Regulation of Lithospermic Acid B and Shikonin Production in Lithospermum erythrorhizon Cell Suspension Cultures

Cell suspension cultures of Lithospermum erythrorhizon produced a large amount of lithospermic acid B, a caffeic acid tetramer, as well as shikonin derivatives (each ca. 10% of dry wt.) when cultured in shikonin production medium M-9. Various culture factors for increasing the production of lithospermic acid B were investigated. Lithospermic acid B production was inhibited by 2, 4-D or NH4+, whereas it was stimulated by Cu2+. These regulatory patterns were similar to those for the production of shikonin derivatives in these cell cultures, suggestive of close relations and similar metabolic regulation between the production of these compounds. Cultivation under light illumination, however, showed that these metabolisms were independently regulated. In particular, blue light showed a stimulatory effect on lithospermic acid B production, while shikonin production was strongly inhibited, indicative of an effective condition for lithospermic acid B production

A Timeliness Study of Disease Surveillance Data Post ELR Implementation in Houston

After ELR implementation in Houston, the annual number of cases and number of reportable cases increased substantially (chart1); prior to the ELR implementation it took longer to report a case. The use of electronic disease surveillance system and the implementation of ELR improved the Houston disease surveillance system capacity of early case detection (table1); however, after ELR implementation, probably due to increase in case volume, it took longer to complete an investigation (table2); not substantial differences were found between cases pre and post ELR implementation, but cases populated by ELRs were less complete with case reporting information (table3)

Application of Syndromic Surveillance to Describe Gunshot-related Injuries in Houston

Firearm-related injuries pose a substantial public health risk in the United States, and traditional means of studying this issue rely primarily on retrospective analyses. Syndromic surveillance, collected in over 30 Houston area emergency departments, is well suited to characterize and analyze gunshot injuries in the area in near real-time. Over the past two years, more than 900 gunshot-related injury visits were identified using this method, and ArcGIS effectively identified incident densities in ZIP codes throughout Houston. Most patients were males (86.3%), between the ages of 18 and 34 (64.7%)

Hepatoprotective Activity Evaluation Of Cichorium glandulosum

The EtOAc and n-BuOH extracts of Cichorium glandulosum were tested for hepatoprotective activity against paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicities in mice. C. gladulosum exhibited significant hepatoprotective activity by reducing paracetamol-induced change in bio-chemical parameters that was evident by enzymatic examination of aspartate transaminase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT) activities in plasma. The EtOAc extract was further studied and esculetin was isolated and identified from the fraction. Keywords: Cichorium glandulosum, Compositae, hepatoprotective activity, paracetamol, esculetin, aspartate transaminase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT)Nigerian Journal of Natural Products and Medicine Vol. 11 2007 pp. 41-4