar to 2000 candidate genes in 39 multiethnic population-based studies, case-control studies, and clinical trials totaling 17,418 cases and 70,298 controls. First, meta-analysis of 25 studies comprising 14,073 cases and 57,489 controls of European descent confirmed eight established T2D loci at genome-wide significance. In silico follow-up analysis of putative association signals found in independent genome-wide association studies (including 8,130 cases and 38,987 controls) performed by the DIAGRAM consortium identified a T2D locus at genome-wide significance (GATAD2A/CILP2/PBX4; p = 5.7 x 10(-9)) and two loci exceeding study-wide significance (SREBF1, and TH/INS; p < 2.4 x 10(-6)). Second, meta-analyses of 1,986 cases and 7,695 controls from eight African-American studies identified study-wide-significant (p = 2.4 x 10(-7)) variants in HMGA2 and replicated variants in TCF7L2 (p = 5.1 x 10(-15)). Third, conditional analysis revealed multiple known and novel independent signals within five T2D-associated genes in samples of European ancestry and within HMGA2 in African-American samples. Fourth, a multiethnic meta-analysis of all 39 studies identified T2D-associated variants in BCL2 (p = 2.1 x 10(-8)). Finally, a composite genetic score of SNPs from new and established T2D signals was significantly associated with increased risk of diabetes in African-American, Hispanic, and Asian populations. In summary, large-scale meta-analysis involving a dense gene-centric approach has uncovered additional loci and variants that contribute to T2D risk and suggests substantial overlap of T2D association signals across multiple ethnic groups