Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis From the Perspective of Traditional Persian Medicine: Presentation of a Novel Therapeutic Approach

There is a strong current trend for using complementary and alternative medications to treat atopic dermatitis. Atopic dermatitis is a common, chronic, pruritic, and inflammatory skin disease. It can have a profound, negative effect on patients' quality of life. Mild cases of atopic dermatitis can be controlled by the application of moisturizers and topical corticosteroids. However, in severe cases, application of immunosuppressive medication is unavoidable but it can have adverse effects. In traditional Persian medicine, diseases similar to resistant atopic dermatitis are treated with whey in combination with decoction of field dodder. Both whey and field dodder have anti-inflammatory properties. Consumption of whey can also aid skin repair, mitigate pruritus, and help combat the high level of stress experienced by patients. Therefore, it is hypothesized that consumption of traditional medicinal treatment of whey with decoction of field dodder can be applied as a complementary treatment for atopic dermatitis

Analyzing the Effects of Adipogenic Potential in Hydro-Alcoholic Extract of Marijuana on Mesenchymal Bone Marrow Stem Cells of Adult Male Rats

Aims:Millions of people consume psychoactives such as marijuana. Mesenchyme cells, which are derived from bone marrow stem cells, have multiple applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of marijuana on differentiation power of bone marrow stem cells of adult male rats in adipose tissues. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, the bone marrow stem cells of adult male rats were segregated with flushing method. Then, their mesenchymal identity was confirmed with a morphological study, PCR-RT method, and surface markers of CD45 and CD34 along with the related genes of CD90 and CD73. For analyzing the viability and differentiation power of the cells in adipose tissues in terms of marijuana usage, cell samples were exposed to different dosages of marijuana, such as 30 and 6000 ng/ml and cell survival was evaluated by MTT.The adipogenic differentiation potential of the treated cells were analyzed based on oil red staining. The results were analyzed by ANOVA and Schaffe tests. Findings:The results indicated that the extracted cells are non-adherent in flasks and, in moving from passage one to the next passage, their duplication speed increased. In passage three, they changed into fusiform cells. Based on RT-PCR, it was revealed that CD90 and CD73 were existent, but CD34 and CD45 are nonexistent. Marijuana treatment caused no change in the form of stem cells. 10days after exposure to adipogenic circumstances, in addition to increase of survival, their cytoplasm was repleted with adipose. Conclusion:The results of this study revealed that marijuana has positive effects on mesenchymal bone marrow stem cells in differentiating the adipocyte

Efficacy of Herbal Based Syrup on male sexual experiences: A double-blind randomized clinical trial

Background and aim: An Aphrodisiac includes any drug and food that arouses sexual instinct, induces venereal desire, and increases pleasure and performance. The present study was designed to clinically evaluate efficacy and safety of Herbal Based Syrup (HBS) composed of Tribulus terrestris L., Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer., Zingiber officinale Rosc, Ceratonia siliqua L., Papaver rhoeas L., and Palm tree pollen on sexual experience of men. Experimental procedure: The study was designed as a double-blind randomized clinical trial. The main outcome measures were the responses obtained from using the Arizona Sexual Experience Scale (ASEX). The ASEX was completed by 100 married and seemingly healthy men before and after taking one dose of HBS or placebo and at least one sexual intercourse. In addition, possible side effects were observed. A split-plot ANOVA (SPANOVA) design was used for statistical analysis. Results: Results of analysis of data for each variable of the ASEX showed significantly lower scores in HBS-treated group compared to the placebo (control) group in items of desire, arousal, erection, orgasm and satisfaction (p < 0.05). No drug-related serious adverse events were observed. Conclusion: Results of this study indicated a significant improvement in sexual experience of men following consumption of HBS. Due to various complications reported about the use of chemical sexual drive enhancers, HBS can be introduced as an alternative with fewer side effects. © 2020 Center for Food and Biomolecules, National Taiwan Universit

