Peganum harmala intoxication, a case report

Objective: Peganum harmala (P. harmala), “Espand ” in Persian, has small seeds and has been used in traditional medicine as emmenagogue and an abortifacient. It has various pharmacological effects such as antifungal, antibacterial, hypothermic, anticancer, antinociceptive, and reversible monoamine oxidase inhibition. Case details: This case was a 45 years old woman who ingested about 50 grams seed of P. harmala for hypermenorrhae. She suffered nausea, vomiting, dizziness, tremor, ataxia, and confusion. On physical examination, she had hypotension (BP=90/60 mmHg) with normal heart rate (60 beat/min) and impaired knee to heel test. Her consciousness was reduced without any hallucination. Her laboratory test was normal. She was discharged at good condition 18 hours later. Conclusion: In conclusion, physicians working in Iran and other regions that P. harmala is prescribed or used illegally, should know signs and symptoms of its toxicity in order to be able to deal with the emergencies, however, prognosis of these toxicity is not bad

Verapamil Inhibits Mitochondria-Induced Reactive Oxygen Species and Dependent Apoptosis Pathways in Cerebral Transient Global Ischemia/Reperfusion

The prefrontal cortex is the largest lobe of the brain and is consequently involved in stroke. There is no comprehensive practical pharmacological strategy for ameliorating prefrontal cortex injury induced by cerebral ischemia. Therefore, we studied the neuroprotective properties of verapamil (Ver) on mitochondrial dysfunction and morphological features of apoptosis in transient global ischemia/reperfusion (I/R). Ninety-six Wistar rats were allocated into four groups: control, I/R, I/R+Ver (10 mg/kg twice 1 hour prior to ischemia and 1 hour after reperfusion phase), and I/R+NaCl (vehicle). Animals were sacrificed, and mitochondrial dysfunction parameters (i.e., mitochondrial swelling, mitochondrial membrane potential, ATP concentration, ROS production, and cytochrome c release), antioxidant defense (i.e., superoxide dismutase, malondialdehyde, glutathione peroxidase, catalase, and caspase-3 activation), and morphological features of apoptosis were determined. The results showed that mitochondrial damage, impairment of antioxidant defense system, and apoptosis were significantly more prevalent in the I/R group in comparison with the other groups. Ver decreased mitochondrial damage by reducing oxidative stress, augmented the activity of antioxidant enzymes in the brain, and decreased apoptosis in the I/R neurons. The current study confirmed the role of oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in I/R progression and indicated the possible antioxidative mechanism of the neuroprotective activities of Ver