Frontiers in pharmacology
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Frontiers in pharmacology · Jan 2014
Deleterious effects of maternal ingestion of cocoa upon fetal ductus arteriosus in late pregnancy.
Cocoa powder has twice more antioxidants than red wine and three times more than green tea. Ten percent of its weight is made up of flavonoids. Cocoa has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects by downregulating cyclooxigenase-2 receptors expression in the endothelium and enhancing nitric oxide bioavailability. ⋯ Polyphenols present in many foods and their anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities have been shown to be as or more powerful than those of indomethacin. These effects are dependent on the inhibition of modulation of the arachidonic acid and the synthesis of prostaglandins, especially E-2, which is responsible for fetal DA patency. So, we hypothesized that this same mechanism is responsible for the harmful effect of polyphenol-rich foods, such as cocoa, upon the fetal DA after maternal intake of such substances in the third trimester of pregnancy, thereby rising the perspective of a note of caution for pregnant women diet.
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Frontiers in pharmacology · Jan 2014
The search for novel analgesics: re-examining spinal cord circuits with new tools.
In this perspective, we propose the absence of detailed information regarding spinal cord circuits that process sensory information remains a major barrier to advancing analgesia. We highlight recent advances showing that functionally discrete populations of neurons in the spinal cord dorsal horn (DH) play distinct roles in processing sensory information. We then discuss new molecular, electrophysiological, and optogenetic techniques that can be employed to understand how DH circuits process tactile and nociceptive information. We believe this information can drive the development of entirely new classes of pharmacotherapies that target key elements in spinal circuits to selectively modify sensory function and blunt pain.
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Frontiers in pharmacology · Jan 2014
ReviewInfluence of host iron status on Plasmodium falciparum infection.
Iron deficiency affects one quarter of the world's population and causes significant morbidity, including detrimental effects on immune function and cognitive development. Accordingly, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends routine iron supplementation in children and adults in areas with a high prevalence of iron deficiency. ⋯ Although many effective antimalarial treatments and preventive measures are available, malaria remains a significant public health problem, in part because the mechanisms of malaria pathogenesis remain obscured by the complexity of the relationships that exist between parasite virulence factors, host susceptibility traits, and the immune responses that modulate disease. Here we review (i) the clinical and epidemiological data that describes the relationship between host iron status and malaria infection and (ii) the current understanding of the biological basis for these clinical and epidemiological observations.