Therapeutic approaches to drug targets in atherosclerosis

AbstractNon-communicable diseases such as cancer, atherosclerosis and diabetes are responsible for major social and health burden as millions of people are dying every year. Out of which, atherosclerosis is the leading cause of deaths worldwide. The lipid abnormality is one of the major modifiable risk factors for atherosclerosis. Both genetic and environmental components are associated with the development of atherosclerotic plaques. Immune and inflammatory mediators have a complex role in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis. Understanding of all these processes will help to invent a range of new biomarkers and novel treatment modalities targeting various cellular events in acute and chronic inflammation that are accountable for atherosclerosis. Several biochemical pathways, receptors and enzymes are involved in the development of atherosclerosis that would be possible targets for improving strategies for disease diagnosis and management. Earlier anti-inflammatory or lipid-lowering treatments could be useful for alleviating morbidity and mortality of atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. However, novel drug targets like endoglin receptor, PPARα, squalene synthase, thyroid hormone analogues, scavenger receptor and thyroid hormone analogues are more powerful to control the process of atherosclerosis. Therefore, the review briefly focuses on different novel targets that act at the starting stage of the plaque form to the thrombus formation in the atherosclerosis

Assessment of Annona reticulata Linn. leaves fractions for invitro antioxidative effect and antimicrobial potential against standard human pathogenic strains

Since from long time the plant, Annona reticulata Linn. is known for its beneficial effects. Leaves of A. reticulata were screened for phytochemicals and in vitro antioxidant, antibacterial and antifungal activity. The shade dried leaves were extracted with methanol and aqueous methanolic extract was partitioned successively with n-butanol, chloroform and acetone solvents. Methanolic extract was subjected to antioxidant screening using DPPH free radical scavenging activity and H2O2 scavenging activity. Antibacterial and antifungal activity of extract and fractions were analyzed on eight different clinical bacterial and fungal strains using agar well diffusion method and broth dilution method (MIC and MMC determination). The antioxidant activity showed that the extracts exhibited scavenging effect in concentration-dependent manner. The extract showed potent inhibitory effect against Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli bacterial strains while in case of fungal strains the maximum effect was observed against Candida blanki. The maximum zone of inhibition of n-butanol, chloroform and acetone fractions was observed against B. subtilis, and E. coli respectively while all fractions exhibited potent inhibitory effect against C. blanki. MIC and MBC values were determined for active samples, methanol extract and chloroform fraction against Staphylococcus aureus, B. subtilis, E. coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa which revealed lower MIC and MBC values. The fungal strains Candida albicans, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and C. blanki were used to calculate MIC and MFC values for methanol extract and acetone fraction which demonstrated lower MIC and MFC values. The results provided evidence that the plant is richly supplied with numerous phytoconstituents that might indeed be potential sources of natural antioxidant, antimicrobial agents and supplementary food