The efficacy of whey associated with dodder seed extract on moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in adults: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Atopic dermatitis is a common chronic inflammatory skin condition that is on the rise and adversely affects quality of life of the affected individual. Dry skin and pruritus, major characteristics of this disease, are associated with the dysfunction of the skin barrier. Though mild cases of the disease can be controlled with antihistamines and topical corticosteroids, moderate-to-severe cases often require treatment with immunomodulatory drugs, which have many side effects. It is now more common to use complementary and alternative medicines in the treatment of atopic dermatitis. In traditional Iranian medicine, the use of whey with the aqueous extract of field dodder (Cuscuta campestris Yunck.) seeds in severe and refractory cases of atopic dermatitis is common and has no side effects. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of whey associated with dodder seed extract in the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was a randomized, double-blind placebo control trial that was conducted on 52 patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis for 30 days. In this study patients received freeze dried whey powder with spray dried water extract of field dodder or the placebo for 15 days. At baseline (week zero), after the end of the 15 day treatment period (week three) and 15 days after stopping the drug or placebo (follow-up/week five), patients were evaluated in terms of skin moisture, elasticity, pigmentation, surface pH and sebum content on the forearm with Multi Skin Test Center® MC1000 (Courage & Khazaka, Germany) and the degree of pruritus and sleep disturbance in patients were also recorded. RESULTS: 42 patients completed 30 days of treatment with the medicine and the follow-up period. At the end of the follow-up period a significant increase in skin moisture and elasticity in the group receiving whey with dodder was observed compared with the placebo group (p<0.001). There was a significant difference between the two groups regarding the pruritus after 15 days of receiving treatment or the placebo (p<0.05), and at the end of the 30-day study period the difference was clearly significant (p<0.001). Sleep disturbance showed significant changes at the end of follow-up period (p<0.05). There was no significant difference between the two groups concerning changes in skin pigmentation, however, a significant decrease was observed in the group receiving whey associated with dodder seed extract over time (p<0.001). There were no significant alterations in skin surface pH and the amount of sebum between the two groups. Temporary side effects were reported including anorexia and mild gastrointestinal problems in drug use. It is noteworthy that in this study despite the fact that patients received whey with dodder for just 15 days, moisture and elasticity of the skin continued to increase in the second half of the study (follow-up period). This shows that the effect of whey with dodder is not transient and this drug really helped skin barrier reconstruction and accelerated the healing process of skin. This positively influenced the skin parameters and consequently the improvement of pruritus and sleep disturbance. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that whey associated with dodder seed extract can serve as a promising alternative for the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials IRCT2013121415790N1. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Efficacy of a topical formulation of henna (Lawsonia inermis L.) in contact dermatitis in patients using prosthesis: A double-blind randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial

Background: Contact dermatitis is a common complication in prosthetic limb users. There are no effective, available and cheap treatments for skin problems of these patients. In traditional Iranian medicine, henna (Lawsonia inermis L.) is a plant that has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and skin-enhancing properties, all of which are beneficial for people with artificial limbs. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of a topical henna preparation in management of contact dermatitis in patients using lower limb prosthetics. Methods: The current randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted on ninety-five participants with lower extremity amputation using limb prosthetics, aged 12�70 years who complained of contact dermatitis. They were randomly assigned to receive either two weeks of topical henna preparation every night as the intervention group, or topical placebo as the control group. Participants were instructed to spread henna preparation on the surfaces of the amputated limb that were in contact with the prosthesis. Severity of contact dermatitis symptoms was set as the primary outcome measure. Edema, papules and erythema were evaluated by a physician using standard color atlas. Secondary outcomes included symptoms such as burning, itching, pain, thickness and skin sweating evaluated by a self-administered questionnaire. Results: A significant improvement was observed in the symptoms of contact dermatitis including skin edema, itching, sweating, skin thinning and pain (p-value<0.05) in the henna group compared to the placebo group. Skin burning decreased more in the henna group compared to the placebo group, but this was not statistically significant (p-value = 0.052). Moreover, skin redness significantly increased in the henna group (p-value = 0.001). Conclusion: Topical formulation of henna might be a complementary choice for improving contact dermatitis in patients using lower limb prosthetics. © 2020 Elsevier Lt

The efficacy of a traditional medicine preparation on second-degree burn wounds in rats

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Lime Salve (L.S) has been well documented from the 9th to the 19th century AD by Traditional Iranian Medicine (TIM) as an effective remedy for burn healing. Aim of the study: The present study was undertaken to evaluate the healing effect and related underlying mechanisms of Lime Salve in a model of deep second-degree thermal burn in male Wistar rats. Materials and method: L.S was made up of a combination of refined calcium hydroxide powder, beeswax and sesame oil and its quality control was assessed. A deep second-degree burn was created by a hot plate in 48 male Wistar rats. Afterwards, they were randomly divided in four groups including normal saline (C group), L.S (T group), basement of formulation composed of beeswax and sesame oil (B group) and silver sulfadiazine (S group). On days 5, 10, 17 and 24, the wounds were digitally photographed by a camera and after sacrifice of the rats, skin samples were obtained for performing qRT-PCR, immunohistochemistry staining and histological examination. Results: L.S prominently augmented the wound closure rate, neovascularization on day 10 and collagen formation on day 17 and 24 in comparison with the C group. Furthermore, the Salve-exposed specimens showed a significant higher epithelialization during the experiment with a peak on day 24. qRT-PCR also showed that on day 10, VEGF and TGF-β1 genes were significantly higher in the T group as compared with the C group. Also, MMP-9 and MMP-2 genes had a significant peak of expression on day 17 and rapid reduction of expression on day 24. Expression levels of IL-6 and TNF-α genes peaked on day 10 in the T group, followed by a progressive reduction until the end of the examination. Conclusion: L.S could effectively accelerate the healing process of deep second-degree burn wounds and therefore, it may be recommended as a promising topical medication for treating burn wounds in the future clinical trials. © 2020 Elsevier B.V