In vivo analgesic activity and safety assessment of Vitis vinifera L and Punica granatum L fruits extracts

Purpose: To investigate the analgesic properties of fruit extracts of Vitis vinifera (grape) and Punica granatum (pomegranate) in Albino mal mice. Methods: The analgesic activity of fruit extracts of V. vinifera and P. granatum were examined in vivo using thermal stimulus assays (i.e., tail immersion and hot plate) and acetic acid-induced writhing test using acetylsalicylic acid (0.1 g/kg, per os) as standard. The extracts were administered orally in doses of 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 g/kg. Results: In acetic acid writhes test, both fruit extract pretreatments (1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 g/kg, per os) significantly decreased the number of writhes (p < 0.0001) in a dose-dependent manner compared to control. The Index of Pain Inhibition (IPI) values following V. vinifera extract treatments were 36.52 % (1.0 g/kg), 66.67 % (2.0 g/kg) and 89.71 % (3.0 g/kg) which were significantly different from those for P. granatum extracts (45.39 %, 1.0 g/kg), 70.93 %, 2.0 g/kg) and 86.88 %, 3.0 g/kg) at equivalent doses of 2.0 and 3.0 g/kg of the extracts The fruit extracts of both species increased the reaction latency time. In tail-immersion assay, only the fruit extract of P. granatum significantly increased the response to heat stimulus at doses of 2.0 g/kg (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The hydroalcohol fruit extracts of P. granatum and V. vinifera have potential analgesic effects. Further studies are needed to determine the active component responsible for this effect.

Clinical efficacy and safety of edaravone therapy in acute cerebral haemorrhage

Purpose: To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of edaravone in the treatment of acute cerebral haemorrhage (ACH). Methods: This study recruited 120 patients who developed ACH. The patients were divided into control and treatment groups with 60 patients per group. The control group underwent conventional treatment and the treatment group also received intravenous edaravone. The volumes of cerebral edema and cerebral hematoma, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels, and Chinese Stroke Scale (CSS) score before and after treatment were compared between the two groups. Results: The respective cerebral edema volumes of the control and treatment groups decreased from 20.99 ± 12.09 and 21.80 ± 12.01 mL on day 0 to 11.23 ± 6.34 and 12.11 ± 5.98 mL at day 7 and 4.69 ± 4.03 and 4.64 ± 3.9 mL on day 14 (P < 0.05). The respective cerebral hematoma volumes of the control and treatment groups decreased from 18.98 ± 12.04 and 18.97 ± 12.07 mL on day 0 to 12.34 ± 6.57 and 11.89 ± 4.01 mL at day 7 and 9.49 ± 3.95 and 9.52 ± 3.96 mL on day 14. Compared with pretreatment, hs-CRP and IL-6 levels and CSS score of the two groups decreased significantly following treatment (p < 0.05); the differences in the cerebral edema and hematoma volumes of the two groups on days 7 and 14 were not significant (p > 0.05). The hs-CRP and IL-6 levels and CSS scores of the treatment group decreased appreciably (p < 0.05), while the incidence of adverse reactions in the treatment and control groups was 16.67 and 13.33 %, respectively, but the difference was not significant (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Edaravone shows remarkable clinical efficacy and safety with no obvious adverse reactions in the treatment of ACH. Therefore, its use is recommended.